July 4, 2013
SCRIPTURE: Mark 1:1-8
OBSERVATIONS/APPLICATION
Mark starts his biography of Jesus when His ministry begins, as an adult.
John the Baptist is the unusual fanfare that announces the coming Messiah.
To prepare for God’s coming, people need to repent.
This act of repentance was extreme: being baptized by a madman in the Jordan.
The basic message here, as I see it, is that in order for us to benefit from God’s help, we need to come to the end of ourselves, admit our desperate need, and humbly open ourselves to God.
When we do this, then God will unleash His Spirit, and an inward, powerful transformation will result (not just a symbolic washing).
God is not interested in religious rituals or traditions, He wants sincere heart change.
God will meet us in the wilderness (symbol of brokenness and transformation), but we need to be willing to go there.
This is where we will meet Jesus, when we admit our need for Him, and humbly seek Him with our whole heart.
I sense the Lord challenging me to meet Him there, in this humble honest place… if I really want to experience Him!
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, this IS good news. When I admit my desperate need for help, You will personally meet me there (through Jesus) and help me with real, life-changing power.