Evergreen Community Church

C. S. Lewis noted at the start of The Screwtape Letters that- -There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight.- When it comes to demons people either attribute way too much to them so that they think that a demon lurks behind every stone and they live in constant fear, or they never give any thought to demons and act like they do not exist. Mark does not allow us to either ignore the reality of demons or to give us any reason to live in fear of them because Jesus's power is over the natural and supernatural realms of the created order. All are to fear His Holy name so that -at the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord-.

In our study of parables, we have seen that Jesus made use of allegorical teaching methods- however, this does not justify allegorical readings of the historical accounts of Scripture. Mark's goal is not to present us with a story that can allegorically promise us that Jesus will -calm the storms of our lives-, but to show us who Jesus is- in particular, that Jesus is the GOD-man. And knowing who our Savior is -and what He is- has tremendous implications and will result in more helpful applications for our lives.

In Jesus' explanation of his parables, He gives to his disciples both -the secret of the kingdom of God- -Mark 4-11, 33-34- and his purpose in disclosing this divine revelation to them -vv.21-25-. The content that Jesus reveals to the disciples is aimed at comforting them with the reality that everything they are witnessing is going according to God's plan. God is the one who will personally ensure the success of his kingdom -vv.26-29-, and the humble beginnings of the kingdom he is establishing are part of the plan -vv.30-32-. Circumstances might cause us today to question Jesus's words -I am with you always, even to the end of the age- -Matt 28-20-, but that is when we need to be made aware of God's game-plan.

One reason why people do not follow Jesus Christ is due to their love of sin, i.e. due to their own sinful hearts. But the Bible tells us of another, more consequential reason. Human rejection is a part of God's plan. Ultimately, the reason why anything happens is that it is part of God's plan. Jesus is not surprised by rejection because He understands that it is God's purposes that ultimately prevail in the world. This is should be a source of hope to those who are loved by God and called according to His purposes, and it in no way is to detract from his loving-kindness towards all.

Pastoral Ordination Service of Pastor Nick Krauss at Evergreen Community Church