Sermon Notes
To be the greatest church, we must follow the greatest commandment, from the greatest person for the greatest glory.
The Big Idea
Identify ONE person this year to share your faith experience with through personal conversations.
Jesus sees all of us as broken people.
Jesus’ priority is for a person to know the full forgiveness of their sin, over and above their physical disability.
REMEMBER:
There is the thing that you want Jesus to fix.
And then there is the thing that Jesus wants to fix.
These are often two very different issues.
(Mark 2:1-12)
1. People with a disability have had a hard time getting to Jesus.
2. People with disabilities benefit from friends that help them get to Jesus.
And their faith is an important part of the process.
3. Jesus affirms the revelation of God and its ability to change people’s lives. (Mark 2:1-2, Mark 1:15, Mark 1:38-39)
4. Jesus sees the need before anyone else does. (Mark 2:3-5)
5. Jesus’ claim to forgive sins is bolstered by his ability to heal sickness. (Mark 2:6-12)
-But what about the times I don’t get the miracle I’ve been praying for? (2 Cor. 12:7-10)
Maybe it will be through the miraculous.
Maybe it will be through weakness.
But trust that Jesus is working His greatness.
Application
Which Group Are You In?
There are people who passively make it difficult for disabled people (Space Takers)
There are people who just want to argue (Trouble Makers)
There are people who just want their friend to get to Jesus (Roof Shakers)
Discussion Questions
TALK IT OUT:
1. Pastor Rusty observes that Jesus sees us as we are—broken people. What areas in your life do you think Jesus would identify as broken?
2. Jesus’ priority is not primarily for someone’s physical disability but to know full forgiveness of their sin. How does Jesus’ priority change the way He deals with those who have challenges? What important lesson can this teach us?
3. Pastor Rusty makes the point that there is a thing we want Jesus to fix. And then, there is the thing Jesus wants to fix. These are often two vastly different issues. Why do you think Jesus and those of us with needs often have very different priorities?
4. Mark 2:1-12 illustrates that people with disabilities frequently have difficulty getting to Jesus. However, the man in the story was blessed with friends who had faith which helped him get to Jesus. Why is faith an important part of this process?
5. In Mark 2:3-5, Jesus saw the disabled man’s need for forgiveness before anyone else did. Why did Jesus forgive the paralyzed man before He healed him?
6. Jesus’ ability to forgive the man’s sin was confirmed by the fact that He healed the man’s physical disability. How does His ability to do a visible physical miracle demonstrate His power to perform an invisible spiritual miracle?
7. In 2 Corinthians 12:7-10, we discover believers sometimes don’t get the miracles they pray for. Read these verses and reflect on why God sometimes doesn’t answer our prayers the way we want Him to.
8. Pastor Rusty observes that God sometimes meets our needs through the miraculous. On other occasions God works through our weakness to meet our needs and glorify Himself. However, God chooses to meet our needs, our priority is to trust that Jesus is still working even when we don’t understand what He’s doing. Why is faith always the appropriate response?
LIVE IT OUT
There are people who passively make it difficult for disabled people. Honestly, ask yourself if you’re just taking up space when it comes to helping the disabled.
Others just want to argue about others’ needs. These troublemakers typically make things worse. Does this describe how you deal with the disabled?
There are other people whose priority is to get their friends to Jesus. Pastor Rusty calls these people “Roof Shakers.” They do whatever they can in faith to get people to Jesus. Is this how you respond to those who are disabled?
Ask God to help you not merely take up space or cause trouble but to do whatever it takes to show the disabled that God loves them and wants to help them.