A. “We were…by nature children of wrath” (Ephesians 2:3)
B. Sin has corrupted the world (2 Peter 1:4)
C. This is an individual choice (John 8:44)
II. “Divine nature”
A. Available to all who are called (2 Thessalonians 2:14; 1 Peter 2:9)
B. Through His exceedingly great and precious promises
1. The promise of the Holy Spirit (Luke 24:49; Acts 2:33)
2. The promise of remission of sins (Acts 2:38-39)
3. The promise of eternal life (Titus 1:2; James 1:12)
III. What are the characteristics of the “divine nature”?
A. Righteousness (1:1; Matthew 5:6, 10; 1 Peter 3:14)
B. Grace (1:2; John 1:14, 17; Romans 3:24)
C. Peace (1:2; Romans 15:33; 16:20; 2 Corinthians 13:11; Romans 14:19)
D. Glory (1:3; Matthew 25:31; 2 Thessalonians 2:14)
E. Virtue (1:3; 1 Peter 2:9; Philippians 4:8)
I. The individual woman and her daughter (7:24-30)
A. A Syro-Phoenician Gentile woman
B. Jesus’ initial mission was to the Jews, not to the Gentiles (cf. Mt. 10:5-6)
C. She was persistent, begging for the crumbs from the Master’s table
II. The individual man with physical limitations (7:31-37)
A. A deaf, mute man
B. Jesus took him away from the crowd and healed him (cf. Isaiah 35:5-6)
C. “He has done all things well” (cf. Acts 10:38)
III. The multitude in their hunger (8:1-10)
A. A group of 4000 Gentiles so devoted to following Jesus because of what He provided – healing “the lame, blind, mute, maimed, and many others” (cf. Matthew 15:29-31)
B. Why didn’t the apostles ask Jesus to do what they knew He could do after witnessing feeding the 5000 (Mark 6:30-44)?
C. Don’t ever try to limit the power of God to transform someone’s life because of who they are! (Romans 1:16)
A. The church was “puffed up” (1 Corinthians 5:2)
B. Persistent, willful, rebellious sin must not be tolerated (Rom. 6:1-7)
II. A little leaven
A. The sin of Achan led to the defeat at Ai (Joshua 7:1, 11-13)
B. The sin of Saul caused his family to lose the kingdom (1 Sam. 13:8-14)
C. The principle in prophecy (Haggai 2:11-14)
III. What shall we do?
A. Purge out the old leaven—remove the influence of sin! (Eph. 5:11)
B. You are a new creation in Christ, which means the old things have passed away (2 Corinthians 5:17)
C. Acknowledge sin, confess it to God, beg for His forgiveness (Psalm 51:1-4)
A. The tradition—which may have started as a good reminder to the Jews—had been reduced to mere ritual
B. Accusing Jesus and His disciples was becoming common practice for the Pharisees (Mark 2:16, 18, 24)
II. The admonition (Mark 7:6-13)
A. Man’s tradition must not trump God’s truth! (Isaiah 29:13)
B. Acceptable worship and godly service requires both attitude and action – spirit and truth (John 4:24)
C. The example cited by Jesus: “Corban”
III. The source of defilement (Mark 7:14-23)
A. Defilement doesn’t come from one’s outward circumstance, but from his heart (Proverbs 4:23)
B. Sin is connected to the character and integrity and purity of one’s heart (Matthew 5:21ff; Galatians 5:19-21; Revelation 21:8)
C. We have the choice (2 Timothy 2:22)
A. The relationship between Saul and David started well (1 Samuel 16:21-23)
B. Jealousy took hold of Saul quickly as David became popular (1 Samuel 18:5-9)
C. Saul developed murderous hatred (1 Samuel 18:10-11; 19:1; 1 John 3:15)
II. Saul claimed to be the victim (1 Samuel 22:8)
A. One of man’s worst enemies is all-too-often self
B. Imagined conspiracies against him (Isaiah 8:12-13)
C. Pitied himself because no one felt sorry for him (1 Corinthians 10:24-33)
III. Saul had an unquenchable appetite for vengeance (1 Samuel 22:9-19)
A. Doeg told Saul what he wanted to hear (Isaiah 30:9-11; 2 Timothy 4:3-4)
B. Doeg executed Saul’s ungodly wrath (James 1:19-20)
A. The need for rest (Mark 6:30-32)
B. The need for compassion (Mark 6:33-34; Matthew 9:35-38)
C. The need for physical sustenance (Mark 6:35-44)
II. Walking on water (Mark 6:45-52)
A. The prayer of Jesus (Mark 6:45-46; 1 Thessalonians 5:17)
B. The peace of Jesus (Mark 6:47-52; Philippians 4:6-7)
III. Healing all who touched Him (Mark 6:53-56)
A. Jesus was recognized (Mark 6:53-54; 1 Corinthians 11:1)
B. Jesus was sought (Mark 6:55-56)
IV. Application
A. His power is beyond our comprehension (Ephesians 3:20; Romans 8:31-39)
B. Our limitations are proof of His supremacy (2 Corinthians 12:7-10)
C. Be the person your friends turn to when they need spiritual guidance (2 Corinthians 2:17)
(outline based on L.O. Sanderson’s hymn of the same name)
I. Verse 1
A. He left heaven and came to earth (Philippians 2:5-7)
B. He did this knowing He would be rejected (John 1:5, 10-11)
II. Verse 2
A. He faced temptation (Hebrews 4:15)
B. He spent much time teaching (Matthew 7:28-29) and praying (Luke 5:16)
III. Verse 3
A. He faced intense emotional strain, followed by physical pain (Luke 22:41-44; Matthew 27:21-31)
B. He suffered death upon the cross (Philippians 2:8; Romans 5:8)
A. Listened to truth but never applied it (James 1:22-25)
B. Enticed by lust (James 1:13-15)
C. Did not think before he spoke (Proverbs 29:20)
D. Allowed peer pressure to control him (1 Corinthians 15:33; Ephesians 5:11; Exodus 23:2)
II. Herodias
A. Vindictive (Romans 12:17-21)
B. She used people—even her own daughter!—to get her way (1 Corinthians 13:5)
III. John the Baptizer
A. A just and holy man (Luke 1:6; Leviticus 11:44-45; 19:2; 20:7, 26; 21:8)
B. Refused to compromise truth even in the face of death (1 Corinthians 15:58; Matthew 10:22)
A. There is no sin too great for God to forgive – Christ’s blood makes us whole! (Ephesians 1:7)
B. He will be our guide and provide light in this world of darkness (John 1:4-5)
II. Verse 2
A. The joy of His mercy and love should cause us to sing with joy (James 5:13)
B. His magnificent blessings should motivate us to avoid evil, to cling to Him, and to remain loyal throughout life (James 1:17, 21-22, 25)
III. Verse 3
A. God still speaks! (John 12:48; 2 Timothy 3:16-17)
B. What hinders us from full obedience and genuine discipleship? (Luke 9:23-26; Mark 12:30)
C. Trust in His power to save (1 Peter 1:3-5)
A. Because He was known to them, “His own country” was astonished by Him, resulting in a judgmental attitude (James 2:1-7)
B. Because He was known to them, “His own country” was offended at Him, resulting in jealousy, selfish ambition, envy (1 Corinthians 12:4-11)
II. Their gossip hindered their faith (6:4-6)
A. Jesus received no honor from “His own country” (Mark 2:6-7, 16; 3:23, 24, 6)
B. Jesus was prevented from performing miracles because of their unbelief
C. The lack of faith in “His own country” made Jesus marvel (cf. Matthew 8:5-10)
III. The apostles sent out (6:7-13)
A. They were not to worry about physical needs but depend on others for support (1 Corinthians 9:14)
B. When rejected, they were to “shake off the dust under your feet” (Acts 13:42-46, 51; Matthew 7:6)
C. They delivered a message of repentance (Mark 1:4, 15; 2:17)
But when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized. (Acts 8:12)
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