We'll be looking this morning
at the Gospel of Mark, chapter 2. Mark, chapter 2. And while you're turning, let
me say this. I believe the average so-called
church today is nothing more than a country clubhouse for
good, moral, self-righteous Pharisees. And no sinners are allowed. I
knew a preacher not long ago was always preaching against
everything and disciplining everyone until he disciplined all the
sinners out of his church, and the only ones left were him and
his wife. But the fact is, the Lord God who walked this planet,
Jesus Christ was his name. His constant companions, those
he ate and drank and associated with, were publicans and sinners. He had nothing but kind words
and compassion for them, and only harsh words of condemnation
for the moral, self-righteous religionists of his day. In Mark
chapter 2 verse 15 it says, it came to pass that as Jesus sat
at meat in his house, many publicans and sinners sat also together
with Jesus and his disciples. There were many And they followed
him. This man named Levi, who was
a publican or a tax collector himself, the Lord had revealed
himself to Levi, Matthew was his name later, and saved Levi. And Levi, in great gratitude
to Christ for having mercy upon him, he invited all his friends
over to his house. Luke chapter 5, it says that
Levi made a great feast and invited all his friends, many publicans
and sinners. And here in Mark chapter 2, verse
15, it says, they sat with him and the Lord and his disciples.
It was a large crowd of lowlifes. This crowd looked something like
the crowd of people you'd see down at Joe's Bar and Grill,
or at the rescue mission, or soup kitchen, or wherever. And it says in verse 15, they
followed Him. They followed Christ wherever
He went. Another place says, the common people heard Him gladly. Common everyday common people,
sinners, heard Him gladly. But now there were some others
present here. Scribes and Pharisees. Verse 16. The scribes and Pharisees
saw him eat with publicans and sinners, and they said unto his
disciples, How is it that he eateth and drinketh with publicans
and sinners? Or how can he do such a thing?
Now, these scribes and Pharisees, the scribes were priests and
the rabbis in Judaism. Pharisees were professors, doctors
of the law. And they said this to his disciples
privately. They took one of his disciples
over to the side and they said, how could he do such a thing,
eat with these publicans and sinners? These religionists,
these self-righteous fellows rarely ever said anything to
Christ himself because they were intimidated by him. But they
vented their criticisms at these fishermen turned preachers. How
is it? Now, they're not asking a question,
but they're making a statement. How could he possibly do this?
Eat and drink with such people as this? Now, our Lord was literally
in the middle of a large crowd of people that was feasting. Much food, and they were talking
and laughing. You know what goes on in a large
crowd, a large feast, and they were drinking. And our Lord was
eating and drinking, certainly not to excess, but nevertheless,
He was eating whatever they had and drinking whatever they had.
And verse 17, it says that when Jesus heard these Pharisees,
these scribes and Pharisees, say what they did. Now, they
didn't say this out loud to Him, but they said it in a low tone
of voice to his disciples. Nevertheless, our Lord, who is
omniscient and omnipresent, who knows all, sees all, hears all,
heard their very thoughts. David said, There is not a word
in my mouth that you don't know it all together. The thoughts
of our hearts and intents of our hearts. God Almighty knows
it before we say it. Well, he heard what they had
murmured, and he said unto them, verse 17, They that are whole
have no need of the physician, but they that are sick. They
that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that
are sick. In other words, if you're not
sick, you don't need a doctor. If you're whole, if everything's
all right, then you don't need Christ, is what he's saying.
Now, over in Revelation 3, our Lord said this to the church. The church. This was made up
of believers. And He said this to the church. Some of the folks had got into
a bad state. They were lukewarm or somewhat
indifferent to the preaching. Verse 17, our Lord said in Revelation
3, Because you say, I am rich and increased with goods and
have need of nothing. And knowest not, you don't know,
but you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. He said, I counsel thee to buy
this gold. Well, we are poor and needy,
whether we know it or not. We are all poor and needy. Now, someone who's poor is someone
who has nothing, someone who is poor in spirit. Someone who
realizes they have no righteousness, they have no knowledge of God,
they have no way to make themselves acceptable to God. They are poor
in spirit. Our Lord said, blessed are the
poor in spirit. Well, we are needy. We are totally
dependent on our God for all things material and especially
all things spiritual. Wisdom, righteousness, sanctification,
redemption, salvation is the gift of God. We are needed. We need God to supply these things
to us. We cannot obtain them ourselves. We cannot drum them up by our
best works or by our whatever. It is a gift from God. an undeserved,
unearned, free, sovereign gift from God Almighty. Salvation
is of the Lord, and He giveth it to whomsoever He will. We are poor and needy. But this Gospel, mercy, salvation,
grace, the blood of Christ, forgiveness of sins, is for one type of person. The gospel is for the poor and
the needy, for sinners. There is but one condition that
applies to this gift. One condition. One thing necessary
to receive this free gift. We must be a sinner. A sinner. Water is for the thirsty. Riches
are for the poor. Wisdom is for the ignorant. Bread
is for the hungry. Mercy is for the guilty. is for
the helpless. Salvation is for the lost and
for the sinful. And so our Lord says, the great
physician came to heal the spiritually sick, the blind, the deaf, the
halt, the lame. If we ever feel like we are not
any of these things, that we're no longer poor and needy, then
we don't need Christ. Now, let me ask you a question. After the Lord saves someone,
are they then without sin? Have they been completely cured
of sin? I invite you to look at 1 John,
chapter 1. The first epistle of John, chapter
1. Now, if this is so, if we are
completely without sin, the Lord saves us and so we are completely
without sin. We quit our sinning and we are
now a saint. We are cured of sin. If that
is so, then I contend that we don't need Christ anymore, do
we? But look at what God's Word says
in 1 John 1, verse 8. He says, if we say that we have
no sin, if we say there is no more sin in us, no indwelling
sin, no more lust, no more anger, no more hatred, no more envy,
no more jealousy, no more bitterness, None of these things. There's
no sin in us. We've quit sinning. He says in
verse 8, we deceive ourselves. We are a self-righteous, self-deluded,
deceived person, a Pharisee, and we don't need Christ. And he said, if we say that,
we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. Obviously,
the truth of what God's word says about us is not in us. In verse 10, he says, if we say
we have not sinned, we make him a liar and his word is not in
us. The truth is not in us. His word,
the word of truth is not in us. And if we say we have no sin
or have not sinned, we're calling God a liar. Because God said
this. God said there's none righteous,
no, not one. He said there's none that doeth
good, no, not one. In Ecclesiastes 7.20, He said
there's not a just man on earth that doeth good and sinneth not. So if we say we are without sin,
we're calling God a liar. And obviously, God's Word does
not dwell in us. There is no man, no woman, saved
or unsaved, who is without sin. Now go back to Mark's Gospel.
There is none without sin. But some think so. From the talk
of some self-righteous religionists, you would think they no longer
sin, and they do nothing but condemn sinners. Well, Christ
came to save those who know they are sinful and guilty and poor
and needy. And these never quit needing
Him because their sin, like David said, is ever before them. They may not be lying in the
gutter, but they know the gutter is in their heart. They may not
be actually openly living in an immoral life, but they know
the seeds of these things are within their heart. This is what
Paul said in Romans chapter 7 when he was an older man in his 50.
He had known the Lord for years and walked with the Lord for
years. But he said this, the things I would do, or that is,
what I want to do, I don't seem to be able to do them. And the
things I don't want to do, he said, That seems to be what I
do. The words I don't want to say,
I say. The thoughts I don't want to think, I think. Things I do
want to say, I have a hard time saying. Things I do want to do,
I have a hard time doing. He said, Oh, wretched man that
I am. Let me ask you who hear this.
Is it so with you? Do you have these problems? Then
perhaps there's a physician for you. Perhaps there's a There's
help for one like you. But there's no help for the self-righteous.
There's no help for those who have no trouble with sin anymore. They don't need Christ anymore.
Verse 17, our Lord said this in conclusion. He said, I came
not to call the righteous or those that think they are. Remember,
He said there's none righteous. Not before a holy, just God who
looks on the heart. There's none completely, absolutely
righteous in themselves. Only in Christ, under the blood
of Christ, are they righteous. With the righteousness of Christ
imputed, only then are they righteous, but not in themselves. He said,
I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. Repentance
means turning. Repentance means turn from your
sin, turn from yourself, turn from your self-righteousness.
Repentance means to hate sin, means to hate self. deny self,
and hate self-righteousness. And we never quit repenting. We repent all of our lives. Sinners,
those whom God has revealed the truth to, whom the truth dwells
in, they know themselves to be sinners. The rest of their days,
they know they are sinners. And so, therefore, they never
quit repenting. And by God's mercy and grace,
they always have a Savior. the blood is always before the
Lord for sinners such as thee. I hope it is so with you. Until
next Sunday, good night.