Belong Not to the World, but to God

St Timothy Presbyterian Church in Toronto: Sermons

Scripture Passage

Mark 1:9-15

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In a World We Do Not Belong

Today is the first Sunday of Lent. As of last Wednesday which was Ash Wednesday, the season of Lent began.

During the season of Lent, we reflect on Jesus' suffering. We reflect on the meaning of the cross.

What is the meaning of Jesus' suffering? What is the meaning of the cross?

We hear a lot about Jesus' suffering. We have heard it so much that we don't even think about its meaning. We just take it as a fact.

There is one thing Jesus' suffering tells us clearly. That is about the world we live in.

Jesus was not a friend of this world. As a matter of fact, the world hated him. That was what his suffering and his cross were all about.

The world hated him period. The world rejected him. The world made him a criminal. The world spat at him, mocked him, and crucified him.

I am not just talking about the Roman world or Jewish world. I am talking about the world as a whole, including the world we live in.

Jesus showed us he did not belong to the world. And tells us: WE DO NOT BELONG TO THE WORLD.

In his last prayer before he left the world, he prayed like this.

I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one. They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. (John 17:14-16)

God loves us and sees us as his precious daughter and son. But the world does not love us and see us as its beloved child.

No! The world sees us as its slave. The world wants to use us as its slave. You are merely a small, dispensable screw in a gigantic machine.

When you do well what the world wants you to do, the world loves you. The world embraces you. The world becomes your best friend.

But when you cannot do or don't want to do what the world expects from you, the world hates you. The world rejects you. The world becomes your worst enemy.

The Kingdom You Belong To

There are two ways the world controls you: ABSORPTION AND ALIENATION.

The world wants to absorb you so that you can do what the world wants you to do. But if the world cannot absorb you, it alienates you so that you are not in the way.

That was what happened to Jesus.

It was not because Jesus did not know how to survive in this world. It was not because he didn't have the power and influence to succeed in this world.

Jesus had so many followers and he could manage them well and use them for his purpose. He had Charisma. It was not that he didn't know how to survive in this world.

But Jesus didn't play the game this world wanted him to play.

Jesus didn't want to be a puppet of this world. Jesus did not fall into the temptation, the lure, and the manipulation of this world.

Rather Jesus proclaimed the kingdom of God. The alternative world.

The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news. (Mark 1:15)

What is Jesus saying?

He is saying that the kingdom of this world is not your kingdom. The kingdom of God has come to you. You belong to the kingdom of God, not the kingdom of this world.

Repent – change your thinking. Don't think that you belong to the world. You belong to God.

Knowing You Are a Child of God

Believe in the good news – the good news that you are a child of God, not a slave of this world. That was what the heaven declared right from the beginning of Jesus' ministry.

And a voice came from heaven, You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.' (Mark 1:11)

God in heaven affirmed to Jesus that you are my child. You belong to me. The world may reject you but you are mine.

Jesus clearly knew whom he belonged to.

Know whom you belong to. Know who you are.

Knowing that you are a child of God is not a cerebral concept. It is not just a conceptual understanding or a rational or willful decision.

At his baptism, the Spirit came down on Jesus. It descended on Jesus like a dove. A very gentle dove.

Then all of a sudden the Spirit was not like a gentle dove any more when you look at the next verse.

And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. (Mark 1:12)

Here the phrase drove him out – Ekbollow. Later, Mark uses the same word when Jesus drove out unclean spirits. Powerful and violent action.

Through Tests and Temptations

The Spirit drove Jesus out into the wilderness and there he was tempted.

What was the temptation all about? It was all about the fact that Jesus was the Son of God.

Mark doesn't describe the details of the temptation but when you read Matthew and Luke, you can see more clearly the nature of the temptation.

If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread. (Matthew 4:3)
If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down (Matthew 4:6)

All about questioning whether Jesus was the Son of God.

No If . He was the Son of God. Not If .

Knowing that you are a child of God is not a conceptual acceptance or rational decision.

You will be tested in life. You will be tempted. Only through your faith, you can understand and accept that you are a child of God.

At the end, Satan showed his true motive.

SERVE ME. That is what the world wants from you. Be my servant. You are not my precious child. Just be my slave. I will use you until you are useful. After that, you are dispensable.

All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me. (Matthew 4:9)

This was what Jesus said to Satan.

Away with you, Satan! for it is written,
Worship the Lord your God,
and serve only him. (Matthew 4:10)

My friends, don't try so hard to be accepted by this world. Don't be so sad because you did not make it to the top of this world.

When you are rejected, don't feel so bad because Jesus was first rejected.

If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me before it hated you. If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own. Because you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world therefore the world hates you. (John 15:18, 19)

You may be in the world but you do not belong to the world.

You are God's precious child.

God will give you the power. God will give you the authority. God will take care of your needs. God will give you the eternal victory.

During this Lent, you will face many temptations, but be strong in your understanding that you are the precious child of God.

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