Sermon on October 28 by Pastor Roland Eskinazi

Scripture: Mark 6:30-44

‘God has never failed anyone yet and you’re not important enough for Him to make an exception’.
Dr. Harry Ironside

If you want to make a difference:

1. RESET- FOR JESUS! (V30-31)

• You are more limited than you think …
  Jesus wants us to be aware that if our bodies are not rested, burnout will not glorify Him.
•  … so gladly cut more than cram
  Jesus teaches us that pruning is part of our service. Do you have a ‘stop-doing’ list as well as a ‘to-do’ one?

2. GIVE YOURSELF – LIKE JESUS! (V32-34)

• ‘Come to Jesus – and He will never shut you out’
  Compassion is more than a bleeding heart.
  Usefulness does not begin with the big projects (crowds) out there but the single person you touch
• ‘Come to Jesus – and you will get a Shepherd’

Even as the crowds are hungry, Jesus teaches where they may find the Bread of Life.
John 6:26

3. RELY WHOLLY – ON JESUS! (v35-44)

• When you know you can’t, Jesus can
  The disciples do not see 5000 men but 5000 problems they cannot solve.
  If you are in a situation where you feel you can do nothing, you are ready to see what God can do.
• Whatever Jesus demands, He supplies
  When you can create something out of nothing, then creating more of something from very little is much easier.

‘The Lord is my Shepherd, I lack nothing … my cup overflows’
Psalm 23:1 and 5b

Remember! You are not important enough for God to make an exception. It is in the impossible moments of life that we will be amazed at how God makes a way.

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QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION AND DISCUSSION
1. Do you have a tendency to work too much or too little? If you have too much on your plate, what might you need to prune away to live more effectively for Jesus?
2. Are people’s ‘felt needs’ sometimes different from what they really need? How is the response of the crowds (John 6:15, 26-27) a warning for us?
3. Have you ever known of a situation where the resources seemed inadequate for the task? What happened?
4. What are some of the events that have brought you the most spiritual encouragemet? Do these often arise out of impossible challenges?

 

Photo credit FreeImages.com/spiz