“And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.’” – Mark 2:17

The religious of His day were baffled (in a bad way) about why Jesus would share a dinner table with tax collectors and sinners. These were the people on the wrong side of the culture wars of the day! Collaborators, traitors, the lewd and immoral. Yet, Jesus not only paid attention to them, He ate with them as if they had worth and dignity!

Jesus’ response to criticism for this was very clear and simple. These were the people He’d come to rescue. He’d come to those who were deeply aware there was something wrong with their lives in order to offer them salvation through faith in Him. He came to call them out of their sinful patterns and lifestyles and into renewed, holy life following Him. Jesus didn’t spend much time associating with those convinced that their goodness already covered them, because He knew they wouldn’t humble themselves to believe in a Savior.

Too often in modern Christian life, we aren’t much like Jesus. Either we completely surround ourselves with other believers, focusing our energy, attention, and resources on blessing those already saved (or at least convinced of their righteousness) or else we associate uncritically with “sinners” without the intention to actually introduce them to Jesus and call them to a transformed life. If we’re to follow Jesus, we must be out mingling and offering love and dignity to those outside God’s Kingdom, but we must do so with clarity that the invitation to follow Jesus is an invitation to live a supernaturally changed life. Are you living Christ’s rescue mission for sinners made in God’s image?

“And we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; when slandered, we entreat. We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things.” – 1 Corinthians 4:12-13

Christian life isn’t always glamorous, pleasant, or fun! That’s because our work is so important and our rewards so enormous! If you’re a Christian, you’ve literally been given the mission to rescue people from the ferocious grip of sin, death, and hell. What could be more precious or important than saving the souls of people made in God’s image by introducing them to Jesus, helping them reconcile with God, and teaching them to live transformed lives in obedience to Christ?

Making disciples is messy, hard work, but God gave it to you! If you’re a Christian, this is your task and you do it in the power and presence of Jesus. Jesus is with you every step of the way, strengthening you, encouraging you, and sustaining you. Jesus who gave up everything to do this for you! Jesus who stepped out of glory into the humiliation of earthly life. Jesus who was reviled, persecuted, slandered, betrayed, condemned, tortured, and killed before rising from death. Jesus suffered to rescue you by God’s grace, so that you could experience eternal life in Him while rescuing others.

With that eternal life, you’re now empowered to work hard, be reviled, persecuted, and slandered, responding to all that with blessing, endurance, and reconciliation. Because God has made you exalted, beloved, and embraced in His eyes, you’re called and equipped to live as the scum of the world, treated like garbage for a time, but always with the assurance that you are and will be treasured by God forever and ever.

“The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.” – Mark 1:12-13

There’s so much to contemplate in these two little verses! After Jesus was baptized, it was the Holy Spirit Who led Jesus out into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan. Though God never tempts us, He permits Satan (for a time) to test His people, even His Son. Temptation is part of earthly life in this fallen world dominated by the devil, all the more so for those closest to God.

Jesus was alone in that desert for 40 days, fasting and powerfully tempted by Satan. Can you even begin to imagine what that must have been like? To be pushed well past normal limits physically, emotionally, spiritually, and THEN to be tempted with the biggest and best temptations the devil had to offer? No one has ever been tempted as much as Jesus. Yet, in all that, Jesus never failed the test. Jesus never succumbed to temptation. His faith and His reliance on Scripture sustained Him through every test.

The temptation of Jesus (40 days in the desert) is a parallel to the temptation of Israel (40 years in the desert). Where Israel gave in to temptation over and over again, Jesus resisted every temptation perfectly. Through this successful time of testing, Jesus proved He was the true Son of God. Jesus succeeded where Israel failed. He proved He was indeed worthy to proclaim the good news of God’s Kingdom that He Himself was ushering in. By resisting temptation, in the wilderness and for the rest of His earthly life, Jesus qualified Himself to be the sinless sacrifice required to the pay the penalty for our sins on the cross. Praise God for the steadfast faithfulness of Jesus, our Lord and Savior!

“Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.” – Mark 1:6-7

With his remarkable fashion sense and powerful message that everyone needed to repent of their sins, John the Baptist was a first century phenomenon! His rough clothing evoked the image of the great Old Testament prophets of the distant past, particularly Elijah. His message was absolutely on point for a people who’d been desperately longing to hear a word from God for over 400 years! People flocked from all over to hear John’s message, confess their sins, and be baptized as a sign of being washed clean of sin.

Yet, for all his godliness, greatness, and importance to God’s purpose, John knew he was simply there to prepare the way for One Who was infinitely greater. John knew that Messiah, the Christ, Jesus of Nazareth was coming. John knew that Jesus was the One Who all of Scripture pointed to, the Savior of fallen mankind, the redeemer of lost souls, the eternal king like David, the Son of God.

John was so acutely aware of the greatness of Jesus Christ, that he said he wasn’t worthy to do the lowest slave’s dirty work of untying the sandals of our glorious Christ! John had an important and necessary message for Israel, but he knew it was simply a one of preparation. The climax of history was coming! Messiah was entering the world! God’s Kingdom of light was about to break into this world of darkness! The Holy Spirit would soon be poured out upon all believers as all creation moved toward its glorious renewal!

Take time today to think about the greatness of John the Baptist. Then, reflect on how much greater Jesus is than John. Let your heart be filled with praise and worship for Jesus Christ our Messiah!

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” – Matthew 28:19-20

Known as the Great Commission, this final command of Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel is the mission of the church throughout the ages. Jesus commanded His disciples to make disciples. Every follower of Jesus is to help others follow Jesus. The very nature of this command (teaching believers to obey everything Christ commanded, including this command) makes it a command that applies to EVERY Christian throughout history. If you’re a follower of Jesus, this command is Christ’s command to you!

In commanding us to make disciples, Jesus told us how to do it – by going, baptizing, and teaching. Every Christian is to be making disciples as we go through life and we must be intentional about getting up and out of our holy huddle of Christian friends to meet and introduce non-Christians to Jesus. As we tell people about Jesus and demonstrate the truth of Christ by the way we live our lives, we are to baptize those who come to believe in Him.

However, baptism isn’t the end of a new believer’s journey, it’s the beginning! As Christians, we have a responsibility to be teaching other Christians, young and old, to obey EVERYTHING Christ commanded in the Bible. Likewise, we must be growing in our obedience to everything Christ commanded. We must all learn, more and more thoroughly, what it means to truly follow Jesus.

This task is hard! On our own, it would be impossible. However, in Christ we’re NEVER alone. Christ is with us as we do His work. Christ is with you every moment of every day. He isn’t merely a cheerleader. He’s the One with all authority in heaven and on earth (see verse 18)! Jesus will never leave you or ignore you. He is always with you until that glorious day when He returns!