“Peel off the Labels”
Overcomer Week 3
Pastor Kris Freeman
Revolution Church
August 20, 2017
Scripture: Mark 2:1-12 (NLT)
2 When Jesus returned to Capernaum several days later, the news spread quickly that he was back home. 2 Soon the house where he was staying was so packed with visitors that there was no more room, even outside the door. While he was preaching God’s word to them, 3 four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. 4 They couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head. Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. 5 Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My child, your sins are forgiven.”
6 But some of the teachers of religious law who were sitting there thought to themselves, 7 “What is he saying? This is blasphemy! Only God can forgive sins!” 8 Jesus knew immediately what they were thinking, so he asked them, “Why do you question this in your hearts? 9 Is it easier to say to the paralyzed man ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk’? 10 So I will prove to you that the Son of Man[a] has the authority on earth to forgive sins.” Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said 11 “Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!”
12 And the man jumped up, grabbed his mat, and walked out through the stunned onlookers. They were all amazed and praised God, exclaiming, “We’ve never seen anything like this before!”
This is the story of Jesus healing a paralyzed man - but more importantly, it is a discussion about how those in suffering are LABELED in their condition.
In ancient Biblical times, there was an erroneous belief that sick people or paralyzed individuals were being punished for SIN.
- If this were the case, wouldn’t all of us be suffering paralysis?
- Do you believe disease is a curse, or a common part of human life?
- Let’s talk about it!
The condition caused this man to be LABELED because he was disabled.
- What labels?
- Disabled. Incompetent. Unclean. Unintelligent. Uneducated. Sinful. Wrong. Punished. Outcast. Ugly. Broken. Forgotten. Annoyance. In the Way. What labels define you?
Quote this: The longer we carry a label, the less it describes our past and the more it determines our future.
Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My child, your sins are forgiven.” - Mark 2:5 (NLT)
To help overcome the labels, we must understand:
- The faith of those around you MATTERS.
- Your friends will either carry you toward Jesus, or pull you away from Him.
- Transformation rarely happens in isolation, but is explosive in community.
- Jesus heals the source, not the symptoms or the suspicions (labels).
- A label may describe you, but an identity in Christ DEFINES you.
There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. (Galatians 3:28)
#spiritualequality - is that possible?
- What Satan meant for evil, God will use for GOOD.
Quote this: God can use your past to change someone’s future.
Stand up, pick up your mat and go home.
Quote this: Often what you are called to is a direct result of what burden you once were called to carry.
Read Galatians 3:28 and fill in this blank personally for you:
I used to be called _____________________, but now I am called ________________________ .
I am an #Overcomer because I am not what I used to be, but I am not yet what I am going to become!
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