The Holy Son of God

Read: Mark 1:1-13

Praise the Lord for what he showed us through the book of Jude over the last five Sundays! As we kick off a brand new semester, we will be diving into the book of Mark with the series, Mark: Who Do You Say that I Am?. This Sunday pastor Ken will preach from Mark 1:1-13 with a sermon entitled, “God Sent His Son.” One of main purposes of Mark’s gospel is to present the true identity of Jesus as the promised Son of God who would bring salvation.

 

John the Baptist knew this identity very well, as he said, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie (Mark 1:7).” John stood completely humbled at the very thought of Jesus, the Holy Son of God. As you prepare your heart for our gathering this Sunday, take time to consider who Jesus is in the glory of his splendor as the Son of God. Further, let these words from Milton Vincent spur you on to greater humility in the presence of our Savior and King, Jesus.

 

Heart Preparation

According to Scripture, God deliberately designed the gospel in such a way so as to strip me of pride and leave me without any grounds for boasting in myself whatsoever. This is actually a wonderful mercy from God, for pride is at the root of all my sin. Pride produced the first sin in the Garden, and pride always precedes every sinful stumbling in my life. Therefore, if I am to experience deliverance from sin, I must be delivered from the pride that produces it. Thankfully, the gospel is engineered to accomplish this deliverance.

 

Preaching the gospel to myself each day mounts a powerful assault against my pride and serves to establish humility in its place. Nothing suffocates my pride more than daily reminders regarding the glory of my God, the gravity of my sins, and the crucifixion of God’s own Son in my place. Also, the gracious love of God, lavished on me because of Christ’s death, is always humbling to remember, especially when viewed against the backdrop of the Hell I deserve. Pride wilts in the atmosphere of the gospel; and the more pride is mortified within me, the less frequent are my moments of sinful contention with God and with others.

 

Conversely, humility grows lushly in the atmosphere of the gospel, and the more humility flourishes within me, the more I experience God’s grace along with the strengthening His grace provides. Additionally, such humility intensifies my passion for God and causes my heart increasingly to thrill whenever He is praised.

 

From A Gospel Primer for Christians, by Milton Vincent

 

Song List for Sunday

1. How Great Thou Art, by Paul Baloche

2. The Lord Our God, by Kristian Stanfill

3. You Alone Can Rescue, by Matt Redman

4. Behold Our God, by Sovereign Grace Music

5. In Christ Alone, by Adrienne Liesching & Geoff Moore