A touch of faith

 

COLERAINE EVANGELICAL CHURCH

SERMON NOTES SUNDAY 14 JUNE 2026 pm – JASON CRUISE

Ephesians chapter 2 verse 4 to 9 and Mark chapter 5 verse 25 to 34 

Back there in Ephesians chapter 2 verse 4 we read “but God who is rich in mercy for his great love wherewith he loved us.” There is a God in heaven and his love for you and for I is boundless. It's immeasurable and it's unconditional. You and I could never plumb the depths of God's love for a world of sinners lost and ruined by the fall. To think that God loves you and I so much that he was willing to send his only begotten son into this sin cursed world. To think that the Lord Jesus would come to suffer, to bleed, and to die in the place of fallen man. that he would come to lay down his life for you and for I upon that centre cross so that each and every one of us could be saved and one day have that home in heaven. But while the Lord Jesus was here on earth, while he dwelt here among man, he performed many, many miracles. He gave sight to the blind, he raised the dead to life, he made the lame to walk again and he healed those that were sick and infirmed. John 21 verse 25 “And there are also many other things which Jesus did the which if they should be written everyone I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written.” The Lord Jesus here on earth performed many, many miracles, three of which are recorded for us in God's word here in Mark chapter 5. In Mark chapter 5, we read about the demoniac of Gedara, that man who lived and dwelt among the tombs. That man who each and every day cut himself with the stones. How he was tormented and the Lord comes and he casts out the unclean spirits and that man came to put his trust in Christ. We think here of the account that we have just read concerning the woman with the issue of blood and how this woman comes to the Saviour and putting her faith and her trust in Christ, she is healed of her infirmity. Then we think lastly at the end of the chapter how the Lord Jesus raises that young girl of only 12 years of age to life again. We are thankful that in the gospel we present a Saviour who not only can give physical life but we present one in the gospel who is able to give a spiritual life. If you are listening and you are dead in trespasses and in sin, you can know the forgiveness of sins and you can be made alive in Christ Jesus. Would you not come to him and put your faith and your trust in him? John 10 verse 28 "I give unto them eternal life. They shall never perish. Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.” The Lord cast the demons out of the demoniac of Gedara. That would confirm to you and I Christ's power over demons. I think of how he heals the woman here with the issue of blood. That would confirm to you and I Christ's power over disease. And then he raises the young girl to life again. That would confirm to you and I Christ's power over death. The one that we present in the gospel is all powerful. He's all knowing. He's all sufficient. He's almighty. Do you know him? Do you know him personally? Can you look back to a time in your life's experience whenever you confessed him as Saviour and Lord?

As we consider this woman in Mark chapter 5 with the issue of blood you may find out that you have more in common with this woman than you first thought. Look at verses 25 and 26 "And a certain woman which had an issue of blood 12 years, and had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse." The first thing that I want us to see concerning this woman is the sickness this woman endured. I see how long this woman has been affected by this condition. She has been affected for 12 long years. 12 long agonizing years. Every day she would feel how she was affected by this issue of blood. This woman's situation was critical. The word of God here refers to her condition as a plague. You can imagine this condition and how it affected her. This woman would have suffered emotionally. Every day she would have wondered to herself “Is there not something I could do today to make myself right? Is there not something I could do today to heal myself, to cure myself of this awful condition?” At the start, it would have been quite easy for this woman to have kept her condition hidden, to have kept it secret so that no one else knew. But you know, as time went on, it would eventually get worse and worse and worse. Her condition would have deteriorated. There would have been no hiding it. It began to take effects upon her health, it began to affect her everyday life. That reminds me that each and every one of us are born with an awful condition known as sin. There are 8.3 billion people around the world and all are born with that awful condition known as sin. You know at the start whenever we were born as a young baby sin is very hard to detect. But you know over a period of time sin would begin to manifest itself. It would begin to show itself. There would be no hiding it. From the time that first lie is told, it begins to steamroll, it begins to get worse and worse, each and every day, the sin condition would grow, and there would be no hiding it from those around about us. We read here that this woman has an issue of blood. And you know we are born with an issue of blood - sin has come down the bloodline. It has come down the bloodline from the first man, Adam, who sinned in the garden of Eden. And through that one willful act of disobedience, sin entered into the line of humanity and it has come down from Adam through every generation down through the bloodline and affects each and every one of us around the world. None is excluded, the preacher is included. All are affected by sin. That's why we must come and put our faith and trust in Christ. The only one who came, who lived that absolutely perfectly sinless life. The only one who was perfectly sinless and sinlessly perfect. The one who for no sin of his own hung upon the centre cross. There he took your sin, your guilt, your shame, my guilt, my sin, my shame upon his own sinless person. Maybe you're thinking to yourself, "Well, surely I'm not that bad." Each and every one of us are born with this condition. No one has not sinned. The apostle Paul tells us in Romans chapter 3, “for there is no difference, for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” It doesn't matter what age you are. It doesn't matter your skin colour, your nationality, or your social status. Each and every one of us is affected by sin. It doesn't matter where you live or where you were brought up. It doesn't matter where you are on the social ladder. It doesn't matter if you live on the streets of some of the towns or the cities around our country. It doesn't matter if you were brought up on millionaire row. It doesn't matter if you're the king of England. Each and every one of us, the word of God tells us, is affected by sin, for all have sinned. Maybe you think that simply by living that good life, you think that by attending church on a Sunday morning, you think that by paying in, you think that by doing your charitable deeds that somehow that's good enough to get you into heaven. All of those things are good, but they will not gain you access into heaven. The Lord Jesus as he walked the scene of time, in John 14 verse 6, said "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father but by me." How do you intend to get to God's heaven? There's only one way, and it's the way of the cross. Unless you come to the cross and put your faith and your trust in the one who died upon the cross, you will never be in God's heaven but you'll be down in that awful place that the Bible calls hell with no second chance and no rerun, no acquittal, no queen's counselor, no barister can ever get you an appeal and can ever get you released. I think about this woman and her condition and I think of how she perhaps at times thought, well, if I try this or maybe if I eat this, maybe that will work. And then eventually she would come to realize that none of those things can work and that they're all futile. Think of how she would have thought to herself, well, I can't cure myself. Now I'll try the doctors. Now I'll try the physicians, surely they can help. And she would have made her way along to one physician and another physician, to one doctor another doctor and they would all have made their promises and they would all have given their prognosis. Each and every one would have come with their remedies and came with their cures. But you know she would have found out that they were all futile. Maybe you think that maybe you can make yourself right. Or maybe you've tried philosophers. Maybe you've even tried religion. And you think church attendance will get you into heaven. Tonight you're saying, "I'll do this and I'll do that and I'll be okay. That will deal with the sin problem." No. No, no. The only one who can deal with your sin problem is the one who died upon the cross. Your condition if you're unsaved, is just the same as this woman with the issue of blood. Your condition is critical. This woman was affected for 12 years. I wonder how long you've been affected. 12 years, 20 years. 30, 50, 70, 80?  Affected by sin. And your situation is critical. This woman would have been affected not only emotionally, but she would have been affected socially for you see, under the Levitical law that we read of in Leviticus 15, this woman would have had to have separated herself away from the rest of society. This woman would have lived in total isolation. She wouldn't have been able to go to the temple or to the temple court. She would have been excluded from all religious and social gatherings. This dear woman was an outcast. An outcast of society. Not only is this woman affected emotionally and socially, but this woman was affected financially. We read in verse 26 how she spent all that she had and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse as she has spent all of her money and still the condition is there. You can picture the seriousness, how critical the situation is that this woman is in as she has tried it all. She has tried everything. She has tried the doctors, the physicians. She has suffered many things. Hope is gone and the money is gone.

Not only do we see here the sickness that this woman endured, but secondly, I want us to see the Savior that this woman encountered. Look at verses 27 to 29. When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind and touched his garment for she said, "If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole. And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague.” Notice that opening line of verse 27 “when she had heard of Jesus”. Thankfully around that area around Capernaum someone has told this woman about the man called Jesus. The word of God doesn't tell us who told her. The reason the word of God doesn't tell us some of these things is simply because we don't have to know. But someone has come and told this woman about the man called Jesus, Jesus of Nazareth, and how he would be able to heal her, how he would be able to cure her condition. I wondered about that conversation, would she have said, "But I have no money left to offer. I have nothing now to give." Did someone tell her that thankfully there is one, the Lord Jesus who is able to offer a remedy to your condition and his remedy comes without money and without price. That's just like salvation this evening. If you are wondering, "How could I ever be made right and made ready for a home in heaven?" There is one who died for you upon the cross to make salvation available and it is available without money and without price. All you simply have to do is come in repentance and put your faith and your trust in him. We read in verse 27 that she came in the press behind and touched his garment. That tells me that this woman, as she made her way through the crowd, through the multitude, she was not going to let anything or anyone get in the way of her coming to Jesus. What's holding you back from getting to the Saviour? Is it the crowd? Is it family? Is it friends? Is it work colleagues? Maybe you are concerned with what they might think, that they would laugh at you. Your friends may laugh you into hell, but they'll never laugh you out. As this woman makes her way through the crowd nothing's going to get in her way. Don't let anything get in your way of coming to the one who loves you. Don't let anything get in your way of coming to the one who died for you upon the cross. The apostle Paul tells us in Romans 5 verse 8 “but God commendeth his love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” The love of God is so immense and so immeasurable. Why do you still stand in rebellion towards the Savior? Why would you not come and put your faith and your trust in him? Notice what this woman says in verse 28. She says, "If I may but touch his clothes, I shall be whole." That word “whole” in the original Greek is the word for saved. What is this woman really saying? “If I may but touch his clothes, I shall be saved.” Mark tells us how she touched his garment. Luke tells us in chapter 8 that she touched the border of his garment. Matthew tells us in chapter 10 how she came and touched the hem of his garment. You will know that the hem or the border is the last piece. It's that finished work. It's the finished piece. And here this woman has come and she has simply reached out and she has touched the hem, the border, the finished piece. If you would only come and rely upon the finished work of Christ upon the cross you could be saved. Simply coming and relying upon Christ, putting your faith and your trust in him and in his finished work. Notice the opening line of verse 29. It says, "And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up.” In the original Greek, really the word is immediately. Think of this woman and all that she has suffered throughout the years and all of the doctors and the physicians, all that it has cost emotionally and socially, financially, and now she is healed in an instant simply by coming and reaching out to the Saviour. Immediately she was cured. Immediately she was healed. The haemorrhaging has stopped. You could be healed of that awful condition of sin. That awful condition that will keep you out of God's heaven. If you would only come in repentance and put your faith and your trust in the risen Christ. Maybe you are saying "Well, I'm not going to get saved tonight, but I'm going to get saved some other night. There's a mission and it's coming to such and such a place. I'm going to go to the mission and I'm going to get saved at the mission. There's a preacher and he's going to come and he's going to preach in such and such a place and I'm going to get saved at the gospel meeting there.” Don't put it off. None of us know if we'll even make it home safely tonight. None of us know if we'll see the light of tomorrow. We read there in Proverbs 27 verse 1 “boast not thyself of tomorrow, for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.” You may have all the good intentions that someday you'll get saved. But you know there are many people tonight in a lost eternity and they too believed that one day they too would get saved. But that day never came. Death came and just in an instant they were ushered out into God's great eternity. They were unprepared, unforgiven, and unrepentant. If you were to leave the scene of time and go out into eternity before the gospel mission comes or before the preacher comes to such and such a place to preach, if you were to go out and leave the scene of time before then, before you had got saved you are going down into that awful place the word of God calls hell and there is absolutely no way back. Why not come just like this woman with the issue of blood and reach out to the Lord Jesus and simply lay hold upon him, trust in him and his finished work? If you would only come in repentance, acknowledging that you have lived that life that has been an offense to the holiness of God, acknowledging that you're a sinner and that you're lost, in need of salvation you can be born again of the Spirit of God and know your name recorded in the roll book of heaven, the Lamb's book of life.

Look at verses 30 and 31 “Jesus immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press and said, "Who touched my clothes?" And his disciples said unto him, "You see the multitude thronging you, and sayest thou, who touched me?" You can picture the great multitude surrounding the Savior. The Lord Jesus knows that there's a woman who has touched him. You see, among that great multitude of people there was one who simply reached out an empty hand of faith and laid hold upon the Savior. If you would only come and do that, you would be saved. This woman had come to an end of herself. She has tried everything else. She has tried all that the world has to offer. She has tried all the advice of the doctors, and it all has been found to be futile. Notice what she says in verse 28. She says, "If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be made whole." What a demonstration of faith. Faith forsaking all, I trust him. Why not forget about all that the world has to offer. Forget about all the things that other people are maybe trusting in tonight and simply come and put your faith and your trust in God's son. You will be made right and made ready for a home in heaven. Come and put your faith in him. That's how you get saved. The apostle Paul tells us in Ephesians chapter 2, verses 8 and 9 “For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast.” Salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in the person of Christ alone. Who or what are you trusting in tonight for eternity? Anything other than Christ is futile. Anything other than the cross tonight is futile.

We have thought here about the sickness this woman endured, the Saviour this woman encountered. But now I want us to think about the salvation this woman experienced. Look at verses 32 to 34. “And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing. But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth. And he said unto her, "Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole. Go in peace, and be healed of thy plague." You can picture the scene between the Lord Jesus and this woman as he turns around to see her. The Lord Jesus who is all knowing, knows who has touched him. But he wants this woman to come and to make that confession of faith. This woman comes and tells him all the truth. I have no doubt that she told them of all the doctors that she had visited. How she had suffered many things, how that she had spent all that she had and how she heard about him. How that she has come to believe upon him and believe upon what he can do. We read in Acts 16 verse 31 “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.” It doesn't say you might be saved or you could be saved or there's a possibility you will be saved or if you pay in enough you'll be saved. If you're a good enough person, you'll be saved. No it says “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.” It's a sure and certain salvation and is freely available this evening. The great salvation, the great healing that this woman has experienced. Notice the Savior's response. He says, "Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole. Go in peace and be healed of thy plague." As that woman made her way home that day, I believe that there's no preacher could put into words the joy that this woman now experiences, the contentment and the peace that she now has. Not too long before this woman would have been so distraught over her critical condition, always getting worse, never better, and thinking to herself that death is fast coming down the line. And yet here she is that day healed, cured, her condition taken away. Such is the love of Jesus. The word of God tells us in John chapter 3 verse 16, “for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” You will notice that that verse begins with God and then it ends with life. God is the giver of life. It doesn't matter if it's animal life or plant life or human life or spiritual life. Life begins with God. You could have spiritual life if you would only come in repentance and come to the Lord tonight to know that joy of sins forgiven and know that you're made right and made ready for a home in heaven. Would you not come like this woman with the issue of blood and simply by faith reach out an empty hand and lay hold upon the Saviour? This could be your last opportunity. You might never hear the gospel preached again. This time tomorrow evening you could already be in eternity. The scriptures tell us “it is appointed unto man once to die, but after this the judgment.” Each and every one of us has that appointment with death. None of us know when our appointment could be.

Look at chapter 6 verse 56 "And whithersoever he, that is the Lord Jesus, entered into villages or cities or country, they laid the sick in the streets, and besought him that they might touch if it were but the border of his garment. and as many as touched him were made whole.” The news that this woman had been healed of her condition had travelled throughout the country. Many people had heard how the woman came with the issue of blood and how she has had that critical condition for 12 long agonizing years and just in a moment of time, she came and she laid hold upon the finished work. She laid hold upon the border, upon the finished piece of his garment, and she was healed. And I believe that upon hearing this, there's a multitude of people and they make their way to the Savior that they too might reach out by a hand of faith and lay hold upon the Savior. You know there are many around the world and they have come to put their faith and their trust in the Lord. What a multitude of people have come by faith to rest upon him and upon his finished work. Would you not come? Would you not come and simply rest upon him? Rest upon what he has done for you upon the cross. You know if you can't point to a certain place and say, “I came to know the Saviour there, or that's the spot there that I came to put my faith and my trust in Christ.” If there's nowhere that you can take us to, then there's no better place than here. I'm thankful that the one that we present to you in the gospel, the one who died upon the cross is no longer dead. For we are thankful that we can tell you that the cross is bare, that the tomb is empty, that there is a throne in heaven where the son of God, the Lord Jesus, sits in regal splendour at his Father's own right hand. He calls unto you, “come unto me all ye that labour under heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” We read in Amos 4 verse 12 “Prepare to meet thy God.” We are all going out to meet God – will it be as Saviour because we have put our faith and our trust in him or will it be as judge? Death is sure, judgment is certain, eternity is long. Would you not come to Christ? The scriptures declare, "Behold, now is the accepted time. Behold, now is the day of salvation."

 

Joseph seeks his brethren

 

COLERAINE EVANGELICAL CHURCH

SERMON NOTES SUNDAY 14 JUNE 2026 – JASON CRUISE

GENESIS 37 

In our Old Testament scriptures, we read of many people that point to the person and the work of Christ. We think there of the tabernacle and the wilderness. We think of Solomon's temple. We think of Noah's ark. We think of the ark of the covenant. We think of the scapegoat. We think of the red heifer. We think there of Isaac upon the altar. We think of the Passover lamb in Exodus 12. We think of the brazen serpent.  We think there of Moses the prophet and deliverer. We think of Melchizedek the priest king. We think of Aaron the high priest. The list goes on and on and on. All of these things and all of these people fit into a Bible category that we call typology.

Here in the book of Genesis, we read about a man called Joseph. And in the life of Joseph, we find many similarities and many parallels with the person and the work of Christ. You will know, of course, the love and the bond that there was between the father and the son, between Jacob and Joseph. How Jacob he made his son that coat of many colours. How Joseph had the dream and there in that dream he dreams about his sheaf and it rises up and it stood up and the sheaves of his brethren came and made obeisance or bowed down to Joseph's sheaf. How he dreams about the sun and the moon and the 11 stars, they come and they pay obeisance onto Joseph bow down before him. Those dreams were looking forward to a time beyond the suffering and the pain and the agony that Joseph was to endure in the pit in the prison in Egypt. How he would suffer there. How there in the pit they would bring him out and they would sell them to the Israelites, be taken down into the land of Egypt and suffer much. But the dreams that he had were looking ahead beyond that to a time whenever he would sit in authority and sit in power as the prime minister of Egypt. I think about the words of the Lord Jesus in Matthew 26 and verse 64, Christ is standing before Caiaphas, the high priest "Nevertheless, I say unto you, hereafter shall ye see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power and coming in the clouds of heaven." The Lord Jesus was looking to a time that was yet to come, whenever he would be sat down in regal splendour, in power and authority, a time that was to come away beyond Calvary. A time that was beyond what he would endure at Golgotha. Because of the coat that Jacob made for Joseph and because of the dreams that Joseph had his brethren hated him – verse 4, “they hated him and could not speak peaceably unto him.” Verse 5 tells us they hated him yet the more. Verse 8 we read “and they hated him yet the more for his dreams and for his words.” In verse 11 we read “and his brethren envied him.” We see here the hatred that Joseph's brothers had for him and how that hatred grew and how it was boiling up within them. No doubt Joseph was well aware of how his brethren thought and how they felt towards him. But you know despite that in verse 13 we read how Jacob says to Joseph, “come and I will send thee unto them. And he said to him, here am I.” Joseph was willing to be obedient to his father and to go to seek the welfare of his brother. He says, "Here am I.” Think of the bond and the friendship and the closeness, the communion that Joseph enjoyed with Jacob there at Hebron. Joseph was willing to go and to seek the welfare of his brethren. It was no easy task. In verse 14 we read “so he sent him out of the vale of Hebron and he came to Shechem.” It would have been a distance of about approximately 50 miles that young Joseph had to travel in order to come and seek the welfare of his brethren. Despite the distance, despite the dangers, despite the hatred Joseph was willing to go in obedience to his father. Perhaps God has been speaking to you lately to do a work for him. In Isaiah 6 the Lord speaks to Isaiah "Who shall I send and who will go for us?" Isaiah responds by saying "Here am I. Send me.” Has the Lord been speaking to you lately, to do some work for him? Maybe it's only to a neighbour across the street. To go and inquire why you haven't seen them lately. Maybe someone who used to attend but now has stopped. Have we, have you and I been willing to say those words, Lord, here am I send me? Have we been obedient to the Lord? Joseph is obedient to his father Jacob. Are you and I like Joseph? Are we obedient to our heavenly father? Are we willing to do what he asks of us?

Verses 15 to 17 Back in the verse number two, we see Joseph feeding the flock of his father reminding us of the Lord Jesus, the one who in John 10 is the good shepherd. But whenever he comes to Shechem, he finds that his brethren are not there and so he goes that extra distance - another 15 miles to Dothan. Joseph the seeker. Remember how the Lord Jesus left the splendour and glory of heaven but he came much more than 50 miles. He came all the way from heaven's glory. Joseph has made his way there to Shechem. He could have said, "Well, I've come this far. This is what my father wanted me to do, and I think this is far enough." But, you know, he went the extra. He went all the way to Dothan. That reminds me of my Saviour, the Lord Jesus. There in the garden of Gethsemane, he could have called an angel from heaven but he didn't. He went all the way to the cross at Calvary. He did not stop short. We read about Dothan in Joshua 24 verse 1 “And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem and called for the elders of Israel and for their heads and for their judges and for their officers and they presented themselves before God.” Joshua goes on to say in verse 15 “choose you this day whom ye will serve whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell but as for me and my house we will serve the Lord.” Shechem was a place of decision for Joseph either to turn back or to go on. Shechem was a place of decision for the children of Israel whether to serve the false gods or to serve the one true and living God. The decision that Joseph made at Shechem had an impact for the rest of his life. Whenever Joseph came to Shechem he meets a man who asked him “what seekest thou” and Joseph gives the reply “I seek my brothers.” That would remind us of our Saviour the Lord Jesus. He could have stopped short in the garden of Gethsemane. He could have said “I've come far enough.” He could have called 12 legions of angels. That's 72,000 angels. The scriptures tell us "For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost." He went all the way to that place called Calvary. There in the garden of Gethsemane he said “not my will but thine be done.” At the end of verse 17 we read “and Joseph went after his brethren and found them in Dothan.” He went all the way. Before he gets to his brethren the hatred that they have for him is boiling up within them and in verse 19 we read of his brethren “behold this dreamer cometh.”  In the original Hebrew they refer to him as the master of dreams. What can we do with him? You can see the hatred that they have within themselves.

Look here at Reuben in verses 21 and 22. Here is Reuben and he well knows that's what's that what's going to take place is wrong. Reuben feels unable to stand up and to speak out loudly enough and tell his brethren how that they are wrong. He has him put into that pit believing that he's going to deliver him later on. Reuben here fails in speaking out loudly and clearly enough. None of us could point a finger at Reuben because there are many times that you and I have failed to stand up and speak out whenever we see those around about us saying things that are wrong or maybe involved in things that are wrong. We have that opportunity to speak out yet like Reuben we fail and we fail so miserably. May you and I be bold enough to speak up for the Lord.

Now look at the words of Judah in verses 27 and 28. His eyes are upon what is temporal, on what is the material. He asks in verse 26, "What profit is it if we slay our brother?" Judah is only interested in the money. In the Hebrew if we translate it into the Greek, the name Judah means Judas. And of course, that would remind us of none other than Judas Iscariot, a man who for 30 pieces of silver betrayed the Lord Jesus. A man who in the gospel we would often say kissed the gates of heaven yet passed through the gates of hell. Judah’s eye was not upon that which is eternal but rather was upon that which is material and temporal. We need to always keep our eyes upon that which is eternal. The Lord Jesus in Matthew 6 verse 19 said "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal." We are only pilgrims here on Earth. We are only passing through. Your citizenship and mine today is in heaven. Don't get caught up with the material. Don't be like Judah. But keep your eye upon that which is eternal. They sell young Joseph to these merchant men, these tradesmen, these businessmen and they bring him down there into the land of Egypt. They have come with all their spices and all their balms and now in the slave market. I picture in my mind young Joseph as he stands there in the slave market and I wonder as he stood there, did anyone realize that here is one who is going to be a greater blessing than all the spices and balm of Gilead. The one who was the shepherd at Hebron. The one who was the seeker at Shechem would become the Saviour in Egypt. What a picture of Christ he is. We are thankful today for that one that you and I have put our faith and our trust in the one who came to seek and to save you and I.

Whenever we come to verses 31-33, we find that these brothers of Joseph, have a dilemma. They have a great problem. What are they going to tell Jacob? In that great roll call of faith in Hebrews chapter 11 we read about, the great man that Jacob was. But yet, you know, as a young man, he was a man that you and I would have wanted to stay well clear of. For Jacob was a deceiver and he was a twister. And here now these sons of Jacob, they have brought the coat of many colours dipped in the blood of the young goat. A W Pink in his commentary, would make a link here between the coat dipped in the blood and the day of atonement. My mind goes back only 10 chapters to chapter 27 where Rebecca takes the skins of the kids of the young goats and she puts them upon Jacob. And Jacob goes into the presence of his father Isaac and there he deceives him, and he receives the blessing. Now his own sons are seeking to do the very same thing to him. Jacob's sons, of course, weren't there whenever Jacob deceived his father, but I have no doubt that they heard about it. It was something that was talked about - how Jacob deceived his father and how his sons deceived him. We must watch the example that we set to those that come after us. Guard your testimony today. Watch your witness for the Lord. You and I are setting examples that others will follow.

Verses 35 and 36. The Midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar an officer of Pharaoh’s and captain of the guard. Jacob refuses to be comforted. He  believes that a wild beast has come and killed his son. If you and I could go back in time and see Jacob there that day and put the question to him, “if you had known all that you believe has happened to Joseph, if you had known all that he will suffer, would you have sent him? Whenever you think about the fellowship and the communion and the relationship that you had with him in the vale of Hebron would you have sent your son?” I am sure that Jacob would have said “if I had known all that would befall my son I would never have sent him.” There are many parallels and many similarities between the life of Joseph and the life of Christ. But here we find a great contrast, a great difference. No doubt Jacob wouldn't have sent his son if he had known all that would befall him. Think of our heavenly father, how despite the fact that he knew all that would happen to his son, despite the fact that he knew all that would befall him at Gethsemane and at Golgotha. Despite knowing all the wickedness, the harm, the pain, the torture, the anguish that his son would experience, he was still willing to send them, still willing to send them. To suffer, to bleed, and to die, and to be the Saviour of the world. I put the question to you, the one who died upon the cross. The one that the Father sent knowing that all that would befall him. I ask you, do you know him? Do you know him personally? He is the only Saviour of sinners. If you don't know him today, come and put your faith and your trust in him, and you'll know the joy of sins forgiven and the assurance of a home in heaven.

 

Two Buildings, Two destinies

 

COLERAINE EVANGELICAL CHURCH

SERMON NOTES SUNDAY 8 JUNE 2026 – PASTOR HENRY CASKEY

Matthew chapter 7 verses 24 to 29

Matthew's gospel chapters 5, 6 and 7 are commonly known as the Sermon on the Mount. It tells us in in chapter 5 verse one “and seeing the multitudes he went up onto the mountain and when he was set his disciples came onto him.” Now these would be the multitude no doubt that were following on from chapter 4 of Matthew's gospel. You'll read there in chapter 4 at the end of it about the multitudes following after the Lord. They came because they wanted their loved ones healed. They came to hear him. They had witnessed his miracles and now they come to listen to him, to preach, and to teach. In verse one of chapter 5, it says, "And when he was set.”  In other words, he was just as in that particular occasion like the rabbis of old, they would sit down to teach the word of God. The Lord Jesus Christ went up onto the hill and he began to teach the word of God. The people had gathered and Jesus wanted to reach and teach them. He was going to teach them things that would bring a stability in their life. He was going to speak about building on the right foundation. In 1 Corinthians chapter 3, the Apostle Paul, that great preacher of the New Testament scriptures likened himself to a master builder. “The master builder lays a good foundation. For other foundation can no man lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” Then the Lord Jesus Christ finishes up his teachings. He brings it all to a closure just with this little portion of scripture from verse 24 on. It starts with the word "Therefore”. He stops them in their tracks. They've been listening so well. “Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine.”

The desire to hear. The Lord picks out two men. He points who are setting out to build their houses. Now the reality is the meaning is spiritually deeper than that. He's only taking this illustration of them building their houses, but he wants to point men and women to the stability of building a life upon the Lord Jesus Christ. It's important tonight that our lives are built upon him. The importance of a good foundation. If the house is set upon a good foundation, it will end well. There's no question about it. When time is taken and patience is taken just to get that right foundation the house shall finish well. If your life is built on the foundation of Christ, thank God you'll end well. Why? Whenever you came and you put your trust and your faith in the Lord Jesus, Christ when you came to that the foot of that old rugged cross and you realized that you had sinned, you realized that you came short of the glory of God and you realized that this man, this one hanging upon the middle cross was the one that God sent to be the sacrifice for your sin and for mine. Whenever you realized you had sinned and this is your Saviour and you took him and you built your life upon him, you are building for eternity. Whenever it comes to that time when you close your eyes and death it will be absent from the body and present even with the Lord. It's a wonderful, wonderful confidence to have. The apostle Paul tell us that “faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God?” Do you remember how the people were drawn to the master and his word? Do you remember how those soldiers that were sent out to arrest the Lord Jesus Christ and they came back to the Pharisees. The Pharisees asked them why they hadn’t brought him. They said, "No man spake like this man spake." So you can imagine this multitude sitting around the the hillside on that particular day. They are just sitting wrapped in every word that the Lord Jesus Christ speaks. Then he says, "Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine.” He is going to get to the crux of the matter. In Mark chapter 2 in Capernaum, you remember the Lord Jesus Christ came to that little village and there he went into a little house and he wasn't that long in the house until the news got around. The crowds were gathered so thick that particular day that he barely had room to preach the word of God. Do you remember Lydia in Acts chapter 16? My what an example that girl was. She was in Philippi. She was a seller of purple. She set up her stall in Philippi and she was selling her wares but then came the Sabbath day. She folded all up that day because there was a little meeting that was taking place just outside Philippi. It was just down beside the riverside. The word of God was going forth and she had a desire to go and hear the word of God. She wasn't even saved but she had a desire for the things of God. She had a desire for the word of God. She went down to the riverside and as she listened to the word of God, it says God opened her heart. When the apostle Paul opened up the word of God, when he began to preach the word of God, God began to move in a mighty way. Here were two men and Jesus pointed to him. They had a desire to hear the word of God. Do you remember Nicodemus in John's gospel chapter 3? He was a a Pharisee, a leader of the Jewish people. He was a man who would have read and studied the word of God. He was a man who would have preached the word of God. A man who prayed, a man who led the worship in the synagogue. And there he was sitting one evening in his own home. He would have been a very wealthy man, a very rich man. There was more things going through his mind that evening. He was pondering this name of Jesus. He had been hearing about the things that were happening in the community, how he had preached and how he had healed. Maybe he thought it was time that he should be hearing this man for himself. He made his way through the streets of Jerusalem to where the Lord Jesus Christ was. And there he began to ask him questions. He said, "Rabbi we know that thou art a teacher come from God for no man can do these miracles except God be with him.” Then the Lord Jesus Christ started to speak to him. There was a desire in his heart to go and hear what the Lord Jesus Christ had to say. Do you have a desire for the word of God? Jesus said one man went out and he did what he was supposed to do. He applied the word of God to his life. He's like a man who built his house upon the rock. Everything was good. But then the other man listened to the words of God and he went out and he just set them aside. His life was a disaster. Maybe you have heard so much about the Lord Jesus Christ. You've heard so much preaching about him. You've heard how he left the splendours of heaven. How he left the praise of angels, and he stepped forth into this old world. He was born of the Virgin Mary, and there he suffered at the hands of the religious leaders. There he bled, and suffered, and he died upon that old rugged cross. Maybe you know all that. You have heard it time and time again. There's a desire in your heart this evening. Why? Whenever we come to sit in the word of God and we turn there to Genesis chapter 3 and we see the creation of God and we see a stamp upon the whole creation. He says everything he made, he says it was very good. Then we come to Isaiah chapter 53. We see the suffering servant. The Lord Jesus Christ suffering and bleeding and dying for a lost mankind. Maybe it is time just to stop at that stage and to ponder through it and to read it. Just like the Ethiopian eunuch as he travelled up from Jerusalem. He was sitting with the word of God open. He was pondering through the word of God. He was taking time. He was taking patience to go through the word of God. He had a desire for it and God showed him his great need of salvation and Philip had the joy of stepping up into that carriage and pointing him to the Lord Jesus Christ.

Notice now Jesus changes to something of the directions that he's given here. Jesus is speaking now about hearing and doing. It is one thing to hear the word of God, but then we've got to apply the word of God, and we've got to do the word of God. One man hears, but he does nothing about what he hears. It just falls upon deaf ears. He hears the teachings of God but he just simply turns his back and he walks away. James says that is like a man who beholds his natural face in a glass. He takes a look at himself in the mirror and he sees what alterations needs to be made to his appearance before he goes out, but he doesn't do anything about it." This is a man looking into the word of God. He sees himself in the mirror of God's word. He sees that he's a sinner. He sees that he needs to come to Christ. He sees that he needs forgiveness of sins, that he's needs to be reconciled to God because at that moment in time he's separated from God. To die in that state will mean he will be separated for all eternity. He sees that in the word of God. He hears it from the teachings of God, but he just turns his back and he walks away. Jesus likens such a man to a foolish man. He paints that wonderful, wonderful picture of this man going out to build his house, but neglects to seek out the best foundation. That's what the Lord brings it down to. He says, "That man that hears my word and doesn't do it, he's like a man that goes out to build a house and he wants to get that house up as quickly as he can and so he just builds upon the sand. It's going to come to ruin." We need to follow the directions. Did you ever set out to build something that's bought as a flat pack? Well, it is a great trial. You will open up the box and there's about a hundred sections and about 10,000 screws and nuts and bolts and all these directions. A fits ito B and C then goes into D and all this sort of thing. You know, it's all very well to see it sitting on the floor but if you hadn't the directions, even with the directions, it's quite difficult. If you hadn't those directions, you could get nowhere. Do you remember Thomas? He asked the Lord "We don't know where you're going. How do we know the way?” And Jesus looked at him. He said "Thomas, I am the way, the truth and the life no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." If we miss the Lord Jesus Christ tonight, if we miss the cross of Calvary tonight, we will miss a presence with God throughout the ages of eternity. That's how serious it is tonight. Multitudes tonight, good, well-meaning people are trying to find heaven their own way. They have their ministers who tell them, "You're okay." There'll be ministers today who stand behind the sacred desk and they'll tell their congregations, "You're okay. You just do the best you can. You come to your church, you take your communion, and you have nothing to worry about." And sadly, souls are being lost even as we speak tonight with such teachings. You see, there's directions tonight. Do you remember in Acts chapter 16? Do you remember that man that we read about there - the Philippian jailer? Do you remember how he Paul and Silas was put in his charge. He put them in stocks and closed the cell door. He fell soundly asleep. He had no conscience whatsoever. Didn't worry about it. These were two children of God. He maybe heard them preach in the street. He maybe heard about Lydia getting saved. He maybe heard about the little damsel that was demon possessed and how she was delivered and now she lived a different life. He maybe knew all that, but he put his head on the pillow and he went to sleep. And then you remember how that evening, his whole life began to fall apart at midnight. He ran into where Paul and Silas were, he got down before them and said "Sirs what must I do to be saved?" Remember the direction that the apostle Paul gave him. "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved." It is believing in him tonight. It's not believing in a church. It's not believing on a communion table. It's not believing in the best things that we can do. It's believing in him tonight. Your salvation is in a person. That person is the Lord Jesus Christ suffering and dying on the middle cross just for you. Whenever the Lord Jesus Christ died upon that cross, he was dying alone. He was dying to atone for your sin and for my sin.  

Then I want you to see something about the difficulties that appear. The Lord Jesus Christ says, "Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine." How important hearing these sayings are. Then he isolates these two men. He says, "I want to give you an example of hearing my word." He says they are like two men going out just to build two houses. It's as simple as that. He says one man hears and he goes out and he does what I tell him and he builds his house. He builds on a good foundation and things are safe. The other man goes out, he neglects and his life's a disaster. Notice the difficulties that appear. The one man goes out and he digs down deep onto the solid rock and he brings his stones and his bricks and he begins to build. The other man, he didn't go to all that bother. He just went over across to a sandy place and he began to build upon the sand. I am sure for those two houses, one was just as good as the other. Maybe the same contours, maybe the same doors, maybe the same windows, maybe the same shape, maybe the same size. Everything was okay at that stage. But then we see the difficulties came. Verse 27 "The rain descended, and whenever the rain descended, the little streams began to fill up. And when the little streams began to fill up, the rivers began to fill up. And when the rivers began to fill up, there was an overflow. And my, they just come in around those two houses. And the winds were blowing at their strongest. And the house that was built upon the sand, it just fell flat. And great was the fall off it. I'm sure that man was very disappointed. For the man or for the woman not trusting in Jesus Christ for salvation, the message is so very, very simple. When life is okay, you're okay. But when things turn aside, I'll tell you, it's so difficult. It's so difficult. Whenever sickness comes, maybe whenever unemployment comes, maybe whenever family divisions come, or maybe when the waves of death begin to flood over your soul, that's a time of trial. What will you do then? If you haven't built upon this sure foundation of the Lord Jesus Christ, you'll be lost and lost for all eternity.

I read the story of a an atheist recently. The man had no time for God whatsoever and often denied God at every opportunity. He was a fairly outspoken man, quick to condemn Christianity but he was on his deathbed and his friends had gathered around him. As he lay there he began to get very agitated. His friends were trying to encourage him. They laid their hands upon him and said "John, hold on. Hold on, John." The man lying upon the bed, he looked up into the face of his friends and he said, "Hold on to what?" You see, he had nothing at the end. 

When those difficult times come, we need that sure foundation.

There is the destruction that falls. This man can only now stand and watch his house fall apart. He is helpless. He can do nothing. He didn't build upon the foundation and now the house is beginning to fall around about him. It is crumbling around about him and he steps to watch it falling. There is nothing that he can do about it. He can't retrace his steps. Jesus says, "That's the man  who has heard my word. That's the man who knew what he should have done. That's the man that turned his back and walked away and his life has fallen apart. This is the picture of a man's life without Christ. coming to that last moment, that last breath. His life is in ruins and past, and a lost and Christless hell looms out before him. The last great enemy to be fought is the enemy of death and it overtakes us. And now we must go all the way of the earth. That's what the Lord is getting at here. That is what the Lord's speaking about tonight. Sadly, you remember in the Old Testament scriptures that young man Achan for whom destruction came. It was the battle of Jericho, the first battle as they entered into the promised land. God took Joshua to the one side and he told him that Jericho is going to be his victory. He gave him the pattern of how these walls of Jericho would fall. He told them about walking around it every day for six days. On the seventh day the walls fell down flat. But God told Joshua “this is my victory and the spoils of this victory are mine and you're not to be taking any of the spoils.” I'm sure Joshua rehearsed that time and time again to his army. One of the soldiers was a young man called Achan. No doubt he listened to what God had to say. When they went into Jericho and the walls fell flat, you remember what Achan did? He saw the silver and the gold. He saw the Babylonian garment that was so beautiful and why he could not just lift his eyes off it. He could not get away from the fact that it was there ready for the taking. He knew God's word. God's word says the spoil is mine. But that young man, he gathered all up and he took them and hid them in his tent. But you remember the destruction that came to him and to his family because of that one act and the destruction that came to the whole nation because in the very next battle, they were defeated. That's what sin does. That's what the disobedience to God's word does. Jesus says, "The man that goes out and doesn't do my way, he hears my sayings, but he doesn't follow them through. He doesn't apply to his heart. He says he's a foolish man.” Paul could say in Ephesians chapter 2 and verse 12 that at that time he was speaking to those Ephesian believers, but he was taking them back to a time when they weren't saved. "At that time, ye were without Christ and ye were without God and you had no hope." What an awful state. Can I take you back to that moment before you were saved? That you were without God and eternity was looming. You had no hope. What a terrible state to be in. On the cross of Calvary, he atoned. He reconciled you back to his God but you've got to claim it. You've got to come now and claim that atonement even for yourself. Will you be like the foolish man? You will forget about them and you will build your house as it were on the sand and one day it'll collapse around you. Or will you be like that wise man tonight and build upon the solid rock?

There was a young man during the awakening of the 59 revival. He came under the hand of conviction. Neighbours of his were getting saved. Men and women were getting saved around about him and he come under conviction. He had been to a few of the meetings and God had really spoken to him. He was a young man, a young farmer, but he had his eye on a bigger farm. His uncle had promised him that when he would pass away, the farm would be his. But the young man had come under conviction at the preaching of the gospel of saving grace. And he showed signs of getting saved. And one night the old uncle came to him and he he says, "Now listen," he says, "If you get saved, you can say goodbye to the farm. The farm's not yours." because he said, "I will not have that in my family." He says, "I don't want you to get saved." He said "The farm will go. It will go to someone else." So the young man couldn't get past that. It was a stumbling block. And so he chose the farm. Many years later, that man, a much elderly man was lying on a deathbed. A young pastor went to see him. He started to speak to him about the things of God. Asked him if he was saved. The man now lying on his bed, said "No. I made a bad bargain in the 59 revival." He had missed his opportunity.

Don't miss your opportunity of salvation. Don't miss it. Come to Christ when you have the opportunity and trust him as your Saviour and trust him as your Lord.

 

The Faith of the Centurion

COLERAINE EVANGELICAL CHURCH

SERMON NOTES SUNDAY 7 JUNE 2026 - PASTOR HENRY CASKEY

MATTHEW 8 VERSES 5 TO 13 

In this portion of scripture we see a man coming to the Lord Jesus Christ. He's a Roman centurion and whenever you go through the scriptures you'll find that there was seven centurions that came to the Lord and each one of them had that mark of respectability about them. This centurion finds himself in a situation that he can do absolutely nothing about. And in seeing this situation, he wants to bring it to the Lord Jesus Christ. This man has a servant and he's lying at home. This servant has no doubt been very faithful to him. He was not only a servant, but he must have been a great friend as well. This centurion looks at him every so often. He maybe passes by his room every day. He maybe calls in to see him two or three times a day. And he's in such pain. He's grievously tormented. He's got palsy and there's nothing that he can do for him. No doubt he's tried every physician for him. He's tried every person that he could think of, but none could help him. Then he turns to the Lord Jesus Christ. The heading just over this passage in my Bible this morning says “the faith of a centurion.” In Hebrews 11 verse 6 we read “but without faith it is impossible to please God.” This man’s coming is very pleasing to the Lord Jesus Christ himself. “For he that cometh to God must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of them that will diligently search and seek for him.” This man is not named in scripture and nothing more is said about him after these verses. We only have a picture of him standing before the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a lonely picture. This man’s heart is burdened down because he has this servant that he can do nothing for. He comes and finds the Lord Jesus Christ. He is looking into the face of the Lord and he's pleading with him. Sometimes it can be like that for us. We have a burden, we have a difficulty, we have got a pain and we are taking it to the Lord Jesus Christ and there's not another person knows about it. You find yourself sitting before the Lord, you are praying and you're pleading. In Hebrews chapter 11, there's a catalogue of mighty men and women and their great exploits of faith. But you know this morning, we don't want to compare our faith with theirs this morning. We have to be very very careful about that because if we did that, we might maybe fall far short as we fail. Instead, we want to look at the faith here that this man comes with just for a moment or two because don't forget what the Lord said about this man "I have not seen so great a faith. No, Not in all Israel." I want you to take encouragement from this man.

I want you to notice first of all the exercise of his faith. His faith was rooted in the Lord Jesus Christ. For this man, his surroundings affected him. He knew there was nothing he could do for himself. There was nobody who could help him so he takes it to the Lord Jesus Christ. This man comes with the burden of this slave upon his shoulders to the Lord Jesus Christ. The vision that he has affected him. Are we affected by what is around us? Are we affected by those in our family circles, those under our roof? Are we affected about those maybe in the estates around about us? Maybe in the neighbourhood where we live. We see them out and about this morning and they are doing all sorts of things. Church is the last thing on their mind. Are we affected by that? Perhaps you are saying "Well, there's nothing I can do about it." Do we have a vision to reach them? This man went to the Lord Jesus Christ. He realized Jesus was able to heal his servant. He wouldn't have gone if he didn't believe that. It's important to have the assurance of faith. To know that we are safe in the arms of Jesus. Quite often perhaps at a funeral we hear the words “he came to faith” or maybe  "Well, you know, he or she had a great faith." You can have a great faith in anything. Some today are depending upon their church. Is that where your faith is? You attend your church and you never miss it. You are there on a Sunday morning and you are around the Lord's table if need be as well and you pay into that church and the minister visits you every six weeks or every six months or whatever the case may be and you feel that's enough and that one day you'll be at heaven and home. That is a falsehood. There is no dogma in the church that will give you access into God's presence. It is good to know where our faith is. Our faith this morning is not in a creed. It is not in a church building. It's not in a clergy man. Our faith this morning is in the Lord Jesus Christ and the finished work of Calvary. Whenever he came into this world, he came in with a purpose on his mind and on his heart. He came to fulfil his father's will - that each and every one of us might be saved. And he died on the cross of Calvary just to give that opportunity for men and women to be saved. He loved them with an everlasting love and he still reaches out to this very day. He says, "Him that cometh to me says I will in no wise cast out." Some today will make their way up the aisle and they will bow at the altar rail and they will seek the Lord Jesus Christ and they have that promise upon them. Many have their faith today in a clergyman or pastor today. And maybe they are waiting on a little word said over them at the open grave and they feel that's all they need. This centurion left his home on this particular occasion. He had his eyes and his heart and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone. No doubt he had heard much about the Lord. He must have heard about his great miracles, how he gives sight back to the blind, healed the sick and gave life back to those who were dead. He realized all this and he looked into the face of his servant and told him, "If I could find the Lord Jesus Christ you would be healed.” He was the only one who could help him and he believed it. That's the most important thing. He knew that if he got to the Lord, he would see his prayers answered. Never lose sight of the vision of what God can do and never lose sight of being in front of him with prayer. This man believed in what God could do. 

Someone told the story about George Witfield preaching in the open air one day when a man was seen running to hear him. But the man was an atheist. Another man was coming up the street who knew he was an atheist. He said to him, “Where are you running to?" The man replied "I'm running down to hear Whitfield." The man thought this was strange because he knew he's a an atheist so he said to him, "But you don't believe what Whitfield believes." “No but he does."

This man had a servant who was sick. There was nothing that he could do. This man had tried every doctor he possibly could get. But now we see him at the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible says he is beseeching him. He's pleading with him. He is exercising his faith in Christ and takes this problem to him. We have the same access to God as this man had. Whenever we come to him, he has promised to answer prayer. Remember Jairus - how he exercised his faith as well. He had a daughter of 12 years of age and she was sick. She was at the very point of death and he exercised his faith because he went out through the front door one morning to find the Lord Jesus Christ. He got down before him and pleaded with him. He said, "Lord my little daughter is sick, would you come and heal her?" He exercised his faith. Are we exercising our faith in the Lord Jesus? Do you remember the man with a demon possessed son? Day after day, week after week, month after month, the demon spirit took hold of him. If he went down to the river the demon would have cast him in. In his own home the demon would have thrown him into the fire just to destroy him. There is nothing that man could do. He took him to the Lord asking for his help.  Maybe we need to get back to that stage again where we are pleading and praying and expecting God to move in a mighty way again just amongst our family, just amongst our loved ones. The exercise of this man's faith. He simply went to the Lord Jesus Christ.

But I want you to see his expression of his faith. He opens up his heart. Notice his honesty and humility. Verse number six "My servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented." This man is expecting something great from the Lord. William Carey said “We should attempt great things for God and that we should expect great things from God.” Do we expect those things? Do we expect God to really move? Are we attempting those great things again for God? He's pleading here. He says, "Lord my servant." He's really spelling it out for the Lord. He goes on “he's lying at home, sick of the palsy, gravely tormented.” He is pouring out his real soul to the Lord. Isn't that what prayer is really? It's really pouring out our soul, isn't it? Isn't that what Hannah was accused of whenever she prayed for a child? She went up into the temple and she prayed and pleaded with the Lord. Old Eli was there and he thought she was drunk. She told him she wasn’t but that she was pouring out her soul to the Lord. This centurion comes and he says, "Lord, you know that I'm helpless. You know that I can do nothing about it.” The Lord says, "I'll come and I'll heal him. Jesus at this point was prepared to enter into a Gentile home. That was something unheard of in the Jewish community. A Jew would never have went into a Gentile home in any shape, form or fashion. But the Lord was prepared to do it. Maybe this centurion knew that because notice his expression of faith in verse eight. The centurion knew perhaps that this was going to put the Lord under a great deal of pressure to come into his home. “I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof, but speak the word only and my servant shall be healed.” He knew he had soldiers who he could say "Go," and he went and to another he could say "Come," and he came. When Jesus heard it, he marvelled and said to them that followed. “Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no not in all Israel.” This man knew the authority that Jesus had. He knew Jesus can do something special here. He said to Jesus "All you have to do is speak the word. You don't have to come under my roof. You don't have to come in and see my servant." Wasn't that a tremendous expression of faith from a Gentile man coming to the Lord Jesus Christ? The apostle Paul put it this way. “Now unto him that was able to do exceeding abundantly over all that we ask or think.” This man came and he knew the Lord was well able to do far more exceeding abundantly than ever he could ask or think. He knew there was nothing he could do for this servant, but he knew the Lord could. Do you remember whenever the Lord met the young man, the demon-possessed young man who had his living out amongst the tombs. He cut himself. He had a violent temper. He shouted but nobody could tame him. Nobody could do anything. And you remember the Lord, he spoke one word to the demons - "Go." One word. This man says, "Speak the word only.” Will we get back to praying and pleading more ”Lord, I want to see my children saved this morning.” Remember when the disciples were caught up in the little boat in the storm. Jesus got up and quelled the storms. The disciples looked at him and they marvelled saying “what manner of man is this that even the very waves and the winds obey him?” This centurion knew the manner of man he was talking to. He knew the authority that he had. You remember the three Hebrew children who wouldn't bow down to the image of Nebuchadnezzar. They were told that they would be cast into the furnace as a result. They still wouldn't bow their heads or their hearts to this image and so they were cast into the fiery furnace. Before going in they said “Our God is able to deliver us.” That was an expression of faith but then they said “well if he doesn't deliver us we have nothing to lose.”

Then we see the examination of his faith. This man's simple childlike faith came under the scrutiny and the eye of Jesus because he says in verse 10 "I have not found so great a faith. No, not in all Israel." The Lord was examining this faith. The Lord was looking at this man in the eye. He heard what he said. He knew all about it. And he says, “I haven't seen faith like this. No, not in all Israel.” Do you remember the four men in Mark's gospel chapter 2? They had a friend that wasn't well, that couldn't walk. They put him on a stretcher and they carried him to where the Lord was? And as they approached where the Lord was, they realized there was such a crowd around that house on that particular day that they could not get in. But that wasn't going to turn them away. They went around the back of the house and they got onto the staircase. They went up onto the roof and they made a hole in the roof and they lowered their friend down to the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ. Nothing was going to deter them. Not even the criticism of those Pharisees that were sitting in the same room as the Lord Jesus Christ. The Pharisees claimed that no man has power to forgive sins, only God. And no doubt they were criticizing these men for even bringing their friend to the Lord Jesus Christ. But that didn't deter them. And the Bible says “the Lord looked up and he saw their faith.” Isn't it wonderful this morning, that the Lord looks into our hearts and he sees our faith this morning. This was faith that was acknowledged by the Lord. They weren't going to let anything hinder them. And the Lord turned to the man that was on the bed and he raised him up. That man got up to his feet. He hadn't walked. He rolled up the little bed. He threw it across his shoulder and off he went. The Lord saw their faith. What size of faith is it? It's the faith the size of a mustard seed. And the mustard seed is the smallest of all the seeds. That's all the Lord expects this morning.

Lastly see the evidence of this man's faith. Verse 13, “Jesus said unto the centurion, ‘Go thy way, and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee.’" And his servant was healed in the self same hour.”  Maybe he had doubt in his mind but he had enough faith to overcome the doubt and come to the feet of Christ. He had enough faith that morning just to get down before the Lord Jesus Christ and say, "Lord, you can heal him just speak the word.” Maybe that's all the Lord's looking from you or me this morning. Just that little nugget of faith to say, "Lord, I believe you this morning. I believe you. I'm waiting on you this morning." It was the very self same hour that this servant was healed. Do you remember whenever the Lord met Bartimaeus, that blind man? Do you remember how that day the Lord said to him "What will you have me to do unto you?" He says, "That I might receive my sight." That was some expression of faith. And then we see the evidence of it. The Lord says, "Thy faith has saved thee."

The Lord's cursing of the fig tree

COLERAINE EVANGELICAL CHURCH

SERMON NOTES SUNDAY 31 MAY 2026 – MR CRAIG DENNISON

READING: MARK 11 VERSES 1 TO 26

The Lord’s cursing of the fig tree

Our story is set in the last week of the life of the Lord Jesus Christ which is often referred to as the Passion Week. Now, the word ‘passion’ is not a reference to emotion. Rather, it comes from the Latin word ‘passio’ which means suffering.  It is the week of his suffering or the week that leads up to his suffering. And on the first day of this week of the Passion Week, it is the day that we refer to as our Lord's day but for the Jews was the first day of a new week, day one.  the first day, the Sunday is a day of activity. It's a day when the Lord descended down the Mount of Olives and he beheld the city of Jerusalem and he wept over that city. He wept over the people. He wept over the place. On that day he made his triumphant entry into Jerusalem. He sits on the colt as people put their garments on the ground. They cut down branches to welcome him into Jerusalem. and how quickly that is going to change. The people, are full of praise, saying, "Hosanna, blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord." And if you didn't know what happened after that, you would think after the first day, this is going to be a glorious week. This is going to be a week when Jerusalem embraces Christ. This is going to be a week when even the religious people fall down and adore him. If you were told after day one what would happen on day seven, you would scarcely believe it. As that day draws to a close, the Lord Jesus Christ retreats to Bethany with the 12 disciples. And it appears for most of that week that the Lord stayed in Bethany with Mary and Martha and Lazarus. In fact, whenever the Lord was in the area, that is generally where he stayed. Bethany was about 2 miles from Jerusalem and it would have taken them an hour to walk there. After all the events in Jerusalem, the Lord and his disciples make the journey out to Bethany. And then we move on to day two. And day two is where we are focusing this morning.  Verse 12 says, "And on the tomorrow when they were come from Bethany, he was hungry." Notice it doesn't say “they were hungry.” It only mentions Christ as being hungry. It is very unlikely that he was not offered breakfast at the house of Martha. We know that Martha had quite the reputation for hospitality. You will remember a previous occasion whenever the Lord was teaching in their house and Martha was cumbered about with much service. And where was Mary? She wasn't helping her sister. She was sat at the feet of Jesus listening. And Martha complained thinking the Lord would tell Mary off. But the Lord praised Mary saying she has chosen the better thing. Why did the Lord leave her house hungry? It is most likely that Christ rose early to pray. We often read about this in the life of the Savior. He got up early in the morning to pray. He went up into mountains late at night to pray. Before everybody else had rose, the Savior was away to pray, seeking the face of his Father early in the morning. And then the disciples meet him. They begin the journey to Jerusalem. And as they journeyed to Jerusalem, the Lord sees a fig tree. As he approaches this tree for fruit he finds no figs. He does something that many people think is strange. He curses the fig tree. He speaks to a tree and he curses it. He pronounces judgment upon it. This miracle stands alone in all the miracles of Christ. Verse 20 tells us, "The next day they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots." The Lord cursed the fig tree and it was cursed. The next day it was dead. It didn't just begin to die, it was fully withered, dried up from the roots. Obviously now a dead tree in the space of 24 hours. What should have taken effectively months to happen the Lord has quickened so that it's obvious even to the disciples that this tree is cursed. Now this miracle is very different. It stands actually in contrast to all the other miracles because all the other miracles of Christ were miracles of mercy. He gives sight to the blind. That's mercy. He made the lame to walk. That is mercy. He fed the 5,000 when they were hungry. That is mercy. He brought the dead to life. That's mercy. But this miracle, it's not a miracle of mercy. This is a miracle of judgment. And it is the only miracle of judgment. The only other miracle that comes close is whenever Christ healed the demoniac of Gedara and then sent the legion of demons into the herd of swine and they ran down into the sea and the swine were drowned. But even that was a miracle of mercy and judgment. But the cursing of the fig tree is the only miracle of judgment in the life of our Saviour. What is so significant about this miracle? Here we see the Lord Jesus Christ displaying his authority over all of creation. He's not just the Lord over the souls of men. He's not just able to physically touch the bodies of men. He's showing that he can even control nature. That if he orders a tree to be cursed, it's cursed. If he orders it to be dried up from the roots, it will come to pass. All things we are told were made by him, and without him was not anything made that was made. That is John 1:3 and Colossians 1:16. We are told, "For by him were all things created that are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, dominions, principalities, or powers. All things were created by him and for him." The fig tree was created by Christ and it was created for Christ. You and I, we were made by Christ and we were made for Christ. Your life is not your own. You were made by him for him. The very purpose of your existence is to live for Christ. But Christ did not curse this fig tree without a cause. The gospels do not record this event to fill paper. The Holy Spirit moved the writers to write this down. Christ has a purpose in cursing this fig tree. He had lessons to teach his disciples and because it's in the Bible, there are lessons that you and I are to draw from this here today. Let's think of the miracle of Christ cursing the fig tree.

Number one, notice the appearance of the fig tree.  Most of us are unfamiliar with the design of fig trees. We don't have an awful lot of them here in our beautiful sunny climate. They're more likely to be found over in the Mediterranean and in the hot climate over there. But the fig trees are very resilient. They can live for decades. Some have even been reported to live for over a hundred years. Normally a fig tree will produce two crops every year. But there's something unique about the fig tree. The fruit often comes before or at the same time as the leaves. Now if you think of an apple tree the leaves come before the fruit. Normally the fruit is the end result of the tree flourishing. But the fig tree is different. The figs come before or with the leaves. The leaves very rarely appear before the fruit.  In verse 13 it says, "Seeing a fig tree a far off having leaves." If the leaves are there, that means the fruit is there because the fruit comes first.  This gives the impression or at least an expectation that there's fruit upon this tree. If the tree has leaves it is likely to have fruit.  The profession is that this tree, this fig tree is a fruitbearing tree. But sadly, it is a tree that is giving a false profession. It is a tree that is deceiving people. It has leaves and people come to it expecting to find fruit and they find none. In fact, verse 13 says he found nothing but leaves. Christ came, he searched the tree, he found no figs, he only found leaves. He had been led to believe that this tree had fruit. But as he got closer, as he examined, as he lifted every leaf, looking behind for figs, he found none. This tree was given its moment of inspection. What are we to draw from this? There are great parallels in the life of the fig tree and those who profess to be the Lord's people. Some will call themselves Christians. They will say, "I have the leaves of Christianity. I have the leaves of a profession of faith. I have the leaves of church attendance. I have the leaves of baptism. I have the leaves of living a righteous life.” But they can lack the real fruit of Christianity. They might have the outward leaves showing themselves to be a Christian, but they can lack the fruit. They can lack saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. They can lack the fruit of repentance of sin. They can lack the fruit of regeneration. We can have that outward appearance, the leaves, but we can lack the fruit. We have one opportunity to be fruitful in this lifetime. God gives you your whole life to be fruitful. Not to gather leaves, but to have real fruit. One day the Lord will come and make that final searching of us. And he's not looking for leaves. He's looking for fruit.  Have I the real fruit of genuine Christianity? Do I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ? Do I know him as my Lord and my Savior? Have I repented of sin? Am I daily repenting of sin and living by faith in him?  

Secondly notice the desire of Christ. Verse 13 “if happily he might find anything thereon.” The desire of Christ was to find figs on this tree. He wasn't coming there making some sort of gesture saying, "Well, I will go here, but I hope there's nothing here so that I can curse it." No, he went to the tree genuinely seeking, genuinely desiring figs upon the tree. And just as he desires to find the fruit upon the tree, so he desires to find fruit of real genuine Christianity in my life and your life. The Lord isn't hoping that you fail to produce fruit in your life. The Lord isn't desiring that there would be no faith in your heart. No. The Bible says “he is not willing that any should perish but that all would come to repentance.” The Lord wants there to be in your life and my life real fruit of Christian conversion. Figs are a picture of regeneration. But what is regeneration? It is the change wrought in us by God the Holy Spirit. The Bible paints a picture of us - that we are those who are “dead in trespasses and in sins.” We need new life in Jesus Christ and only the Holy Ghost can work this in us. The Lord Jesus Christ refers to Nicodemus as being “born again.” That is your current life. It is a life of deadness and sins. You need a new life. You need to be born again of the Holy Ghost. Ezekiel speaks of God taking away the old heart, the stony heart, and giving us a new heart, a heart of flesh. This is what Christ desires to find when he searches our life. That change, that regeneration within us. In Luke chapter 13 verse 6 to 9 we have the parable of the vineyard dresser. In that parable we read that for three years the owner came and searched the fig tree for fruit and he found none. The vineyard dresser pleaded for one more year and if there was no more fruit in that last year it would be cut down. We are not actually told what happened at the end of that parable, whether it produced fruit or not but the point isn't the outcome of the tree. The point of that parable is God's patience with the sinner. He gave them one year and there was no fruit. He gave them another year and there was no fruit. He gave them a third year, but this was going to be their last year. There was no fruit that year. The tree will be cut down. As each year passes with us, if we're not saved, if we're not converted, if we don't have the true fruit of Christianity, God one day will decide this is your last chance. This will be the last year that you have upon the earth. It will be the last day. It will be the last minute. It will be the last second. The important thing is that we are prepared to meet our God. That we have the fruit of real Christianity within our lives. The Lord wants to find fruit in the lives of those who profess to be his. He wants to save sinners. That is the whole purpose of his mission, “to come into this world to seek and to save that which was lost.” He freely offers himself in the gospel to sinners to be believed upon. That's what he wants to do. He wants to save lost souls. Christ is desiring fruit in the lives of sinners. He's not setting us up to fail. Christ came to the tree hungry, desiring fruit. Christ is sincere in granting salvation to the whosoever will come to him.  What fruit is Christ looking at in our lives? This is where we go a little bit deeper this morning. If you turn to Galatians 5 verse 22, we see the fruit that Christ wants from us. The Lord doesn't say, "I want fruit in your life, but I'm not going to tell you what it is." No, it is spelt out for us in the word of God, the exact fruit Christ is desiring. “But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. Against such there is no law. And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lust. If we live in the spirit, let us also walk in the spirit.” Let us start with the first one. The fruit of the spirit is love. God wants us to have love. Not just to love those who love us, not just to love our family. He wants us to love him. He wants our affections to be directed towards God. He wants our emotions to be in tune with his. He wants us to love him for giving us the gift of life. He wants us to love him for sending his son into this world to be our Saviour. He wants us to love him for his mercies that he extends to us day by day, for all the benefits we receive from his hand. He doesn't want us to be cold towards him. He doesn't want us to hate him. He wants us to love him. As you love your spouse, as you love your children, as you love your family, as you love your country, God wants you to love him. And he wants you to love him more than anything else. That is a fruit that God desires in our heart. In fact, it's the very first fruit that God wants. The greatest commandment is this: “to love the Lord thy God with all thy body, soul, mind, and heart.” That is what he wants us to do. He wants the fruit of repentance, the fruit of faith, the fruit of holiness. He wants the fruit of prayer, a fruit of a love for the word of God, a desire to worship him. And we could go on. These are the fruits that Christ is desiring in our lives. He came into the world to be a Saviour. As Saviour, he saves sinners. He gave the Holy Ghost to do that act of regeneration and the work of sanctification. That is holiness within us. It is often a slow work but it will lead to genuine fruitbearing in the life of the Christian. That work should certainly be happening within us. The day we are converted is only the first step. Every day thereafter is another step on the journey to God. We might look in our hearts and realise we are not what we should be but by the grace of God we are not where we started from.

The third heading is the examination of Christ. In verse 13 we read that he found nothing but leaves. Nothing but leaves. There was a false impression given here to the world. Anybody who passed by said “that is a fig tree.” But only when you went to examine it closely you found nothing. We can be guilty of the same. The whole world might look at us and say, "Well, there's a Christian. They go to church. They never miss a meeting. They carry their Bible. They're never seen without it. They're able to quote the Bible. They're able to maybe talk about spiritual things and have a Christian conversation.” We can give that appearance of having leaves. Many people have leaves in the world today. We can think of our Saviour’s day. There were the religious leaders, the scribes and the Pharisees. If you lived 2,000 years ago, you would say, "Well, that's a religious person." But they hated Christ. They put him to death. They had the leaves, but they had no fruit.  Dead religion is only leaves. The sad thing is, we could love our leaves. We could be very proud of our leaves of false profession. And we could be careless, but there's no fruit within us. Like Adam and Eve, we could hide behind our leaves to cover our nakedness and our shame, to try and hide from God the fact that we have no fruit. But God can see the heart. He could see Adam and Eve, but they were naked and ashamed. And he can see us as well. The story of the fig tree is in two parts. You have the cursing of the fig tree and then you have the temple cleansing and finally the last part of the story of the fig tree.  The story of the cleansing of the temple is sandwiched in between this story of the fig tree. It is there for a reason. Just as the leafy fig tree promised fruit but had none, the temple system looked impressive. The temple was just a temple of leaves. It had no fruit, no possession at all. Jews were going in and out of the temple looking religious, sounding religious, acting religious, but it was all leaves. There is no fruit. Picture your spiritual life as a fig tree. Christ is coming to you and searching your life for fruit. If he was here today to go through your life, would he just find the leaves of a false profession? Or would he find true genuine fruit of faith and repentance, love for God? The priority for you and I is to have fruit.

Which leads me to my fourth and final point here today, the judgment of Christ. Some people don’t like this miracle because of its nature. They struggle to think that the lips that spoke words of healing, peace, and love would also speak words of judgment. They like to focus upon the mercy of Christ, the love of Christ, and they reject any thoughts of judgment. Yet Jesus spoke of judgment and condemnation more than 60 times in the 4 gospels.  Why do some people take issue with Christ cursing the tree? Some people don't like to think of being judged by Christ because they don't want to think of the consequences that come with judgment. But to ignore, minimize, or reject this miracle is to basically get a black pen and mark through these verses. The Bible clearly presents Christ as the judge of all the earth. The apostle says that “he hath appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath appointed heir of all things.” The Bible also says we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ.  Christ is the judge of all the earth. He has the power to judge, but he also has the power to curse and to pronounce judgment as well.

There are some solemn lessons for us to draw from this miracle. There's some soul searching to do in our own hearts. Do we have the fruit that the Lord is looking for? Has that salvation truly been wrought within us? Are we genuinely converted? Are we the Lord's people? Do we belong to him? Have we a seat in his kingdom and around his table? Do we know with assurance that whenever we leave this world and we enter into the next life that we will hear the words, "Come, ye blessed of my father."

Notice the pronouncement of judgment here in verse 14, "No man eat fruit of thee hereafter forever." The Lord has immediately pronounced a judgment. No second chance, no purgatory. You had your opportunity. The judgment has been pronounced. In Matthew 21 we read the same story.  Matthew records a little bit more of what the Savior said. “Let no fruit grow on thee henceforth forever. And presently the fig tree withered away.” Right before their eyes, Matthew said, the fig tree started to wither. The sentence of death wasn't coming. It came the moment Christ spoke. This is a solemn reminder of the power of Christ. Verse 20. “And in the morning as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots completely dead.” Christ is a judge with power. Some judges in this world have no power. They maybe make a ruling, but then the police don't enforce it. They have no appetite to enforce it. But Christ, he is a judge with power. This fig tree began to wither the next day. It was dried up from the roots. It's obviously a dead tree. Christ has the power to save, but he also has the power to punish. And then in verse 14, we see the purpose of his judgment. “And his disciples heard it.” Christ did this before his disciples as a lesson.  Matthew Henry said, "Christ made an example of this tree, not to other trees." He made an example of this tree to men. Christ was warning men. Judas was there. Judas was warned. Peter was warned. James and John were warned. Peter was amazed at the act of this tree. Verse 21. “And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Master, behold the fig tree which thou cursest is withered.” We should not be amazed at the judgment of Christ. His judgment is a righteous judgment. We should tremble at the thought that he would search us, find nothing, and curse us. There's nothing worse in this life than to be cursed by God. To be separated from God for all eternity. It's an awful judgment. You might think it's a terrible affliction to have pain, to have sorrows, to have depressions, and those things are trials in their own right. But it's far worse to be found with no fruit and to be judged by God.

What was the whole purpose of this lesson? Let’s read what Christ says in verse 22. This is the whole purpose of the cursing of the tree. “Have faith in God.” That is the lesson that Christ is teaching from the cursing of this tree fig tree. Not gather more leaves, a false profession. Not clean up your life a little bit more by yourself. No, that's just adding more leaves. The conclusion that Christ wants you to have from the cursing of this fig tree is to have faith in God. And having faith, bear the marks of a child of God. Live like a child of God. Have the true and genuine fruit within your life. The leaves do come with the fruit. We're not despising church attendance. We're not despising Bible reading. Those things are true, but they're part of the fruit. Don't just take the leaves without the fruit. Have the fruit and the leaves going together. It's sometimes the case that those who are the most anxious about the lack of fruit are those who are maybe bearing fruit, although perhaps not as much as they would like. But it's also true that there are some who comfort themselves that they are the Lord's but without any self-examination for fruit in their lives. Peter says, "Brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure.” Be sure that you are the Lord's. Paul said, "Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith. Prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves how that Jesus Christ is in you, except you be reprobate."  This is the repeated message of scripture from Jesus, from Peter, from Paul. Examine yourselves whether you are the Lord's. We thought of the curse of Christ. And the curse is to be judged by Christ in your sin. The curse is to be separated from God for all eternity. The curse is to face the wrath of God for your sin. The Bible tells us what's going to happen on that day of judgment. There will be a separation of the believers and the unbelievers. Those who bore fruit and those who had no fruit. Why be cursed by the king when you could be blessed by him? Have faith in God and live a life of faith. It is possible for you and I to have fruit because as Paul said in Galatians 3 verse 13 “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law being made a curse for us.” We can be spared the curse because Christ was cursed in our place on the cross. And he doesn't tell you to start a life of good works. He tells you to have faith in him. That's where it all begins. If that's not where you've begun, may you begin there today by looking to Christ, believing in him, trusting in him, knowing that it's not of you that you are saved. It's all of him and his grace. May there be that fruit of faith, repentance, love to God found in all of our hearts here today.