Miller, Robert: The Servant In Mark's Gospel

Could we turn this evening, please, to the Gospel of Mark? And we'd like to read together at verse 42, chapter ten and verse forty two. Mark chapter ten and verse forty two. But Jesus called them to him and said unto them, ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and their great ones exercise authority upon them. But so shall it not be among you, but whosoever will be great among you shall be your minister, and whosoever of you will be the chiefest, will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. For the even the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. And we trust the Lord will bless to us this reading from his precious word this evening. Now, I'm sure that as we look at each of the gospels, we always look for what we would term a key verse. And I think this is the key verse that you have in the gospel of Mark. It brings before us the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister and to give his life a ransom for many. And we don't need to be too int- intelligent to know that as we look at that verse, it's very clear that the very tenor of this lovely gospel is that the Lord Jesus is claiming that he would be a servant as he came down to the scene of time. We all know, of course, that as we look at all the gospels, they are, are also different, yet so gloriously blended together. And I love this gospel because, though it be, it might be the shortest of the gospels, it really gives us the activity and the service of our Lord Jesus, as none of the other gospels really portray it. I think as we look at all the gospels, we must notice there are things that are included in them, but there are also things that are omitted in certain gospels for a very special reason. I've enjoyed looking at the gospels and looking perhaps at the various things that are omitted in Matt's gospel. You'll find there's no genealogy. There's not too many folks who'd be interested in the genealogy of a servant. You'll need that in Matthew, of course, because if he's going to be the king that will set upon, sit upon the throne, then we need to know his genealogy. You'll find too, as we look at the gospel, there is no mention of his, his conception or his, of his birth. There's no mention of wise men coming because we know that they came to the king and they bowed down before him with their gifts. We discover there is no boyhood mentioned because in relation to the servant, we just, just see him in this gospel coming forth fitted and equipped for the service that would lie before him. You'll discover there's no Sermon on the Mount in this gospel, and you'll discover too there's no hiring of laborers because he is a laborer in this gospel. These are all lovely things that you notice. There is no marriage of the king's son. There are no talents mentioned. I think you would agree that as we come to the marriage of the king's son, there is something of dignity about that, the son being presented in a different aspect from the, the servant altogether. And you'll find too that in all the gospels, as you look at the parables, there are only four parables in Matt's gospel, and if you look at them all, you'll discover they're all to do with service. That is very interesting. You have the sower and the seed, the mustard seed and the wicked husbandman, and these are all to do with service. So you'll see that why that is that all the parables are not in this gospel. You'll discover too that as we, we look at the gospel, there is no command over angels. You see, that would be the, the one with authority that would do that. He's serving all the time in this lovely gospel. And then too, there's no mention of many of the divine titles. He's often mentioned as Lord in the other gospels. You'll find that if you go through them and, and study them. But he's only mentioned as master in this gospel, not as Lord in this gospel. And I think all the things that are omitted in the gospel, each gospel, are really as important as the things that are included. I noticed too that in this gospel you'll find that because he's a servant and he's going to be dependent upon God alone, you'll discover that as that servant that is dependent upon God alone, that in Gethsem- in Gethsemane, he only says, tarry ye here and watch, not with me. You see, he was depending on God alone, so he was not really, really in that sense asking for the succor and support of his own disciples that were with him on that occasion. You'll find that there is no angel to strengthen him, and likewise too, you'll find there's no mention of Pilate finding no fault in him. There are so many other things too, coming to the end of the gospel, for we really can't go too deeply into these opening comments. There is no thought of it is finished. Remember on the cross when he cried, it is finished. It's not mentioned in this gospel. You might say, why? Well, as a servant, his work is never finished. Blessed to look at him in his service down here. That is wonderful. That's what we're going to look at tonight, but lovely to think too that his service has never ended. He's seated at the right hand of the majesty on high, and you know he's rendering a service as far as we are concerned at the right hand of the majesty on high. I'm glad to know too that when our little time here is over, we'll never cease to serve either. When you come over to the, over to the book of the reli- revelation, you'll discover that his servants, they serve him, religiously serve him. And for us, you know, some folks think what heaven will be a wonderful place, nothing to do, and enjoying the glories. Well, that will not be the case, although it will be different. We'll have the capacity to serve as we ought then, but we'll be glad and ever so thrilled just to serve him in that coming day of glory. Now, the key words too, not only the key verse, I would suggest, you'll find the key words are immediately and straightway. Seven times over, seventeen times over, you'll discover the word immediately is used. God expects every servant just to immediately respond to his bidding, you see. We see that so beautifully in the life of our Savior in this gospel, and then straightway as well. And so these two terms, immediately and straightway, would tell us that he was ever busy, constantly in the will of the Father and engaged in the service of God. What a lovely thing it is to see that he was ever busy. There's another little phrase you'll find five times over in this gospel that you don't find in the others. It says he looked round about. He looked round about. Not only was he ever busy, but he was ever observant. You know, the Savior didn't go through and turn a blind eye on things, you see. He noticed things, and he looked round about on things, and he was ever observant. So these are the things that we would say are omissions in this lovely Gospel of Mark, and I, I feel that they're really just so important. You find all the scenes in the Gospel too. I discover that there are many scenes in the house, more scenes in the house in Mark's Gospel than anywhere else, and that would tell me a very simple thing, that it's just as important to serve in the house as it is in the assembly. You see, all our assembly, all our activity as a servant is not really only governed to while we're in the assembly. Our life should be a life of servant, service, and that should encompass the home sphere as well. I think if you look at it, and I'm just throwing out things for you to glean for yourself, look at all the occasions in the house when the Savior goes into the house in Mark's gospel. You discover in every one of them there was something there that shouldn't have been there, and he dealt with it. Whether it was sickness or disease or demons or whatever else it was, you'll discover it's lovely to look at the Savior in the house. And likewise too, you'll find that in the Gospel of Mark, the hands of the servant are very, very important. You'll find that in most of the miracles in the other gospels, the, the, the central thought on it is the power of the Savior and all the miracles that he performed. But if you look at the ones that are given to you in this lovely gospel, you'll see the hands of Christ are used. You find that in Simon's wife's mother when he came into the house. Remember, it says he took her by the hand. Lovely to see that in Matt's gospel. And we won't look at them all, but you'll find that he uses his hands more in this gospel than he does in any other. But what we'd like to do tonight is, and I've looked at these before, I'm not going to dwell too much on the earlier chapters. I'd like to move on, but just to look at this servant and all the aspects of the servant in this gospel. Now, we talk about the gospels, and it's interesting too that because he's a servant, the word gospel is used twelve times in all the gospels, but eight of these instances and mentions are all found in the Gospel of Mark. So that tells me that as a servant, he has, he was not only a servant, but he had a message, and it was the message of the gospel. It begins with that, chapter one. it says in verse fourteen, repent ye and believe the gospel. That's wonderful to see that. The very first words that are spoken by the Savior in the Gospel of Mark are repent ye and believe the gospel. And what are the last words he speaks in, in the Gospel of Mark? Well, when you come to the end of it, he really tells us there, he says, go ye into all the world and preach the gospel. So you see that in this lovely gospel that he's beginning with the theme of the gospel, and he's ending with the theme of the gospel. Now, could I appeal to us all, beloved, we are tending in our day to try and put the service of God into various compartments. Now, I know that everyone is really not expected to be an all-rounder, but I think that every Christian, whether they're preaching the gospel or not, should have an in- an interest in the gospel. There's something most dignified and beautiful about serving Christ in the gospel. And I would say to young folks in particular, get your roots deep in the gospels as you read them, but get your activity centered in the spread of the gospel in your early days, and I'm sure you'll know a blessing for your soul. You know, there's nothing more blessed or more joyous to see fruit in the gospel. We were just saying recently there, it's a long time since at Mayfield we've seen a soul saved, and really we get concerned about that. But what greater joy can come into our soul, beloved, when sounding out the message of the gospel we see someone turning and responding and trusting the Savior. And so here we have, at the beginning of the service of this perfect servant, we have the Lord Jesus giving the instruction to repent and believe the gospel. I think too, as we, as we look at this gospel too, you'll find that as we're going to look at the Savior, we are, we are really interested in him individually and the words that he says in the gospel. That in the gospel, that's the thing I want to look at tonight. It's not all the events, there are so many events. It is a, a constant gospel of activity. You can almost catch the feeling as you begin in chapter one, and there's so many things crammed into each chapter. But what we're interested in tonight is to listen to what the perfect servant would have to say. Now, isn't it lovely too that, you know, I think as you look at the Gospel of Mark, remember, remember the man that wrote it as guided by the Spirit of God. You know, that, that gives the, the lie to folks that say that this book is not inspired. We would never have chosen Mark to write about the, the, the Lord, Lord Jesus as the perfect servant, because we all know that he was the servant that failed. And by the Spirit of God, the, he is, he is the one that is chosen to, to portray the perfect servant that never fails. You know, there's something beautiful and dignified about even the writers of the gospels, the way the Spirit of God has chosen them. He chose Matthew, the only one of the, the four gospelers that had a, a position of authority. Remember, though it was a, a, a, a position that he had in the land that was frowned upon. Nonetheless, under the Roman occupation, he had a dignified position, you see. And though it was the wrong kind of occupation as far as the Savior was concerned, the Spirit of God used that man to write about the dignity of the king and the one that would sit in his regal authority upon the throne of his father David. So there's something wonderful about the bu- and beautiful about the, the scriptures and the way even the writers that are chosen to bring these wonderful truths to us. So let us begin, beloved, by thinking of, in chapter one of the preaching of the servant. He says, repent ye and believe the gospel. There's something I noticed very much that in these first words that the Savior speaks in this gospel, that he's not afraid to face men and to, to challenge them with their condition that they're in. Now, I know that we, we shouldn't be uncouth or unkind to the sinner, but we must be faithful, beloved, and if someone comes into the gospel meeting in the will of God that's unsaved, maybe it's never been in before, and would to God that someone even would come in here tomorrow night and, and sit under the sound of the gospel. We'll have to be faithful and remind them that they'll need to repent and believe the gospel. You see, when you come over to the preaching of the Apostle Paul, he was not afraid to, to sound it out and to say that the gospel is based upon repentance towards God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Be not afraid to tell men of the love of Christ, and we must do that. And the beauty of the Savior and his lovely life, if you want to dwell on that, but above all else, to get to the cross and to remind folks that really it's because of what they are as guilty sinners that the Savior died. And here the Savior begins by saying, repent ye and believe the gospel. Now, three little things about it. You'll notice the time, and you'll notice the place, and you'll notice the theme. The time was when John had been put in prison. You see, God in his wisdom will always raise up those at the right time with the message of God. And the Lord Jesus doesn't began to begin to preach in this gospel while John is still preaching. No, he was the forerunner. And when John got out of the way to introduce the Savior, he had done that so wonderfully. But then he gets out of the way, and the Savior comes in, and there's a time for the Savior to go out and preach the gospel. You say, is there a time? There is a time. Now is the accepted time we tell the sinner, and I trust that we're almost ready to go out at the bidding of God to preach the gospel. Sometimes we make excuses about it. If we're going out in open air, we think, well, it's quite cold tonight, and it's maybe a wee bit wet, and we don't go out. But let us be instant in season and out of season. And there was a time when the Savior stood up. And I noticed too that it says there in verse fourteen, not only the time after John was put in prison, but I noticed the place day, place too that he came in into Galilee. Now that was his own region, you see. And there's a little lesson there as well that we were just hearing at the conference in Armadale in the first part today, that the brother Jim Baker was saying, as he said, he had said often, that really you'll never be sent across the sea if you're not willing to go across the street. So the Lord Jesus, really, you'll look at his ministry and you'll discover he stood up where he was brought up. And there's something that is really essential. Young man, if you want to serve God in the gospel, in the preaching of the gospel, make it your business to begin at home. And I'm sure your own brethren, if they really are spiritual at all, they'll just love to hear the young men with the, with that zeal and that really real desire to preach the gospel. And then the theme we have thought about, repent ye and believe the gospel. The Savior would be kind and winsome, and he would woo men to him, but he also was faithful, and he told them that it was based upon the need of repentance. So we have the preaching of the servant. Wonderful to know that we always have an example to follow. The Savior would never ask us in this gospel, as we're going to look at things, he would never ask us to do things that he had never done himself. And I, I, I know that it would have been lovely just to, just to sit there and listen to him preaching. We'll hear his voice someday, of course. That, that's wonderful. What will it be to dwell above, but what will it be to get the tone of his lovely voice? None of us speak like him as we sing in the hymn, and it'll be wonderful just to hear him. And these folks in that day, they didn't respond the way they should have to the wonderful words of the Savior. But look further down this chapter, chapter one and verse seventeen. He's now walking by the Sea of Galilee, and he saw Simon and he and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea. And what's the next words we're going to think about? We're going to think about the design of the servant. This perfect servant has a design for everyone that would hear and respond to the preaching of the gospel, and he says, come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men. Oh, we sing oft times that we would like to be like our Savior. Would to God that I had the zeal and the interest and the feeling towards men that he had. I oft times feel, beloved, as we look at men and their sins, and there's a sense in which we just rest on our own laurels and say, well, I'm all right, I'm safe, I'm ready for heaven. You have a yearn that others might come to know the Savior too. If only they could understand what they're missing. And the joy that fills the soul just to know Christ, I, I hope we've never lost that, the day we got saved. And just to want to serve him. Well, you see he's going to call. And he's calling these two men, and we're listening to his words again. Come ye after me. Not come ye after men, but come ye after me. And I will make you to become fishers of men. You know, he chose those fishermen. And they knew what it was to fish for fish, but there was a lot of lessons to be learned. You see, there was a day when they toiled all night and they caught nothing. The Savior had to say to them, cast on the right side. I know it might have been the right as opposed to the left, but really, I think you could take it the other way as well. It will always be the right side if you go at his bidding, you see. And he's saying to us all tonight, let us get a zeal in the gospel. In these closing days, I believe the coming of the Lord is, is really near. I believe that he's coming soon. Could we, could we get an interest in the gospel and go out and be fishers of men and serve our God in our day and generation? So he had a special work for them. Now then, chapter two and verse eleven, and I really, I make no apology for just hurrying over these things. I know that you'll go and you'll read these things and enjoy them yourself and get a little interest in the, the service of our Savior. Chapter two and verse eleven, he says, I say unto thee, arise and take up thy bed and go thy way into thine house. I thought about the, the power of the servant. You know, sometimes you look into the faces of men, you see he's sending out those, he's choosing those, and he's going to send them out to be fishers of men. And as these disciples in their early days of experience with the Savior, they might have said, now, I really wonder, will this, will this be successful, this business of spreading the gospel? Well, you know, the Lord Jesus is very gracious. We know the instant, of course, we, we look at this man, you'll remember that there were so many gathered around, and there was those that had a desire to bring the ma- the man to the feet of the Savior. Could I say that? That's a lovely exercise as well. Just remember, beloved, that the power is not ours, the power is in Christ. That's what we're looking at here. It's the power in the servant, but oh, to get them to the feet of Christ. You see, we can be in our gospel preaching, we can, we can sometimes indicate as if it all depends on us and the saints and the assembly. In a large respect, the, the, the succour and the, the leading on will be that, but it's all in the power of Christ to bring them to the birth, you see. And you know, when we come to this lovely phrase of the Savior, he, he comes and he's, he's looking at this, this, this man that had been the, the, the effort of those four that had taken the tiles of the roof and got them to the feet of the Savior. And what does he say? Arise, take up thy bed and walk. The power of the servant. You know, I think if we, if we had been living in the days of Paul and we had watched Stephen that day and, and saw the venom in the, in the eyes of Paul as they laid the clothes at his feet. You know, I think till his dying day he would never forget that day. And you know, as with the venom in his eyes, as he looked with hatred, as they rained the stones upon the godly Stephen, we might have looked at Paul and say, well, there's never any opportunity or any, any really chance that that man will respond to the grace of God. And how wrong we would have been, beloved, how wrong we would have been. And sometimes I reproach my own heart. You know, you go out in open air and you get the ridicule of men, and we know not on- not only the ridicule of men, that is bad enough, but the attacks of men as well. We had that in Mayfield in the open air, and you really look at them, and there's a little spirit rises up within your breast, but, you know, there go I but by the grace of God. And why God should set his love upon me and bring me in and leave these do- dear souls out. And I, I wish to God I could get the feelings of Christ over to us tonight, beloved. Don't really write anybody off. And look at them with the eyes that Christ would look at them. And you know the folks, I know it was a healing miracle here. I know the folks who might have looked and they thought, well, was the effort of these folks worthwhile to get the tiles off the roof and get the man down into the, at the feet of the Savior? But you know this, they soon changed their mind when they saw the power of the servant, and he's still able, beloved. He can make the lame to walk. You know what I'm doing? I'm spiritualizing what's happening here, and he can still make the lame to walk, and he can open those deaf ears, and he can give sight to those that are blind. And as as the perfect servant, we see him here displaying his mighty power, so the power of the servant. But in this selfsame chapter, just move down a little to verse fourteen of this very selfsame chapter, chapter two and verse fourteen. And he saw Levi, the son of Alphaeus. Now, we would have wrote him off as well. And if you were a Jew in particular, you would have had no time for him. He was collecting your money, and he was handing it over to the folks that were occupying your land. Well, I don't think you'd think very much of Levi. But all we read in this lovely gospel is that the Lord looked at him, and all he said was, follow me. Two words, follow me. And beloved, I sometimes think too that we often forget that when he says to us at the beginning, follow me, he really means follow me to the end. You see? And I think sometimes we, we talk about following afar off. That was never envisaged. I know it was good that there was those at the cross, they followed afar off. Well, at least they had the exercise of following though it was afar off. But I wonder, are we following? You know, I, I, I always get encouragement when I come to gatherings like these, and I, I look at the older folks, and eh, it, it, I think it's lovely just to remember that there are dear older folks in, in among the saints, and they've followed for a long time, and they're a real example to us who are following on, and it just gives you that wee thrill just to follow and follow and follow, and still to be following at the end. You know, I love, you know, I oftentimes spend a lot of time at Makermoa. I'd like you to pray for Makermor too, don't forget about it, and Xander, who carries on that work to the best of his ability, but I love to get in amongst these old folk, and they're maybe forgotten by many, but they're still following in their own simple way. You know, if you talk to them about the Savior, there's a light and a gleam in their eye, and you can see that. I remember one old, old lady, she said to me, we have a little time of ministry in the, in the Friday evenings when we're there, and she said to me when we were, she was walking out of the lounge, she says, well, son, she said, I know I enjoyed it when I got it. She says, now I've forgotten it all tomorrow, but she says, I really enjoyed it just when I got it. You know that, don't forget the old folks, you younger folks. Always have a feeling for those that have gone the pathway before you, and these are examples to follow. And let us all be encouraged to follow. All the Lord said to him that day, to Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom, was follow me. And that dignified position that he then got away from the one that he had to write that lovely gospel about the dignity of the king. So are we still following the Savior? Chapter four— or sorry, chapter five, I should say. Chapter five and verse nine. And again, the words of the Savior. And you remember he had crossed over to the other side, and it's very simple, and he asked him, what is thy name? What is thy name? Now you say, what are you really going to say about that? Well, I thought I'd just like to interest you in the personal interest of the servant. You see, someone might have said, well, is he not more interested in the names of all those that are sitting and serving around the temple? Well, we really know what their kind of spirit was. But I like to love to notice in the Gospel of Mark that when he goes over to the other side, and he's really just on the boundary of the land of Israel, and he's crossing the lake and he's going to the other side, and you know, he went there for a special reason. It was not by chance that he crossed the lake that day. He had said to his disciples, we must need to go to the other side, because he knew that there's a man near it needed him. And it's lovely to have an interest in men, but I think we must always understand we should have a personal interest in men. And I love that little touch in the gospel. He says, what is thy name? You know, we, we tell the sinner when we preach the gospel, you know, we say to him, now the hairs of your head are numbered, and that's lovely. But I'd like for saints tonight, for us all to remember that he still knows our name. You know, he had an interest in this man from Gadara, and if you had looked at him, you would have thought, well, he's a strange case. He's in among the tombs, and he's cutting himself. I thought, I tried to get the picture into my own soul. If you had been there and you had gone near where this man was, and he had been bound with chains and he could not be bound, and he was cutting himself with stones, and he was naked to his shame. Now, what a plight the man was in, perhaps all blood stained, and we might have never gone near him, you see, but there was a man that day that was not only wanting to get near him, but wanted to know his name. I wonder if they would take a personal interest. Now, I reproach my own heart. I really confess to you, beloved, it has found me out that really we don't have an interest in those that are really down. This man was down, and the Savior was asking his name. Could I come a little nearer? What about our assemblies? Do we know the name of every saint, and do we bear that name up before the throne of grace? You know, if my Savior is interested in my name, I ought to be interested in the names of the Lord's beloved people. I love to think that when Aaron went in, we were just hearing even, was it today? I think it was even today it was mentioned, eh, that when the, when the Lord, when the Aaron went, the high priest went in, though we know that the names were on the breastplate and the names were on his shoulder, it says they were upon his heart. I think that is something that is wonderful. It was last night, sorry, it was Norman Crawford last night who mentioned that he said, our names are on his heart. We know that they were physically written on the breastplate and on the shoulders, those tribes, but he went in, the names were upon his heart. Are the saints upon our heart, beloved? Well, if we want to serve like the Savior, we'll need to be interested in all the names of all the dear saints at the north. Oh, to be like him. But let us move on, not only five and nine, but five, chapter five and verse thirty. I noticed when we come to the, and we're talking now about the instance of the woman with issue of blood, and she comes near and she's got a problem, and she touches the hem of his garment. These are lovely gospel chapters, aren't they? But what I'd like to say is there's a sensitivity about the servant in this chapter. He was conscious that virtue went out of him, and he, he was reproached by his own disciples as saying, now, Master, everyone's stronging me, and now saith who touched me? But you see, he was sensitive to the need of a dear woman. Sensitive. Are we sensitive? You know, I think, I think we, we fail to grasp the sensitivity of the Savior. You know, we, we in our lifetime, there were things maybe we read five years ago that would have upset us, things that happen in the world, but as the years roll on, we we begin to be get a wee bit clouded and so insensitive to things that are happening around us. Are we sensitive to sin, beloved? That's not just for the sinner, you know. Are we sensitive to sin? You know, I think if we could look through the eyes of Christ and remember that every, every untruth word and every ungodly deed wounded him. He's sensitive. And never more so that day when they said, and they said, he casteth out demons by the prince of demons. How do you think the Savior felt that day? I would to God that I was more sensitive. You know, I feel if I was more like my Savior and I was more sensitive, I would look at that little flock at Mayfield and I would detect more readily the need of the, of the saint. Ah, the Savior knew that woman was coming. You notice he didn't expose her to all the crowd. He said, who touched me? It says he knew. Ah, but she knew as well. She knew what had happened, and she came and she told him all. There's something lovely about the sensitivity of the service, servant. Don't let, let us be ins- insensitive, beloved, and don't let us expose men. Let us be kind and gracious, and in the way that we handle men in the preaching of the gospel, and even the saints themselves, let us be sensitive to the need of all. But then chapter six and verse four, you'll notice there, and we must really hurry. Chapter six and verse fo- four, he says something else. He says, a prophet's not without honor, save in his own country. You know, I think it's a sad day when, when we never really evaluate folks till they're gone. And you never really prove their worth till they're not there any longer. And maybe that wee thing that was getting done that you didn't realise was getting done, you see. And you never really appreciate them till they're gone. You know, I can say without reservation tonight that I can look into the eyes of every saint in the assembly at Mayfield, and I really love them. And there's nothing between me and them that I know of, and if there was, I would try to put it right. And I value my brethren, and I trust in the assembly here at Wishaw that you all value each other. Beloved, you know what the Savior said? By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if you have love one towards another. It's, it's, it's sadly lacking, beloved. We would have never, never seen in these past years in our day things that happened and what we would term good meetings if we loved each other. I've said, and I, I might be tested on it, I don't know, but I would rather go down and see the assembly damaged. I'd rather take the blame and crawl into a corner if it was, if it was through me that that assembly at Mayfield would be wrecked asunder. God give us the grace, and God give us to feel like the Savior. He went into his own region, Capernaum, and all these regions round about, and they couldn't get over that he was the carpenter, you see, and they saw no value in him. And he said himself, and I'm sure he said it with pith as a prophet is not without honor, save in his own country. I'm indebted to those that have gone before. I was just saying to our brother as he was asking how our sister Greta was getting on, you know, we miss Robert terribly at home, and I'm sure the saints miss him as well, but I'm glad that we valued him when we had him. And you know, that is why at the conference time we weren't afraid to ask Robert to speak at our own conference because we loved him, and I trust that you'll all value your own brethren in the assembly and show you, show that before the opportunity is forever gone. So we have here that he is really the one that has a low estimation of himself. Chapter six and verse thirty one, he says to disciples, come ye yourselves apart into a desert place and rest a while. I thought about the sympathy of the servant, the sympathy. You know, when Brother Norman Crawford came into the hall last night, it was lovely to see him again. I says, how are you, Norman? He says, I'm fine. I says, are you tired? You look tired, you see. He says, uh, just a wee bit. I think, beloved, we should remember that these dear folks who are serving day after day, they really need a little time and a little sympathy. The Savior had sympathy for those disciples. It's what they had been doing. You'll find in this gospel, it was doing before saying. Trace that through the gospel as well. I think there's a lesson there. You know, we would rather see a servant- sermon than hear one any day. And in this gospel, they told Jesus all what they had done and what they had said, but then he says, come ye yourselves apart into a desert place and rest a while. You see, Elijah knew what it was to be at a juniper tree. I'm not surprised, you know, the rising through the crescendo, remember he was up in Carmel, and God was about to vindicate him, but he didn't know that before he rose up and went up Mount Carmel. God was going to vindicate him, but after that he ran all those miles, and he outstripped the chariot, and he was at the point when the man was down physically, when the temptress came, and you'll remember too that Jezebel came with a threat, and just at that point, you see, it went down, and we could all be there. I'd love us to remember that the Lord Jesus had a sympathy for servants, and if you're feeling weary in the service, not weary of it, but weary in it, remember he's a servant that would have sympathy for his servants. Chapter six again, there's a lot in chapter six, verse thirty seven. He says, give ye them to eat. I thought about the expectation of the servant. Give ye them to eat. And we're not going to go into the miracle of the loaves and fishes, but what the Lord was doing, he was asking, was there going to be a real response from their heart that he could give the people something to eat? He knew the outcome, of course. And of course, we, we all know that the, there's the thought that the lad was there, but then there's added these little words, but what are they among so many? It'd been lovely if that disciple had said, there's a li- a lad here with five loaves and two small fishes. Could these, could these be used to feed the multitude? But he said, but what are they among so many? But I thought about the expectation of the servant. I trust elders are giving the folks in the assembly something to eat. You know, the dear brethren that have convened these meetings, it's because they have an exercise that the saints might be given something to eat. You know what I mean? Something that is good for them. We eat physically to sustain the body, to help us to go on and to, to function as the body should. That is the same in the spiritual realm. We are fed with food that is convenient. I noticed too, when the Lord performed the miracle that it says they all ate and were filled, and there was men, and there was women, and there was children, and they were all fed with the same thing. And it, it's the word of God for all the people of God at any given time, and we shouldn't really com- put things into compartments and say, well, I know that children need it broken down small, but it's still the same truth of the word of God, beloved, and they were all fed, and they were all filled, and they were all going away satisfied. So I wonder, can we ask ourselves the question now, as the Lord was saying to us as servants, can we give the people something to eat? Well, if they ask for bread, you're not going to give them a stone now. You need to give them something to eat. So here we have the expectation of the servants. Before we go out of that chapter, verse fifty, the care of the servant, he saw them toiling and rowing, and we see that he, he draws near. He had been up in the mountain, he had sent them into it, but, and the, and the fact that they were toiling and they were really toiling and rowing, he comes near, and again the voice of the servant, it is I, be not afraid. Do you ever think you'll never get to the other side? There's an old man at Mackermore, I remember, and I wondered how it all happened, but I went in to put him to bed, and Joe, he came from Glasgow, he had a leg off, and well, I'm thin, but he was even thinner than me. There was hardly any weight in the old man at all, and he had a terrible rattling in his chest. And because of that, he was a wee bit shunned by the rest, you see, and because of that, I loved him. I went in to put him to bed that night, and he was sitting in the corner, and his head was down, and he was ever so sad. I says, what's wrong with you tonight, Joe? Oh, he says, I don't. I says, come on now, I want you to tell me. He says, well, I really don't know if I'm saved at all. You see the last mile, and you know, I, I, I just really wonder, beloved, what would I be like just at the end of the journey? So I spoke to him and I quoted a few verses to him, and he began to smile. He says, you see, Robert, there was a day, it's a long time ago, he says, but I went back into the world, and he says, I did things I never thought I'd be capable of doing. And I says, what happened, Joe? He says, oh, well, I was, I was restored and I was brought back to the fellowship, but he says, I never forgot these days. And he says, now I was really wondering if I was saved at all. Well, we put Joe to bed that night, and I was going back home. And little did I know, within a few days he was going to be in the glory. But you see, beloved, we're not all at the other side yet. And here's the Savior. He's always willing to come near and just to say, it is I, be not afraid. And we know not what tomorrow might bring, and we know not the circumstances of tomorrow, beloved. We just don't know. I'd like you to be reminded as we look at this, this lovely servant and the care of the servant, he will always be willing to say, it is I, be not afraid. Now then, further down, chapter nine, we come to chapter nine and verse twenty three. And I know that I take some of these, these things out of their context, but you'll remember he had been up the mount with the disciples, and the glory of the mount was something. Standing radiant on the mountain, as the poet has put it, but facing unbelief below was a different thing altogether. And the unbelief was, was really amongst disciples and amongst this man. You see, what happened was that this, this man had brought his son, and he eventually comes to the law of Jesus. He says, I asked the disciples to cast them out, and they couldn't. And I love the words of the Savior as we come to chapter nine: If thou canst believe, all things are possible. If thou canst believe, all things are possible. And he says with tears, Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief. I'd love to hear that in the gospel again. You know, I've got a burden, beloved. I trust that we will get a, a, an interest in the gospel. And maybe tomorrow night, wouldn't it be lovely just to hear somebody say, ah, Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief. But you know, I think saints need reminded constantly, if thou canst believe, all things are possible. That wee thing that you wanted to do for Christ, and you felt that he's asked you to do it, and you think, I can't do it. Well, if you can rest on him and believe, all things are possible to him that believeth. And maybe, maybe the fact that we've never reached heights that we ought to have reached is because we don't believe. You say that Christians, it's possible for Christians not to believe. Well, in that sense, it is. And I think we're there far too often, beloved. The instance I can't mention tonight, but we have proved in the last few months that if you rest on your God, you'll, you'll get an answer. The response we had recently from the saints in a certain matter was beyond my expectation. If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believes. Trust him, beloved. If you've got an exercise, a burden upon your heart, just take that step. Young folks, take that step in faith. The one that saved you and will assure you of a place in heaven will guarantee that he'll give you all you need in your service down here. So you have the promise of the servant. Now, I thought about the little children, but there's, there's just one or two before I close I'd love to get to. You have to, as he deals with the, the young man, I noticed in chapter ten, he had to say to the young man, one thing now lacketh. And I thought about the searching of the servant. He was probing into the man. It's good to have a probing gospel that will reach into the lives of men and stir them up to, to remember where they are, you see. When the man came to the Savior, the Lord put his finger on the spot. He says, one thing they lacketh. But before we stop there, you'll notice it says before, before he told them what was lacking, it says about Jesus beholding him, loved them. So he loved them before he told them what was lacking. You see the little lesson. Before we tell folks what's lacking and what they're missing in their life, we've got to love them first. But when we come down, I'd like to come down to chapter eleven, and I'll keep my eye on the last five minutes. Chapter eleven and verse seventeen, the zeal of the servant. And he taught, saying unto them, is it not written, my house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer, but ye have made it a den of thieves. Here's an instance, and I'll just leave you to find the rest where he came in. In Mark's gospel, the first time he came in, he looked round about upon all things. And you'll find there are two cleansings of the temple. John would mention the first one, the cleansing of the temple, but here we are dwelling on the second time when he comes in. You'll find that he'll come in and he'll look round about upon all things, and he'll go away again. But he'll come back again, and he expects things to be different, you see. Here we discover he puts them out. In other words, there was things in the temple that shouldn't be there. And I, I thought about the zeal, the zeal of the servant. He, he had a zeal after God, and he had a zeal for the house of God. And I ask you tonight a simple question. What brought you to be linked and to be gathered out to the Lord's name in the assembly in Wishaw, or wherever we come from? I trust that we've got a zeal for the house of God, the place where he has been pleased to place his name in each locality. I'm ever thankful to God. I not only thank God for salvation, but I thank God dearly for the, the way that he led me to, to gather with the saints in the nameless place. You know what I mean when I, I say that? Gather to his name alone. And it's lovely just to have a zeal after the things of God. So you'll look in the house and remember, remember, beloved, that there's something there. I was talking about things in the house that were there that shouldn't be there. You'll notice what's there and shouldn't be there. And God give us the grace to get rid of anything that's in the house that shouldn't be there. Not only our homes, but in the assembly. If there's something there that shouldn't be there, we'll need to deal with it, beloved, because the Lord is telling us here that he will not identify it with, with anything that is not according to the pattern. My father always used to say, now, if Moses had put a blue thread where a purple one should have been, it would have filled the pattern, you see, and they, they would have known that the Lord wouldn't have met with them. And let us keep everything according to the pattern. So the zeal of