Unbelief

Mark 6:1-6

INTRO: Good morning church. In past lessons we have taken a look at faith, the faith of others in scripture and our own faith. The New Testament words for faith are the noun pistos and the verb pisteuo. Which we said were used to denote: a. trust; b. trustworthiness, c. what is believed, the contents of belief; d. assurance, a ground for belief. e. a pledge of fidelity.

We also said that the aspect of faith has to do with persuasion, affirmation, and conviction of something that is true. That is the aspect of believing. There's also the content of what is believed. In Hebrews 11:6 we read, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”[NKJV] This verse illustrates the assent, or agreement, or belief aspect of faith in that there are certain facts that we must believe, things that we must accept based on the testimony that's given in the Scriptures.

Then in Hebrews 3:18-19 – “And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who did not obey? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.” Here it implies that unbelief was the same as disobedience.

Please turn in your Bibles to Mark 6 and our text today is found in Mark 6:1-6. “1. Then He (speaking of Jesus) went out from there and came to His own country, and His disciples followed Him. 2. And when the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing Him were astonished, saying, "Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands! 3. "Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?'' And they were offended at Him. 4. But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.'' 5. Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6. And He marveled because of their unbelief. Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching.”

In our study on faith we found the Bible contains many passages that teach us what we need to know about belief. On the other hand, the Bible also has much to say about unbelief. This morning we're going to concentrate a bit on passages that teach us what we need to know about unbelief.

I. Unbelief in Those Who Believe - We first need to point out that those who believe in God can be guilty of unbelief. That sounds like a contradiction, doesn't it? As we examine the Scriptures, we see they teach very clearly that those who believe in God can actually be guilty of unbelief. I'm afraid sometimes we jump to the conclusion that unbelief is only shown by someone who says, I don't believe in God. That is unbelief, I assure you of that, but unbelief goes much further than that because unbelief can actually be demonstrated by someone who believes in God. Let me illustrate to you what I'm talking about.

A. No doubt we're very familiar with Moses. In my judgment, Moses was a great man and a great leader of God's people. In Deuteronomy 34:10-12 it says, “10. But since then there has not arisen in Israel a prophet like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face, 11. in all the signs and wonders which the Lord sent him to do in the land of Egypt, before Pharaoh, before all his servants, and in all his land, 12. and by all that mighty power and all the great terror which Moses performed in the sight of all Israel.” He was a great leader of God's people. Did Moses believe in God? He certainly did! If anyone ever believed in God, it was Moses.
B. However, in the Old Testament Book of Numbers, we find that there was an occasion when God said that Moses did not believe him. In Numbers 20:2 we read, “Now there was no water for the congregation; so they gathered together against Moses and Aaron.” The children of Israel needed water. This was not the first time that this problem arose. It had arisen earlier, and God took care of it. Once again, we find the children of Israel murmuring against Moses and against God because they needed water.

1. Let's look at Numbers 20:7-8. This is what God told Moses to do about this situation. “Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "Take the rod; you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will yield its water; thus you shall bring water for them out of the rock, and give drink to the congregation and their animals.''”
2. Those instructions are easy to understand. Moses was told by God to take the rod, and then speak to the rock and water would be supplied. I’m sure you’re very familiar with Moses actions. Let's continue reading starting at verse nine, Numbers 20:9f, “So Moses took the rod from before the Lord as He commanded him. 10. And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock; and he said to them, "Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?'' 11. Then Moses lifted his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank.”

a. I will point out what Moses did that was wrong, but you will never hear me criticize Moses for doing what he did. Why? Because I would not have lasted as long as Moses did. My boiling point is too low.
b. I think about all the things that man put up with out of the Israelites as he was leading them from Egypt to the Promised Land. Moses, we're hungry, Moses, we're thirsty, Moses this, Moses that. They murmured and complained continually. God always provided the things that they needed.
c. I would say that Moses was a patient man but his patience ran out. From the statement that he made, it appears that he was upset, and rather than do exactly what God told him to do, he struck the rock.
d. As an aside, it might be a good lesson for us to remember that if you're in difficult circumstances, don't have anything in your hands that you can do damage with.

3. Anyway, let's notice what God said in verse twelve. Numbers 20:12, “Then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, "Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel… ” What did God accuse Moses of? God accused Moses of unbelief. Did Moses believe in God like no one else except our Lord? Yes, he believed in God. The Bible says he knew God face to face, yet there was a time when God said that Moses did not believe in him.
4. There were serious consequences. Let's continue in the last part of the verse, “therefore you shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them”. Moses was able to see the land of Canaan, but his life ended before he could go into the Promised Land.

C. I believe Moses illustrates to us very clearly that those who believe in God can still be guilty of unbelief. I know that sounds like a contradiction, but we've just seen that Moses, who believed in God with all of his heart, was actually guilty of unbelief. Later, we will read a number of verses in Hebrews that show we, that Christians, God's people today, can become guilty of unbelief. As we think about the seriousness of unbelief, we need to point out that the Lord's work was hindered by unbelief.

II. Hindered by Unbelief – Back in our text Mark 6:1-6.

A. Keeping in mind that Jesus was raised in Nazareth, which was a city in the area known as Galilee. He was born in Bethlehem, but raised in Nazareth, and that was considered to be his hometown.
B. Here in Mark 6 we read about an occasion when Jesus visited Nazareth.

1. Verse one says that he and his disciples traveled to his own country.
2. Look at the reaction of the people when Jesus taught in the synagogue. They were astonished. "Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands! "Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?'' And (notice this), they were offended at Him." I would have thought these were people who should have known Jesus the best, He was in His hometown. Yet, that was the response when Jesus taught in the synagogue.
3. According to verses five and six, while Jesus was there He only healed a few sick people.

a. I love to study from the Gospel accounts and read about the occasions when Jesus healed people. They came to Him from all over with various diseases and Jesus healed them everyone. But while he was in his hometown, he only healed a few sick people.
b. Notice also that the Bible says Jesus marveled because of their what? Their unbelief.
c. Jesus left Nazareth. He went to other areas where He taught. In Nazareth that unbelief was very serious. It hindered the Lord's work in his hometown.

C. The good news is the Lord will bless those who have faith. When Jesus went to other areas, there were people who received Him. People observed His miracles and they were convinced that He's the Son of God, and they were blessed abundantly. In His hometown, people were filled with unbelief.

III. The Disciples’ Unbelief – Let’s look at another example. We find the disciples’ power was limited by unbelief.

A. Look now at Matthew 10:1. “And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease.” The Lord gave the twelve miraculous powers, and then He sent these apostles out on a mission as we read in verse 5. This particular mission is referred to as the “limited commission” because Jesus said, don't go to the Gentiles, don't go to the Samaritans, but only go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

1. From Mark 6:12-13 we learn that, “… they went out and preached that people should repent. And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.”
2. Next in verse 30, “Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught.” It would have been wonderful to be there and observe the disciples speaking about the great things that they were able to accomplish. That would have been a very happy occasion.

B. Let's turn to Matthew 17. In this chapter we read about an occasion when the apostles were not able to heal someone. We will start at verse 14 where we find that a man asked Jesus to heal his son. The reason why he asked the Lord to heal his son was because the apostles could not. Remember Jesus gave them miraculous powers.

1. Matthew 17:14-16 – “14 And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, 15 said, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he has seizures and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. 16 And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal him.””[ESV] It says they could not heal him.
2. Continuing, Matthew 17:17-18 – “ Then Jesus answered and said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.'' And Jesus rebuked the demon, and he came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour.”[NKJV] Why is it that the apostles were not able to cast out this spirit?
3. We find in verse 19 that they discreetly waited until they were alone with Jesus, and then they asked that very question. They wanted to know why they were unable to take care of this man's problem themselves. Look at the Lord's response in verse 20. “So Jesus said to them, "Because of your unbelief;…”

a. I ask you, did the disciples believe in God? Oh, yes, they did. Did they believe in Jesus? They certainly did, yet the Lord said they were guilty of unbelief. That unbelief hindered their power to do what Jesus told them to do.
b. Jesus goes on in verse 21, “However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” The disciples had some faith, or else they would not have tried to cast it out. The fact was that they had previously cast out demons. I wonder if perhaps they did not go beyond trying to do it themselves and their unbelief was a failure to go to God in prayer and in humility, and ask for help?

C. Perhaps it would help us to keep in mind that we walk by faith and not by sight, as the Apostle Paul wrote in 2nd Corinthians 5:7. We've pointed out that it's possible to believe in God and yet be guilty of unbelief. We've shown that unbelief hindered the Lord's power to heal people and to do great works. We've just pointed out that the disciples power was limited by their unbelief.

IV. Serious Warnings About Unbelief - Let's turn our attention to some warnings that are given to us concerning unbelief. Let’s start with 2nd Corinthians chapter 6.

A. I’m going to begin at 2nd Corinthians 6:14, “14. Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15. And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? 16. And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.'' 17. Therefore "Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you.'' 18. "I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.''” This is a strong warning. We're warned to guard against the influence of unbelievers.

1. The Bible also teaches us that we're to not to extend fellowship to members of the body of Christ who are guilty of open sin. Does that mean that we can't have any association with sinful people? To avoid any association with sinful people, we would have to leave this world. In our everyday dealings with people we're going to come in contact with those who are unbelievers. We have to be mindful of the influence of unbelievers because their unbelief can rub off on us. We have to be very careful.
2. Perhaps that will help us to appreciate the admonition to assemble with other children of God on a regular basis, because that's a positive influence which we always need.

B. I mentioned before that there's quite a bit said in the book of Hebrews about unbelief. Let's turn our attention to several verses in Hebrews while remembering the purpose for which this letter was written. It was written to Christians in the first century who were undergoing some type of hardship, probably some type of persecution. This letter was written for the purpose of encouraging them to remain faithful unto the Lord and never give up.

1. Hebrews 3:12, “Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God;” It's possible for one who has become a Christian to develop a heart of unbelief that leads to a departure from God. That's very serious, isn't it?
2. The Hebrew writer gives us an illustration in verses 17-19. Hebrews 3:17-19 – “17. Now with whom was He angry forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness? 18. And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who did not obey? 19. So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.” This is referring to the children of Israel who left Egypt and who murmured against God.

a. God caused the nation of Israel to wander in the wilderness for a period of 40 years until that older generation passed away. When the time was right, the younger generation finally went into the Promised Land.
b. God was grieved with that entire generation of people. Thankfully, Joshua and Caleb showed that we don't have to go along with the crowd. We can stand out and be different.
c. What was it that kept that whole generation of Israelites out of the land of Canaan? It was unbelief.

3. In Hebrews 4:11 we read, “ Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall after the same example of disobedience.” Unbelief kept a generation of Israelites out of the Promised Land. What we need to be concerned about is that unbelief can keep us out of heaven! We have to guard against it.

C. What's going to happen to unbelievers? Turn if you would to the book of Revelation 21:8, “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” That passage really gets our attention. Unbelief is very serious. Unbelievers will lose their souls. John tells us this in words that are plain and to the point.

V. Good News About Unbelief – Turn back with me now to Mark 9 this time. Let’s consider further the request made by the man who brought his son to Jesus to be healed. I think this illustrates also the importance of looking at all that the Bible says on any given subject. We read earlier from the Gospel of Matthew where this man came to Jesus with his problem. He asked the Lord to cure his son because His disciples could not. We also found out the disciples wanted to know why they could not.

A. In Mark 9:22 the man said, “And often he has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” Here the man is pleading for Jesus to help his son. Verse 23, “Jesus said to him, "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.'' I want us to take note of the next verse. “Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!''”

1. The good news is that unbelief can be overcome. Yes, it's possible for one who believes in God to be guilty of unbelief. Now, this man's example shows us that unbelief can be overcome. He recognized the fact that he had unbelief in his life and he asked the Lord to help him.
2. Would it have served any purpose for him to deny that he had unbelief in his life? No. Would it have helped him to go to some other source for help? No, he demonstrated great wisdom. He acknowledged the fact that there was unbelief in his life and he asked the Lord to help him, and his son was healed.

B. Next I’m going to read a few verses from 1st Timothy. The apostle Paul was the writer, and this is the first letter we have from him to Timothy the Evangelist. In 1st Timothy 1:12f – “12. And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry, 13. although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. 14. And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, with faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. 15. This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. 16. However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life. 17. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.” Paul is thanking the Lord, he is expressing his gratitude and glorifying God.

1. When Saul was persecuting the Church, did he believe in God? Yes, he was a Pharisee. He had been brought up at the feet of Gamaliel. He had reached great heights in the Jewish religion. He believed in God.
2. However he said he was guilty of unbelief. He was doing his best to try to eliminate the Christian religion. Consequently, he says he was guilty of unbelief.
3. What happened? He had an experience that taught him differently and he overcame his unbelief.
4. Then after his encounter on the road to Damascus, he was visited by a man named Ananias, who told him to arise and be baptized and wash away his sins calling on the name of the Lord, Acts 22:16. In Acts 9:18 it says he got up and he was baptized.
5. If there ever was a changed man, it was Saul of Tarsus, later known as Paul the Apostle. While unbelief is a very serious matter, the good news is it can be overcome.

CONCLUSION:
The man whose Son was afflicted shows us that if we'll come to the right source, acknowledge our unbelief and ask the Lord to help us, it can be overcome. Paul, reflecting on his earlier life, said that he did some things in unbelief, but the Lord forgave him when he obeyed the Gospel of Christ. Here then are some principles revealed to us in the Bible concerning unbelief. I thought it might be good for us to consider the other side of the issue since we have covered belief in the past.

I think it's interesting when Jesus gave the great commission, He dealt with belief and unbelief. In Mark 16:16, after Jesus told the apostles to preach the Gospel to every creature, He said, “he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved”. There's belief.

Then He said, “he that believeth not, shall be condemned”, there's the unbelief. Belief leads to everlasting life. Unbelief leads to destruction. In John 8:24 Jesus said, “if you believe not that I am he, you shall die in your sins”. We need to consider the evidence that we find in scripture and be convinced that Jesus is the Son of God. Believe that with all of our hearts. Confess that before men, repent of our sins, and then be baptized in order to receive the remission of sins. The Lord will bless us with forgiveness, and He'll add us to His church, which is His body.
Perhaps there is someone in the assembly today with the need to be buried with Christ in baptism. If anyone has this need or desires the prayers of faithful Christians on their behalf, we encourage them to come forward while we stand and sing.

 

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Reference Sermon by: Raymond Sieg