A rich young man ran up to Jesus to gain assurance of his salvation. Instead, Jesus confronts him with the hard truth of what following Jesus might cost us. In order to enter His Kingdom, Jesus must receive our full allegiance and our greatest affection.

After revealing the reason He came, Jesus enters into the glory of heaven on earth to be replenished and strengthened by God the Father. He needs this breath in order to keep marching toward the cross. The presence of God is intended to also supply us with what we need to walk the way of Jesus.

Previously, Mark has revealed Jesus as King on the basis of His authority. There has been much confusion about Jesus, even among the disciples. Starting with this passage, Jesus begins to reveal why He came--to go to the cross. This is most unexpected, but it's the reason Jesus came. And those who want to be His disciple must walk that road, too.

The Bible calls the church the bride of Christ, the body of Christ, and the family of Christ, all showing how much Jesus loves and cares about His church. Jesus wants His church to be strong, healthy, and mature. Every disciple of Jesus has responsibility in helping his or her church to be strong. There are many ways disciples do this including serving according to the gifts of the Spirit, giving generously of the money God has given, and gathering together on Sundays and in Small Groups.

Through Jesus life, we see the inbreaking of a new reality into our lost and broken world. He cared for those who are hurting, restored what is broken, and brought goodness and beauty into the world. Because disciples do what Jesus did, Jesus entrusts this work to His disciples so that His Kingdom continues to come to earth. In this message, we will understand the many ways we can intentional bring heaven to earth through our everyday lives.

Living with Jesus as King is the essence of being a disciples of Jesus. We relate to Him first and foremost as the good and loving King who has authority over our lives. We need to spend time with Jesus in order to know, love, and trust Him more. And as we learn what He desires for us and commands of us, we obey Him in every part of our lives.

Being a disciple of Jesus is not something we casually drift into. It demands a decisive moment when we declare our allegiance to Jesus. Baptism has served this purpose since Jesus instituted it and the first disciples practiced it. This message challenges us to declare our allegiance to Jesus.

Ebenezer Scrooge was a bad man--greedy, selfish, harsh, unloving. He hurt people close to him and cared little about how he could help… until one night he was given a vision that revealed the consequences of a life lived like this. He awoke a changed man, ready to be kind and do good. How would our lives change if God gave us a glimpse of the impact of our own sin, selfishness, or greed? We would be devastated to know how we have hurt others, but we would be powerless to change. Jesus came to forgive our sin, change our hearts, and give us a new beginning.