Written by Mark Driskill:
Read Mark 6:1-6
“Oh it’s just Jesus.” Another enemy of faith is familiarity. The people closest to the Lord Jesus could not push beyond their memories of Jesus the carpenter’s son to recognize him as messiah. They had become so used to him that they could not see him for who he was. Their faith was crippled by familiarity. Let’s make sure this doesn’t happen to us.
I think one reason the church in America is so lethargic is that we have become used to Jesus, and don’t really believe in him anymore. Our minds have been dulled to sleep by the accounts of his miracles and the retelling of his teachings, and we no longer hear them. We quote John 3:16 so quickly that its truth no longer stirs us. It’s is amazing how glibly we can speak of the resurrection with no more wonder that if we were speaking of the price of tuna. It no longer captures us.
When we get too familiar with Jesus our faith begins to suffer. We know he is a healer, but we don’t expect him to heal. We know he is the forgiver but we don’t bother to confess. We have become so familiar that we no longer believe. What we need is a fresh encounter with the living Christ to stir us out of our slumber so we can believe again.
Challenge: Open your Bible and take a look at the verses you have highlighted or underlined. Read them again. Only this time try to put away everything you have ever been told about them, and read them as if for the first time. Ask God to show you something new in the familiar.
Mark Driskill and his wife Mary are homeschooling community ministers in Breathitt County Kentucky. They have four children. They co pastor Emmanuel fellowship Church, serve as Camp Pastors at Bethel Mennonite Camp, and Mark Teaches at Oakdale Christian Academy. Mark is web minister for Begotten by the Word , a ministry of Helping Hands Christian Resources. Once a month he preaches on the local radio station through the “Lion of Judah” program.
Mark also preaches in youth rallies and revivals upon request at no charge. Their vision is to see true spiritual awakening come to the mountains of Eastern Kentucky and to the nation.
Contact information:
Email: driskill@hilbillymail.com
Facebook: Mark Driskill
Address: PO Box 1159 Jackson KY.
