I'd like to welcome you to our service and thank you for those that are joining us by the way of the internet. We do thank God for you and do desire that you pray for us. God's put on my heart on this month of March on Sunday mornings to preach out of the book of Mark. Of course, it's subject to change, but I've been praying and planning and preparing on the days and chapters here in the Bible leading up to the crucifixion and resurrection of our Lord and Savior. and may the Lord help us to glean from these passages and to be more like him and to have a deeper appreciation of our Lord and Savior and all that he went through for us as he died on the cross, bore our sins in his body, shed his blood for the remission of our sins so that we might have eternal life. If you'd like to find your place in Mark chapter 14, Mark chapter 14, The title of the message is Who Best Describes You? Who best describes you? There's many people that are mentioned, some by name, some that are not by name in this chapter, and I'm sure that you're gonna find yourself kinda identifying with one person or another in this chapter. In Mark chapter 14 and verse 1, it says, But they said, not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar of the people. And being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment, a spikenard, very precious, and she break the box and poured it on his head. Would you go down to the last verse in the chapter? In Mark 14, 72, it says, And the second time the cock crew. And Peter called to mind the word that Jesus said unto him, Before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice. And when he thought thereon, he wept. This is quite the chapter. This chapter, 72 verses, spans over several days and many things that takes place in this chapter and many things and many people are referred to, some by name and some who are not mentioned by name. Obviously, we see that Jesus is mentioned in this chapter and Simon the leper and we've read that this chapter starts off with those who had gathered together seeking to put Jesus to death. And in the next verse, there are those who have gathered together to worship him, to be in the presence of Jesus and took great joy in being in his presence. Oh, verse one here that we read reminds us that the adversary is always at hand. In 1 Peter chapter five and verse eight, it says, be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary, the devil, has a roaring lion, walketh about seeking whom he may devour. And then in verse three, we find Jesus in Simon the leper's house, and the chapter ends with Simon Peter weeping. Oh, a lot can happen in just a short amount of time. And James 4, verse 14, it says, whereas as ye know not what shall be on the morrow, for what is your life? It's even a vapor that appeareth for a little time and then vanisheth away. I wonder what's gonna be said of us. I wonder how we will be remembered. Judas and Peter and James and John are also mentioned by name in this story, and none of them are gonna be remembered in this chapter for anything good. Judas, we know, betrays Jesus. Peter winds up chopping off the ear of the servant of the high priest. Peter denies the Lord, he's gonna curse, he's gonna swear, and as he hears the cock crow twice, he remembers what Jesus has said to him, and at the very last, we find him weeping. James and John and Peter are gonna be remembered for sleeping instead of praying and watching. This chapter starts, It starts with the week before the crucifixion and it ends before Jesus is delivered to Pilate. I'd like to draw your attention, though, in this chapter to those that are not mentioned by name in this chapter. And I wonder who would best describe you among these unnamed saints and servants. In a crowd this big that is gathered here, those listening on the internet, there are those that'll be known by name. But there's also a faithful group of people who'll simply be known by what they did and how they were used of the Lord. The first person that we come across in this chapter we find in verse three that's not mentioned by name in this chapter. It says, in being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at meat, there came a woman, a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard, very precious, and she break the box and poured it on his head. Now, the other gospels, they tell us that it was Mary, but Mark, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, does not give us that detail right here. Can I ask you, what did you bring to Jesus today? I would hope that no one has gathered here today to plot against Jesus. No, I trust you've come to worship him. There was a large number of guests at the house of Simon the leper, but you know, there was only really one that was there worshiping Jesus. Only one that brought something to Jesus. And oh, there was plenty that was upset with that person. Some criticized what she did. Some thought that they knew better than Mary, than this woman, what should have been done with the ointment. But can I say, just like Jesus said, they were all wrong. Oh, may the Lord help us not together to meet with Jesus with a wrong spirit or a wrong attitude, trying to find fault with those that are trying to worship the Lord. You know, had everybody at the house of Simon the leper, including Simon, Had everyone there brought something to Jesus, had everyone there, had they been just as involved as this woman, then there would have been no bickering or no criticism. Oh, Jesus is gonna rebuke that crowd, but he's gonna commend this woman for what she did. Look at verse nine. Verily I say unto you, wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and the United States of America. Oh, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her. Better be careful. coming to meet with Jesus, and only having an opinion to give him. Boy, you better be careful. Criticizing the pastor, criticizing the Sunday school teacher, criticizing the message, the songs, and the atmosphere. Look, let me tell you something, we can all bring something to Jesus. You know, every service, Every service, a record is being kept in heaven of what we brought, what we thought, and what we want for Jesus. I wonder what'll be said of you and what'll be said of me about this particular service today. I wonder what type of memorial will be written in heaven concerning what we brought to Jesus today, what we thought today, and what we want for Jesus today. Did you bring anything to Jesus? This woman brought a precious gift to Jesus. She brought her devotion to Him. She brought her love. Oh, every part of her was surrendered to Jesus. Oh, I'm sure if she poured this ointment on His head, had the song been written, she would have been humming or singing underneath her breath. All to Jesus. I surrender all to Him, I freely give worldly pleasures, Forsaken, humbly at his feet I bow. Oh, in a previous passage, oh, this same Mary, this same woman, you found her sitting at the feet of Jesus, listening to his words. You understand, she spent time with Jesus. She understood what was happening. Look in verse six. And Jesus said, let her alone. Why trouble ye her? She hath wrought a good work on me. Look at verse eight. She hath done what she could. She has come beforehand to anoint my body to the burying. Oh, will that be said of you? Will that be said of me today that we have wrought a good work on him? that we've done what we could. Why were the others criticizing and not involved? I'll tell you why, because they missed out on His words. You see, until we spend time at the feet of Jesus listening to His words, then we won't be giving Him all we can. If you don't spend time with Jesus all week long, then it'll show in how you respond on Sunday. Not everyone that was gathered at Simon Lepper's house was there to worship Jesus. Not everyone there was there to do all they could while they could for him. You know, we too are gonna have a memorial service one day, and Jesus is gonna go over what we did for him. The book's gonna be open and we're gonna be judged for what we did and did not do for Jesus while we could. You see, Jesus right here exposes every person there with their thoughts and with what they wrought. And then you come down to verse 13. Again, I'm preaching on the subject who best describes you in Mark 14. We're focusing now on the unnamed saints or servants who are mentioned in this passage. In verse 13 it says, And he sendeth forth two of his disciples, and saith unto them, Go ye into the city, and there shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher of water. Follow him. Well, what can we gather from this unnamed man? Oh, one thing that we can notice off the top here is that he was faithful. He was dependable. He was working. He was useful to somebody. He was following a specific course. We also see that he was predictable. He knew where he was going, and he was able to lead others where he was going. Oh, I wonder, would Jesus be able to describe you in that same fashion? Would he be able to describe you and depend on you and me the way that he depended on this man? or would you be able to lead someone else to where Jesus could use them? Would your work for Jesus impact someone else to get to where Jesus can use them? Oh, that would reflect in your giving of your time and your talents and your treasures to the Lord. Are you faithful to be where Jesus expects you to be? Can Jesus depend on you? Are you so predictable that Jesus knows where you'll be on Sunday morning for Sunday school, for preaching, in the afternoon service, and on Wednesday night? Could Jesus use you as an example to follow? The next person we come to is found in verse 14. And wheresoever he shall go in, say ye to the good man of the house, the master saith, where is the guest chamber where I shall eat the Passover with my disciples? And he will show you a large upper room furnished and prepared, there make ready for us. Here we have another unnamed person who's gonna be used of the Lord. He's known as the good man of the house. What can we learn from this person? Oh, I tell you, the first thing we can see is he made what he had available. to Jesus. What he possessed, what he had in his possession, he made available to Jesus. Hey, do you have anything in your possession that God could use? Hey, it's one thing to have something God could use, but here's the bigger question. Is what you have available to the Lord? Is your time, available to the Lord? Is your talents available to the Lord? Is your treasures available for him to use? This unnamed man made what he had or what he possessed available for Jesus to use. And when the disciples said, To the good man, they said, the master saith. Boy, huh, I wonder how many times has the master spoke to you and asked you to make yourself and what you have available to him, but you did not respond the same way the good man responded. How many messages have you heard? But instead of saying, yes, Lord, have your own way, all that I have is yours, all that I have is available for your service, you did not respond the way the good man in the house responded. This good man was prepared. He was ready to say yes. That's how you ought to walk through these doors every Sunday. Ready and prepared to just say yes, Lord. Oh, this speaks of him being yielded to the master. Oh, he may have been the good man of the house, but Jesus was his master. Here again, we have that song. All to Jesus I surrender. All to him I freely give. Worldly pleasures all forsaken. All to him I freely give. I surrender all. I surrender all. All to Jesus I surrender. I surrender all. Oh, there's so many different people in this chapter, both named and unnamed. I wonder who best describes you. Would you be in verse 1 and 2 with those that are plotting against the Lord? Or would you be in those following verses with those that were ready to criticize? Not involved, just ready to be a critic. Would you be in line with those that are going to deny the Lord? Curse and swear? Those ready to forsake and betray the Lord? Those sleeping when they should have been watching and praying? I hope there's no one here like that. Would you be like the woman who had been sitting at Jesus' feet? Now she's ministering to Jesus, doing what she could. I tell you what, she had no regrets. She did all she could while she could. Are you like that man bearing that pitcher of water? Are you faithful? Are you working? Are you dependable? Are you so predictable that Jesus knows that you're going to do right? Hey, are you leading others? Are you following a specific course, not wavering from where you ought to be? Are you like the good man of the house? Have you made what God has given you available to God? Or are you willing to put others first, the Lord first? Are you ready and prepared to give unto the Lord? In verse 51, we've got another person mentioned in this verse. In verse 51 it says, and there followed him a certain young man. having a linen cloth cast about his naked body. And the young men laid hold on him, and he left the linen cloth and fled from them naked." Now there's a whole message right here on this unnamed young man who was following at a distance. Many scholars, Bible scholars, believe that this young man may have been awakened by the commotion and the noise that was taking place as they went by his house and had grabbed his night coat and went outside to see what was happening and followed at a distance. But the Bible does not tell us that, but that is very plausible. But what can we learn from this young man? One thing, he was nosy. He hung around just to see what was going on, but he didn't want to be involved. There could certainly be some Christians like that as well underneath the sound of my voice. Here to catch a glimpse, but not willing to get involved. You even put on your church clothes to be here and follow at a distance. We see that this young man was very impulsive. But as soon as the heat was turned on and he was faced with a decision, I either align with Jesus or with the crowd, what did he do? He left, no lasting impression. No one cared about his linen cloth. What type of impression would you leave? on a body of believers today. Would you leave something tangible or just a mere token of your presence? I wonder, where is that young man at? Who are you talking about? Oh, you know, that one who left the linen cloth and fled. I didn't even know he was here. in one minute, in one minute, and go on the next. No determination, no dedication, no dependability, just impulsive. Here one minute gone the next. When the going get tough, he fled. When the preaching got too hard, he ran. Oh, when the conviction set in, instead of humbling himself before God and aligning with Jesus, he ran. Oh, when a decision for Christ of the crowd was demanded, he fled away naked, leaving no lasting effect. As long as he could watch from a distance, he was satisfied. He was good with that. No commitment. No kind of, you know, just kind of doing his own thing. Just slipping in, slipping out. Just trying to get a glimpse of Jesus. There's a lot of Christians that way. There's a lot of Christians that fit that bill. They have no resolve, no dedication. They just want to get a glimpse of Jesus when the mood strikes them, and they have no dedication to Jesus. And when the preaching hits home, when the preaching gets hold of them and conviction, the Holy Ghost starts convicting them of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment, they get offended and upset and they run away. They don't want to take up their cross and follow Jesus. When they see that following Jesus is going to cost them their freedom or their wants, when they feel like they're going to have to give to Jesus what they consider theirs, I'm talking about their times and their thoughts, and they're going to have to line up with Jesus, they're going to have to give Jesus their talents, their treasures. They run away. Who best describes you? Let me say, everybody in here, you identify with somebody in this message. If you're not like the woman, or like the man bearing the pitcher of water, or like the good man of the house, can I say you can be like them? Would you ask the Lord to help you? Maybe you're like Judas. You've never believed on Jesus as your savior. Oh, you've been to church. You've heard about Jesus. You may have even participated in a few religious events, but you've never trusted Jesus as your savior. Then why not get saved today before it's eternally too late? Judas would turn his back on Jesus as the way, the truth, and the life, and forever be in torment and the flames of hell. Today, Judas is crying out, I kissed Jesus. I was so close, but so far away. I spent time with Jesus. I heard Jesus speak. I even saw him perform miracles. But I never saw myself a sinner in need of a savior. I only saw Jesus as an opportunity for me to have a better life now. But now I'm in hell for all eternity. Christian, who best describes you in this passage?