# The Power of His Presence  ## Metadata - Author: [[Ray C. Stedman]] - Full Title: The Power of His Presence - Category: #books ## Highlights - Impressive Faith READ: Mark 1:40–2:12 Jesus saw their faith . . . (Mark 2:5a). The obvious thing Mark underscores for us here is the determined faith of these five men. They stand as an encouragement to us to exercise this kind of faith. There are three remarkable and beautiful aspects of it here. These men dared to do the difficult. That is where faith always manifests itself. It was not easy to bring this man to the Lord. They had to carry him, perhaps a great distance, through the streets of the city. When they found the doorway blocked, they had to carry him up an outside stairway to the roof. We do not know how heavy he was, but it is not easy to carry a full-grown man up a flight of stairs. Yet these men managed this difficult task. They dared to do the difficult. What an illustration this gives us of bringing people to Christ! Then, notice that they dared to do the unorthodox. They were not limited by the fact that it was not at all customary to break up a roof. When they found that the door was blocked, they did not sit down, as we probably would have done, and appoint a committee to research the various ways to get to Jesus. No, they just did what was necessary and risked the disapproval not only of the owner of the house but also of every person there by interrupting the meeting in order to get their friend to Jesus. The remarkable thing is that Jesus never rebuked them. He never does. There is never an incident recorded in which Jesus got uptight or disturbed about an interruption by someone intent on receiving something from Him and pressing through to Him despite the disapproval of those around. These men dared to do the unorthodox. Finally, they dared to do the costly. Somebody had to pay for that roof. Imagine the face of the owner, sitting there at the feet of Jesus, when he hears this scratching on the roof. He looks up, and, to his amazement, the tiles begin to move. Then daylight appears, and suddenly he has a large hole in his roof! I do not know what his thoughts were. He probably wondered if his homeowner’s policy would cover it. Or maybe he was mentally adding up the bill to present to these men. But somebody had to pay that bill, somebody repaired that roof, and surely it was one, if not all, of these men. They dared to do the costly. That is faith! They laid it on the line—at cost to themselves. What a witness this is to what it takes to bring people to Christ! Lord, grant to me the faith to move out in ways that are difficult, unorthodox, and even costly to bring men and women to You, the only true healer of hurts. ([Location 271](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=271)) - Rich people are not worried about where their next meal is coming from; they worry about what it will taste like. They are not concerned about whether they worship God rightly but whether they are in a beautiful building. Riches transfer their concern from the necessary things to secondary. ([Location 737](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=737)) - Self-righteousness is the attitude of people who regard themselves as righteous because of the things they do not do. That is, in my judgment, the curse of the church today. The New Testament calls this pharisaism; the Searcher rightly labels it wickedness. Wickedness is expressed not only by murder, thievery, and sexual misconduct but also by bigotry, racism, pompousness, and cold disdain; by critical, judgmental attitudes; by harsh, sarcastic words; by vengeful and vindictive actions. The evangelical prig, male or female, is a wicked person! ([Location 1555](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=1555)) - To fear God is to know that He sees all that you do and that it is His hand that sends circumstances into your life. The knowledge of God’s power, wisdom, and love and His willingness to accept you, to change you, to forgive you, to restore you, and to stand by you, are all part of fearing God. ([Location 1564](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=1564)) - When I was a young man fresh from seminary, these truths of the fourth chapter were strongly in my heart: the conviction that the ministry belongs to the saints; the pastor’s task is to help people find their ministries and prepare them to function in them; the Christian’s discovery of the excitement of living where they are. ([Location 2013](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=2013)) - Heaven, as most people envision it, is not an attractive place to me—damp, rainy clouds; unstrung harps out of tune; and white robes. A good travel brochure could make west Texas look preferable to heaven. And yet most people think that this is what Paul is talking about when he speaks of the heavenlies. ([Location 2068](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=2068)) - When you hear men and women talking about religious things or values, do not gullibly swallow everything they say, especially if they appear to be attractively setting forth something about love and sweetness and concern for others. Especially test that line, for it is the usual approach of error. ([Location 4694](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=4694)) - What good is it to have luxuries and wealth and every material gain if the heart is continually filled with a great hunger that cannot be fed or satisfied? ([Location 5489](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=5489)) - This is exactly what God says to us about the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. It will never come from the flesh. It will never come from self-effort or by positive thinking or by perpetual trying. Love, joy, and peace—those wonderful gifts of God—never come from any attempt on our part to imitate them. You can imitate them, but they will never be anything but an imitation. You cannot produce the fruit of the Spirit by the flesh, because that fruit is the supernatural gift from the life lived in the power of the Spirit of God, born as Isaac was here. ([Location 5569](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=5569)) - Jesus sacrificed Himself in order to save His disciples; Judas sacrificed Jesus in order to save himself. Those two philosophies dominate the world today. ([Location 6059](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=6059)) - Joy appreciates the past, the present, and the future, not because the circumstances are pleasing, but because the heart is right with God. ([Location 7528](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=7528)) - Confess your sins. Then believe that God cleanses you, that He forgives you, that He has restored you to His favor. This is what fills the heart with joy. ([Location 7536](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=7536)) - One of the first signs of a growing, maturing spirit in young Christians is that they begin to give thanks to God for what He has poured into their life; for the opportunities that are before them; and for the present blessings and liberties that they do enjoy. ([Location 7540](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=7540)) - So there are the elements that make up celebration: joyfulness, purity, and thanksgiving. ([Location 7542](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=7542)) - According to the Scriptures, the wrath of God is God’s moral integrity. When people refuse to yield themselves to God, He creates certain conditions that He has ordained for harm. ([Location 8816](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=8816)) - May he send you help from the sanctuary and grant you support from Zion (Psalm 20:2). ([Location 8994](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=8994)) - Lord, there are far too many places I turn in times of trouble. Teach me to turn to Your sanctuary for the help that I need. ([Location 9017](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B004CLYMI4&location=9017))