Mark 7:14-23 - He had no stomach for the misdirection spread by the Pharisees and the Teachers of the Law
High Expectations
He let them know that they were spiritually stupid.
How many of us are willing to rebuke when asked a stupid question by people who should know better?
Jesus was determined that these men would rise above the rank and file.
He got upset and urged them to change
The dreamer never gives up the dream.
Blame
The responsibility for our actions resides with us, the decision makers, and not with our environment.
We are not simply a product of our environment; environment is determined by our choices.
We cannot rightly blame others or fate or circumstances for our behavior
We must take responsibility for the consequences of our decisions
Changes in people occur from the inside out. · Involves helping people to acknowledge what they are really like deep down and then to deal with their inner self
We cannot on our own change our own or someone else’s heart.
We must realize how desperately we need God’s intervention in out lives.
The Bible exposes, in a unbiased way, the true qualities of our hearts.
Deep character changes in our lives fuels our faith.