The Master’s Touch
Sunday, January 13, 2008 – AM
By Pastor Jim May
For 30 years Jesus, the very Son of God, that had been born in a manger in that little town of Bethlehem, had lived in relative obscurity. We have only a few references to the days of his childhood and youth.
In the Book of Luke chapter 2 we see that as a child, Jesus was taken to be presented before the priests at the temple in Jerusalem. He then was taken back to Nazareth where the scripture says in Luke 2:40 that he, "… grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him."
Then we see Jesus again at the age of 12. Every year, Joseph and Mary would make the journey to Jerusalem for the Passover Feast. After the Passover had ended, at 12 years of age, Jesus was left behind in Jerusalem when the rest of the family starts on their long journey home. When they found him, Jesus was teaching the teachers in the temple. There is no doubt that he was doing His Father’s business, and yet the scripture says that he subjected himself to the authority of his parents until the day came that he would step out on his own.
At 30 years of age, Jesus reaches the age, as determined by the Law, when a youth becomes a man and then takes on the responsibility of a man. This will mark the beginning of his earthly ministry. Until this day, his actions, words and deeds were accountable to Joseph and Mary, but now he was ready to carry that responsibility on his own.
I’ve often thought that we tend to turn our kids loose and give them too much responsibility too soon. At 18, and even at 21, we don’t understand many things. Life comes at you fast and I think it would be good if we could see young people grow up a little more and gain some maturity before we throw them to the wolves. At 18, I thought I knew it all, then at 25, I was certain I knew it all. Then at 30 I found out that I didn’t know anything at all. Now at nearly 60, I feel like I’m just beginning to figure a few things out, but I still feel so inadequate. I’ve learned that I don’t know it all; that I know very little; and that I must put my hand in the Master’s hand, because he knows it all. AMEN!
I believe that a time of preparation, learning, growing and maturing must take place in every one of us who feels the call of God upon our lives to do a work for Him. If Jesus had to learn, grow and mature before beginning his ministry, what makes us think that we can step out on our own without doing the same thing?
Too many preachers start a church without knowing what being a pastor is really all about. Too many evangelists hit the open road and nearly starve to death because they haven’t prepared the way for their ministry.
Too many Christians hit the missions field, or get involved in ministry before they are ready, getting ahead of God, and then wind up spiritually, emotionally and physically shipwrecked on life’s troubled seas.
It takes time to learn about Jesus. It takes time to grow in grace and know God’s will. Until you have paid your dues in the time of growing and maturing, you aren’t ready to begin a work for the Lord. Those who try to do it on their own often cause more damage to the Kingdom of God than they can repair. Not knowing how to handle adversity, or not being prepared for dealing with people, is a certain way to be hurt and lose your effectiveness.
But the time has come and now Jesus steps out onto the pages of history and begins to do the work that he came to do in the first place. He overcame Satan in the wilderness of temptation, proving that He was going to live above the things of the world. His life would be a perfect, sinless life, the only man to ever live such a life.
Then he began to choose his disciples. One by one he chose those who would become the very core and foundation of his church. The first to be chosen was Simon Peter and his brother, Andrew. Then came James and John, the sons of Zebedee. All of these men were fishermen. They were used to long, hard hours and knew the price of success. It was these qualities that Jesus needed to make them into “fishers of men”.
From the moment that Jesus stepped out into the world to begin his ministry, he proved that he was no ordinary priest or rabbi. His teaching was far more effective than anyone who had ever taught before. His words carried power and influence that no man had ever seen. He was God, speaking through the voice of a man, and that same power that created the world was moving to change the hearts and minds of men.
No man had ever spoken to a demonic force from hell and commanded that devil like Jesus did. With a word, demons screamed and fled before him. With a word, the sick were healed, blind eyes were opened and the deaf could hear again. Just one touch of the Master’s hand and the lame walked.
We need the touch of the Master’s hand today. I need Jesus! You need Jesus! I was sick in sin, dead to the things of God, filled with sin and death. I was diseased with a sickness unto death and had no way of deliverance until Jesus came and touched me.
The Hinson’s used to sing a song some years back that said this:
I feel the touch of the Master’s strong hand. It’s leading me on thru this wearisome land.
My footsteps would falter to walk the golden strand; Except for the touch of the Master’s strong hand.
Can you say Amen to that?! Unless I keep my hand in the Master’s hand, I’ll quickly lose my way in the straight and narrow path that leads to glory. I need his touch to find the narrow gate that leads to those golden streets of Heaven, and I need His strength to fend off the fiery darts of the devil as I struggle along the way. Except for the touch of the Master’s strong hand, none of us would make it.
In the first chapter of the Book of Mark, we see Jesus preaching the synagogues, walking throughout Galilee and casting out devils everywhere he went. Mankind had become so steeped in sin that men and women, in every town and village, were demon possessed.
It’s no different today. You won’t have to walk very far outside the doors of the church, and sometimes you won’t even reach the doors of the church, before you will find someone who is demon possessed. I know that those who are truly born again can’t be demon possessed, but not everyone in the church is born again, so the devil comes to church quite often. There may not be a demon living inside of them, but their heart, mind, soul and body belong to Satan. Unless we have been born again and delivered by the blood of Jesus, Satan owns us – lock, stock and barrel. We are his, to use and abuse as he wills, until the Master steps in and changes things.
We get a picture of this through a type and shadow of what happens next in Jesus’ ministry.
Mark 1:40-42, "And there came a leper to him, beseeching him, and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean. And as soon as he had spoken, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was cleansed."
In the Bible, leprosy is always an example of the power of sin in our lives. Leprosy was extremely contagious, deadly and a horrible way to die. It would eat away the lips, nose, ears, fingers and parts of the body would simply rot away until death brought the only release from the pain and suffering. It separated families forever. Loved ones who became lepers were taken away and never heard from again.
That’s what sin does for the soul of a man. It destroys life, eats away at your soul, separates you from God and all that is holy and good, and it ultimately destroys your soul in hell. It brings on eternal death, a perpetual state of dying but you never die. You just languish in the flames forever, wishing to die, hoping to die, wanting to die, but you never die – ever!
The leper was without hope. There was no medicine to take away his leprosy. There was no cure, no deliverance, no hope. All he would hope for was mercy.
Here came the leper cleansing man from Galilee. If only he could reach Jesus. He was desperate. He knew that he was destined to suffer and die. If only he could get just one touch from the Master’s hand.
There we see the first step in deliverance. The first step is realizing and knowing that you need deliverance. The second thing to realize that you can do nothing in yourself. No man has your answer. No doctor can take your leprosy of sin away. No medicine can stop the steady march to the grave. No hospital can save a sin-sick soul. There’s only one way – you have to have the touch of the Master’s hand.
If you are here today and you are bound by the chains of sin, still owned by the devil, controlled by every temptation and you easily fall into sin, then you need the touch of the Master’s hand. Only Jesus can satisfy your soul. Only he can make you whole.
Just as he was ready, willing and able to heal the leper, Jesus is reaching out to you. He understands your doubt, your fear, your uncertainty. He knows all about you, and yet the Bible says that He is moved with compassion because Jesus loves you right where you are. You don’t get perfect and then come to Jesus. You can’t do anything about your life except fall on your knees before Jesus and ask for mercy. Nothing can change for you until you get the touch of Jesus’ hand on your heart and life, and then it can all change in an instant. Just one touch is all it takes; Just one touch of the Master’s Strong Hand of mercy and grace.
For those of us who have been touched by the Master’s Hand and set free from sin, we still need His touch every day that we live.
There’s an old song that says: I can’t walk without Jesus. I can’t talk without Jesus. And there’s another one that says: I can’t even walk without You holding my hand.
I still need the touch of the Master’s Hand to lead me where I need to go. Without Jesus I’ll fall flat on my face. I need his hand guiding me, holding me up, lifting me above the shadows and pointing the way to do. Only then can my life be what He wants it to be.
Think about it this way. Over there sits piano keyboard that has the capability of producing some beautiful music that will bless the hearts of men and stir up the Spirit within us. Now if I were to sit down at that keyboard and begin to bang on the keys, I doubt if it would bless anyone. I don’t even think that it could qualify as a joyful noise. It would just be noise, not capable of doing anything.
But let someone who knows how to play it set there and suddenly it pours out the blessings and accomplishes what it is designed to do. By itself, the music inside stays inside. It can’t play itself. With someone there who doesn’t know what he is doing and only guessing at best, the music comes out, but it’s all jumbled up and doesn’t make a melody and only grates on the nerves, agitating the senses. But when the touch of the Master’s hand is upon it, the same sounds come out, but they are in a beautiful melody and then the instrument accomplishes its real purpose for existence.
That’s the way your life is in Christ. Without the Master’s touch upon your life, you will never amount to much. You can make a noise and get people’s attention. But most of your work won’t really accomplish anything except to alienate other people because you’re all noise and no productivity.
But with the touch of the Master’s hand – your life can be a thing of beauty, giving glory to God, and building up the kingdom of God.
It was battered and scarred,
And the auctioneer thought it
Hardly worth his while
To waste his time on the old violin,
But he held it up with a smile.
"What am I bid, good people", he cried,
"Who starts the bidding for me?"
"One dollar, one dollar, Do I hear two?"
"Two dollars, who makes it three?"
"Three dollars once, three dollars twice, going for three",
But, No,
From the room far back a grey haired man
Came forward and picked up the bow,
Then wiping the dust from the old violin
And tightening up the strings,
He played a melody, pure and sweet,
As sweet as the angel sings.
The music ceased and the auctioneer
With a voice that was quiet and low,
Said "What now am I bid for this old violin?"
As he held it aloft with its’ bow.
"One thousand, one thousand, Do I hear two?"
"Two thousand, Who makes it three?"
"Three thousand once, three thousand twice,
Going and gone", said he.
The audience cheered,
But some of them cried,
"We just don’t understand."
"What changed its’ worth?"
Swift came the reply.
"The Touch of the Masters Hand."
And many a man with life out of tune,
All battered with bourbon and gin,
Is auctioned cheap to a thoughtless crowd
Much like that old violin.
A mess of pottage, a glass of wine,
A game and he travels on.
He is going once, he is going twice,
He is going and almost gone.
But the Master comes,
And the foolish crowd never can quite understand,
The worth of a soul and the change that is wrought By Just One Touch of the Master’s Strong Hand.
Jesus is here right now. He is reaching out to you. Will you take his hand? Will you fall at his feet and beg for mercy? Just one touch is all it will take and your life will never be the same.
