![Why did Jesus teach in parables? [Mark 4:1-20]](https://www.yourcrosscreek.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/cover-1080x675.jpg)
Why did Jesus use parables? What do they even mean? In this short section of Jesus’ parables in Mark, Jesus is doing a little show and tell for his audience. He invites us into a new way of seeing and experiencing life in the Kingdom of God. This week (in the parable of the Sower) we’ll do some soil analysis and find that our “soil” determines our experience in the Kingdom of God.
The idea of an “unforgivable sin” has caused a lot of anxiety and worry for centuries. But what is it? And what does it have to do with the Story of Jesus?
![What does a disciple look like? [Mark 3:7-19]](https://www.yourcrosscreek.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/TFS-cover-1080x675.jpg)
We are products of our influences. We like what we like and think what we think mostly because someone told us it was the right thing to like and the right thing to think. The Story of Jesus gives us the ability to clearly and purposely reevaluate our life’s influences and rewrite our own stories.
![Does God want me to be religious? [Mark 2:18-3:6]](https://www.yourcrosscreek.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/cover-2-1080x675.jpg)
God wants us to be religious, right? Wrong. The Story of Jesus isn’t about following a list of religious rules. The Story of Jesus is the story of true love and freedom.
![Why can’t I forgive myself? [Mark 1:40-2:17]](https://www.yourcrosscreek.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/cover-1-1080x675.jpg)
We have things in our past that we’d rather forget. Some we can look back on and laugh about. Others bring such guilt and shame we wish we could forget and never think about it again. What do we do with that guilt? Is there a way to move past our past and into something better? There is. We find it in the Story of Jesus.