Mark 13:1-36 - Shaken and Stirred

It's strange for me to do a whole chapter in one study, but the truth is, chapter 13 is dealing with end of times stuff, earthquakes and shaking of the heavens.    As we enter 2011, we get closer to 2012, the year that some people claim the earth will go through a major disaster.   But biblically speaking, there is no date or time set for the return of Christ.    The whole chapter is something to ponder, and to reflect on.   It is also a warning about a few things ....

• Falsehood of many who claim to be the Messiah, and who will deceive many. (vs.5, 21-23)
• There is a time when believers will be persecuted publicly, but this is a time for us to testify the message of Christ (vs. 9-10) ..but at that time God will give us words to say.   
• vs. 13 "And everyone will hate you because you are my followers.  But the one who endures to the end will be saved.
• vs. 14 - a Sacrilegious object that causes desecration standing where he or it should not be, and a disaster for Judea
• vs. 26-27 - gathering of the chosen from around the world, and the Son of Man (Jesus) coming out of the clouds with power and glory.
• No one knows when this event will occur, but it will ... but we must stay alert!! (vs 32-33)  
• and the final word is vs. 37 "Watch for him!"

Out of this series of events, we know that God is in control, the plans are in His hands.   We also need to be watchful, and keep in mind that we are waiting for Jesus' return, and to not be off-guard when this happens.   For some these events sound terrifying, and indeed they are, but our hope lyes in Christ, and our salvation isn't wrapped up in this world, but the next.   Praise God, He is alive, and Jesus will return!!  What a great hope we have in Jesus.

Mark 12:41-44 - Poor in pocket, Rich in Righteousness

Giving, we all like to give don't we?   I always struggle with this in Churches, because in one sense, we need to give, but if we don't believe the money is going where it should, should we still give?   We  (meaning I) can give all the excuses we can to give can't we?   There's the whole idea of giving to the right cause and knowing that what we're giving to is worthy of our attention.

And it is good to be consciences of whom we give our money to, but don't let our excuses keep us from helping others.   This passage isn't really about giving, but it's about sacrifice isn't it?   That's even harder than giving a few bucks to our favorite charity.    Jesus is at the Temple collection box (notice that there isn't the ever present plate being passed around ... it's just a box sitting at the temple) and the rich are giving, which is good, but a poor widow dropped in two small coins (vs. 42).   The difference is that the rich "gave a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she had to live on."    

Think about this in comparison to a few verses beforehand where Jesus said "Beware of these teachers of religious law!  For they like to parade around in flowing robes" vs.38 & vs 40 "Yet they shamelessly cheat widows out of their property and then pretend to be pious..."

Who has the greater faith?  Whom is more righteous in God's eyes?

Do we parade around with our stuff, while we hold back in our offering to God ... wherever that is?   It comes down to where does our treasure lye .. in this life?   I'm not saying that God's doesn't want us to have things to make life easier, but then again .. there are alot of things that we could do without isn't there?

Mark 12:35-40 Pious Religious Leaders

In the Temple we have Jesus turning the tables and asking the people why the teachers  of religious law claim that the Messiah is the son of David, when David called the Messiah "my Lord" ... causing the people great enjoyment in listening, but challenging the leaders in their teaching, so that they can realize that Jesus is the Messiah.  

Probably the part of the verse that resonates with me is the warning for some of the leaders of the religious law who were all pious and love the 'seats of honor' in the synagogues ... yet they cheat the people, and "pretend to be pious by making long prayers in public."   Because of their corrupt natures they will be "more severely punished" (vs. 40)

When looking at Church history, we realize that the Church has always struggled with people who love power, those pious priests/preachers that are more interested in themselves than with other people.   We can see the toll that it takes in Europe, and how the church struggles today, because of bad action by them in the middle-ages and crusades.

Church leadership needs integrity, and also understanding of their culture.   For pastors ... are you an example to your congregation?   Are you building bridges between people, or creating a gap?   Are the messages something that the people can take?   Is your lifestyle in line with your message?

Mark 12:28-34 The Greatest Commandment

This is one of the more famous passages of scripture, where a teacher of the religious law came and asked Jesus what is the most important commandment.   Jesus answered "The Lord our God is the one and only Lord.  And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.'  The second is equally important: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'  No other commandment is greater than these.'

The teacher then added in vs. 33 "This is more important than to offer all the burnt offerings and sacrifices required in the law."     Listen to Jesus' response to the man's understanding in the vs. 34 "Realizing how much the man understood, Jesus said to him, "You are not far from the Kingdom of God."

How cool is that, after being questioned by Pharisees, and Sadducees, here was a teacher that got it.   That no matter how much we try to do to please God, and make up for sins, the most important thing is to Love God and love our neighbor!!  

Also note that loving your neighbor goes hand-in-hand with loving the Lord our God.    This is something we need to live in our lives, and realize that the work of the Church isn't involved in just worshiping God, but also loving our neighbor.

What a great passage!  

In today's culture of relativity, it's so important to remember Jesus' teaching that there is only one God.    There are not many gods, there are no other paths, just one path, and one Lord to rule us all.

Mark 12:18-27 Not quite dead yet

First, I like how the Sadducee's confront Jesus, not trying to trap him like the religious leaders of the day, but genuinely asking him a question.   I think these questions are the ones Jesus enjoyed answering.   There are two things that I find encouraging, and a few people may find discouraging. ...

In verse 25 "For when the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage.  In this respect they will be like the angels in heaven."   As a single guy, this means that singleness only really matters in this life.   For those who think that they will 'be with' their spouse for eternity, well, yes as believers, but not in the role of man and wife.   There is no point, as the marriage union is to help us in this life, where God's glory will be our all in the next.

Secondly, is the resurrection of the dead vs. 27 "So he (God) is the God of the living, not the dead.  You have made a serious error."  

It's important that we don't evangelical-iz this verse, as we need to look at the context ... that Jesus was reaching out to the Sadducee's, people who had denied the power of God, and had watered down the scriptures in their own right ... thinking that some of God's attributes were influenced by the Hellenistic people of the OT times they had forgotten the power of God.
Jesus was laying down that God does have the power to raise the dead, but they are living in his eyes. God is a God of the living, NOT like the god at their time and culture (Hades), that is the difference, and that God is the great "I am God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob" (vs. 26).  Pillars of the Jewish faith.


What is the lesson for us?   In the big picture of these verses, we need to remember the holiness of the scriptures, and to learn from them.  NOT to water them down.    That was the trouble with the Sadduccee's, they had watered down the scriptures so much, that they had forgotten the power of God.   That He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob ... that He doesn't see them as dead, but alive.   May we not forget the power of God, but be humbled in the knowledge that beyond this life, there is more yet to come.

Mark 12:13-17 Give Unto Caesar ...

In todays lesson we have the Pharisees and some supporters of Herod trying to trap Jesus again, by asking him if they should pay taxes.   Jesus says to them in vs. 17 "give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God."   His replay completely amazed them."

There is a practical application of yes, we should be giving our country its due, by paying taxes.    There is a financial obligation on the believers part to by truthful with our finances and recording.  

But the lesson isn't just about finances, this is also a call to the Pharisees to "give to God what belongs to God", this relates directly to yesterday's lesson in regards to the story of the evil farmers.    I think these verses are about integrity, integrity with our funds, and government, but also for Church leaders it is about integrity with their flock that they've been given charge of.    I do think that we sometimes misplace the blessings of God.   There are times when we give credit for the blessings of a new car, of a job, of a family to all our doing, when in fact God has allowed us to enjoy these things.

Remember the old hymn, 'count your blessings, name them one-by-one, count your many blessings, that GOD has done".   We need to do this with God as well.   acknowledge what God has done, don't take it all for granted.   God does so much work in a believers life, but sometimes we don't see it because we pat ourselves on our own backs, instead of giving back to God .... instead of giving him the praise that he so rightly deserves.

Mark 12:1-12 Beware...Evil Farmers

Ok, it's Christmas day, and I was tempted to skip today's lesson, because hey, talking about evil farmers doesn't sound like a Christmas idea does it?   The parable starts out nice .. a farmer has fields of grapes that he leased to others, but when the time came to get his share of the crop, the other farmers wouldn't let his servants gather up his share of the grapes.   The owner kept on sending his servants, but the tenants wouldn't let them, they even killed a servant.   Then the owner sent his only son, and the other farmers murdered him, and cast his body out of the vineyard.   vs. 9-10 "What do you suppose the owner of the vineyard will do?"  Jesus asked.  "I'll tell you - he will come and kill those farmers and lease the vineyard to others."   The passage concludes "The religious leaders wanted to arrest Jesus because they realized he was telling the story against them-they were the wicked farmers.  But they were afraid of the crowd, so they left him and went away."

Jesus was continuing his rant on the Priests and elder from the previous verses, and making it clear that they will be judged.   But once more Jesus is making it clear that he will be put to death, prophecy concerning his own death.  

So what does this have to do with us?
What's interesting is that the story focuses on the tenants keeping the owner's servants from collecting the harvest, and the penalty for this.   It emphasizes the importance of not being a hindrance  to the gospel, but allow God to move.

Are my actions a hindrance to the work being done by God?  Or am I helping in the fields to get the crop ready for the owner?

I like the quote that Jesus made (Ps. 118:22-23) "The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.  This is the Lord's doing, and it is wonderful to see"   Jesus the rejected, the cornerstone of our faith!!

How awesome is the Lord to us!!  He sent his son to us, knowing full well the price that was going to be paid, all for us to have Christ as our Cornerstone!!  It's so humbling to reflect on the sacrifice that God made for us.

God didn't send Jesus to be just a baby that we celebrate once a year, but he sent his Son to be persecuted by the people He was going to save.   I pray  that today you would know Christ the Cornerstone in your life, that you would know him as more than a baby in a manger this Christmas season.

Mark 11:27-33 The Authority

For the third time in one chapter the disciples and Jesus entered Jerusalem, and as Jesus was coming up to the temple, the chief priests and elders came up to him and asked "By what authority are you doing all these things?  Who gave you the right to do them?" (vs. 28)  Probably in relation to Jesus clearing out the temple of the moneylenders and merchants.  

The religious leaders felt very defensive of their temple.   They didn't like it when this popular figure, this Jesus came and accused the temple of being a den of thieves... after all, who does he think he is??    Humanity hasn't changed in the least, whenever somebody does the 'right thing' there may be people that question it.   How about when someone corrects us, or our behavior? We get defensive, and our defenses all of a sudden come up.  

Jesus asks the priests where they thought the authority of John the Baptist came from .. from 'heaven', or simply human understanding (vs.29-30).   Revealed is their thought process, and they replied "We don't know." (vs. 33) basically because they didn't want to give an answer that would put themselves in the 'wrong'.    In response Jesus told them that he wouldn't tell "by what authority I do these things."

That wasn't a denial that he was getting his authority from heaven, but it was a response to the priests unresponsive, or unreceptive ears.   The priests and elders were more concerned about their perception by others, than the truth, and even if they heard the truth, they wouldn't acknowledge it because of their pride.

I had an Old Testament teaching in College and we were talking about the pride of Pharaoh when Moses would give the Egyptian leader a warning about an upcoming plague if he didn't let the Jewish people go.   My professor would say, "God make hard hearts harder"    and this is true in Jesus' day, and it's true today as well.   The priests in chapter 11 were not open to Jesus' teaching, or his answer, they just wanted Jesus to fail so that they would be seen in the right.

I'm all for apologetics, and learning how to defend our faith, but if the other person isn't going to listen to the truth of the Gospel, if their shields are fully powered and defensive, than what's the point.   There is never a cause to get into a heated argument over the faith, when the other person is unwilling to accept the power of Christ, of salvation.    In those times it's best just to 'dust off your sandals' and move on.  

Our prayer in our lives has to be that we don't become hard hearted, that we continue to allow God to move in us, that our pride would not keep up from the truth that He wants to reveal in our lives.

Mark 11:15-26 Church turnover

Here we have Jesus coming back to the temple, prepared to meet what was there.   Remember he visited the temple back in vs. 11.    But why was Jesus so mad that he turned up the tables of the marketeers in the temple?

Well, the answers are in his words, that the temple was supposed to be "called a house of prayer for all nations, but you have turned it into a den of thieves." (17)   The place where the market was being held was may of been a place where the 'non-Jews' where allowed to enter and pray.  By OT standards, that was the only place they could.    Jesus also uses the term thieves ... which suggests that the problem could of also lay with the moneychangers themselves.

Using counter weights and charging ridiculous amounts of money (aka. taking some on the side) for selling items so that people could continue their sacrifice.  If the merchants were 'tipping the scales' and taking the money, there's probably a good chance that some of the profits were going to Priests as well.   Jesus was confronting a corrupt Church that had lost its way.   The Chief priests were planning to kill Jesus over this, but the people were 'amazed' at his teaching (vs 18).   The people were no longer under ignorance, but Jesus opened up their minds with his teaching from scripture.

Moving on we have the disciples finding the previously cursed fig tree (yesterday's lesson), and they were amazed that it died.    Then Jesus says to them that if you have faith enough, you can move mountains.   People latch on to this, and throughout church history had accused people who were not healed to 'not have enough faith'.   But read the whole passage.....vs. 24-25 "I tell you, you can pray for anything and if you believe that you've received it, it will be yours.   But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins too."    The disciples were so amazed about the fig tree, that Jesus is like, 'sure that's cool, you can do more if you have faith enough ... but FIRST .... lets talk about forgiveness."  

Jesus reaffirms that our relationship with God comes first, before self.   We need to forgive those we have a grudge against first, so that God will forgive us.  That's the kicker isn't it?   It also infers that our relationship with others affects our relationship with God.   THAT is a deep thing to reflect on isn't it.

Mark 11:12-14 Cursed Tree

This passage starts off with Jesus cursing a fig tree because it's not giving him any figs to eat, which really isn't surprising since though the leaves are full, it's not the season for figs.   So why does Jesus curse it??  Is it just because he's hungry, and he woke up on the wrong side of the bed?   We all have an off day, so what's the deal?  

I think it's because not only was he hungry, but he knew that he had to deal out some justice at the local temple (see yesterday's reading).   I'm not going to go into all this today, I'll leave that for tomorrow's reading, but here's what I think this fig tree's all about.

Though it isn't in season, the tree's leaves are full, it's ripe, it gives the indication that there should be fruit on it.   The temples, the pharisee's the teachers know the Law, they know the legality of Old Testament teachings, but they don't have the heart of the matter, they don't seek Justice, they don't have compassion.   They lord it over their own people.

Basically the Temple had lost it's way.   From the outside it looks like it's a place of holiness, but the substance, the 'fruit' if you will was lost, and in the end, if the temple (or Church if you will) looses the heart of God, than it will wither and fade (vs.20).  

Jesus was changing everything, not only by bringing salvation to us, but by changing the religious establishment as a whole.  

Mark 11:1-11 Triumphant Entry

This passage we have Jesus coming into Jerusalem on a donkey, and people putting their cloaks and leafy branches that were cut from a field ahead of Jesus.   What an amazing sight, and people who had been waiting for the Messiah to come and lead them to freedom was here!   But this was a freedom that they weren't exactly expecting.    Christ coming on an Colt that had not been ridden before, instead of a horse?   What kind of Messiah was this?

Jesus came into Jerusalem riding a young colt that hadn't been ridden before, and during this Christmas season we can think of the humble birth of Christ, born in a manger, a barn.   Jesus riding triumphantly into the holy city and Jesus coming into the world triumphantly in a barn.   God has a great sense of humor, and irony.   This Saviour of the world, not strolling about pompously on a horse, but humbly.  

Remember 10:45  "the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many."  

With that attitude Christ always arrives.   What does this say about how we live our lives?   Or maybe our expectations on how God works in our lives?   The Jewish people had certain expectations for a Messiah, but God knew better, and knew what the people really needed.   Praise God  He's in control!!

We also see something interesting in these verses as Jesus' first stop is the temple in Jerusalem, and he looks at everything carefully (vs.11).    Keep this in mind when we look later on probably Thursday.

Mark 10:46-52 Blind Bart

Ok, today I'm cheating, but sort of in a good way.   I'm using a sermon that I wrote a while a go on this same passage.   So today's reading is longer than usual, but more deep, and thought out than usual too ;)   I left out some Illustrations to cut the word count down, but left a few it as well.


A daughter complained to her father about how hard things were for her. “As soon as I solve one problem,” she said, “another one comes up. I’m tired of struggling.”

Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen where he filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to a boil. In one he placed carrots, in the second, eggs, and in the last, ground coffee beans. He let them sit and boil, without saying a word.

The daughter impatiently waited, wondering what he was doing. After a while, he went over and turned off the burners. He fished out the carrots and placed them in a bowl. He pulled the eggs out and placed them a bowl. He poured the coffee into a bowl. Turning to her he asked, “Darling, what do you see?”

“Carrots, eggs, and coffee,” she replied.

He brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, he asked her to sip the coffee. She smiled, as she tasted its rich flavor.

She asked, “What does it mean, Father?” He explained that each of them had faced the same adversity—boiling water—but each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting, but after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak.

The egg was fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside hardened.

The ground coffee beans were unique, however. By being in the boiling water, they changed the water.

He asked his daughter, “When adversity knocks on your door, which are you?” (Eric Reed, Leadership Journal; www.Preaching Today.com)

And I would ask you the same question: When adversity knocks on your door, which are you? Do you become weakened through adversity? Do you become hardened in your own heart? Or do you change the world around you for the better?

If you would like to be a world-changer in times of adversity, I invite you to turn with me to Mark 10, where we see how a blind man did it in Jesus’ day.

Mark 10:46 Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (that is, the Son of Timaeus), was sitting by the roadside begging. (NIV)

Bartimaeus literally means “son of the honored one.” But as you can see, he was anything but. He was blind. He was a beggar. His condition was a mockery to his name. 

No doubt, he was an embarrassment to his family. Can’t you see Bart’s dad as he interacts with the other men in Jericho? One pulls up in a cart with a bumper sticker that says, “I’m the proud parent of a Jericho High School honor student.” Another man brags that his son is a successful lawyer in the big city – Jerusalem. & Still another says, “My boy is entering the ministry. Rabbi says he should do real well. By the way, Timaeus – oh honored one – what’s your boy doing these days.” 

“Well…ah…uh…he’s into…charity.” 

“Oh yea, where at?” 

“Well…his office is just outside the city.” 

“Oh, I get it. He’s that blind beggar that sits there everyday asking for a handout. Too bad.” 

Bartimaeus did not bring honor to his family. He brought shame, but he didn’t let that keep him from Christ.... 

Mark 10:47 When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” (NIV)

Despite his condition, he called out to Jesus. 

Mark 10:48 Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” (NIV)

The citizens of the city are embarrassed. Here, this VIP has come to town and Blind Bart is making a scene. They try to shush him up, but he only shouts louder & longer, “JESUS, SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME!" “JESUS, SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME!” “JESUS, SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME!”

He isn’t about to let anybody or anything stop him from getting close to Jesus, and neither should we. If you want to become a world-changer in the midst of adversity, then… 

DON’T LET ANYTHING OR ANYONE KEEP YOU FROM CHRIST. 

Don’t let your circumstances. Don’t let other people. Don’t even let your own embarrasment keep you from calling out to Christ. 

 Fear makes us go back when we should go forward. Please, don’t let that happen to you. Don’t let fear keep you from going forward to Christ. Don’t let the fear of embarrassment keep you from crying out to Him, because that’s the only way to make it through adversity.

If we want to become world-changers in times of adversity, then we cannot let anything keep us from Christ. Instead, we must...

TRUST CHRIST WITH OUR LIVES. 

We must depend on ... 

Him to make us what He wants us to be in the midst of our pain. We must rely on the Lord to do His work in us even when times are hard. 

That’s what Blind Bart did. He saw Jesus for who He was. Even though Bartimaeus was blind, he saw things others did not see. He saw Jesus as the Messiah, calling Him the “Son of David” (vs.47 & 48). Now, that was a Messianic title, recognizing Jesus as the Promised King and Deliverer of His people. More than that, Bartimaeus saw Jesus as the Merciful One, calling on Him to have mercy (vs.47 & 48), and indeed Jesus showed him mercy. 

Mark 20:49 Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” (NIV)

Now, Jesus was on His way to Jerusalem to “give His life as a ransom for many” (vs.45). He’s got a lot of things on His mind, but He’s not too busy to stop for one blind beggar on the way. He’s got the whole world to save, but He also cares about ONE individual. 

{ILL}

A man fell into a pit and couldn’t get himself out, so he called for help... 

A CHRISTIAN SCIENTIST came along and said, “You only think that you are in a pit.” 

Next, A PHARISEE came by and said: “Only bad people fall into a pit.”

After that A YOGI said: “Your pit is only a state of mind.” 

Later, A FUNDAMENTALIST said: “You deserve your pit.” 

Then A WORD OF FAITH PREACHER said: “Just confess you’re not in the pit.” 

A GEOLOGIST told him to appreciate the rock strata in the pit. 

The PROPERTY-TAX DEPARTMENT asked if he was paying taxes on the pit. 

The DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES (DNR) asked if he had a permit to dig a pit. 

AN OPTIMIST said: “Things could have been worse.” 

A PESSIMIST said: “Things will get worse!!” 

A REALIST said: “Now THAT’S a pit.” 

Finally, JESUS, seeing the man, took him by the hand and lifted him out of the pit. (Adapted from Kenneth D. Filkins, The Wittenberg Door; www.PreachingToday.com) 

That’s what Jesus does. While the whole world discusses their answers to life’s problems, Jesus comes down into our pit and lifts us out. He indeed is the Merciful Messiah, and that’s what Blind Bart saw. So Blind Bart threw aside his own pitiful efforts at self preservation. 

Mark 10:50 Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus. (NIV) 

The cloak here is an outer cloak which beggars in Jesus day spread before themselves to collect alms. Bart depended on his cloak for his livelihood, but he cast it aside and came to Jesus. 

Mark 10:51 “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him. The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.” (NIV)

Literally, he called Jesus “Rabboni,” which means MY Rabbi, My teacher, MY master. You see, Blind Bart not only saw Jesus as the Merciful Messiah and threw aside his own self-efforts, he claimed Christ as His OWN master and teacher. To Bartimaeus, Jesus was not just THE Master, He was MY Master, and that made all the difference in the world. 

There are a lot of people who understand that Jesus is THE Savior of the world, but they have never looked to Him as “MY Savior.” That’s what Blind Bart did, and that’s what we must do if we want to be truly saved. 

If we want to stop being victims in times of adversity and start becoming world-changers, then we must see Jesus for who He is – the Merciful Messiah, throw aside the cloak of our own self-efforts, and come to Jesus as “MY Master.” That’s what true saving faith is all about, and that’s what makes all the difference in the world for you and me. 

In a word, we must TRUST. We must trust Christ with our lives. We must stop depending on ourselves and start depending on Jesus in the midst of our pain. We must rely  on the Lord to do his work in us even when times are hard. 

Charlie Crowe, of Covington Georgia, talks about a time years ago when a friend invited him to fly across central Florida in his private plane. His friend had 50 years of experience as a pilot, had flown all over the world, and had faced every possible condition, so Charlie felt safe with his friend. 

Yet on their return trip, the airplane began to shake and the engine started coughing and losing power. As Charlie looked down from an altitude of a few thousand feet, terror gripped him. He felt an incredible urge to do something, but there was nothing he could do. He had no experience in flying, landing, or fixing a plane. 

Then Charlie looked at his friend at the controls. He was utterly calm as he adjusted knobs and switches and continued to pilot the plane to a safe landing. 

Charlie comments: There are times in life when I desperately want to grab control. My experience in the plane reminds me that if I take control I will ruin or destroy my life. At those moments, I must resist the urge and trust the one who has seen it all before, and who knows what he is doing. (Charlie Crowe, Covington, Georgia; www.PreachingToday.com) 

My friends, that’s the only way any of us will make it through life. We must resist the urge to take control and trust Christ to steer us through the good times as well as the bad. 

Don’t let anything keep you from Christ. Instead, trust Christ with your life. For that’s the only way… 

WE CAN BE TRULY SAVED. 

That’s the only way we will be rescued from a life of darkness to walk in the light of Christ. That’s the only way we will be delivered from a worthless life to serve the Lord. That’s what happened to Blind Bart. 

Mark 10:52 “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you” (literally, your faith has saved you). Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road. (NIV)

When Blind Bart was saved, he literally saw the Truth and he was changed into a follower of Christ. In fact, as a follower of Christ, he became a world-changer as well. 

Matthew and Luke, in their gospels, also record this miracle, but only Mark includes the Blind man’s name. That’s because Mark’s original audience in Rome probably knew Bartimaeus by name. In other words, Bartimaeus went on to have a significant impact for Christ in the first century. Though he was born and raised in a little town called Jericho, he ended up being a godly influence in the big city of Rome itself. 

When Christ saved Bart, Christ not only changed him on the inside, Christ used Him to change the world, as well. 

And that will happen to us if we stop depending on ourselves and start trusting Christ with our lives. We will see the truth. Christ will change us into one of His followers. & He will use us to change the world around us. 

Mark 10:32-34 Another warning ...

The disciples are following Jesus on the road to Jerusalem and they are awed by his presence, the people are following, but are overwhelmed with fear.   Jesus was going into Jerusalem, and there was something big that was going to happen and everyone knew it.   On the one side we have the disciples that have been following him for ages, and they are so filled with awe when they see Christ.    They know that things have been leading up to this point, Jesus entering the holy city of Jerusalem.   They look at Jesus with a unique insight.

People just following they see Jesus, and they are scared of what he might represent, and the power that this strange Nazarene has.    For the disciples he is hope.

Jesus takes the disciples aside, and once more goes over the plan, telling the disciples what's going to happen to him.  

Then the brothers Zebedee (James and John) talk to Jesus and ask to be seated beside Jesus on the throne, Jesus replies "You will indeed drink from my bitter cup and be baptized with my baptism of suffering.   But I have no right to say who will sit on my right or my left.  God has prepared those places for the ones he has chosen."  

The disciples were indignant of James and John asking this of Jesus, and once more Jesus explains that to be great, you must be a servant ..vs 43-44. .... "and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else.

One of my favorite verses in the gospel is vs. 45 "For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many."    Jesus leading the ultimate example of servant-hood.  To have the heart of Christ, to have the servant attitude that's the attitude that I would like to strive for.    We have so much junk that we clutter our lives with, that try to get in the way of having the right attitude.

But for Jesus it wasn't just having the right mindset, it was putting his attitude into action.   Not pitying people, but having an active role in their lives, and in the end, he gave his life so that I, a wretched sinner, could know true life with the Father.   How awesome is that!!

Mark 10:17-31 Love o' Stuff.

I love stuff, I love collecting, and the house is filled with collectible items.    I've got tons of comics, books, movies, knick-knacks of all kinds.   When I say 'love' I mean really like.   Funny thing is, is that all that stuff is mostly just sitting around and doing nothing.    But I still horde it.   Anthropologists would say that it is a by product of thousands of years of evolution and our need to horde things away for when disaster strikes.   I thinks its more our desire to fill things up in our lives instead of looking to God.

Think of our lives like an apartment.   We rent it out, our tenant is God, and he's got the living room, kitchen, bathroom .. everything.   Then one day we bring over a stack of books, and put it on his bookshelf.   Then we find a cool tv, and some movies, and place it in the apartment.   We don't ask God if he likes it or not, 'cause he's just renting it.   Then we have pictures of our family, extended family, kids, friends, and we put them all in the apartment.   God likes that, but when you invite your friends to the apartment for a party, you don't introduce them to the renter, God, because, really in the end, it's your place that your just renting out.   Every day you go up to the apartment, and add more stuff inside it ... paperwork from work, tools, pet.    After a month of renting the place to God, God ends up sleeping in the bathtub, because you filled his place with so much junk, that he can't even get into his bedroom.    At the end of the month, you realize that "HEY, I need something from God, rent's due", but you can't reach him, because you've stuffed so much stuff into HIS apartment, that you can't even see him.

Hear we have the story of the Rich man, and really, he's a great guy.   He does the right things, he has a great attitude, and really, we wouldn't mind having him over for dinner.   Jesus even felt genuine love for the guy (vs. 21)

The man wanted so badly to follow Jesus, but Jesus threw down a kicker "Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.   Then come, follow me."   At this the man's face fell, and he went away very sad, for he had many possessions. (vs. 21-22)   Jesus says that it's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God (vs. 25).

Some people refer to the eye of the needle to be referring to a small opening in a gate in Jerusalem.   I'm not sure if this is true, as there are quite few people that dispute it.   I'm seeing this as a hyperbole, similar to the whole 'log and speck' incident of Matt. 7:3 (and yes, you need to look it up. ;)  )  

The point is simple.   If you have spent your life with the focus of getting money, and hording money, well, your focus isn't allowing God to do the work that he wants to do.   He wants your reliance to be on him first.

Not saying you can't be rich and not be a Christian, but again, where is our focus.  

In vs. 28 Peter speaks up (go figure) and says "But we've given everything to follow you"   Check out vs 29 & 30, I find it very interesting "Yes," Jesus replied , "and I assure you that everyone who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children  or property for my sake and for the Good News, will receive no in return a hundred times as many houses, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and property-along with persecution.   And in the world to come that person will have eternal life.  But many who are the greatest now will be least important then, and those who seem least important now will be the greatest then" "(NLT)

This isn't about Prosperity gospel, I think Jesus is referring to the Church in Acts, where they were like family, were wealth was shared.   This verse became reality.   I think we dropped the ball somewhere between then and now.   But that was supposed to be the picture of the Church, and yes, there is also persecution for the believer.  

But our hope isn't in this world is it?    We talked about this earlier in another lesson, but Jesus was making it clear that to be great in the kingdom, isn't about getting greatness here is it?   So when we reflect back, how does this impact us, and the way we spend the blessings God's given us?  

Mark 10:13-16 Blessing of the Children

The disciples try to stop parents from bringing their children to Jesus to be blessed, probably thinking that he had enough on his plate, as it were.  Jesus rebukes the disciples and welcomes the children, saying "I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn't receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it."   Powerful words, and a big reprimand  to the disciples.

What makes children so special, is what we lose growing up don't we?    I think that's why we adore children, because they see things that we've lost.   Let's take a look this morning at a just a few characteristics of children that may bring to light Jesus' comments.

Children are obedient aren't they?    Until they get older, the person that they listen to the most are their parents. A child is dependent on their parents for food, shelter, wisdom, learning .... basically their whole world.    When the child grows up, the role of the parent in their lives lessen.   You can probably already see what I'm getting at here.   Our faith and relationship to God is geared for us to have Him as our 'parent'  to rely on him instead of ourselves.    It's sad how when we first become a Christian, God is number 1 in our lives, but as the years past, sometimes the relationship teeters and falls away due to our own desires and self-inflicted emotional 'baggage'.

A child has a sense of wonder.  Always asking questions about this or that.   Why is the sky blue?  Where do babies come from?  Is there a Santa?   One of the detriments of the North American Church is that we don't allow people to ask questions without right away shooting them down.   We need to allow ourselves to question God about things, and to allow others to question and discuss their faith.   New believers have the wide-eye of curiosity and are always questioning stuff, and as our faith grows, we too lose our sense of wonder.    God is Wonder, God should continue to astound and provide excitement.   Like a child going to Disneyland for the first time, every day we should arise and find wonder in God.  Can you imagine what that does for us, and for our day??   What joy we should find in the Lord, and the same joy carries us everyday through this life of ours!

A Child finds happiness in the smallest of things.    At Christmas time we always look for great gifts for kids  whether its your own kids, or even shopping for a kids charity like Samaritan's purse.   But kids can find joy in almost everything, whether its using a cardboard box as spaceship, or turning backyard sandboxes into major construction sites.   Kids can find happiness and contentment in almost anything.   As we get older, the world plays tricks on our minds, convincing us that we don't have enough, or what we have isn't good enough.   It's basic consumerism.   True contentment and happiness never comes from stuff.   We know this, we've heard this before, but the trouble is that it doesn't reach our hearts does it?   It's hard to not let resentment and envy play tricks with our desires.   Yet, the more we allow God to have His place in our hearts, the more we find joy and contentment in Him than we do in the world.    It's a struggle we will have constantly in our lives, as long as we place value in this world's 'stuff' over God.

This lesson has been a blessing to me, and a challenge.   May you find His joy and peace today.

Mark 10:1-12 Divorce the Biblical Way

Oooooh a touchy subject today folks, as we read in Mark 10.   But, really that's to bad.  Here we have Jesus around Judea speaking, and crowds are gathering, and then we have the Pharisees trying to trap Jesus, but asking if a man should divorce his wife.   Jesus brings them back to the scripture, and then gives a new command that "and the two are united into one.  Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined together." (vs 9).

Here's the kicker in verse 11 "Whoever divorces his wife and marries someone else commits adultery against her.   And if a woman divorces her husband and marries someone else, she commits adultery."

Here are a few things to consider:
a) Matt 19:9 "I tell you this, whoever divorces his wife and and marries someone else commits adultery--unless his wife has been unfaithful" I think this can go for men cheating on their wives as well.   Lets face it, adultery is adultery.  

b) What we must understand, that despite our culture which changes the rules according to the season, as Christians we follow different standards .. Marriage has always been lifted up in scriptures, and the importance of faithfulness in this union should never be understated.

c) Marriage is used as a symbol between God and His people, Him and His Church.

d) Marriage is a spiritual act, not just a physical one.   The two become one.  Divorce takes something away from both individuals.

e) Notice that this is the reason a man will leave his family ... 10:7 -- Purity before marriage.

f) There are no grounds to stay in an abusive marriage.   Get help.  

g) Make sure your marriage is God centered .. that 'God has joined together'

h) Let no one split apart -- again, the call to not commit adultery.

The tree's and the snow... and epilogue

   We just experienced some of the worst snows in quite a few years, and one of the things I notice is how much snow gets into our driveway.   It snowed so much that I couldn't even blow it out, but had to call someone with a tractor to get rid of the snow that had built up over the last few days.  

One of the reasons why our driveway is always packed with the white stuff is that our driveway runs South and North.   So whenever we get a North wind (aka .... always) we get dumped on big time.   What adds to the situation is the open field that our driveway faces.   No trees, no snow fence, all open.
Today we looked at how serious sin is in our lives, and I was thinking about my driveway and how it relates to the message.   Sin and the temptation to sin is much like my driveway I find.   Without a barrier, without something to stop the sin coming into our lives, we'll find ourselves struggling and struggling with our problems.  

Now thankfully I did find someone to blow out my driveway after the storm, but God does the same thing with our lives doesn't he?   Through his grace, and mercy, He helps us overcome whatever problem that we face.   And we will face them.

If I could go on my neighbors field and plant some trees, or put down a snow fence, would I have the same problem with my driveway?   Probably not.   Does it mean that's I'll never have to blow it out?  No, I will, but it will mean that I won't have to break my back shoveling it.

We will go through trials, and we will be tested (Mk 9:49), but there are things that we can do to be ready when the storm in our lives hit.   This isn't about doing a 'special program', its about living the new life that Christ gives us.   Putting on the armor of God each day (Eph. 6:10-18) . putting on God's truth, live in God's righteousness, be people of peace, hold on to your shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and the sword of the spirit.   Pray at all times.   All of these things are basics of our faith.   This is one of the reasons that I love to blog my studies, because it forces me to practice putting on my armor, forces me to pray, and be who God wants me to be.

Will we encounter trial, tribulations, and temptations?   Sure, it's part of our growth, part of God molding us to who He wants us to be..... but He has also given us the resources to NOT be snowed in by our circumstances, and His Son who has given us the victory!!    Praise be to God!                                                                                

Mark 9:38-49 Quality of life

Sometimes when reading the gospels, there's so much info, that you could spend days on certain passages, just soaking them in.   This is one of those passages.

The first thing we look at is the instance where a man is casting out demons in Jesus name.    Now the disciples were upset at this, maybe it was because they thought it was some sort of heresy, or maybe that the casting out of demons should be limited to 'their group'.  Maybe they were possessive of the relationship with Jesus.    Jesus on the other hand didn't mind, and in fact encouraged it.   Listen to his words in vs. 39  "Don't stop him!" Jesus said "No one who performs a miracle in my name will soon be able to speak evil  of me."  See how Jesus' reference to the person who is making the miracles?   Once someone does miracles in Jesus name, he cannot speak evil of him.   There is literally power in Jesus name.   When someone does good in the name of Jesus, they cannot help but become closer to Christ.    I'm wondering if Jesus new this person the disciples were talking about.

Jesus continues saying "Anyone who is not against us is for us"  ... and also talks about those people being rewarded for helping out his followers."  -- People who bless us with something, will be rewarded.

I think this really points out the importance of community, and our involvement in ministering were we are.   We are not only called to carry the gospel of Christ to our community, but when we are blessed by what others do for us, they intern are blessed, even if they don't know it.   One of the reasons why we can't separate ourselves from the world in exclusion, because if we do, they will miss out on a blessing.

Interesting eh?

Next in verse 42, Jesus says "But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone hung around your neck."  I think he's talking about children, don't forget he's got the child in his arms from 9:36.  Sometimes I don't think we give enough credit to our Sunday School teachers, and the work they do teaching the gospel to our children.  It's a great calling, with a great responsibility.   We are all affected by the choices of our childhood, and the environment/community that we were surrounded with.   So many adults that have a great influence on how a child is brought up.   This verse is a great reminder of how much God cares for children, and how we are to nurture them, and their faith.

Do we have a church environment that encourage the relationship between children and their faith in Christ, or does our church 'suffocate' their growth?

Next we have warnings against sin in our lives in  verses 43-48.   Basically if any part of us causes us to sin, we need to cut it off, instead of causing us to go into hell.  No, don't start cutting off your body parts, but this verse is a reminder of how dangerous sin is in our lives, and how dire the consequences if we let it take control.  It is a call for self-examination of our walk with God, and our walk in this world.   In verse 49 there are 2 key points, first, everyone will be tested, Secondly we need to have the 'qualities of salt' among ourselves -- which includes living in peace with each other.

Remember that this was directed toward the disciples, but these are truths that we need to take in ourselves.

Are we salt to those around us?    What are the qualities of salt?   Salt preserves the food, it enhances its taste.   These disciples new about salt, especially the fishermen of the group, so this probably meant more to them, than to most of us.  It also relates to vs. 38, and how they felt towards the man who healed in Jesus Name ... not a member of their group, but doing His work.

 Here is the challenge then through all these verses:

a) Are we giving even a part of our lives to sinful behaviour, or do we give God our all?
b) When we are tested or tempted by sin, do we preserve the truth, or give into the sin?
c) Do we promote the gifts of other believers, or do we want everyone to be like us?
d) Do we seek to live in peace with others, or do we seek to do things our way because we know best?

These are things we need to all wrestle with.

Mark 9:33-37 Greatest in the Kingdom

Here we have the disciples arguing over who was the greatest among them.   Ah, I wonder if it would of been if it would of been different if there was a woman disciple ;)

But us guys, we tend to be competitive over some of the silliest things.   Me, don't put in a board game, especially RISK.   Risk brings out the worst in me, the chance to make treaties, to only break in the end.   For alot of guys it's sports.   You want to see fights, head to a Christian Hockey game.   Once meek and mild believers revert back to some primal mentality to whack each other around.    We are no different from the disciples.  Competitive 'til the end.

Jesus says, that who wants to be 'first' must take last place and be the servant of everyone else.   Can you imagine coaching a little league soccer team, and telling the kids "Ok, now we're going to go out there, and lose, and lose magnificently!!"  Never mind how the kids would react, with disappointment already pasted on their faces, how about the Parents?   Parents in a sporting event are sometimes the worst aren't they?   And if a parent heard that speech, I think the coach would get some words afterwards would they?

Here is the crux of the matter, in order to be great in the kingdom of God, you must have a servant attitude.   Jesus uses the example of a child, saying "Anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes not only me but also my Father who sent me."

How different from the world that would tell us in order to be successful, you need to look after yourself, and your investments.   You need to do whatever it takes to get ahead.   To be great in life, you need a good financial portfolio, steady job, and good education.

Remember what we learned earlier?   Where is our perspective?  In this world or Heavenward?    This is all part of that.   Being a Christian means not living for self, but being a servant.  Taking up our cross, and realizing that when we humble our self, and lifting up others, we lift up Christ, and the Father.

This isn't easy.   I know of people who's families don't get this whole Christian thing... who don't get this whole servanthood and faithfulness lesson.   "Why aren't you getting a real job?  Why are you in ministry, the pay sucks!!"    Thy think this way because their faith and vision are in the 'now', in this world.

Anyone can live in this world, and for this world.   But God has a higher calling in our lives, and the question is do we want to listen, and follow this calling?   Are we able to lay down 'self' take up our cross, and humbly serve others, knowing that our reward is not of this world, but the one being prepared for us?

Mark 9:30-32 Life over Death

In verses 30-32 Jesus took the disciples away from the crowds to talk to them, at which time he spoke to them telling them "The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of his enemies.  He will be killed, but three days later he will rise from the dead.".   They didn't understand him, and were afraid to ask him about this.    Jesus has said these thing many times before, and the disciples didn't understand it, and maybe they were afraid to ask because of Jesus rebuke of Peter back in 8:33, or maybe they just didn't really want the answer.   No one likes to hear bad news.  Or is it bad news?   Like Peter did, maybe the disciples were so focused on the words "He will be killed", and missed the words "Rise from the dead."

Everyone knows, even if they don't acknowledge it ... that one day we will pass away, we will die, but our hope doesn't lie in death as a believer does it?   Our hope is "heaven bound, or 'new earth bound' depend on how 'revelation' we're getting ;)  ... but the point is, sometimes we focus so much on the now, that we loose sight of the greater treasure stored up for us beyond this life.

The disciples may of been so focused on the 'persecution' and 'death' part, that they forgot about the 'I'll be back' part of Christ's teachings.   If they concentrated on the latter, their perspective may of changed when time came for Christ to suffer.   It's like how some churches have Jesus still on the cross, while there should be an empty tomb that should be celebrated instead... shouldn't it?

The Christian walk is about celebrating life ... life in Christ, new life He gives us, Life over death.   Don't be discouraged today, but live the life that Christ has for you!   Praise be to God!!

Mark 9:14-32 Faith and Prayer

Here we have an account of a boy that has been demon possessed for quite a few years.   People were arguing because the disciples couldn't cast out an evil spirit, and Jesus said to the people "You faithless people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you?  Bring the boy to me."  After all he had done, people still had doubts, even the father had some doubts as to Jesus' ability (vs. 21).

The boy convulsed and grinded his teeth, and foamed at the mouth.  When Jesus saw the crowd of onlookers  was growing, he rebuked the spirit.  The spirit screamed and came out of the boy.

"Afterward, when Jesus was alone in the house with his disciples, they asked him, "Why couldn't we cast out that evil spirit?"  "Jesus replied, "This kind can be cast out only by prayer". (some translates have prayer and fasting)

Some people think that the boy was suffering from Epileptic seizures (Grand Mal), and if the boy did, then Jesus healed him of that.   "Then why Jesus refer to this as an evil spirit"  My answer would be, you try to explain brain neurons to people 2000 years ago, heck try to explain it to people 100 years ago.

I also knew a guy who suffered from similar things to grand Mal seizures, and basically it turned out that he had been aware of abuse that happening when he was a child, and it manifested as a 'possession' or seizures.   In verse 25 Jesus is rebuking the 'evil' spirit, or as some translations have it ..'unclean' spirit.   But, once again, we have Jesus healing the boy.

How ever you want to spin it, the Boy was healed ... praise be to God!

The people doubted that Jesus could do it, but Christ did heal the boy.   Again, the question we have to ask ourselves, is where do we place our faith?    In God's ability, or our inability?

What we can also take out of this account is that when it comes to spiritual discernment on a situation ... like the disciples trying to figure out why they couldn't heal this boy, we need to 'pray and fast'.    How much wrong has the Church done because we rely on human discernment instead of taking things to God in prayer?

Mark 9:1-12 the Reveal

In Mark 9:1 is as continuation of the chapter 8 account.  In this verse Jesus to the crowd and disciples that some of the would not die before they see the Kingdom of God arrive in great power.    I believe this refers to the coming of the Holy Spirit, referred to in Acts 1 and 2.   Really the birth of the Church, the great proclamation to go into the world, given power to do so, and spread the good news.   The Gift of the Holy Spirit given to all believers for the furtherance of the Kingdom.

Pretty amazing things really.   No doubt the crowd of people were confused at Jesus' words at the time.

In Acts 9:2-12 We have the account of the 'transfiguration' of Christ.   Jesus took 3 of his disciples up to a mountain to be alone, where they witnessed the appearance of Moses, and Elijah standing beside Jesus and God proclaiming "This is my dearly loved Son.   Listen to him.   Suddenly, when they looked around, Moses and Elijah were gone, and only Jesus was with them." (vs. 7)

Jesus had told his disciples not to tell anyone what had happened until His resurrection .    This was an event that the disciples had to witness and testify too later on.   This is cool, because if they started to blab about this event right away, people would see them as mad men, but when the 'proof is in the pudding' as some say, when Jesus rises from the dead, the truth of this amazing event will came to light.

In these verses we also have Jesus mentioning that Elijah did come again, and was abused, as the scriptures foretold in Malachi, and did get everything ready for the Messiah.   The Elijah figure being John the Baptist.

This was 'the big reveal' for the disciples, this was a cool Old Testament type even happening in the new testament.  This is where we see a glimpse of the fulfillment of the old with the new.  So what am I getting out of this passage today?

For me I think it's the importance of the whole book.  Old and New Testament.   We have a tendency to write off the Old Testament because of its fulfillment in the New.   But how do we know what was fulfilled unless we pay attention to the law (represented by Moses), and the prophecy (represented by Elijah).    It's like taking the Lord of the rings books from Tolkien and reading 'The Return of the King', without reading 'The Fellowship of the Ring'.   We won't know the significance of why a hobbit has a ring, and what's the big deal about him destroying it unless we read the whole trilogy.

A (Not So) Silent night :)

This goes out to my fellow heavy Christian Rockers, who might want something to spice up your Christmas music collection.   I found this video from the band 'Deliverance' and their version of Silent Night.   Enjoy.

Mark 8:31-38 Soul Freedom

Jesus begins to tell his disciples about his persecution by the religious leaders, that he would be killed, and then raised from the dead.   Peter tried to reprimand/correct Jesus about this, and Jesus says a harsh thing "Get away from me, Satan!" he said "You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God's."   How many times do we struggle with this?  Not the passage, but seeing things from just the human point of view?   Peter fell into that trap, and the interesting thing is that this is where Satan loves to work doesn't he?  

Peter didn't want to hear the truth, he wanted to hear a bright outcome.    Peter in prior versus new that Jesus was the Messiah, but when he heard that Jesus was going to be persecuted, and put to death, then rise again, I don't think this is the Messiah that he understood.   I wonder if he thought that the Messiah would be what the Jewish people imagined ... someone coming on a horse, and raising up the people, and freeing them from Roman occupation.   Peter was thinking about the now, the current political situation, not the kind of freedom that God was going to give to his people.

See the following verses to be a follower of Christ (vs. 34), we need to:

• turn from selfish ways
• take up our cross
• Give up our lives for the sake of Christ, and the sake of the Good News
• Not be ashamed of Jesus and His message

Why is Jesus doing this?   Verse 36 "And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your soul?"

The true Messiah wasn't about political freedom was ... it was Soul Freedom.    as Jesus says in vs. 37 "Is anything worth more than your own soul?"  

Our message isn't about Political movements, it about soul movements.    About sharing the love of Christ, and the Good News of our redemption found through what He did on the Cross for us.   It's not easy to be a follower of Christ, but once more "What do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your soul?"

Mark 8:27-30 ... Who am I?

Or the question of our lives is "Who do we say Jesus is?"   Peter answered the question by saying "You are the Messiah" (which means anointed one).   Then Jesus told him not to tell anyone about him.    This was probably because it wasn't time yet.

I don't really have much to say, except that we need to examine who Jesus is for us, and we need to make a decision of whether or not Jesus said he is, who he said he is.   Let me leave this quote from C.S. Lewis for you today.

"I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to." 
— C.S. Lewis (Mere Christianity)

Mark 8:22-26 - Eyes Opened...

(This devotional was originally written in the morning, but the Internet once more went 'wonky', so it was delayed  until the evening.)

Once again we have Jesus performing a miracle of healing .. this time the healing of a blind man, and there are quite a few similarities with the previous healing of the deaf man.   Like the deaf man, people brought to Jesus the blind individual, just as before Jesus led the person needing healing away from the village, and once more Jesus used spit while healing.   For the first time though, the healing wasn't complete for the blind man, the first time Jesus spit into the man's eyes, and the man could only see shapes of people... like walking trees, and then Jesus put his hands on the mans eyes before his vision was fully healed.   What I like about this story is the compassion that Jesus had on the man, like a doctor would .. making sure that the healing was complete.  

After the man was healed, Jesus told him to NOT go to his village on the way home.   Usually Jesus just told the people he healed to not tell anyone, this time he just told the guy to avoid the village altogether.  

Out of verses 22-26 we can garner a few key truths about Jesus.  First, he completed what he started.   He started a work on this guy, and didn't let him go half blind, but continued until the man could completely see.   I like the idea that God finishes what he starts.

Secondly, as I've mentioned before, the compassion he had toward this man ... even though he had been doing this ministry for a while now, Jesus never let his compassion falter.   A lesson for all of us.   More and more as I'm reading Mark, I see the compassion of Jesus coming through, and no doubt you probably noticed that in my writing ... but I think it's so easy for our hearts to become cynical, or disillusioned by the world, that we lose our compassion.  

Compassion is one (of many) of the things that separate us from the animal kingdom.  I believe it is a reflection of who God is, and part of His image that we need to exude more of in our lives.

Thirdly, look at the personal touch of Jesus ...  1) He took the man by the hand   2) He led him out of the village  3) He spat on the man's eyes 4) He laid his hands on him  5) He asked "Can you see anything now?"   6) Jesus placed His hands on the man's eyes

When you really look at these verses, bit by bit, and realize that God is revealing Himself to us through these words, and let it sink into our very being ... I don't know about you, but personally I find it very moving, and humbling that God, the creator of the Universe, shaper of Worlds, decides to have a personal impact on this blind man ... It's a wow moment, and to realize that he is wanting to actively be in our lives ... it's pretty awesome .. and it's something that I can't take for granted.

Mark 8:11-21 Sign language

Ah the Pharisees, always good for entertainment, and definitely good for a lesson.   The Pharisees confront Jesus and demand a miraculous sign from him, so that they would have proof of Jesus being who he said he is.   What did Jesus do?   I like what he did, once more he "sighed deeply" .. though it was not out of anger, but out of sorrow or remorse.

In vs 12 scripture says "When he heard this, he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, "Why do these people keep demanding a miraculous sign?  I tell you the truth, I will not give this generation any such sign."  

Crazy eh?  Like Jesus is like a mystical Santa Clause.   This happens today though doesn't it?   I know some Churches demand a supernatural sign that you are saved.   "You say your saved, but unless you give us a sign, you can't be!" (never mind the fruits of the spirit eh?)

Ah, forgive my deep sarcasm.

 Jesus says that he would give this generation any such sign.   Either he was referring specifically to the Pharisees, or that he was referring to end times stuff, because Jesus was doing miracles to lots of different people, he just fed 4,000 people.  Or maybe he's referring to His resurrection but he did use the word 'generation'.     Something to ponder.

Lets move on ...

So Jesus and the disciples left on a boat, and Jesus says "Watch out! Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and of Herod"   The disciples, thought that he was talking about food, and started to argue, because they didn't bring any bread (vs. 16) except for one loaf.    Jesus wasn't talking about physical bread, though he did remind them of his previous miracles of the feeding of the 5,000, and the 4,000, and how much food was left over from those miracles.  

Here's a few things that I gained from this....
a) The yeast that Jesus speaks about is a symbol of sin.  Sin, like yeast rises ... and Jesus was warning them about the sin in the lives of the Pharisees and in Herod.   This is why the Jews celebrate the feast of unleavened bread or Passover.   We are to be without sin, set apart, striving for holiness.   The Pharisees and Herod have let sin take control of them.  I have a sermon on this, that maybe I'll post on this blog sometime.

b) The disciples already forgot who was in the boat.  They forgot the miracles of the 4,000 and 5,000.   We need to keep track of the miracles of Jesus in our own life.   Whether its keeping a journal, or a blog whatever.   So that when we are in a dire situation in our own life, we are reminded of God's faithfulness in our past.   This is a testimony to other people, as well as a reminder to ourselves.  Never take for granted God's working in our lives.

Mark 8:1-10 Food for thought'

Initially this sounds alot like the feeding of the five thousand, and our thinking is that its the same thing, so why pay attention to it.  

Well, there are some differences, besides 1,000 people .. but the feeding of the five thousand was more of a 'teachable moment' it was more of 'the crowd came, lets feed them.'  Actually it was the crowds here 'You feed them'.  

In this passage, we have people that came, and they had to be fed ... take a look at verse 3 "If I send them home hungry, they will faint along the way.   For some of them have come a long distance."  

Also, it says that they were in the middle of nowhere, in the wilderness.   In the feeding of the five thousand, they were close to villages and farms (6:36).   So the difference here is desperation, and urgency to find food.

The disciples asked Jesus how they were going to find enough food in the wilderness to feed everyone.   "Jesus asks "How much bread do you have?"   "Seven loaves", they replied"  So Jesus thanked God for it, broke them into pieces and it was distributed.   A few small fish was found somewhere in the crowd, that was blessed and distributed.   In the end about 4,000 people were fed, and after they were fed, Jesus sent them home.

In each of these feeding accounts, there was alot of food left over ... in the feeding of the 5,000 - 12 baskets  of leftover bread and fish; in this account 7 large baskets of left-over food.   It's amazing what happens when Jesus gave a small portion of food up to God to be blessed, and the abundance of food that came afterwards.  

This speaks volumes about God taking the little we have, and doing something amazing with what we give him doesn't it?   I mean, in both instances, Jesus lifted up the food to be blessed by God, and God miraculously multiplied the blessings.   This passage is a letting go moment.   When we are desperate, and taking on all the worries, and stresses of life on our shoulders ... do we ask God to intervene?   What happened when Jesus blessed the loaves and fish?  It multiplied so much that there were left-overs!   When God intervenes, things change ... but how many times do we let Him?

Food to grow on :)

Mark 7:31-37 Healing without Flaire

Here we have Jesus returning to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the ten towns (Decapolis).   Remember this region?  This was where the demon possessed man was set free, and the people begged Jesus to leave because he had sent the demons into 2000 pigs (Mark 5:1-20).

So Jesus walks into this region, and there is a "deaf man with a speech impediment was brought to him, and the people begged Jesus to lay his hands on the man to heal him"   There was a change in the hearts of the people, compared to before...in fact there was a crowd of people around him, NOT wanting to kick him out.   I think this has something to do with the testimony of the man back in Mark 5.   Word of Jesus had gotten around.

Ever see a 'healer' on tv use big extravagant body language and slapping people on the forehead when they "heal" someone?   I always wondered about that, and I'm very much a cynic when it comes to people doing theatrical acts when performing miracles.

Lets take a look at how Jesus heals this man:  vs.33-35 "Jesus led him away from the crowd so they could be alone.  He put his fingers into the man's ears.  Then, spitting on his own fingers, he touched the man's tongue.   Looking up to heaven, he sighed and said, "Ephphatha," which means, "Be opened!" Instantly  the man could hear perfectly and his tongue was freed so he could speak plainly!"   You know, I think the Ministry of Health would NOT advise this.   This is not a pretty healing, it is personal, it is 'yucky' but it worked didn't it?

God's work in our lives is not always pretty.   Especially in this man's case.   But God did provide the miracle.    What I find interesting is that Jesus looked up to heaven, and he SIGHED.   Now Ephphatha is Aramaic, and the neat things is, is that this is what the man would hear, the language that would of been spoken around the 'Decapolis' or Ten Towns.   I wonder if Jesus was sighing because of what God told him, when he looked up into heaven, or if he sighed because he was using aramaic language.   Not sure, but I find this neat to ponder.

There are a couple things about this passage that hits me:  a) God works, how he wants to work, but it won't always be with flaire, or by being neat.   b) God meets us where we are.    Jesus didn't speak to the man in Hebrew, so a Jewish person could understand, but he spoke Aramaic, a language that the deaf man could understand.

If find that comforting ...but also a challenge for myself, to be where the people are.

Mark 7:24-29 Food for the Dogs.

In this passage we have Jesus healing a demon possessed child, but the difference here was that they were Gentile, not Jewish.    Jesus says something that people today would go 'that's so racist!! how could he say such a thing'   He says "First I should feed the children-my own family, the Jews.  It isn't right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs." (vs27)

We need to realize that the message came for God's people, to the Jews first, before the Gentiles.    These were God's people, that needed to hear the good news first.   That was Jesus' prerogative.   We can say that it's wrong, but that won't change the fact that this is the truth.

During the Christmas season we see tons of manger scenes.   How many times do we have Mary and Joseph portrayed as a Jewish family?   In our culture, truth becomes blurred because of it ... because of what our culture wants.   That upsets me more.

But look at what the Gentile woman replies to Jesus in vs. 28 and Jesus response following. "She replied, "That's true Lord, but even the dogs under the table are allowed to eat the scraps from the children's plates."  "Good answer!" he said, "Now go home, for the demon has left your daughter."

Never underestimate what a mother won't do for their child, and this woman had great wisdom in her response.   I loved Jesus response to that.   Jesus honored her for her wisdom, and again, you can see his compassion in action.

Our compassion to other people, also needs to extend beyond our comfort zone doesn't it?    

Mark 7:1-23 The Heart of the Matter

(Done on the morning of December 3/10, posted in the afternoon due to internet issues.  Sorry for the lateness.)


From this passage, we see Pharisees questioning Jesus about why some of his disciples don’t wash their hands vs. 3 “(The Jews, especially the Pharisees, do not eat until they have poured water over their cupped hands, as required by their ancient traditions.”  

Ok, personally .. Er… I wash my hands all the time, and it’s a good practise.   But the Pharisees were preaching this like it was divine holy law, and that was tradition.

We have tons of traditions in the Church that we hold on too, or traditions from our past, that many times we try to preach as holy law before others.   In verse 8 Jesus says “For you ignore God’s law and substitute your own tradition.”

Do we look down on somebody that doesn’t go by our traditions?   Look at the Christmas season, and yes, I love Christmas time .. But really, it is a tradition not a holy covenant, or thing that we must celebrate.   But we hold it up more than the teachings of Christ sometimes.   Vs. 9 “You skilfully sidestep God’s law in order to hold on to you own tradition.”  And then he uses the example of honouring your father and mother, but using God as an excuse for noth helping them.

Check out verse  14“It’s not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart.”   and verse 18 “Don’t you understand either? He asked.  “Can’t you see that the food you put into your body cannot defile you?  Food doesn’t go into your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer.” (By saying this, he declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God’s eyes)”   Hehe, now hand me that bacon strip!!

But we need to be careful of what we teach to others, that we are not teaching tradition, but the actual scriptures.   Jesus says is verse 20 “It is what comes from inside that defiles you.   For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness.   All of these vile things comes from within; they are what defile you.”

Mark 6:45-56

Jesus just finished the miracle of feeding 5000 men and their families with  5 loaves of bread and two fish.   Really amazing miracle, considering everyone had their fill.   Then Jesus INSISTS that the disciples get into a boat and head across lake Bethsaida, and then he tells everyone "goodbye" go home.   Then Jesus goes up to the hill to pray ... to finally spend some time alone with God.

Around 3 am Jesus see's his disciples in trouble on the lake, they're rowing against the wind, Jesus walks on the water toward them, but .. check this out in vs. 48 "He intended to go past them"  He was just going to go to the other side of the lake, no intention of stopping for them.   But when the disciples  cry out in terror thinking that they see a ghost, Jesus tells them "take courage" and gets into the boat.   Of course then the stormy waves calm and everything's ok.  The disciples were totally amazed that He calmed the storm, because their hearts were to hard to take in the miracle of the loaves and fishes.

Couple things I'll point out to myself (before I have to shove the snow off my car.) and to whoever reads this.   The hearts of the disciples were to hard to take in the miracle of the loaves and fishes.  It was astounding the miracle that Jesus performed, but they couldn't understand it ... and couldn't therefore understand Jesus calming the storm in the boat or that Jesus walked on water.  They didn't let God take total control of their hearts, and they continued to see Jesus as just a man, instead of the Christ.   ..at least, that's what I think.

Another thing that is subtle, is that Jesus was going to let the disciples weather the storm, he was going to walk by.   Not because he didn't care, but maybe because he knew that they could weather it.  

There is alot to ponder.  For me, today, it's not to harden my heart to who Jesus is, and to trust him no matter what the weather or storm is in my life.  ... or at work.  He is in control!! Awesome stuff.

Jesus, Bigger than the Beatles Mark 6:30-44 (NLT)

The passage starts of with the apostles returning from "their ministry tour" and they told Jesus what they had done, and Jesus says "Let's go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile"  ... the disciples had been working hard and haven't had time to eat, so Jesus and his disciples take a boat, to get away from all the people that were following them.

But, more and more people came, and they "ran ahead along the shore" .. and got ahead of them.   Still, no eating.   Jesus had compassion on the people, and when he got off the boat, he began to teach them until late afternoon.

The disciples then said "This is a remote place, and it's already getting late.   Send the crowds away so they can go to the nearby farms and villages and buy something to eat."   Now the disciples themselves haven't had a chance to eat yet as well.

Would we be so different?  Was there a time I never ate because of ministry?  Heck, I don't even remember a time at work when I didn't eat .. sure it may be an hour later than usual, but I still ate.   Already these disciples are doing more than I think I've done.   Crowds of people were everywhere, for more than a day (remember the disciples were on a ministry tour before this) Jesus and the apostles had been ministering to people.   The disciples asked a reasonable question .. we should let these people go to get something to eat.   The Beatles were big, but lets face it, they just sang ... they were entertainers ... but lets see them keep everyone's attention for a full day speaking!! ;)

Sometimes I'm pessimistic when I look at this passage, and I think that the disciples are just trying to get rid of these people, so that they can eat.   But maybe they were genuinely concerned about the welfare of these crowds.  

Either way, Jesus has compassion on these 5000 men and their families and goes ahead and feeds them with five loaves and two fish.   The disciples were involved in organizing people into groups, and participating in another great miracle.    I think what Jesus taught them, and definitely me is that compassion for people trumps our own needs sometimes.  Are we compassionate people?   Do we look for ways to bless others?   Do you think this miracle helps or hinders the Kingdom of God?   What would people's ideas about Jesus be if the disciples had sent those 5000 away?
We need to think about the bigger picture in our lives, and I know I need a heart that is filled with compassion... compassion is filled with action .... NOT pity filled compassion.