Category: MARK

RE Verse reading–Mark 5:1-20 (day two)
“No one was strong enough to subdue him” (Mark 5:4). What’s the difference between a terrorist bomb and a car engine? One unleashes explosive power with destructive effect, while the other harnesses explosive power for a productive effect. Power out of control tears down. Power under control builds up. Freedom without authority is anarchy and breeds destruction. Freedom under authority is peace and brings fruitfulness. The same principle is at work in your life and mine. If we would know the productive potential of our lives, we must also kneel before the Man who commands demons, disaster and disease. There is a reason that both wise men and demon possessed men bow before the one Man, Jesus Christ. He alone is able to harness all the forces, good and evil, that make up our life. Can you even imagine the good that would come from the explosive power of your life harnessed by His command?

RE Verse reading–Mark 5:1-20 (day one)
“Then Jesus asked him, ‘What is your name?’ ”  (vs 8)  It is a miracle story.  It is also a picture of salvation.  For people who are demon-possessed, and for those who are trapped/broken in other ways.  It must have been frightful!  Naked, irrational man runs at you screaming the moment you arrive in a new country.  Complicated situation.  Not too complicated for Christ.  He talks with him. He begins a careful and confident search for the man inside the tangle of conflicted words and actions.  What is YOUR name? the Lord says  to the the man in an effort to establish contact with the real him, the one who had been captured and confused for so long.  “Thou art a God who sees!” (ELROI–Genesis 16:13)  Sees what?  Value!  Potential!  Purpose!  What great good news!  Beneath the fears and the mistakes and the wasted years, He sees the me that  He came to redeem.

RE Verse reading–Mark 2: 13-17 (day seven)
“He said to him, ‘Follow me!’  And he got up and followed Him.  And. . .many tax collectors and sinners were dining with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many of them, and they were following Him.”  (vs 14-15)  When Jesus called Levi to follow, it set off a chain reaction.  Soon Levi’s friends (many!)  were introduced to Christ and they followed Him too.  Every believer has this same power and potential for service.  In Matthew 13, Jesus speaks of the man who “bears fruit. . .some a hundred times more, some sixty and some thirty.”  (vs 23)  Levis’ story reminds us that people are the fruit that Christ values most.  The old saying goes, “Anyone can count the number of seeds in an apple, but no one can count the number of apples in a seed”.  Every converted soul has this same amazing opportunity.  When we follow Christ, we should influence others to do the same.

RE Verse reading–Mark 2:13-17 (day six)
“And He went out again by the seashore; and all the people were coming to Him, and He was teaching them.  As He passed by, He saw Levi, the son of Alphaeus sitting in the tax booth.”  (vs 13-14)  It is a characteristic trait of Christ.  He dealt with crowds and still noticed individuals.  Even when days were packed with people and pressure,  Jesus took time to notice the people who could use some extra attention.  Had Levi signaled his interest by showing up whenever the Lord spoke?  Did the Lord see the spiritual hunger in Levi’s eyes?  We don’t know.  What is clear from this story is that the Lord looked at huge crowds and saw individual needs.   Do we?  Do we notice the child who needs a little extra attention?  Do we see the business man who is searching for light?  May the Lord give us His eyes and His heart of love.

RE Verse reading–Mark 2:13-17 (day five)
We are studying religions for school in our house. Our curious and inquisitive middle schooler begins to ask “How?” and “Why?” is Christianity different from other religions. He is looking past mere facts and history. It’s the perfect season to address these concerns. This is a perfect passage to answer those questions. It’s the promise and character of God. He makes the first move. He sends a savior. He desires relationship and fellowship with humanity. So much so, that He named His Son Immanuel, God WITH Us. Here in Mark 2 we read the critics question, “Why does he eat WITH tax collectors and ‘sinners’?” Answer, It’s His nature. It is what is drastically different between Christianity and other religions. God desires to be involved and engaged in our lives. That is the hope and promise of Christmas. Merry Christmas!!! God WITH Us.

RE Verse reading–Mark 2:13-17 (day four)
One of the themes of Mark is ‘Why did Jesus come?’  Mark 2:17 gives us a portion of Jesus’ mission…”I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Jesus came to call sinners.  Now let’s set the record straight…the Pharisees were not righteous, they only thought they were righteous.  Theirs was a self-righteousness.  The tax collectors and sinners knew they were not righteous.  A recognition of the need in our life for a Savior is required before coming to salvation.  It is a deception from Satan that we see our lives as righteous and do not acknowledge the need for forgiveness.  We have a tendency to compare our lives with the lives of others, and judge our righteousness against their standard.  God, though, uses the standard of His Son, Jesus.  We fall far short if we don’t use the correct standard.  Jesus readily came to those who recognized their need.  He was willing to forgive their sin.

RE Verse reading–Mark 2:13-17 (Day Three)
“…for there were many who followed him.” The “many” in this case refers to tax collectors. The entire culture in which Jesus was raised steeped him in ethnic and nationalistic separateness and exclusivity. There were plenty of reasons for Jesus and Roman loyalists to keep their distance from each other. And yet, “there were many…” These fraternizers with the Empire would not have been many if they did not believe Jesus wanted to be around them. For Jesus not only to eat with socially shunned people, but actually to enjoy their company, was a slap in the face to those who longed to be free of Caesar’s dominion. And yet, a refusal to love people is a slap in the face to God. At the end of the day, Jesus knew whose kingdom mattered most.

RE Verse reading–Mark 2:13-17 (Day Two)
“I didn’t come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Call to what? Was Jesus calling this room full of tax collectors to give up their careers and follow him? Likely not. It seems that Levi was the only one who received that invitation (14). Was he calling them to the great celebration dinner of the Messiah (I know it seems obscure, but some Jews thought the Messiah would throw a big party when he conquered the oppressive, foreign rulers)? Likely not. At this point in Mark’s story, Jesus’ identity as Messiah is still secret. So what did he call these “sinners” too? “Repent and believe” (1:15) was Jesus’ reoccurring theme. The message was no different that day. What was different was the audience–social deviants and outcasts not religious people “prepared” for the Messiah. “Good news of great joy” really is for “all people” (Luke 2:10)…even those people whom you’d never invite over for Christmas dinner.

RE Verse reading–Mark 2:13-17 (day one)
“While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and ‘sinners’ were eating with Him”  (vs 15)  The first Christmas must have been a strange collection of people.  Shepherds who smelled of sheep dung.  A teenage girl exhausted and filled with hope.   An older husband watching with concern.  It is a characteristic of Christ that will show up later in His life–inclusiveness.  We see it this week in Mark 2.  When Jesus gave Levi (a tax collector) the same call that He had given to Andrew and Peter (follow me),  He opened the door to every person.  Declaring clearly that ALL suffer from the same illness and, therefore, ALL need and benefit from the same treatment (ie. connection with God through faith/union with His Son)  From this time forward, outreach to outsiders (unlikely candidates for spiritual life) is a mark of true Christianity!  It is characteristic of Christ to include outsiders in His story.

RE Verse reading–Mark 1:19-20, 3:13-17, 10:35-45 (day seven)
“You don’t know what you are asking,” said Jesus.  “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”  (10:38)  Jesus was very patient with James and John.  With us as well.  Even when we make imperfect and naive requests, He responds with helpful instruction.  How many times does a child have to be taught before she learns an important lesson?  The Lord’s challenge to them (us) has to do with suffering that must be endured.  His image is “the cup”.  Normally it was a symbol of blessing (“my cup overflows”)  Jesus, however, took this familiar symbol and filled it with additional meaning.  For Him, it stood for suffering.  “If possible, let this cup pass from me.”  (Matthew 26:39)  Whenever we pray, we must take into account that an answer from God may require us to drink from a cup of suffering and stuggle.  Are we prepared?