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Reading the Gospels in 2026: (2/23) Mark 14:1-26

Feb23

A 5-day per week study.

February 23– Reading Mark 14:1-26.

Read and believe in Jesus.

“I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the Kingdom of God.”  Mark 14:25

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The Gospel according to Mark 14:1-26

Chapter 13 on the destruction of Jerusalem and the “End Times” was sparked by one of the disciples’ comments about the Temple’s magnificent stones.  Jesus told them that not one stone would be left on another, and in 70 A.D., that’s exactly what happened.  This would be proof that Jesus’s other prophecies about the Antichrist, the Great Tribulation, and His glorious second coming in the clouds would also come to pass.

It was a lot to think about, but the disciples probably promptly forgot it for the time (like they had of Jesus’ 3 times predicting his death and resurrection).  They were still thinking that Jesus would soon declare himself KING, and that they would help Him rule the Kingdom.   Alas…

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Vss. 1-2.

A quick note that even though Jesus had left the city, the religious leaders were still very angry with Him. They were mulling over ways they could arrest Him by stealth, and KILL Him.  But, they thought, not during Passover, because the people would cause a great uproar.  (Ha!  The best laid plans of mice and men!  Little did they know that Jesus would indeed be arrested and then killed on Passover.  And that the crowds would be the ones shouting, “Crucify Him!”)

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Vs.3.

This is the only time that “Simon the Leper” is named in the Bible.  Although he still carried the title of “the Leper” to distinguish him from other Simons in town, he had been totally cured, probably by Jesus. (No person suffering from leprosy could come near, let alone host a meal for other people.)

Some have thought that Simon was the father of Lazarus, Martha, and Mary, and that this was HIS house, but that he’d been absent on other occasions when Jesus visited because of his disease.  Regardless of this, we do know from John’s account in chapter 12 that the woman there was Mary.

While Jesus and the disciples were reclining at dinner, this young woman (Mary) came in, broke an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, and anointed Jesus’ head. (John’s account says she also anointed His feet and dried them with her hair.)

This was a total act of love on Mary’s part. She thought nothing of the expense.  Consider:  she had often sat at Jesus’ feet, hearing His teaching;  Jesus had healed her father of leprosy;  and Jesus had raised her brother back to life from the grave.  She had long ago given her heart, soul, and spirit to Him.  What was an heirloom jar of perfume?

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Vss. 4-9.

What was an heirloom jar of perfume?  Well, it was a year’s wages!! (Think of that amount today for an hourly worker!)  Some of the disciples were indignant.  “Why was this not sold and the money given to the poor?”

Seriously?  The poor?  You KNOW who brought this up.  It was Judas.  He was the group’s treasurer.  He carried the money pouch and paid for expenses (and yes, donated some to the poor).    John 12:6 says of him, “He said this, not because he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybags, used to help himself to what was put into it.”  Tsk, tsk, tsk.  

Jesus, of course, knew this.  And He swung back hard in defense of Mary.

“Leave her alone!  Why do you trouble her? 

She has done a beautiful thing for me.  You will always have the poor, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you will not always have Me.  She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burial. 

And truly, I say to you, whenever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.”

Of course, what Judas is about to do will also be told of him whenever the gospel is proclaimed throughout the world.

Did you catch Jesus’ statement?  “She has anointed my body beforehand for burial.”  Again, the disciples didn’t seem to notice.  I mean, if Jesus was going to be buried, it meant He was going TO DIE!   But, Mary, sitting and learning at Jesus’ feet all those times, HEARD him.  And she believed.  And she offered her expensive perfume to pre-anoint Jesus’ body for that burial.  It not only proved her love but also her faith.

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Vss. 10-11.

“Then Judas Iscariot went to the chief priests in order to betray Jesus to them.”

He just could not take it.  Not only the sight of all that money “wasted” on Jesus, but also the fact that Jesus honored the woman and the act… and at his expense.   He could have HAD that money.  Well…..  he knew where he could get some ready cash.  “Just you wait, Jesus!” he might have thought, as he headed back into the darkened city.

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Vss. 12-15.

It was the first day of Unleavened Bread-Passover, and Jesus sent two of his disciples into the city to prepare the room where they would eat the Passover meal.  How would they know where to go?  Jesus gave them a sign, like finding the donkey and its mother tied up a few days earlier.

This time, they would see a man carrying a jug of water.   You might think that this would be happening all around the city.  But no.  It was a woman’s job to fetch and carry water.  To see a man doing it would be highly irregular.  So HE would be the one they should ask.  That man would show the two where the room was, and they would set about preparing it for that evening’s meal.

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Vss. 17-21.

(We will learn much more about what happened in that upper room when we study the other Gospels. Mark is very brief.  “Just the facts,” he seems to say. They are: the betrayal announced and the bread and wine.  And that’s that. (Remember, Mark, is probably getting all those facts from Peter’s point of view.)

And so, the disciples reclined around a spread of Passover food and ate.  At one point, Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me.”

Talk about dropping a bombshell!

They all began to be sorrowful and, one by one, asked him, “Is it I?”   (Isn’t it heartbreaking, that they all believed their hearts could have betrayed Jesus!  We all could, and have.)

Jesus answered, “It is one of the twelve, one who is dipping bread into the dish with me.  The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed. It would have been better if he had not been born….”

The other Gospels make it clear in several ways that it was Judas Iscariot. (We’ll study them one by one this year.)  And Judas leaves the room.

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Vss 22-26.

Then Jesus institutes “The Lord’s Supper.”  This is what is celebrated in churches today, “in remembrance of Jesus” and what He did for us on the cross.

First, Jesus took up the bread and blessed it. He gave it to them and said, “This is my body.”

Next, He took a cup, and when He had given thanks, He gave it to them for all the drink of it.  “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many.  Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the Kingdom of God.”

(Cups of wine and the Matso bread are common in the traditional Passover meal, even today.  The Jews remember their escape from Egypt, when, with the blood of the Passover Lamb painted on the sides and tops of their doors, they stood dressed and ready to travel, eating the lamb for sustenance.  There hadn’t been time for the bread to rise, so they were eating it unleavened.   Soon, they would be delivered from slavery and become a Nation to God!

This is what the Lord Jesus was purchasing for them with his own blood – deliverance from slavery to sin and Satan, and transformation into the true children of God.

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“And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (2/20) Mark 13:1-36

Feb20

A 5-day per week study.

February 20– Reading Mark 13:1-36.

Read and believe in Jesus.

“Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come.”  Mark 13:33

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The Gospel according to Mark 13:1-36

Jesus (and His disciples) have been at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem all day. He has been teaching the crowds and confronting the religious leaders. He ends the time with praise for an extremely poor, but generous, widow and her meager offering.

Now, as they leave for the day, one of His disciples exclaims at the grandeur of the Temple buildings, specifically the great huge gleaming white marble stones.

(Some of the foundation stones were 40’x12’x12′.  The ones on the east-facing wall were covered with gold plates that gleamed in the morning sun. This was the Temple that Herod was rebuilding.)

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Vss. 1-2.

“Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!” said one of the twelve.

“Do you see these great buildings?” Jesus asked. “There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”

That silenced them.  How did that relate to Jesus coming into His Kingdom, since they believed it was about to happen? (Remember His triumphant ride into Jerusalem?)

(What Jesus was talking about was the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 A.D., when the Roman general, Titus, invaded.  He built large wooden scaffolds around the temple buildings, piled them high with flammable materials, and set them on fire.  The heat was so intense that the great stones crumbled.  Later, the rubble was sifted to retrieve the melted gold. The remaining ruins were “thrown down” into the Kidron Valley.)  

(Most of the disciples will be martyred before this happens.  We only know for sure that John lived to hear of Jerusalem’s destruction. (It’s believed John died in 100 A.D.)  It’s also possible that Simon the Zealot lived a couple of years after (74 A.D.). But before General Titus came, all the disciples would have left the city to carry the Gospel “to the uttermost parts of the world.”)

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Vss. 3-8.

Once outside the city, Jesus and the men rested on the Mount of Olives before continuing over and down to Bethany to His friends’ home, where they would stay the night.  From where they sat, the Temple Mount was in clear view. (Today, the Muslim Dome of the Rock stands in that place.)

Jesus’ four closest disciples came near, and one asked Him, “Tell us when these things will be, and what will be the sign when all these things are about to happen.”

Of course, the disciples “thought” that Jesus was about to usher in His Kingdom. They probably thought some huge miracle would happen – like the Temple being gone – to announce the coming Millennial Kingdom of Jesus.

They had a rude awakening.

“See that you are not led astray,” Jesus warned. “Many will come in my name. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars.  Do not be alarmed.  This MUST take place, but the end … is not yet.”

Jesus went on to tell of continuous wars, earthquakes, and famines that would happen.  But THAT was only the beginning (the birth pangs) of the End.

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Vss. 9-13.

Jesus speaks of persecution and martyrdom, of their witness before kings, and of the gospel first spreading to all nations, and warns, “Be on your guard.”

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Vss. 14-23.

Then Jesus warns them about “the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not to be.”  (This first happened during the time of the Maccabees when Antiochus Epiphanes sacrificed a pig on the altar. But it would be duplicated in the end times by the Antichrist, who would also set up an image of himself in the Holy place.)

Jesus tells them that those living in Judea at that time should immediately flee to the mountains. (He says, “Let the reader beware,“ speaking to those who live in the end times, and not to His disciples.)  The tribulation in THOSE days will be worse than ever before, since Creation.  Many will try to duplicate Jesus and deceive people.  But the Lord says again, “Be on guard!”

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Vss. 24-27.

Jesus tells them that after “that” tribulation (the Great Tribulation in the end times), horrific signs will occur in the literal heavens (sun, moon, and stars) and in the spiritual heavens (the “powers” will be shaken).

And THEN, they will see “the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.”  And He will send out His angels to gather His elect from the ends of the earth.

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Vss. 28-31.

Jesus seems to return to the disciples’ initial question, “When will this happen, and what is the sign of your coming?”  Perhaps His gaze took in that withered fig tree from a day ago, and He said, “From the fig tree (a healthy one), learn its lesson.  When its branch puts out leaves, you know summer is near. So also when you see these things taking place, you know that He is near, at the very gates.”   

Jesus then says that “THIS generation,” meaning the one who lives in the end times, “will not pass away until all these things take place.”

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Vss. 32-37.

Then to keep the disciples, and indeed US READERS. from predicting exactly when Jesus will return, He says, “Concerning that day or that hour, NO ONE KNOWS, not even the angels in heaven, NOR THE SON, but only the Father.  Be on guard, keep awake. For YOU do not know when the time will come.”

It’s like a master going away (Jesus says) and leaving his servants to stay awake and watch for his return.  The servants won’t know if he is to return in the evening, at midnight, when the rooster crows, or in the morning.  They are just to stay awake and be ready to open the door and welcome him in.

Jesus concludes with, “What I say to you, I say to all: STAY AWAKE.”

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(NOTE:  Take some time with your Bible and a Bible commentary, and read this again. See where Jesus is talking about the disciples, and when He tells about the times still future to us, when the Antichrist will appear, the Great Tribulation will happen, and Jesus’ glorious second coming in the clouds.

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Also, realize that these disciples do not know that their world is about to be turned upside down. Jesus is about to be arrested, tried, and crucified in just a matter of days.  All their beliefs of becoming partners in His earthly reign NOW, will be replaced by fear and confusion. Then, the resurrection, the ascension, and the Holy Spirit’s power on them.  They won’t be thinking of beautiful walls falling, or crowns on their heads.  They will begin fulfilling the Great Commission to take the Good News throughout the world.

 

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (2/16) Mark 12:1-12

Feb16

A 5-day per week study.

February 16– Reading Mark 12:1-12.

Read and believe in Jesus.

“A man planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a pit for the winepress and built a tower, and leased it to tenents and went away.”  Mark12:1b

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The Gospel according to Mark 12:1-12.

Jesus had ridden into Jerusalem on a donkey to the wild acclaim of the people.  Their King had come!  He was going to end Roman rule and free Israel.  But, early the next morning, Jesus had instead ended the Sadducee-approved buying, selling, and money-changing in the Temple area.

The next day, these men had accosted Him, demanding to know on whose authority He had done such a thing.  When they refused to answer His question about John the Baptist, Jesus refused to answer their question.  Again, their fear of the adoring crowds kept them from arresting Jesus.

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Vss.1-5.

It is still the same day, a few minutes later, and Jesus spoke TO THEM in a parable.

(Remember, earlier, Jesus had told His disciples that He taught in parables because of the hardness of the people’s hearts. They would not receive truth, so He veiled it in stories.)  He did that here, looking directly at the chief priests, scribes, and elders as He spoke.  They KNEW this parable was directed to them, and they fumed.

The Parable of the Tenants would have instantly reminded these teachers of Israel of Isaiah 5:1-7.  Please DO read this now!)  

They understood that the vineyard represented Israel, and the tenants were a picture of THEM.

Jesus’ parable told of evil, greedy tenants who wanted ALL the harvest for themselves, not just the 10% they earned.  So, as each of the slaves that the landowner sent to collect his portion of the profit arrived, they beat him up or killed him.  MANY of them.

This, of course, represented the many prophets God had sent to Israel and its leaders to correct their evil ways, and to “collect” the love, obedience, and worship He so rightly deserved.  The religious leaders had ignored the prophets and many times killed them. (Read Matthew 23:34-36)

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Vss. 6-9.

Jesus then tells them that the landowner had ONE SON (a picture of Himself) whom He finally sent to get the “harvest” He deserved.  But the wicked tenants, seeing this as their last chance, KILLED THE SON.  “Now… it’s all ours,”  the thought.  THEY THOUGHT!

This evil vividly depicts what the chief priests and elders were going to do to Jesus in just a couple of days.  HE knew it.  He’d told his disciples three times (Had they heard at all?).  And in the minds of these religious leaders, that was JUST what they wanted to do … if they could only figure out how to do it.

Then Jesus said something in the parable that I’m sure the Jewish leaders did not understand.  “The tenants would be destroyed, and the vineyard would be given to others.”

Yes, Jesus would be crucified, but He would be resurrected.  His church would begin and grow from the small band of Spirit-empowered followers with Him.  Churches would be established where believers would worship and glorify God.   AND … in a mere 40 years, Jerusalem would be destroyed, along with the Temple, the sacrifices, and all the priesthood.

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Vss. 10-12.

Jesus then quotes Psalm 119:22-23.

“The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the LORD’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes.”

Jesus connects the Son that the tenants killed to the “Stone” (Himself)  that the builders (religious leaders) rejected.  The resurrected Son would be the Cornerstone of the church, upon which the prophets and apostles would build.

The religious leaders fumed.  They seethed.  They WANTED to arrest Him, but, once again, feared the people.  So, they left Him and went away.

(But they would soon come at night, when no crowd’s adoration could protect Him.  And they would have their way with Jesus, just as the evil tenants had with the landowner’s son. )

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Just as God had planned it all from eternity past.

 

 

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (2/13) Mark 11:27-33

Feb13

A 5-day per week study.

February 13– Reading Mark 11:27-33

Read and believe in Jesus.

“And they said to Him, ‘By what authority are You doing these things?’”  Mark 11:28a.

 

The Gospel according to Mark 11:27-33

Yesterday (in the “meat” part of Mark’s writing sandwich), we saw Jesus enter Jerusalem and drive out the buyers and sellers of animals and the money-changers (extortionists) that He found “desecrating” the Temple area.  He was indignant that they should be making what should have been “a house of prayer” into a “den of robbers.”

Today, we look at the reaction this caused.

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Vss.27-33.

After checking out the withered fig tree and hearing Jesus’ teaching about having faith in prayer, Jesus and the disciples entered Jerusalem.  Jesus immediately went to the Temple Mount. He walked around, probably checking to see if any of the animal sellers or money-changers had oozed back inside.

Immediately, Jesus was confronted by the entire entourage of Jewish religious leaders: chief priests (Sadducees), scribes/teachers of the law (Pharisees), and elders, which included the “captain of the Temple.” All these had benefited from the money-changing extortion and inflated animal prices, which Jesus had eliminated.  When you touch a man’s “pocket,” sparks fly.

“By what authority are you doing these things?  Who gave you this authority to do them?” they demanded of Jesus.

Jesus calmly countered, “I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things.” 

Perhaps He paused to look at each of them before asking, “Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man?” 

This was throwing their question back at them. First, they had to evaluate John’s authority to baptise and hail Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah. In confirming John’s authority, they would also be confirming Jesus’ authority.

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They bunched into a tight group to discuss what their answer might be.

“If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?'”

“But shall we say, ‘From man?'”   Not a chance because they feared the people who believed (rightly) that John really was a prophet.  They were between the proverbial “rock and a hard place.”  (What a curious and funny dilemma!)

So they responded to Jesus’ question with, “We don’t know.”

I can imagine Jesus smiling and, as He turned away, saying,  “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

(Foiled again!)

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(NOTE: In these confrontations with the leaders of Israel, Jesus always comes out on top.  This shows clearly that when He is actually arrested, sent to trial, and crucified, it is HIS OWN DECISION AND TIMING.  Jesus’ life was NOT taken from Him.  He laid it down of His own accord, exactly in the perfect time and manner He chose.

(John 10:18 – “No one takes it [My life]  from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again.”)

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We’ll see in the next chapters that Jesus continues to teach the people on the Temple Mount and to respond to confrontations with the Jewish leaders.

 

 

 

 

 

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (2/11) Mark 11:1-11

Feb11

A 5-day per week study.

February 11– Reading Mark 11:1-11

Read and believe in Jesus.

“Hosanna!  Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!  Hosanna in the highest!”  Mark 11:9b-10

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The Gospel according to Mark 11:1-11

Last time, we saw Jesus and His disciples moving from east of the Jordan River, through Jericho, stopping to heal blind Bartimaeus, and then going “on the way.”  This means “towards Jerusalem” (and His death, which He’s been foretelling to His disciples for months).  The crowds are still with Him, and many others are heading towards the Holy City too for the upcoming Passover Celebration in less than a week.

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Vss. 1-3

Bethphage and Bethany (where Mary & Martha lived) were on the east slope of the Mount of Olives, which stands just before Mt Zion, on which Jerusalem is built.   Jesus tells two of his disciples to go into “the village in front of you,” (probably Bethphage).  (I wonder which two He sent…)

Anyway, they would immediately find a colt tied up. (Matthew mentions that its mother was also there.)  They were to untie it (them) and come back to Jesus.  If anyone asked what they were doing, they were to say simply, “The Lord needs it.”

And so it happened.

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Vss 4-10.

Many of the crowds witnessed this and wondered.  What was Jesus doing?  Some began thinking of, and maybe quoting, the scriptures, especially when a cloak was thrown over the back of the colt, and Jesus mounted it.

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  • Zechariah 9:9 – “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!  Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is He, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey!”
  • Isaiah 62:11 – “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your salvation comes; behold, His reward is with Him, and His is recompense before Him.'”
  • Psalm 118:25b-25a – “Save us (Hosanna), we pray, O LORD!  O LORD, we pray, give us success!  Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!”

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They began cutting palm and other branches, waving them and laying them down with their cloaks, on the road before Jesus: a colorful, leafy green path to the Holy City.  (Jesus, with the steady hands of its creator, calmed the young colt in this chaos.)

The whispered verses from before were said aloud, then shouted with joy.  He IS the king!  THEY KNEW IT from when He fed the multitude in Galilee! And here He was entering the city to be crowned… to free Israel from oppression!  Hallelujah!  “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!” Hosannah!  Hosanna in the Highest!”

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(Luke 19:39-40 tells of some Pharisees coming to Jesus as he approached the city and demanding that He stop the crowds from saying these things. Jesus answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”)

(Luke 19:41-44 also mentions Jesus weeping as He nears Jerusalem. He foresees the time when the Holy City is destroyed, it and its people… “because you did not know the time of your visitation.”)

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Vs. 11.

Inside the city, Jesus dismounted and sent the donkeys back to their owner.  The crowds watched or went their own way.  With kingly authority, He went to the temple, “and looked around at everything.”  

Jesus inspected the buildings and the grounds, missing nothing…. including the noisy moneychangers and merchants, the loud animals and birds, and their messes… in the Temple.

It was late, so He and the disciples went back to Bethany.  But He would be back the next day… and they had better watch out.

 

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (2/10) Mark 10:32-52

Feb10

A 5-day per week study.

February 10– Reading Mark 10:32-52

Read and believe in Jesus.

“What do you want me to do for you?”  Mark 10:50b

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The Gospel according to Mark 10:32-52

We left Jesus and the disciples on the eastern side of the Jordan River.  They’d just watched the rich young ruler turn away from Jesus.  Jesus told them that riches did not buy their way into the kingdom of God, but following Him and giving up material things was the way to blessing.

Now they were heading west towards Jerusalem.  They would pause for a short time in Jericho, then walk through the wilderness up to the holy city for Passover.

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Vss. 32-34.

Right on the heels of that conversation about leaving all to follow Jesus, He – for the third time – told the disciples that He would “be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they would condemn Him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles. And they will mock Him and spit on Him, and flog Him and kill Him. And after three days He will rise.”

Again, we see no response.  Surely they heard the words. Pain. Death. Resurrection….

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Vss. 35-45.

But it seems it was the turn of the “Sons of Thunder” to ask about the Kingdom of God.  Not about leaving everything behind or about suffering and dying, but about honor and privilege when the kingdom came.

  • “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you,” said James and John.
  • “What do you want me to do for you?” asked Jesus, although He knew exactly what they were going to ask.
  • “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in Your glory.”
  • I imagine Jesus just shook His head at their naivety. “You do not know what you are asking.  Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptised with the baptism with which I am baptised?” 

Jesus, of course, was speaking of the suffering and the horrible substitutional death He would experience for all who would be saved from their sins.

  • Proudly, the two answered, “We are able.”

Jesus probably looked at them with love, these two fiery young men who willingly followed Him. He knew that James would be the first martyr of the Twelve in just a few years, and that although John would live to an old age, he would be tortured and spend years in exile.

  • “The cup I drink, you WILL drink, and my baptism, you WILL experience.  But to sit at my right and left hands … is not mine to grant, but for those for whom it’s been prepared.”

Of course, the other ten disciples were indignant with James and John.  How dare they!  Why did they think THEY were better?

  • Jesus had to calm them all down. “Actually…”He said, “Ruling and authority over others shall NOT be so among YOU.” 
  • He looked around at them closely. “Whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all.”
  • “Even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”  

(I bet that quieted them for a while.)

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Vss 46-52.

They spent a short time in Jericho, then, amid a huge crowd of people, they went out from the city. By the side of the road was a blind beggar, whose name was Bartimaeus (Son of Timaeus).  He heard the crowd passing -possibly coughed at the dust that rose.  He learned that it was Jesus of Nazareth.  He’d heard of the great teacher/healer, and who He was.  Hope rose in him.  And panic that Jesus would pass him by.

  • “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” cried Bartimaeus.
  • The crowd looked at him, not in pity but in annoyance.  “Be quiet!”
  • “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” he cried even louder.

Jesus heard him and stopped. He called for someone to bring the blind man to Him.

  • Now the voice of the crowd changed. “Take heart. Get up; He is calling for you.”

Bartimaeus threw off his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus … following the sound of that kind voice.

  • “What do you want me to do for you?”
  • “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.”
  • “Go your way; your faith has made you well.

And immediately he recovered his sight … AND FOLLOWED JESUS ON THE WAY.

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What a good story of simple faith. And determination.

Since the blind man was named (and was wearing a cloak), it’s possible that he was a known merchant of some standing in the city, who had, for some reason, lost his sight and was left to beg for a living.  Perhaps an accident or a disease had caused him to be blind. Notice he asked that his sight be recovered, as in, found after being lost.

He’d heard of Jesus.  And he believed in Him.  Notice what Bartimaeus called Jesus.  “Son of David” was Jesus’ Messianic title.  Bartimaeus knew Jesus was “the One to come,” and knew if he could get close to Him, he would be healed.

And afterward… Bartimaeus followed Jesus.   No question. So unlike the rich young ruler.

 

 

 

 

 

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (2/9) Mark 10:17-31

Feb9

A 5-day per week study.

February 9– Reading Mark 10:17-31

Read and believe in Jesus.

“What must I do to inherit eternal life?”  Mark 10:17b

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The Gospel according to Mark 10:17-31

Last time, Jesus taught about divorce, man’s hardness of heart, and adultery. Then He gathered up children into His arms and taught that His Kingdom was made up of such tender souls as these, who openly desired and received Him.  His disciples were confused.  They will be even more confused after the encounter they watched in today’s reading.

(NOTE: Having a list of the ten commandments before you today might be helpful. Exodus 20.)

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Vss. 17-18

The man who met Jesus today is the kind of person that society admires and envies.  He is generally referred to as “the rich young ruler.”  Think about that.  He had mega wealth.  He had youth.  He had power. He had it ALL.  Most of us would be happy to have just one of these.  And yet, this man had a discontentment in his heart.  He knew he lacked something.  Something that he couldn’t buy, achieve through his strength, or demand to be given to him.

“Good Teacher, what must I DO to inherit eternal life?”

Jesus answered him with a question, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.”  

Jesus was not saying that HE, Himself, was not good. In this statement, Jesus was pointing the young, rich, and powerful man to the first commandments.  #1 Thou shalt have NO OTHER gods before the LORD, and #2 Worship only God, never any idols you make.  God alone is good and due our worship.  We’ll find out later just what this man “worshipped.”

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Vs. 19 with Romans  13:7-10

Then, Jesus points this young man to the other commandments. #6 Do not murder, #7 Do not commit adultery, #8 Do not steal, #9 Do not bear false witness, and skips to #5, Honor your parents.

In both Matthew’s and Luke’s accounts, #10 is omitted altogether, but Mark says, for #10, Do not defraud.  Defrauding someone is causing shame or dishonor to be brought upon them, their reputation (name), or their integrity.  (Basically, this is commandment #3. Do not take the NAME of the Lord in vain. 

Jesus probably didn’t say, “Do not covet,” because that was actually the young man’s basic sin.  He coveted wealth and the power it brought.

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Take a minute to read the verses in Romans, where Paul says, Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes, revenue, respect, and honor. “Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments (he names some) are summed up in this word: ‘Love does no wrong to (doesn’t DEFRAUD) a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.'”

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Vss. 20-22.

Okay, back to Mark.  The rich, young ruler looked at Jesus sincerely and said, “Teacher, all these I  have kept from my youth.”  He saw no fault, no sin in himself.

Jesus looked at this man, so blessed in life, and “trying” to be a good person, and He loved him.  But it’s clear that the young man missed what Jesus said at the beginning, “Only God is good.”

“You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, AND YOU SHALL HAVE TREASURE IN HEAVEN, and come follow me.”

Now, selling all our possessions and giving the proceeds to the poor does not make us eligible for Heaven.  Jesus knew the man’s weakness.  His wealth, greediness, covetousness… and of course, the power all that wealth brought was VERY IMPORTANT to him.   TOO important for him to give up… EVEN to have eternal life.  Wow.

Disheartened, the young man walked away with his head down and shoulders slumped.  He was sorrowful … because of his “great possessions.”

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(What about us?  The “thing” we lack before coming to Jesus is the acknowledgment, confession, and forsaking of our sin. HE must be the most important thing to us.  After we confess and forsake sins, we can joyfully “follow Him.”

I John 1:9: “If we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sin, and to cleanse us from ALL unrighteousness.”

Romans 10:9-10: “For if you confess with your mouth that JESUS IS LORD (in your life, not possessions, etc.) and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.  For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”

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Vss. 23-31.

The disciples had watched this scene silently (perhaps enviously), but I’m sure their thoughts were now all over the place.  They viewed that young man as a blessed and law-keeping, righteous person.  His walking away confused them.

“How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God,” Jesus said, shocking those twelve men around Him. The belief of that day was that wealth was a BLESSING of God to show He was pleased with you.  Now, Jesus was saying it was a “hindrance.” They just couldn’t take it in!

So, Jesus repeated for them, “Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God!  It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”

Astonished at this concept, they cried out, “Then WHO can be saved???”

Jesus must have just looked at them until they quieted down.  Then, “With man it is impossible.  But not with God.  For all things are possible with God.”

Peter blurted out the mixed feelings of his heart, “Well, WE have left everything and followed You….”

Jesus smiled at his chief disciple, then looked around to the others.  “Truly, I tell you, there ia no one who has left house, brothers or sisters, mother or father, children, or lands for MY SAKE and for the Gospel’s …. who will not receive a hundredfold NOW in this time, houses, bothers, sisters, mothers, children, and lands (WITH persecutions,) and in the age to come… eternal life.

Did the disciples feel better?  Understand more?  Feel assured?   A hundredfold, NOW??   Their minds buzzed.  Did they think of their homes and families back in Galilee?

Unknown to them, these disciples (except Judas) would travel a whole lot farther for the Lord and for the Gospel before they died. They would feel the sting and cut of persecution, but God would supply all their needs in the houses and provisions of other believers on their travels.  And then… ETERNAL LIFE with Him!

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Did the rich young ruler ever forsake all and believe in Jesus?   I hope so.  

 

 

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (2/5) Mark 9:30-50

Feb5

A 5-day per week study.

February 5– Reading Mark 9:30-50

Read and believe in Jesus.

And He said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.”  Mark 9:35

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The Gospel according to Mark 9:30-50.

Jesus and all his disciples are together again when Jesus heals the boy with the unclean spirit. This demon had been tormenting him with violent and murderous assaults, and the nine disciples alone could do nothing to help.  But Jesus released him and encouraged the father’s small belief.  Afterwards, Jesus told the disciples that this kind of spirit would come out only through totally concentrated, selfless prayer.

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Vss. 30-32.

Jesus leads His disciples (a few elated by the incident on the Mount, and the rest subdued by their inability to help the boy) back through Galilee.  He didn’t want anyone to know He was there, because He had more to teach them. His time with them was growing short. He is heading more and more towards Jerusalem and His death.

For the second time, as they walked along, Jesus said, “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him.  And when He is killed, after three days He will rise.”

This is very understandable to us, 2000 years AFTER the fact, but to the Twelve who believed Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah, this was nonsense.  Die?  No, their Messiah was to establish the Kingdom, defeat the Romans, and rule from Jerusalem!  They did not understand! And it seems they especially did not grasp what Jesus said about resurrection.

But after Jesus’ rebuke of Peter the last time He told them about His death, they were afraid to ask about it now.

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Vss. 33-37.

As they walked, some of the disciples were arguing about another topic.  Again, it was related to the soon and hoped-for setting up of the Kingdom by their Messiah. When they were once again in Capernaum and safely ensconced in Peter’s home, Jesus quizzed them about it.

“What were you discussing on the way?”  (Wow, is there nothing that Jesus did not know about them??)

Again, they were silent, which was foolish because He already knew.  They had been arguing over who was the greatest.  Surely Peter was a contender, but the brothers, James and John, were also in the inner circle.  Did any of the other nine think they should be on top, too?

Jesus must have been so discouraged with them.  Hadn’t they learned anything about Him? Had they ever seen Him elevating Himself above everyone else?  Hadn’t they observed the Messiah as meek and lowly?  Sure, He taught the scriptures with authority! Sure, he commanded sickness and legions of demons, and they instantly obeyed Him. But had He asked any followers to bow to Him?

“If ANYONE would be first, he must be LAST of all … servant of all.

Then Jesus picked up a child (Peter’s niece or nephew?) and held him in His arms, smiling and perhaps tickling him.  And looking up to His men, He said, “Whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me, and whoever receives Me, receives not Me (only) but Him who sent Me.”

Jesus would say more on this, but John interrupted Him.

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Vss. 38-41.

“Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.”  (Oh man, was John ever looking for a pat on the head and an “atta boy!”  He thought they had done well.  NOPE.  Also, was this a “dig” on the nine disciples who were UNABLE to cast out that demon?)

Jesus said, “Do NOT stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in My name will be able soon afterwards to speak evil of Me.  For the one who is not AGAINST us is FOR us.  For truly, I say to you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward.”

Huh?  John (or any of them) said nothing to this rebuke.  Truly, Jesus had a lot more to teach them!)

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Vss. 42-50.

Again looking to the little one on His lap, Jesus said, “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.”

 

Okay, they understood that. But then, Jesus said,

“If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire.”

What??

“And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off.  It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell.”

The disciples must have been stunned!

“AND, if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell, where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.  (See Isaiah 66:24)

What were they to make of this?  Surely self-mutilation was NOT what Jesus was teaching.  But sin is serious, whether it involves doing, going, or seeing.  They were to be brutal in eliminating it from their lives.  (Paul would later write, “Present our bodies as a living SACRIFICE, holy and acceptable to God. Do NOT be conformed to this world, but be transformed…  (See Romans 12:1-2)

 

Jesus continued, also thinking of sacrifice, “For everyone will be salted with fire.”

They all would be purified with suffering and persecution – not just Him – like the OT sacrifices that were often accompanied with salt.  Suffering?  Self-denial?  Sacrifice?  What kind of Kingdom was Jesus bringing?

“Salt is GOOD.  Have salt in YOURSELVES. And be at peace with one another.”   

Salt is a good preservative. Let the words of Christ enter and dwell in them (and us), cleansing, cauterising.  Then they will make a difference in the world … for Christ.

And, for goodness sake, STOP ARGUING among yourselves!

 

 

 

 

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Reading the Gospels in 2026: (2/3) Mark 9:2-13

Feb3

A 5-day per week study.

February 3– Reading Mark 9:2-13

Read and believe in Jesus.

“And He was transfigured before them, and His clothes became radiant, intensely white as no one on earth could bleach them.  And there appeared … Elijah with Moses … talking with Jesus.”  Mark 9:2-4

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The Gospel according to Mark 9:2-13.

Jesus and the disciples have been north of Israel, in the area of Caesarea Philippi, where Jesus gives them the hard teaching about His suffering, death, and resurrection (though they seem not to have heard the last word).

And he taught them (and the crowd) that they too would suffer and possibly lose their lives if they desired to follow Him.  Sobering words!

Then Jesus said that some of them WOULD NOT see death until they saw “the kingdom of God come with power.”  What did that mean?   (Pentecost?  Or what was about to happen to His inner three disciples on the mountain?)

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Vss. 2-3.

Six days after that amazing statement, Jesus and his men climbed Mount Hermon. Jesus left nine disciples waiting in a lower place and took Peter, James, and John higher up the mountain. Then, to their utter amazement, terror, and fascination …. Jesus was “transfigured” before them.

What does that mean?

He was “transformed” (partially) from the Jewish man in a homespun robe, into the true Eternal One clothed with the heavenly glory He shared with His Father from Eternity past.  This was “the true Light that had come into the world.” It was radiant. Intensely white. No human could have bleached His clothes to shine so brilliantly.

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(I’ve always pictured this scene like some modern-day superhero, pulling his human shirt open to allow his true character to be seen.  But THIS glory, which emanated from the Lord Jesus, was shining through His robes.  HE WAS the Light.)

(The promise to true believers is that we will one day be “transformed” into the “likeness of Jesus.” 2 Corinthians 3:18.)

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Vss. 4-8.

This vision of Jesus would have been enough, but the disciples also saw the living Elijah and Moses talking with Him.  (Luke 9:31 says they were talking to Jesus about His upcoming death.) 

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(How did the disciples recognize Elijah and Moses? God revealed it to them, just as we will recognize the souls of Bible characters, family members, and even the babies we’ve lost, when we get to heaven.)

(It’s interesting that Moses and Elijah represent the whole Old Testament: The Law and The Prophets, both of which pointed to Jesus and His work of redemption, from Genesis 3:15 onwards. These two will be seen again during the final days of earth, according to Revelation 11:5-6.)

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Peter, ever with an open mouth and an opinion, spoke to Jesus, even though he didn’t know what he was saying.

“Rabbi, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

(I’m sure we’ve all said similar nonsense in our nervousness!)

But God Almighty, the Father of Eternity, interruped Peter’s feeble words by surrounding the three holy ones in the Shekinah Cloud of His Presence.  And speaking aloud,

“This is my beloved Son, LISTEN to HIM.”

(Matthew tells us that when the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces (which is the typical response of a mere human in the presence of God. (See Isaiah 6:5, Rev. 1:17)

The next thing they knew, Jesus, in his everyday clothes, was touching them, helping them up. It was once again a mountain place, and not the halls of Heaven.

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Vss. 9-13.

As they returned down to the other disciples, Jesus commanded them TO TELL NO ONE what they had seen (and that included the other nine) UNTIL He had risen from the dead.

Peter, James, and John kept this amazing incident to themselves (who would even believe them anyway?) but still questioned Jesus’s words about the resurrection.

(Hadn’t they heard his prediction that he would DIE… and be resurrected?  They, like we, sometimes only hear what we WANT to hear, and they wanted to hear about Jesus setting up His Kingdom here and now.)

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Also on the climb down, the disciples asked Jesus about Elijah. “Why do the scribes say that first Elijah must come?”

This had been a conversation before, and indeed, the Jews from Jerusalem had even asked John the Baptist if HE was Elijah.  Jesus told the three that “Elijah HAS come, and they did to him whatever they pleased, as it was written of him.”  ***

(NOTE: *** John’s murder “typically” fulfilled the fate that was intended for the OT Elijah, although it had not been “actually” prophesied. The vile, murderous Queen Jezebel vowed to kill Elijah (1 Kings 19:1-2), but God had other things for Elijah to do.  However, when the vile, murderous Queen Herodias vowed to kill John the Baptist, her equally evil husband, Herod, killed the prophet.)

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Luke 1:17 does say that John the Baptist came, “in the Spirit and Power of Elijah,” if they would accept that.  

 

 

 

 

 

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Reading the Gospels in 2026: (2/2) Mark 8:22 – 9:1

Feb2

A 5-day per week study.

February 2– Reading Mark 8:22- 9:1.

Read and believe in Jesus.

And He asked them, “Who do YOU say that I am?”  Peter answered Him, “You are the Christ.”  Mark 8:29

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The Gospel according to Mark 8:22-39, 9:1

Jesus has been leading His disciples outside Israel proper to give Himself time away from the crowds to teach them.  They’ve spent a bit of time to the north and to the east in Decapolis, with a brief boat trip into Galilee to the area of Magdala, where some Pharisees from Jerusalem demanded that He show them a sign to prove His claims.

Then the disciples endured a strong questioning from Jesus about baskets of bread vs the evil of leaven. They were confused.

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Vss. 22-26.

Now they are back in Bethsaida in upper Galilee. Immediately, some people brought a blind man to Him and begged that He heal him. Jesus took the man to a private place. He spat, then touched the man’s eyes.

“Do you see anything?” Jesus asked him.

“I see men, but they look like trees walking around.”

Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again, and when the man opened his eyes, his sight was restored clearly.

“Do not even enter the village,” Jesus commanded the former blind man.

And he apparently obeyed!

NOTE: So why did it take two touches of Jesus’ hands to completely heal the man’s sight?  Lack of faith?  A way to avoid the shock of instant sight?  Two kinds of diseases?  To spend more time with the man? 

Mark just reports this incident; he says nothing about how it happened.  

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Vss. 27-30.

Jesus again leads the disciples out of Israel, way north into the foothills of Mount Hermon, to the villages of Caesarea Phillippi. (This is not the coastal city of Caesarea.)  On the way, Jesus asked them a question.

“Who do people say that I am?”

They told Him about the speculations they’d heard.

“Some say, John the Baptist.”

“Others say, Elijah.”

‘Others, one of the prophets.”

(It’s interesting that all these people were dead and would have to be reincarnated to be Jesus now.)

“But who do YOU say that I am?” Jesus asked.

And Peter answered, “You are the Christ.” (Messiah)

Perhaps Jesus nodded and looked around at the others.  Then He told them, in no uncertain terms, not to tell this to anyone.

NOTE: This was not the time or place to “announce” Him. The people might rush Him and demand that He set up the kingdom right now, as they had wanted to do after He fed the 5,000.  Later, after Jesus’ death and resurrection, He would THEN charge them to tell this to the whole world.

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Vss. 31-33

Now comes the hard part: the truths about Jesus that the disciples would not want to hear, and had not expected to hear from the long-awaited Messiah of Israel.

Jesus began to teach them clearly: “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again.”

What a shocker!  Had they heard correctly?  Suffer and die?  Wasn’t the Christ, the Messiah, supposed to set up His kingdom and throw out the Romans?  This couldn’t be!  Was Jesus testing them in some way?

Peter took Jesus aside and, expressing the thoughts of all of them, rebuked Him.

(Matthew records Peter saying to Jesus, “God forbid it, Lord! That must never happen to you!”)

Jesus, seeing the other disciples watching and agreeing, said harshly, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man!”

Whoa!

Did Peter’s mouth drop open?  Did he step back a pace?

(NOTE: Jesus did not believe that Peter WAS Satan, but he was being used by Satan to once again tempt Jesus away from the cross.  Jesus’s sacrificial death on the cross was God’s plan, and whoever opposed it was doing Satan’s work, even if they didn’t realize it.)

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Vss. 34-39, 9:1.

It must have been quiet for a while as they walked.  As they neared the villages, the crowds once again flocked to Jesus.  Jesus’ mind must still have been on His future horrific work on Golgotha, for He spoke to (taught) both His disciples AND the crowds these hard things….

“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.  For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.

“For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?  For what can a man give in return for his soul?

“For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of HIM will the Son of Man also be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”

“Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death, until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power.” 

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Did Jesus’ words confuse the disciples and the crowd?

Were His followers required then to also suffer and die with Him?

And then, had He stated the opposite?  He WOULD set up His kingdom in their lifetime.

This crowd, including the disciples, was definitely quiet and thoughtful after these words.

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Jesus would be in the villages for six days, perhaps teaching and healing, but then he would take His disciples, especially the three closest to Him, up Mount Hermon for a mountain-top experience they would never forget.

Next time.