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Reading the Gospels in 2026: (2/24) Mark 14:27-52

Feb24

A 5-day per week study.

February 24– Reading Mark 14:27-52.

Read and believe in Jesus.

“The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”  Mark 14:38

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The Gospel according to Mark 14:27-52

In the last reading, Jesus and the disciples have eaten the Passover meal, possibly in the home of John Mark’s family.  The disciples were shocked to learn that a traitor was among them, and Judas went out.

Jesus then instituted the Last Supper remembrance, stating that the bread represented His body, which He was giving for them, and that the wine represented His blood of the new Covenant, “poured out for many.”

Then they sang the closing song/psalm of the Passover order (Psalm 118) and went out of Jerusalem into the cool darkness of the Mount of Olives.

(A young man, aroused from his bed and with only a night sheet wrapped around him, followed them to watch and listen.  This is commonly thought to have been the teenage John Mark, this book’s author.)

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Vss. 27-31.

Out of the quiet, Jesus suddenly quotes Zechariah 13:7.  “You will all fall away, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’  But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.”

Peter immediately challenges Jesus’ words.  “Even though they ALL fall away, I will not!”  (Ahhh, Peter…)

Jesus replied, with love and sadness, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me THREE times.”

“If I must DIE with You, I WILL NOT deny You,” Peter disagreed emphatically.

I think Jesus must have sighed hugely as he turned to walk towards the place called Gethsemane (“oil press”).

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Vss. 32-42.

These verses record Jesus’ agonized but submissive prayer to His Father on the eve of the horrendous ordeal he was about to face.  (We can’t even imagine.)

Jesus tells eight of the disciples to stay where they are while He goes a little way off to pray.  He signals for Peter, James, and John to follow Him.  It’s obvious that Jesus is “greatly distressed and troubled,” but they say nothing.

“My soul is very sorrowful, even to death,” Jesus says. (Do they even hear Him?)

“Remain here and watch,” He tells the three and goes a little farther into the darkness.  The three settle onto the ground, gradually reclining….

Jesus falls prone onto the ground and earnestly prays. “Abba…  Father,  all things are possible for You.  Remove this cup from me!”  And then, “Yet not what I will, but what You will.”

Jesus slowly gets to his feet and returns to where He left His three closest disciples.  They are not “watching” or praying.  They are sleeping. Yes, sure, it’s late, and their bellies are full of food and wine, but….  (Well, this is probably what you and I would be doing too.)

To Peter, who vowed he would not leave Jesus and would die with Him… but could not pray with Him… Jesus said, “Simon! (He uses the disciple’s “old” name). Are you asleep? Could YOU not watch one hour?  Watch and pray, that you may ot enter into temptation.  The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Then Jesus returned to his lonely place, fell to the ground, and prayed the same words. (Request and submission.)

When He returned to His special three… He again found them sleeping and embarrassed into silence when Jesus spoke to them.

Finally, for the third time, Jesus went and prayed in anguish, settling His determination to carry out the plan for sinful man’s salvation that He and the Father had made, even before creation.  THIS is why He had left Heaven’s glory. He would drink “the cup” to the bitter dregs.

Returning to the sleeping three and the others, Jesus announced, “It is enough.  The hour has come.  The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.  Get up, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”

And so it begins, the very thing Jesus had warned them about three times. Still, they are stunned at what is happening.

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Vss. 43-50.

And there they were … a crowd with swords and clubs from the chief priests, scribes, and elders … led by Judas.  The betraying disciple walked right up to Jesus and said, “Rabbi!”  taking Jesus by the shoulders and kissing Him.

It was the pre-set sign, so that, in the dark, the maddening crowd of armed men would know which one to seize.  They came and grabbed Jesus.

(Did Judas step back and smile with satisfaction?  Or, did he start to realize the horror he had begun?)

One of the disciples (John names him in his gospel. It was Peter.) drew his short sword and struck the servant of the high priest and … cut off his ear! (Surely, he meant to kabosh the man’s skull.)  Luke tells us in his gospel that Jesus scolded Peter and healed the servant’s ear. Jesus wanted no trouble for the disciples (the good Shepherd laying down His life for His sheep).  And, in fact, they all ran away after that.

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Vss. 51-52.

Three ran a little way, then came back to observe, hiding here and there among the olive trees.  John, with Peter behind, watched and followed at a distance to see where they were taking Jesus.

Another, “a young man” who was surely the curious teen, John Mark, followed a bit too closely.  One of the guards saw him and grabbed his sheet.  John Mark slipped out of it and ran away … naked.   Oops!

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And so it begins. The multiple trials of Jesus, with abuse, mockery, and torture, all culminating in the crucifixion. In the next chapter, we will be glad that Mark wrote so succinctly in his gospel.  We will get more details as we read Luke and Matthew.

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: (2/19) Mark 12:35-43

Feb19

A 5-day per week study.

February 19– Reading Mark 12:35-43.

Read and believe in Jesus.

“The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand…”  Mark 12:36a

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The Gospel according to Mark 12:35-43

After butting heads with the three major religious sects in Jerusalem, then speaking with one sincere scribe who was “near to the Kingdom,” Jesus continued teaching in the Temple area.  He was the true Shepherd of Israel, the one who loved the “flock” and would soon “lay down His life for them.”  Those rulers of Israel, “false shepherds” who had no thought or care for the “sheep,” had to be exposed for the hypocrites they were.

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Vss. 35-37 with (Matthew 22:41-42).

The religious leaders had tested Jesus with their questions. Now, it was His turn to give them a “test question.”

“What do you think about the Christ (Messiah)?  Whose son is He?” He asked.

“The son of David,” they answered.

Now the people recognized this as the title for the Messiah.  And that’s how their leaders referred to him.  But by calling the Messiah “the son of David,” these pious rulers meant he would be a mere man.  Yes, the descendant of the great King David, but man … not God.

Jesus referred to the Scriptures that they claimed to know so well and revere so highly with His question. (Psalm 110:1)

“How is it then that David, in the Spirit, calls him LORD, saying, ‘The LORD said to my Lord, ‘Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet?’  If then David calls him LORD, how is He his son?”

The ‘great throng’ who witnessed this showdown between Jesus and the Pharisees (scribes) were glad to hear Jesus.  The Jewish leaders, however, were totally miffed and “from that day on, no one dared to ask Him any more questions.”

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Vss. 38-40.

Jesus, turning to the crowd, then issued a warning. “BEWARE of the scribes (and Pharisees)…”

Why?

  • “They like to walk around in long robes…
  • They like greetings in the marketplaces…
  • (They like to) have the best seats in the synagogues…
  • And the places of honor at feasts.”

Jesus was exposing them as hypocrites, seeking the favor and praise of man rather than God.

  • They “devour widows’ houses…
  • And “for show” pray long prayers.”

NOTE: Scribes often served as ‘estate planners‘ for new widows, and would give these grieving women the chance to “serve God” by supporting the Temple work (or the scribe’s own work) with their deceased husband’s money.   In doing this, these wily religious leaders would be “robbing the widows.”

NOTE: And, we know about their “long, showy prayers” from Jesus’ parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. (Luke 18:9-14)

—- Pharisee: “God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.  I fast twice a week, and I give tithes of all that I get.

—- Tax Collection: “God, be merciful to me a sinner.”

—- Jesus taught (Matthew 5:20), “For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

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Vss. 41-44.

And then, Jesus sat opposite the treasury in the Temple area and watched people put in their offerings.

NOTE: These “offering boxes” were 13 trumpet-shaped receptacles on the walls of the court of women, where offerings and donations to the temple were dropped in.

As Jesus watched, a very poor widow  (who had perhaps been cheated out of her husband’s legacy by those conniving scribes) came to give her offering. She quietly dropped in two small copper coins, which equaled one penny.  (These copper coins were the smallest denomination of Roman coins, equal to 1/64th of a day’s wages.)   And Jesus commended her.

WHY, we ask.  What could so little do to support the Temple?

It wasn’t the Temple that Jesus was concerned with.  He was looking at the HEARTS of the offering givers. Many wealthy people dropped in large amounts, making sure everyone saw them do it.  But even those “princely sums” didn’t hurt their wealth. (They made sure of that.)

The poor widow quietly dropped in those two coins so no one could see. But Jesus saw them, and more importantly, saw her heart.  She had given EVERYTHING SHE HAD.  Now this poor woman would have nothing to live on.  What love compared to what hypocrisy! And she is honored even today for her sacrifice by being in the gospel story.

(In my heart, I believe God saw her faith and honored it, and then supplied her needs in perhaps amazing ways.  But if not, she was content to give her all.)

What do “my” offerings reveal about my heart?

 

 

 

 

 

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: (2/5) 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: (1/30) Mark 8:1-21

Jan30

A 5-day per week study.

January 30 – Reading Mark 8:1-21.

Read and believe in Jesus.

“And He said to them, ‘Do you not yet understand?'”  Mark 8:21

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The Gospel according to Mark 8:1-21.

Jesus and the disciples are perhaps still in the Decapolis region on the southeastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. (See your Bible map.) It’s a mostly Gentile area. It looks as if Jesus has been traveling around, and a crowd of people has been following Him. He’s probably done a lot of healing and hopefully some teaching as well.

It’s a seasonally dry area with barren soil and dried grass (not like the green grassland where Jesus fed the 5,000, see Mark 6:39).  And Jesus has compassion for this crowd. (Those who had come a long distance probably had food to begin with, but now it was all gone.)

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Vss. 1-10.

As in the other crowd-feeding, Jesus asked His disciples what food they had. They were discouraged to find but seven loaves (rolls) and a few small fish. 

(Now, WHY didn’t they remember the miracle Jesus had done not so long ago and EXPECT Him to do likewise?  Did they so easily forget that astonishing miracle??)

After Jesus gave thanks to His heavenly Father and distributed the food in an orderly manner, there were seven LARGE baskets of pieces left over.  These were not lunchbox-sized baskets as before, but BUSHEL baskets.  A whole lot more bread and fish than they began with. 

THEN Jesus sent away the crowd, their bellies now full and their strength renewed.  He and the disciples got into a boat and sailed straight across Galilee to the area of Dalmanutha (near Magadan or Magdala).

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Vss. 11-13.

They’d hardly stepped off the boat when some Pharisees came and began once again to argue with Jesus.  They wanted “a sign from heaven” to prove that He was the Messiah that He claimed to be.  Yes, Jesus had done tons of miracles (signs),  but they wanted something else, something supernatural from on high.  (An astronomical sign? God’s audible voice? What?)

Jesus knew they weren’t struggling to BELIEVE.  No, they were TESTING Him, to find a fault that they could run back to Jerusalem with.

Sighing deeply, Jesus said, “No sign will be given to this generation!”

With that, Jesus led the men back into the boat, and they went north to Bethsaida.

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Vss. 14-21.

On the long sail to Bethsaida, the disciples realized they had once again forgotten to bring the bread. (What IS the matter with them???)

With that on their minds, Jesus’ words confuse them. He said, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”

Huh? 

Truly, the disciples had their minds on physical things, while Jesus was thinking of spiritual truths.

(This is so often my own case. I tend to ponder and worry over earthly problems, while Jesus wants me to “set my mind on things above.” Colossians 3:2)

The disciples were thinking about bread to eat. Jesus was thinking about leaven to avoid. 

So…. what WAS Jesus talking about?  He was thinking about the acid conversation He’d just had with the Pharisees. Their stubborn hearts questioned His mission and denied the good news of the Kingdom He was bringing.  They were like leaven spreading in a lump of dough. Not the good everyday bread, but that of Passover, symbolically His body, free from sin. 

Trying to elevate their thoughts, Jesus fired eight questions at them.

  1. Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread?
  2. Do you not yet perceive or understand?
  3. Are your hearts hardened?
  4. Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear?
  5. And do you not remember?
  6. When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?  Twelve.
  7. And the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?  Seven.
  8. Do you not yet understand?

Did they?  Do we?

The “leaven” of the Pharisees was their false teaching and their hypocritical behavior. The “leaven” of Herod was his immoral, corrupt conduct. 

How to beware of these?  Keep ourselves buried in God’s Word and the teaching of our Lord Jesus.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (1/28) Mark 7:1-23

Jan28

A 5-day per week study.

January 28– Reading Mark 7:1-23.

Read and believe in Jesus.

“There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”  Mark 7:15

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The Gospel according to Mark 7:1-23

Mark begins this section with “defilement” being digested and ends with “defilement” being regurgitated.  (Another nice “Mark” sandwich.)

The ever-watchful Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem begin to harass Jesus, accusing His disciples of not observing the “traditions of the elders.”

Remember, they were not concerned with keeping the Mosaic Law itself, but with the extreme extent to which the ancient rabbis (elders) had padded it and twisted it.

Anyone living through the COVID era has had hand washing drummed into them.  And it IS a good idea to wash your hands before you eat, especially when you’ve been shopping. It was even a better idea in those days when marketplaces openly displayed both live and butchered animals, with their accompanying flies.

But the “elders” had made a ceremonial ritual of the washing.

            Example: Someone had to pour water from a jar onto your hands, with your fingers pointing upward, so the water would run off your wrist. Then another jar would be poured over your hands with your fingers pointing downward.  After this, each hand would be rubbed with the fist of your other hand.   (Notice: no soap.) 

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Vss. 1-5

Jesus and His disciples were probably still in the town of Gennesaret, ministering to multitudes of sick people.  Perhaps they went to a street vendor in the marketplace and bought some falafel-pita sandwiches for lunch.  Maybe they wiped their hands on their robes or on an inside handkerchief. Maybe not. 

Soon they were chowing down on some yummy food.

Like unwanted flies, the religious leaders appear.

“Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders but eat with defiled hands?” the spokesman of the Pharisees and scribes demanded of Jesus.  (At least they were honest about their traditions vs The Law.)

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Vss. 6-16.

They were probably not ready for Jesus’ multi-part answer.

First, He quotes scripture to them.

“’THIS people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of MEN.’”  (Isaiah 29:13)

Then, Jesus nails some of the ways they do that.

  • MOSES SAID: “HONOR your father and mother,” and “Whoever reviles father and mother must surely die.”  (Exodus 20:12 and 21:17)
  • YOU SAY: “If a man tells his father or mother, ‘Whatever you could have gained from me is Corban (dedicated to God).” THEN, you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother, thus making void the word of God by your tradition. 
  • And you do MANY other things like this!
  • (NOTE: Jesus was not saying that your possessions or land property can’t be given to God as an offering.  He WAS saying that just slapping a “CORBAN” sign on these things while you are still using and enjoying them, because you are mad at your parents and don’t want to help them, is vile, unloving, selfish, and using God for your own purposes.)

Then Jesus tells the Pharisees and the people a parable.  “It is NOT what goes INTO a person that defiles him, but the things that come OUT of him that defiles him.”

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Vss. 17-23.

Later, in private, Jesus clarifies what He was saying to the religious leaders, who weren’t open to His words.

(Remember that Jesus speaks in parables to those He knows have already closed minds and hearts.)

“Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him since it enters not his heart but his stomach and is expelled?”  

  • (Thus, He declared all foods clean, says Mark, reminding his readers about what later happened to Peter in Joppa when God brought down the sheet of unclean animals and told Peter to “kill and eat.”)

Jesus continues,

“What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the HEART of man come:  evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness.   All these evil things come out from within and DEFILE a person.” 

(In Matthew 15: 20, Jesus adds, “To eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.”)

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See also:  Matthew 12:34b-35, Galatians 5:22-24, and James 3:17-18, for the “good treasure” that comes out of the hearts of those who belong to Jesus Christ.

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“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart

Be acceptable in Your sight,

O LORD, my strength and my redeemer.”

Psalm 19:14

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (1/27) Mark 6:45-56

Jan27

A 5-day per week study.

January 27 – Reading Mark 6:45-56.

Read and believe in Jesus.

Immediately, He spoke to them, ‘Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.’ Mark 6:50b.

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The Gospel according to Mark 6:45-56

Jesus has just performed a colossal miracle. A crowd of up to 15K have been fed to their fill by a handful of bread and fish. What if He could do it again? What if He could/would do it always? No one would have to work in the fields or go fishing… wow!

According to John’s account (John 6:14-16), this is basically what the well-fed crowd was thinking. “Let’s make Jesus KING!!!” They weren’t at the point of saying it. They were still thinking of Him as the great prophet Moses spoke about. But Jesus could read their hearts. He sent away his disciples before they could be caught up in the fervor, then firmly dismissed the people. To keep any die-hards from mobbing Him, Jesus slipped away up the mountainside. (The Eastern side of Galilee is mountainous, with steep cliffs and a plateau. Perfect for quiet prayer.)

While the crowd dispersed, the disciples began to row across the unpredictable Sea of Galilee, and Jesus fell to His knees and prayed to His Father. (Praise, fellowship, petition, submission. The hours passed. Oh, to have been there!)

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Vss. 47-48.

Meanwhile, that cranky wind over the Galilean Sea was pushing against the disciples’ progress. The sail was of no use, so they got out the oars. The harder they rowed, the stronger it blew. It felt like they were laboring in the same spot for hours. Arm and back muscles began to sting and weaken.

They were tired, and – unbelievable as it seems – they had forgotten to bring those twelve baskets of bread pieces and fish. They were hungrier than before!! And now it was the “third watch,” somewhere between 3:00 and 6:00 in the morning.

Jesus saw their plight from the mountain. Not as a speck on the water, but as His own men, struggling, tired, and hungry. So Jesus went to them, walking on the top of the water. Imagine that! The seawater, always yielding to its Creator’s will, supported the weight of Jesus as He went to His disciples.

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Vss 49-52.

In the boat, the men saw what they thought was a ghost (phantom) approaching them. They screamed in fright. They frantically tried to row faster. What else would this endless night bring? But then they heard that familiar voice of their Master.

‘Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”

They recognized His voice and His “I AM” authority. What relief when their Master climbed into the boat, and immediately the wind behaved itself, calming to a breeze, and the choppy water smoothed out.

John’s account (John 6:30-31) says that as soon as Jesus got into the boat, they were IMMEDIATELY at the other shore. What? Wow! What kindness the Lord showed to His bone-weary disciples.

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“Come unto Me, all ye who labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Matthew 11:29-30

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Vss.53-56.

At Gennesaret (the north-western side of Galilee, south of Capernaum), they moored the boat. As soon as they got out, the people immediately recognized Jesus. They ran throughout the area and began bringing the sick people on their beds to Jesus.

As Jesus and the disciples walked through this town and others in the region, the people laid their sick before Him and begged Him that they might touch the fringe (tassels) of His (prayer) garment, as the woman with the issue of blood had done. And ALL who touched it were made well.

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(Of those who were healed, how many believed in Jesus as Messiah and Savior? Not many. Like the ten lepers who were healed and only one returned to thank Jesus, the people who were made well were excited and happy, but only a few, like the woman with the issue of blood and the demoniac in Decapolis, had faith to believe. After Jesus’ resurrection, only 500 people met Him in Galilee, of all in Israel who’d witnessed or experienced His miracles.

We should be praying for healing, yes, but MORE so for our hearts to be filled with faith and a desire to be with and serve Jesus.)

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (1/22) Mark 6:1-12.

Jan22

 A five-day-per-week study

January 22 – Reading Mark 6:1-12

Read and believe in Jesus. 

“And Jesus marveled because of their unbelief.” Mark 6:6

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The Gospel according to Mark 6:1-12.

After raising Jairus’ daughter from the dead, to keep the crowds from growing even larger and pressing Him so He couldn’t teach or minister, Jesus took His disciples 50 miles SW to His hometown of Nazareth. It was small and of little importance, and most of the crowds would not follow Him there.

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Vss. 1-6.

On the Sabbath, they went into the local synagogue, and Jesus began to teach. Many who heard Him were “astonished.”

In the synagogue in Capernaum, the people who heard Jesus were also “astonished” at his teaching.  To them, “he taught as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.”  (See Mark 1:22)

Not so in Jesus’ hometown.  Notice the questions that came from the people of Nazareth after their astonishment at His teaching….

  • Where did this man get these things?
  • What is the wisdom given to Him?
  • How are such mighty works done by His hands?
  • Is not this the carpenter?
  • The son of Mary? *
  • The brother to James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? **
  • The brother to his sisters?
  • “And they took offense at Him.”

Unbelief, pure and simple.  

And Jesus acknowledged it.  He told them, “A prophet is not without honor … except in his hometown, and among his relatives, and in his own household.”

Jesus could do no miracles there except that He laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them.

How sad. This town missed out on the huge blessings of Kingdom teaching and miracles … just because they would not accept Jesus for His claims (and Mary’s) 

So, Jesus went about among other villages teaching.

 

*Note: Calling Jesus the ‘son of Mary’ was degrading. Usually, a man was named after his father. (Simon, son of Jonah, James & John, the sons of Zebedee). With this title, they were saying they knew Jesus was conceived by a woman who was not married.)

**Note: Of Jesus’ brothers, James and Judas (Jude) did finally believe in Him and were saved.  James became the leader of the Jerusalem church and wrote the book of James. Judas also wrote the book of Jude and ministered in Galilee.  But now?  Now these brothers teased Him about his “visions of grandeur.”

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Vss. 7-12.

Away from Nazareth with its unbelief and Capernaum with its massive crowds, Jesus began another teaching exercise for the ‘Twelve.” He would send them out in pairs into the towns and villages in the area. And He gave them authority over unclean spirits. (Jesus had all authority, to give to whom He would).

There were requirements for their experience that would prepare them for later missionary work, when they would take the Gospel throughout the known world.

  • They were to take nothing except a staff – used for walking and protection against criminals and wild animals.
  • They were to take no food, no normal traveling sack, and no money. (This would be a faith-builder.)
  • They were to wear sandals, but only one tunic, so they could identify with the common people. (Those with comparative wealth would wear two tunics.)
  • They were to remain in the first house they approached that welcomed them for the duration of their stay. (Even if the neighbor had better accommodations or yummier food!)
  • If any home or town would not receive them, they were to “shake off the dust from their feet” as they left. This would show that the people had rejected Jesus and the gospel, and that they were rejected by the Lord.

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It’s interesting that Jesus chose the pairs of men to send out to different communities.

Don’t you wonder who made up those six teams?   Did the two sets of brothers go together, or did Jesus choose a fisherman with a scholar?  Did He send the tax collector out with the Roman-hating Zealot?  Who was sent with Judas Iscariot?

Jesus knew their hearts.  They each would be learning from the other and adjusting to circumstances every day.

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And so these men went out and proclaimed that people should repent. 

Did Jesus do the same, or did He go to a quiet place and spend days fasting and praying to His father for them, and for His own gruesome mission?