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Mark notes.PDF
Study notes for Mark
Introduction
A. Explain manuscript method: USE PENS, highlighters (bring some)
--look for repeated words, paragraph breaks, ask questions, themes
--no outside references, cross references (except OT, Mark's direct or indirect references)
--encourage people to dig in, be tentative, involved
B. Explain commitment and reasons for it: "You miss Mark for what you would miss a final for.
Plan it into your week." Give people the option of taking a couple of weeks to check it
out before committing. "If you miss, or know you will have to, talk to me before, and we
will arrange a make-up, for the sake of continuity."
C. Collect $3 from everyone who has committed to Mark, to whom you give complete
manuscripts. Keep written track of who has paid (and attendance, even if not obviously.
Easiest thing is to get a phone list passed around, and use it as an attendance list).
I. Page 1.
Give background: supposed to be the sermon notes of Peter, passed on to Mark, his
apprentice, written down between 64-68 AD. The closest audience of this book is the
Christians in Rome at the time. We study Mark partly because it probably was the first
gospel written; Matthew and Luke base much of their material on Mark.
For personal time:
Repeated words, paragraph breaks, etc.
List all the things we learn about Jesus on page 1
During the study:
Repeated words? Good news,prepare, wilderness, sins,
all,proclaim,etc.
Paragraph breaks?
Line 1: What do you notice about the first sentence?
What kind of a sentence is it? Not a sentence
What is it? it is a title
"The Gospel According to Mark"--isn't that the title?
Mark's title is different:
"The beginning"? just the beginning, not the end
"good news"--not a history, not dispassionate
"Jesus Christ" = "annointed one"
"Son of God"--don't have to wait for the punch line
What happens first in this account of the good news?--John
appears
What is John's job description?
Where do we see it?
Page 2
Where does the first complete sentence end?
What is the main clause of the sentence?
What purpose does the Old Testament quote fill?
Pronouns in the prophecy? Who is whom? (Mal 3:1, Isaiah 40:3)
"I", "my messenger", "you", "your way"
How do you know who the messenger is? Messenger = John
crying in the wilderness, proclaiming in the wilderness
prepare the way of the Lord, John prepares for Jesus
"As it is written... John ... appeared..."
What was John proclaiming? "baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins."
What does that mean? baptism = rite done for conversion to judaism; only Gentiles did this
What would it be like? like telling people born in this country that they need to become
naturalized-- this is radical!
What is repentance? turning around, 180-degree change
How is this making the path straight for Jesus? calling
people to leave behind their former lifestyles
Yet what kind of response did John receive? all Judea, all the people
Why? they were expecting the messiah: Is this it?
What is odd about the description of John? Why does Mark give us
the fashion report? (Someone read II Kings 1:8.)
Why did so many people come out to see John? (Read Mal 4:5-6,
review the political situation of the day.)
Who did the OT prophecy tell them to expect? When?
What was Elijah's job supposed to be?
What would happen if they did not respond?
Contrast John and Jesus in this passage. John points to Jesus.
Notes to Mark study leader:
1) Importance of confession: it's the role of a Mark study leader to lead people into confession,
specifically through modeling and leading.
2) John the Baptist as a Mark study leader: points to Jesus rather than himself, introduces people
to Jesus, builds sense of expectation, and has clarity about his own importance.
Application:
1) How does one prepare for Jesus? repentance.
How have I been prepared for Jesus entrance into my life?
Are there things I'm bringing into this study that are obstacles to meeting Jesus?
In what areas of my life does my allegiance to the world need to be challenged?
2) John's lifestyle and witness raises curiosity and expectation for Jesus. Does my life interest
people in Jesus?
Page 3
3) John's message was clear: people needed a relationship with the one who was much mightier
than he. John pointed to Jesus and not to himself. Am I this clear? How am I tempted to
point people to myself?
Page 4
II. Page 1, the second time.
Read "The Student, The Fish, and Agassiz".
Review last weeks progress. What else did people see or ask questions about in the first 15 lines?
Discuss the assignment from last week, "What did you learn about Jesus on this page?"
Examine the imagery of the baptism. The parallel image of the sky opening as the spirit descends
as the waters open when Jesus comes up out of the water. "Kata-bainon" and
"ana-bainon." Reverse but parallel images meet as the Spirit descends upon the ascending
Jesus.
How is the Holy Spirit depicted here? gentle, like a dove, but with authority--it drives Jesus out
into the wilderness. (Jesus and the Spirit go 4-wheeling...)
What happened in the wilderness? Spirit in control, Jesus obedient; Jesus tempted by Satan,
ministered to by the angels
40 days? Moses (Ex 24:18, 34:28), Elijah (I Kings 19:8), both fasted 40 days and
encountered God. Spiritual leaders take forty days of fasting to enter into greater
relationship with God; to learn dependence and be prepared for ministry.
What happened to John? arrested
Why does Mark put it that way? Who is this story about? Jesus
What had John said about Jesus?--After me. What happens?
Who has been the main actor up to this point? Who is now?
Up to line 19, Jesus is mostly an object of action and
John is an actor. Here it switches.
What is Jesus doing? preaching the gospel
What is he preaching? "Time is fulfilled..."
What is "time is fulfilled"? [KAIROS=decisive moment] = "the moment we've all been waiting
for..."
What is the response he's looking for? repent & believe in good
news
What is the good news?
What does it mean, "K of G has come near"? K of G is ready, it is
now
What does it take to have a Kingdom? King, subjects or realm
What does it mean, "K of G has come near"? God's king is near
Who is the King? Jesus
What response does he want? repent & believe
What is the good news? GOD's KING IS HERE!!! No more waiting!
What was John proclaiming? one coming after me, mightier
What was Jesus proclaiming? the king, himself.
Page 5
People say that Jesus was a great teacher, he preached great precepts. But ultimately, Jesus
preached himself, not a system of ethics.
Let's look back at the baptism of Jesus.
Why did John baptize people? repentance for forgiveness of sins
Why was Jesus baptized?
What happened when Jesus was baptized? God confessed Jesus'
sinlessness
Why was it necessary for Jesus to be baptized then?
What ceremony usually accompanies the beginning of a kingdom or reign of a king? Coronation
Read Psalm 2:6-7. Coronation Psalm, God declaring the sonship of the ruler of the people of
Israel.
What happens when Jesus is baptized? God speaks, spirit descends
What is happening for Jesus? He is being crowned, instituted as God's Son, God's king, the King
of the Kingdom of God.
When Jesus walked into the area of the Jordan river, who was he? Jesus of Nazareth
When Jesus left the desert and came into Galilee preaching, who was he? Jesus, God's Son, now
crowned King of the K of G
Application
1) What is the proper response to the message of the gospel? Repent and believe in God's king,
Jesus
2) How is repentance a preparation for belief in Jesus?
What does that look like for us, now?
Is there an area of my life where I don't believe that Jesus' kingship is good news?
3) Who is the central figure of the K of G? Jesus
What does that say in a pluralistic, relativistic society?
4) Write for a few minutes: What is hard or scary about Jesus' kingship? We've all experienced his
kingship in some areas. What areas are difficult to turn over to him now?
Page 6
III. Mark Manuscript pages 2:1-3:9
Paragraph breaks
Repeated words: immediately,leave, follow,teach, saw, authority
What is Jesus' ministry like on this page?
How do people react to him?
What are adjectives to describe him?
What is the theme of this page of Mark, down through 3:3? authority
Where do we see Jesus exercising authority?
Examine the theme of Jesus' authority in each section.
1. Simon and Andrew: authority over jobs
Jesus makes his first prophecy: "I will make you fish ..."
Why did Jesus use "fish for people"? a phrase they would understand; he takes an image
familiar to them
How would they understand this phrase? by seeing his model, he was fishing for men and
caught them. They would eventually do what he is doing with them.
2. James and John: authority over family
What kind of family did J&J have? wealthy (hired men); Close: family business. Certainly
Zebedee assumed his sons would take over his business.
What would it mean for them to leave their father et al? perhaps even a hardship for
Zebedee, certainly a disappointment
3. teaching: Authority over scripture, teaching
How did the scribes teach? How did Jesus?
like the difference between the TA and the professor-- quoting other sources versus being
the expert. Jesus spoke of scripture as though he himself was the authority on what it
meant. Jesus exercises authority through his word.
4. evil spirits: Authority over the spiritual realm
How did the spirit know Jesus? page 1: the word is out
What does he know about Jesus?
Why doesn't he want the demons to speak about him?
--messianic secret: he didn't want people to know he was the messiah at this point:
voids the inductive process
--Demon's aren't the best character witnesses: Jesus doesn't want the people to
learn his identity from demons
5. illness: Authority over physical illness, the physical realm
What do we learn about Peter here? Peter is married!
What happened at sundown? Why? they waited until the end of the sabbath, but they were
excited by the healings and so Peter, Andrew, James and John brought their friends and
neighbors to come see Jesus and to be healed. Their excitment was contagious and
predictable given the exciting day they had had with Jesus in the synagogue and at home.
Page 7
How do the people know about Jesus?
What did Jesus say to them when he called them? "I will make you fish for people"
What has happened for the disciples? they have begun fishing for people
Examine Jesus' authority as seen in the responses of people:
Jesus commands, people (demons, fever) obey, others are amazed
Jesus acts decisively, immediately
3:3-9
What does Jesus do next?
What did Jesus tell Peter to do when he first called Peter? follow me
What is Peter doing now?--Literally "hunting" for Jesus
Why?
What's the difference between hunting and following?
What is Peter's plan for the day?
Where did Peter get his sense of the day's agenda? from seeing all the needs around him
What is Jesus' plan?
Where did Jesus get his day's agenda? from his time in prayer with his father
Peter has seen something true and good about Jesus, but it isn't the whole story. Jesus has a
different agenda than Jesus does. How often do we get a partial picture of Jesus and his
agenda and then want to go off half-cocked without being led by Jesus himself. Peter
wasn't all wrong about Jesus--he just wasn't being led by him.
Jesus called Peter to follow him and fish for people; Peter was fishing for Jesus and following
the crowds.
Why does Jesus say, "Let us go on to ..."? Jesus told Peter to follow him, now he has learned that
Jesus meant it literally.
Perhaps this is the first place that Peter learns that he is literally going to follow Jesus around
Galilee. Peter didn't just leave his nets for the day, or for a few days, but Peter has left
them for good. Peter becomes a full-time disciple, not a part-time interested observer. The
stakes are raised for Peter when Jesus says "Let us go on to the next towns".
Application: How likely would it be for us, having spent 40 days in retreat and then one day of
full time ministry (late into the night healing people), to get up early the next day to have
an extended QT? Wouldn't we be tempted to coast, or at least to sleep in? Wouldn't we be
tempted to take the easy crowd that had been gathered, rather than do the hard work of
heading on to other towns?
Re-examine 2:1-9
What did Jesus say to Andrew and Simon?
What did they do? what two verbs? left and followed
What did James and John do when Jesus called them? left and followed
What other pair of verbs have we seen, like leave and follow? repent and believe
What has come near?
Page 8
Who is King?
What else does a kingdom need?
How do you become a subject?
How did that look for the disciples?
What did it mean for P&A, James & John to become subjects of the king? repent and believe,
leave their nets and family, and follow Jesus
What did Peter & Andrew repent of? ... Who were they? (line 3)
Peter, Andrew = fishermen, they left their nets
How does Mark describe James and John? = sons of Zebedee, they left their family
What had to happen? an identity change, repentance
Here Mark tells us more about what repentance looks like: =leaving, turning from security, from
what defines us
Belief in the gospel= Following Jesus = taking hold of a new definition, a new reality, a new
security
From Page 1 we know that Jesus is the king. Here Mark tells us what kind of a king; Jesus is a
king with all kinds of authority. From page 1 we know that we are to repent and believe.
Here Mark tells us more about what repentance and belief is going to look like: leaving
and following.
Application:
What areas in my life need Jesus' authority?
What defines me? What are my nets? being a student, family, future plans
What must I do to leave them?
Am I willing to do that?
How did Jesus cope with pressure and a busy day? to get up early & pray
How do I tend to cope with a busy day?
Discuss "being a Christian"
vs.
"following Jesus"
static, passive
dynamic, active
focus on who's in,
focus on direction:
who's not
moving toward or
away from Jesus
Box Christianity (Am I in the box?) vs vector (Magnitude and
direction)
Peter wants to stay put in Capernaum, while Jesus heals people.
Jesus wants to move--he is depicted as on the move, not static, and he expects his followers to
move with him.
Page 9
IV. Mark 3:9-4:13
Discuss the nature of leprosy, social, medical, etc. Lev 13:40-46.
What is the leper's request? to be made clean (physical/ spiritual)
What do you think about this leper? has faith, is humble, yet bold
Discuss the nature of the mans's healing:
Why did Jesus touch the man? (his word is what healed him)
What usually happens when a person touches a leper?
What happened when Jesus touched the leper?
Why does Jesus send him to the priest?
What action of Jesus healed the man? touch or speak? both, at different levels...
On what levels does Jesus minister to this man?
physical: healing, spoken word
emotional: Jesus' touch
social: as a proof to the people
spiritual: show to priest, to be allowed to enter into temple life
How does the leper respond to Jesus stern warning? disobedience
What are the consequences? incomplete healing for the man,
costs Jesus' ministry. Demons listen to Jesus,
but foolish men do not.
3:18-4:13:
Discuss the situation with the paralytic.
Where does Jesus go now?
What do people call it?
How large are the crowds?
Describe the faith of the paralytic's friends.
What are the scribes thinking?
What is wrong with their rhetorical question? nothing: only God can forgive sins
What is the answer to his rhetorical question?
Which is easier to say? Your sins are forgiven (harder to do)
Which is easier to do? rise (harder to say--easily proven)
"In order that you may know that I can do what is harder to do, I will say what is harder to say."
Why does Jesus heal the paralytic? so that you may know that the son of man has authority on
earth to forgive sins
Who is the "son of man"? Dan 7:13, messianic term Jesus appropriates for himself
How did he heal the man? with his words; again his words have authority
How did Jesus know what the scribes were thinking? he can see the unseen: faith, questioning in
hearts
What is the scribes' logic? How do they conclude that Jesus is a
blasphemer? 1) God alone can forgive sins 2) This man is not
God... THEREFORE 3) This man is a blasphemer
What is the alternative to that conclusion? What is Jesus' logic?
1) God alone can forgive sins 2) I have authority to forgive sins... THEREFORE 3) I AM
GOD!
Page 10
What more do we learn about Jesus from this study? He has authority to forgive sins, he is God,
he is compassionate. Jesus can see the unseen, he knows the human heart, he has insight
into human needs.
Application:
How is faith demonstrated in Mark so far? action
leper: risked, humble & desperate, he came to Jesus & asked
paralytic: came to Jesus, out of control, acted on Jesus' command
What act of faith is Jesus calling us?
Leper and paralytic: two people defined in this case by their illness. In the encounter with Jesus,
they are healed, and hence given a new identity. We need repentance, not just of sin or
attachments, but even of infirmities or handicaps as what defines us.
Leper and paralytic: Physical manifestations of the shame and paralysis that comes from sin.
Jesus cleanses our shame and frees us from the bondage to sinful patterns.
How are Jesus' commands to me part of the way he is healing me? (like the leper) How is Jesus
healing the unseen parts of me? I can miss out on Jesus' healing because I choose not to
obey.
Leper: People can be touched by Jesus, even healed by him, but not submit to his Lordship.
Don't let the "crowds" get in your way to receive healing from Jesus for real needs. What are the
crowds of your life? desires, other people, distractions
Bring needy people to Jesus to be healed--Do I have enough faith?
Page 11
V. Manuscript 4:13-22, review pp1-4.
In preparation time, have people make lists or notes summarizing pp1-4 regarding some or all of
the following:
Notice the verbs: the actions and commands of Jesus
How do we see Jesus' authority: over what, over whom?
Categorize responses to Jesus
Look at the nature of faith: what did faith look like for these people?
Examine the healings. Any parallels, any progressions, any similarities?
How does Jesus call his disciples?
Discuss 4:13-22
What did you notice? What is the scene?
Compare the calling of Levi to the others on p. 2.
Read lines 17-20. What is Mark trying to say regarding sinners and tax collectors by this
repetition? they are equivalent
Why? discuss nature of tax collector, other "sinner" types
How do the pharisees react? question
Diagram the room: Jesus, sinners, disciples, scribes
Who do the pharisees ask Jesus' disciples Why?
What do you think the disciples think about this situation? they too look on. They perhaps
are wondering the same thing. The disciples are being identified with Jesus. They must
answer for his actions--yet they still don't know what he is up to. Even so, they allow the
identification, and it grows (in the next study).
What is Jesus' response?
What answer did the disciples expect? some kind of justification
Who has Jesus come to call?
Who has he called up to this point in Mark?
What is Jesus saying about the disciples?
Essentially Jesus says that his disciples are sinners also.
How do you think the disciples feel about that?
Read lines 21-22. What form of speech is that? an analogy
What is the analogy, in classic SAT form?
sick:physician::sinners:Jesus
Sick people need a doctor; what do sinners need? Jesus
What type of person? a savior
What is Jesus saying about himself? he is a savior.
Who are the "righteous"? those who don't know that they are sick, those who think they are
righteous.
Who doesn't go to a doctor? the well, or those who think they are
Jesus is a savior for all sinners who recognize their desperate illness.
Discuss any of the following as people categorized them in their own time.
Notice the verbs: the actions and commands of Jesus
1) Who sees? 2) Who speaks? 3) Who acts?
Come in sets:
Page 12
Prepare/Proclaim/Baptize
Repent/Believe
Leave/Follow
action: movement, bringing to Jesus, observing, perceiving,
seeing is important
contact: touch, lifts by hand; enters home, synagogue
proclaims, teaches
negative contact: rebuke, sternly charged
noise: calling, proclaiming, teaching;
crying in the wilderness, demons cry out
conflicts: satan, demons, scribes, disciples break w/the past
passive: Jesus is baptized by John, waited on by angels, served by Simon's m-in-law
How do we see Jesus' authority: over what, over whom? jobs, family, teaching, spiritual world,
physical illness, to forgive sins
Categorize responses to Jesus:
obedience: disciples, demons, illness, paralytic (who rose)
amazement: from healings, teachings, forgiving sins
disobedience: the leper, who tells everyone what happened
questioning: the Pharisees, not sympathetic, sceptical
resistance: Satan's temptation of Jesus
interest: people gather around Jesus, bring others to him
Look at the nature of faith: what did faith look like for these people?
leper: risked, humble & desperate, he came to Jesus & asked
paralytic: came to Jesus, out of control, acted on Jesus' command
the people with the paralytic: they come to Jesus at great effort
disciples: they leave family and security behind and follow Jesus
Levi: rises and follows--he leaves his tax job and income
1) Seeking Jesus
2) acting on his words
3) costly but it is worth it
Each comes to Jesus in faith and responds in action. Faith here does not seem to be intellectual
assent to certain propositions about God or Jesus. Most of these people did not
understand very much about who Jesus was.
"Being a Christian" versus "following Jesus"
static, "in or out" vs dynamic, movement oriented definition
"What do you believe?" vs "Where are you going?"
or "Who are you following?"
Look at the issue of identity. How does individual's identity change in contact with Jesus?
Page 13
Peter & Andrew--leave nets, because they were fishermen
demons--they must leave the body they were at home in
"leper"--he is no longer a leper, that which identified him
"paralytic"--healed and is no longer a paralytic
Levi--"tax collector and sinner", he left his job and lifestyle
Each comes into contact with Jesus and each is changed clear down to his identity. How has (or
will) our identities changed by coming into contact with Jesus?
Examine the healings. Any parallels, any progressions, any similarities?
1st healing: Question: Why have you come?
Levi: Answer: I came to call sinners
1st healing: the people's response: amazed and questioned
paralytic: the people's response: amazed & glorified God
Jesus heals people and he calls people in these first four pages. But he doesn't call those he healed.
Look back at the specific healing incidents, beginning with Simon's mother-in-law:
WHO
What kind of problem: what level
Simon's m-in-law
fever: physical
Leper
leprosy/unclean:physical/spiritual
Paralytic
sin/paralysis: spiritual/physical
[Levi]
"sinner": spiritual
Mark chooses these four stories from the many hundreds of healings to demonstrate how Jesus is
a physician and a savior. He heals people who are sick and he forgives people who are
sinners. Jesus is the savior.
Review from page 1: Mark gives us two pictures of Jesus from this section, one of Jesus as the
king, one of Jesus as the savior.
What do we learn about this king? he has authority (p2)
What do we learn about this savior? what do you want in a savior? mercy
What do we learn about Jesus as a savior? he has compassion, mercy
What is difficult in accepting Jesus' kingship? "can I trust him?"
How does Mark's picture of Jesus as King and Savior address the question of trust? Jesus is a
king with compassion and mercy, he knows our needs more deeply than we do. The leper
is a good picture of us: often times we are healed in some way by Jesus' touch but he
wants us to undergo a more thorough healing, involving some discipline and obedience to
him on our parts. We are so tempted to be satisfied with Jesus the savior that we forget
that Jesus is king, and he has authority. But ironically, Jesus cannot thoroughly heal us
without our obedience to his commands. We cannot accept Jesus as our Savior without
following him as our Lord. He saves us by calling us to obey him.
Page 14
Application:
Evangelism: We fear to bring Jesus up because we think that people will be uninterested or
apathetic. But people introduced to Jesus react strongly.
Jesus encounters people with no greater purpose than survival, and changes their identity and
gives them purpose.
At this party, where would I have been? Sitting and joking with Jesus, hanging out with the
"respectable disciples," or questioning with the Pharisees?
Do I recognized that I am a sinner in need of a Savior--like the sick need a doctor?
How have I been tempted to want Jesus as my Savior without fully acknowledging his lordship?
Why?
How has my trust in him grown recently?
Page 15
VI. Manuscript Pages 4:22-6:3, "Jesus goes against the grain."
Discuss 4:22-5:9.
What is the question?
Who asked it? the people
Why? they had observed the disciples not fasting like other religious types--they don't fit
the "religious" mold
What do the people want to know? What's the question behind the question?
Again the disciples and Jesus are being identified--they must answer for each other's
actions
This is the third "WHY?" question on page 4:
"Why does this fellow speak in this way?"
"Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?"
"Why do [they] fast, but your disciples do not?"
Jesus' actions are authoritative, but not conventional. They are parabolic, in a sense,
drawing out curiousity and getting people to ask "Why?"
What is fasting for? Who does it? What does the law require? once/year is required [the day of
Atonement, see Lev 23:27-29], but the pharisees thought that if once per year was good,
twice a week (see Luke 18) was better. Fasting is a time to focus on God, to mourn sin
and be humbled before God; a renewal in one's relationship to God.
What is Jesus' response? Explain the imagery. (Bridegroom: Isa 62:1-5)
Why would it be inappropriate to fast at a wedding? an insult to the bridegroom. Fasting
symbolizes mourning at a time when everyone should be celebrating. When the groom is
gone, then fasting will again be appropriate.
What is Jesus' point? Why aren't the disciples fasting? Jesus is the groom, he is with them.
They don't need to fast to develop their relationships with God--he is in their presence. He
is with them.
Again Jesus makes himself the issue--not his teachings or his precepts (see also 1:20-21, 2:3,
3:6-7, 4:6-10, 4:21-22, and 5:17-18).
What is Jesus saying in the second part of his answer, with the two parables about cloth and
wineskins? Explain the images.
New cloth hasn't been shrunk; if you patch prewashed jeans with new denim, you will get
a worse rip after washing. Old wineskins have already been stretched by the fermenting
process; if you put unfermented wine into them, the skins will not be able to stretch further
in order to handle the fermentation, and the skins will break, destroying both.
Why is Jesus talking about these things?
What repeated words are significant? "old" and "new"
What is Jesus saying about the old and the new? Don't try to patch the old with the new,
don't try to put the new into the old
Page 16
Who is the old, who is the new? Pharisees=old, Jesus=new. Don't try to put Jesus into the
old structures of religiousity. Jesus is bringing a new thing. (See 2:21, "What is this, a new
teaching?")
What happens when the old and new come into contact? conflict, tension, destruction
Where have we seen conflict? Jesus doesn't meet the Pharisees expectations
Does Jesus intend to blend in to the old in our lives? What can we expect? tension,
conflict, change. We must embrace the new
Jesus answers their question at two levels: first of all he talks about the specific question of
fasting. Then he addresses their more fundamental question: Why do you do things in a
new way?
Discuss 5:11-5:23.
What is the Pharisees question? "Why do they work on the sabbath?"
(The question is not: "Why are your disciples stealing grain on the Sabbath?" Deut 23:25
indicates that what the disciples were doing is perfectly legal).
About whom is the question asked?
To whom is it addressed?
Again, close association of the disciples and Jesus.
This time, Jesus is called to answer for the disciples,
instead of the other way around (4:20).
How does Jesus defend his disciples' actions? he refers to the OT. "David did this kind of thing.
David understood that the law was made for man, not man for the law."
[I Sam 21:1-6 indicates that it is Ahimilech, not Abiathar, who is the priest of Nob, where this
happened. II Sam 8:17 indicates that Ahimilech is the son of Abiathar. Perhaps this
happened when Abiathar was the high priest, though Ahimilech was the priest that gave
David the bread of the presence from the sanctuary in Nob. It is better not to have to
explain this passage.]
How would the Pharisees react to Jesus citing David as his precedent? "You don't claim to have
the authority David did, do you?"
Beyond that, what does Jesus say? David understood this, and could do this because he too was a
man. The Son of Man, however, is LORD of the Sabbath. In other words, Jesus > David.
(Both were annointed to be king.)
Contrast the way Jesus and the Pharisees view the law.
The Pharisees think about the law all the time, but never did they think about the purpose
of the law, the WHY of it. They were experts at the WHAT of the law. This is how
structures, like the sabbath command of God, become dead institutions, become old and
lifeless, like empty, crusty wineskins. Jesus is bringing new stuff, and this is causing
tension and conflict with the upholders of the old, the Pharisees. (Remember, the Pharisees
were at one time a new thing, too. They were a renewal movement, a fresh outpouring of
God's spirit to revive dead judaism in the intertestamental period. They have since become
old.)
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Discuss 5:18-6:3.
Describe the situation: the mood, the glances, the non-verbal communication.
Jesus is being watched. The scene is tense. Little is said, but much is communicated. The man
appears--perhaps it is even a set up, a staged event. They are there to accuse Jesus. But he
out-maneuvers them beautifully.
What is Jesus' question? "What is the purpose of the sabbath?" Again, they have not focused on
the purpose of the sabbath laws, only on the minutiae of content. They say, "Do nothing
on the sabbath." Jesus says, "To do nothing is to do harm."
What is the purpose of the law? it was made for man
What does it keep people from doing? harm, killing
What is its intent? to do good, to save life
Why are the Pharisees silent?
What is Jesus' reaction?
Why is he grieved and angered?
What is the condition of the man? withered hand, not an emergency, not urgent
Why did Jesus heal on the sabbath? to demonstrate his authority over the Sabbath (4:9, 5:18), to
do good on the sabbath, to fulfill its purpose
What is supposed to be done on the sabbath?
What does Jesus do?
What are the Pharisees about to go out and do? plot murder on the sabbath
What was Jesus grieved at? the condition of their hearts
What did he see in their hearts? murder
What did Jesus say would happen when new and old come into contact? conflict
What will happen if the new is pressed into old categories? destruction of both
What are the pharisees plotting? the destruction of Jesus
Application: How am I tempted to force the newness of Jesus into the old ways of thinking and
living my life? What newness of Jesus is causing the most tension for me right now? What
is the danger to me of trying to force the new into the old? What will go, and what will
tear?
How do I tend to think about the law? Jesus' commands, obedience to God? Do I know
that the law is made to serve me, to heal me, and not that I am made to slave away to
serve the law. God works to serve me, not that I work to serve God. The law=Jesus
commands is an instrument of my healing, not a strict standard of my judgment.
Secondary application: What are old wineskins in my life? Ways in which God's Spirit has been
poured into my life but now are crusty old structures that I trust in without understanding
the whys, the purposes of God or the possibility of change? What would new wineskins
look like? How can I be open to them?
Teacher notes: notice how Jesus teaches on page 5.
1) He responds to a question with a question (5:2)
2) He uses parables (5:2,6,8)
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3) He applies OT stories to current situations
4) He asks rhetorical questions (5:2, 26)
5) He illustrates truth through modeling (5:29)
We have talked a lot about the change of identity the disciples had to go through to become
subjects of the kingdom of God. By the wineskin parable we learn that such a change of
identity is not a once in a lifetime occurence. In fact, already by this time in Mark the
disciples have had to dispense with several old wineskins in order to continue receiving
what Jesus has for them. They gave up their old occupations, then their idea of a
Capernaum healing crusade, then even their image of themselves as righteous.
Jesus' conflict with the scribes and pharisees: He challenges their authority by challenging
--their people: the crowds come to him
--their book: he teaches the scriptures with authority
--their practice: he puts fasting in perspective
--their day: he redefines the sabbath, what it was meant for, how to honor it
--their place: the synagogue, where he heals and teaches
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VII. Mark Manuscript Pages 6:3-7:16.
Discuss 6:3-6:11.
What is Jesus doing here? withdrawing from conflict with Pharisees; drawing large crowds,
planning ahead for crowd control, healing, touching, silencing demons
What kind of a crowd? Look at the map. From all over, including gentiles.
Why so large a crowd? the word has gotten out
How do his disciples participate in his ministry? delegated small tasks, something they can handle.
Faithful in little...
Discuss 6:11-19.
What does he do next? he appoints the twelve.
When he goes up to the hills, who comes to him? those whom he wanted
How many? at least twelve, perhaps more
Let's review how we got here. Where were we? With the crowd
What is happening as Jesus goes up the hill? the crowd thins out
To whom? those whom he desired
Then what? he appoints 12
What does he appoint the 12 to do? 1) be with him, 2) to be sent out to preach 3) to have
authority to cast out demons
How else to put it? 1) to be with Jesus 2) to do what he did
Then what? he renames three, the inner circle
What does this indicate? Jesus' authority to rename, intimacy
Concentric circles of intimacy:
1) The crowd--who heard of him and came to him
2) the many--whom he healed, whom he touched, those near him
3) the called--whom he wanted, they came to him
4) the twelve--whom he appointed: to be with him, to be like him
5) the three--whom he renamed
Jesus creates a structure through which to serve the crowd.
What is the greatest priority of the twelve? to be with him
NOT to do ministry
Discuss 6:20-7:10.
What is the situation here? crowds, family, scribes, accusations
What opinions about Jesus are expressed?
By whom?
Why does his family think he is crazy? poor eating habits? poor crowd control? He has
just shown (6:7-9) that he knows how to handle large crowds wisely... that cannot be "it."
What has he just done? went up a mountain, appointed 12
What does that sound like? Moses, OT, 12 tribes, appointing people, he is acting
politically ==> "Does he think he is the messiah?"
Jesus is acting like the messiah, and his family, who KNOW he is not the messiah, think he
is crazy.
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Who else has an opinion of Jesus' state? the scribes think he's possessed
"Beelzebul" = literally, "Master of the house"
Why? they have to explain how it is that he can cast out demons, but they don't want to admit that
he is from God
Who has identified him as the son of God? demons--they think the demons work for him
How does Jesus respond to the accusation of the scribes? he calls them to him--he demonstrates
his interest in them, he answers them
What is Jesus' alternative explanation? his authority over demons comes because he has beaten
and bound Satan.
Jesus first argues against the logic of their accusation: it makes no sense that a kingdom would be
divided against itself. Then he addresses the real question: Where did Jesus get the power
to do what he can do? (He used this strategy twice on p5.)
Who is the strong man? Satan
How has Satan's property been plundered? demons cast out of the
bodies of men; paralytic, leper, Levi
What must have happened? Satan has been bound
Where has that happened? Page 1, the temptation. Mark doesn't tell us on p1 the outcome of the
temptation, but here reveals that Jesus was victorious in conquering Satan and winning the
right to plunder Satan, freeing people from his control and drawing them to himself.
What is "all sins will be forgiven, whatever blasphemies they utter"? any sinful deed done, any
blasphemy that can be uttered
What kind of sin is not forgiven? Blasphemy against the HS
What is that related to, according to Mark? their accusation that Jesus is possessed by Satan.
What was their sin? What is the unforgivable sin? (Have you ever worried that you have
committed the unforgivable sin?)
What kind of sins can be forgiven? all sins
By whom? who has authority on earth to forgive sins? Son of Man, Jesus
What does it take to receive forgiveness? come to Jesus, ask for it
Will the scribes ever do that? they reject Jesus, they say he's from Satan, they will never go to him
for forgiveness
Why is this an unforgivable sin? because it is a sin you will never seek forgiveness for--deciding
for the last time that Jesus is not from God.
How has Jesus treated the scribes and pharisees? answered their questions, demonstrated truth,
healed to show them his authority, even called them to him (7:1).
How have they responded? continually rejecting the answers of God, to the point where they no
longer turn to him with their questions.
At what was Jesus grieved on 6:1? Their hardness of heart--The problem is not that they have
asked questions, nor is it that God didn't care enough about them to listen to them, but
that they have rejected the answers that came.
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Let us look at the history of Jesus' interaction with the scribes and pharisees.
4:6 Questioning in their hearts; Jesus answers and demonstrates his authority
4:25 Questioning his disciples; Jesus answers with a parable
5:13 Questioning Jesus; Jesus answers with OT, parable
5:24 Watching to accuse; Jesus answers, teaches, models
6:26 Accusing: He is satan; Jesus calls them to him, teaches, warns
So what is the unforgivable sin? it is a process of rejecting the answers of God, of hardening one's
heart toward God. It is not utterable blasphemy--any blasphemy that is utterable can be
repented of and forgiven.
The scribes begin the process by accusing Jesus of blasphemy (4:4) and the process ends
with Jesus accusing them of blasphemy (7:8).
Discuss 7:10-16.
What is the contrast here? Note the two "whoever"s.
Those who blaspheme against the HS never have forgiveness.
Those who do the will of God are in the family.
Both describe processes, not single events.
Application
What are we to do with the answers we receive from God? obey, do his will
What happens if we don't act? we undergo a process of rejection ending in our not being able to
be forgiven
Do we have to worry about accidentally committing the unforgivable sin? no
Why not? it is a process
What does this say about salvation, about membership in the family of God? Salvation is also a
process--it is not an event. It is defined dynamically. Those who do the will of God, those
who follow Jesus.
Will of God or will of family: How has my family assumed precedence in my life over my call to
follow Jesus?
How can we respond today to Jesus' call to be with him and to be like him?
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VIII. Mark manuscript pages 7:16-9:16. The Sower.
Begin by asking people to put away their manuscripts, and read for them 7:19-8:4, and 8:21-9:4,
beginning with "Listen!" [5-10 min discussion]
What did you hear? ...
What happens to the seed? How does the sower sow? not carefully, much seed seems to be
wasted
What is this story about? Why does the sower go out and sow?
What does he want? yield, growth, harvest
Turn over your manuscripts. Where was Jesus when he was doing this? in a boat on the sea
[Read 8:4-8:9]
What happened after Jesus taught this parable?
What does it mean, "alone, those who were around him"? Jesus separates from the crowd,
the lecture is over, and a few stay around afterward to ask him to clarify
Does this group of people sound familiar?
What is the first thing Jesus tells them? "You have been given the S of K of God
What is that compared to? those outside
What is the hallmark of those on the outside? everything comes in parables, they listen but don't
understand
What does he mean, "everything comes in parables"?
Have we seen parables before?
What parables have we seen so far?
Kingdom of God (p1)
lord of the sabbath (p5)
fishers of men (p2)
kingdom, house divided (p6)
sins are forgiven (p4)
strong man (p7)
doctor analogy (p4)
family (p7)
bridegroom, patch, wineskins (p5) sower (p7)
Almost everything Jesus has said has been in some kind of obscure communication
What does it mean that insiders have the S of K of G?
Do they understand what Jesus has said? NO
How can you tell? "Do you not understand this parable?"
What do they have? questions
What is the difference then between the insiders and the outsiders? the insiders come to Jesus
asking questions
What did they understand about what Jesus had said? "Listen!... Let anyone with ears to hear
listen."
What did they understand? that Jesus' words were important
Jesus asks two rhetorical questions: 1) Do you not understand this parable? The answer?: No, we
don't understand. 2) How then will you understand all the parables? The answer?: the
same way you will come to understand this parable, by asking me what it means.
What does he do next? gives them the explanation
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Why "so that they may not turn again, and be forgiven"? [work on that one, but we'll come back
to it, so no need to get it clear]
Tell them to reread and study 7:16-9:16, take 20 minutes.
Discuss the explanation, down through 8:21:
According to Jesus' explanation, what does the seed represent?
What happens to the seed? What determines its growth? what kind of soil
What is the hallmark of good soil? those who hear the word, accept it, bear fruit
What is the difference between good and bad soil? good soil has been prepared--John the baptist
prepared people to hear the word from Jesus.
What was Jesus doing, as he was teaching from the boat on the sea? he was sowing the seed,
spreading his word widely
What kind of response did he get?
What did every one there at the lake that day have in common? they all heard the word
Which was the good soil? those who responded
To what word did they respond? "Listen!"
What is the Secret of the Kingdom of God? go to Jesus, ask questions
Good, how about in terms of the good soil? to hear the word, accept it and bear fruit
What is Jesus interested in as he sows the word? yield, fruit
What does it mean to hear, accept, bear fruit? to act on the word
What does "accept" mean? internalize it, not just outward actions
What is the S of K of G? is it understanding? it is acting on what we do understand, no matter
how little or how poorly
Let's talk about line 11: "so that they may not turn again..."
Does Jesus want outsiders to be forgiven? no
Does Jesus want people to be forgiven? yes, but...
Why does he say he speaks in parables? so that those on the outside won't be forgiven
Why doesn't Jesus speak plainly? Why didn't Jesus hand out tracts with the four spiritual laws
printed on them, or have God do some skywriting regarding the plan of salvation...
What is Jesus interested in? What does he want people who hear him to do?
What is the S of K of God? to go to Jesus, to ask questions
Why to Jesus? no one else has the answers
In Mark, how can people receive forgiveness? going to the one who
has authority on earth to forgive sins, Jesus
Does Jesus want outsiders to receive forgiveness? no
What does Jesus want for outsiders? to become insiders, to ask
questions, to respond to the word that they have heard
Who are the outsiders and who are the insiders that we have seen so far in Mark? 1) the
pharisees--they have removed themselves from Jesus by rejecting the answers from God,
they have not accepted the word that they have heard. 2) the disciples--they have heard
Jesus word ("follow me", for example) and have responded to it. They want to understand
more, they take in Jesus' teaching with eagerness, though without intuitive understanding.
Look at 6:27: What does Jesus do with the outsiders? HE CALLS THEM TO HIM.
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What does he want? that they should become insiders
Discuss 8:21-9:1.
What is light for? What is Jesus saying about the Kingdom of God?
the secret is meant to come to light--Jesus tells parables but wants people to ask what they
mean--his intention is not some secret knowledge society but for the gospel to be revealed
9:1-9:4:
"Pay attention to what you hear": what is that? listen, warning, take this seriously
"The measure you give,": what are you giving? in context? (i.e., not money) your energy, time,
attention
"The measure you get, and still more": What do you get?
What did these people get, as they paid attention and gave of themselves to Jesus'
teaching? more understanding, more teaching, more words
What happens to those who have little? even what they have is taken away
Is this fair? Math lecture analogy:
A professor of Math gives a lecture that no one in the class understands. After class, the
large classroom mostly empties out, but a few go down front and ask a few questions
about the material covered. The professor, in this setting, is able to make clear in just a
few minutes what was obscured in an hour of lecture. Those students have given more
attention, more trouble to the study of the subject than anyone else, and they will have
much more come the start of the next class period. However, the other students, who had
relatively little at the end of the lecture, will have even less two days later when they have
completely forgotten even the obscurity of the previous lecture. Those who have get
more, those who have not, lose what little they have.
Most people heard Jesus give this parable and thought, "That's interesting" or "What a
nice preacher!" but soon forgot the parable, let alone its point. Those who went to Jesus
received much more in the way of teaching and clarity, and will not soon forget that the
way to understand the parables is to go to Jesus and ask him what they mean.
9:4-9:16
What do we learn about the kingdom of God?
What do both parables have in common? growth
How does it come about? with time, it is a process
Why does Jesus speak in parables? to get responsiveness, attention, to differentiate the soil
Why does he explain to his disciples? they asked, they want more
What is the S of K of God? 1) hear, accept, bear fruit 2) go to Jesus, 3) ask questions of Jesus, 4)
give your attention to Jesus, take heed what you hear
The parable of the sower and the other parables given here are the first self-initiated teachings of
Jesus recorded in Mark. No one asked him a question, he wasn't responding to any attack.
He simply began to teach them beside the sea. This teaching figures prominently in
Mark--he sees it as a crucial one for young would-be disciples. We cannot overestimate
the importance of these words: hear and accept them, and bear fruit.
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Application
What are we to do with these words of Jesus? hear, accept, act on them
What happens if we don't? our hearts are hardened, slowly over time, like the pharisees
What words of Jesus are relevant for each of us right now?
On what words of Jesus do I need to be acting?
If response to the word is what is important, what are ways we try to look good spiritually
without true response to the word? Shortcuts to obedience--in leadership, teaching,
sacraments, attendance, Bible knowledge...
How do we remain responsive to the word as Bible study leaders? What is challenging for us?
How can we teach or say things in a way to determine responsiveness?
Specific application: Quiet times, listening to Jesus' words. Challenge each person to set a goal of
time you will spend each day in prayer and study. Keep track for one week of how many
times you were able to meet your goal. We will ask each other next week.
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IX. Manuscript Pages 9:16-11:7. Fear vs Faith, part I.
Read 9:16-10:3.
Where was Jesus last time? teaching on the sea in a boat
What happens now? they take the boat across the sea
What is the problem now? great storm, sinking
How do the disciples feel about this storm? afraid
What does that tell you about the storm?
What kind of men are these? fishermen, experienced at sea: this was a severe storm
Where's Jesus during all of this?
What do the disciples do? wake Jesus
What is their attitude? sarcastic, fearful, doubting
What did they expect from Jesus? care, not nonchalance; perhaps hoped he would bail with
them
So what does Jesus do? calms the storm
What does that tell them about Jesus' relationship to them?
What bothers him about their response? they had no faith, they were afraid
What is faith, in Mark? faith in what or who? in Jesus, in his words
What words of Jesus should they have had faith in?
What does Jesus say when they begin their trip?--"Let us go across to the other side
What eventually happens?
Jesus said they are going across to the other side--the disciples should have trusted his words.
Instead they feared that they would die in the middle of the lake.
What do the disciples have instead of faith? fear
How is fear the opposite of faith? if they had faith they would not have any fear, because they
would have been confident in Jesus' ability to save them
How do the disciples respond to Jesus here? "Who then is this..?"
"Awe" on 10:2 is literally "feared a great fear".
What was the condition of the disciples before Jesus' miracle? After it?
What was Jesus able to calm?
What was he unable to calm?
10:3-11:7
Then what happens? What do they encounter? a demoniac
What kind of a man? What does the imagery suggest? he has been treated like a wild animal
What is the man's problem? confused; legion of demons; runs to worship Jesus, yet fears him
What happens in the interaction with the demons?
Who is speaking and acting--the man or the demons?
What is the chronology of the scene?
Why does Jesus ask for the man's name? that is the problem; the man has an identity crisis: "My
name is... for we are"
What does Jesus' response to the demon's request show about his attitude toward the swine?
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What does Jesus indicate about the man? this man is not an animal; he is worth more than 2000
pigs
What is the picture we have in line 22-23? the man is clothed, in his right mind
How does this scene contrast the scene when Jesus et al. first arrive there? calm vs. chaos
What has happened? What is it like? Jesus has calmed the storm in the man just as he calmed the
storm on the sea
How did the townspeople respond? fear, not faith--they flee; then ask Jesus to leave their country
How do we see the parable of the sower lived out in this incident? the people don't receive the
word, they lose it immediately as they send Jesus away
What is the man's request? to be with Jesus
Like whom? the disciples were called to be with Jesus
Why does Jesus refuse this request?
Who begs something of Jesus in this story?
What are all of these requests about?
If he granted all their requests, what would theland of Gerasa be like?
So, what does Jesus do?
Is he rejecting the man?--no, he goes right to stage II of apostleship, proclaiming the message
What does Jesus say to the man? tell people about the LORD
What does he usually say? be quiet
Why "the Lord"? Who is he? gentile, no messianic expectations
What kind of soil was the demoniac? good soil; he receives more: Jesus is the Lord
What kind of soil were most of the Gerasenes?
Who came before Jesus in Israel?--John
For what purpose?--to prepare the way
What is Jesus sending the demoniac out to do?
How is he going to do that?
How would that make them more receptive to Jesus' words?
What did it mean to be a witness? to tell people what the Lord had done for him
How did he do? all people marveled
Application
How is fear the opposite of faith in these two stories? in both, people fear power (of weather and
sea, of Jesus) and don't trust in Jesus' desire to do good (the townspeople) or his ability to
save them (the disciples).
When we fear, in what is our "faith"? (rather than God) midterms and finals, money, friends; we
allow things and people to have power over us, trusting in them to provide or fearing they
won't, rather than trusting in God.
In what are we to have faith, from so far in Mark? Jesus' words
What words of Jesus challenge our fears? In what are we afraid?
How have I been saved by Jesus apart from or above and beyond my faith in him? Saved by Jesus
when I didn't think he could?
---
What does it mean for us to be a witness?
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X. Jairus and the Woman, manuscript pages 11:8-12:16
Tell people to compare and contrast Jairus and the woman during their own prep.
Where are we now? back in Jewish country
Who comes to Jesus? Jairus
What do we know about him? ruler of the synagogue, etc.
How does he approach Jesus? humbly, besought, fell at feet
Who else comes to Jesus? a woman
[go to the board]
Let's compare these two people, what we know of them:
CONTRASTS:
Jairus
the woman
ruler, leader in synagogue
unclean in synagogue
well known name
unnamed
rich, w/servants
poor, money all spent
respected, status
outcast
male
female
urgent situation
chronic problem-12 years
Jairus comes to Jesus publicly
the woman comes in secret
Jairus' daughter healed secretly
the woman healed publicly
BOTH: humble, desparate, fall down before Jesus, afraid, have faith, Jesus touch is involved,
daughters, 12 years
Let's look more at the woman.
Why does the woman come to Jesus? she acted on what she heard
Why did she come the way she did? she was ashamed, outcast
Why did Jesus stop? he felt the touch, but wanted to make it public
How do the disciples respond to Jesus' question? Why?
How could they have responded? What is the secret of the kingdom?
What does Jesus do for her?
How does Mark know all the details about her 12-year long condition? Jesus heard the whole
story
How long would that take? a while--she had tried many docs
Why did Jesus listen to the whole story? to value her
What are Jairus and the disciples thinking? "Jesus, lets move it--we've got an important man here,
and his daughter is dying!"
So what does Jesus say to her? How does he address her? daughter
What would that communicate to the disciples and to Jairus? this woman also is a daughter; this
woman also is valuable. (See 7:14-16: This woman is in the family-she does G's will)
What was on Jairus' mind this whole time?
What does Jairus want for his daughter? Why?
What does Jesus want for this woman? Why?
Then what does Jesus say to her? "Your faith has made you well."
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Why? What was she thinking? his clothes, the magic healed me
What does Jesus want her to know? it involves faith
Then what does Jesus say to the woman? go in peace
How did she come to Jesus? she came in fear
Why can she go in peace? nothing to fear, she will remain healed, internally, spiritually
Peace and storminess have been contrasted a lot in the past two passages. Who has gotten peace?
Who hasn't? Why?
12:3-16:
After Jesus finishes with the woman, what happens? Jairus' daughter has died
What would Jairus have been feeling then? grief, anger, fear
What does Jesus say? suspend fear--simply believe
What kind of soil has Jairus shown himself to be so far?
What does he get from Jesus?--more words when he really needs them, the comfort and
reminder to have faith which he really needs.
What does he want Jairus to believe?
Jesus invites Jairus to have faith at another level; Jairus believes Jesus can heal his daughter,
but has no concept of Jesus' authority over death. "Do not fear, only believe."
What do they find at the house when they arrive? the mourners
What does Jesus say to them? Why? Is it true, or did Jesus lie? it is a parable of the truth; Jesus is
communicating truth, but they reject it and fail to ask, "What do you mean?"
So what does Jesus do to the mourners? he puts them on the outside; to them everything is in
parables--they won't see or understand the miracle. Even what little they had is taken
away!
When the outsiders see the little girl, what will they think? I guess she was sleeping after all.
Who does Jesus take with him? the three, plus the parents
Why does Mark record Jesus' words in Aramaic? his words are important
Then what does he say? feed her
Why? Jesus looks after all of her needs
Application:
1) Examine the choice Jesus made at 11:20: to go on, deal with the urgent need, or to stay and
complete the healing of the woman, which was not urgent in any sense. Jesus understands
the difference between urgent and important. The Tyrrany of the Urgent: we always will
tend to do the urgent things, ignoring or not getting to those things that are really
important. Jesus had a sense of priorities: he knew what was important and did that. How
does urgent v. important press in on our lives?
2. In our lives there are relationships and tasks. When a time crunch comes, tasks usually will get
done because tasks have deadlines, due dates, and measurable results. Often relationships
are postponed or put on the back burner. Tasks seem urgent, yet relationships are really
important. Take a minute to write down a few important relationships that have taken a
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back seat to task-oriented work recently, and commit to doing one thing to work on these
relationships this week: a phone call, visit or letter, a thoughtful note or gift of
appreciation, an encouragement. We will ask how we each did next week.
3. Review theme of fear and faith: We have seen four episodes since the parable of the sower.
Crossing the sea \ two storms \
The demoniac / \
> four impossible situations
Jairus \ / turned over to Jesus
the woman / two daughters /
How is each handled? Jesus words! Jesus has authority and power, exercised by his word. What is
our response? FAITH, not fear
A little something extra:
What's the relationship between Jesus and the underprivileged?
List the people on the underside Jesus has dealt with:
Healing the leper, p3
Eating with sinners and tax collectors, p.4
Healing the man with the withered hand, p.5,6
Delivering the demoniac, p. 10,11
Healing the woman, p. 12
In each case, the privileged people in the situation resent Jesus' attention to the underclass and feel
threatened by it. Jairus is the only person from the privileged class so far who has
overcome his privileges to respond in faith.
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XI. Manuscript Pages 12:17-14:14
Read 12:17-13:3. Where is Jesus now? home town
What response does he receive? Why?
What is at issue? Jesus' authority, his wisdom, his mighty works
Why do they have a hard time accepting Jesus' teaching? this is not the Jesus they know
In other places, how have the crowds reacted to Jesus' new teaching?
What do other people recognize about Jesus' teaching that his home town does
not?--Authority.
What does "took offense at him" mean? What are they thinking? Jesus is just an ordinary
carpenter, not a messiah-type or a prophet. They see Jesus as simply a man.
Anything else? Jesus now marvels at
their unbelief
Read 13:3-12. What does Jesus do here? send out the 12
What is he doing himself?--going about the villages, not sitting back and relaxing while the
disciples work
Why does he send out the 12?--to prepare, by repentance like John the Baptist
What did you notice? he tells them not to take money, supplies, extra clothing, etc. He wants
them to travel light.
Why? to trust in God through the provision of others; trust in Jesus' word as he said they would
be provided for
What does he tell them to take with them? another person, staff, authority to cast out demons,
sandals
Why does he send them out in twos? Couldn't they cover more ground if they went out alone?
partnership is more important than coverage!
Why does he tell them not to move around? temptation not to be a burden on people, or to see a
better situation
What does he want them to do? establish relationships with a few
What about the dust off their feet? sign of judgment
Why does Jesus say this to them? What would not obeying this do to people to whom they are
sent? if the people are outsiders, it would be better for them if they don't hear all the
words of the gospel.
When has Jesus done this? in his hometown--he left because they refused to hear him or receive
him. The disciples know that this kind of rejection happened even to Jesus
What would it do for the disciples to hear about this? for them to know that they will meet
opposition, that it will be difficult--to expect it and not be discouraged when it happens
What would be the temptation when the disciples faced opposition or people who refused to hear
them? 1) to keep plugging w/o fruit, 2) to soften the message, 3) to doubt the message, to
think there was something wrong with what they were saying, 4) to be discouraged.
So what happens when they aren't listened to? they can simply move on and know that Jesus was
right and not doubt him or the message. They are to learn that they are responsible to
deliver the message; not responsible for the response to it.
What would it take to shake the dust off your shoes? confidence, authority
When do they do this? when people refuse even to hear or receive them--at that point it just is not
worth it
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So what are their relational priorities as they are sent out? 1) relationship with God, dependence
on Jesus' word; 2) relationships with their partners; 3) relationships with the people who
receive them into their homes: depth over breadth
Read 13:12-14:14
What are the results of the 12's ministry?
Who hears about it?
What is the question on everyoneis mind? "Who is Jesus?"
When? 2:15, 4:4, 6:24, 10:2, 12:19-22, now 13:12-17
What is Herod's answer to this question? Why?
What have the disciples been proclaiming?
What kind of person is Herod, from this passage? weak, proud, fears John, controlled by crowd,
Herodias, Romans (as a puppet king)
Compare Herod to John: John makes a stand, no matter the consequences
Why didn't Herod want to break his word? not integrity, but his guests: he doesn't want to be
thought a liar, but he's willing to be a murderer
John's life wasn't really Herod's to give.
What kind of soil was Herod?
What likelihood did Herod have of receiving more words?--very little. He cut himself off from
God's words by killing the source of them for him, John.
Compare Herod's kingdom to Jesus' kingdom: In the rest of the gospel, we have been seeing a
picture of the kingdom Jesus is building. Here we cut away to a short view of what the
other kingdoms that are around look like: dark, confused, lacking authority, with power to
give death.
Although Jesus has asserted verbally and actively that he is willing to take the chance at more
words away from outsiders himself, it is not rare for the outsiders to actively separate
themselves from the good news themselves: the scribes try to destroy Jesus, the
Gerasenes beg Jesus to depart, and Herod kills John
Overall: The question, from the common folk to the king: WHO ARE YOU?
Application: What does outreach look like for us? beating our heads against the wall with the
same people? How do we look for responsiveness, for signs of receptivity? How can we
look for the secret of the kingdom of God in people, and give more to those who are
ready to receive more?
Application from Herod & John the Baptist: Are there promises we make to people that keep us
from obeying God? Integrity with God may involve breaking promises we should not have
made in the first place.
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XII. Manuscript pages 14:14-15:23. The feeding of the 5000.
Before getting started: fold over page 15 between lines 22 and 23. Tell them to finish the sentence
in their own words, and not to look at it until you say to.
14:14-15:4:
What had just happened? they returned from their mission with good reports
What does Jesus say to them? come away and rest
What does the crowd do? follows them, ran there ahead of them
What does Jesus do? he had compassion on them, so he taught them
What do the disciples say? send them away
How does Jesus respond? you give them something to eat
How do the disciples react? sarcastically, defensively
15:4-23:
So what does Jesus do? finds out what they have, organizes the crowd, delegates to his disciples
to feed them, and gather the leftovers, then he dismisses the crowd and sends his disciples
away
How many people? 5000 men, they didn't count women and children
What happens on the lake? an adverse wind keeps them rowing
Then what happens? Jesus comes out early in the morning (the fourth watch, being 3-6 a. m.) to
walk on by them; the disciples see him and think they have seen a ghost
Why does Jesus get into the boat with them? to encourage them, to tell them not to be afraid, to
calm the storm again
Why were they utterly astounded? (read the sentences...)
Now what did Mark say? how does that fit?
Let's go back. What got the disciples into trouble? their sarcasm
Why did Jesus say, "You given them something to eat?"
Why did these people come? they recognized them
Who did they recognize? How? they knew the disciples, who had preached to them, stayed
with them, been fed by them
Why did Jesus say, "You give them something to eat?"
What did Jesus want them to understand?
Why does Jesus begin to teach this crowd?
When Jesus sent out the disciples, what were they to bring with them? a staff
Who uses a staff? shepherds
What did Jesus want his disciples to understand? that they were shepherds, Jesus was
training his disciples to be shepherds to the people
What should his disciples have said in response to Jesus? "How are we supposed to feed them,
Jesus?"
Why weren't they thinking about being shepherds? What were they thinking about? Jesus
promised us rest; we want our rest
In the end, who got rest and who didn't?
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What does Jesus understand that allowed him to delay his need for rest?
Jesus promised the disciples rest; what should they have done to get rest? trust that Jesus would
provide it
Instead, what did they do? try to demand it for themselves
What was the result? they never received rest; they didn't even get rest that night!
The disciples focused on themselves and their own desires for rest. Jesus wanted to teach them
something about shepherding and about trusting him for the rest they were promised.
When they tried to grasp for themselves that which Jesus promised to give them, they lost
out--they missed his teaching for them, their hearts were hardened, and they still did not
get the rest they wanted.
The disciples had been sent out in utter dependence on Jesus and his words. The experiment
worked! Jesus' promises held true. Now they have come back and all they can think about
is the rest Jesus promised them. They are unable to trust him to provide it.
So their hearts are hardened; they don't understand about the loaves. What should they have
understood? that Jesus can provide; that we are to come to him when we are asked to care
for people beyond our own resources.
Their hearts are hardened by focusin on their rest,
so they don't recognize Jesus' servanthood, and soon lose the ability to recognize Jesus at
all.
Why did Jesus send the disciples home in the boat without him? they had become outsiders; they
weren't going to get their rest
Even so, what are some ways Jesus demonstrates he still has compassion for them too?
What did Jesus do? go and pray
For whom? for the disciples, who are in a dangerous spiritual condition
What kind of soil are the disciples now? cares of the world, the desire for rest has crowded out
the word
What sort of responses to Jesus have they given lately?
In whose company does that put them?
Application:
Sometimes we discern correctly that God has promised us something but have a difficult time
trusting him for it? How do we tend to take matters into our own hands? (e.g.
relationships, food, rest, etc)
How are we tempted, like the disciples, to view others as an impediment in our receiving rest or
deeper relationship with God?
What are the activities of shepherd that are relevant to us? How? feeding, teaching, organizing
people
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XIII. Manuscript pages 15:24-17:14. External vs. Internal.
What did you notice? the crowd recognizes Jesus
Who has had trouble recognizing him lately? the disciples, who thought he was a ghost
What is happening with the crowds?
What do the Pharisees notice? his disciples were eating with hands defiled (compare question on
page 5: work on the sabbath)
Why the parenthetical comment? Mark is written to folks in Rome, many of them don't know the
specifics of the jewish traditions
What is the market place? to the Pharisees? to Jesus?
What is our market place? bars, inner-city, etc; Jesus sees ministry, we see defilement
What is the Pharisees' actual question?--why disciples have dirty hands
What question does Jesus answer?--why the Pharisees are so concerned about the disciples' hands
What is the issue? tradition of the elders vs. commands of God (see previous question about the
disciples and the law: p5)
How were the Pharisees rejecting commands of God?
How does Corban work? something that is given to God is then not usable to help parents
who are needy in their old age
What is contrasted in Isaiah's prophecy? lips and heart, true and vain worship (See Is 29:13)
What is the difference between what they say and their hearts? they talk like God is important to
them, but they disregard his commands for the sake of their traditions
So what does Jesus call everyone to hear and understand? nothing which comes from outside
defiles; what defiles is what comes from inside
What seems to be important? the heart, not the stomach
What is the pharisees' view of sin?
How do they view the marketplace? a place of contamination
How does Jesus view the marketplace? a place of ministry
How do the pharisees view defilement? external, from touching defiled things and people
How does Jesus? internal, from the heart
How did the disciples deal with Jesus' teaching? they asked him concerning the parable
What did you think of that? it wasn't a parable; he told them to understand; it was one of the few
non-parables in Mark so far
Why didn't they understand? "for those outside, everything comes in parables": they are outsiders
What is at least one good sign? they did ask Jesus, and he did explain what he meant to them--he
is treating them like insiders
Why would this lesson about the source of sin be especially important right now? What is the
condition of the disciples? hardened hearts, sinful
What might they be tempted to blame for the state of their hearts? external conditions: they were
sent out by twos, came back tired, were promised rest, had to handle and feed a mob of
thousands, stayed up all night rowing against the wind, never did get the rest they were
promised
What is (the pharisees, the disciples) our tendency when we think of our own sin? to blame it on
externals situations, it is not our fault!
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Whom do the disciples have to blame for their hard-heartedness? themselves, according to Jesus
Application
How can we tell the state of our own hearts? by what comes out of our hearts--evil thoughts,
fornication, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, etc.
We want to blame externals for our sins: "I'm sorry, I didn't get much sleep last night." "I'm sorry,
but my roommate made me late for class, and so I forgot." "I'm sorry, but I have just been
having a bad day." In each case, it is the situation that is the problem, not my own
thoughtlessness, inability to love or to think about others, or lack of faithfulness to my
word. Even if we will acknowledge a particular sin we want people to think it is the rare
exception.
Repentance deals with internal problems. If we focus on externals then we don't need to repent,
but merely go through ceremonial washing. A modern equivalent of the ceremonial
washing ritual: "I'm sorry." Doesn't acknowledge sin, simply an admission that some less
than desirable state has occurred; unilateral, not requiring a response; doesn't necessarily
imply repentance. Instead, a Biblical confession, "Will you forgive me?"
Often, we pray in this way as well. We pray that God will change our circumstances, so that we
can be better Christians, rather than praying that God will change our hearts, which are
often hardened toward him and toward the needs of others.
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XIV. Manuscript Pages 17:14-19:17.
Suggest that people compare and contrast the two feedings as they do their personal study.
Discuss 17:14-18:1.
Where is Jesus now? Tyre and Sidon = Gentile country
"He could not escape notice?" nothing is hidden, except to come to light
What is the woman's request? cast out an unclean spirit
What is Jesus' response? he tells her a parable
What does the parable mean? Gentiles=dogs, children are fed first
What is the woman's response? she out-parable-izes Jesus: she throws him a parabolic curve!
What in her response gets her daughter healed?
What brings her to Jesus in the first place?she responds to the word, she is an insider, she has
the S of K of G
When was the last time we saw a parable? Jesus' statement to his disciples, which wasn't really a
parable, yet they don't understand it. Here Jesus speaks in parables, and the woman
understands and responds in kind.
What does she understand about Jesus' mission? it is not only to jews; gentiles will benefit too.
(Where is Jesus now? in gentile country--it is clear he meant for them to be fed also)
What distinctions does Jesus make here? whole loaf--crumbs, first--later: not a question about
whether gentiles get at all or not, just of timing
Discuss 18:1-18:11.
Where is Jesus now? Gentile country still
How'd he get there?
Who comes to him? friends bringing a deaf man
What does Jesus do to heal this man? [narrate it and act it out]
How could Jesus have tried to communicate with this deaf person? sign language
What healed the man? Jesus' word
What didn't? the "magic touch"
Why record "Ephphatha"? the actual word of Jesus, that is what healed the man
What is the response of the crowd? he does all things well
Discuss 18:11-19:2.
"In those days"? still in gentile country
How do the two feedings compare?
5000 men, jews
4000 people, gentiles
green grass
ground
organized the people
just had them sit down
5 loaves, 12 baskets left
7 loaves, 7 baskets left over
Mark says Jesus had compassion, b/c Jesus himself says "I have
they are like sheep w/o a shepherd
compassion". No mention of sheep
or shepherd
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disciples are sarcastic
disciples respond well: "How?"
disciples in boat alone
Jesus got into the boat w/them
What is happening here? Gentiles are being fed;
Who said that would happen? the syrophoenician woman; her prophecy came true; the woman's
statement is all the more remarkable in its comprehension of Jesus' mission.
Why does Jesus get into the boat with his disciples? because they have now responded well to his
challenge to them; they are finally catching on about the loaves! their hearts are softening
to the word again.
Discuss 19:2-17.
What about the pharisees now? they come seeking a sign, as a test
What is a sign? certainly Jesus has performed miracles...
"sign"= irrefutable proof: The miracles are in response to faith, they are not given to make faith
unnecessary.
The pharisees blame God, externals, Jesus, dirty hands: they don't take responsibility for their own
lack of faith.
An equivalent statement today? "If God wants me to believe in him, why doesn't he just show
himself to me. Then I'd believe."
"Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees"? hypocrisy, unbelief
"the yeast of Herod"? people pleasing, unwillingness to stand up for what he knew was right;
wanting to look good
How do the disciples handle Jesus' warning? they misunderstand the parable
What is Jesus' response? he reviews about the loaves
What is the essential question he asks?--are your hearts hardened? Are you good soil?
Where do these questions come from?
Do they understand? no
How will they understand? What is the hope for them? submission to Jesus, to his touch
Application:
The two feedings: sometimes when we have failed to learn something God is trying to teach us he
will bring us through it a second (or third or whatever) time, until we learn the lesson. We
often cannot go on in growth and maturity without learning the hard lessons we have
already been presented with. What are some of the second-time-around lessons you are
dealing with or have seen God bring to you recently?
How are we tempted, like the pharisees, to blame our lack of faith on God, on the unclarity of his
revelation? What must we do instead of blaming God? repent and ask God to give us eyes
that see and ears that hear.
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XV. Manuscript pages 19:17-20:22. The End of the Beginning.
Have people compare the healing on top of p18 with the one on the bottom of p19 in their
personal study.
Review from the top of p19.
Look at 19:17-20:1. What did you see?
What is unusual about this healing? two stages, as if Jesus did not get it right the first time; as if
he doubted that the man would be healed.
What was involved in the man's healing? Jesus' touch, the man's looking intently: faith
Why didn't Jesus just heal the man right off? What benefit came through this two-stage healing?
the man was given the chance to exercise faith.
Compare the two healings: privately, say nothing; invitations to faith. Eyes to see, ears to hear,
like the disciples.
Look at 20:1-6.
What question does he ask?
Why? Jesus takes the spiritual pulse of outsiders.
What kind of answers does he get? spiritual guys: prophets, John
What has been THE question on the minds of people up till now in Mark? "Who are you?" "Who
is Jesus?"
Where have we seen this come up? 2:15, 4:4, 6:24, 10:2, 12:18, 13:14, 15:19
Have we seen the answer clearly?
How does Jesus provoke the answer with his second question? "BUT": he is not satisfied with the
answers they have given, he provokes them to think more deeply about the question and
come up with a different answer.
And the answer comes back? "You are the Christ!" says Peter.
Compare this with page 19, with the healing of the blind man.
Compare the two questions, 19:17 and 19:20. What is the answer to each? sort of--we sort of
understand; I sort of see. Dimly, not clearly.
What was Peter's original spiritual state? blind
On page 19 what was it? seeing dimly--eyes but did not see well, ears but did not hear very well
How does the blind man get healed? the touch of Jesus and looking intently--God's work and an
act of faith
How did Peter come to see? he looked intently at Jesus, but ultimately God is responsible for
revealing it to him.
After the healing, what did Jesus tell the man? don't tell
After the quiz, what did Jesus tell Peter? don't tell
Three stages of spiritual sight:
blindness--the pharisees
dim vision-- the man, the disciples on p19
clear sight--Peter at the top of the page. This stage is not permanent as we soon see.
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Were the disciples ready to tell everyone about Jesus? no
Why not? They knew he was the Christ...
The first half of the gospel of Mark: Who is Jesus?
The resounding answer: The Christ!
The second half of the gospel of Mark: What is the Christ?
Look at 20:6-12.
Why does he teach them these things now? Have we heard this before? No. He teaches this now
because they know he is the Christ, but have no proper conception of what that means.
What does the title "Christ" mean to his disciples at this point? political leader, Roman
butt-kicker, etc.
Why "must" the Son of Man suffer? OT prophecy, Is 53, etc. It is written
How does he teach them these things? plainly
As opposed to what? in parables. Now he has stopped using parables. For those on the inside he
speaks plainly, so that they may understand him.
Did they understand him? Did Peter? Sure he did! He just did not like what he heard!
What did Peter do? "rebuke" Jesus
What does "rebuke" mean? Where have we seen that word before? Jesus rebukes demons (2:12)
and the wind (9:22). To get control of subordinates.
Therefore, what is Peter doing? putting himself above Jesus.
Why? he did not want a suffering messiah, but a victorious one
What was Peter trying to do? lead Jesus
What did Jesus call Peter to do? to follow
What is Jesus' response? harsh, called Peter "Satan" (adversary)
What is "not on God's side, but on the side of men"? Peter was on the outside, and speaking for
outsiders. God's plan is different.
Look at 20:12-22.
Who is he speaking to? any person; the entire multitude.
What does he say to them?
What would this mean for them? "deny themselves"? leave behind self-determination,
independence, identity
"take up their cross"? I deserve death, publicly identify with the guilty, humiliation
"follow me": Jesus is heading to the cross and death. His disciples are to follow
Why would anyone do this? What reasons does Jesus give?
Consider the two types of people: what do they have in common? both desire life, both eventually
lose it
What is different? one group loses life but really gains it
Is it an even trade? no
Why not? you give your life, but you'd lose that anyway
If you save your life ==> you lose it, that's it
If you lose your life ==> you lose it ==> gain life back!
What is the crucial issue? the cause, the reason: Jesus' sake and the gospel's.
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Jesus' sake, the Gospel is the only cause worth dying for, because it is the only cause that will give
you real life. All other causes and "sakes" are bankrupt, they cannot deliver on their
promises. Even good causes, apart from Jesus, do not return life.
Who does this apply to? everyone
Specifically? Disciples, Peter: Peter didn't want to die. He didn't want to follow a messiah who
would die.
Who else does this refer to? to Jesus.
What was Peter's rebuke to Jesus? What was he saying? "Jesus, you aren't going to die--you don't
have to die!"
Why did Jesus call Peter Satan? What does Satan do? tempts
What was Peter's temptation? to avoid death, not to choose death
What would have happened to Jesus if he had tried to save his life, according to Jesus own words
here? he too would have lost his life.
Why does he respond so strongly to Peter? everything was hanging in the balance, there was
much at stake.
Line 10: "turning and looking at his disciples": What did he see as he responded to Peter? What
would have happened to his disciples if he had listened to Peter? they too, with Jesus and
all the world, would have lost their lives. God's plan for salvation would have been ruined.
Satan would have won! Peter's idea is not one to which a polite response was even
possible.
Then Jesus asks two rhetorical questions. What does he mean?
What kind of language does he use in this section? profit, gain, loss, return: economic terms. He
wants people to consider the cost/benefit analysis
What is the answer to the first question? nothing; no profit
What can a person give in return for life? nothing; our lives
What does it cost to gain life? life
What is fair about setting the price tag at that level? everyone has their life--everyone can choose
to pay the cost.
Who would be ashamed of Jesus' words? people who don't want to die; who don't like the idea of
obedience and death
Like who? like Peter--he was ashamed of Jesus' speaking about his own death.
Who else? we also are tempted to be ashamed of Jesus' words in his claim to uniqueness and
exclusivity. We want everyone to like us, so we don't speak about Jesus' exclusive claims.
In a world of tolerance, they are embarrassing.
What about the last line? What are the possibilities?
--transfiguration
--resurrection
--Acts 2
Application:
What does it mean for us to lose our lives for Jesus' sake?
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What other things do people on campus lose their lives for?
What do those things promise?
Ultimately, can they deliver?
What gets in the way of us losing our lives for Jesus' sake?
fear--that the promises aren't true; death is hard to take if the promise of life is not certain
fear--of what others think about us
being ashamed--of the exclusivity or totality of Jesus' words
"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose."
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XVI. Manuscript pages 20:22-22:18.
Look at 20:22-21:8.
Six days after what? Jesus' prediction of his death.
What does Jesus do? Why these three? closest, renamed, Jairus' daughter
What happens? Jesus transfigured, intensely white garments, with Moses and Elijah
Who are these guys? What do they represent? the law and prophets the spiritual leaders of the
people of Israel
What is Peter's response? to make three booths
Why? he didn't know what to say--so he spoke (typical Peter)
What is Peter doing with this response? making the three of them equal--on the same plane
What does God do? points out his son--says, "Shut up, Peter, we've heard just about enough from
you lately."
God is not ashamed of Jesus and his words--God sticks up for Jesus. God says, "Listen to my son.
Above the law, above the prophets, and in harmony with both. My son is the authority!
"Listen to Jesus." About what? about his death. Peter didn't want to listen to Jesus. Peter had his
own ideas. He needed to learn to listen to the real authority.
What are the booths? "Let's stay up here". That isn't an option
Look at 21:8-16.
What did they not understand? the resurrection--and these three have seen an example of one
What is different about his command to be quiet this time? this is the first time he indicates that
the silence is not indeterminate in length. "Until after the Son of man ..."
So what do they ask about? another question. They saw Elijah-- they think about the scribes
teaching regarding Elijah (Malachi 4:5-6).
Is it the right question? no--they should have asked about what confused them--but Jesus teaches
them anyway.
What is Jesus hammering away at? his suffering
Why must the Son of Man suffer? because it is written--just as they did of Elijah just as it was
written of him.
"You don't understand that John was to come; you don't understand my coming. But John came
and suffered. Just as John's death was prophecied, so is mine; I ask you to look at the
prophecy concerning my purpose here."
(Elijah himself, like John, was hassled and threatened by a wicked woman and a weak king. This
too came in response to Elijah's fearless challenge of the wicked plans of Ahab and
Jezebel. In a sense, Jezebel's threat to kill Elijah is prophetically fulfilled in Herodias'
successful plot to kill John the Baptist.)
Look at 21:16-22:18.
What was happening? an argument--the disciples argued with the scribes, but Jesus never did.
Perhaps they were more defensive and less skillful
Why are the people amazed? like Moses, perhaps the glow has not quite faded.
What was the argument about? the healing--why they weren't able to cast out a demon. Perhaps
the disciples were defending their ability to do it....
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What had happened? the man had brought his son to his disciples. They had been able to cast
demons out before, but now they could not do it.
What's Jesus' response? "You faithless generation..."
Who is that? the disciples, the folks he had given power to, the folks he had called to be with him
What is the man's situation? desperate, helpless
Why does Jesus ask, "How long has he had this?"? to understand the nature of the problem.
What does he do? he asks for Jesus' help, if he can do anything.
Read Jesus' response out loud? "If you are able!" not "If you are able?"
What is the difference? Jesus is challenging the man to have faith--he is challenging the man to
participate by believing it can happen
So what happens? the man asks for help, and Jesus heals the boy
What about the imagery of the healing? convulsing him = suffer, like a corpse = be killed, lifted
him up = rise from the dead. The imagery is of the prediction of Jesus' death--he gives
them a visual experience to illustrate what will happen. They thought the boy was dead,
but in fact he lived.
What about the disciples' question? good question, at least they asked--they wanted to learn
something from this situation
What about his answer? what kind?
Who prayed?
What is prayer? request made to God in desperation
Who prayed? the man: "I believe; help my unbelief!" The man requested help even to believe that
Jesus could heal his son. This is a great prayer--Jesus loves to answer it.
Why couldn't the disciples heal the man? they had done it before...
The disciples had been successful at healing and casting out demons the first time out. They were
sent out heavily dependent on God and could not forget it. Now they've forgotten their
dependence and perhaps were trusting in their own techniques. They can never get
beyond trusting in God. Jesus calls them to prayer.
What is the answer to Jesus' question: "How long am I to be with you?" As long as it takes for
you to learn the importance of prayer. Jesus cannot leave the scene until the disciples learn
how to depend on him without him around. This little trial run, with Jesus off in the hills
for a little while, illustrates that his disciples are not ready to depend on him while he is
absent. So Jesus must stay with them until they learn the importance of prayer.
The demon's purpose is to destroy the boy (22:7). It convulses him and seemingly kills him. The
onlookers think that the demon has won. But in fact the opposite happened. Jesus
conquered the powers of Satan though for a short while it looked bad.
The same is true with Jesus. Satan would like nothing better than to destroy Jesus (6:3),
using the religious establishment as tools. When it looks like Satan has won--after Jesus'
death, actually the opposite is true. Jesus is raised up in a demonstration of the victory of
God over Satan.
Application:
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"This kind can come out only through prayer." We all suffer from a human tendency to rely on
technique, not prayer. The first time I led a Bible study I had to rely on God, but the 20th
time I could do it with my eyes closed. (Beware, experienced Mark study teachers!) We
must remember that it is not our skill that heals people, changes lives, but God's power
accessed through total dependence on him.
When Jesus intervenes in a hopeless situation, sometimes things will get worse before they get
better. We need to be prepared to see a death come before we will see the resurrection
power of Jesus at work. In what areas do we want to see God's healing? (For example, we
may need to give up idolatrous plans or unhealthy relationships in order to see God work
to bring new hope or new life. The "death" in the short-term will be painful, but the
resurrection life will be much richer.
Page 46
XVII. Manuscript pages 22:18-24:20.
Look at 22:18-23:7.
Why did Jesus want to remain hidden? he was teaching his disciples
What was he teaching them? about his suffering and death--the secret is not out yet. (2nd full
prediction of his death)
How do they respond to his teaching? don't understand, but don't ask any questions; they are a
"faithless generation", so again they respond in fear. (They remember that this is a touchy
subject to Jesus--20:11.)
What question does Jesus ask? "What were you arguing about...?"
When before? 21:20
Why were they silent? ashamed of their topic of conversation--who was the greatest
What might have been behind their argument? What had just happened? the nine (without P,J,&J)
couldn't cast out the demon. Perhaps Peter, James and John thought that things would
have been different had they been there... Or perhaps they were thinking about a successor
to Jesus...
So what does Jesus do? he teaches on true greatness, and then he puts a child in their midst and
teaches them to receive children
Someone could have become the greatest by picking up the child--but the disciples don't go
for it. So then Jesus takes the child in his arms.
Why? What does "welcome a child" mean? serving, accepting the lowest in society, the ones
without rank or prestige
What does Jesus say about welcoming a child? it equals welcoming Jesus. He identifies himself
with a child.
Who is Jesus? What have the disciples failed to understand about who Jesus is? he is a servant,
the lowest, the last (that is why he is also the king, the greatest, and first). Again, Jesus
tries to give them a different picture of the Christ.
Look at 23:7-24:1.
What brought this up? "in my name"--then John remembers, "Oh, yeah, there was that other guy
doing things in Jesus name. Let's tell Jesus about him..." They may not know which of the
12 is the greatest but they know which 12 are the greatest.
What is ironic about this statement? 1) recently the disciples were not even able to cast demons
out... this guy is doing what they could not. 2) John's action is against the teaching that
reminded John to speak of it.
What does Jesus say? "Don't forbid him."
Why? he is on our side
What is crucial? in my name, bearing the name of Christ
What is the contrast? a "deed of power" with giving a cup of water
What is true for both? both will have a reward. Those who serve in Jesus' name will be rewarded.
On the other hand, what is Jesus warning? don't cause "one of these little ones" to sin
Who are the little ones? the servants, who give water, heal, children or those who welcome
children: the last of all
Those who serve in Jesus' name will be rewarded.
Page 47
"It would be better", "it is better"... What is Jesus saying? take sin seriously. Don't cause others to
sin, don't accept it in yourself.
What kinds of responses to sin does Jesus encourage? violent, urgent, drastic, irreversible, public.
Do not be patient with sin.
How do we usually respond to sin? superficial, cosmetic changes, temporary, private.
What does the hand, foot, eye represent? even things that are important or useful to you--if they
cause you to sin, have no patience with them. Cut them off and throw them away. Like
death before resurrection--things look worse before they get better. This is a painful
process.
"Everyone will be salted with fire"? What does that mean?
What does everyone face? not hell, but judgment
"Fire" as in what? judgment
"Everyone will be judged with fire"? Salt = what? judgment
Read lines 23:21-24:1, with salt=judgment: "Judgment is good, but if your judgment has lost its
justice, how will you season it? Judge yourselves, (i.e., weigh the things that cause you to
sin) and don't judge others." Peace with one another is the result.
What were the disciples doing? with the man? judging him
with one another? judging each other
How are we to relate to other people and ourselves from this passage? serve others, judge
ourselves
How have the disciples been acting? serving themselves, judging others
What has been the result? tension and conflict, instead of peace
Look at 24:1-24:14.
What is the issue? divorce
What is the real issue? Moses vs. Jesus
Why? they figured Jesus might respond in some way that they could then use against him.
They forgot the impurity condition mentioned in Deut. 24:1-4.
Was this a controversial question? John the baptist lost his head over this question, in a politicized
issue
How does Jesus deal with their stated issue? points to the intent of the law--Moses allowed but
God intended something different
What does "for your hardness of heart" mean?
Whom was the commandment written to protect? the wife, apart from the husband, had no
rights or economic protections. The certificate allowed her to remarry.
What was God's interest in marriage? that the two would become one flesh-not put asunder by
anyone
"Let no one separate"--including who? husband, pharisees, even Moses
What is the significance of Jesus' amplification? men and women are in the same boat before
God--a radical statement of equality
"One flesh": one body, joined together by God: the gathered assembly, the church. God brings
together, evil people scatter.
Page 48
"Adultery": adulterous and sinful generation (20:18). Faithfulness to a wife as a metaphor for
faithfulness to God.
Look at 24:14-20.
What were the disciples thinking? protect Jesus from these unimportant, slobbering and crying
babies--it was beneath him
How does Jesus react? indignant--he rebukes the rebukers (once again)
"To such as these that the kingdom of God belongs":
"To such"? children, those who become last
"the K of G"? see 23:20; 25:8,10,12.
Why must one become like a child to enter the K of G?
What is another synonym for "enter K of G"? "enter life"
How do we enter life? like a child, being born, without our own effort, needy, without a resume
or skills or talents
How must we enter the K of G? the same way, needy not able, empty-handed, not with a full set
of skills
What does Jesus do? receives the children, blesses them
The disciples were hindering children (the way they hindered the man casting out demons), yet
Jesus was serving them.
Application
1. How are we to have salt in ourselves--to judge ourselves in a way that will produce peace with
others?
Ex: divorce = cutting off other people rather than cutting off sin. The religious types see sin as
external to themselves and they don't have salt in themselves: they judge others.
What areas of our lives need drastic, permanent, public action taken to cut them off?
Example: confession of sin as a response: public, drastic, permanent: it is impossible to
back up once you have confessed.
2. How do we enter life=Kingdom of God like a child? What will that cost us?
3. How do we welcome/serve children? Abortion is our culture's unwillingness to welcome its
children.
Page 49
XVIII. Manuscript pages 24:20-25:21.
What do you know about this man? humble, seems to be sincere, respects Jesus
What is his question? what must I do to inherit
What issue does Jesus raise first? issue of "good"
Why? the man's conception of good is not adequate. He may have thought that people could
indeed be good.
How does the man know what good is? the law, the commands
What might the man expected of Jesus' in response? "Wow, I guess you are good!"
What did he need to learn? people cannot be good, only God. The man thinks of himself as good.
Jesus said only God is good.
Why does Jesus answer the man's question in the way he did?
What didn't he say? "believe in me"; "invite me into your heart as your personal lord and
savior", etc.
Why did he answer this way? the commands point to a life of faith
How did the man respond? "I have done all that"
Do you believe the man is sincere? Jesus didn't rebuke him for lying, but pointed him beyond the
second table of the law. Jesus genuinely loves him by telling him of his lack.
God loves those who obey his commands (Ex 20:6). Jesus loves him by telling him that he
lacks one thing.
Jesus said the man lacked one thing, but then Jesus told him to do five things (go, sell, give, come,
follow).
"Sell" = "cut it off" (23:15,17). If something causes you to sin, cut it off. Perhaps this gives us
an idea of how literally to take the commands to "cut it off".
What was the one thing the man lacked? relationship with God
Which commands did Jesus leave out? the commands dealing with God
What was the man's problem? he had made money into a god
Why did he go away sorrowful? because he did not like what he heard
Then Jesus begins to teach about entering the kingdom of God. Why is it hard for those who have
riches? easy to be idolatrous, to depend on one's riches instead of having faith in God.
What about "riches" other than money? ability, self- confidence, education, charm, talent,
etc.
How would Jesus' statement have struck the disciples? amazing
What did they think about those with riches? blessed by God
What does "it is easier for a camel..." mean? it is downright impossible. He is saying something
that exaggerates his first statement that it is just plain hard. He is not saying, "it is possible,
but only if the camel bends down" or other such things.
Why do the disciples respond the way they do? it sounds like it is impossible to be saved if the
people they thought had the most chance for it were almost beyond all hope.
How does Jesus respond? emphasizes possibility with God, not hopelessness
What does this language remind you of? from last week? "enter the kingdom of God", "enter life",
Page 50
How do people enter the kingdom of God? as children, dependent, needy, without possessions or
wealth
What does Jesus call his disciples here? "children"-- the first and only time in Mark. He looked
at
them and loved
them.
What does he mean by that? it is an affirmation, not a rebuke. The disciples have left everything;
they are like children now.
What was the man's original question? "what must I do to inherit"
What is the irony of that? you don't do anything to inherit
How do you inherit something? be the heir, be born into a family
What must one do to inherit eternal life? be born into the kingdom, enter it like a child, like the
disciples have
So who can be saved? "for mortals it is impossible"--people don't decide to birth themselves into
the kingdom--but all things are possible with God (22:8, also 37:4--this affirmation
becomes important for Jesus himself).
So why does Peter pipe up with "Look..."? he wants to know what is in it for him
What does Jesus say? it'll be more than worth it Peter.
What is the significant verb in this? "left". Going back to page 1, the joining the kingdom involves
repentance and leaving, but it involves wealth and abundance in return. Leaving home,
family, etc is a fundamental part of joining the kingdom.
What do you notice? 1) 100-fold--God will not be a debtor to anyone. We get much more than
we sacrifice. 2) mothers, brothers, sisters, but only one father. 3) "With persecutions"--he
doesn't promise easy street. Tensions between the new and the old (p5) bring
persecutions. As for Jesus, so for his followers.
What did Jesus want for the rich young man? a life of solitude and poverty? no--he invited him to
join the community of people who are together being provided for by God. Not a lonely,
depressing existence, but entrance into a growing family with hundreds of homes and
lands and relational riches.
[Perhaps this man is the author of Mark, the young disciple Mark himself. He says that he knew
that Jesus loved him.]
Application:
What is the problem of money? it can replace God. It can prevent us from receiving the kingdom
of God like a child. It is hard to enter the K of G with wealth
What is to be done with money? use it to serve people--give to the poor to have treasure in
heaven
What could Jesus say to us? How hard will it be for those who have education to enter the
kingdom of God. How hard will it be for those who have multiple talents, who are on the
fast track, to enter the kingdom of God.
Why would anyone want to leave house, mother, brother, etc? receive more.
How does this work? the K of God is a big family with one Father. Multiple houses? hospitality,
etc.
Page 51
XIX. Manuscript pages 25:21-27:8.
Why were they amazed and afraid?
Who is following? disciples, others
Where are they going? to Jerusalem
How is the Messiah supposed to act? triumphant, kick out Romans
What are they thinking? this is no Messiah's army, no match for the Romans, this rag-tag group of
followers
So what does he do? tells them what will happen
What does he usually do? teach them
What is the difference? who teaches, who tells? teachers teach, prophets tell
He has changed roles: now he is a prophet, telling them what will happen to him.
Compare this prediction with the others. More detail
So what do James and John do? ask a favor, to sit at his right & left hand in glory. Literally,
"They put themselves forward"
What are they thinking about? glory
What is their picture? triumphant, glorious
What were they asking for? a share in the glory, authority, exaltation
What is the irony of their asking the question at this time? it would be unthinkable if they fully
understood what Jesus was saying to them about his own death. 1) he speaks of
humiliation, not glory. 2) they wouldn't want to share in his destiny. 3) they should care
about the suffering coming to him, rather than glory for themselves.
How does Jesus respond? "You don't know what you are asking."
What is the cup? death, suffering. Is 51:17,22; Ps 60:3; Jer 25:15, Cup of staggering
Baptism? death, burial
What does Jesus finally answer? prophesies the death of James and John. He says: "You aren't
able
now, but eventually you
will be able to lose your life for my sake and the gospel's.
Why couldn't he grant their request? it wasn't his to grant
Why did he ask them the questions he did? to deepen their understanding of what he and they
faced--to show them that they did not understand, but would one day understand.
I tend to think Jesus was amused but not impatient with their request. He calls his disciples
"children" on the previous page; here James and John are acting like children ("We want
you to do for us whatever we ask of you"). He merely corrects their notions without being
harsh.
What was the reaction of the other disciples? anger, not "at peace with one another" (23:24)
Who perhaps especially? Peter "we have left everything"
Why were they angry? they were bummed they didn't think of it first. James and John pulled a
power play--they didn't want to be aced out of the limelight.
So what does Jesus do? What could he have done? tried to deal with it quietly--not let people
know. Instead he brings the issue out into the open.
Page 52
Where did the disciples learn what they knew about authority and greatness? from the gentiles,
from the religious leaders, not from Jesus
"But it is not so among you"? definition, not a command. This is simply a true statement,
descriptive, not normative. This is what it means to be a legitimate ruler: servanthood.
"Whoever wishes to become great among you"? James and John, Peter
Who is this true for? even Jesus--the greatest servant and Lord of all. Jesus doesn't ask his
followers to do more than he is doing.
"Ransom for many": Jesus' death makes forgiveness from God possible. His death makes it
possible for us to lose our lives in order to gain them, to gain security by leaving family
and property, and to find greatness by becoming servants. Without Jesus' death for our
sins, Jesus' paradoxical teachings would be nothing more than powerless mystical ethics.
Because of Jesus' death, we are ransomed into real life impossible without it.
Jesus compares greatness in the world with greatness in the Kingdom. In the world, say in IBM or
GM, the person who has more employees working for them is the greatest. (Eg: between
two vice presidents, the one heading a division with the most employees is more
important, has greater prestige.) The world's model: those who have the most servants are
the greatest. For Jesus: those who serve the most people, serve in the greatest way, serve
the greatest needs, they are the greatest.
What about Bartimaeus?
Compare Bart with James and John:
Bartimaeus
James and John
needy
"able"
asking for mercy
asking for glory
openly
secretly
clear, simple request
manipulative
Jesus able to grant
Jesus not able to grant
follows Jesus
they want to sit
hears Jesus
doesn't hear Jesus' teaching
humble --> exalted
exalt themselves --> are humbled
How does Jesus respond? "What do you want me to do for you?" the servant's question
What does Bart understand about Jesus? he came to serve, unlike the disciples who think only in
terms of glory & exaltation
Jesus heals Bartimaeus and then equips him to follow.
Application:
1) Hierarchy vs. "lower-archy": Jesus' upside-down values of servanthood leadership.
2) In the world, we spend time acquiring skills, abilities, contacts and achievements to be able to
be considered "great." What would it look like in the kingdom to spend ou
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