Mark 11
Hey all, this is Miranda. This week we're in Mark 11. What I was most struck by in this chapter is the overarching theme of Jesus' authority. It begins with the Triumphal Entry. Imagine being one of the disciples and being instructed to go to the next town to get a colt that's going to be tied up and then be given the words to say to the person you'll be taking it from. And, THEN actually going to that town and everything happening just as Jesus said. I thought to myself, "Their hearts must have been pounding from awe and excitement." I wonder what it must have been like for them to be walking beside Jesus as people everywhere cried out "Hosana!" And, did they even understand what was happening?
As the chapter continues, Jesus clears the temple and rebukes the people for desecrating it. He commands a fig tree to never bear fruit again. And, the Pharisees fail again to trap him when they ask him by what authority he's done these things. What I walked away with from this chapter is that Jesus can exercise His authority in any situation. We have four different situations here where He did this. It's a reminder to me of His power and how every area of my life is much better off under that authority.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Mark 10
Mark 10
Philip here, and I love the story of Jesus with the children. I am perplexed at times as to why the disciples were trying to keep the children away, but I can assume there was a large crowd and that after being pressed for long periods of time they were tired, irritable, frustrated, etc. No excuse, but Jesus’ words here really spoke to me through a song called “Fingertips and Noses” by Newsong back in the ‘90’s (so weird to think that was a LONG TIME AGO!) The sentiment of the song is a children’s class at church, and they are learning about how Jesus was sacrificed, raised from the dead, ascended to heaven and then one day will return. With childlike anticipation, all the kids run to the window to see Jesus coming from heaven, and they leave finger and nose prints on the window. Beautiful visual of how kids don’t let their unbelief get in the way, they simply believe!
The other thing that has always been a challenging verse for me is in the story of the rich young man. First of all, I wish we knew exactly what they meant by rich in this passage, but I have to consider that I would fall into the rich category as I am in the top percentages in the world in income, and have lots of stuff. Jesus is speaking to a man that follows the law and considers himself a “good person”, but with the question he is asking he is clearly looking for something else, or feels incomplete in his salvation. Jesus knows that his vice is selfishness. He keeps more to himself than he gives. Verse 23 is a tough one, often discussed and probably often misunderstood. I did a little research and found an account that the original Greek actually was written as kamilos (meaning rope) rather than kamelos (meaning camel). Easy to get hung up on this, but even if it is a rope trying to pass through a needle eye or a camel trying to pass through a narrow gate in Jerusalem called the eye of a needle, the key point is the same. Anything is possible with God. Jesus is trying to impress upon them just how powerful God is. He can move mountains, he can accomplish things that man cannot, such as either example above.
What really resonated with me today is the combination of these two, I want to believe with childlike anticipation, that any situation I am faced with, God can accomplish, no matter how impossible it may seem.
Philip
Philip here, and I love the story of Jesus with the children. I am perplexed at times as to why the disciples were trying to keep the children away, but I can assume there was a large crowd and that after being pressed for long periods of time they were tired, irritable, frustrated, etc. No excuse, but Jesus’ words here really spoke to me through a song called “Fingertips and Noses” by Newsong back in the ‘90’s (so weird to think that was a LONG TIME AGO!) The sentiment of the song is a children’s class at church, and they are learning about how Jesus was sacrificed, raised from the dead, ascended to heaven and then one day will return. With childlike anticipation, all the kids run to the window to see Jesus coming from heaven, and they leave finger and nose prints on the window. Beautiful visual of how kids don’t let their unbelief get in the way, they simply believe!
The other thing that has always been a challenging verse for me is in the story of the rich young man. First of all, I wish we knew exactly what they meant by rich in this passage, but I have to consider that I would fall into the rich category as I am in the top percentages in the world in income, and have lots of stuff. Jesus is speaking to a man that follows the law and considers himself a “good person”, but with the question he is asking he is clearly looking for something else, or feels incomplete in his salvation. Jesus knows that his vice is selfishness. He keeps more to himself than he gives. Verse 23 is a tough one, often discussed and probably often misunderstood. I did a little research and found an account that the original Greek actually was written as kamilos (meaning rope) rather than kamelos (meaning camel). Easy to get hung up on this, but even if it is a rope trying to pass through a needle eye or a camel trying to pass through a narrow gate in Jerusalem called the eye of a needle, the key point is the same. Anything is possible with God. Jesus is trying to impress upon them just how powerful God is. He can move mountains, he can accomplish things that man cannot, such as either example above.
What really resonated with me today is the combination of these two, I want to believe with childlike anticipation, that any situation I am faced with, God can accomplish, no matter how impossible it may seem.
Philip
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Mark 9
Mark 9
As we move into Mark 9, I notice something that begins to start taking place throughout the story telling. Jesus begins to continually make reference to His resurrection. And the scriptures say that the Disciples were either "afraid" or "confused", and did not ask Him about this.
This brought up an interesting thought for me. How many times are we afraid of the answer to something or confused and don't want to look stupid, therefore, we don't ask. I find that this happens a lot. It took me a long time to get to a point where I would lay down my own pride and not worry about looking stupid or hearing what I didn't want to hear and just ask. The reality is, sometimes the answer we get is not the answer we want, or the answer we get gives us information that we really would've rather not known. However, the answer is the answer, nonetheless. We can't change the answer. It is what it is, and rather than avoid it, I think we need to sometimes embrace it. We need to realize that God is Sovereign. He has ordained all things from beginning to end. And though we may not understand it, or like it, it is what it is, regardless. A perfect example would be the flood that we have recently experienced this week. None of us know why, nor would any of us, I would imagine, want it to have happened. But in the end, it becomes an opportunity for us. It's in those times when we can show humility by admitting we don't know the answer. We can show compassion by helping those who are affected. And we can show the love of Christ by just being there for people, praying for people, and caring for people.
-robbie
As we move into Mark 9, I notice something that begins to start taking place throughout the story telling. Jesus begins to continually make reference to His resurrection. And the scriptures say that the Disciples were either "afraid" or "confused", and did not ask Him about this.
This brought up an interesting thought for me. How many times are we afraid of the answer to something or confused and don't want to look stupid, therefore, we don't ask. I find that this happens a lot. It took me a long time to get to a point where I would lay down my own pride and not worry about looking stupid or hearing what I didn't want to hear and just ask. The reality is, sometimes the answer we get is not the answer we want, or the answer we get gives us information that we really would've rather not known. However, the answer is the answer, nonetheless. We can't change the answer. It is what it is, and rather than avoid it, I think we need to sometimes embrace it. We need to realize that God is Sovereign. He has ordained all things from beginning to end. And though we may not understand it, or like it, it is what it is, regardless. A perfect example would be the flood that we have recently experienced this week. None of us know why, nor would any of us, I would imagine, want it to have happened. But in the end, it becomes an opportunity for us. It's in those times when we can show humility by admitting we don't know the answer. We can show compassion by helping those who are affected. And we can show the love of Christ by just being there for people, praying for people, and caring for people.
-robbie
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