Mark by Mike Sullivan (2024)

John the Baptist, the "voice crying in the wilderness," was prophesied to come and prepare the way of the Messiah.  He came, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.  He prepared the way by preparing people's hearts, signaling something important was about to happen, by speaking of a greater successor, and  introducing a new kind of baptism, a baptism of the Holy Spirit.

The parable of the soils is not about which soils are the Christians, but is about the dynamic nature of hearing the Word.  What matters is hearing the Word in a way that bears fruit.

The two stories of Jesus healing Jairus' daughter and the woman with a bleeding disorder teaches us that Jesus can heal hopeless conditions, but He does not always heal people. Jesus' healing miracles are a glimpse into His future kingdom. Jairus and the woman had weak faith but the object of their faith was worthy.  Can the object of your faith bear the weight of eternity?

The Pharisees accused Jesus and His disciples of not following the traditions of the elders.  Jesus turned the tables on them and accused them rightly of elevating the traditions over and above the Word of God.  God is far more concerned about the inner state of our hearts than of our external procedures.

The disciples may have finally realized Jesus was the Messiah, but their understanding of what the Messiah came to do had to be transformed.  Jesus was not at that time coming as a conquering king, but as a suffering servant.

God welcomes into the kingdom those who approach Him like a child, not those who try to earn it.  For those who receive His forgiveness, He provides everything needed in this life and rewards in the next life.

As Jesus arrives in Jerusalem just prior to His crucifixion, He is fulfilling prophecy of the Messiah.  There are differing reactions to Him.  The crowds celebrate Him, while the religious leaders grumble and reject Him.

Mark details the events leading up to Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection where He, the innocent One, dies for the guilty as a substitute.  

When Jesus fed the 5000, He was revealing Himself to be a new kind of king with new values and a plan to work through people to bring about a quiet revolution one person at a time.

Ritualistic, man-made rule following does nothing to improve our righteousness before God because it does not address our most pressing problem.  Our fallen, sinful nature must be addressed not by outward demonstrations but by an inward renewing of our heart that only Jesus can bring about.