Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Mark+010

 
Mark 10 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Request of James and John

³⁵ And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” ³⁶ And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” ³⁷ And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” ³⁸ Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” ³⁹ And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized, ⁴⁰ but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.” ⁴¹ And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John. ⁴² And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. ⁴³ But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, ⁴⁴ and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. ⁴⁵ For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

 

REFLECTION

1. Jesus didn’t laugh or getting angry at James or John, but He did reject their requests.  We may want to ask for anything from God, but God wants to give us the best and not just anything we asked for.  So, it’s for our good that He may reject our requests.
2. Take a time to reflect.  Is there any prayer request of yours that God still hasn’t answered, or has refused?  Right now, offer a prayer of thanksgiving to God, for He has or will have given you the best.
3. In the kingdom of Christ, “serving” is the way to success.  This is the model Christ left us.  Prayer is one of the services for believers.  Make this your prayer for today and always: “Lord, help me to pray faithfully daily for pastors, the church, our community, needs of brothers and sisters.”

 
PRAYER

Lord, thank You for speaking to me personally through today’s scriptures, admonishing me that being Your disciple is for serving and that I will be willing to pay the price. You are the Son of the living God, with a position of incomparable honour, but you came into the world in the form of a servant, humble and meek, and a servant of all. Lord, I would like to follow Your example, willing to bear Your burden, bear Your yoke, take up Your cross, and follow You. Only by doing this can I receive Your reward and have abundant life, because You have said that those who want to gain life will lose it, and those who lose their life for Your Word will gain life instead. Lord, please give me the extraordinary vision to understand what is most precious. Amen!

 
HYMN
Hear Our Prayer – youtu.be/t0aOG9AKbwg

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Mark+009

 

Mark 9 English Standard Version (ESV)

Jesus Heals a Boy with an Unclean Spirit

¹⁴ And when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them, and scribes arguing with them. ¹⁵ And immediately all the crowd, when they saw him, were greatly amazed and ran up to him and greeted him. ¹⁶ And he asked them, “What are you arguing about with them?”¹⁷ And someone from the crowd answered him, “Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a spirit that makes him mute. ¹⁸ And whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able.” ¹⁹ And he answered them, “O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me.” ²⁰ And they brought the boy to him. And when the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. ²¹ And Jesus asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. ²² And it has often cast him into fire and into water, to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” ²³ And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.”²⁴ Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!” ²⁵ And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.” ²⁶ And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, “He is dead.” ²⁷ But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. ²⁸ And when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” ²⁹ And he said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.”

 

REFLECTION

1. This passage clearly depicts Christ’s frustration with His disciples (v19), and the desperation of the father who believed, but doubted at the same time.
2. We are often like both this father and the disciples. We believe, yet doubt. We act in Jesus’ name, but at times fail completely.
3. This incident taught the disciples that they needed to serve God in constant conscious dependence on Him that expresses itself in prayer. Prayer serves to remind us who God is, and our dependence on Him. When we pray, we are reminded of who God is, and our faith is increased.
4. Which do you struggle with more—believing that Jesus can or that He wants to answer your prayers? Why?
5. Ask God to provide you with the encouragement you need in your life and to make you a channel of His grace to others.

 

PRAYER

Lord, I have often been like the father in the scriptures, believing, but not believing enough! Lord, have mercy on my weakness and little faith, please help me as You help this father. I have always acted in the flesh, and I have always been caught in sin and transgression. Lord, forgive my unrighteousness, forgive my transgressions, and may Your grace and love always be with me, so that my faith grows and my life transforms day by day. Please give me a strong and courageous heart, and think of Your grace in prayer every day; please walk with me in my busy life, so that I can understand that all things are possible for those who believe. As long as I rely on You and look to You, I will be able to experience Your power and be a good witness for You. Amen!

 

HYMN

Sweet Hour Of Prayer – youtu.be/sLV-imJxyo4

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Mark+008

 

Mark 8 English Standard Version (ESV)

Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ

²⁷ And Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” ²⁸ And they told him, “John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.” ²⁹ And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.” ³⁰ And he strictly charged them to tell no one about him.

Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection

³¹ And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. ³² And he said this plainly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. ³³ But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

³⁴ And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. ³⁵ For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. ³⁶ For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? ³⁷ For what can a man give in return for his soul? ³⁸ For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

 

REFLECTION

1. When Peter made this confession of faith “You are the Christ”, he has only taken the first step. The next step is a lifelong journey to live out this confession fully and authentically.
2. That’s the same with us. After our confession of faith, Jesus calls us to live a life to “deny himself and take up his cross and follow” Jesus.
3. In your journey of faith, which step have you taken? Are you still lingering at the first step?  Or are you walking toward the goal of being sanctified and made holy?  What is it that has kept you from moving ahead?  What are you afraid of?
4. Pray for courage and faith to walk on this journey. Ask for God’s guidance that you may willingly follow.

 

PRAYER

Lord, I am a man of little faith and cowardice! I lack the courage to deny myself, nor the strength to take up the heavy cross to follow You! My eyes are often drawn to the splendor of the world, and I am often indulged in the pleasures of sin and cannot extricate myself. As Paul described it, to will is present with me, but to do that which is good is not. In my journey of faith, I have wandered many times, encountered ups and downs many times, and even fell, but You never forsaken me! You have been pulling me, step by step forward. Thank You, dear Lord Jesus, even though I am not worthy, You still love me. Please continue to pull me with Your loving cords, so that I have more courage and faith to follow You. Amen!

 

HYMN

Voice Of Truth – youtu.be/9cKm_mYVPQE

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Mark+007

 

Mark 7 English Standard Version (ESV)

Traditions and Commandments
1 Now when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem, ² they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that were defiled, that is, unwashed. ³ (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands properly, holding to the tradition of the elders, ⁴ and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as the washing of cups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches.) ⁵ And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?”⁶ And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written,

“‘This people honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me;
⁷ in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’

⁸ You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”

⁹ And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! ¹⁰ For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ ¹¹ But you say, ‘If a man tells his father or his mother, “Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban”’ (that is, given to God)— ¹² then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother, ¹³ thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.”

What Defiles a Person
¹⁴ And he called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand: ¹⁵ There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.” ¹⁷ And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. ¹⁸ And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, ¹⁹ since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) ²⁰ And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. ²¹ For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, ²² coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. ²³ All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

 

REFLECTION

1. All of us are influenced by traditions of one sort or another—even those who are anti-traditional cannot avoid it! But at what point do traditions lose their value or even become counterproductive? When do religious practices become a substitute for really obeying God? In this study Jesus has some rather harsh words for the Pharisees and the traditions they choose to observe.
2. What religious traditions influence your life? Is that influence good or bad? What sorts of traditions do we observe today that get in the way of really honoring God?
3. In what ways do you, like the Pharisees, sometimes emphasize appearance over internal reality?

 

PRAYER

Dear Lord Jesus, I go to church every Sunday to worship and listen to Your Word. I also attend small group gatherings and participate in church ministries. I also abide by the traditions, ceremonies, and norms of the church. But You told me that if I don’t have Your life, that I can’t live out Your Word, and that I don’t love people, all I’ve done is in vain. Lord, thank You for reminding me through today’s scriptures that I should not be a lifeless Christian, and not be like the Pharisees who are godly on the outside but full of corruption on the inside, leading to hypocrisy, abandoning Your way. Lord, I would like to follow You closely every day, try to imitate You. May You strengthen me. Amen!

 

HYMN

Heart of Worship – youtu.be/0XsB0ltXmRs

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Mark+006

 

Mark 6 English Standard Version (ESV)

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand

³⁰ The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. ³¹ And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. ³² And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves. ³³ Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they ran there on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. ³⁴ When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things. ³⁵ And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. ³⁶ Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” ³⁷ But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said to him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?” ³⁸ And he said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they had found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.” ³⁹ Then he commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. ⁴⁰ So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. ⁴¹ And taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And he divided the two fish among them all. ⁴² And they all ate and were satisfied. ⁴³ And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. ⁴⁴ And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.

 

REFLECTION

1. Even though Jesus gave ample evidence that He was more than a mere man (calming the storm, casting out demon, healing the sick, raising the dead, 4:35—5:43), those who knew Him best on the physical plane still refused to believe in Him. This led Jesus to concentrate increasingly on training His disciples, especially on His own identity and to bring them to a deeper understanding of who He was, and a deeper commitment to Himself.
2. In this familiar story, the disciples wanted Jesus to dismiss the big crowd to find food for themselves. Jesus had something else in mind. He wanted to teach the disciples and the multitudes to look to Him for their needs. He was the ultimate source of all they needed.
3. Jesus suggested that the disciples feed the people, and He asked them “how many loaves” of bread they had. The disciples realized their inability to feed this great multitude and the inadequacy of their resources (5 loaves and 2 fish).  They also need to understand that it was those resources, as inadequate as they were, that Jesus used to feed the five thousand.
4. We may be like the disciples and think that we don’t have much (lack of resources), can’t do much (lack of ability), and therefore can’t give much to the Lord. However, if we are willing to lay ourselves to His hand, God can use and multiply it to bless many people. Are you willing?

 

PRAYER

Sing or read this old hymn. May it be a prayer from your heart to the Lord.

What Shall I give Thee, Master? (Rev. Homer W. Grimes)

What shall I give Thee, Master?
Thou who didst die for me.
Shall I give less of what I possess,
Or shall I give all to Thee?

Jesus, my Lord and Savior;
Thou hast giv’n all for me;
Thou didst leave Thy home above
To die on Calvary.
What shall I give Thee, Master?
Thou hast giv’n all for me;
Not just a part or half of my heart,
I will give all to Thee.

What shall I give Thee, Master?
Thou hast redeemed my soul;
My gift is small but it is my all—
Surrendered to Thy control.

What shall I give Thee, Master?
Giver of gifts divine!
I will not hold time, talents or gold—
For everything shall be Thine.

 

HYMN

What Shall I Give Thee, Master? – youtu.be/7Jg4l11bd2E

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Mark+005

 

Mark 5 English Standard Version (ESV)

Jesus Heals a Woman
²¹ And when Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered about him, and he was beside the sea. ²² Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, and seeing him, he fell at his feet ²³ and implored him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live.” ²⁴ And he went with him.

And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him. ²⁵ And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, ²⁶ and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse. ²⁷ She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. ²⁸ For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” ²⁹ And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. ³⁰ And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my garments?” ³¹ And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’” ³² And he looked around to see who had done it. ³³ But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. ³⁴ And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

 

REFLECTION

1. Jesus, on his way to the home of a dying girl, was touched by a woman with chronic bleeding.  She spent all she had to search for a cure but to no avail.  Then she heard about Jesus, she became convinced that if she could only touch His clothing, she would be healed.  And she was healed indeed. She tried to remain unobtrusive, since her condition rendered her and all who contacted her ritually unclean.
2. The disciples probably were eager to get Jesus to Jairus’ house before it was too late. Yet Jesus wanted to speak to the woman, and to assure her that it was her faith in Him that had resulted in her healing, not merely her touch. Jesus didn’t rebuke her, but wanted to speak to her, lest she conclude that touching Him was what cured her.  The woman’s faith in Jesus had not only resulted in her physical healing but also brought her into His spiritual family.
3. Jesus assured her that her healing was complete and permanent with these words: “your faith has made you well.” She could now enjoy social interaction and participation in public worship, as well as physical health, since she was clean.
4. Mark is demonstrating to us that Jesus Christ, ruler of God’s kingdom, has power over nature (4:35-41), over demonic power (5:1-20), and over every illness and even death (5:21-43).  Knowing Jesus has such power gives us confidence to live by His word, even if He should choose not to heal every believer’s disease now.
5. Tell Jesus all of your urgent needs and ask for His healing and help.

 

PRAYER

Dear Lord Jesus, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God, You are my Savior and the Lord of my life! You are a great king, and You will judge the living and the dead in the future kingdom of God, and You will rule over everything in heaven and on earth! You are mighty, You overcome the powers of the devil and death, and You give us Your followers abundant and eternal life! Lord, please keep me thinking about Your authority and power so that my faith can be strengthened and follow You more firmly. Please give us peace in our troubles, in Your victorious name. Amen!

 

HYMN

What A Friend We Have In Jesus – youtu.be/8SCorW9r_Is

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Mark+004

 

Mark 4 English Standard Version (ESV)

A Lamp Under a Basket
²¹ And he said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed, and not on a stand? ²² For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret except to come to light. ²³ If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” ²⁴ And he said to them, “Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you. ²⁵ For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”

 

REFLECTION

1. In Matthew 6:3-4, Jesus taught us: “But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”
2. However, in this paragraph, it is talking about all of our secrets – good and bad – being revealed.  What is the connection between keeping good deeds and qualities, and having all of our secrets revealed?  Does this motivate us to be quiet about the good works that we do?
3. Continue the meditation from yesterday to be willing to be a quiet and hidden disciple of Jesus.  Lord, help me so that I will “not let (my) left hand know what (my) right hand is doing” (Matt 6:3).

 

PRAYER

Dear Lord Jesus, Your Word is sharper than all swords, it can divide my soul and spirit, and reach the most secret place of my heart! I know how filthy my heart is, and I know how unwilling I am to repent! I have many sins that others do not know, but You understand better than me! Even my self-deceitful and hidden sins are well known to You, and in front of You I am inescapable! Lord, I am willing to confess these hidden sins to You today, and I am willing to sincerely repent, asking You to forgive all my sins! Please walk with me every day, keep edifying me, make my life like light to show Your glory in this dark world. Amen!

 

HYMN

Take My Life – youtu.be/agROj9nTQP4

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Mark+003

 

Mark 3 English Standard Version (ESV)

The Twelve Apostles
¹³ And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. ¹⁴ And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach ¹⁵ and have authority to cast out demons. ¹⁶ He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); ¹⁷ James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder); ¹⁸ Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot, ¹⁹ and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

²⁰ Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. ²¹ And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”

 

REFLECTION

1. We know a few of the more famous (and infamous) disciples of Jesus, but there are many in this list we know nothing about at all.  Though they were also with Jesus for more than three years, received teachings and care from Jesus, were commanded to preach, heal, and cast out demons. However, they remained to be the unnoticed in the Bible and in the church history.
2. In our own discipleship, we may be asked to do some work or to take a stand that gets noticed by others.  But often discipleship consists of faithfulness in the small, even mundane acts of Christian service perhaps unnoticed by all except God.
3. Are you aware of any unnoticed servers at church, home, the office or any other places? Look for an opportunity to show appreciation, a smile, or a thank you to these people.
4. Are you willing to be an unnoticed disciple of Christ?  Is there any behind-the-scene work that needs to be done? Ask the Lord to give you the willingness to do the not-easily-noticed services faithfully even without people’s recognition or appreciation.

 

PRAYER

Lord, thank You for calling us, giving us different gifts, and assigning us different ministries, and that You love us the same, no matter how big or how much we do. Lord, may You make me continue to mature spiritually, so that I will not be driven by the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of this life, so that even though I am in Your church, my heart is chasing after the world’s fame and fortune. Lord, I would like to be a quiet servant, willing to do the unnoticed ministry. I know that even though I don’t get the attention of others, I do get Your attention and please You. It is enough to have You in my life, what else do I need? Amen!

 

HYMN

Make Me A Servant – youtu.be/r6U8O_WnPZY

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Mark+002

 

Mark 2 English Standard Version (ESV)

Jesus Heals a Paralytic

1 And when he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. ² And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them. ³ And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. ⁴ And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. ⁵ And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” ⁶ Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, ⁷ “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” ⁸ And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? ⁹ Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? ¹⁰ But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic— ¹¹ “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” ¹² And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”

 

REFLECTION

1. The four men were deeply concerned about their friend and wanted to see him helped. They had the faith to believe that Jesus could and would meet his need. They did not simply “pray about it,” but they put action to their prayers; and were not discouraged by the difficult circumstances. They worked together, and Jesus rewarded their efforts by healing their friend.
2. Jesus chose to do what they considered harder to show that He could also do what they considered easier. He did the miracle which they could see that they might know that he had done the other one (forgiving sins) that they could not see.
3. God has called us not only to be His disciples individually, but to be formed into communities of faith too.  We pray for one another and work for the healing and wholeness of others, just as this paralytic’s four friends help him receive the healing he needs.

 

PRAYER

Dear Lord, I admire the loving and supportive relationship between these four friends and the paralytic. I hope that my brothers and sisters and I can love each other like this, and through mutual help and support, receive all the healing in our body, emotion, spirit, and life by the Lord. Each of us has many brokenness, bitterness, and pain in our lives, and we all need the comfort of the Lord. You have called us to form a loving community, to come to you together, and to cry out to you. Lord, I am willing to do this from today, to support and comfort the brothers and sisters in need, please be with us. Amen!

 

HYMN

Living Waters – youtu.be/LA9UfBEHciY

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Mark+001

 

Introduction of Mark

Mark appears to be written for an audience in Rome. A Roman centurion’s declaration near the end of the book — Surely this man was the Son of God!—models the witness to Jesus this gospel calls for.

The opening half of this fast-moving drama keys on the question: Who do you say I am? An episode at the end of the first half shows Jesus healing a blind man in two stages, so that he slowly comes to see. In the same way the disciples have only gradually come to recognize who Jesus is. Then in a key moment in the story, between its two halves, Peter confesses that Jesus is the Messiah.

Now the conflict moves out into the open. Jesus has come to introduce a radical new way of life that will undercut existing power relationships. The second half of the drama depicts this in three acts:

1. First, Jesus and his disciples travel to Jerusalem.
2. Next, Jesus teaches in the temple and clashes with the established leadership.
3. In the final act, that leadership executes its plan and has Jesus arrested and crucified, seemingly overturning all he has done. But then God overturns their deed and raises Jesus to life. So Mark’s readers are called to be faithful to Jesus, even in suffering, because this is how God continues to overturn the existing order and establish the way of life that Jesus taught.

 

www.bible.com/zh-TW/bible/111/MRK.INTRO1.NIV

 

Mark 1 English Standard Version (ESV)

John the Baptist Prepares the Way

1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

² As it is written in Isaiah the prophet,

“Behold, I send my messenger before your face,
who will prepare your way,
³ the voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight,’”

⁴ John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ⁵ And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. ⁶ Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. ⁷ And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.⁸ I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

The Baptism of Jesus

⁹ In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. ¹⁰ And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.¹¹ And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

The Temptation of Jesus

¹² The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. ¹³ And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.

 

REFLECTION

1. This opening section of Mark sets the stage for the presentation of Jesus Christ as the unique Servant of the Lord, Mark identified as the Son of God.
2. Mark recorded two events that preceded Jesus’ public ministry, His baptism and His temptation. Jesus underwent John’s baptism to identify with man and man’s sin, not because He needed to repent of personal sins, for He had none. His baptism showed that He is the Son of God, the One approved by the Father and empowered by the Spirit, He is the Messiah.
3. God allowed Satan to tempt Jesus for two reasons: to show that He would not draw away from the Father’s will, and to demonstrate His qualification for His mission. During the time of testing by Satan, “angels were ministering to him”. God did not leave His Son alone, but provided grace to help in this time of need.
4. What temptations are you currently struggling with? What encouragement do you find here for facing your own temptations?
5. Ask God to help you find the encouragement and strength you need to face temptation.

 

PRAYER

Dear Lord Jesus, You are the Son of God and the Savior of my life! Thank You for being incarnated and coming to the world to preach the gospel of the kingdom of heaven and tell people that You are the way, the truth, and the life, and no one can go to the Father except through You. You also sacrificed on the cross to accomplish a precious and incomparable salvation, and rose from the dead three days later, abolishing the power of death, so that all who believe in You will not perish, but have eternal life. Dear Lord, I am determined to follow You all my life. I have toil and trouble in the world, and I will encounter temptations just like You. I ask You to walk with me, give me more encouragement, give me courage and strength, and live out Your life diligently. Amen!

 

HYMN

Lord, I Need You – youtu.be/LuvfMDhTyMA