9:9-10 Some things we are not meant to know now--that could mean in this present age or just in this moment of time, and God will reveal it to us at a later time. The disciples didn't understand what Jesus meant when He said "rising from the dead." This was Peter, James, and John here, the inner circle, but 3 other times in ch. 8, 9, and 10 Jesus tells the disciples plainly that He will be killed and rise in 3 days. Even after He had risen they didn't get it. Jesus gave them many 'pieces' that later would add to the whole of their ministry, their faith.
9:14-29 The disciples had experience healing people and driving out demons but they couldn't drive this one out. The disciples are missing a key ingredient. They had not yet received the Holy Spirit, and unlike their earlier mission trip, this time Jesus had not given them His power. So they need to pray. They need power greater than their own.
9:23-25 The father gets the right answer here. This should be our prayer. Lord, I have faith, help me to have more. In this case though, it appears that Jesus heals his son not because of his faith but because of the crowd. Not healing him would have hurt the faith of the crowd. It also appears that in this case, healing him is likely what the father needed for his faith to grow.
9:37 This is the crux of kingdom relationship we must understand. When we love others, we are loving Jesus. When we love Jesus, we are loving God. All of relationship with God boil down to relationship with people. There is an additional element here. The child. Children have not been so contaminated by fact. They believe the impossible, they love without reason. There is a simple beauty to the kingdom that stymies our reason, eats at our logic. How many times do we ask a child, they answer simply, and we reply, "it's just not that simple."? Maybe it is. Maybe it is we who have it wrong.
9:38-41 I think it's our judgement. We see something different and condemn it; never stopping to put our kingdom glasses on, no, no, no, no, no, that's not the way to do it. You are not the one to do it. How often do we crush the work of God because we don't know what He is doing?
9:42-50 Here Jesus is trying to show us just how grave it is for us to be out of tune with Him. When we are out of tune with Him we have the opportunity to send others to hell. Better be sensitive to the Spirit and work with than to........perhaps a little too much insensitivity to the Spirit and not only do we send others to hell but ourselves as well. Best to keep a finger on the pulse. Perhaps this is a place for a mentor or a prayer/accountability partner, definitely where our need for community is laid bare.
Friday, October 31, 2014
Mark ch.8
I hope somebody enjoys reading these. I've gone all the way through Mark but I've been typing these on my phone so it takes forever, just a little lazy when it comes to taking time to sit down and actually do this. Of course, there is that little thing of actually finishing something. That's kind of a rarity in itself. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this, God bless.
8:11-12 The Pharisees asked for a sign. Jesus had done many miraculous things up to this point, even His disciples had done so on their mission trip. None of this was done in secret. The Pharisees had seen much of this, yet they asked for a sign from heaven. Another sign. Jesus refuses their request. He knew that another sign would only serve to harden their hears further. In another book is added--no sign shall be given except the sign of Jonah. Jonah went to Ninevah and performed no miracles, preached repent, and they did so. Jesus came with lots of miracles and preached repent and the religious folk asked for more signs. Their hearts were already hard as stone.
8:14-21 The disciples had seen Jesus do many miraculous things, they also had done some, but somehow they still didn't get it.
8:22-26 This is the only recorded miracle where Jesus has to do it twice before the person is healed. Not only this but Jesus also took him out of his village to heal him. Both of these were quite unusual. Jesus doesn't heal just to show His power, He heals to reach us deep down inside. I imagine He partially healed this man in order to allow his faith time to grow. And I believe his village was a hindrant to his faith. Jesus says "don't go into the village". He doesn't have to tell anyone he's been healed as they would have known immediately. The villagers might have stolen his new found faith if given a chance. The first part of his healing is on the faith of those who brought him to Jesus. The second however, is on his faith. That's the whole point. The people didn't NEED to be healed, they would have continued to live out there lives as they always had and been ok. No, Jesus heals No.1 to show His power, and No.2 to spark the faith of them and those around them. To show everyone that something new was here. Hey, pay attention. Heaven has come to earth and is right in front of you. Believe in me and you shall join me in my kingdom. Everything Jesus does in some way point to this core directive. It's all about your eternity. Instead of praying for someones behavior to change, pray for their relationship with God to grow, or pray for them to find a relationship with God. Once that seed has been planted deep inside, God can begin, or continue, to grow them. Everything grows out of the seed within. When that seed changes or comes alive, then the behaviors and actions of un-health will also begin to change. This is why it's so futile to fight for anti-abortion legislation, or a Christian nation, or other such noble purposes. The necessary change does not come from the top down but rather from deep inside. The heart is the necessary change. When the heart changes, then everything else does also.
8:27-30 Over and over we see the disciples just not get it. Here, Peter proclames Jesus is "The Messiah", so it's not that they just don't get it. They get that Jesus is the Messiah, they just don't understand who the Messiah is, what He is all about.
8:31-33 Peter sure takes the brunt of things, He's like Jesus' lead go getter. He rises to the top over and over only to fall the hardest--both here and at Jesus' execution. This is the process of forging. Peter is the Rock. This rock must not be broken, therefore Jesus breaks him in certain ways in order to forge him into a man who will not break. A man who knows that the prize is far greater than the punishment.
8:33 How often could this be said of each of us? How many times do we pray for God to bind Satan or destroy our sin nature when in reality it is God putting us through this thing-maybe even at our own prayer for growth. Too often our view is of one piece when God has the whole picture and can see where this piece fits.
8:34-38 This is us. No where in here is going to church every Sunday and back to life on Monday. No, this is a once for all battle call.
8:11-12 The Pharisees asked for a sign. Jesus had done many miraculous things up to this point, even His disciples had done so on their mission trip. None of this was done in secret. The Pharisees had seen much of this, yet they asked for a sign from heaven. Another sign. Jesus refuses their request. He knew that another sign would only serve to harden their hears further. In another book is added--no sign shall be given except the sign of Jonah. Jonah went to Ninevah and performed no miracles, preached repent, and they did so. Jesus came with lots of miracles and preached repent and the religious folk asked for more signs. Their hearts were already hard as stone.
8:14-21 The disciples had seen Jesus do many miraculous things, they also had done some, but somehow they still didn't get it.
8:22-26 This is the only recorded miracle where Jesus has to do it twice before the person is healed. Not only this but Jesus also took him out of his village to heal him. Both of these were quite unusual. Jesus doesn't heal just to show His power, He heals to reach us deep down inside. I imagine He partially healed this man in order to allow his faith time to grow. And I believe his village was a hindrant to his faith. Jesus says "don't go into the village". He doesn't have to tell anyone he's been healed as they would have known immediately. The villagers might have stolen his new found faith if given a chance. The first part of his healing is on the faith of those who brought him to Jesus. The second however, is on his faith. That's the whole point. The people didn't NEED to be healed, they would have continued to live out there lives as they always had and been ok. No, Jesus heals No.1 to show His power, and No.2 to spark the faith of them and those around them. To show everyone that something new was here. Hey, pay attention. Heaven has come to earth and is right in front of you. Believe in me and you shall join me in my kingdom. Everything Jesus does in some way point to this core directive. It's all about your eternity. Instead of praying for someones behavior to change, pray for their relationship with God to grow, or pray for them to find a relationship with God. Once that seed has been planted deep inside, God can begin, or continue, to grow them. Everything grows out of the seed within. When that seed changes or comes alive, then the behaviors and actions of un-health will also begin to change. This is why it's so futile to fight for anti-abortion legislation, or a Christian nation, or other such noble purposes. The necessary change does not come from the top down but rather from deep inside. The heart is the necessary change. When the heart changes, then everything else does also.
8:27-30 Over and over we see the disciples just not get it. Here, Peter proclames Jesus is "The Messiah", so it's not that they just don't get it. They get that Jesus is the Messiah, they just don't understand who the Messiah is, what He is all about.
8:31-33 Peter sure takes the brunt of things, He's like Jesus' lead go getter. He rises to the top over and over only to fall the hardest--both here and at Jesus' execution. This is the process of forging. Peter is the Rock. This rock must not be broken, therefore Jesus breaks him in certain ways in order to forge him into a man who will not break. A man who knows that the prize is far greater than the punishment.
8:33 How often could this be said of each of us? How many times do we pray for God to bind Satan or destroy our sin nature when in reality it is God putting us through this thing-maybe even at our own prayer for growth. Too often our view is of one piece when God has the whole picture and can see where this piece fits.
8:34-38 This is us. No where in here is going to church every Sunday and back to life on Monday. No, this is a once for all battle call.
Thursday, October 23, 2014
God and satan
Have you ever wondered if God has ever been proud of satan? Like, satan is God's creation and he does bring amazing things out of us sometimes even if it is for bad, so I just wonder. Hmmm...
Mark 7
7:1-13 The religious leaders had put following law above loving people. God is love. Our love towards God is not flowers or candy or toys as it would be for a spouse or child, it is not that direct toward God. But, when we love others directly, we are expressing our love for God, to God.
7:15-19 No little amount of controversy in these verses. Jesus declared all foods clean. It seems here that Jesus is unbinding the Levitical or Mosaic law here. You know, the stuff about split hoofs and chews the cud. That's the way I read it. However, the law was for the Jewish people of Israel and I'm not one of them either. My guess is that those who still follow the Old Testament food law do not see pig and such as food because they are unclean animal and an unclean animal would never be considered food and therefore clean food has no relation to unclean animal. That's my best guess. Whether you believe this or believe bacon and all other foods are good to eat, we do good to honor our conscience, to honor God by obeying what our conviction holds.
7:20-23 Jesus went to great pains to try and teach us that the heart is what matters. In the old way I could make an offering and follow the law, but have hardness in my heart. With Jesus however, it is no longer based on what is seen externally but in the heart. This is why we struggle so. We can't see the heart so we judge what we can see, the action. Too often the two are light years apart. Fortunately, God looks at the heart and gives us grace accordingly.
How often, if we knew, would we find that the man just busted for drunk driving or cheating on his wife one more time is the man in whose heart God is working mighty change? Yet I judge him as being the same old drunkard or the guy that will never learn to keep it in his pants. The way I judge him is the way I will treat him. I may destroy the work God is doing without even knowing, all because I judge.
7:24-30 Jesus came to the Jews. The Jews were God's chosen people and He needed to teach them the father heart of God so they could be missionaries to all people's of the earth.. the disciples had enough on their plate already, they were not ready to understand the gift of God was no longer just for Jew, but for every man, everywhere. As such, Jesus tried to keep his work mostly to the Jewish. Here though was an outsider who already knew what Jesus was teying so hard to teach the disciples. Jesus didn't just, oh, what the heck, since your here I'll go ahead and do this. No, Jesus heals her daughter because of her faith. She was not leaving without what she came for. Oh that we would have that kind of faith.
7:31-37 There is a great parallel between Jeus' ministry and the way God modulates free will and destiny in our lives. Jesus is trying to control His fame, His destiny. He needs to achieve or establish His God-head to the disciples, yet still end up on the cross. Here Jesus is controlling or preserving His (destiny) by leaving the Jewish areas and going into more pagan areas, preventing the people from trying to crown Him. But at the same time He doesn't control their (free will) by choosing who comes to Him for healing. Same is true in our lives. God has an end game for each of us and He controls certain details but at the same time He gives us free will for other details and yet we always end up precisely where we are supposed to be. So they bring a deaf and mostly mute person to Jesus and He heals him. He allowed their free will. Then He commands them not to tell anyone. His control. But they go and blabber it to everyone. Seems like chaos for Jesus' ministry. Yet, He still ends up exactly where He needs to be after 3-1/2 years of this. So it is in our lives. Looks like so many years of chaos, but .......
7:15-19 No little amount of controversy in these verses. Jesus declared all foods clean. It seems here that Jesus is unbinding the Levitical or Mosaic law here. You know, the stuff about split hoofs and chews the cud. That's the way I read it. However, the law was for the Jewish people of Israel and I'm not one of them either. My guess is that those who still follow the Old Testament food law do not see pig and such as food because they are unclean animal and an unclean animal would never be considered food and therefore clean food has no relation to unclean animal. That's my best guess. Whether you believe this or believe bacon and all other foods are good to eat, we do good to honor our conscience, to honor God by obeying what our conviction holds.
7:20-23 Jesus went to great pains to try and teach us that the heart is what matters. In the old way I could make an offering and follow the law, but have hardness in my heart. With Jesus however, it is no longer based on what is seen externally but in the heart. This is why we struggle so. We can't see the heart so we judge what we can see, the action. Too often the two are light years apart. Fortunately, God looks at the heart and gives us grace accordingly.
How often, if we knew, would we find that the man just busted for drunk driving or cheating on his wife one more time is the man in whose heart God is working mighty change? Yet I judge him as being the same old drunkard or the guy that will never learn to keep it in his pants. The way I judge him is the way I will treat him. I may destroy the work God is doing without even knowing, all because I judge.
7:24-30 Jesus came to the Jews. The Jews were God's chosen people and He needed to teach them the father heart of God so they could be missionaries to all people's of the earth.. the disciples had enough on their plate already, they were not ready to understand the gift of God was no longer just for Jew, but for every man, everywhere. As such, Jesus tried to keep his work mostly to the Jewish. Here though was an outsider who already knew what Jesus was teying so hard to teach the disciples. Jesus didn't just, oh, what the heck, since your here I'll go ahead and do this. No, Jesus heals her daughter because of her faith. She was not leaving without what she came for. Oh that we would have that kind of faith.
7:31-37 There is a great parallel between Jeus' ministry and the way God modulates free will and destiny in our lives. Jesus is trying to control His fame, His destiny. He needs to achieve or establish His God-head to the disciples, yet still end up on the cross. Here Jesus is controlling or preserving His (destiny) by leaving the Jewish areas and going into more pagan areas, preventing the people from trying to crown Him. But at the same time He doesn't control their (free will) by choosing who comes to Him for healing. Same is true in our lives. God has an end game for each of us and He controls certain details but at the same time He gives us free will for other details and yet we always end up precisely where we are supposed to be. So they bring a deaf and mostly mute person to Jesus and He heals him. He allowed their free will. Then He commands them not to tell anyone. His control. But they go and blabber it to everyone. Seems like chaos for Jesus' ministry. Yet, He still ends up exactly where He needs to be after 3-1/2 years of this. So it is in our lives. Looks like so many years of chaos, but .......
Tuesday, September 23, 2014
musings on Mark ch.6
Mark 6:1-6. It's the people closest to us; coworkers, family, and children maybe especially that we have a hard time realizing talent and giftings in. It's so easy to brag about the friend we grew up with who is now a big star. A movie star or musician or such, but what about when we are still close to them? We can gain a sort of popularity or even influence by a connection to the distant star. How about?; we grew up together, went to the same school, same Bible camps, then I went to 4 years of seminary while he slept his way across Europe for 2 years and now he has an amazing ministry and I'm a cashier at Safeway working 50 hours a week just to get by? It's not fair! What's so special about him? Jesus grew up in a society or town where everyone is basically the same or equal. Suddenly He turns 30 and starts healing people and claiming to be the son of God. Everybody was like, we know who you are and where you come from, you can't fool us. Sometimes knowledge or familiarity blind us to the supernatural.
6:7-13 The disciples went out two by two and preached a simple message that people should repent. In 1:15 Jesus said "the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news." In 1:4 John the Baptist preached a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Repent, repent, repent. Should our message be any different today?
Jesus gave the disciples authority over evil spirits-they drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them. The disciples had yet to receive the Holy Spirit. It was only by Jesus' authority that they are able to do it now.
6:31 Jesus says to his disciples "come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest." Jesus is leading them in the importance of Sabbath rest after a time of ministry. Do we get this?!! Sabbath for man, not man for the Sabbath. The Sabbath was never meant to be a day of well meaning ritual, but rather a time of spiritual renewal thru rest, through no effort of our own.
6:34 Jesus had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. I once heard two older ladies talking. One said she'd been a Christian her whole life but it wasn't until her husband died that she had to forge a faith of her own. She had always lived off of her husband's faith. This is what these people had. The priest took care of all the religious duties and the people did what was commanded of them. They didn't have their own religion or relationship with God. Add to this that Jesus was set to bring change. This change was to take people from a religion of fulfilling duties and ritual (external) to a direct one on one personal religion with their creator (imternal). The religious leaders of the day had no understanding of this or ability to lead people into it. Hence they were sheep without a shepherd. So Jesus began teaching them many things.
6:45-46 One of the things we get stuck or hung up on is how much man was Jesus and how much God was Jesus? If He was God, then why did He have to pray to God, and if He was man, then why did the demons fear Him? Imagine Jesus has always been in perfect relationship. With God, with the Holy Spirit. Even with war in heaven they have always been in perfect unity, perfect harmony. Now Jesus has had to leave the group. He's doing a solo tour while His space sits empty on the team's bus. How hard that must have been. So Jesus sends everyone away. He isolates Himself, goes up on a mountainside, and prays. To the degree possible He joins the circle He's always been part of. How refreshing it must have been. Home again. No matter how He loved His companions, the 12 disciples and others, to some degree they were idiots. Trying their very best they could barely grasp the minimum of what Jesus was teaching them. How frustrating it had to be at times for Jesus. Here Jesus demonstrates variety in life. Time for family, time for friends, time to minister, time to recharge. As busy as His life was, He lived Ecclesiastes 3.
6:45-48 So Jesus sent His disciples away on the boat to go across the lake, the He goes away on his own, walks up a mountainside, talks with God. He walks back down and to the lake, then walks out on the water and gets half way across where He meets the disciples. They have been fighting some furious weather and have only managed to reach the middle of the lake. Even if it had been 9pm when they dismissed the 5 thousand men vs.44, that would mean they had been fighting the weather for an easy 6 hours or more. Their muscles had to be jello by now.
6:47-50 Jesus was heading out to the disciples but instead of going straight to them, He makes like He's walking past them. I wonder if He was letting his humorous side out. I can't wait to see how they react to this, this'll be epic. Or, was it something about having to call Him for help? Kind of like, you've obviously got this handled so I'll just keep on walking. I wonder what would have happened if they would have called out to Jesus before He showed up. What if Jesus had been praying on the hill and the disciples called to Him for help? I can only imagine He'd have been there Johhny on the spot. Jesus knew how long to leave them in their trial. He always knows the right time to step into our trial too. How many times do I miss what God is doing in my life because I focus so on getting out of my trial rather than discover what I am getting out of my trial. They'd been straining at the oars for hours and hours already. Also, I know I seem to forget that this is a monster storm when Jesus is walking on the water. Maybe the first miracle here isn't just Jesus walking on water, in a storm no less, but more like Jesus owning the laws of nature. Maybe in Jesus's eyes He's walking on a beautiful path through a sunny garden and they are right next to Him in a boat on stormy waters. Certainly, however Jesus sees the situation, He is master of it and He calls us, with His help, to be the master of ours.
6:51 Jesus was in a peaceful place already when He stepped into the boat, the boat and it's surroundings became enveloped in that peace.
6:52 The disciples had seen many, many miracles, yet, or maybe because of that, their hearts were hardened.--seeing the supernatural does not create faith in the supernatural--faith is built by believing without seeing.
6:54-56 Just a short time ago, before the disciples first mission trip, Jesus had been and could do little due to their lack of faith. But here in Gennesaret people are brought from everywhere to be healed. Jesus could have healed anyone and everyone. His goal is not to use His faith, but the people's faith. He didn't come to grow himself (that'd have been a quick visit), but to mature and build the faith of us, of them, his followers. So, where the people have great faith, Jesus does much, where they have little, Jesus does little. He still does some though, He gives them something to start with. This further illustrates the parable which says he who has much will be given more, and he who has little, even what he has will be taken away.
6:7-13 The disciples went out two by two and preached a simple message that people should repent. In 1:15 Jesus said "the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news." In 1:4 John the Baptist preached a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Repent, repent, repent. Should our message be any different today?
Jesus gave the disciples authority over evil spirits-they drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them. The disciples had yet to receive the Holy Spirit. It was only by Jesus' authority that they are able to do it now.
6:31 Jesus says to his disciples "come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest." Jesus is leading them in the importance of Sabbath rest after a time of ministry. Do we get this?!! Sabbath for man, not man for the Sabbath. The Sabbath was never meant to be a day of well meaning ritual, but rather a time of spiritual renewal thru rest, through no effort of our own.
6:34 Jesus had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. I once heard two older ladies talking. One said she'd been a Christian her whole life but it wasn't until her husband died that she had to forge a faith of her own. She had always lived off of her husband's faith. This is what these people had. The priest took care of all the religious duties and the people did what was commanded of them. They didn't have their own religion or relationship with God. Add to this that Jesus was set to bring change. This change was to take people from a religion of fulfilling duties and ritual (external) to a direct one on one personal religion with their creator (imternal). The religious leaders of the day had no understanding of this or ability to lead people into it. Hence they were sheep without a shepherd. So Jesus began teaching them many things.
6:45-46 One of the things we get stuck or hung up on is how much man was Jesus and how much God was Jesus? If He was God, then why did He have to pray to God, and if He was man, then why did the demons fear Him? Imagine Jesus has always been in perfect relationship. With God, with the Holy Spirit. Even with war in heaven they have always been in perfect unity, perfect harmony. Now Jesus has had to leave the group. He's doing a solo tour while His space sits empty on the team's bus. How hard that must have been. So Jesus sends everyone away. He isolates Himself, goes up on a mountainside, and prays. To the degree possible He joins the circle He's always been part of. How refreshing it must have been. Home again. No matter how He loved His companions, the 12 disciples and others, to some degree they were idiots. Trying their very best they could barely grasp the minimum of what Jesus was teaching them. How frustrating it had to be at times for Jesus. Here Jesus demonstrates variety in life. Time for family, time for friends, time to minister, time to recharge. As busy as His life was, He lived Ecclesiastes 3.
6:45-48 So Jesus sent His disciples away on the boat to go across the lake, the He goes away on his own, walks up a mountainside, talks with God. He walks back down and to the lake, then walks out on the water and gets half way across where He meets the disciples. They have been fighting some furious weather and have only managed to reach the middle of the lake. Even if it had been 9pm when they dismissed the 5 thousand men vs.44, that would mean they had been fighting the weather for an easy 6 hours or more. Their muscles had to be jello by now.
6:47-50 Jesus was heading out to the disciples but instead of going straight to them, He makes like He's walking past them. I wonder if He was letting his humorous side out. I can't wait to see how they react to this, this'll be epic. Or, was it something about having to call Him for help? Kind of like, you've obviously got this handled so I'll just keep on walking. I wonder what would have happened if they would have called out to Jesus before He showed up. What if Jesus had been praying on the hill and the disciples called to Him for help? I can only imagine He'd have been there Johhny on the spot. Jesus knew how long to leave them in their trial. He always knows the right time to step into our trial too. How many times do I miss what God is doing in my life because I focus so on getting out of my trial rather than discover what I am getting out of my trial. They'd been straining at the oars for hours and hours already. Also, I know I seem to forget that this is a monster storm when Jesus is walking on the water. Maybe the first miracle here isn't just Jesus walking on water, in a storm no less, but more like Jesus owning the laws of nature. Maybe in Jesus's eyes He's walking on a beautiful path through a sunny garden and they are right next to Him in a boat on stormy waters. Certainly, however Jesus sees the situation, He is master of it and He calls us, with His help, to be the master of ours.
6:51 Jesus was in a peaceful place already when He stepped into the boat, the boat and it's surroundings became enveloped in that peace.
6:52 The disciples had seen many, many miracles, yet, or maybe because of that, their hearts were hardened.--seeing the supernatural does not create faith in the supernatural--faith is built by believing without seeing.
6:54-56 Just a short time ago, before the disciples first mission trip, Jesus had been and could do little due to their lack of faith. But here in Gennesaret people are brought from everywhere to be healed. Jesus could have healed anyone and everyone. His goal is not to use His faith, but the people's faith. He didn't come to grow himself (that'd have been a quick visit), but to mature and build the faith of us, of them, his followers. So, where the people have great faith, Jesus does much, where they have little, Jesus does little. He still does some though, He gives them something to start with. This further illustrates the parable which says he who has much will be given more, and he who has little, even what he has will be taken away.
Sunday, August 3, 2014
thoughts on Mark ch.5
5:1-8 The demon was the one to speak to Jesus. The demon knew who Jesus was and even bowed down before Him using the possessed man's body. Not only does the demon believe, but bows down in fear knowing the power he was facing, afraid of what might happen to him.
5:9-13 I've always found this story strange.
#1 What were the demons (here we find out there are many demons possessing him) so afraid of that they would rather be sent into pigs. What is there in a pig to possess anyways?
#2 Why would Jesus submit to such a request? The Son of God even has mercy on demons.
#3 What did the demons gain? As soon as they were sent into the pigs the pigs ran into water and drowned.
I imagine it was avoidance of an impending doom. Once the pigs were dead they would be released to go to their next assignment or whatever and postpone their eventual punishment. Seems funny that the very thing (avoidance or procrastination) that we practice so often is the same tactic these demons use. Maybe one reason the demons are so good at their job with us is they face many of the same obstacles or life problems if you will as we do.
5:19 Post demon possessed man became a missionary.
5:25-30 I believe that Jesus set aside His God-head on earth and the Holy Spirit did the miracles and such, but it appears in this case the healing comes straight from Jesus as it is His power that healed the woman with bleeding.
5:25-34 Although it was power from Jesus that healed her, it was her faith that brought it to fruition.
5:9-13 I've always found this story strange.
#1 What were the demons (here we find out there are many demons possessing him) so afraid of that they would rather be sent into pigs. What is there in a pig to possess anyways?
#2 Why would Jesus submit to such a request? The Son of God even has mercy on demons.
#3 What did the demons gain? As soon as they were sent into the pigs the pigs ran into water and drowned.
I imagine it was avoidance of an impending doom. Once the pigs were dead they would be released to go to their next assignment or whatever and postpone their eventual punishment. Seems funny that the very thing (avoidance or procrastination) that we practice so often is the same tactic these demons use. Maybe one reason the demons are so good at their job with us is they face many of the same obstacles or life problems if you will as we do.
5:19 Post demon possessed man became a missionary.
5:25-30 I believe that Jesus set aside His God-head on earth and the Holy Spirit did the miracles and such, but it appears in this case the healing comes straight from Jesus as it is His power that healed the woman with bleeding.
5:25-34 Although it was power from Jesus that healed her, it was her faith that brought it to fruition.
Saturday, August 2, 2014
thoughts on Mark ch.4
4:24 It is said a lot "don't judge or you will be judged". Sometimes we apply this saying to things on earth and sometimes to our future as we meet God and are judged. We will all be judged, both here and by God. The variable is 'how will I be judged?' We live under grace and by the mercy of God are not destroyed for our wickedness, but allowed innumerable times per day to fail God's design for us. As such, God simply asks us to treat others, his other amazing creations, just as we are treated by Him. How we live in relationship to those around us is indeed how we live in relationship with God. How we fulfill the great commission, to love all people with the love of 1Cor 13, the measure we use to do that is the same measure that will be used to measure us, to judge us. The great commission is to go into all the world and make believers of all men. What is a believer? One who loves out of or thru the love if God. How do we make them believers? By loving them with Christ's love.
4:25 I build and restore bmx bikes from the late 70s-early 90s. The dream is for a bike to be so beautiful as to leave the mouths of fellow enthusiasts gaping wide open and drooling of course. I don't currently have the skills and likely monetary means to do so, but I'm getting closer. I started by just putting old bikes together that I could ride around on and since then each bike has gotten nicer as my skills and knowledge have improved. So it is with my walk with God. He has given me certain natural abilities and skills. When I use these they are honed and improved, and then seeing I've done well God gives me more. If I didn't use them, if I left that old bike outside and never put effort into it, nature would take it's course. Rust would set in and soon even what I had would be gone. So it is with the gifts of God. Left unused and discarded they will simply fade away. Like a foreign language never used, soon the memory of it as well as the muscle memory of the mouth will go away and no longer will you be able to speak it.
4:26-29 The Holy Spirit grows the kingdom of God. It is what we cannot see, the invisible worker. We may plant seed, we may water, but it is the great helper who puts it all together and makes it grow.
4:30-32 These verses talk of the kingdom of God being like a mustard seed. Super small yet becoming huge. I've seen the same of the believer. The smallest most insignificant person becoming huge as they lay their life down and dedicate everything to loving others. Sometimes we know not what God has planted inside us.
4:33&34 We've had thousands of years to study and dissect scripture with mixed results to say the least. Jesus explained everything to the disciples and yet they didn't understand. The Pharisees and religious leaders had all the info, they knew it all, yet they didn't understand. WE have so much info, yet so little understanding. Info, knowledge, is not key to our understanding. The Holy Spirit, relationship with our creator, relationship with His creation is key to our understanding.
4:35-41 Even though the disciples had seen many miracles and many amazing evidences, they still did not believe Jesus was the messiah. The Pharisees later would ask for a sign but Jesus said no sign would be given. Miracles strangely can distract us from God rather than enforcing belief. Faith comes from believing without seeing. When their evidence was removed (Jesus) they finally got it! The disciples finally believed.
4:25 I build and restore bmx bikes from the late 70s-early 90s. The dream is for a bike to be so beautiful as to leave the mouths of fellow enthusiasts gaping wide open and drooling of course. I don't currently have the skills and likely monetary means to do so, but I'm getting closer. I started by just putting old bikes together that I could ride around on and since then each bike has gotten nicer as my skills and knowledge have improved. So it is with my walk with God. He has given me certain natural abilities and skills. When I use these they are honed and improved, and then seeing I've done well God gives me more. If I didn't use them, if I left that old bike outside and never put effort into it, nature would take it's course. Rust would set in and soon even what I had would be gone. So it is with the gifts of God. Left unused and discarded they will simply fade away. Like a foreign language never used, soon the memory of it as well as the muscle memory of the mouth will go away and no longer will you be able to speak it.
4:26-29 The Holy Spirit grows the kingdom of God. It is what we cannot see, the invisible worker. We may plant seed, we may water, but it is the great helper who puts it all together and makes it grow.
4:30-32 These verses talk of the kingdom of God being like a mustard seed. Super small yet becoming huge. I've seen the same of the believer. The smallest most insignificant person becoming huge as they lay their life down and dedicate everything to loving others. Sometimes we know not what God has planted inside us.
4:33&34 We've had thousands of years to study and dissect scripture with mixed results to say the least. Jesus explained everything to the disciples and yet they didn't understand. The Pharisees and religious leaders had all the info, they knew it all, yet they didn't understand. WE have so much info, yet so little understanding. Info, knowledge, is not key to our understanding. The Holy Spirit, relationship with our creator, relationship with His creation is key to our understanding.
4:35-41 Even though the disciples had seen many miracles and many amazing evidences, they still did not believe Jesus was the messiah. The Pharisees later would ask for a sign but Jesus said no sign would be given. Miracles strangely can distract us from God rather than enforcing belief. Faith comes from believing without seeing. When their evidence was removed (Jesus) they finally got it! The disciples finally believed.
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