Tag: ministry

Posted on

Mark: Peter Declares That Jesus Is the Messiah

Read: Mark 8:27-30

In a few words, Mark records a pivotal conversation for the world:

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.” Mark 8:29

I’m trying to get my mind around how the Gospel of Mark is organized. When we zoom out to get a big picture of the writing, we see Jesus performing miracles for Jew and Gentile, covering many miles around the region and doing His best to keep his ministry quiet.

Literally thousands of people have been affected by His preaching, teaching, miracles, and perhaps mostly, his compassion. Over and over again we read the phrase, “Jesus had compassion on…” So who is He?

The Messiah

Peter is bold in saying what others were thinking, but no one disputes the conclusion that this man, the one that called them from various positions, the one that they can see with their own eyes and touch with their own hands is the Messiah.

The disciples have a front row seat to watch history unfold. Yet Jesus continues to keep this incredible revelation quiet,

Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him. Mark 8:30

Why the repeated warning? I think it’s mostly because the people would not understand, they are not ready for the headliner. Jesus, of course, knows the delay in telling the world is only months away, but His disciples have no idea, let alone the “fans” that are gathering to hear His preaching.

Like a song that is working toward a climax that you know instinctively is coming, music beginning to swell, but not quite ready to break. The hearts of the disciples must be beating in anticipation of the day when Jesus rises to the top to take over the world. That’s what their ancestors told them would happen and I’m sure they all had visions for what that would look like.

Jesus tells them to keep it secret. Like any good military operation, we have to maneuver around, position everything perfectly before the strike begins. Sure, Jesus, we’ll keep it secret, we won’t tell anyone.

We have access to the whole story. We know that’s not how it turns out, but I think I can appreciate how the disciples feel, well, a tiny bit of how they feel. In all honesty, we have no excuse for not telling everyone.

The question is, do we have the faith to proclaim that Jesus is the Messiah?

Lord, increase our faith so we may tell the world!

Posted on

Mark: Jesus Heals a Blind Man at Bethsaida

Read: Mark 8:22-26

Mark includes this brief narrative about healing a blind man at Bethsaida. “Some people” brought the man to Jesus and begged Him to restore his sight. Mark doesn’t let us know if these people are family or friends, but obviously they knew Jesus could heal him, so they tracked him down.

As with the deaf and mute man from chapter 7, Jesus takes the man away from the people, in this case, outside the village.

Here’s the really odd thing about the story: Jesus has to apply spit on the man’s eyes twice. The first time didn’t quite work.

Obviously, Jesus could have healed him in one application (or at least it seems obvious), but for some reason the man was only able to see partially. After the second application of spit on the man’s eyes, all is well and Jesus once again tells the recipient of the miracle to keep it secret.

Why would John Mark include this particular story? Jesus, no doubt, healed lots of people, so it seems prudent to look for meaning beyond the incredible outcome. Here’s what the NIV Study Bible notes prompts us to consider:

This second laying on of hands is unique in Jesus’ healing ministry. It may symbolize that the disciples’ spiritual sight is gradually increasing.NIV Study Bible Notes

I like the concept because there are definitely times that I feel like I’m walking around just seeing blurry images of trees rather than clearly understanding what’s right in front of me. I find myself constantly praying for vision, for clarity, for direction in this ministry or in that application.

Proverbs 29:18 comes to mind. My memory of this scripture is simply, without vision people will perish, but when I looked at various translations, there is much to learn here. Take a look yourself and see what you think. It’s a bit of a rabbit-trail from this post, so I’ll leave that up to you.

Frequently, when I ask about praying for someone, their request is for clarity, for the ability to discern God’s direction for their lives.

Lord, help us to see clearly what lies ahead so we can be more effective in our ministry, that which you have called us to do for the advancement of Your kingdom.

Posted on

Mark: Jesus Feeds 4,000

Read: Mark 8:1-13

Another large crowd gathers to hear the amazing teaching from Jesus. It seems that people are predisposed to gathering to hear words of wisdom or to be challenged to improve or simply to learn about something. Our quest for knowledge is wired into our DNA, some more than others, but all have a desire to learn.

I have to believe that Jesus is not your typical orator climbing on a precipice to make a point. Quite the contrary, I think He is encouraged by the people because of His humble approach to teaching coupled with incredible depth of wisdom. Of course He does have quite the credentials to support this notion, but the people gathering in this story don’t know how this all plays out, they just know of his reputation and after listening to Him speak, they want more and more.

In this instance, the people have been captivated for three days!

“I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance.” Mark 8:2-3

Jesus instructs His disciples to feed the people, again! Their apparent amnesia is interesting, “can anyone get enough bread to feed them?” They gather seven loaves of bread and a few fish, obviously enough to feed the masses, right? Jesus blesses the bread and fish and the crowd is miraculously fed.

Given the context of this story in Mark, Jesus and the disciples are somewhere in the Decapolis, primarily dominated by Gentiles, though we read in a moment that there are Pharisees policing the crowd, so there are Jews present as well.

The first miracle of feed 5,000 (plus women and children) occurs in predominantly Jewish territory (Mark 6:30-44). This miracle is unique in that it is covered in all four gospel accounts of Jesus’ ministry.

Feeding 4,000 (plus women and children) who are mostly Gentiles is significant and distinctly different! Mark seems to make the point that Jesus is wants to extend the gospel beyond the chosen ones. In addition to healing the Gentile women’s daughter and the man who couldn’t hear or speak, Jesus chooses to involve the disciples in sharing with this large population.

He could have had manna or quail fall from heaven, but, as with the first instance, He has the disciples serve the people. What He does and how He does it is important. What He does is feed a lot of people because He feels compassion. How He does it in mysterious, but requires the disciples to get involved, they don’t sit back and watch the miracle, they are direct participants in the event.

The mere fact that so many are gathered to hear from a Jewish teacher is significant all by itself, but this doesn’t sit well with the Pharisees:

The Pharisees came and began to question Jesus. To test him, they asked him for a sign from heaven. He sighed deeply and said, “Why does this generation ask for a sign? Truly I tell you, no sign will be given to it.” Then he left them, got back into the boat and crossed to the other side. Mark 8:11-13

I like to think that Jesus sighed because the Pharisees simply can’t believe what just happened. Surely they remember that Elisha feed 100 men (2 Kings 4:42-44), but it seems they can’t extend that concept to feeding so many, let alone non-Jewish people. Somehow they miss the miracle, are confused by His teaching, and come up with this great idea: ask Jesus for a sign. He simply dismisses them and gets in a boat to leave. Done.

Everyone who receives Christ has within them the dwelling presence of the Spirit. With that, each are given particular Spiritual Gifts for building up the body of Christ. Every Christ follower is a minister. We all participate, just like the disciples did in this narrative. And just like them, there are times, perhaps more often than not, that we do the work of Christ without completely understanding what’s going to happen. In the case above, watching seven loaves of bread feed so many was amazing. In our present day, sharing the gospel with one seems insignificant, but God can do amazing things with the smallest amount of faith!

Posted on

Mark: That Which Defiles

Read: Mark 7:1-23

The Pharisees and some teachers of the law…again. This time, the approach is simple, pick a rule that surely everyone knows: you must wash ceremonially before eating!

Most of the words in this passage are in red letters in my Bible, the words of Jesus. Mark explains the idea of washing before eating in verses 1-4, then quotes the Pharisees:

“Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with defiled hands?” Mark 7:5

Jesus sees this as a great teaching moment. He explains rather bluntly that they have elevated their customs above the law that they pretend to uphold. In this case, ceremonial washing, but in other cases, they’ve made rules to allow them to disobey God’s commands. To be clear, this is much more than merely not washing hands before dinner, this is an attitude of the heart, of a contrite and bitter heart.

Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. Nothing outside a person can defile them by going into them. Rather, it is what comes out of a person that defiles them.” Mark 7:14-15

The funny thing is that the disciples didn’t understand, they had to ask for clarification. I’m sure glad they did, because I’m not sure it was quite clear to me either. “Are you so dull,” Jesus continues, it’s not the food that defiles you at all. No more rules about clean and unclean food. Mind blown!

How many traditions have we invented that we hold onto so tightly? There are some who firmly believe that only ordained clergy can administer communion or baptize new believers. Only staff can decide what’s best for the holier than Moses defined hour of worship on Sunday. The Pharisees had 600+ rules. I suspect we have more, but we’re better at hiding them so as not to be accused of being a Pharisee. Clever us.

We know these rules are not of God. We created these rules out of a desire to elevate some above others, to put clergy on a pedestal, elders above deacons, deacons above congregants, congregants above outsiders. We’ve created a hierarchy that has is so inwardly focused that we’ve lost touch with the outside world–the world Christ came to save.

This type of arrogance has crept into the modern church club mentality where only certain people get an invitation to meetings and discussions that affect the body of believers. Over time, this has become the norm. Add a decade or two and we see the church in great decline, no longer a key part of society.

Our selfish desires for recognition have undermined God’s desire for creating an effective church, a body of believers that are filled with the Holy Spirit and on mission to change the world. I truly believe that unless we become the church Jesus intended, we are just ceremoniously washing our hands.

If we know the rules, we can play the game fairly. When the rules are so simple, like love God, your neighbor and yourself, it’s not so easy. “Did God really say…” (Genesis 3:1), words from the great tempter reappear.

Jesus isn’t done yet,

He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.” Mark 7:20-23

It’s inexcusable to blame someone else for the sin that comes from my actions, my thoughts, the impurities in my heart. The “devil made me do it” is simply not true. Satan may have put the thought in my mind, but it was my choice to cultivate the thought rather than just have the Holy Spirit destroy the weeds!

That which defiles reminds us of the seriousness of our ministry. The list that Mark provides, quoting Jesus, is rather shocking. For a culture that seems to hang pride up as a banner, to talk openly about sexual immorality, adultery, lewdness, etc., was unheard of…literally. These are just things we don’t talk about. But this is our savior, Jesus. He is not bound by our perception of rules and regulations, he only cares about the heart and soul.

It’s so easy to criticize the church for its shortcomings and while awareness is important, action is imperative! My earnest desire is to do more and rant less, but sometimes, I just have to let it out!

Lord, help us to ignore the prompts of the great tempter, the one who has a finite lifespan. Help us to focus on you and you alone.

Posted on

Mark: The Disciples First Ministry Experience

Read: Mark 6:6b-56

The balance of chapter 6 reads like a quick synopsis of the disciples first ministry experience. The details about  John the Baptist seem like more of an important side note than a part of the story. Another interesting nuance is in verse 30 where Mark refers to the disciples as apostles. In Mark 3:14, some translations include “as apostles,” but otherwise, this is the only reference to His disciples as apostles in Mark’s gospel account. (See Mark 3:14.) Interesting.

Here’s a brief outline:

  • Jesus leaves His home town where He was all but dismissed and begins to preach in each village.
  • Jesus sends the disciples out in pairs to preach.
  • Herod hears about the amazing works of Jesus and is confused, thinking John the Baptist has been resurrected.
  • The apostles (disciples) return with stories from the field.
  • In their excitement, they forgot all about eating, plus there were loads of people following them who were also hungry.
  • Jesus feeds the 5,000. The disciples are confused.
  • Jesus walks on water. The disciples hearts are hardened.

Herod’s confused. The disciples are confused. Wouldn’t we be confused? Perhaps I should search for a different word, but Mark is reporting events that were anything but normal. No doubt we should be scratching our heads and wondering what is going on.

Feeding 5,000 (and many more!)

When Jesus feeds the massive group, it’s interesting to see the level of authority and respect He has earned among the people:

Then Jesus directed them to have all the people sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. Mark 6:39-40

Imagine some 10,000+ people (counting spouses, children and relatives) are gathered around the countryside without sound system or any particular formal organization. Jesus directs this entire crowd AND they cooperate. I’ve been in concerts with groups of this size. It’s quite hard to imagine how He managed to direct them in the first place, let alone feed them miraculously.

This significant miracle is included in all four gospel accounts, perhaps because it’s so much greater than the story about Elisha feed 100 men in 2 Kings 4:42-44. Jesus is far superior to the prophets of old, that’s easy to say, but to the Jew in that day, this was huge. They revered the prophets for their great faith–they were the heroes of old. Jesus feeding so many through this miracle was a very big deal.

There’s no attempt to explain what happened here. All we know is they started with five loaves and two fish, fed the mass, then ended up with twelve basketfuls of loaves and fish. The disciples were probably exhausted, so Jesus sent them by boat to Bethsaida while He dismissed the crowd.

Two quick points:

  1. Dealing with so many people is hard work, even with Jesus by their side. Jesus knows this and sends them off to take a break.
  2. Jesus, once again, managed the huge crowd. He dismissed them (somehow), then goes to take a break Himself.

Jesus Walks on Water

In just a handful of verses, Mark covers this amazing event. Jesus is on the mountainside praying after dismissing the crowd and sending His disciples along. Somehow He saw them straining at the oars and felt compassion for them. First of all, how did He see them? This is just slipped into the text like it makes sense! He walks out to them just before dawn, the darkest part of the night. They freaked out! Exhausted from the day, fighting the waves, they’re sure to have lost their minds, but Jesus is making yet another point for them to consider.

Immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” Then he climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. They were completely amazed, for they had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened. Mark 6:50-52

I’m trying to wrap my mind around the events captured in this chapter, but honestly it’s beyond difficult. The disciples are on mission with Jesus, witnessing firsthand the miracles and amazing teaching, get to preach themselves and watch the crowds swell, watch Jesus handle the masses, walk on water, calm the storm, and simply say, “Don’t be afraid.”

Just a normal week at church.

Not!

When I think about my minor ministry, the smallness of that which I do on a daily basis, and my inability to get much accomplished, I’m lost in my weakness. Oh me of little faith (not Ye). If nothing else, I hope I can see that God is not bound by human limitations or logic.

Lord, may I read these stories and be amazed at Your works, at Your desire to teach, to lead, to care for us. Increase my faith one more degree that I would believe You have a plan for my life for Your greater good. My greatest desire is to see people come to Christ, those who have no idea what that means, inside and outside of the church. Move me out of my comfort zone and into the world where there are those who would welcome Your message and those who refuse to listen.

Posted on

Love Each Other

Read: John 15:15-17

This is part of the scripture reference in today’s ODB devotion, so I felt moved to share this incredible quote from Jesus as recorded by John:

15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other. John 15:15-17

If Bible memory verses are a important to you, verse 17 is pretty short! More than just memorizing seven words, my prayer is that we internalize this command from Jesus.

It’s a command, not a suggestion.

Context: This is part of John’s extensive narrative that captures Jesus’ words in the Upper Room just before His betrayal and arrest. Like the Sermon on the Mount, this discourse is an important part of scripture for us to fully understand — so much scripture, so little time! Anyway, I hope you’ll be prompted to read more of John 13-17 with the idea that “love each other” is central to theme as the words are centered in Jesus’ talk with His friends.

Ministry is challenging at times, even difficult, seemingly impossible. We need each other to be effective. My prayer this morning is quite simple: let us learn to love each other as Jesus commanded, lock arms and share the great news of the risen Savior. Jesus promoted His disciples from servants to friends. Go and do likewise!

This is my command: Love each other.

https://odb.org/2017/10/22/love-of-another-kind/

Posted on

Mark: Jesus’ Galilean Ministry — Heals a Paralyzed Man

Read: Mark 2:1-12

As Jesus continues to minister in the area in and around Galilee many are healed, amazed, in awe, and filled with wonder. At the same time, questions begin to arise, accusations raised, authority is challenged. From a high-level perspective it’s great to see Jesus wading into the throngs of people, moving without restraint, breaking social rules without a concern–not for the sake of being noticed, rather, Jesus demonstrates his love and compassion for all kinds of people. We should learn from this example.

My plan was to fly through these two chapters, but I’m stuck, the stories are too compelling. I guess I’ll just leave the overview here as a kind of outline for the next few days and see where that goes!

Overview:

Jesus Forgives and Heals a Paralyzed Man

Trouble begins when Jesus does something amazing. As a kid, reenacting the scene where Jesus heals a paralyzed man that was dropped down from the roof of a house was a lot of fun. I remember in later years how difficult it was to actually lift someone with four ropes on the corners of a stretcher — try it, it’s not easy — let alone carrying all of these parts to a roof and safely lowering the guy to the ground. There are so many parts to this story to focus on!

The huge crowd gathers to hear teaching like never before. They were hungry to learn from Jesus when this guy gets dropped down from the roof. When I think about the event, I have to smile. We get caught up on Sunday morning with any minor distraction, yet here’s this group ripping a hole in the roof, dirt falling, pieces of material had to be dropping around Jesus as they lowered him. Some people were no doubt offended that this distraction was preventing them from hearing. After all, the world revolves around each of us, right?

Jesus waits for the crowd to calm down, then without hesitation, the man is healed. The man. Not the baby, or little child. This guy is known in the community, he’s the crippled dude that’s been overlooked by many. Before their very eyes:

He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!” Mark 2:12

Mind blown. This is the real thing, yet immediately the teachers of the law are confused. The main problem I have with their reaction is there lack of desire to learn anything from Jesus. Their questions are not meant to find understanding, they are meant to criticize.

How many times do we hear a message and immediately switch into critical high-gear? Are we trying to learn? Or are we trying to gather evidence to defend our position? I know these are loaded questions. I’m guilty as much as anyone. So here’s my simple prayer:

Lord, help me to listen better,
to learn more and
to do everything surrounded by love.

Not too profound. The day the paralyzed man was healed, my guess is that there were five new believers in Christ, four that lowered him plus the man himself. I don’t know if they started a house church that week or if they helped to lead others to Jesus, but I suspect they did something! Isn’t this the driving theme in Mark’s Gospel? Do. Something.

Posted on

Mark: Jesus’ Ministry Begins

Read: Mark 1

John Mark wastes no time in getting into the story of Jesus’ earthly ministry. The NIV Study Bible notes summarizes his perspective like this:

Mark’s Gospel emphasizes more what Jesus did than what he said. Mark moves quickly from one episode in Jesus’ life and ministry to another.

No joke! In the first 13 verses we read about John the Baptist preparing the way, baptizing Jesus, then the passing reference to His wilderness experience. It’s as if John Mark wanted us to read the other Gospel accounts for more details–his focus was on action!

Take a few minutes to watch The Bible Project’s overview of the Gospel of Mark here:  https://thebibleproject.com/all-videos/?category=&q=mark

Jesus begins to speak into the ultimate Good News:

After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!” Mark 1:14-15

Mark’s account of Jesus’ ministry begins with calling the disciples to follow Him, then rebuking an evil spirit while teaching in a synagogue. The people are overwhelmed at His actions:

The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching—and with authority! He even gives orders to impure spirits and they obey him.” Mark 1:27

The time for complacency is over. No more frozen-chosen. Mark uses strong words of action in his account of Jesus ministry. In the passage above, Jesus speaks “sternly,” the spirit acts “violently,” and departs with a “shriek.” I’m reading the NIV, but the language is strong in whatever translation you prefer.

Jesus goes on to heal many, but it’s interesting that He starts with Peter’s mother-in-law:

So he went to her, took her hand and helped her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them. Mark 1:31

Did you catch that? I missed it at first. Peter’s mother-in-law, i.e., Peter is married. Paul uses this as a teaching point for the Corinthians:

Don’t we have the right to take a believing wife along with us, as do the other apostles and the Lord’s brothers and Cephas? 1 Corinthians 9:5

At any rate, they are eyewitnesses to the miraculous healing touch of Jesus, in many ways. Jesus goes on to heal many (“the whole town”) and his earthly, physical body grows tired, so He seeks a solitary place to go and pray. This alone is a wonder and a great example for us to consider.  The disciples are so excited they seek out Jesus:

and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!” Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons. Mark 1:37-39

Many were healed and though Jesus asked them to keep quiet the news spread quickly and to the point where he “could no longer enter a town openly.” Makes sense to me!

John Mark was close to Simon Peter. Their lives were radically changed by Jesus. Though their personalities were quite different, there is no doubt that from this point on they were living on mission for the Gospel. How about us? Have we been radically moved? We know the rest of the story, how can we keep it to ourselves?

Lord, I pray we are all compelled to act, to spread the news of Jesus by reading the hyper-fast pace of Mark’s Gospel.

Posted on

Matthew: Tough Words as the Third Discourse Concludes

Read: Matthew 16-17

I don’t claim to have a scholarly approach to extensive Bible study, more of an inquisitive Christ-follower method. Every once in awhile I look at the detailed notes in the study Bible of choice for clues and context. Today it seemed fitting. The NIV Study Bible describes the book of Matthew as an artistically crafted work with five discourses to mirror the Pentateuch in a particular effort to appeal to the large Jewish audience. The third discourse contains parables and miracles and leads us to Jesus’ prediction of his death as the tension mounts between established Jewish authority and the growing followers of Jesus and his disciples.

I have no desire to write posts for the purpose of writing posts! Yes, I want to read through the Bible carefully, but not for the sake of checking off my list. You should know that by now! These chapters portray tension in the middle of Jesus’ ministry and, I believe, they help us appreciate the tension we feel in our ministry (even though it pales in comparison).

Stern words from Jesus:

A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Jesus then left them and went away. When they went across the lake, the disciples forgot to take bread. “Be careful,” Jesus said to them. “Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Matthew 16:4-6

I wonder how many people turned and walked away from the Pharisees? The sentence stuck out this morning, in between Jesus warning about these lost leaders of Israel. They came to Jesus to ask a question, at least that was the reported intention in order to gain an audience. Jesus’ answer left them scratching their heads and before they knew it, he walked away. I have to think the answer plus the action was powerfully significant.

The funny thing is that the disciples didn’t get it! It appears they were as confused as the Pharisees and Sadducees:

Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked, “You of little faith, why are you talking among yourselves about having no bread? Do you still not understand? Matthew 16:8-9

Hard words for the select few, yet I feel like this most of the time! Talking amongst friends, trying to understand, piecing clues together to make sense of what is going on in this crazy life on earth.

Following this interaction, Jesus asked His disciples who the people say He is? Peter is quick to offer the right answer–perhaps the others were simply afraid to say outloud:

Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Matthew 16:16

Here we are, practically the center point in Matthew and we read the definitive words: Jesus IS the Messiah. For those of us raised in church, this is far from an “aha” moment. But for those in A.D. 30, these were world-changing words. Question: why are these not world-changing words in 2017? Shouldn’t they be just as significant today as 2,000 years ago?

Matthew quickly walks us through Jesus’ prediction of his death and then an astounding episode where Jesus is seen with Moses and Elijah, the Transfiguration experience. Talk about a churchy word! Jesus’s physical appearance was momentarily changed into his glorified state. Mind blown, the hand-picked disciples, Peter, James and John, stumble around trying to piece together the overload of information that just erupted before them.

When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus. Matthew 17:6-8

They are really trying to understand, but it’s easy to appreciate their confusion. Matthew writes his gospel account well after the events, but preserves the mystery as it unfolds.

The next story Matthew chooses to include is a fantastic failure on the part of the disciples and a strong rebuke from Jesus as a result.

Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?” He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew 17:19-20

If the disciples have so little faith, having watch miracles firsthand, I wonder what excuse I have given the entire story in my hands.

I hope we can learn to appreciate just a touch of what it was like to witness the truth of Jesus’ identity revealing itself to those who are far from Christ as the Spirit breaks down walls. Lord, help us to learn from these words and paint the picture that begs the questions which show who you are to this dying world.

 

Posted on

Matthew: Faith and Feeding the Masses

Read: Matthew 14-15

TheBibleProject.com revealed an important truth in Matthew that I either forgot or failed to pay attention to previously. It’s rather embarrassing when this happens, but I’m trying to be transparent here in this blog. Each day, sitting here reading and wondering, it’s fascinating to learn something practical while listening to hear from God. I’m so thankful to have somewhat carefully read through the Old Testament beginning this year, it really helps to have that recent knowledge in reading the Gospels, though it’s hard to pinpoint examples, it just makes more sense.

As we read through these two chapters of Matthew we learn that John the Baptist is beheaded on a whim as part of a birthday celebration for Herod. It’s a sad occasion for sure.

Herod wanted to kill John, but he was afraid of the people, because they considered John a prophet. Matthew 14:5

Herod was afraid of John, so it seems he chose to point the finger at his wife and dancing step-daughter as some bizarre rationale for finally executing John. The adulterous relationship that John exposed wasn’t news to the aristocratic elite, but was embarrassing enough to get him arrested. At some point, Herod was going to execute John–this seemed to play well into his script. Sad. Jesus’ reaction:

When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Matthew 14:13

Jesus wasn’t surprised by the turn of events, but he wasn’t going to ignore them either. By the time Jesus landed his boat, large crowds had gathered. John the Baptist is dead, what will Jesus say? Eager to hear, thousands of faithful Jews assemble in “a remote place.”

Miracles in Feeding the Multitudes

Matthew and Mark’s account of this event point to a remote place, but Luke identifies the area as Bethsaida (Luke 9:10) — basically a Jewish community. However, here’s the part I’ve missed in the past, the second miracle happens near the Decapolis, a predominantly non-Jewish population.

Why is this significant? Several reasons to be sure, but the one that jumped out at me this morning was the idea of Jesus moving his ministry from the Israelites to the world. When he released the twelve to spread the Gospel, he told them to first present it to the Israelites, the Chosen people. Even here, in between the miraculous feeding of the multitudes, Jesus points out:

He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” Matthew 15:24

The Canaanite woman presses Jesus for help, and Matthew records the interaction with fascinating results:

Then Jesus said to her, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed at that moment. Matthew 15:28

It doesn’t take long before news spreads and the rest of the world is listening and being moved by the amazing, great news of the Gospel.

Faith

What an amazing gift of the Spirit. It seems the disciples struggled with faith during this early stage of Jesus’ ministry, but they are unashamed to report accounts of others who had faith where their’s lacked. I wish I could have seen the look on the disciples’ faces when Jesus instructed them to feed the massive group of men, women and children. “Did he just say feed them?” How many times have I heard a clear voice telling me to do something, but I pause and seek a second opinion, “did He really say that?” “Are you sure, Lord? Did you mean to use me in this way?”

Lord, you know me so well, all my miserable failures and weaknesses. How could you use me? Help me to have more faith today than yesterday, to believe with all my heart that you came that we would have life to the fullest today (John 10:10). Put your beauty in mine and let that shine so others can see the wonder of the Creator God who desires all to come to Him.

Proudly powered by WordPress