Gems from the Gospels - Matthew 25 – Mark 8

Gems from the Gospels

Matthew 25 – Mark 8

Matthew 25 & 26 – Chapter 25 begins with the parable of the ten bridesmaids waiting for the procession of the Bridegroom. It was getting dark, and all ten of them carried lamps. Only five were wise enough to take extra oil to fuel their lamps. They all fell asleep waiting. When the announcement came that the Bridegroom was near, the wise ones trimmed the wicks, put new oil in their lamps, lit them and headed out to meet Him. The foolish ones begged for them to loan them some oil, but there wasn’t enough for all of them. Needless to say, the foolish ones were late to the wedding celebration and were not allowed in. Jesus is the Bridegroom and we need to BE PREPARED at all times because we do not know when He will come. We read the parable of the talents wherein the two wise servants doubled their master’s money, but the foolish one buried it out of fear of the master and probably plain, old laziness. The two were rewarded and the foolish servant thrown out. Part of BEING PREPARED is utilizing the resources and skills God has given us for His glory, to multiply His Kingdom. Next, Jesus told the people when He sits on His glorious throne, He will divide us like a shepherd separates the goats from the sheep. The sheep—believers— will be praised for providing for Jesus because each time they did an act of kindness in His name they were doing it for Him. The goats—those who reject the Gospel—will be sent to eternal punishment. BE PREPARED to minister in Jesus’s name, remembering that when you do it for “the least of these,” you are serving Him. In Matthew 26, Jesus was anointed by a woman with expensive perfumed oil while dining at Simon the Leper’s house. He stated that her story would be told wherever the Gospel was proclaimed, and it has been for centuries. She was PREPARED to honor her Savior. Jesus shared the Passover meal with His 12 closest disciples and dropped the bomb that one of them would betray him. He gave them a sign that went whoosh over their heads that the one who dipped his matzah in the bowl with Jesus was the one. As we know, that was Judas. Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper or communion when He explained that the bread represented His body and the wine His blood. Peter was confident he would never deny the Lord, but Jesus predicted he would do that very thing 3 times before dawn. In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus’s three closest friends—Peter, James, and John—fell asleep while He agonized in prayer, surrendering to the will of the Father. Judas betrayed Him with a kiss, and Jesus was arrested like a common criminal. His disciples scattered in fear. Peter did, indeed, deny Him three times. Peter thought he was prepared to face death, but his flesh was weak. Of course, we know that later on, after the resurrection, Peter would become a bold witness and eventually a martyr for Jesus.

BE PREPARED!

Matthew 27 & 28 – The chief priests and elders held a mockery of a trial. Then they took Jesus to Pilate, the Roman governor, because they did not have the authority to execute anyone while under Roman rule. Meanwhile, Judas had tried to return the money they paid him for the betrayal, and he threw it at their feet. They used it to buy a field to bury foreigners. Judas, overcome with guilt (but not repentance), hanged himself. Pilate found no fault in Jesus, certainly nothing worthy of death. But he succumbed to the crowd who had been worked into a frenzy by the Jewish religious leaders. Pilate sentenced Jesus to death despite a warning from his wife to have nothing to do with it. He symbolically washed his hands of the guilt. The Jewish leaders said, “His blood is on us and our children.” Barabbas, the murderer, was freed. Jesus was brutally flogged and led away to be crucified. Simon of Cyrene was forced to carry His cross. Jesus was mocked by the crowd, the Jewish leaders, and even one of the thieves crucified beside Him. After He died, one of His covert followers, Joseph of Arimathea, was granted His body and laid Jesus in his own new tomb. The women followed to see where He was laid. Early Sunday morning, some of the women went to the tomb, felt an earthquake, and encountered an angel sitting on the stone that had been in front of the entrance. He told them Jesus was alive. The Jews paid the soldiers to say they fell asleep and Jesus’s followers stole the body. But the women encountered the risen Jesus who told them to tell the disciples to meet Him in Galilee. When Jesus met with the disciples, He gave them what men have called “The Great Commission.” We really liked the translation of it in the Complete Jewish Study Bible:

Matthew 27:18-20 (CJB) All authority in heaven and on the Earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make people from all nations into talmadim (disciples), immersing them into the reality of the Father, the Son, and the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit), and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And Remember! I will be with you always, yes, even unto the end of the age.

GO AND TELL that CHRIST IS ALIVE!

Mark 1 – John the Baptist proclaimed that the King of Heaven was near and baptized people who confessed and repented of their sins. Jesus was baptized as an example to others. When He came up out of the water, the Holy Spirit came down in the form of a dove and the Father’s voice proclaimed, “You are my Son, whom I love; I am well pleased with you.” Immediately after His baptism, Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness, fasted for 40 days, and was tempted by Satan. Angels cared for Him. Jesus began preaching about the Kingdom of God. His main message was the need to repent and believe. Jesus began calling His disciples to follow Him as their Rabbi (Teacher). They IMMEDIATELY left what they were doing and followed. Jesus taught with authority in Capernaum and cast out a demon. The people were amazed and spread news of Him everywhere. Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law and she was immediately invigorated enough to serve Him as hostess. He continued healing sicknesses and casting out demons, moving on to other villages as well. He healed a man with leprosy and sent him to the priests to give the proper offering and be declared “clean.” When Jesus was tempted by Satan, He RESISTED the devil by quoting scripture. Hiding God’s word in our hearts (Psalm 119:11) gives us our own arsenal to RESIST SATAN!

Mark 2 – Back in Capernaum such a large crowd gathered to hear Jesus that there was no room left. Susan pointed out that today this would be a violation of the fire code! Four men lowered a paralyzed friend through the roof in order to place him in front of Jesus. Jesus saw their faith and told the man his sins were forgiven. Jewish teachers in the crowd were thinking to themselves that this was blasphemy because only God can forgive sins. To prove He had the authority to forgive sins, Jesus told the man to get up, take his mat, and go home. The man did just that! The amazed crowd exclaimed, “We’ve never seen anything like this!” Susan asked how I would react if she suddenly grew legs, got out of bed, and walked. I told her I would probably have a heart attack, but why should I? Jesus is still able to perform miracles if He so desires. Moving on . . . Jesus saw Levi (Matthew) collecting taxes and called him to follow Him. He shared a meal at Levi’s house and was accused of eating with tax collectors and sinners. Jesus explained that sick people need a doctor and He came to heal sinners. John the Baptists disciples and the Pharisees were fasting and asked Jesus why His disciples did not fast. He told them while the Bridegroom is present, no one fasts, but when he’s gone they will fast.  Again, the disciples came under criticism for gleaning a few heads of grain and eating them on the Sabbath. Jesus told the Pharisees that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. The Sabbath rest was for man’s benefit, not to burden him. Matthew left his tax collector’s booth immediately. Peter, Andrew, James, and John left their nets and their boats at once when Jesus called. DO NOT HESITATE to go wherever Jesus leads you.

Mark 3 & 4 – Jesus did another no-no as far as the Pharisees were concerned. He healed a man with a shriveled hand on the Sabbath. He asked the rhetorical questions whether it was right to do good or evil on the Sabbath, to save life or destroy it? He was angry yet still had sympathy for the stony hearts of the Pharisees. However, the Pharisees and Herod’s henchmen began plotting how to get rid of Jesus. Jesus healed many by the Sea of Galilee and drove out demons who would fall at His feet screaming, “You are the Son of God!” But He hushed them up because as the Gospel of John repeatedly says, “His time had not yet come.” He sent out His 12 closest disciples with the authority to expel demons. Jesus was in a house, and the crowd was so large they couldn’t even eat. His family heard and tried to take custody of Him saying, “He’s out of His mind.” Jewish leaders accused Jesus of casting out demons by the power of the prince of demons. Jesus asked, “How can Satan cast out Satan?” and explained that a house divided against itself will not stand. Jesus’s mother and brothers sent a message for Him to come out to them. He told the messenger and those who were listening to Him, “Whoever does what God wants is my brother, sister, and mother.” In Mark chapter four, Jesus told the parable of the farmer who sowed seed on various types of ground:

• ·  Alongside path – people who hear the message but Satan immediately snatches it
• ·      Rocky soil – people with no root who fall away under persecution
• ·      Among thorns – receive the message gladly but it is choked out by worries of the world, quest for riches, and selfish desires
• · Rich soil – those who hear, accept the message, and bear fruit

Jesus gave them an illustration that a lamp is put up on a lampstand, not under a bushel or the bed. We are to BE LIGHT for everyone around us, not just bask in the light of Jesus for ourselves. The kingdom of God multiplies exponentially like the tiny mustard seed makes a large plant. Our small LIGHT shines brightly like a small candle in a dark room and is multiplied by the power of the Holy Spirit. We do not hold a light—we ARE the light. BE LIGHT!

Mark 5 & 6 – In the region of the Gerasenes (Gadarenes), Jesus cast a legion of demons out of a violent man. He allowed them to enter into a herd of pigs who subsequently jumped into the lake committing Hoggerside or is it Sowerside? They killed themselves. Jesus’s power frightened the people and they asked Him to leave. Most of the time Jesus told people he healed not to tell anyone, but He told the formerly demon possessed man to spread the news. Jesus SAW the demon possessed man and freed him from the grip of Legion. While Jesus was on the way to heal a synagogue official’s daughter, a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years touched the tassel on His prayer shawl and was immediately healed. He told her that her faith had healed her. Jesus SAW the bleeding woman, healed her and granted her peace. The synagogue official’s family sent word that his daughter had died. Jesus told Jairus to “keep trusting,” and took Peter, James, and John with him to the man’s house. Jesus told the mourners the girl was merely asleep, and they jeered at Him. Jesus told the 12-year-old girl to get up, and she did. Jesus SAW the grieving heart of a father and raised his little girl from the dead. Jesus taught in the synagogue of His home-town, Nazareth. Even though the people thought His teaching was astounding, they couldn’t get over the fact that He had been their carpenter, the son of Mary, the boy next door. Jesus did not perform many miracles there and was amazed at their lack of trust. Next, He sent out the twelve with authority over demons telling them to take only a walking stick for the trip and to stay as guests in homes. If the people refused to hear their message, they were to shake the dust off their sandals as they left the town. They were learning to SEE THE PEOPLE. Then Mark gives the account of John the Baptist being beheaded because Herodias’s daughter danced and Herod foolishly promised her up to half his kingdom. Herodias told her to ask for John’s head and Herod decided to save face with his birthday dinner guests rather than to save John’s life. The twelve disciples returned and reported about their trip to Jesus. He suggested they withdraw with Him to a quiet place for some rest. However, a large crowd followed and Jesus had compassion on them because He saw them as sheep without a shepherd to care for them. Even when exhausted, Jesus SAW THE PEOPLE and had compassion for them. When it was getting late, the disciples suggested Jesus send the people away to buy their dinner. Jesus fed 5000 men plus women and children with seven loaves of bread and a few fish. Jesus SAW HUNGY PEOPLE and fed them. Jesus sent the disciples ahead by boat to Bethsaida while He went up to the hills to pray. He saw that the wind was getting up, and the disciples were having a hard time rowing the boat. He walked out to them on the water and gave them a bad start! As He climbed aboard, the wind stopped. The disciples had not gotten the message of His power when He fed the crowd and were astonished that the wind obeyed Him. Jesus SAW the frightened disciples and encouraged them. Many people would simply touch the tassels on Jesus’s prayer shawl and be healed as He walked though towns. Jesus SAW the sick and healed them. Jesus consistently met the needs of people in His path. We are called to follow in His footsteps (1 Peter 2:21) and SEE THE PEOPLE.

Mark 7 & 8 – Disciples did not do the ceremonial hand washing before eating, and the Pharisees wanted to know why they did not honor tradition. Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for elevating tradition above the Law by saying their assets were “korban” (gift to God), in order to avoid caring for their parents. Jesus explained that what goes in the mouth and to the stomach does not make a person unclean. What proceeds from the heart and out of the mouth can make a person unclean. Jesus tried to fly under the radar by going to the area of Tyre and Sidon. However, a Syro-phoenician woman followed Him, fell at His feet, and begged Him to cast a demon out of her daughter. Jesus told her the children (Jews) had to be fed before the pet dogs (Gentiles). She calmly replied that even pet dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs. Jesus granted her request. We can LEARN humility from this woman. In the area of the Ten Towns, Jesus healed a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment. The people were amazed that He could even make the deaf hear and the dumb speak. The disciples should have LEARNED that nothing is impossible with Jesus. In Mark 8, Jesus fed another hungry crowd of 4000 men plus women and children with only seven loaves and a few fish. The disciples should have LEARNED that Jesus could and would provide everything they needed. However, when Jesus warned them against the leaven (sin and evil) of the Pharisees they thought He was talking about bread! (Sometimes the twelve were absolute osmium heads!) At Bethsaida, Jesus healed a blind man who at first saw men “like trees walking.” Jesus touched him again, and he saw clearly. At Caesarea Philippi Jesus asked who people said He was. The disciples replied, “John the Baptist, Elijah, or a prophet of old.” When He asked who they said he was, Peter replied, “You are the Messiah.” Jesus told the disciples of His impending persecution, arrest, death, and resurrection after three days. Peter rebuked Him. But Jesus said, “Get behind me, Satan!” Peter was thinking in human terms and not according to God’s divine plan. Jesus told His disciples that in order to be His disciple, one must say “No” to himself, take up his cross, and follow. Those who seek to save their lives will lose them, but those who lose their lives for the sake of the Gospel will save their lives. In surrendering to Jesus, we are giving up our right to ourselves. The disciples walked closely with Jesus but often failed to see the spiritual significance of the things He did. We need to keep our minds focused on Jesus and LEARN FROM ALL our life’s experiences.