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Week of February 26
In the Gospel of Mark, we have many opportunities to come to know Jesus in new and challenging ways. Though we might be familiar with so many tropes and common images, portrayals, or interpretations of Jesus, maybe it’s time to attempt to peel back some new layers and search for new understandings.
Monday, February 27
14 After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. 15 “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”
The kingdom of God has come near. Good news! Robert C. Tannehill states in “A Mirror for Disciples” that “the coming of the kingdom is a time of opportunity for those who recognize and respond to what is happening. The coming of the kingdom means great happiness for those who share in it, but sharing in it also means matching one’s life to this new reality” (9). Part of this new reality is recognizing God’s fundamental goodness in the world around us.
Can you think of experiences in your own life which encourages you to believe in a fundamental goodness supporting the world?
What signs of goodness are signs of God in our world? Do you intentionally look for God’s goodness? Or is the world “going to hell in a handbasket”?
In v.15, we aren’t told to repent of all the evil we have done, our long list of sins, we are simply told to “Repent and believe the good news!” Aside from many names for Christians today, a common one is believer. In the context of this verse, what should we be believing? How might our belief about God’s fundamental goodness in the world be tied to the need to repent?
Tuesday, February 28
Early off in Mark’s gospel, Jesus calls some fishermen to come follow him and, later, he calls Levi the tax collector. Time and again, it’s personally challenging to think about and understand how these early disciples literally left their work and their families and followed Jesus. In our world today, it makes more sense and is perhaps more culturally acceptable to say that our profession is our ‘calling’. We have a career or job that we are supposed to (called) to do. The ramifications of the disciples being so willing to easily follow Jesus, apparently, is something to wrestle with.
How often do we simply think of following Jesus and doing what he does; not in the sense of having a vocation as a pastor or teacher but committing to being his disciples, i.e. people who follow and do as he does?
We often categorize the Disciples as “the 12”, but if we are to also think of ourselves as disciples, how does that play out for us in real life? In what way are we disciples?
Do we have recognizable traits of being obedient and following Jesus in our lives?
Wednesday, March 1
Jesus emerges from his baptism and temptation with a clear sense of his identity, timing, and purpose to proclaim the good news of God. Yet, as the news of his healing power spreads, he is quickly set upon by crowds bringing those who were physically and spiritually afflicted. Clearly, he could both perform good deeds and demonstrate the good news of God through healing them. Could he have faced a moment of questioning and doubt as to his purpose and direction?
As Tannehil says, “Our lives are a rhythm of opportunities seized or ignored… This time may be an opportunity for one thing; another time for something else. We often miss the opportunity because we are looking for the wrong thing. This specific goodness of a special occasion is limited in scope. It is not a final and absolute goodness.”
The disciples are – not wrongly – concerned with the needs of the unrelenting crowds searching for Jesus. How does Jesus model to his disciples the response to these demands?
What temptations and distractions do we face when deciding between competing opportunities for goodness?
Thursday, March 2
After calling four hard-working, honest fishermen to follow him, the next disciple Jesus chose was Levi, a hated tax-collector. These men were thought of as thieves as they would overcharge the people and pocket the difference. Not only did Jesus call Levi, he also went to Levi’s house where he ate dinner with a group of “tax collectors and sinners.” In “A Mirror for Disciples, author Robert C. Tannehill writes, “We do not usually think of the fellowship of Jesus (i.e. the church) in terms of this kind of people. In spite of the teaching of the Gospel our society has taught us that the church is the place for people who have certain things and behave in a certain way, people who want to be better than those outside the church. The church is not a place for sinners. So it is disturbing when Jesus replies, ‘I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.’”
What does Jesus’ call of Levi and subsequent meal with the group of tax collectors and sinners show us about Jesus' attitude towards those that the mainstream population and religious leaders thought of as unclean, untouchable, rejected, or despised? What should our attitude be toward those the church has often rejected in a similar way?
The passage in Romans 3 says that “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” and we are “all justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Just as in the time Jesus walked on this earth, there are churches and leaders and believers today who have strong opinions about who “fits” into the church family. Jesus called out those people who felt that way and challenged their idea of who and who was not “acceptable.” Why is it difficult for some Christians to accept those people who may not “fit into the mold” into the family of God? How do we challenge and change the views of those with this attitude, and welcome the “tax collectors and sinners” into the fellowship of Christ?
Friday, March 3
Chapters 2 and 3 of Mark’s gospel show Jesus at odds with powerful cultural and religious authorities. Jesus welcomes, if not openly invites, the controversy. The concerns of the scribes and Pharisees can be seen as legitimate, representing their perception of what is good and required by their religious law. The concerns of Jesus are generally oriented toward his teaching, his disciples, and afflicted people. Ultimately, the Pharisees consider Jesus such a threat to their religion (and perhaps status) that they see killing him as a justifiable response.
Do our concerns about reputation and acceptance ever stop us from doing the good that we know we should do?
On the other hand, what circumstances or offenses provoke us to jump to God’s defense, or rush to judgment? What might “goodness” look like instead?
Saturday, March 4
In Mark 3:7-12, once again Jesus casts out impure spirits, who announce that he is the Son of God, yet Jesus again orders them not to tell others who he is. This may seem strange, while he is performing signs and wonders, that Jesus does not want his true identity revealed. Earlier in Mark 1:38, we find a clue as to why he doesn’t yet want to be revealed as the Son of God: “Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” His main focus for being on earth was to preach the good news to a weary people looking for hope, purpose, and renewal. Jesus did not want to be known only for his miracles, but for his message. According to author Robert C. Tannehill in his commentary, “A Mirror for Disciples,” “And the way the story of Jesus unfolds in Mark suggests that miracles have their proper place only when subordinate to the way of the cross, the way of self-giving service, which contradicts our strong tendency to put ourselves and our own needs first.” Following Jesus is about accepting his message of hope, salvation, forgiveness, restoration, and healing of our broken hearts and spirits. Miracles are wonderful when they come, but they aren’t supposed to be the focus of our walk with the Savior.
In your walk, do you focus on the message Jesus brings or are you more focused on waiting for miracles? Why might it be important to re-prioritize what we focus on in our walk with Jesus?
What does it do to a person’s faith in God when a miracle he or she has hoped for never comes? Why might a miracle be granted to one person, and denied another? How might things change if we pray, as Jesus did when he asked for God to remove the cup from him before going to the cross, we also say “Not my will, but thine be done”?