Review:
o Mark has emphasized Jesus' authority; his conflict with the religious leaders over the law and His claims; the resulting rejection by the leadership (and Nation, first here and then at the trial) of his offer of the kingdom; and then last week, what faith is and the importance of faith (storm, woman with bleeding, daughter of Jarius, and his hometown)
o Now, we move into the training of the twelve
Re-attack:
o The touching of his garment and the healing of the dead, both involve issues of ceremonial defilement. Yet Jesus had no problem with the events from that perspective
o There are three kingdoms, four if you count the eternal kingdom of God. There is the Davidic kingdom, the Mystery form of the kingdom (church), and the Messianic kingdom (future)
Mark 6:6b-13 (NIV) Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village. 7 Calling the Twelve to him, he sent them out two by two and gave them authority over evil spirits.
8 These were his instructions: "Take nothing for the journey except a staff — no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. 9 Wear sandals but not an extra tunic. 10 Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. 11 And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave, as a testimony against them."
12 They went out and preached that people should repent. 13 They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.
· This story is very familiar. What are the principles that Jesus is teaching the twelve?
o Trust God to provide what you need
o You can't force people to listen. If a person won't listen, then leave. It is not our responsibility to see results. A person decides to accept Christ, not our abilities
o The message was simple, people need to repent (often forgotten). The issue is our sin. Without that understanding, the cross is meaningless
o Serve people (the apostles had the ability to heal and drive out demons). I'm not sure we have those gifts of the spirit. Nor am I sure this passage applies to us in the same way it applied to the Apostles
· We do have a responsibility to share the gospel message with those around us
· We do need to trust God, pray for opportunities and boldness
· We can't force people
· We should not sidestep the issue of sin
· We do need to serve others. That will open many doors
(Mark 6:14-29)
· While the disciples are out, John, who has been in prison some time, is beheaded
· In the midst of a great spiritual victory, Satan counters with a frightening reminder
· Josephus also records John's death but focuses on the public and political aspect of the imprisonment, that is John speaking against his adulterous marriage
o Mark provides the private account, but it doesn't change the story
· One or two of Jesus' disciples (not sure) may have been followers of John, such as Andrew
o So this hurts and dampens the return of the twelve
Mark 6:29-34 (NIV) On hearing of this, John's disciples came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.
30 The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. 31 Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, "Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest."
32 So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place. 33 But many who saw them leaving recognized them and ran on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. 34 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.
· So they head off in a boat, why?
o Get away; tired; still mourning John's death; just need quiet
o There are a lot of good reasons to get away
· The passage makes it clear that getting away is not bad (but there is a balance)
· When they arrive at their quiet place, it is not the retreat that they had hoped for. What does Jesus do and why?
o He ministers
o He loved people
· Another lesson of ministry, sometimes we have to give up our plans for others for the sake of ministry
o Caution: This is not a hard principle. The key word is sometimes. Sometimes, we do need to get away. Sometimes, we are tired. But sometimes we need to give up our desire for rest or quiet, and sacrifice ourselves for people
o Ministry is tough work
o The only hard thing I can say is that if we always give up self for others, then that is probably not good. And if we never sacrifice what we want to do for others, then that is not right either
Mark 6:35-44 (NIV) By this time it was late in the day, so his disciples came to him. "This is a remote place," they said, "and it's already very late. 36 Send the people away so they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat."
37 But he answered, "You give them something to eat."
They said to him, "That would take eight months of a man's wages! Are we to go and spend that much on bread and give it to them to eat?"
38 "How many loaves do you have?" he asked. "Go and see."
When they found out, they said, "Five — and two fish."
39 Then Jesus directed them to have all the people sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. 41 Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to his disciples to set before the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. 42 They all ate and were satisfied, 43 and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish. 44 The number of the men who had eaten was five thousand.
· This is still another lesson in ministry
· How many people are there and how much would it cost to feed that group today?
o If 8,000 only, at $5/person (McD cost), then $40K
o If 30,000, counting women and children, then it would be $120K
o If you made the food yourself, you could get it down to $1.0-1.5/person, and now it costs $30k$45K
o BOTTOMLINE: it still costs the same amount today to feed people
· But what is the ministry lesson?
o Believe God to do great things
o Don't let circumstances limit what God can do in your life
· One more lesson
o The disciples, according to other passages (incl vs 52), missed out on the significance of what was happening. Not sure why. Later, they understood. This is one of the few stories that all four gospel writers include. John includes it because it precedes Jesus famous "eat my body and drink my blood" speech when many people left Jesus
o Do we view life in a very deterministic manner? It happened because of x and y, or do we stop and look for God working in the everyday things of life? Sometimes we fail to see what should be so very clear
Mark 6:45-52 (NIV) Immediately Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. 46 After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray.
47 When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the lake, and he was alone on land. 48 He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. About the fourth watch of the night he went out to them, walking on the lake. He was about to pass by them, 49 but when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought he was a ghost. They cried out, 50 because they all saw him and were terrified.
Immediately he spoke to them and said, "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid." 51 Then he climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. They were completely amazed, 52 for they had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened.
· Another principle of ministry, and a very pointed metaphor
· After experiencing a miracles of God, what does Jesus do?
o They do clean up (previous passage). Always leave things in better shape than when you arrived
o Jesus finished things. Some of us are good at starting, but you still have to finish what you start
o Jesus prayed. Jesus thanked God the Father for the miracle. Jesus thanked God for the work of ministry
· Fourth watch of night (Roman reckoning) would be 3 to 6am. According to John, they are about 25-30 furlongs, a little more than halfway across a 7-mile wide lake
· "Pass by" could also be a Jewish term referencing a theophany (or God's glory) to encourage the person
o Ex 33:19-20 (NIV) And the Lord said, "I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. 20 But," he said, "you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live."
o 1 Kings 19:11 (NIV) The Lord said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by."
· Doesn't really work, instead they are scared to death and think they see a ghost
o Amazing. Their first reaction is a ghost, not God
o What is the lesson?
· You are not looking for God
· It is interesting, that if this is Peter's recitation to Mark of the events, that Peter leaves out his part
· Once again, a storm is instantly calmed
· Why were they so amazed?
o Their hearts were hardened
o I believe that even Christians can have hardened hearts. When we don't let the Holy Spirit work in our heart; when we don't have a regular relationship with God; when we don't look for God in the events of life -- our hearts start to harden
· God cannot provide food out of nothing
· God cannot walk on water
· And that is exactly the God we will see ….
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