Christ Church

Ben Zornes

The Father Speaks (The Inescapable Story of Jesus #9a) (CCD)

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INTRODUCTION

Matthew’s Gospel opens with a lineage from Abraham down to Jesus. Luke’s Gospel includes a family tree from Jesus back to Adam. Mark did not neglect to give a lineage. Rather, fitting his stylistic rapid pace gives us the most concise lineage possible for Jesus: He is the Son of God the Father. But the Heavenly Father promises His Beloved Son glory. But this glory will be bought with blood.

THE TEXT

And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That there be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power. And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John, and leadeth them up into an high mountain apart by themselves: and he was transfigured before them. And his raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow; so as no fuller on earth can white them. […]

Mark 9:1ff

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

After the revelation of the last chapter that Jesus is indeed the Christ, and must die and rise again, Jesus informs His disciples and the crowds that His Kingdom will come with power in their lifetime (v1). Mark now underscores this point by taking us up a mountain to show us Christ’s glory. Mark gives a rare time-statement, six days later, a call-back to the creation narrative. Three witnesses, Peter, James, and John are led by Jesus to the top of a mountain and is transformed (metamorphosed) before them, His robes shine as bright as a mirror reflecting the sun; Elijah and Moses appear and talk with Jesus (vv2-4). Peter, out of fearful wonder, proposes the building of tabernacles for them (vv5-6). Instead, the glory cloud of the Spirit of God overshadows them and the Father’s voice proclaims, “This is my beloved Son: hear him.” In the blink of an eye, the wondrous cloud and OT visitors were gone and only Jesus remained with them (vv7-8).

While descending the mountain, Jesus instructs them to tell no one until the Son of Man (Cf. Dan. 7) rose again; this talk about rising again puzzles the three disciples (vv9-10). It sparks a question regarding the accuracy of the scribes’ teaching about Elijah coming before Messiah. Jesus assures them that the scribes are right, Elijah would come to restore all things, but the prophetic writings also teach of the Son of man’s sufferings. Jesus goes on to assert that the prophesied coming of Elijah had already taken place, and he’d been treated as was written (vv11-13).

The reunion with the rest of the disciples confronts Jesus with a squabble to sort out. His appearance shocks the crowds (Cf. Mk. 14:33, 16:5-6) and straightway they bring the point of contention to Jesus. A man speaks up for the crowd to tell that he’d brought his son to the disciples because his son was vexed by an unclean spirit that afflicted him with violent fits, deafness, and speechlessness. They’d been unable to cast out the demon (vv14-18). Jesus passes a judgement upon His generation for their faithlessness, and then commands the boy to brought; when the boy saw Jesus, straightway a demonic fit began. Jesus inquires as to the duration of the affliction. The man answers that the boy has endured the violence of this demonic possession from childhood, and he pleads for compassion and help (vv19-22). Jesus tells the man that if he believes all things are possible, and straightway the man responds with a tearful confession and prayer, “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” Jesus’ attention turns to the turmoil of the crowd due to the foul spirit. He rebukes the spirit, which violently convulses a final time, seemingly killing the boy. But Jesus is there to perform a shadow of the resurrection which everything in Jesus’ story is leading towards (vv23-27). Later, in private, the disciples are perplexed why they couldn’t drive out this particular demon, so Jesus teaches them that this kind of spirit must be driven out by prayer (vv28-29, Cf. Lk. 9:28).

TWO NATURES

This passage raises an important theological point. It is quite easy to slip into some form of heresy when dealing with the two episodes where God speaks from heaven (baptism & transfiguration). On one hand it might be tempting to think that up until this point the divine nature of Jesus was hidden, and suddenly here is where the mask comes off. But this is to fall into what we call docetism, that Jesus only appeared to be a man. On the other hand, these episodes are used to teach that Jesus was merely a man and that at one of these points the Father decided Jesus was a good enough man for Him to use, this is often called adoptionism.

In modern times, with particularly Mormonism becoming more mainline, these christological errors not only linger but are becoming common among the evangelical rank and file. The transfiguration isn’t an instance of “the Christ” coming upon Jesus. Rather, as we confessed in the Nicene Creed, Jesus is “of one substance with the Father.” He is not the Father, but He and the Father are one in Godhead. At His conception the eternal Christ, who was very God of very God, was united with a true human body. The transfiguration is the unveiled glory of human nature reunited with God. Sin had sundered and sullied human nature, Jesus Christ came to drag human nature out of the gutter and raise it into glory. His human nature became resplendent  with His divine nature. This is the hope of the resurrection, that our mortal bodies will be raised into glory because they are covenantally united to Christ’s body.

MOSES & ELIJAH

The presence of Moses and Elijah with Jesus is rich with meaning. The Law and the Prophets, as it were, add their amen to the Father’s declaration that Jesus is His Beloved Son. Moses had ascended Sinai to receive the Law; Elijah had ascended Sinai and received the prophetic call. Now both stand as witnesses to the fullness of the Law and Prophets reach their crescendo in the Gospel of Jesus. Peter’s instinct to built a tabernacle to contain the glory is off the mark, but not by much. A tabernacle was needed, but not one made with human hands. Rather, Jesus was the tabernacle––the true house of God––and the glory cloud was a proof that in Jesus man might dwell in God’s House. The dwelling place for the saints of every age––as represented by Elijah, Moses, and the three Apostles––is in the tabernacle of Christ’s body.

THE LAST DRAGON

Thus far, Jesus’ ministry has been booming. Crowds are gathering. Merely His touch heals. Five loaves feed five thousand. Scrupulous scribes are mocked. Herod is quaking in his boots. Suddenly, the success grinds to a halt. Danger and difficulty are growing. These ominous  notes begin precisely as the glory rises to a peak. Jesus is declared to be the Christ (Mk. 8) and then is transfigured, with a promise of even greater glory which awaits the Son of God upon the completion of His mission. The glory is real, it is promised, but it will be hard fought. A violent dragon must be subdued.

Glory and hardships aren’t opposites. As Solomon says, it’s the glory of kings to search out a matter. Glory is hidden in hardships. Glory is weighty. Glory is heavy. The raging dragon which Jesus meets at the foot of the mountain isn’t a diminishment of the glory which was revealed atop the mountain. Instead, the glory on the mountain was a glimmer of the glory which would come through all the danger which Jesus must grapple with and overcome.

At Christ’s baptism the Father spoke His love over His only begotten Son, sent the Spirit as a dove upon Him, and then immediately Jesus was confronted with a wilderness battle with Satan. Here we have a similar pattern. The glory cloud of the Spirit surrounds Jesus, the Father speaks once more that Jesus is His beloved Son, with a summons to hear him. Then Jesus is once more confronted with a battle with a powerful demon. Both of these foreshadow the last declaration of Christ being the Son of God which Mark will present at the crucifixion. There evil shall be decisively overthrown, and then the disciples will spread out to notify all the evil throughout the world: game over.

IF

This is a lifeline to us in our own trials. Our light and momentary trials reveal a weight of glory. Trials, hardships, and battles are not detours from the glory. They are where our faith is strengthened and the glory of Spirit-empowered obedience is revealed. Jesus faces this violent dragon which was afflicting this boy, and is able to drive this demon out because His faith in His Father’s calling upon Him was more resolute than a vice grip. The boy’s father asks Jesus, “If you can do anything, please help.” Jesus replies with another witty comeback, “If you can believe, all things are possible unto you.” If you believe, what are your trials compared with the glory? If you believe, what is the gruesome cross compared with the glory of the resurrection?

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Straight Into Danger (The Inescapable Story of Jesus #8) (CCD)

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INTRODUCTION

Mark presents Jesus as a mighty man, driving out evil spirits, challenging self-righteous and self-assured teachers, and performing powerful acts (healings, feedings, calming seas). Jesus has been slowly unveiling what His master plan is. He didn’t come only proclaim Yahweh’s kingdom as coming; but to also make a claim to be the lawful King of Israel with designs for expanding to borders to the ends of the earth. All His riddles and signs have been the curriculum, and now as their teacher He gives His disciples a test.

THE TEXT

In those days the multitude being very great, and having nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples unto him, and saith unto them, I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat: And if I send them away fasting to their own houses, they will faint by the way: for divers of them came from far. […]

Mark 8:1-3ff

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

The hard sayings of Jesus from the previous chapter have not dampened the enthusiasm of their crowds. In this instance, the crowds have been on a three-day sojourn with Jesus. He notices the danger they’re in from not enough food in the wilderness (vv1-3). Jesus communicates His compassion to the disciples, but they offer no solution (v4). The disciples actually have seven loaves. So, as with the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus commands the crowds to be seated. The same order of actions (Cf. Mk. 6:41) is described here: taking, blessing, and breaking. The disciples distribute the bread, along with some fish, and the four thousand people were left satisfied, additionally, seven baskets were left over. Straightway Jesus departs in a ship to Dalmanutha (vv6-10).

A new contest with the Pharisees arises. They want a sign, but Mark reveals they are insincere; so Jesus, with a heavy sigh, flatly denies them a sign (vv11-12). This prompts Jesus to go elsewhere, but the disciples forgot to bring along the lunch supplies. Jesus warns the disciples to avoid the leaven of the Pharisees and of Herod, but they think He is rebuking them for forgetting the lunch. The Lord is forthright with them: their eyes are blind, ears shut, and hearts hard (Cf. Duet. 29:4, Is. 6:9, Jer. 5:21). He reminds them of His ability to provide by recalling His two great feedings; and then He leaves them to ponder why they still don’t understand (vv13-21).

Remember the “exaggerated” healing of the deaf man in Mk. 7:31-37. Now a blind man is brought (v22). Jesus again performs an “exaggerated” healing: leading the man out of the town, spitting on his eyes, asking if he can see. At this, the man reports he can only see in part; so Jesus again touches his eyes, makes him look up resulting in the man’s sight being fully restored. The man is sent home with the instructions to keep quiet (vv23-26).

Now, in light of these healings of deafness and blindness, Jesus gives His disciples another chance to solve the puzzle by asking them, “Who do men say I am?” Echoing Herod’s courtiers (6:15) they offer a few options. But Jesus wants to know what their answer is, and Peter declares, “Thou art the Christ” (vv27-29). This is a potent truth, so Jesus instructs them (like the blind man) to keep this to themselves for now. He then begins to teach them and reveal the answer to all His riddles: He must die at the hands of Israel’s elders and then rise again after three days. News this potent causes a potent reaction as seen in Peter’s attempt to dissuade Jesus from His mission. This earns him a scathing rebuke (vv30-33). Having privately told the disciples His mission, Jesus now reveals to the crowds what it means to follow Him: self-denial (vv34-38).

TWO KINDS OF LEAVEN

Jesus warns the disciples to avoid two kinds of leaven. The first leaven is that of the Pharisees; they claim to desire a heavenly sign while ignoring the clear Messianic signs right in front of them. They are indeed deaf, dumb, blind, and witless. But the second leaven is that of Herod. A curious warning. Remember how Mark told us that Herod saw more clearly than anyone that the miracles being done must mean a resurrection and accompanying judgment upon evildoers. Herod knew that he had done a great evil in beheading John the Baptist, but was unwilling to repent despite knowing that divine judgement was looming.

So then, the disciples are warned against two things. First is the evil of wanting more/different proof than God had given; second, is the refusal to respond decisively when convinced of those proofs. These warnings still pertain. It is not wrong to desire proof for the existence of God, or assurance of your salvation, or to understand the reliability of the Scriptures. However, many fall into the error that Lewis describes in one place, being so interested in proofs for the existence of God that you neglect to worship the Good Lord Himself. Mouths were made for eating, not endless chewing. But just as damning is the attitude of someone who has been warned that their actions are sinful, will admit as much, but still won’t turn from those actions. Followers of Jesus must jettison both attitudes.

LIKE THEIR IDOLS

Put all that Mark has told us together. The Pharisees, and even the disciples, are showing the fruit of their idolatry. The Psalmist says that “They that make [idols] are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them (Ps. 115:8).” And what are the idols like? Made out of precious metals, but shaped into the form that their makers desire. Mouths that don’t speak. Eyes that can’t see. Ears that don’t hear. Noses that can’t smell. Hands that can’t hold. Feet that can’t walk. (Ps. 115:4-7).

It is no accident that the healings which Mark has recounted all map onto this Psalm. Those that make them are like them. Idolatry turns you into a stump of wood and a block of granite. When you, like Israel, give your heart over to idols, it should be no wonder when you have to submit to the rule of those idols. In ancient Israel, God raised up judges and then kings to deliver God’s people from this oppression. But they always wandered back into their idolatry. Jesus was on a Mission to deliver not only Israel, but all the world, from the oppression of false gods. He was indeed making a claim to be the anointed King, come to deliver. But this deliverance demanded something that the prophets had foretold, but was tempting to overlook as a mark of the Messiah. He must die. Not only that, but those who would enjoy Messiah’s kingdom would also need to die with Him. This is how Jesus plans to overthrow the oppression of the idols.

DIE TO LIVE

What Jesus has come to do is going to turn the whole world upside down. The Messiah has come to die. This was a hard pill to swallow, and yet Jesus make the pill even more bitter. If you want to follow Him, you must join Him in running towards the danger. You cannot try to save your life. You must give it up. You must despise your idols, your self-righteousness, and your own vain claims for world domination. You must, as the old hymn says, “surrender all”.

Jesus’ kingdom will be one where He rules over not mere territory, but over our affections, wills, and desires. To bring this kingdom about, the old man (Adam) must die. But along with this death comes the bright promise of resurrection. When you trust in Christ, and are united to Him by faith, you are joined to His death. This is what your baptism means (Cf. Rom. 6). So, if you want to live, you must die. And if you die in Christ, you shall also live in Him.

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Christ’s Piercing Wit (The Inescapable Story of Jesus #7) (CCD)

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INTRODUCTION

Have your words or past actions ever come back to haunt you? Perhaps you once said, in your youth, “When I’m a parent, I will never (fill in the blank).” And now that you’re a parent you find yourself regularly doing that thing. There are really only two responses to such a moment of revelation: laugh at yourself or burn with vindictive anger.

THE TEXT

Then came together unto him the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which came from Jerusalem. And when they saw some of his disciples eat bread with defiled, that is to say, with unwashen, hands, they found fault. For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, except they wash their hands oft, eat not, holding the tradition of the elders […]

Mar 7:1ff

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

A Jerusalem embassy of Pharisees, likely tasked with keeping tabs on Jesus (3:22) launch a fresh legal assault upon Jesus’ disciples (v1). The infraction is that the disciples are eating without washing their hands (v2,5). Mark provides a bit of insider baseball for his Greek audience. The Pharisees had taken the Levitical cleanliness codes and extrapolated them past the point of possible obedience; they taught that hands must be washed often, along with eating vessels, or else you will not only defile yourself but you’ll defile others (vv3-4). Jesus responds to their accusation with Isaiah’s rebuke (vv6-7, Cf. Isa 29:13), and explains that they are the epitome of replacing God’s clear command with man-made tradition (vv8-9). Jesus tightens the screws further on these accusers by demonstrating that they’ve broken Moses’ command to honor father & mother by inventing a legal loophole to avoid financially supporting their parents while appearing to honor God (vv10-12). Their traditions have not resulted in fulfilling the Law; rather, they’ve undermined the very basis of their authority (v13).

Jesus then tells a joke to the crowd at the expense of the Pharisees. What goes in you doesn’t defile; what comes out the other end is what’s unclean (vv14-16). The disciples ask Jesus to explain the joke parable; and He reproaches them for needing the joke explained (vv17-20). Man thinks holiness resides in himself, but Jesus’ punchline is that our show holiness is just raw sewage. What’s in man? Nothing good (vv21-23).

Jesus now goes to a predominately Gentile area, and His presence once more can’t be hidden, the Word is getting out, even amongst the Gentiles (v24). A Syrophoenician woman comes to fall at His feet, and requests deliverance for her daughter from a devil (vv25-26). This will be the second to last demon Jesus encounters in Mark’s Gospel. Jesus responds with a quip: it isn’t right to take the children’s (Jews) bread (Him) and feed it to the little dogs (Gentiles) (v27). She replies with a faith-filled plea: even dogs get some scraps (v28). Jesus responds to her witty faith with an assurance that the devil will be expelled; the woman returns home and finds just that (vv29-30).

Mark whisks us back to where Jesus performed the exorcism of a legion of devils (v31). Some folks bring a deaf mute to Jesus for a healing touch (v32); Jesus takes him aside and Mark gives a more detailed description than usual of what Jesus does to heal the man. Jesus pokes his fingers into the man’s ears, spits and then touches the man’s tongue, looks to heaven, sighs/breathes heavily, and commands the closed ears and mouth to be opened (vv33-34). Mark (like he’d done with Jairus’ daughter) preserves the Aramaic word which Jesus spoke. Straightway the man’s ears are opened and his tongue loosed and he begins to speak; Jesus requests that they not spread the word but to no avail (vv35-36); instead, they lift songs of praise: He does all things well (v37).

EARS TO HEAR

Jesus has already shown that even touching the hem of His robe will bring healing. So why the seeming exaggeration involved with this healing? This healing is the first of a pair. Jesus will soon face off against the last demon recorded in Mark’s Gospel (Mk. 9:25), which causes a boy to be deaf & dumb. Jesus has been sowing the Word all throughout Israel. But many are still hard of hearing. Even His disciples grapple with His words and fail to comprehend. The Pharisees have, in a sense, stuffed the cotton of manmade tradition into their ears and seem entirely unable to hear the Word they claim to be the stewards of.

Jesus resorts to telling a parable, which is more like a joke. He accompanies that parable with a charge for Israel. This is a charge which is still necessary for us all: he who has ears to hear, let him hear. Man’s condition is fatal. Christ’s Word is a seed which brings about life. But we need our ears opened. How does Jesus open our ears? He wields piercing wit to shock us awake. Ironically, His piercing wit will get Him pierced.

GENTILE DOGS

The disciples unwashed hands provide more than just cause for the Pharisees to squabble over. Mark has hinted in a certain direction, but from this cycle of his Gospel onward it will get clearer and clearer: the Gentiles will be blessed by the coming of the promised Seed of Abraham. If you didn’t wash your hands you defiled other Jews, so this had led the Pharisees to teach that to even enter a Gentile home would make you unclean. But Jesus says it isn’t what goes in you that defiles but what comes out of you.

The disciples, within a few decades, will be breaking bread with Gentiles because both are washed in baptism. These unwashed hands are like the faint introduction of an instrument in the midst of a symphony. But in the rest of this chapter and especially the next it will swell and become too big to ignore. For example, Jesus goes to an area full of Gentiles; He playfully banters with the Syrophoenician woman; He agrees to let the dogs enjoy the crumbs; and He delivers the Gentile girl from a demon. Jesus has been driving out unclean spirits from Israel, but now, notice is served that the demons will not find safe haven outside of Israel. Jesus has come to take possession of the ends of the earth, filling it with His worshippers, feeding them with the bread of His body. Additionally, the healing of the deaf and dumb man is in a predominately Gentile area (the Decapolis), this healing is followed by Christ being praised among the nations (Mt. 15:31).

The Pharisees had hidden the Word, but Jesus is coming to fling the Word far and wide, opening even Gentile ears to hear this life-giving Word of His Salvation (Cf. Is. 29). And when they hear, they will also sing. The Word of Jesus’ universal reign is proclaimed, and the fitting response is always songs of praise (Ps. 72:16-19).

WHAT’S IN YOU?

What Jesus is doing is going to land Him on a cross. He is putting our sin on a billboard. He is mocking our foolish scruples. He is shaming our holiness. You think your holiness is found in taking your kids out of public schools, a good thing; but have you exploded with anger at them, neglected to train them in the Word, or been permissive in the entertainment you allow? You claim to be defenders of traditional marriage, but what’s in your browser history, where have you failed to submit to your husband or be loving to your wife? You despise the government printing money on demand, but is your work ethic is outpaced by a moss covered sloth?

Jesus did not come to drive out a pagan oppressor from Israel. Jesus came to show us the sewage that comes out of the human heart. Jesus came to show us we are dogs. Jesus came to show us where we’ve voided God’s Word. But He also came to truly wash us by baptism into Him. He came so that dogs could become children. He came to open our ears so we could hear the joke and loose our tongues so we could laugh at our folly and then trust in Him alone for our holiness.

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Man As He Ought to Be (The Inescapable Story of Jesus #6b) (CCD)

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INTRODUCTION

Mark has just told us of a king serving the head of a righteous man on a feasting dish at a royal banquet. Now he contrasts that king with a King who brings His people into green pastures and beside still waters to give them an abundant feast. The contrast could not be more stark.

THE TEXT

And the people saw them departing, and many knew him, and ran afoot thither out of all cities, and outwent them, and came together unto him.And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things. […]

Mark 6:33ff

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

The disciples have returned from their mission, and Jesus takes them across the Galilee waters for reprieve in a private (literally wilderness) place (vv30-32). But the multitudes will not be left behind, and race to the other side, meeting Jesus as He arrives (vv33-34); He takes compassion upon them as a shepherd-less flock, and His compassion is demonstrated in His teaching them (v34). Dusk begins to descend and the disciples advise Jesus to send the multitudes away to get their own food (vv35-36). But Jesus has come to feast (2:15-19), and so He tells His disciples to get bread for the multitude, but they demonstrate the smallness of their faith by missing the point; they imagined that they must produce a vast sum of money to purchase enough bread (v37). Jesus is not deterred by the amount needed, for He is the Sower of the Word, and where the soil is fertile it will be a 30, 60, and 100-fold harvest. He asks how much bread they have, and they have 5 loaves and 2 fish, a loaf for each thousand (vs38, 44). Jesus commands the disciples to arrange the multitude into ranks of hundreds and fifties upon the green springtime grass (vv39-40). Mark gives us a prefiguring of the events of Christ’s Last Supper (Mk. 14:22): blessing, breaking, and giving the bread (v41). The multitude of five thousand men feast until filled, while the leftovers fill twelve baskets (vv42-44).

Mark doesn’t tarry at this scene but whisks us off once more, and straightway Jesus instructs the disciples to cross the Sea, dismisses the multitude, and heads off to pray alone––another hint at the events of His passion (vv45-46). But while still on the land He sees the disciples battling the choppy Galilee sea at the darkest hour of the night (according to Roman reckoning), and walks out to their rescue (vv47-48); but instead of His coming being a reassurance, they are terrified that He is a death angel. So He comes into their ship with tidings of good cheer which dispels fear, and at His coming the adversarial winds cease (vv49-51a). The disciples are in slack-jawed awe once more, and Mark tells us it is because they still hadn’t learned the lesson Jesus has been patiently teaching them in the parable of the Sower and now in the feeding of the five thousand (vv51b-52).

As they come ashore once more, this time in the area of Gennesaret, Jesus’ identity is straightway recognized. Like wildfire, people rush to bring their sick unto Him for healing, setting up healing stations in the marketplace in the towns and villages where they heard Jesus was heading. What had happened to the woman with 12 years of internal bleeding had clearly become widely known, and the sick were given hope that merely touching the tassel of Christ’s garment would bring healing; this, in fact, is precisely what Jesus allows: all who touched Him were, in Mark’s words, made whole (vv53-56).

A FEAST IN GREEN PASTURES

Mark’s narrative is like an incoming tide. Each new wave brings the water level higher. In our text, there is a repetition and expansion of earlier events and anticipation of greater––yet to be revealed––glories. Mark has told us a number of times of people responding to Jesus with awe, wonder, fear, bafflement, and even terror. Mark doesn’t want you to get comfortable with a Jesus that can fit in the palm of your hand. He is leading up to the crescendo, where Jesus will send out His disciples into all the world, and He would ascend as Lord to the Father’s right hand. But His ascension would not mean the termination of His work in the world. Mark tells us that as the disciples went forth, and preached every where, Jesus the Lord worked with them (Mk. 16:20).

Jesus told us that He was a Sower of the Word, and that where the seed of his Word lands in good, receptive soil, it produces a graciously abundant harvest of bread in seed form. That story was followed by Jesus crossing the waters to cast a demon army into the sea (a callback to the Hebrews’ Red Sea crossing under Moses). Here Jesus takes His disciples through the sea again, but this time a multitude of Israelites follow him, and Mark uses martial language to describe their seating. Once more, Mark wants the Exodus story on our mind. One commentary notes that when God led Israel out of Egypt by the way of the Red Sea they “went up harnessed” (Ex. 13:18), literally “by rows of five.” At Jethro’s counsel, Moses constituted the twelve tribes into representative divisions of thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens (Ex. 18:25). When Israel was in the wilderness, Yahweh fed them bread from heaven.

The disciples struggled with the Parable of the Sower, and now Jesus retells it with a visual demonstration of it. He is the Son of God revealing God unto the sons of Men. In Him is abundant life. Jesus sows five loaf-seeds and it becomes a thousandfold harvest of bread. In Him is bread and plenty for a cleansed Israel. Notice that the first few chapters of Mark have focused on Jesus calling and cleansing Israel. Now, a theme that started almost imperceptibly (Simon’s mother is healed in order to prepare a meal) is too big to ignore. The twelve leftover baskets make the same point as the Parable of the Sower, but the disciples still don’t quite see it. Jesus came to feast with a cleansed Israel.

UPON THE WATERS ONCE MORE

Jesus walking upon the water is often taken as a demonstration of His divine power. But God has always been revealing His power and Godhead in both the created order and by the writings of the Holy Prophets. But, Jesus in this wondrous act of walking upon water demonstrates Himself to be Israel’s long-awaited Messiah.

God put Adam in a Garden to dress and keep it and gave him the entire earth as the domain for him to subdue. Jesus compresses an entire agricultural season into an evening, and then tames the windswept sea (Ps. 8:6-8). Jesus is what Adam ought to have been. The earth is Lord’s and the fullness thereof. Therefore, Jesus is making way for man to be restored to our high office of lords of the earth under God our Creator, with Him as the High King over all other kings. But we must not miss the pathway. The way to this new life which Jesus is bringing into the world is found in the words He speaks to the disciples: “Be of good cheer: it is I; be not afraid.”

MADE WHOLE

Jesus safely brings the disciples through the sea once more, for He is the true Man, exercising dominion over land and sea. Mark gives us one last wonderful parallel with the Red Sea crossing. As Moses led them toward Sinai they came to the bitter waters of Marah, and many fell ill. Moses healed those foul waters with a tree. Now, this Greater Moses is revealed to be Jehovah Rapha, the Lord our healer. All who come to Him He makes whole.

Why? Because He came to cleanse and came to feast. Jesus calls you to come to Him in faith, and be clothed in His righteousness. This is what your baptism is. And then He invites all the earth to this table. And lest you think there won’t be enough for you, Jesus, in His Word, makes a point to tell you: there were twelve baskets of leftovers.

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The Resurrection as Judgement (The Inescapable Story of Jesus #6A) (CCD)

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INTRODUCTION

It doesn’t take long in a child’s life for them to begin to expound on matters of justice.“That’s not fair!” is learned early. And indeed the world is littered with seemingly senseless instances of unjust suffering, evil persecution of the righteous, and unfair weights and measures. The question must be asked, “What is God gonna do about it?!”

THE TEXT

And he went out from thence, and came into his own country; and his disciples follow him. And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands? Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him. […]

Mark 6:1ff

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

The residents of Jesus’ hometown demonstrate themselves to be the sort of unfruitful soil He described in His earlier parable (Mk. 4:16-17). They too, like the residents of the Decapolis, are astonished at Jesus’ teaching and choose to reject Him. (vv1-3). While the multitudes were crowding round to hang on Jesus every word, and upon His very person, the hometown crowd had trouble apprehending their local carpenter, Mary’s boy, was a great prophet, let alone the promised Messiah; this lack of faith hinders the healing (vv4-5). His teaching caused astonishment, while their unbelief, in turn, caused Jesus to marvel (v6).

Jesus sends out the Twelve in pairs; according to Luke 10:1 another 70 were also sent out on this urgent mission (v7). Their manner of travel was to be marked by swiftness; they should travel light and not linger in towns that wouldn’t hear the sown Word (vv8-11). Their task consisted of three components: preaching repentance, for Yahweh’s Messianic Kingdom had come (v12), demonstrated this by driving out demons from Israel (v7,13), and marking judgement on the unreceptive (v11). When they return to Jesus to report how this mission went, they, like Mark’s narrative, are breathless; so Jesus whisks them off again by ship to what is intended to be a bit of a breather (vv30-32). But we’ll see that when they arrive the work will continue, for the seeds of the kingdom are growing rapidly.

But in between the disciples’ going out and coming in, Mark interrupts the narrative with the grisly tale of John the Baptist’s martyrdom at the hands of Herod. The rumors about the prophet from Nazareth were turning into rumbles; this stabs terror into the heart of Herod and his conclusion is remarkable: John the Baptist was risen from the dead (v14). Others put forth alternate opinions as to Jesus’ identity, but the consensus is that he was a prophet (v15). Herod, though, insists upon it being a resurrected John (v16). John’s imprisonment was the signal for Jesus to begin His ministry (Mk. 1:14). Now, Mark fills in the details of John’s martyrdom. Herod had seized John because John had rebuked Herod’s adultery with his brother’s wife, Herodius (vv17-18). Herodius despises John for this and seeks for his death, while Herod respected this pious man and was intrigued (vv19-20).

Nevertheless, during his birthday feast, Herodius’ daughter dances so pleasantly that Herod makes a rash promise to her of up to half his kingdom; at her mother’s counsel she straightway asks for John’s head on a platter (vv21-25). Herod is grieved at this but not enough to break his foolish oath, and immediately gives the order for John’s beheading. He gives the head to the daughter who gives it to her mother; John’s disciples bury him in a tomb (vv26-29).

WHAT HAUNTS HEROD

We’ve seen how Mark is anticipating the crucifixion, resurrection, and Great Commission a number of times. The disciples’ mission anticipates what Jesus will send them out into the whole world to do after His resurrection. Their mission consisted of a call to repentance, the expulsion of evil (exorcisms and healings), and a warning of judgement. Sodom will have it better off than those who reject this kingdom message. What Jesus is doing in Israel is about to invade the whole world.

Word of this mission, and the success of it, gets back to Herod. His monarchy was founded on politicking with the Romans, but he desired legitimacy with the Jews. He wanted the Jews to receive him as their lawful king. So then, the rumors of this prophet from Nazareth, whose message was that He was ushering in God’s kingdom was frightful news to this puppet King. Coupled with wondrous signs backing up His claims and gathering ever-growing crowds following Him and you have a terrifying combination for this pretender King.

While Mark has been doing a great deal of helping his readers look forward and see what lies ahead for Jesus, he now looks back to show us that Herod & Herodius stand in a long line of tyrant royal families. Mark calls to our mind the story of Ahab and Jezebel, persecuting Elijah and the other prophets of their day. Herod’s conniving wife had beguiled him into beheading John. Herod conclusion to the success of the disciples’ ministry is remarkably insightful. This phony king saw more clearly that most Jews did. He concludes that some sort of resurrection had taken place. Jesus had come to bring about the OT promises of life from the death. Job had foretold the resurrection even in the midst of his sufferings. Elijah (and later Elisha) had both resurrected the dead. The united voice of the OT prophets foretold the resurrection along with the sign of judgement it would be upon the wicked (Is. 26:19-21). All of this haunts Herod.

HOW DEATH MAKES WAY FOR YAHWEH’S COMING

Remember the key phrase throughout Mark’s Gospel: make straight. In the recounting of John’s martyrdom we see that word once more. Herodius’ daughter, after conspiring with her mother, goes straightway to make her wicked request and Herod immediately grants it (though grudgingly). The persecution of the righteous is not an impediment to God’s purposes but is the way in which He catches the wicked in their own net. This is made most clear in the Lord Jesus’ death.

Had the demon powers and earthly rulers known, they would not have put to death the Lord of Glory (Cf. 1 Cor. 2:8). But this was precisely the trap God was setting. God purposed that all injustice and evil would be brought upon Himself, in order that He might take into the grave and leave it there. In so doing, He would establish His universal rule of righteous judgement upon the whole earth. Beginning with Cain, the wicked have persecuted the righteous. So God sent His Son, in the flesh, so that the wicked could unleash all their injustice, indignity, and hatred of righteousness down upon His head. And now their kingdoms are all being overthrown by the increase of His righteous government in all the earth.

RESURRECTION GLORY

All of this shows why the resurrection is the certain hope of the meek, while being a holy terror to the wicked. How does God deal with our suffering? He takes it upon himself in the person of His Beloved Son. How does God deal with wicked men? He patiently calls them to repentance. But the Resurrection is a warning. Ahab & Jezebel will soon face Elijah before the judgement seat of the Risen Christ. Herod and his conniving wife will be confronted with John the Baptist who will be raised with Christ His Lord. All evil doers will be brought to justice. The resurrection is a certain sign that God will answer the martyrs’ prayer: “How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?”

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