Today's reading: Mark 8:11-38

'And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened?' - Mark 8:17 ESV

What Jesus has done (past tense) in our lives is always an indicator of what he can do right now (and in the future). But we are so quick to forget. A lack of memory when it comes to God's faithfulness causes us to panic. Just like the disciples (who were wondering about the next meal), we often wonder if God cares enough to sustain us for today.

Recently, I was preaching at a church nearby. You always notice those who are really affirming as you speak. One older lady in the 8:30 am service was especially tracking with what I was saying. I made a point to thank her after the service for being so encouraging as she sat in the audience. She said something that I'll never forget: "I still remember what God saved me from." What God had done in her life decades ago was still playing on a loop in her heart and mind.

What was her secret?

It was clear: daily interaction with God through prayer, Bible study, and fellowship with other Christians.

May we never let the worries of today keep us from remembering the supernatural provisions of yesterday.

Today's reading: Mark 7:24-8:10

'And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”' - Mark 7:37 ESV

In our reading two days ago from Psalm 40, we read the following verse:

"In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted,
but you have given me an open ear." (verse 6)

The Hebrew for "given me an open ear" is literally "ears you have dug for me."

I like that imagery when we're looking at what Jesus did for this man who was deaf and mute. He "dug ears" for someone who could not hear.

The crowd who saw what Jesus had done reacted in a way that many of us would do well to imitate. What they were experiencing as they watched Jesus heal this man was something for which their minds didn't have a category. Many times, we want God to something in our lives that we can control and explain, but this is rarely how God enjoys operating.

There is nothing that Jesus does not do well. He is a healer. He is a people person. He is infinitely strong. He is everything we need for this life and the one to come.

Bottom line: there is nothing in our lives that Jesus cannot be trusted with.

Today's reading: Mark 7:1-23

"For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” - Mark 7:21-23 ESV

Behavior modification: we've all tried it. We ask this question over and over: "How can I control myself so that I can become who I want to be?" Oh, we have tried many things to tame our desires. We engage in intense diets to try and curb our carb consumption. We put blockers on our computers to prevent us from looking at explicit content. We delete our social media in hopes that we'll stop comparing ourselves with others. We seemed to have tried everything.

If Jesus were here in the flesh (like he was), how would he respond to this question of reigning in our sin life?

He would probably tell us we are focusing on the wrong thing. I mean, the Jewish Religious Leaders took behavior modification to a new level, and yet Jesus called them "sons of hell." (see Matthew 23:15).

Jesus would say that the problem isn't our behavior (though it gets us into trouble). He would say that the issue is the thing that is driving our actions: our heart. If we deal with our hearts, we will, in turn, deal with what we do.

What does that look like? Well, it is similar to surgery. One that only God can perform.

Ezekiel said it well when he wrote, "And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. But as for those whose heart goes after their detestable things and their abominations, I will bring their deeds upon their own heads, declares the Lord God.” (Ezekiel 11:19-21)

Go ahead and be so bold as to ask God to give you a new heart today.

Today's reading Mark 6:30-56

"When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things." - Mark 6:34 ESV

E.J. Schnabel, commenting on our passage for today, wrote: 'Sheep without shepherds cannot survive for very long: they need shepherds to find pastures and water."

Jesus is offering a direct quote from the Torah (see Numbers 27:17). The context there was the succession of Moses. How would the Israelites recover after losing Moses' leadership after 40 years? His understudy, Joshua, was up for the task to lead them into the Promised Land!

We live among people who are desperately in need of a Shepherd. How do we know this? Because people are quick to deify anyone who has status. Celebrities. Political leaders. Family members. Sports stars. Scientists. Musicians. Everyone is looking for someone worthy enough to "follow." It is funny that this is the word we use for social media.

But only one Shepherd will lead us the way we need to be led: Jesus. If we follow anyone else the way we are supposed to follow Jesus, it will end in disappointment.

Decide to follow our Savior? Well, it ends with our souls "feasting on the riches of his grace," just like the 5,000 who ate bread and fish.

Today's reading: Mark 6:1-29

'And he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. And he marveled because of their unbelief. And he went about among the villages teaching.' - Mark 6:5-6

The Greek word for "marveled" here is thaumazō, and it can also be translated as "to be astonished" or "to be amazed." Mark used this same word in 5:20 to describe everyone's reaction to the demoniac Jesus had healed. It seems like it takes a lot to amaze our Savior, and here it is not in a positive way.

Aren't you amazed when you see someone outright reject Jesus?

When I worked in the local church, it would blow me away to see how people would react to each week's services. It seemed that the same people were engaging and responsive to the worship and the study of God's word. At the same time, many were obviously there with the mission of staying unmoved. Same Good News was delivered to both, but a much different reaction.

Do you find yourself numb to the work of God today? Has your love for Jesus grown cold? Have you turned the Christian experience into a mere mental exercise to try and pacify your conscience? That won't work.

Jesus desires that you and I trust him with everything we are. Not because he's on a power trip. It is because he knows what the best life possible needs to look like. He lived it. He invites us into this way of life as well.

Today's reading: Mark 5:21-43

'And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.” But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not fear, only believe.”' - Mark 5:34,36 ESV

It hit me for the first time this morning that this little girl was born around the same time that this woman fell ill. So, when Jairus' family was flooded with joy and hope for the future, the woman with the issue of blood was overwhelmed with shame and despair.

Yet, at this moment, both the girl and the woman were in desperate need.

Jairus was not necessarily a religious leader, being the frontman of the synagogue. Most rulers of these Jewish places of worship were the most wealthy and influential in their community.

Also, by touching the woman (bleeding) or the girl (dead), Jesus would have made himself ceremonially unclean according to the Law of Moses. He engaged despair with healing and hope for what was to come. Why? To show us what compassion looks like, and to reveal that he was and is the Son of God.

So, when Jesus invites us to not fear and only believe, may we take him up on his offer. Not only that, let's share that hope with everyone who crosses our path.

Today's reading: Mark 4:26-41

'And he did not permit him but said to him, “Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled. As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons begged him that he might be with him.' - Mark 5:18-20 ESV

This was one wild man that Jesus encountered. He was chilling in graveyards, naked. He had people trying to bind him with chains, to no avail. Mark records that he "wrenched" the chains, which is the Greek word diaspao, meaning that he tore the chains apart like one rips a piece of paper.

It didn't take a psychologist to know something wasn't quite right with this man, psychologically or physiologically. Jesus knew the source was unseen: demonic activity.

Jesus frees this man of the demons at the expense of 2,000 head of swine (trying to picture that is blowing my mind).

This man was found sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. Not only that, but the man asks Jesus for permission to become one of his disciples ("that he might be with him" is the same language used for the 12 in Mark 3:14).

In a strange turn of events, Jesus tells this man to do something he rarely said to anyone: "go and tell everyone what the Lord has done for you." The man obeys, reenters society, and paves the way for the Apostle Paul to do his work 20(ish) years later in this area.

An obvious question for us all is this:

Are we telling everyone we come across what the Lord has done for us? Let's keep the legacy of this man's faith going. We are preparing the way for future generations to be changed by the Gospel!

Today's reading: Mark 3:31-35, 4:1-25

'And he was teaching them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: "Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow."' - Mark 4:2-3 ESV

Growing up as kids, we (at first) don't realize if we have good or have it bad. However wonderful or messed up things were around us, we considered it normal. Yet, the environment we were raised in has dramatic effects on us in every way. Why do we tend to scream when we're angry? Or why are we bent toward shutting down when we become angry?

Our environment conditions us, but it doesn't sentence us.

Jesus' parable of the sower shows the same kind of truth. The word of God is powerful, alive even. Still, our hearts' condition can make it where the most powerful force in the universe will not pierce our soil. This is where the Devil has a field day.

This is why we have to be very patient and consistent with someone who wasn't raised to know much about Christianity. They were conditioned to be hard, flighty, or anxious soil. But we are convinced as believers in Jesus that any heart can turn with the right amount of the Holy Spirit's tilling (see John 16:8).

"Father, may we keep our hearts ready to receive your word. May you also provide us with opportunities to sow your word into other people's lives, and when we see them, help us to be obedient. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Today's reading: Mark 3:7-30

'Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”' - Mark 3:20-21 ESV

At first glance, this may seem odd to us. Jesus' mother and his brothers are attempting to put a stop to what he was doing. Why did they think he had lost his mind? I mean, he had been teaching and healing for a while now. His first miracle (John 2) was at the prompting of his mother as she told the servants, "Do whatever he tells you." So what has changed?

It seems like the thing that is concerning them most are the crowds. This has all the makings of a revolution, and movements like these almost always ended in the death of the revolutionary. They didn't want to lose their guy. Later on, Peter would have the same reaction when he heard Jesus tell the disciples about his coming death (Mark 8:32).

They were essentially saying, "If this thing ends in your death, we will not support it."

This is why verse 36 is so important. To Jesus, surrounding himself with those interesting in doing God's will was more important than even spending time with his loved ones if it meant it would distract him from his purpose.

Don't worry, though. His family comes around in the end (see Acts 1:14).

Are we willing to do what God wants for our lives, no matter what the cost?

Today's reading: Mark 2:13-28, 3:1-6

'And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored.' - Mark 3:5 ESV

How much of a planner are you? Do you find great pleasure in having your entire day (or life) mapped out? It is definitely helpful to be organized and to have boundaries for our days. Otherwise, we would never get anything done. We also need limits to keep us from making life-altering mistakes.

Yet this still can be taken too far. We can do so much planning, and our schedules and ideals can be so rigid that we don't have room for compassion.

Like we saw yesterday, Jesus made time for intimacy with his Father. Today we see that he also made time for people, and he thought it was ok to do this at the expense of the Pharisees' religious traditions.

It is wild because Mark records that he was angry but that he was also grieved toward these Jewish religious leaders' resistance. 

The word for grieved appears only here in the entire New Testament. It is the word syllypeō, and it can also be translated as to be "hurt" or "mortified."

This is what love sometimes looks like. We are angry when people don't get it, and we hurt because we know their lack of faith is killing them (spiritually).

"God, help us not to compromise when it comes to the compassion we show to others. For those who don't get it, may we not suppress our anger or our grief. May you use them to help us get a clearer picture of your heart. In Jesus' name, Amen."