Mark 5:11-20

“Notice what you notice.” Mark’s account of the Gerasene demoniac, the second half… Today was a travel day for us, to Pittsburgh for our daughter’s Ph.D. graduation ceremony tomorrow. Glory!

So a very short post…, but I think – not insignificant. Again, as has happened so much with Mark, the details…!! Matthew and Luke report a “herd of many pigs” and “a large herd of pigs”, while Mark says Now a great herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside… and the herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the sea (Mark 5:11,13). I can imagine a large herd of pigs – 50 to 100 would be a large herd. Multiply that by 20-40!! Two thousand!! That’s BIG! Just standing alone, they would need 16,000 to 20,000 square feet of room (assuming 2 feet wide, 4-5 feet long). They would cover one-third to one-half of a football field. That’s BIG! And the LEGION of demons rushed into EVERY ONE of them and drowned them! I’m amazed. I had never imagined the extent of that man’s demon possession!

Blessings!

Mark 5:1-10

“Notice what you notice.” Mark’s account of the Gerasene demoniac, the first half… Two items struck me. First, when the demon first approached Jesus, the demon-possessed man …ran and fell down before Him (v. 6, ESV). The NASB has “bowed before Him”. Either way, the demon bowing down before Jesus clearly showed that the demon immediately recognized that Jesus was the higher power. The demon was defeated before he even met Jesus – and he knew it.

A second thing that I noticed was a difference in translations in verse 8. The ESV has For He was saying to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!”, while the NASB says For He had been saying to him…The past perfect tense in the NASB implies that the demon had not obeyed Jesus’ earlier command, at which point Jesus engaged him in further conversation. The contrast is with Mark’s most recent verses at the end of chapter 4, where Jesus calmed the storm on His way to the land of the Garasenes and the disciples had noted that even the wind and the sea obey Him (Mark 4:41). Jesus had immediate power over the natural forces and even though He clearly was more powerful than the demoniac forces, it seems that He allowed even them a bit of free will.

Unfortunately, that contrast is also with us – how often do we disobey Jesus’ commands? Possibly the present perfect tense is even more appropriate, For He has been saying…{to us…}. Ouch.

Blessings!

Matthew 8:28-34

“Notice what you notice.” For the next few days we will be across the Sea of Galilee in the country of the Garasenes, where Jesus meets one or two demon-possessed individuals (Matthew has two; Mark and Luke have one). Matthew’s account is quite short compared to the other two. Mark’s account is the longest and the most detailed – we’ll spend two days with him. All three accounts are in large agreement, except for Jesus’ words and the one-or-two demon-possessed man/men issue.

Possibly because Matthew’s is the shortest of all three accounts, it is interesting that there is no conversation between Jesus and the demon(s). They recognize Him right away, speak their few words to Him, and ask to be sent into the pigs. Jesus speaks only one word: “Go.” Intriguing!! If Jesus spoke only one word to us, what might that one word be?

One other item of interest – an item that is in Matthew and not in the other two… In verse 29(b) the demons say, “Have you come here to torment us before the time?” I wonder what they mean by “before the time”? Were they at Cana when Jesus told His mother, “My hour has not yet come.” (John 2:4) I wonder what Satan and his demons knew about Jesus’ time frame?

Blessings on this Easter Monday!

Matthew 8:23-27, Mark 4:35-41, and Luke 8:22-25

“Notice what you notice.” HAPPY EASTER!!

So today we leave Galilee for the first time in months, ever since Jesus came to Nazareth and Cana after leaving Jerusalem. While Matthew and Luke have Jesus getting into a boat on just “any day”, Mark has Jesus leaving in the evening after a full day of parables and other ministry – the material we just read the past few days. No wonder Jesus was asleep in the stern; He was tired! Mark even has Jesus’ resting His head on a pillow. Mark also has other boats alongside, the other writers do not mention them.

In our Avanza time with the Hispanic kids we read Bible stories from the Jesus Storybook Bible. One of our stories is this calming of the storm. But the writer of this story has a different take on it that I had never heard or considered before. As Jesus is calming the storm, the author notes that the God Who spoke all things into being simply said to the wind and the waves, “Be still.” That is, Jesus was the Master of the wind and the waves and all created things, and they knew Him and His voice, and they listened to Him and obeyed. Fascinating!! We’ve seen Jesus with power over the supernatural – casting out demons with just a word. Now we see Him with power over all created things! Fascinating!! Just let that sink in! What a Glorious God we serve!

Slava Bohu!

Mark 4:26-29, 33-34

“Notice what you notice.” Mark adds to Matthew’s seven parables in chapter 13 with one of his own, the Parable of the Growing Seed – a parable found only in Mark. Frankly, to me, it’s something of a romantic parable: …first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear (v. 28). The singsong nature of these words is almost like 1960s folk music, sung by Joni Mitchell or Judy Collins. But beyond the lighthearted nature of verse 28 is the phrase that precedes it – …he knows not how (v. 27). God’s creation remains a mystery to us today. Agronomists with modern scientific tools can tell us a lot about “how”, but the more we know, the more fascinated we are about our world. It calls to mind Proverbs 25:2, It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out.

So now we come to the end of this section of parables, but there are more to come. Mark adds a bit of an explanatory note in verses 33 and 34 (see also Mt. 13:34) as to Jesus’ affinity for speaking in parables. Would that we also could sit at His feet as …privately to his own disciples he explained everything.

As to there being more parables to come, I offer you a Wikipedia snippet: “The Gospel of Luke contains both the largest total number of parables (24) and eighteen unique parables; the Gospel of Matthew contains 23 parables of which eleven are unique; and the Gospel of Mark contains eight parables of which two are unique.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parables_of_Jesus)

Slava Bohu!

Mark 4:21-25 and Luke 8:16-18

“Notice what you notice.” …for to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he thinks that he has will be taken away (Luke 6:18). We saw this verse earlier in Matthew (and also today in Mark) – I remember texting about the word “has”. But Luke adds a caveat, “even what he thinks he has”. Those extra words jumped out. What we have – do we really have it or do we just think we have it? Because what we have today could be gone tomorrow!! Only our heavenly treasures will stand the test of time!

For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light (Luke 8:17). There is nothing in our lives that we have “hidden” that is not already known to God. And my sense from this verse is that this awful thing that we have “hidden” will become known to all the world at the Final Judgment. How embarrassing!! So, what to do? Confess! Confession is more than just “good for the soul”. Confession un-hides what is hidden. When we confess that “hidden” thing before God or to one another, that “hidden” thing is no longer hidden – it has “come to light” and, in my reading, is no longer fodder for the Final Judgment. And my guess is that unburdening ourselves from that hidden thing will fully lighten our loads in this present life.

Slava Bohu!

Matthew 13:44-52

“Notice what you notice.” Another late evening RTB for me… We’ve just got a lot going on that requires daytime hours. Sorry to those of you who wait for my note to begin your reading…!!

So today, two similar parables (Hidden Treasure and Pearl of Great Value) and one “end-time” parable, similar to the Wheat and Weeds (Tares). The first two are quite familiar to me. We cover one of them in Avanza and the other is quite similar. Except that the Hidden Treasure parable is a bit odd, in that a man found the treasure, then re-buried it and went off to buy the field. Even our Avanza kids thought this was a bit unethical. But the point that Jesus is making effectively justifies the means to the end – the Kingdom of Heaven is worth anything we have to do to get there – but Jesus has already done it all; we have but to accept his offer!

The Pearl of Great Price came home to me some 15 or so years ago. I was in a Wednesday morning prayer group; another member of the group was an accomplished saxophonist. He found what he considered to be the best saxophone he had ever seen – then went off and sold all his other instruments and bought that saxophone. It was his Pearl of Great Price.

Finally, the Dragnet parable, as I noted above, is quite similar to the Wheat and Weeds parable. However, it is the one parable of these seven in chapter 13 that is least familiar to me. Similar to the Wheat and the Weeds, there is an end-time sorting out between the good and the bad. So if we are the “good”, we are told that the “bad” will continue to exist among us. I could extend this a bit to that book title, When Bad Things Happen to Good People. But Scripture tells us, that’s the way it will always be – the bad with the good until the Kingdom of Heaven is fully consummated!

But what really struck me today was verse 51. Jesus said, “Have you understood all these things?” They said to him, “Yes.” Are these the same disciples who seem NOT to be “getting it” time and time again? But they have a simple answer – “Yes”. Today’s parables are three of the seven parables that Jesus has related to them in Chapter 13. There must be some value in repetition!

Slava Bohu!

Matthew 13:31-33, Mark 4:30-32, and Luke 13:18-21

“Notice what you notice.” Two parables today – the mustard seed and leaven. A common denominator seems to be growth. The mustard seed is small, yet when planted grows into a 10-foot tree. And leaven “grows” the flour mixture to make bread or cakes. But the two examples are actually opposite to one another. The mustard seed is itself and outside influences – soil, water, nutrients – act upon it and cause its growth. Leaven, however, is the growth agent. It acts upon the flour mixture and causes the growth.

Jesus’ application for these two parables is the kingdom of God / kingdom of heaven. So He may be speaking of a small “mustard seed” group of people – Himself and His twelve disciples – who started small, but would grow infinitesimally over time to become the Kingdom. And as leaven affects the bread lump, these same disciples would be change agents for the entire world.

Or maybe we can make this personal? Outside influences – parents, teachers, pastors – advance us in our “mustard seed” Christian growth. By contrast, the leaven that is us affects those around us and helps them in their Christian growth. That is, we are leaven for the Kingdom.

I have to make mention of Mark’s particulars again. Matthew and Luke both say that the mustard seed “becomes a tree”. Mark, however, paints us the more complete picture: …it grows up…and puts out large branches… (Mark 4:32). A small item, but more picturesque, more detailed. Matthew and Luke also say that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches (Mt. 13:32; Lk. 13:19 uses past tense terminology). Mark, however, says that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade (Mark 4:32). Branches vs. shade? Go figure.

Slava Bohu!

Matthew 13:34-43

“Notice what you notice.” I keep seeing “the house”: Then He left the crowds and went into the house (v. 36). I just find it fascinating that Jesus has “a house” to go into. In addition, whenever I see “the house”, I just expect that He is in Capernaum, staying with Peter. Nothing more, just that – He went into the house.

Both the ESV and NASB translate verse 36 as it is written above. The NKJV offers a different perspective: Then Jesus sent the multitude away… (v. 36). It’s two completely different meanings between Jesus’ simply leaving the crowds and His sending them away. Frankly, it’s hard to see Jesus “sending them away”. At the Feeding of the 5000, when His disciples came to Him and asked Him to send the crowd away so that they could buy food, His response was to challenge the disciples to feed them, which He/they then did. So “sending them away” seems like an unlikely action for Jesus.

I wouldn’t have noticed verse 42(b), except that my Study Bible pointed out that “weeping and gnashing of teeth” occurs six times in Matthew and nowhere else in the New Testament. Still, it’s a phrase that seems to enjoy common usage – at least from my perspective.

It’s late and it’s been a very long day for me.

Slava Bohu!

Matthew 13:24-30

“Notice what you notice.” Matthew’s Parable of the Weeds (Tares)… Jesus’ explanation for this parable comes tomorrow, so be careful not to try to explain the parable or make too much of the meaning behind the story. This is the first of six “kingdom of heaven” parables in this chapter, with Jesus using metaphors to show His disciples what the kingdom of heaven is like (Mt. 13:31,33,44,45,47).

Yesterday at our RTB gathering we talked about planting seed by the “broadcast” method – grabbing seed from a bag by the handful and flinging it out, trying to spread it as evenly as possible. This is in contrast to “row crop” planting where seeds are planted in rows and spaced fairly evenly apart. With room to walk between the rows it would be more possible to pull up weeds (or cut them off at ground level) and not disturb the good seed. But with broadcast seed, it is difficult to walk through the field looking for the weeds and not stepping on and killing the good grain.

Another complication, as explained in footnotes in two Bibles, is that the weeds/tares that were sown in the wheat was actually “darnel”, a plant that looks like wheat when it is young but is clearly distinguishable when the wheat seed bears fruit. So the servants had to wait until the harvest to separate the wheat and the weeds.

Not much for today…

Slava Bohu!