Mark 2:13-17 and Luke 5:27-32

“Notice what you notice.” OK, so I missed my first day of posting this year. But hopefully you can forgive me. Up at 4:30 am, UK Hospital at 6:00, hip replacement surgery, then grogginess, nausea and sleep all day. Just didn’t happen…! So today will be another light day, looking at Mark’s and Luke’s accounts of Jesus calling Levi.

I talked a few days ago about the geographic location of Capernaum. What I forgot to mention was that Capernaum was also a Damascus and Caesarea Philippi route to the Mediterranean Sea, so even more traffic would have been going through that city.

There’s not a whole lot different in the three Synoptics’ accounts of Matthew/Levi’s calling or of the feast/dinner that he threw. I was a bit surprised that Matthew’s account of his own calling was so understated – …He saw a man named Matthew… (Matthew 9:9).

Two other really simple things that I noticed… Mark’s account mentions that Jesus …went out again beside the sea (Mark 2:13) the only writer to mention “the sea” in the calling of Matthew. I’ll be watching more for this “sea” connection in Mark. The other item was in Luke: I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance (Luke 5:32). Luke is the only one of these writers who mentions “to repentance”. A small item, but worthy of note, in that Jesus is echoing John the Baptist’s message – although Jesus adds “Kingdom of God” and “Kingdom of Heaven” references to his preaching, in addition to healings and other miracles.

Blessings, y’all!

Luke 5:17-26

“Notice what you notice.” Today we have Luke’s coverage of the healing of the paralytic. Why is it so often the case with me that something jumps out at me in the first verse of the reading for the day??!! Obviously, again today: …Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem (verse 17). Mark had told us that “many” were there; Luke is much more specific. We saw in the past few weeks that Jesus’ fame was spreading throughout Galilee. Now we have Pharisees and scribes coming all the way from Jerusalem (~80 miles) and even further from locations throughout Judea. Clearly Jesus’ fame is spreading.

Pronouns!! I try to stay away from pronouns, especially when two or more people of the same gender are part of the text. Today’s final verse (26) reads And amazement seized them all, and they glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, “We have seen extraordinary things today.” In that one verse there are three unclear pronouns (them, they, we), plus a stand-alone “all”. There are three possible antecedents here – the crowd, the Pharisees and scribes, and the men who brought the paralytic. The pronouns probably refer to the crowd, but might it also include that teachers of the Law? It’s not clear from the text. Matthew offers some clarification – Now when the multitudes saw it… (Matthew 9:8). I’m guessing here that “the multitudes” includes the crowd and rules out the Pharisees and scribes. But then again, it’s not totally clear. And surely, in spite of their rage at Jesus “blasphemy”, inside they also must have been “filled with awe”!! We also should be, at every glory sighting we see!

Glory!!

Mark 2:1-12

“Notice what you notice.” Today we have Mark’s coverage of the healing of the paralytic. On a first-time reading of this event, the item that is most shocking/surprising to most people is the lowering of the paralytic through a hole in the roof. I can clearly recall my early (and continuing) thoughts on this event, in particular the dust and chunks of material that would have been falling on those gathered in the room below. (Yeah, small tidbit.) And we often think (or are told) of the faith, not of the paralytic, but of those who carried him and let him down. And that’s worth pondering, but not for me today.

There were a couple of things that I noticed. First, right away in verse 1, And when he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. He was “at home”. I’ve never imagined Jesus “at home”. I always see Him on the road or in a crowd. In fact, we read in Matthew 8:20, And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” However, there is a lot of support for Jesus “taking up residence” at Peter’s house, so it’s nice to know that occasionally He was “at home”.

A second item was more striking, …Jesus perceived in His Spirit that they reasoned thus within themselves (NKJV, verse 8). This is powerful, super important for us today. We have noted Jesus’ humanity on a number of occasions, the He was fully human, just like us. And we’ve often wondered how He knew certain things (e.g., go catch a fish and find a coin – Matthew 17:27). In Mark 2:8 it’s clear that Jesus had the same Spirit available to Him that we have to ourselves. Personally, on a number of occasions I have “known” something from out of nowhere. Or how do Carol and I come up with the exact same thoughts at the exact same time?? For me, I have no doubt that we have access to the same Spirit Who spoke to Jesus!! That’s powerful, folks!!

Glory!!

Matthew 9:1-17

“Notice what you notice.” Today we have three events taking place at Capernaum – the healing of the paralytic, the calling of Matthew/Levi, and the issue of fasting. Today’s reading covers all three of those events in Matthew’s Gospel. The next six days will break down each of these events into Mark’s and Luke’s coverage of each. With those accounts covered separately we can see differences and similarities in all three events.

I had a number of “notices”, but wanted to focus most on Matthew’s calling. Here again we have Matthew’s seemingly immediate response to Jesus’ call: As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and He said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed Him (v. 9). We dealt with these immediate “Follow me” responses earlier in the calling of the Peter, Andrew, James, and John and saw that there was probably more history behind those calls than what was reported in John, Matthew, and Mark. The same is probably true of Matthew’s call.

First, a bit of geography. I’ve always wondered at Capernaum becoming Jesus’ home base, since He was raised in Nazareth, some 25-30 miles away. It’s true that Peter lived there and may have had a fairly large house in which Jesus may have resided. But also, look at the map below. Capernaum is located on a major road from Damascus, Caesarea Philippi, or Tyre to Jerusalem (although there were other routes that travelers could have taken). Coming from Galilee and not yet ready to deal with Jerusalem, Capernaum was an ideal location for ministry. It was probably one of the largest cities in Galilee and would have given Him ready access to other locations. It would also have been a good location for a tax collector to maintain an office or to travel to other locations!

We have already seen that Jesus’ activities in Capernaum had generated a large following (Mark 1, Luke 4). Matthew would surely have known of Jesus and likely may have been one of those who witnessed Jesus’ healing powers. Just a few days ago we saw in Mark 1:33 …that the whole city was gathered together at <Peter’s> door for that Sabbath healing event. Matthew could well have been one of those gathered. That is, when Jesus called Matthew, it was probably more than a “seemingly immediate response to Jesus’ call”.

Slava Bohu!!

Luke 5:12-16

“Notice what you notice.” Luke has two items that are not included in Matthew or Mark, and both jumped out at me. In verse 12 the man who approached Jesus was full of leprosy (NKJV, ESV). And verse 16 says that Jesus …would withdraw to desolate places and pray. What to make of these distinctions?

As to the first, I’m not surprised that Luke the physician would be more complete in his description of the ailment. But how would he know that? For me, I often wonder if Luke was an early disciple (but not an apostle) who followed Jesus, maybe even from very early in Jesus’ ministry? We know Luke was an excellent historian, but if he knows even the small details like covered with leprosy (NASB), how would he have gotten that information? In the introduction to his Gospel, Luke writes, Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us… (Luke 1:1-2). Although Luke does not include himself among those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses, a strong indication that he was not an early follower, still I wonder.

As to the second, Mark also mentions crowds pushing in on Jesus such that He could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in desolate places (Mark 1:45). Mark doesn’t mention Jesus praying in that particular verse, but earlier we saw that Jesus, …rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark … went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed (Mark 1:35). We have no doubts about Jesus’ prayer life!

Slava Bohu!!

Mark 1:40-45

“Notice what you notice.” I’m developing a new respect for Mark’s Gospel. A few days ago he added while it was still dark (v. 35) that the other writers had omitted. Today he adds Moved with compassion/pity… (v. 41) at the plight of the leper and his approach to Jesus – kneeling before Him and imploring Him – If you are willing (v. 40). No doubt Jesus was a compassionate man, and with crowds seeking healing it was probably the case that He was compassionate toward each sick person. Mark simply reminds us of that.

I have long known that I am a judgmental person – I think it comes with the profession! However, it has hit me a number of times that my immediate reaction of judgment has moved to a point of prayer and compassion. It happens a lot with people who are quite overweight – and I have no room to talk! But so often in recent years my immediate reaction of judgment has quickly moved to compassion, and that reaction is so much more welcome!

One other phrase that I noticed in Mark did not appear in the other two Synoptics, but it’s more a translation thing than content-worthy. In his last verse Mark says that people were coming to Him from every direction (NKJV, v. 45). Some translations have people coming from everywhere. There’s something about “every direction” that’s just more powerful than “everywhere”!

As we read and pray and reflect on these short readings, I feel like I am being pulled into the story in a manner that I’ve never felt before. It was that way when I first read the Book of Acts – I felt like I was on ship with Paul! And it’s often just those little things that are different this time around. BTW, as I am typing and sending and posting this item it’s still dark outside… HeeHee!

Slava Bohu!!

Matthew 8:1-4

“Notice what you notice.” When much of these Gospel writings are so familiar, some days it’s hard to “notice what you notice”. That was the case today for me. Still, one item was confusing to me: …go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a proof to them (v. 4b). Those last few words, “for a proof to them” or “as a testimony to them” – I wondered why Jesus needed the man’s “proof”. But then again, the issue of proof stands out.

Some thoughts… (1) If the man goes to the priest and offers his gift for his cleansing, how does the priest know that he ever had leprosy in the first place? Would the priest have known the man already? Was the man a Synagogue regular, even with his leprosy? (2) Was Jesus proving Himself by establishing the man’s proof? But that doesn’t make sense, since Jesus also told the man not to tell anyone else. (3) Was Jesus’ focus the priest and his belief? That is, in Jerusalem Jesus is regularly doing battle with the Temple leaders. But up in Galilee, away from Jerusalem, did Jesus wonder whether the Synagogue priests might be ripe for seeking His kingdom? (4) Was Jesus establishing the man’s faith by asking him to go one step further, thereby fulfilling the Law?

I tend to like #3, but it seems awfully far-fetched to imagine that Jewish priests, Galilean or Judean, would be fertile soil for Jesus’ Gospel. I like the thought of it all, but not the reality. Again, questions and no real answers…

Slava Bohu!!

Luke 4:42-5:11

“Notice what you notice.” As I pointed out Wednesday, the Matthew reading from two days ago would have been better placed somewhere else in our “lectionary”. Whereas Matthew’s writing is very general in nature, both Mark and Luke are more specific – Jesus comes from the Synagogue to dinner to His Sabbath healings. I spoke yesterday how I was struck by Jesus’ rising early in the morning…while it was still dark (Mark 1:35). It turns out that Mark is the only writer who notes this particular behavior. Luke simply says And when it was day… (v. 42). I’m glad for Mark’s contribution!

Both Mark and Luke have Jesus moving on to other towns – an item that Matthew covered in much greater detail two days ago. All three Gospels have Jesus’ fame spreading as he preaches His “good news” and heals the sick throughout all of Galilee (or Judea, depending on your translation).

Today’s reading is a second case where I could have been more careful in putting the readings together, splitting off Luke’s 5^th chapter material from the rest of the reading – actually putting Mark 1:35-39 and Luke 4:42-44 together on one day would have worked nicely, then Matthew 4:23-25, then Luke 5:1-11. More info for next time…!

In addition to what all three Gospels are covering the past three days, Luke also has the calling of the disciples – Peter, James and John. We’ve already seen earlier activity of Jesus and (at least some of) these disciples in John 1:35-51, then later in Matthew 4:18-22 and Mark 1:16-20. Matthew and Mark are in complete agreement in their Gospels as to Jesus’ calling of Peter, Andrew, James, and John, while Luke’s account goes into much greater detail. Because there are substantial differences, it would take a lot of words to build one coherent picture.  Instead, we can either see these two accounts occurring on different days or we can just accept two different accounts of the same activity.

I’ve never imagined these to be large boats with which Peter and Andrew and James and John were fishing, rather something like larger than a bass boat or a 16’ jon boat. However, verses 9 and 10 imply something larger: For he <Simon Peter> was astonished, and all that were with him, at the catch of fish which they had taken; and so also were James and John… I think the phrase “all that were with him” implies more than a few; otherwise Luke might have said “the other two” or “the other three”. But “all … ” seems bigger. And “all …” clearly excludes James and John; they are mentioned in the next verse. So when the four disciples left their business behind with Zebedee and followed Jesus, it must have been a larger enterprise than I had previously imagined. Naturally the question always follows – what have we left behind to follow Jesus?

Slava Bohu!!

Mark 1:35-39

“Notice what you notice.” February 14, Valentine’s Day, a normal work day for most people. But if you’re related to a flower shop, well, it’s a bit more – actually, much more than “a bit more”. So that accounts for the late post, but that’s not all. Read on…

So today, And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed (v. 35). What struck me was rising very early… while it was still dark. We’ve read that and heard it preached on many times, how Jesus rose early and prayed. But this passage really is different. Why? Go back two days in our readings. Jesus came out of the synagogue, had dinner, then healed many, many people who had come to him after sunset on the Sabbath. That is, He was already up late the night before, with all of Capernaum looking for healing. Now after being up late with healing, He rises early while it was still dark to pray. That’s more than your average “getting up early to pray”.

This really struck home this Valentine’s Day. Carol has been helping Rachel all week, getting flowers prepared and then making arrangements. Yesterday was the real crunch day. Rachel and Carol worked late, late, late! Truly, Carol did not climb into bed until 2:50 am, then was up at 6:45 am to go after it again! This while we are reading of Jesus late Sabbath healings and then rising early while it was still dark. Carol was modeling Jesus’ behavior, in real time!! A real awakening…! The passage screams at us to get our prayer house in order!

More on the rest of this reading tomorrow when we read Luke’s account…

Slava Bohu!!

Matthew 4:23-25

“Notice what you notice.” In putting these readings together I’ve mostly followed the ordering in The Chronological Study Bible (edited only for length of passage). However, today is the first case I’ve found where I could have done better. It’s a small matter, but…

In today’s reading Matthew speaks in broad generalities with respect to (a) Jesus’ activities, they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and pains, those oppressed by demons, those having seizures, and paralytics, and he healed them (v. 24) and (b) His geography, And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan (v. 25). Mark and Luke are more specific in the next two days’ readings, however, following the past two day’s readings with Now in the morning (Mark 1:35) and Now when it was day (Luke 4:42). So my re-ordering of readings would be the 14^th and the 15^th, then the 13^th.

Beyond that, the one item that I noticed today was that Jesus was proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom (v. 23). Back in verse 17 His preaching had been Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Is there a difference here? We think of the Gospel, the “good news” as the salvation message, much of what verse 23 would imply. By contrast, verse 17 is word-for-word John the Baptist’s message of repentance (Mt. 3:2). Sorry, no wisdom here, just an observation…

Incidentally, my other Study Bible notes that the phrase, “kingdom of heaven” is mentioned only in Matthew, but that it occurs 32 times therein. Mark and Luke refer to “kingdom of God”, a phrase used only four times in Matthew. Again, is there a difference?

Slava Bohu!!