I decided to study the book of Mark in the bible, I will blog my thoughts in a chapter by chapter day by day blogpost on the gospel. If anyone reading wants to study thru the book with me please feel free to do so and submit your thoughts! Jake
So in chapter 1 Jesus is baptized and received the Holy Spirit. After spending 40 days in the wild being temped by Satan, he met his first disciples; Simon, Andrew, James, and John. With his crew he went into the town of Capernaum where he healed a few folks and gave some good news. At the end of the chapter Jesus leaves the town. A few days later Jesus comes back to the town of Capernaum and so chapter 2 begins with his re-entry to the town. The news of his arrival spread and the house he was staying in became so crowded that there was no room for anyone, inside and outside. So he taught the crowd and a crippled man was lowered, by his friends, into the room from a hole in the ceiling, and Jesus saw their faith and healed the man. Jesus then went to the lake shore to teach, while there he finds Levi (later given the Greek name Matthew), his next disciple, collecting taxes.
Matthew's story really spoke to me and really inspired me. Matthew was a tax collector, possibly the worst job one could have, the scum of the earth basically. Jesus saw him and said, "Come be my disciple" he got up and left his job and followed Jesus. What I love about this story is how immediate Matthew is, not only did he drop EVERYTHING and follow his Lord, he held a dinner that night and immediately began introducing his fellow tax collector friends to Jesus. He wasn't trained, he wasn't studied, he had not practiced, he just followed the Lord and started telling people about Christ.
If we wait for timing to be perfect and for us to be trained enough with enough wisdom and practice, before we start telling of our Lord and Savior, will we ever reach the people that God so desperately loves? Levi had a goal and that was to follow Jesus. If we truly follow Jesus how could we ever keep from sharing his glory?
Be used...
I love the example of faith in the first section of Chapter 2. Jesus healed the man after seeing the faith of the people bringing him in. I think about praying for healing and praying for others. Its a reminder that when we are speaking to the Lord about others that our faith is what brings on the power of God.
ReplyDeleteI've had a ton of questions about fasting. And been thinking about it since that last day you and Josh were in Auburn. About what fasting should look like and the motivations behind it. I want to be genuine in it. 2:18-22 really answered. We should be fasting when some aspect of our lives in missing Christ, not just for the sake of fasting. I'm still praying over it.
And Sabbath rest is so important. In verse 27 when Jesus said, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for Sabbath." It was not set up so that we have another rule to follow. Its not about legalism. Its about resting in God. Its for our benefit and for our peace.