And he said to them, “Elijah does come first to restore all things. And how is it written of the Son of Man that he should suffer many things and be treated with contempt? But I tell you that Elijah has come, and they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is written of him.”

Mark 9:1-13

And he said to them, “Elijah does come first to restore all things. And how is it written of the Son of Man that he should suffer many things and be treated with contempt? But I tell you that Elijah has come, and they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is written of him.” Mark 9:12-13

I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark.  Today, my focus is a commentary-assisted review of Mark 9:1-13.  Excerpts from the third (of three) division (vv9-13):

• For the third division, the title is: "Learn from the Suffering of God’s Servants."
•  "[Today's text includes] our Lord’s last command to silence and the only one that receives a time limitation. After the resurrection, proclamation will be the order of the day!" 
• "The “Son of Man” title appeared only twice in the first half of Mark (2:10,28). Now it will occur with great regularity, especially in the context of His suffering (8:31; 9:9,12; 10:33,45; 14:21,41). The title hearkens back to the heavenly man of Daniel 7:13-14[.]" 
•  "Jesus makes a surprising connection. “‘Elijah does come first and restores everything,’ He replied. ‘How then is it written about the Son of Man that He must suffer many things and be treated with contempt?’” Wow! They did not see that one coming! The same divine Scriptures that predicted the coming of Elijah prior to the Day of the Lord also predicted a suffering Messiah. How did they miss Psalms 16; 22; 110; Isaiah 52:13–53:12? Read the whole of the Old Testament in light of Genesis 3:15, and all of it unfolds from there. The Son of Man will suffer, be treated with contempt, be killed, and then rise from the dead."  
• "As for Elijah, he has come in the person of John the Baptist (see Matthew 17:12-13). They rejected his message and killed him. They will do the same with Jesus. John fulfilled the assignment given to him by God, and so would our Lord. God would faithfully see them through their suffering and greatest hours of trial! Might we not be able to trust Him to do the same for us?!"   

 

 

Peter, James and John could not understand that Jesus would suffer and die - all as part of a divine plan that would ultimately lead to Christ's resurrection and ascension to Heaven.  We as Christians can see throughout redemptive history how others suffered and died on behalf of the mission Christ gives us in Matthew 28:19-20 to share the gospel to all nations.

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My Prayer:  Father God You are an awesome God who loves and saves.  You sent Your Son Jesus to suffer and die so that I could have life now to the full and for eternity in Heaven.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such a blessing - the greatest gift of all time.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me and help me turn from and overcome my sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself energy and wisdom.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin. Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts?"

Mark 2:1-12

Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts?" Mark 2:5-8

I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark.  Today, I focus on a commentary-assisted review of Mark 2:5-11, which is the text for the second (of three) division of vv1-12 per the commentary.  Excerpts from the commentary for the second division (We Should See Jesus for Who He Truly Is) vv5-11:

• "[The scribes] recognized that the proclamation of forgiveness was not a passing comment but a declaration of deity: “Who can forgive sins but God alone?” This was a serious charge with serious consequences. They understood Jesus’ words to be dishonoring and disrespectful to God. Blasphemy was a grave offense, punishable by death from stoning (Lev 24:15-16). Jesus’ words are indeed blasphemous—unless He is in fact God! The whole scenario leaves everyone questioning, 'Who is this One claiming to forgive sins?'"
• "In Jewish thinking even the Messiah could not forgive sins! God and God alone has that authority and right. Those first-century Jews knew exactly what was going on: if He can forgive sins, then Jesus is God."
• "[In using the reference to Himself as the Son of Man,] sometimes Jesus shows Himself to be the Son of Man who is serving (2:10; 2:28). At other times Jesus is the Son of Man who is suffering (8:31; 9:9,12; 10:33,45; 14:21,41). Finally, Jesus is the Son of Man who is coming in glory (8:38; 13:26; 14:62). The title occurs more often after Peter confesses Jesus as the Christ and Jesus begins to teach clearly about His own death (8:29)....Jesus uses the title to refer to Himself with both connotations. As God incarnate, He is a human being who identifies with sinful humanity as He serves and suffers on our behalf. As God, He is the coming Lord of glory." 
• "Jesus avoided the term “Christ” (Messiah) because He was a much different kind of Messiah from what the Jewish nation anticipated in the first century. He first came to suffer, and then He would come in glory. Claiming the title “Son of Man” allowed Him to refer to the total scope of His Messianic mission without all the political overtones."
• "Only in this present text is the forgiveness of sins linked to the divine title “Son of Man.” By implication Jesus does this again in 10:45 when He weds the Son of Man of Daniel 7 to the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53, thereby redefining who the Messiah is and what He came to do. He is God, a divine heavenly figure who will receive an everlasting kingdom." 

Believers of today have of course the benefit of hindsight to understand the attributes of Jesus as a Savior that serves, suffers, and coming in glory.  It is important that our lives and our witness - both in words and deed reflect an accurate understanding of Jesus.  We must see Jesus as serving because Jesus wants us to love and serve others as He loves and serves others.  We must also see Jesus as suffering and able to sympathize with our suffering.  As Jesus did, our own suffering should be viewed as God-planned and ordained for a purpose - that God be glorified in our weakness (see post from DesiringGod.com here) as we are utterly dependent on Him.  Also, we can approach Jesus in confidence in prayer because He is able to sympathize with our suffering and equip us to endure (see Hebrews 4:15-16).  If we are unable to love, serve others, and suffer like Jesus did then this is a reflection of our own understanding of who Jesus is and we should be leaning into Jesus to help us see Jesus for who He is so that we can be molded into more of His image. 

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My Prayer:  Father God, You are an awesome God who loves me and who is full of incredible grace and mercy for me that is ceaseless and new every morning.  You also give me Your Word to draw close to You and understand more of who You are.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of my salvation nor any of these blessings.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.

Daniel 3

 But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up. Daniel 3:18

I continue my pause of my study of Hebrews to study Daniel in conjunction with a disciple/small group study with my church's men's wake up call. This morning my focus is Daniel 3 as I lean on a commentary for its observations of this chapter.  Of course, the key theme of this chapter is how Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednago hold firm to their faith, and demonstrate supernatural courage to deny the proclamation that upon hearing the associated music, all shall fall down and worship the image of gold set up by King Nebuchadnezzar.  The commentary notes how, although at the end of chapter two Nebuchadnezzar praises God, such praise was "a shallow and surface praise."  It also notes how Daniel's interpretation of the dream included a vision of how Nebuchadnezzar represented the head of statue and was gold, and how in chapter 3 the commentary notes that Nebuchadnezzar "suggests that Nebuchadnezzar did not accept God’s will that he was only the head of gold and a temporary king. He wanted it all; therefore, he set up a great gold statue ninety feet high by nine feet wide, gold plated from head to toe (v. 1)." The commentary then pivots to the courage of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednago to withstand the temptation to worship idols, even when such temptation puts our lives at risk. It shares: "It takes courage not to compromise, and your mind needs to be made up before the pressure comes. If you wait until “the moment of truth,” you may find out it is too late." The commentary then discusses how the fourth man in the furnace with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednago was a "preincarnate appearance of the Second Person of the Trinity, the Son of God. The Lord was in there with them. The God who did not deliver them from the fire was the God who met them in the fire and delivered them out of the fire!" We are encouraged to see how in the Bible, it is clear how God never leaves or forsakes us: Exodus 3:6,12; Isaiah 43:2; Matthew 28:18-20; Romans 8:37-39; Hebrews 13:5; and 1 Peter 4:12-14. 

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are a great God who never leaves or forsakes us - even when things are very difficult, You never leave us.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such blessings.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward.

Hebrews 11

[Moses] considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward. Hebrews 11:26

This morning, my focus is DesiringGod.com's Solid Joys daily devotion, which broadly examines Hebrews 11, specifically zeroing in on Moses in this chapter that is often referred to as the "Hall of Faith."  Here, John Piper highlights how Moses left his comfortable life in Pharaoh's family when he had compassion on the Jews working as slaves in Egypt (see Exodus 2).  Moses, led by the Holy Spirit - which we know existed since the beginning of time (God as Alpha and Omega) - saw how his suffering, which preceded Christ's suffering, would bring him an eternal reward. Piper wants us to ponder this in the context of our own suffering.  Piper writes: "[w]e do not choose suffering simply because we are told to, but because the One who tells us to describes it as the path to everlasting joy. He beckons us into the obedience of suffering not to demonstrate the strength of our devotion to duty, or to reveal the vigor of our moral resolve, or to prove the heights of our tolerance for pain, but rather to manifest, in childlike faith, the infinite preciousness of his all-satisfying promises — the all-satisfying greatness and beauty of his own glory as the fulfillment of all of them." God promises are amazing and of course He is faithful and we can count on Him to deliver on all of His promises.  Be encouraged!

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an amazing God who loves me and who gives me the Holy Spirit so that I could have Christ in my heart - thank You Jesus!  Thank You for leading me and guiding me...daily.  I am not deserving of such a blessing.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take it; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank from it. “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many,” he said to them. “Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

Mark 14

While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take it; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank from it. “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many,” he said to them. “Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” v22-25

This morning I met with a new group of men in a study and peer group.  It is important to be in