Posts from April 2023

They came to the other side of the sea, to the region of the Gerasenes. (Mark 5:1) Here begins the story of the Gerasene demoniac. Before we get into the story, we should note that the region of the Gerasenes was not a Jewish colony but was immersed in paganism. Jesus was going there to heal a man, one of the first extensions of his kingdom into the pagan world. We should note that a storm came against him as…

On that day, when evening had come, he told them, “Let’s cross over to the other side of the sea.” So they left the crowd and took him along since he was in the boat. And other boats were with him. A great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking over the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. He was in the stern, sleeping on the cushion. So they woke him up and said to him, “Teacher!…

He was speaking the word to them with many parables like these, as they were able to understand. He did not speak to them without a parable. Privately, however, he explained everything to his own disciples. (Mark 4:33-34) Jesus teaches us according to our ability to understand. The parables were the easiest way he could explain spiritual truth, and they were given for the masses. But Jesus also taught explicitly, without using parables or analogies. The deeper teachings were for…

And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable can we use to describe it? It’s like a mustard seed that, when sown upon the soil, is the smallest of all the seeds on the ground. And when sown, it comes up and grows taller than all the garden plants, and produces large branches, so that the birds of the sky can nest in its shade.” (Mark 4:30-32) The kingdom of God is beautiful…

“The kingdom of God is like this,” he said. “A man scatters seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head. As soon as the crop is ready, he sends for the sickle, because the harvest has come.” (Mark 4:26-29) The power of life is at work in…

And he said to them, “Pay attention to what you hear. By the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and more will be added to you. For whoever has, more will be given to him, and whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.” (Mark 4:24-25) God is paying attention to the way that you are living and the decisions you make. God pays attention to the way that you treat others.…