Tag Archives: faith

Pastor Rick’s Study Notes: Mark 14:32-42

Mark's Gospel -Study Notes, Pastor Rick's Study Notes, , , , , ,

Mark 14:32-42

(PRT)

v. 32 When they arrive at the place called Gethsemane, he says to his followers, stay around here while I pray. v. 33 And he takes Peter, James, and John with him and he starts to be distressed greatly and heavy-hearted. v. 34 And Jesus says to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sadness almost to the point of dying; stay here and watch.” v. 35 And going a ways into the garden, he fell to the ground and prayed that, if possible, this hour might pass by him. v. 36 And he cried out: “Abba Father, all things are possible for you. Take away this cup; still, not what I want, but what you desire.” v. 37 Then he returns and discovers them sleeping. And he says to Peter: “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch with me a single hour?” v. 38 “Watch and pray so that you may not cave into temptation: the spirit is eager, but the flesh is weak.” v. 39-40 And again, he went away to pray the same things in the same manner; and he returned and found them asleep because their eyes were heavy, and they did not know how they should answer him. v. 41 So he returns a third time and says: “Are you sleeping? It’s enough, so be refreshed, now that the hour has come. Watch this: The Son of Man is now handed over to the power of sinful men. v. 42 “Wake up and let’s go! Look around you! The one who is betraying me is approaching!”

Pastor Rick’s Study Notes:

v. 32 When they arrive at the place called Gethsemane, he says to his followers, stay around here while I pray.

They left the city by one of the gates to enter into the garden. Gethsemane means “oil press.” A very fitting place for Jesus to be pressed with the weight of the sins of the world as he reconciled to the mission and the Father’s will.

This place, the Gospel accounts tells us that Jesus often went here, and Judas knew the way to get in and surround Jesus. The garden likely was a part of a grove of olive trees. Secluded but not too far out of the way.

The picture is often a secluded woody area with a big stone. It was likely a well-kept olive grove with possibly a small house or building on it with paths and careful arrangement.

This account is in all four Gospels and alluded to in Hebrews and other places.

For Mark, those who read and hear this read, are facing their own crisis, their own trials.

Jesus may have suggested to the eight remaining disciples (Judas has already left to initiate his own agenda) to have a seat on the rock wall that serves as the Border to the grove and the garden.

v. 33 And he takes Peter, James, and John with him and he starts to be distressed greatly and heavy-hearted.

So Jesus tells the disciples to stay back and let him and his three move into the grove and garden to pray. Peter, James and John were there not long before to see Jesus transformed on the mountain;. and they saw Jesus raise a little girl from the dead. They knew Jesus more than anyone. And they saw him fall into the dirt of the grove in anguish.

They were to keep watch as in be alert and watchful, not for the betrayer, but for the Tempter.

Jesus was amazed, as in overwhelmed, with sorrow. Mark alone makes this clear with this intensity.

This heavy-heartedness has a root meaning of being far from home and sad because of this combination of alone-ness and distance between. Jesus would have felt home-sickness and the pain of all this as the sin and weight became a brief but necessary wedge.

Jesus had his life directed toward the suffering of the cross; now that he is facing it in such a short time, along with the pain of the abandonment of his best friends, it was nearly unbearable.

Might James and John remember their conversation, as they watch and listen to the pain in Jesus’ voice, about being able to drink from the same cup as Jesus?

v. 34 And Jesus says to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sadness almost to the point of dying; stay here and watch.”

This exceeding sorrow is one brought on by an external demand (such as the rich young ruler faced.) It weighted him down.

How often does Jesus make a request from his disciples for something for himself? This may be one of the only times. Stay and watch; they lie down and sleep.

v. 35 And going a ways into the garden, he fell to the ground and prayed that, if possible, this hour might pass by him.

The word means “a stone’s throw” away. He fell to his knees or prostrate before the father (I know most pictures have Jesus leaning or kneeling at a big rock. But he got down and dirty in the ground in his prayer.

We are to pray, always, and develop a practice of listening and speaking to the Father throughout the day. Sometimes prayer is the only desperate solution: fall to our knees, fall to our face, lay on the ground or the floor in humble trust and petition. Standing or sitting is not enough at this point.

v. 36 And he cried out: “Abba Father, all things are possible for you. Take away this cup; still, not what I want, but what you desire.”

Abba is used as the familiar form of love that a child has. Similar to the familiar Daddy or Papa. But also the name we call the Father when we are most intimate: when we are without words and at the wit’s end, and that unique fellowship the Son sent the Spirit into our hearts to produce with the Father. Galatians 4:4. Abba Father weds two main words for an intimate cry of son to dad. It is an address of total trust and submission to the Father. This familiarity is unheard of in Jewish prayer. Such familiarity and intimacy and knowledgeable trust. It is the child calling to daddy; it is the grown man or woman submitting in reverence and trust to the good father.

The cup is that death he would partake of on the cross. He won the battle here as the Father answered. Luke has angels helping.  In the OT, the cup is indicative of the judgment of God.  Jesus faced the condemnation of sin and guilt that he took on.

This cup reflects back to the supper they just took a few hours earlier. This is the cup of the new covenant. Jesus is ready to face death and ready to do the Father’s will. He is not devaluing “the cup of the new covenant.” He is facing the excruciating pain of judgment. He’s never tasted sin, guilt, abandonment, etc.

v. 37 Then he returns and discovers them sleeping. And he says to Peter: “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch with me a single hour?”

He loving concern for His followers led him to break away from prayer to encourage and check on his disciples.

v. 38 “Watch and pray so that you may not cave into temptation: the spirit is eager, but the flesh is weak.”

This admonition to watch and pray is to Simon Peter and the others. Not just to Simon. The word, “willing” could be “eager” to follow Jesus faithfully, but the flesh weakly chooses to cave to the temptation to deny Christ, to be untrue.

 The flesh is that which represents our tendency to selfishness, self-preservation, me-first; the spirit is that breath of life the Father gives all of us and longs for heaven’s values.  But the flesh takes us down the road of me-first.

v. 39-40 And again, he went away to pray the same things in the same manner; and he returned and found them asleep because their eyes were heavy and they did not know how they should answer him.

It’s like their eyes were weighted down, even though they tried to keep them open.

In the wilds, Jesus was tempted three times to abuse his divinity (makes his own bread, toss himself off a building, grasp at rulership); here Jesus returns to prayer three times to win over his humanity’s natural aversion to what he faces.

The disciples were stumped for words, just like on the Mount of Transfiguration.

v. 41 So he returns a third time and says: “Are you sleeping? It’s enough, so be refreshed, now that the hour has come. Watch this: the Son of Man is now handed over to the power of sinful men.

The construction of this passage is often stilted. Why would Jesus say in one breath, keep sleeping and the hour has come. More likely, he called them out of the sleeping to remind them it’s enough refreshing for now because the hour has come.

It’s enough is the phrase that people would often give in receipt of payment for a service or item.

v. 42 “Wake up and let’s go! Look around you! The one who is betraying me is approaching!”

Jesus is given over to the work of the Enemy to steal, kill and destroy. This is the moment of the Enemy’s control. He can’t help himself but to take Jesus and destroy him; even if Satan knew it would be his downfall, he is the destroyer and will do it. But, in his wildest imagination, he doesn’t think the Father will give up his beloved.

Pastor Rick’s Study Notes: Mark 13:28-37

Mark's Gospel -Study Notes, Pastor Rick's Study Notes, , ,

Pastor Rick’s Study Notes:

(PRT) 13:28-37

v. 28 Now then, learn from the story of the fig tree: when the time comes for its branch to become tender and its leaves to open, you know that summer is about to happen. v. 29 In the same way, you know that when you see these signs about to happen you know that the fulfillment of these things is also near and already at the door. v. 30 Trust me when I tell you that this generation will not pass away until these things have happened. v. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will in no way pass away. v. 32 But when it comes to that very day or hour, no one knows – neither the angels in heaven nor the Son, but only the Father. v. 33 Keep your eyes open and stay alert, for you do not know when that time is. v. 34 That time is like a man who goes on a journey, leaves his house and gives each of his servants authority for their work; and the doorkeeper is ordered that he should keep watch. v. 35-36 You should watch, therefore, because you do not know when the master of the house returns, whether at evening, midnight, before daybreak, or morning; or else when he comes unexpectedly, he should find  you asleep at the job. v. 37 For this reason, my word to you all is: watch and be ready.

Pastor Rick’s Notes:

v. 28 Now then, learn from the story of the fig tree: when the time comes for its branch to become tender and its leaves to open, you know that summer is about to happen.

It’s a comparison between how summer approaches with signs from spring, and how his contemporary generation will see what’s coming, and for those of us awaiting His return, how the end times will approach with signs increasingly before it happens.

They just learned another lesson from the false fig tree. Now they learn from the flourishing fig tree. As it sprouts and brings life out of a winter’s barrenness, it parallels (parable) how the gradual and increasing signs of the end times will point to His return.

v. 29 In the same way, you know that when you see these signs about to happen you know that the fulfillment of these things is also near and already at the door.

These things are near because He is near to  returning. The Parousia is imminent.

v. 30 Trust me when I tell you that this generation will not pass away until these things have happened.

This generation could be this race or nation. But the eternal oversees one generation and one nation. It is this generation meaning the that very generation that recognizes the signs happening so rapidly. When the Spring is here, that generation is here, too.

It’s a complicated verse to interpret. One interpretation is fairly sure: He also could be referring backward to the initial question. When will the walls tumble in Jerusalem? Within the generation hearing his voice.

If Jesus is talking about  a nation or people, it could be the nation of Israel or the people who seek him first. Israel, or we, will always be until the end times are fulfilled.

v. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will in no way pass away.

He claimed eternity for his words. And it is true; his words are thoroughly woven through the centuries and will in no way pass away.

v. 32 But when it comes to that very day or hour, no one knows – neither the angels in heaven nor the Son, but only the Father.

This is a curious thing for God the Son to say. He is limited only for the good of His life as the Son of Man in relation to those he teaches. The limit is by design, even though Jesus and the Father are one.

v. 33 Keep your eyes open and stay alert, for you do not know when that time is.

The term, “keep  your eyes open” is watch. Uses only four times but always to be alert.

v. 34 That time is like a man who goes on a journey, leaves his house and gives each of his servants authority for their work; and the doorkeeper is ordered that he should keep watch.

This person as the house owner or estate lord leaves the country. It’s not just a journey into town but an unpredictable trip that could take longer or shorter than expected.

Parallels the parable of the vineyard and the lord of the vineyard who goes on a trip, too.

Is this the leadership of the church, the servants of God through the ages, who have been given the command to reach the world for Christ, expecting anytime his arrival?

More likely, in this thought, Jesus has not left us alone with only a book and a mission. He has given us the paraclete, the Holy Spirit. He is near and he is with us. And He will return. We all, not just pastors or leaders, are in the house working at what we were created for, under his authority and power, to accomplish the mission.

v. 35-36 You should watch, therefore, because you do not know when the master of the house returns, whether at evening, midnight, before daybreak, or morning; or else when he comes unexpectedly, he should find  you asleep at the job.

If the workers at the temple were listening, they knew where Jesus was going with this. The temple leadership could show up at any time. If they were not greeted at the door and saluted on the rounds, they were in trouble.

These are the four watches of the night. That could refer to the fact that we as a world are still in the shadows until Jesus returns in his brilliant glory.

v. 37 For this reason, my word to you all is: watch and be ready.

We are to be engaged in calling, use His gifts and power, trust His Word, and follow His Spirit, even when the shadows seek to obscure the work of the Kingdom. In the four watches, we are most available and trusting.

Pastor Rick’s Study Notes: Mark 12:28-34

Mark's Gospel -Study Notes, Pastor Rick's Study Notes, , , , ,

Pastor Rick’s Study Notes:

Mark 12:28-34

(PRT) v. 28 Then, one of the religious teachers, after listening in on the discussion and discerning Jesus answered them well, approached him and asked: “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” v. 29 Jesus answered: “The most important of all is this – “Here this, Israel; our Lord God is One Lord. v. 30 “And you will love your Lord God with your whole heart, soul, mind, and strength. v. 31 “The second is this – You will love your neighbor like you love yourself. No other commandment is greater than these.” v. 32 Then, the religious teacher said to him: “Excellent, teacher – What you have said, that He is one and there is no one beside Him; this lines up with the truth. v. 33 And to love him fully with the heart, understanding, and strength and to love our neighbor like we love ourselves is more important than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices.” v. 34 And Jesus, seeing that he answered wisely, told him: “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.” Then, no one dared to ask him another question.

Study Notes:

v. 28 Then, one of the religious teachers, after listening in on the discussion and discerning Jesus answered them well, approached him and asked: “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

Matthew indicates that this priest “tested” Jesus, as if he was put up to it. But the curiosity seems to lead in this account. Could it be he was almost convinced to exchange allegiances?

Jesus is in the Outer Court where the Gentile God-fearers and the nations came to worship. He has a clear picture here of what love means.

This question was commonly debated among religious teachers. It relied on the level of piety to achieve or accomplish that law. But Jesus says in answer – the priority is immeasurable, unreachable, always the goal but never the attainment. That’s why grace is required.

If you were asked this question, what would you answer? Jesus accepts the question as valid and it has a valid response.

These religious leaders were the ones who interpreted the law. They saw life through the lens of the school of interpretation of either the Sadducees or the Pharisees (the full OT revelation or the Pentateuch.) Jesus is calling on him to see life through the lens of the Kingdom and he as King.

v. 29 Jesus answered: “The most important of all is this – “Here this, Israel; our Lord God is One Lord.

This is the Shema, the “Hear” or “listen up.” It’s the central passage in Jewish theology from Leviticus 6. Interesting that the word for “one” is the word for a compound unity that is a unity of elements into one. Father/Son/Holy Spirit.

To hear this is to seek to know the one true God.

Don’t miss the possessive – Our God is One, Our God is Lord, and Our God is relational. He has established a relationship with us.

v. 30 “And you will love your Lord God with your whole heart, soul, mind, and strength.

And to hear this is to love the one true God.

To love God is thorough in all ways for the individual. It is a response to love first demonstrated.

All is completeness. God has redeemed and restored us fully; we love him back fully.

Our love is not philosophical or academic; it is active, real-time expression of our choice to follow Him and love the unlovely.

Back to the Garden – there was no separation. All that Adam did was out of love for the Father.

v. 31 “The second is this – You will love your neighbor like you love yourself. No other commandment is greater than these.”

And this second commandment goes with the first. We can’t love God without love toward others; we can love other without the love of God in our hearts. Our self-centeredness gets in the way. And we might try to fix the relationships on the horizontal level; but without the vertical in place, the horizontal gets in the way.

Illustration: With God at the center, like a spinning top, the rest of our relationships are balanced and moving at the right pace; but without God as the point, the center, the first place in our lives as our confession, the rest of our relationships wobble or lose control

To love others = to give life as ransom, to serve and not be served.

Jesus connects love on the horizontal with love on the vertical. We love others because we had found God’s love to matter.

Unlike the first, this love is in response to love poured in through the Father’s love, but not in response to a horizontal love first given.

Our love for God is toward one who is perfect and complete and utterly deserving; our love for others is toward one who is often hateful, deceptive, unconcerned, greedy, etc., imperfect, broken, and undeserving of our love – apart from the father’s love poured into us.

Luke 10:25-37 A neighbor is more than “my people.” A neighbor is everyone.

v. 32 Then, the religious teacher said to him: “Excellent, teacher – What you have said, that He is one and there is no one beside Him; this lines up with the truth.

This religious leader gets it, hears it as truth, and steps toward the Kingdom.

v. 33 And to love him fully with the heart, understanding, and strength and to love our neighbor like we love ourselves is more important than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

Hosea 6:6 Mercy above burnt offerings.

v. 34 And Jesus, seeing that he answered wisely, told him: “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.” Then, no one dared to ask him another question.

The teacher of the law moved from antagonistic to accepting. Jesus’ teaching smacks of Kingdom truth. He is almost there to connect the person of Jesus with the presence of the Kingdom.

It could be that, after hearing this scribe equate love of God and love of man as superior to the sacrificial system that was so precious and guarded, no one wanted to step into another possible non-PC conversation.

Pastor Rick’s Study Notes: Mark 11:15-18

Mark's Gospel -Study Notes, , , , , , ,

Pastor Rick’s Translation: Mark 11:15-18 (PRT)

v. 15 When they arrived in Jerusalem  and was going through the Temple, Jesus began to drive out those busy peddling their wares and doing business buying and selling in this sacred place. And he flipped over the tables of the currency exchange rate dealers and benches of the sacrificial dove hucksters.

v. 16 And he would not give space for anyone to carry their goods through the Temple.

v. 17 Then, he taught them and said: “Has it not been written, ‘My house will bear the name House of Prayer for all tribes and nations; but you have turned it into a safe house for robbers and gangsters.”

v. 18 And the chief priests and religious legal experts heard this and they plotted how they might kill him; for they all feared him because they saw the crowd was amazed at Jesus’ teaching.

Study Notes:

v. 15 When they arrived in Jerusalem  and was going through the Temple, Jesus began to drive out those busy peddling their wares and doing business buying and selling in this sacred place. And he flipped over the tables of the currency exchange rate dealers and benches of the sacrificial dove hucksters.

The passage prior is the physical “parable” Jesus presented with the fig tree with plenty of show, but no fruit, and its subsequent removal from the fruit-bearing stage. This fig tree near Bethphage (“the place of the winter fig” is what its name means) showed all potential through its “profession” to have fruit, but with no performance. Jesus proclaims through his actions what the national order of Israel had adopted: many words, but no fruit.

Jesus then faces the display of this very loud and physical activity of “profession” without producing fruit in the Temple. As Jesus walked through the courtyard known as the “outer court” or the “Court of the Nations,” he saw a return to the cacophony of a marketplace that had supplanted the purpose of the court – a place of prayer for all nations.

And in the progression of walking through, he became zealous once more for the place which His Father designated for His purpose usurped by greed and evil. There were people peddling their wares at tables and booths where the holy act of seeking the Father’s will and presence should hold sway.

The money changers were there first to give a way for pilgrims to pay their share, but it  had to be in temple tender. The dove and animal traders maintained a spot where they would sit on a bench with animals and cages awaiting purchasers. Fraud and price gauging were common. Still, this is neither a condemnation of capitalism as some might hold, nor a judgment of churches who ask for a donated price for a coffee mug or t-shirt; it is a condemnation of a religious culture that has supplanted the purpose of God’s people and their worship and prayer with schemes that push God’s purposes to the margin.

On top of all this, the Court of the Nations had become a market short-cut for loads of supplies, goods, and animals. You can see and hear (and smell) the scene! The press, the noise, the odor of animals and the travelers replaced the scent of worship, the sweet sound of prayer, and the weighty presence of God’s glory.


Jesus had enough.

v. 16 And he would not give space for anyone to carry their goods through the Temple.

And he shut down the corridors and pushed them to return to their normal paths of merchandise outside the courtyard.

v. 17 Then, he taught them and said: “Has it not been written, ‘My house will bear the name House of Prayer for all tribes and nations; but you have turned it into a safe house for robbers and gangsters.”

The temple is a place not “of” but “for” prayer for every tribe, language, culture, and geography; that God-fearers might seek the Father.

Instead, it has become a safe house for brigands, usurers, and gangsters in league with the cartel of priests, animal merchandisers, and money brokers.

v. 18 And the chief priests and religious legal experts heard this and they plotted how they might kill him; for they all feared him because they saw the crowd was amazed at Jesus’ teaching.

The result is reinforced that Jesus has to go. This man, this single person, must be sacrificed for the good of the nation of Israel (e.g. the established money-making scheme and the status quo); hence the “prophecy” of the High Priest that “validated” Jesus’ murder.

Because the people hung on Jesus words, the religious ruling class was cautious in proceeding in the plot to kill Jesus. The words mean a continuous action of plotting and conniving and watching in order to accomplish what was in their hearts.

Pastor Rick’s Study Notes: Mark 10:13-16

Mark's Gospel -Study Notes, , , , , ,

Mark 10:13-16 (PRT)

v. 13 And they brought little children to Jesus so that he might hold them; however, the disciples blocked them.

v. 14 Then they saw that Jesus was deeply displeased, and he said to them, “Make it easy for the little children to come to me; don’t stand in their way, for the Kingdom of God is here for people just like this.

v. 15 “I say to you, in all truth, whoever does not embrace the Kingdom of God as a little child will not step foot inside the Kingdom.”

v. 16 And after embracing the children and placing his hands on them, he celebrated them with blessings.

Notes:

v. 13 And they brought little children to Jesus so that he might hold them; however, the disciples blocked them.

The wording seems to indicate that the mothers kept bringing in succession their babies to Jesus for a blessing. And the disciples saw this as an interruption. These are little toddlers and infants that would crawl into laps or need tender holding. Imagine Jesus down in the dirt playing with a toddler or cradling carefully the head of an infant whom the parents laid in his arms for a blessing.

The word for hold is the same for touch tenderly or lay hands on. It can be hold or lay hands upon. In fact, Matthew spells this out: Jesus placed his hands on each child and blessed him or her. It’s an interesting juxtaposition in this: the tradition is that mothers would seek out the synagogue or temple leaders for a blessing. The blessing would invoke the Father to “make the child famous in the Law, faithful in marriage, and abundant in good works.” Here, the word is  masculine, so at least some of the dads had turned to Jesus instead. And he blesses each with the Father’s love in similar ways. Would that the Gospel writers had included this blessing in the text!

v. 14 Then they saw that Jesus was deeply displeased, and he said to them, “Make it easy for the little children to come to me; don’t stand in their way, for the Kingdom of God is here for people just like this.

Keep in mind that, just a short time before, Jesus reminded the disciples of the importance of children in the Kingdom.  And here they are again in need of the reminder. In fact, in Mark 9, children and our ability, willingness, and level of faith is illustrated by how readily children were to trust Jesus (and receive him.)

In Mark 9, Jesus affirmed the value of a child and how receiving him or her in Jesus’ name is like embracing Jesus. In Mark 10, Jesus affirms the value of the simplicity of faith, the position of “yes-ness” and receptivity to the gift of grace through Jesus that children have. How excited a child gets when they are offered a gift! No push back or analysis. Just, yes.

A child is dependent, vulnerable, of no apparent value to the culture. Yet, Jesus embraces. We come needy, dependent, and bring nothing but our worst. It’s a simple faith.

Some translations say Jesus was “indignant” – a similar word to “not pleased” with a motivation to express it. He didn’t choose to “look displeased’ but acted on what stirred this inside him. But the disciples saw it!

The “Kingdom of God is here – the word “here” is derived from the “exist” or “to be” but in this case, is present, here, or belongs to the moment.

In this passage, Jesus is responding to the disciples who were considering the moms and the babies an “interruption.” But Jesus takes this teaching toward a universal principle. Not only should we make it easy for children to say yes to Jesus; but if we stand in the way, if we hinder them, we are culpable in their eternity. Parents live your lives in a way that your children are not just encouraged to say yes to Jesus but aren’t discouraged. Make your life count so that your children will look at you and want the faith you embraced, and not be blocked by a life that “stands in the way” of the Kingdom’s activity in their lives.

Jesus sees us with eyes of grace; but when we stray or miss the mark, He is displeased with the action or pattern. He loves unconditionally; but He longs for our spiritual growth and health.

Most translations use the term “such as these” – it means that we, and not just children, enter into the blessings of the Kingdom with a simple, spontaneous, trust in the person, nature, gift and presence of Jesus, unfazed by sophisticated paths. Simple and uncomplicated. It’s a surrender, just like a little child’s raised arms to the Father.

v. 15 “I say to you, in all truth, whoever does not embrace the Kingdom of God as a little child will not step foot inside the Kingdom.”

The word “embrace” here is to “take for oneself” or to “receive or welcome.”  Though it’s not the same word, I see it as a parallelism to the next verse. He teaches – “embrace the Kingdom in simplicity and trust;” then he demonstrates it and celebrates it with the children in his arms and the mothers who are waiting nearby.

Embrace is represented by a passive and accepting posture; step foot inside, or enter, represents the active posture. We receive and we enter into God’s grace and Kingdom.

Demonstrates the potential of a simple abandonment to faith for a lifetime. It’s a celebration of blessing.

v. 16 And after embracing the children and placing his hands on them, he celebrated them with blessings.

This became the illustration of his teaching. Get out of their way and encourage the children (and their parents) to come to me. And the rest of the day, moms and dads came to Jesus with their babies for blessings, prayer, and celebration.