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April 16, Sunday
An audio recording of the following reading is available below.
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Are You the One? — John the Baptist was stuck in prison, and he was wondering about Jesus. Was He really the expected Messiah? Although he had heard the voice from heaven at Jesus’ baptism saying, “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased” (Luke 3:22), John was having doubts. Perhaps he had also been picturing the Messiah as a military hero. His question was, “Are You the One?” (Luke 7:19, 20). Notice that Jesus did not answer John’s question directly with a “Yes.” He pointed to the miraculous evidence, but He did not remove the necessity for faith. God never gives enough proof so that faith is not required. I have kept in contact with a fellow who attended the same church with me when we were both young men. He was very bright and was on his way to study at Stanford University when we had a conversation about some questions regarding the biblical chronology of Adam as the first man. I recently received a letter from him in which he asked, “How can I surrender the theological demand to accept the Bible as divine, literal, and factual truth and yet keep some version of my faith?” He is still struggling with facts versus faith. I haven’t responded to him yet, but I think my theme will be that God never gives us enough facts that removes the necessity for faith.
Faith Is the Victory – YouTube
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April 17, Monday
An audio recording of the following reading is available below.
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A Friend of Sinners — The “bad guys” in this passage are certainly “the Pharisees and the scholars of the Law” (v. 29), because they had not only rejected John’s baptism, but in the process, “rejected God’s purposes” (v. 30). They claimed to have rejected John because he didn’t eat “normal food” and had a demon (v. 33), but the real reason was that they refused to submit to John’s insistence on repentance. On the other hand, they said they rejected Jesus because He did eat “normal food,” exaggerating the amount (v. 34a) and criticizing the company He kept, being “a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (v. 34b). Jesus certainly was not participating in their sin when He met with them, because most of them were probably converted tax collectors and sinners. They had repented of their sins and submitted to the baptism of repentance. To the Pharisees, however, “once a sinner, always a sinner.” These were a class of people the Pharisees didn’t want to have anything to do with; even if they had repented, the Pharisees still considered them to be stained. They were people who had acknowledged their sin, turned from it, came to Jesus in faith, and enjoyed dining with Him. They loved to be in His presence, and He loved to be with them. The Church today is also a collection of admitted and repentant sinners who have come to Jesus for forgiveness and cleansing. We fellowship together with our Friend.
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April 18, Tuesday
An audio recording of the following reading is available below.
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Who is This Man? — Simon the Pharisee probably had some measure of respect for Jesus, as shown by his invitation to dinner. He showed disrespect, however, by not washing His feet, or giving a kiss of greeting, or anointing His head with oil. Simon questioned in his mind whether Jesus was really a prophet when He didn’t seem to notice that “a sinner” was wiping His feet (v. 39). Jesus showed prophetic ability, however, by knowing what was in Simon’s mind and by telling a related story that contrasted the great love of the woman versus the neglectful attitude of the host. As the love of the debtor was in response to being forgiven his debt, so the expressed love of the woman was the result of her forgiveness. Those were tears of repentance from her sins and gratefulness for forgiveness. When Jesus told her, “Your sins have been forgiven” (v. 48), He also said, “Your faith has saved you” (v. 50). Her salvation came not from her tears or her love, but from her faith. Simon’s response was, “Who is this man who even forgives sins?” (v. 49). Yes, He was more than a prophet; He was God.
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April 19, Wednesday
An audio recording of the following reading is available below.
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Jesus’ Holy Power — All of this controversy happened as the result of Jesus healing a demon-possessed man who was also blind and could not talk. That was a very dramatic event that could not be ignored. A line of decision was drawn in the sand. Jesus said, “He who is not with Me is against Me” (Matt. 12:30). The crowds had to wonder if Jesus was the Messiah: “Can this man really be the Son of David?” (Matt. 12:23). Even the Pharisees acknowledged that what had happened was miraculous, but they put a deadly twist to it, saying that Satan (Beelzebul) was the power behind the miracle and that Jesus was “possessed by Beelzebul” (Mark 3:22). Jesus presented two logical arguments against that charge. 1) Satan would not work against himself by casting out his own demons, and 2) Satan (the “strong man”—Mark 3:27) would have to be bound for Jesus to cast out the devil’s demons. In contrast to the evilness of Satan’s powers, the power at work in Jesus was that of the Holy Spirit. Jesus was not possessed by the evil Beelzebul but by the Holy Spirit. To confuse the two is an eternal, deadly mistake. To call the Holy Spirit evil or to attribute His work to that of Satan is an unforgiveable sin. Those Pharisees had done just that.
All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name – YouTube
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April 20, Thursday
An audio recording of the following reading is available below.
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Seeking Signs — These scribes and Pharisees represented the “evil and adulterous generation” (v. 38), being unfaithful to God. Although they presented a righteous exterior, they were rotten on the inside and were repelled by the true righteousness of Jesus. We read yesterday that they had already witnessed the amazing miracle (“sign”) of Jesus healing the blind, mute, and demon-possessed man (v. 22). That was all the sign they needed to conclude that Jesus was the Messiah. They would not be convinced by an additional sign. Jesus hinted to them about the future sign of His death and resurrection (“three days and three nights in the heart of the earth”—v. 40). Most of them would not believe but would manufacture excuses, like the disciples stealing His body (cf. Matt. 27:63-64). At the final judgment, they would be condemned for not responding to the signs they were given. People from Nineveh would condemn them because they repented after seeing the sign and hearing the message of Jonah. The Queen of Sheba would condemn them because she responded to the wisdom of Solomon. Jesus is greater than Prophet Jonah and King Solomon because He is God. His signs were greater, His message was greater, and His wisdom was greater.
Jesus, I Will Trust Thee – YouTube
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April 21, Friday
An audio recording of the following reading is available below.
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Two Families — It might seem that Jesus was being insensitive toward His family in this passage, but it had to do with priorities. For one thing, He knew what they thought: “He has lost His senses” and that they wanted “to take custody of Him” (v. 21). The Gospel of John tells us that “not even His brothers were believing in Him” (John 7:5). The only puzzling part of this picture was that Mary was a part of this party, after having been told by Gabriel that her son “will be called the Son of the Most High” (Luke 1:32). Do you ever wonder how the son or daughter of godly parents could forsake God? Jesus’ siblings grew up with a perfectly godly big brother, yet they didn’t see who He really was. Jesus hadn’t rejected His family when He said to the crowd in the house, “Who are My mother and My brothers?” (Mark 20:33); He was only contrasting and prioritizing the spiritual family over one’s physical family. The spiritual family is eternal. While He hung on the cross, Jesus showed His loving care for Mary when, in referring to John, said, “Woman, behold, your son!” (John 19:26). John took her into his home after that. At least two of Jesus’ brothers came to believe that Jesus was the Messiah after His resurrection. Jesus appeared to James (1 Cor. 15:7), who became the leader of the early church, and Jude (or Judas) wrote one of the books of the New Testament. Now, we also belong to the family of Jesus, the family of God.
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April 22, Saturday
An audio recording of the following reading is available below.
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Able to Hear — Just before this general statement about parables, Mark recorded several parables that Jesus told: The Sower, which He also explained to His disciples (vv. 1-20), The Lamp Under the Basket (vv. 21-25), The Seed (vv. 26-29), and The Mustard Seed (vv. 30-32). Jesus frequently used parables when He taught, but there often remains a mystery that cries for explanation. Jesus explained parables only to His close disciples. There are levels of learning involved here. When He told parables to the crowd, they benefited only “as they were able to hear it” (Mark 4:33). Their understanding was limited without explanation. Parables were partly intended to arrest attention and to cause one to seek understanding and application. We often feel that we are not “able to hear” well enough when we read Scripture. We need an explainer. The Holy Spirit helps us in that area, as do pastors, teachers, study Bible notes, commentaries, etc. The more we learn, the better we are able to learn and “able to hear.”
Open My Eyes That I May See – YouTube
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