Eucharist in the City of Garbage

“Eucharist  in the Garbage City”

During our years with Alfalit in Latin America, Trudy and I hosted “Latin American Awakenings.” LAA's  consist of immersion groups, rather rather mission teams. Immersion groups live experience communities and learn from them and their reality. Mission teams focus on projects that help the community.

Immersion teams consist about ten Americans who are  with marginalized Latin Americans. The immersion groups would spend the entire time in one community.

We climbed into two pick-up trucks and travelled to La Ceiba, on the Caribbean coast. La Ceiba is the port where most of the bananas from Honduras are imported to the United States.

La Ceiba would be our residence for next ten days. 

The daily routine was after getting up, individual devotions, breakfast, and a brief reflection by Rolando telling us about the activities for the day. This included visits to the barrios, where its inhabitants would educate the students about lives.incllude

The curriculum was designed by the community. This included the history of their community and their country; the reasons for their systemic poverty; why thei were poor. The students experienced their faith particite in their Bible studies. 

They learned about the corruption and violence of their government, and the intervention of the United States in the internal affairs of their country and the abuse of their human and civil rights.  

The policy of the United States' since 1947 was to "contain communism." The American government propped up Latin American regimes, who identified what they considered subversive, accuse them as communist, then eliminate them with US support.

In the afternoon we would return to the residence for showers and siestas, until supper.  

After super we would engage in the most important activity of the day.  This was the time for feedback by the students and their reactions to the experiences. Because the group was thrust into another culture, and into situations of poverty many were and emotioinal disoriented. They had never seen poverty at this scale.

Few Americans see children begging in the streets with dirty faces and with tattered and dirty clothes.  Without realizing it and from their perspective of  privilege, from their experiences back home, they assume that these children are neglected by their parents. "Why don’t their parents bathe and clean them up?" These students, as is often is the case, want to clothe and feed them on the spot. They feel guilty because they have so much while the children and their parents have so little. This exposure will give them a perspective on the real causees of poverty and how the marginalized will find the tools for lifting themselves out it.

During this after supper discussion, this issue would be put into perspective of the reality that so many marginalized people live with – the lack of clean water to wash clothes, to take baths, and to drink. Poor communities are often isolated onnts  rocky hills- the good land owned by the wealthy.  The only water source, often over a mile away comes from a polluted river. Children and women spend the better part of the day going up and down the hill with any container they can find, hauling the putrid water- time better spent for the children to be in school.  Under these conditions, all are infested with parasites, and many infants die from diarrhea, a very preventable disease.  Lack of plumbing and electricity causes very unsanitary conditions.  These are some of the reasons poor people are caught in an endless cycle poverty. 

Transformation into a worldview is the beginning of the student’s education.  Sometimes, we worshipped at a local chapel.  Sometimes local leader would give a talk about an issue confronting the people and the country in their struggle for a better life.  Participants were encouraged to journal and reflect on their daily experiences.  This resource would become their textbook when they returned home.

The day before we left Honduras, we had just finished the evening meal, when Rolando, as if on a whim, told us to climb on the trucks.  We had no clue where we going.  The sun was setting as we left the city.  Soon I smelled garbage.  We stopped on the side of the highway.  Rolando told us to get out. We crossed the road and entered a garbage dump.  In the twilight, we saw the shadows of people of all ages working through the piles of garbage that the trucks had dumped during the day.  Tractors moved among the people, children, women, and men piling up the garbage. People ran behind the big machine hoping to find something of value that they sell the next day in the city.

We moved along.  I wondered what the reaction was with these white, middle class, US Midwest students, far from their homes and definitely not in their comfort zones.

Rolando stopped and we gathered behind him.  He greeted a young man standing in front of his shack that served as his home.  While conversing with him, we could hear some clinking and the sheet that covered the door rustled.  Then we saw the man’s wife come out with a small tray and four cracked cups filled with coffee.  She greeted us with the traditional, open hospitality practiced in all of Latin America.  For cups of coffee and 12 North Americans.  I said to the students, we must accept the coffee, regardless of its dubious sanitation.  We prayed over the cups as the Spirit washed them clear, and we hoped that the boiled water in the coffee would have been rid of all the bacteria from the polluted water gathered nearby.  

I fell back and the Holy Spirit took over as we began to celebrate the Eucharist. We passed the cups around the circle, with the couple among us, our bodies became the Body of Christ. The Universal Christ was incarnated in that moment. The Catholics refer this moment when the bread and wine are transfigured into the body and blood of Christ – the Transubstantiation.

The Christ present with us as he promised when we celebrate Eucharist together. “Do this in Remembrance of Me. This moment was our common Epiphany as we entered into this liminal space.  Time slowed to Kairos, a significant moment in time.  The students were not the only transformed that evening.  So was I. 

The Parables of Jesus in Mark

Commentary, Chapter 2: 

Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting, and people came and said to him, “Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” Jesus said to them, “The wedding attendants cannot fast while the bridegroom is with them, can they? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast on that day. 2:18-20

Parable: ”New Patches/Old Garments”

 “No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old cloak; otherwise, the patch pulls away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. Mark 2:18-21

Parable: “New Wine/New Wineskins”

Similarly, no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost, and so are the skins, but one puts new wine into fresh wineskins. Mark 2:22

Commentary, Chapter 3

Then he went home, and the crowd came together again, so that they could not even eat. When his family heard it, they went out to restrain him, for people were saying, “He has gone out of his mind.” And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, “He has Beelzebul, and by the ruler of the demons he casts out demons.” And he called them to him and spoke to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan?  Mark 3:20-23

Parable: The House and Kingdom Divided”

If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but his end has come. But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his property without first tying up the strong man; then indeed the house can be plundered. Mark 3:24-27

Commentary

“Truly I tell you, people will be forgiven for their sins and whatever blasphemies they utter, but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit can never have forgiveness but is guilty of an eternal sin”— for they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.” Mark 3:28-30

Commentary:

Then his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him. A crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers are outside asking for you.” And he replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.” Mark 3:31-35

Commentary, Chapter 4: 

Again he began to teach beside the sea. Such a very large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat on the sea and sat there, while the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. He began to teach them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: Mark 4:1-2

Parable: “The Sower”

“Listen! A Sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell on a path, and the birds came and ate it up. Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and it sprang up quickly, since it had no depth of soil. And when the sun rose, it was scorched, and since it had no root it withered away. Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. Other seed fell into good soil and brought forth grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.” Mark 4:3-8

Allegory:

This the only parable in the Gospels with an interpretation: 

When he was alone, those who were around him along with the twelve asked him about the parables. And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything comes in parables, in order that they may indeed look but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand; so that they may not turn again and be forgiven.’ ”

And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? Then how will you understand all the parables? The sower sows the word. These are the ones on the path where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them. And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: when they hear the word, they immediately receive it with joy. But they have no root and endure only for a while; then, when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away. And others are those sown among the thorns: these are the ones who hear the word, but the cares of the age and the lure of wealth and the desire for other things come in and choke the word, and it yields nothing. And these are the ones sown on the good soil: they hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.” Mark 4:10-20

Parable: The Lamp/Bushel Basket

He said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under the bushel basket or under the bed and not on the lampstand? For there is nothing hidden, except to be disclosed; nor is anything secret, except to come to light. If you have ears to hear, then hear!” Mark 4:21-23

Commentary:

And he said to them, “Pay attention to what you hear; the measure you give will be the measure you get, and it will be added to you. For to those who have, more will be given, and from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away.” 

Parable: The Seed Growing Secretly

He also said, “The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how. The earth produces of itself first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. But when the grain is ripe, at once he goes in with his sickle because the harvest has come.” Mark 4:24-29

Commentary:

He also said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it?  Mark 4:30

Parable: The Mustard Seed

It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.” Mark 4:31-32

Commentary:

With many such parables he spoke the word to them as they were able to hear it; he did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples. Mark 4:33

Context, Chapter 11Again they came to Jerusalem. As he was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to him and said, “By what authority are you doing these things? Who gave you this authority to do them?” Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin? Answer me.” 31 They argued with one another, “What should we say? If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’  But shall we say, ‘Of human origin’?”—they were afraid of the crowd, for all regarded John as truly a prophet. So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.” Mark 11-27-33

Commentary, Chapter 12 

Then he began to speak to them in parables. 

Parable: “The Wicked Tenants”

“A man planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a pit for the winepress, and built a watchtower; then he leased it to tenants and went away. When the season came, he sent a slave to the tenants to collect from them his share of the produce of the vineyard. But they seized him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. And again he sent another slave to them; this one they beat over the head and insulted. Then he sent another, and that one they killed. And so it was with many others; some they beat, and others they killed. He had still one other, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ So they seized him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others. Mark 12:1-9

Commentary:

Have you not read this scripture: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes’?” When they realized that he had told this parable against them, they wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowd. So they left him and went away. Mark 12:10-12

Commentary, Chapter 13“Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in clouds’ with great power and glory. Then he will send out the angels and gather the elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven. Mark 13:26-27

Parable: “The Fig Tree

“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates. Mark 13:28-29

Commentary:

Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. “But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Beware, keep alert, for you do not know when the time will come. Mark 13:30-33

Parable: “The Doorkeeper”

It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. Therefore, keep awake, for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening or at midnight or at cockcrow or at dawn, or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly. And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.” Mark 13:34-37                                                  

Jesus the Provoker Mark 1:14-15

  “The Jesus the Provoker”

Mark 1:14-15

Introduction

In order to understand the life and ministry of Jesus we must know the context in which he lived in. It was a time when powerful political and religious forces abused the people of Israel, especially the poor and defenseless. Jesus came to free them from their oppression by announcing the presence of the Kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven. His Kingdom was for all humanity, not just a few chosen ones. 

His Kingdom was a direct challenge to the Roman Empire and the Temple authorities because the Kingdom of God would vanquish their kingdoms. 

Jesus’ message was liberating, but its practice was risky. 

 “Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the good news of God and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.” Mark 1:14-15 

His Kingdom offered eternal and earthly salvation to all who received it. You could suffer and be killed for following it.

“I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” John 10:10

“If any wish to come after me, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. Matthew 16:24-25

Jesus’ message was such a threat to the powerful that eventually he was executed on a Roman cross. He gave his life to vanquish the powers and save humanity. Death was not the victor. He chose to die and live again for all humanity.

I remember in Sunday school , the teacher would hold a poster we with the image of a white European man carrying a rescued lamb. That image gave impression that Jesus was sweet, mild, and impotent. He only came to save us from our personal sins. 

More than likely, Jesus' image was that of a thirty year old man with brown skin, black hair, dark eyes, and an Arabic nose. True, Jesus' demeanor was that of a loving compassionate man, but was stearn, even angry with those who would take advantage of the marginalized. He was courageous, provoking his adversaries, knowing that his presence and actions would take him to the Cross. 

Jesus had a plan action to provoke the powerful, while defending the  poor the marginalized, the ignored, and the invisible. His provoking was intentional because every act and every word prompted a political response from the powers. 

Jesus Had Four Adversaries

The Political Authorities 

The Roman Empire 

The Roman Empire was the most powerful and ruthless political system in the ancient world.  There was no democracy, no civil rights, and no courts. Dissent was crushed. 90% of the population was the labor force and did all the work by enriching the wealthy 10%. Many were slaves for life. Others were indentured servants and tenant farmers. 90% paid exorbitant taxes while the 10%  paid none. To get ahead, officials bought titles and paid bribes for status and power. 

The Herodians

The Herodians were a Jewish political faction who supported the Herodian dynasty, favoring collaboration with Rome for political stability and power. They opposed Jesus, viewing him as a threat to their interests, and twice conspired with the Pharisees to kill him. They followed the legacy of Herod the Great who tried to kill Jesus in Bethlehem but instead slaughtered the innocents. Herod Agrippa, his son, beheaded John the Baptist, and handed Jesus over to Pilate to be executed.

The religious authorities

Pharisees

The Pharisees were an influential Jewish religious sect during the time of Jesus known for their strict adherence to the Torah, (the first five books of the Hebrew scriptures) and its many moral and pious restrictions. They separated themselves from other Jews for spiritual purity. The Pharisees expected the people to fulfill 704 laws. When they failed, they were sinners, never to be accepted by God. To win God’s favor, they had to atone for their           sins at the Temple by purchasing sacrificial animals at high prices, in order to get right with God. The Pharisees ran the animal markets and managed the funds, which the often stole from.

Jesus said: "They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others, but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them. Matthew 23:4 

Instead, Jesus reduced the 614 laws of Pharisees into two laws.

‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 22:37-40

And to answer those who accused him for abolishing the laws,

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill."

"One Sabbath he was going through the grain fields, and as they made their way his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?”…Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for humankind and not humankind for the Sabbath, so the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.” Mark 3:23-27 

Jesus’ claim that he was Lord of the Sabbath made it clear that he was to overthrow the powers and usher in his Kingdom.. 

Sadducees

The Sadducees were an aristocratic priestly sect who controlled the Temple in Jerusalem. They also skimmed the money collected from the purchases of sacrificial animals. They were politically influential with the Romans.

The political and religious authorities maintained their status quo for power. 

Jesus’ very existence was a threat to the powerful.

It was they who made Jesus into a political figure, because this was the only way that they understood his teachings, miracles, and healings. 

Mary, proclaimed that her son would turn the world up ide down for justice and righteousness.

“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,… He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty..  Luke 1:46-53

Jesus was born, grew up, and lived under the oppression of the Roman empire and corrupt kings. His life was always in danger if he challenged them.

For example, Josepth and Mary were forced to travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem to pay exorbitant taxes by the order Caesar Augustus.

King Herod the Great feared this child would steal his throne. When Herod didn’t find Jesus, he slaughtered the innocents. 

The Holy family, fled for their lives and became a political,  undocumented and impoverished refugees, living with uncertainty.

King Herod Antipas beheaded John the Baptist and sent Jesus to the Roman governor to be condemned and crucified. 

Jesus was on a Dangerous Mission

The Kingdom of God’s aim was to offer the people to turn around (Gk metanoia) and believe the Good News. God's Reign was more powerful than the kingdoms of this world. That is why  Jesus was such a threat to them.

To the religious authorities

“Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there who had a withered hand. They were watching him to see whether he would cure him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. 3 And he said to the man who had the withered hand, “Come forward.” 4 Then he said to them, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save life or to kill?” 6 The Pharisees went out and immediately conspired with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.” Mark 3:1-4,6

Jesus is tested for his loyalty to the empire

Some Pharisees and Herodians tried to trick him to commit treason against the empire.

"Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? 15 Should we pay them, or should we not?” But knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why are you putting me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me see it.” And they brought one. Then he said to them, “Whose head is this and whose title?” They answered, “Caesar’s.” 17 Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s.” And they were utterly amazed at him. Mark 12:14-17

Jesus did say that all the coins of the empire, including this one belonged to Ceasar.  What he didn't say openly was that God owned all empires, including Ceasar's. Those present who knew the psalms remembered Psalm 24:1, "The earth is the LORD’s and all that is in it,

On the way to Jerusalem he said to his disciples 

“that the Son of Man must under go great suffering and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes and be killed and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."Mark 8:31-33

But the disciples didn’t get it until Jesus was resurrected. Peter implored  him not to go. Angrily, Jesus rebukes Peter for blocking him like Satan, to complete his mission on earth. l

His death sentence

Then they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who were selling and those who were buying in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves... “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers. “and when the chief priests and the scribes…kept looking for a way to kill him, for they were afraid of him because the whole crowd was spellbound by his teaching. Mark 11:15-18

Jesus is captured, tried, and sentenced to death

So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released Barabbas for them, and after flogging Jesus he handed him over to be crucified. Mark 15:15

He Arose

The greatest motivation for the early Christians to risk their lives and follow Jesus and face death was because of Christ’s resurrection. His resurrection is available for all. Christian discipleship has its price. “If any wish to come after me, let them deny themselves and  take up their cross and follow me" Mark 8:34

Two young men knew what was at stake when they decided to follow Jesus. They were Sermon  on the Mount Christians, who lived by it. They paid the ultimate price for challenging the powers.                  

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German theologian and pastor lost his life for conspiring to kill Hitler. He said, “When Christ calls a man, He bids him to die.”

Martin Luther King preached on that night before he was slain: 

“Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will." 

There are many ways that we can die as martyrs (witnesses) with Jesus while not paying the ultimate price. We can die to personal sin. We can speak truth to power. We can do the works of justice with those in the margins of society. 

Provoke the kingdoms of this world! Stir up the pot! Muddy the waters! Make good trouble! (John Lewis) Get angry! Speak truth to power! Be risky!, Walk the walk!, Stand up, don’t sit down! March! Take risks! Live the Sermon on the Mount, not just give it lip service to it! 

Join Jesus and transform  the world!

Navigating Life's Storms With Mark, Week One

Read Sermon, "Jesus the Provoker"

Mark 1:14-15

Introduction

By

Drs. Larry Rankin and Roger Swanson

To prepare for the class:

Before the first class session, read the entire Gospel of Mark in one sitting (about 30-45 minutes). Choose verses or chapters that draw your attention or questioning. Reflect on these. Write down your reflections. Be prepared to share your thoughts in the class (as you wish.)

Introduction and Background to the Gospel of Mark

Mark’s entire message is the Good News revealed in the life, death, resurrection, and the eternal presence of Jesus Christ through His Reign in the Kingdom of God. He invites all Christians to live with Him in this Kingdom, practicing what he teaches and his radical actions through faith in Him. Each chapter challenges the disciple of Christ to grow by adopting spiritual practices which equip the disciple to radically follow Jesus in belief and practice. Spiritual Formation for the Christian is walking “the way” of Christ in this world, as in the next, as we get closer and closer to God. The first century Christians referred themselves, as “people of the Way.” This way is not earned by merit or good works.  It is gained through the extravagant and freely given grace of God. Our choice is to follow that way—that path. Being Christian is not for individualists or lone rangers. This is why Christian disciples form the “body of Christ,” the community of faith- the church (which means community (Gk. Koinonia) or gathering, not brick and mortar), as it was in the first century with Mark and the Roman Christians. The church is the community of faith, the “Beloved Community” (Martin Luther King, Jr.) on earth as it is in heaven.  

Mark’s gospel suggests the path to take towards discipleship and the formation of the faith community, as Jesus intends. 

These are:

1. Proclaiming the Good News

2. A Commitment to Christ

3. Acts of a Disciple

4. The Transforming Power of the Good News 

 5. Disciples Witness to Their Relationship with Christ  

In this study of Mark, we will cover each of these, one week at a time, within the context of the Gospel of Mark. You will be asked to read the daily assigned chapters in Mark and the corresponding chapter in this study guide in preparation for the week’s gathering.  After each daily reading there will be a question or two for you to reflect upon.  Come to the class prepared to share your response, as you wish to do so.  

Mark communicates the urgency of the mission like no other gospel writer does – an urgency to teach his disciples to embody the Kingdom of God. It is the shortest of the four gospels, suggesting that it was written in a hurry under great duress. Mark does not waste any time getting to the heart of the matter. There are few details in the life of Jesus. There is no mention of Jesus’ birth or childhood. Mark begins is gospel with Jesus suddenly appearing at the Jordan river with his cousin John the Baptist. Mark 1:1 says, “The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”  

 The Gospel of Mark is the first Gospel comes from the oral and written fragments from first century Christian communities (house churches). It appeared in the years 65-70 AD.  The hope that the resurrected Christ would return within the lifetime of some of his disciples who knew him thirty years earlier.  These were times of persecution and great uncertainty. Jerusalem was ravaged by the Romans in AD 70.  Herod’s Temple was reduced to rubble, stones no bigger than bricks. Three years later the great coliseum in Rome (standing to this day) was built with the treasure stolen from the great Temple. The Jerusalem faith community was scattered throughout the Roman Empire as they fled from persecution and total annihilation.  When the faith communities scattered, new churches began and the Christian faith spread.

That is why the  title of our study is coined by Psychologist and Biblical scholar, Alexander Shaia,  author of ”Navigating Through Life’s Storms with Mark: the Four Gospel Journey for Radical Transformation," makes a strong argument that Mark was written from oral traditions and memories of the Christian community in Rome. The date of Mark’s appearance coincides with the rise of Emperor Nero, a deranged and despotic man who murdered members of his own family and persecuted minorities with impunity. Shaia writes that on July 19, 64, a great fire destroyed most of Rome. It was Nero who set the fire, to clear the way the neighborhoods to construct a grand palace. However, the Jewish ghetto was spared because it was located in a swamp. However, the Roman Christians were not spared. 

Historian Tacitus reports that it was Emperor Nero wo scapegoated the Christians, leading to great persecutions.

Christians knew that by following Christ, they were condemned to death.—a horrible death, as they were thrown into the Circus Maximus, wrapped in animal skins,  to be torn to pieces by the wild beasts.  Many of their bodies were fuel for the torches at Nero’s evening garden parties.

Roman Christians knew that they too would join Christ in sharing His body and blood as a holy sacrament by giving up their bodies and blood as a libation in His memory.  When there was a knock on the door, everyone inside the house knew that it was their time to prepare themselves to die, as martyrs (witnesses) for their Lord. 

The author of the Gospel of Mark is unknown but tradition tells us that the writer was a young man – perhaps a teenager - at the time of Jesus’ Ministry and was one of the followers that waited in the Upper Room for the coming of the Holy Spirit.

 We will soon notice, as mentioned before, that one of Mark’s most common phrases, as Jesus moves from one activity to another is, “and immediately,” mentioned 41 times in the Gospel. 

The urgency in Mark equals the urgency many feel for the present and future church. Is Christianity still relevant in the chaos of our society we are living in?  Are our circumstances all that different from first century Christians under the boot of the Roman Empire, willing to die by simply uttering, “Jesus is Lord,” rather than “Emperor Claudius is Lord?” Perhaps we as Christian disciples may not have to physically die for our faith in Christ, yet we can be His living martyrs (witnesses) as we disciple to others and share the love of the living Christ in their lives.  Yet, are we strong enough to do so if the circumstances present themselves?  Are we prepared to live through suffering for the sake of the Gospel? And even when we do suffer for any reason, do we know how to use the resources that Jesus has already given us to “navigate through life’s storms?” 

Finally, Mark uses the crossings of the stormy lake (Galilee) and living in the harsh environment of the wilderness, as metaphors for Christ to teach us how to come victorious on the other side as people who live in the Kingdom of the Now and the Forever More.

 In summary: Mark guides us through our suffering and gives us strength for the journey until we come out on the other side. “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me; thy rod and staff they comfort me.” 

Psalm 23:4

What circumstances today are similar to those that existed with the Roman Christians in 60-70 AD?

How are they different?

Why was Jesus and his followers a threat to the Roman Empire and the Temple authorities?  What did Christ’s enemies fear?

Do you think that many people feel hostility towards Christians and the Christian faith today?  What is your response to them?

What actions today would be considered threatening to the “powers that be?”

"Navigating Life's Storms With Mark, Week Two, Mark 1-3

                            "Proclaiming the Good News"

Day One

Read Mark 1

Introduction and Background of Mark:

Read Mark 1:2-15 and notice particularly verses 14-15

“The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ., As it is written in the prophet Isaiah, “See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, Who will prepare your way, the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight,’ ” Mark 1:1-3

“He (John the Baptizer) proclaimed, “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the strap of his sandals. I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” Mark 1:7-8

 “In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove upon him. And a voice came from the heavens, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” Mark 1:9-11

 “And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness forty days, tested by Satan, and he was with the wild beasts, and the angels waited on him.” Mark 1:12-13

Mark is in hurry to get to the essentials. Unlike the other gospels, there is no birth narrative. Jesus makes his first appearance to the world when he comes to the river Jordan to be baptized by John. We get to know who Jesus  really is. John declares that Jesus is more powerful than him. And within the same paragraph, the Holy Spirit announces Jesus’ unique relationship with God. “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” Apparently, John is the one witness to this event, because there were many around waiting to be baptized by John.

 Then to prove that Jesus is the real deal, Mark writes that he is tempted by Satan in the wilderness. Jesus may be the Son of God, but here, we witness his humanity. Jesus is tempted as to how he will direct his mission to humanity. Either he will succumb to his ego and rule for his own selfish purposes or he will “empty himself” for the salvation of humanity. Paul, the first Christian theologian said it best why the Christ chose to be with us.”

 “…who, though he existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, assuming human likeness.

And being found in appearance as a human, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross.” Philippians 2:6-8

Paul nails down the meaning and purpose of Jesus’ incarnation with one word, “…emptied himself…” in Greek, Kenosis.

 Unlike the other gospels, there is no list of three temptations as in Matthew and Luke. Mark summarizes them. Jesus struggled as to what his role, purpose will be in order to fulfill his mission on earth. 

The answer comes quicky.

“Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, 1.“The time (kairos, an opportune moment filled with great significance) is fulfilled, (completed) 2. and the kingdom of God (living in the Sermon the Mount) has come near; 3. repent (Gk. metanoia, turn around, be transformed), and believe in the good news.” Mark 1:14-15

 Jesus announces his mission, which is the theme throughout the gospel of Mark. The Markan narrative is totally dedicated to the Kingdom or Reign of God and how are we disciples are to live in it.

Jesus called his first four disciples: Simon Peter, his brother Andrew, and James and John, the sons of Zebadee. All are fishermen, untrained in religion, but willing, nonetheless to follow Jesus and learn. Did they know him or of him prior to their call to follow? We don’t know. But we get the sense from reading Mark that Jesus walked down to the dock where the men were working, asked them to follow, and they left everything behind to follow a stranger. The significance of the moment is that they said “yes” to Jesus – not how long it took for them to do so.

They made a stop at the home of Peter’s mother-in-law. She is in bed, sick, and Jesus heals her.  And then, as word quickly spreads of her recovery. Many people are brought to him to be healed.  Demons are cast out and not permitted to speak – not permitted to reveal to the crowd who Jesus really is.  Why? Was he wanting people to hear the proclamation (1:14-15) first?  Did he want to prevent any misunderstandings the people had about the role of the Messiah? Did he want to avoid being overrun with people needing to be healed?   

All day long he taught and healed. There is an unending stream of people who are sick and want the healer to make them well. Finally, Jesus and his four disciples are given a reprieve and they sleep. But Jesus gets up very early the following morning to pray alone (vs.35-37).

Upon arising, Simon Peter and his companions go looking for Jesus.  It seems that his mother-in-law’s home is filling up again with people wanting to see Jesus.  "Everyone is searching for you," Simon says. Jesus needs to alone, praying with his father, abba (daddy).  Then he says, "Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; “for that is what I came out to do.”

 His time with abba gave him strength for proclaiming the Good News.  

We, as Jesus’ disciples, also need time alone with God. The life of the disciple is a balance between doing ministry and charging one’s spiritual batteries with prayer, reflecting upon the Scriptures, and silent meditation. If we don’t, we burn out and aren’t any use to anyone. 

Jesus will demonstrate over and over again in his ministry that healing is important, but it is a by-product of the message he has come to reveal and the gracious gift of a loving God. Moving on demonstrates the urgency of the message that Jesus has come to share. The Kingdom of God has come near. Most people would throng to him for the miracles, while missing his message.

 There are many lessons we can learn from the examples of John and Jesus about the importance of proclaiming the Good News. What are they?

Day Two

The Four Parts of the Gospel

Gospel means “good news” (Gk. evangelion). Jesus proclaims it in one sentence:  “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe the good news.” Mark 1:15

First, notice the context of Jesus’ announcement.  As Jesus makes known his mission, John the Baptist is arrested for publicly challenging the marriage of King Herod Antipas to his brother’s wife, Herodias by calling it unlawful and adulterous.  

Sometime later, Herod gives a dinner party and he asks his stepdaughter and niece to dance for his dinner guests.  She tricks him into promising her anything she wanted if she would dance for him and his guests. Afterward she asks her uncle for the head of John the Baptist. Herod, being afraid of John, didn’t want to kill him, but she coaxed him into fulfilling his promise.  John was beheaded. 

 Proclaiming the Gospel is risky, dangerous business. 

 "The Time is fulfilled"

“The time is fulfilled”, an event the Hebrew people have been waiting for a long time.  In verse 15, Jesus proclaims that the time is fulfilled. The Kingdom of God has, indeed, come near in the person of Jesus Christ.  

Jesus lives in kairos, which in Greek, means a moment in time filled with deep significance and meaning.  For Jesus, kairos means being in the present moment all the time.  But like the rest of us, and the disciples we live in chronos or linear time, wrist watch time. This is why the disciples were confused with Jesus’ teachings and actions. They did just didn’t “get it”.  

For example, Jesus announces three times to his disciples (8:31-32, 9:31-33, 10:32-34,)  that he is going to Jerusalem. He will be handed over to the religious authorities who will curse, beat him, and be killed, to be resurrected on the third day.

In each declaration, “… they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him. Mark 9:32

Jesus inaugurates his mission near Nazareth. From there, he begins his pilgrimage to Jerusalem.

 How does this difference in emphasis effect one’s decision to be a disciple of Jesus Christ?

Day Three

Read Mark 2

 “…and the Kingdom of God has come near.”  

God’s Kingdom is found wherever God reigns and it graciously emerges in the forgiveness of sin, in acts of mercy and justice, and in peace. The Kingdom of God is manifested “on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10), and is among us for now and forever. Kingdom living calls God’s people to live in obedience and to act within God’s will. Our greatest teacher and example for Kingdom living is Jesus. 

There are contemprary modern prophets who were martyred because they lived in the Kingdom, guided by Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, his lifestyle, and teachings, especially his parables. Among so many was  Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. “who went to the mountaintop and saw the other side,” only to be slain. German theologian and pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer, was a pacifist in Nazi Germany who gave his life for conspiring with others to kill Adolph Hitler. Salvadoran Archbishop St Oscar Romero was martyred for defending the poor and marginalized from the tyranny of the powerful in his country. 

Read Mark 2:18-21.

A confrontation between Jesus and the Jewish leaders has been festering.  This rabbi – Jesus – is more interested in the spirit of the Law than in the letter of the Law.  

Now, there came a rabbi – a teacher – permitting his students to eat when they should be fasting, to work when they should be resting, to ignore the traditions of Judaism. The Pharisees felt a need to point out that John’s disciples fast and Jesus’ disciples feasted.  Jesus’ answer is telling the parable of the coming of the Bridegroom and the new wine skins. He suggests that he is the bridegroom and while he is with his disciples, the wedding celebration is not the time for fasting.  However, a time will come when the “bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast on that day.” (Mark 2:22)   

The parable of the new wine skins suggests that you cannot expect a radically new understanding of living in the will of God (new wine) to fit into a system that measures the will of God by ultra-strict adherence to a behavioral and morality codes without regard for the real needs of people (old wine skins). New wine must have new wine skins. 

Repent-Change, be Transoformed - Gk Metanoia

It is natural to prefer the comfort of an old, worn pair of loafers to the strangeness and stiffness of a new pair of shoes.  It is natural to prefer the comfort of a well worn tradition than to move out of our comfort zones. It is natural to confuse traditionalism (a love for the status quo) with what is sacred or holy, and confuse comfort with virtue.  And it is natural to resist change – even if it costs a life.   

Perhaps, the life (and in some cases the very existence) of your congregation is worth learning to walk in strange new shoes.  Perhaps the health of your church is worth doing what it takes to change. Perhaps the health of the eternal souls of people around you are worth venturing into unknown territory. Perhaps an amazing and vital relationship with the living God working through the Body of Christ is worth examining what, in your church, is worship of the status quo or what is truly sacred and holy. 

Reflect on your personal reaction to change, what may be traditionalism and what is truly holy in your church, and what it would take for your congregation to care about the lives of the least, the last, and the lost around you.

 Repent!  Repent means to change direction or to turn around. Christian conversion or transformation occurs when a person receives Jesus as Lord and Savior. The Greek word for Repent is “Metanoia.”

Sadly, in many protestant churches – Methodism being no exception - we have lost much of the grace and power that accompany the acts of confession and repentance. There are few churches that still incorporate confession, repentance, and the acts of forgiveness into the worship experience. And, when polled, very few mainline Christians believe themselves to be sinners – they simply make mistakes.  If we are to believe the Apostle Paul, though, “all [of us] have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23). Acknowledging that, gives us the unfathomable joy of knowing the Grace of God and living into the freedom to learn, grow and deepen our faith.

 Remember, Jesus said to repent because the Kingdom of God has drawn near. Jesus declares that God’s presence among humankind is Good News. Repentance offers people (and congregations) a way to come home to God.  We can trust what Christ is proclaiming and live by faith.  

Read Mark 2: 13-17.  

Jesus calls Levi, the tax collector, as the fifth disciple. Levi as a Jew collects taxes for the Romans.  Taxes were set by quotas, but tax collectors were allowed to collect money on top of the quota.  Tax collectors were hated because they not only collaborated with the oppressor, they lived off the misery of their fellow countrymen and women.  

 Jesus calls Levi to be a disciple and then has dinner at his home.  In the Jewish tradition, sharing a meal with someone was an act of forgiveness and reconciliation.  Jesus was doing more than just enjoying Levi’s hospitality.  Levi repents and turns over a new leaf.  Jesus accepts his act of repentance. But once again the Pharisees are upset because he is eating with sinners. Levi, in spite of his reputation is invited to join the company of disciples. 

 All of the disciples had their issues. Jesus chose a ragtag group of dysfunctional disciples to conquer the world.

What kinds of people are invited to join your fellowship and what kinds of people are not invited to join your fellowship? 

Day Four

… and believe in the Good News"

Too many Christians give lip-service to the Gospel, “talking the talk, but not walking the walk”.  Even as they hear it, they rationalize in their minds: 

“That’s for the end times or when I die and go to heaven.”   “It’s true for someone who has a lot more faith than I do.” “No one is really expected to live like Jesus did – it’s unrealistic."  “That’s for people who are more religious than I am.”  

Belief, for many Christians, is an intellectual assent.  It is a head thing – agreeing to a set of doctrines.  It is not based on an experience within a relationship with Christ – a living and loving bond. However, a believer is one who trusts God to be there no matter what is going on in his or her life.  Belief is the assurance that we are, indeed, in a life-saving relationship with Christ. “We walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Cor. 5:7).  Belief requires faith. “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Heb. 11:1)

Let’s look at the story of the paralytic who was lowered through the roof by his friends – Mark 2:1-12.  Jesus goes home again, and again many come to be healed.  In the midst of his healing and teaching, a hole is opened in the ceiling above his head, and a mat is lowered through the roof by four friends of the man who lies paralyzed before him.  When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven”.  The Pharisees have a fit because, according to their Law, only God can forgive sin.  After answering their challenge, he tells the man to get up and walk, take his mat and go home.  He does just that and the people are amazed.

The Gospel is proclaimed simply by the fact that the friends believed that if they got the paralytic to Jesus, Jesus would heal him.  They acted on their faith when they tore open a hole in the roof and lowered the paralytic to the feet of Jesus.  Jesus healed the paralytic as a response to the faith of his friends. They believed the Good News.

But there is something else happening in this story. The scribes confronted Jesus because they did not believe he had the authority to forgive sins.  If Jesus had simply healed the paralytic, there probably would have been no confrontation.  But he did more – he demonstrated the powerful effect Grace has on people.  Jesus demonstrated God’s availability to humankind.  He knew that the paralytic was “frozen” with guilt or fear or stubborn denial.  Jesus demonstrated that knowing sin is forgiven can “thaw” even the toughest case and there can be life and movement and growth again.  

 Now, translate that image to your congregation.  Is your church “frozen” – paralyzed – unable to move either right or left or stand and walk?  If not, praise the Lord.  If so, your church is among many of churches that are stuck and unable to go anywhere. 

Now ask yourself:  Am I apart of the problem or the solution?  Am I one of the friends with the faith to believe that God can heal the paralysis?  Am I part of the congregation that is paralyzed? Am I one of the Pharisees that believe the status quo is the answer along with a strict allegiance to the law and to the way is has always been done?

In the role you have chosen, what do you believe you need to do to heal the church of its paralysis?  What roofs need to be broken through?  What sins need to be forgiven?  What traditions need to be changed to bring healing to the church?

Day Five

Read Mark 3

Jesus’ Disciples and Jesus’ Family

Re-read Mark 3:13-17

Jesus chose those “whom he wanted, and they came to him.”  Jesus declares his disciples as those who are sent (Apostles), “to proclaim the message.”  They were given authority “to cast out demons.”  Sounds a lot like what Jesus, himself, has been doing.  Is that a coincidence?

Then there is Mark 3:31-33 – a truly challenging story.  Jesus’ mother and brothers come to take him home because they perceive him to be making a public spectacle even losing his mind. His mother and brothers are standing outside the circle of people surrounding Jesus.  They send a messenger in to call him out. He receives the message and responds.  

Looking around, he says, “’Who are my mother and my brothers? Here are my mother and my brothers!  Whoever does the will of God is my bother and sister and mother.’”  Was Jesus rejecting his family? Probably not. He is, however, expanding his family to include those who receive and proclaim the Good News and live in the Kingdom of God.Mark 4:33-35

Being a disciple requires a commitment to other disciples. It requires a commitment to the least, the last, and the lost in the world.  It requires a commitment to Kingdom living.  Many times a church is referred to as “a family.”  

What is required to be a real family as Jesus defined it with Jesus as the head? What might that commitment look like? 

"Navigating Life's Storms with Mark," Week Three, Mark 4-6

 "Hearing and Receiving the Gospel"

Day One

Read Mark 4

 Once a person receives the Gospel and responds as a believer, that person becomes a Christian. The sacrament of baptism signifies the entrance into the family of God.  Infant baptism is celebrated in the United Methodist Church. The congregation welcomes the child into the family of God, as one for whom Christ died and lived. The child’s parents and the church community commit to raising the child until such time he or she confirms that they are choosing Christ as their own. Adults choose to be baptized and also welcomed into the family of God as Christians. receive, what St. Thomas Aquinas that Christians receive “all wrote  benefits of Christ’s passion,” Their path towards discipleship begins from that moment on. 

We are called by Christ to be His disciples. Calling is a vocation, the latin root “vocation” meaning a summons, or invitation.

The vocation of the disciple, a follower, is best described in the “Great Commission” found in Matthew 28:18-20: 

“And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”  Matthew 28:18-20)

Apostolic Authority

“And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Philippians 2:5-11

Jesus declares his authority over the entire universe.  There is no other higher authority! He declares his authority and he freely shares it with his disciples, and he continues to do across the ages.  Today’s disciples are just as commissioned by Jesus Christ as the first ones. We are all Disciples, who are sent as missionaries, Apostles, proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ, whether it’s from one’s backyard or around the world.

Christ believes in and trusts in us so much, that “Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father.” John 14:12

Jesus calms the storm the first time

Read Mark 4:35-41.  

Four of Jesus’ disciples were fishermen. One would assume that they kept their cool, having survived many storms, and yet they freaked out when they thought the boat was sinking. 

The disciples were just getting to know Jesus, so they weren’t sure if they could trust him. They had no clue understanding his dominion over the power of the storm. When they finally give voice to their fear and mistrust, it comes out, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” (Mark 4:38) Jesus is sleeping, his head on a pillow at the stern. He wakes up and looks around.  The disciples plead, “We’re dying here.  Will you PLEASE stop your napping and give us a hand?”  In other words, It is very possible that what they were wanting was help pulling in the sails or bailing water.  They had never seen the authority Jesus would soon demonstrate. 

Fishermen are known to be superstitious. The men believed that there were monsters in the deep. Most didn’t even know how to swim. In Hebrew cosmology, deep waters represented chaos, the dark. No wonder the disciples were afraid of the storm. No wonder they were awestruck when Jesus calmed it.

They get a reply they had not expected, “Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?” Here is the fundamental issue of Christian discipleship, namely trusting Jesus no matter what the “weather.”  The lesson to be learned here is that Jesus does, indeed, have authority over all in Heaven and on earth.  He is bigger than anything we may be facing and it should be enough for the disciple that Jesus is with us, whether life’s seas are calm or not. 

There are forms of Christianity that stress economic prosperity (the prosperity gospel), happy families, and physical health as the inevitable and automatic consequences or evidence of discipleship. Such a false gospel turns a blind eye to the many Christian martyrs that populate the centuries, and the poverty in which most Third World Christians live.  It is enough, is it not, that God is with us? One of the many names of our Lord is Emmanuel – God with us!  We do not judge God’s care for us or the state of our soul’s health by the tranquility or absence of it in our lives. We “rejoice in the Lord” not because of our current circumstances but because Jesus is with us, as he said, “to the end of the age.” Matthew.28:20b

 What does it mean to you to know Jesus, when he has commissioned you for ministry and given you his authority to do it? 

 Day Two

Go make Disciples

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…” Matthew 28:19

Jesus gave authority to his disciples to make more disciples.  He gives us compassion for the salvation of others and the yearning, determination, and motivation to go from proclaiming the Gospel to releasing an evangelical mission into the world. Churches exist to grow as they reach out to new persons so that they, too, may know Christ.  Christians are motivated by their “hunger and thirst for righteousness” (Matthew 5:6).  The Sri Lankan evangelist, D.T. Niles, said it most eloquently:  "Evangelism is one beggar telling another where to find bread.”

Read Mark 4:1-9.  The Parable of the Sower begins with the injunction to “Listen!” Listen, first, to the main point. Although there is seed and soil in the parable, the emphasis is on the sower. The sower’s job, is to sow seed or broadcast seed – scatter seed with one’s hand onto the ground and allow it to grow wherever it lands without regard to the condition of the soil.   

If the soil represents a variety of people in a variety of circumstances, how many times have we bypassed certain people because there has never been any interest in Christ shown previously?  How many times have we been afraid to give God credit aloud for something God obviously had a hand in because the people around us have never shown any interest in God or had been hostile in the past toward matters of faith? Seed and soil are God’s responsibilities; the sower broadcasts the seed; the disciple of Jesus shares his faith whenever the opportunity arises and to whomever God puts in his/her path.

Two other parables follow immediately and are related to the Parable of the Sower – the Parable of Spontaneous Growth and of the Parable of the Mustard Seed. There are two seasons of human activity in producing a crop: planting and harvesting. God’s good news is to be shared and followed up on, but the growth in between is a mystery of God’s Holy Spirit. Growth happens!  From the seed comes the plant, which in its time will develop its fruit. It is the disciple’s task to watch for the fruit and to follow up on it. Faith sharing may be followed, in other words, with an invitation to a church service, or if the fruit is ripe and ready, an invitation to receive Christ as Lord and Savior! 

Now read Mark 4:30-32, the Parable of the Mustard Seed.  Let the Church take heart and be challenged! Jesus says the Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed – the smallest of seeds sown.  Yet, when it takes root and grows, it becomes the largest of all garden plants and the birds of the air make a home in its branches.  Although the Kingdom of God and the Church are not the same thing, the church can be the Kingdom of God on earth, if she is faithful to Jesus’ call as a discipling church.  

First of all no small action is without consequence and no witness is inconsequential. This is a word of encouragement to small congregations who think themselves unable to make a difference in their community, let alone in the Kingdom of God. Not so! What is small, if it is of God, will grow!  God’s church will grow so that “every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.” Philippians 2:10-11

There is also a challenge to the Church in this parable.  In Jesus’ time this parable would have caused people to rise to their feet in anger, rend their clothing, and throw ashes and dust into the air.  Why?  It seems like such a sweet parable.  A tiny seed grows into something large and significant and little birds come, build nests, and raise a family. It sounds so pastoral. 

What would have possibly upset people so?  “Birds of the air” was, in that day, a euphemism for gentiles – non Jews. The very idea that the Kingdom of God would be inclusive went against the grain of everything Jews of that day understood about being a covenant people.  And yet, Jesus’ parable tells us that everyone is welcomed into the Kingdom of God.  May it be so for the Church.

 Which would best describe how you are sowing the seed?

Not at all.  

I tend to remove one little seed from the bag of         seeds and carefully place it in the ground.

I am willing to broadcast the seed, but I won’t waste it. I will only broadcast it when the soil all around me is ready to receive it.

I broadcast it all over the place and let God take care of the condition of the soil.

Explain why you chose that answer.  

 Day Three

Read Mark 5:1-20

The healing of the demoniac from Gerasene, across the border from Judea, there are many lessons for the modern disciple. 

 Faith in Jesus makes all the difference. By the power of the living God, prisoners are set free; addicts from chemical and emotional addictions and sinners from every condition that frustrates God’s will, in His human creation will be delivered from their demons. The demoniac is delivered by the Biblical promise: “So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see? Everything has become new!” 2 Corinthians 5:17.

 The parable of the Sower is a segue into the story of the Gerasene demoniac Mark 5:1-20. 

Jesus ministers and heals Gentiles in foreign territories

When Jesus and his disciples sailed across the Sea of Galilee, they entered into the Gentile territory of Gerasenes,. It was anathema for Jews of that day to travel into Gentile territory. During his ministry, Jesus intentionally entered into Gentile territory iJewish n four different locations. Jesus did so because he came not just for the Jews, but for all humanity

He also crossed into Samaria, avoided by the Jews, who despised the Samaritans because they prayed at another temple other than the one in Jerusalem (Goggle Samaria for historical information). It was there that Jesus had that marvelous conversation with that fallen woman at the well. He broke all the tabus that proper Jewish males behaved towards women other than their wives, and a fallen woman at that! Jesus winning her heart for God. She became a missionary to her fellow villagers. “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be Jesus the Messiah, can he?” John 4:7-31). Perhaps the experience inspired Jesus to tell his most well known parable of the good Samaritan. Luke 10:25-37

Jesus Removes a Legion of Demons Out of a Man

The man was possessed by a legion of demons. A Roman legion has  5,000 soldiers. As Jesus speaks to the demons, and exorcizes the man. The demons came out of the man and entered 2,000 swine who ran into the sea and drowned. 

The swineherds spread the story, and the people come running.  They see “the demoniac sitting there, clothed and in his right mind,” and Mark writes – “they were afraid.” (Mark 5:15) God’s part in the healing results, not in praise and worship, but in a request that Jesus and his company leave! While we might expect, on first reading, for an outburst of faith and discipleship, the opposite occurs. One never knows the condition of the soil into which the seed falls. 

As for the man, he is ready to follow Jesus as a disciple for the rest of his days, as one would expect.  What is not expected is Jesus’ turning him away, or better, turning him towards home. “Go home to your friends, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you,” Mark 5:19 commands Jesus.  

 No matter where our discipleship takes us, as with every journey, it always starts at home!  Sometimes these are the hardest people to share faith with, as they know us so well, as when Jesus was thrown out of Nazareth, his home village. We may not be the ones to lead non-believing family members to Christ, but our witness to them is still essential. 

The healed man’s experience was so powerful and so life-changing that he could not help but share it. You may not have had such a dramatic experience with Jesus, but there is probably some way Jesus has made a difference in your life.  

In a small group or on your own, share a way or a time Jesus made a difference in your life.  Jot down a few notes below.

Our authority to share Jesus reaches the whole world, all peoples, cultures, and languages. John Wesley responded to a local parish in England that barred him from preaching for being “too enthusiastic” by saying, “the whole world is my parish.”  Today, after the start of the Wesleyan movement 250 years ago, the United Methodist church and other Wesleyan communions, are expanding in more than 145 countries, with over 2,300 missionaries in almost 3,000 ministries.  

 This may be a daunting idea for many people. How is it possible to Reach Every Nation for Christ?

 One Healing Interrupted by Another One

Jesus and his disciples return to Jewish territory and are confronted by Jarius a local rabbi, pleading repeatedly, “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live.” Mark 5:23. “A large crowd followed him and pressed on him. Mark 5:24. 

Then a woman who had a flow of blood for twelve years, an isolated outcast, touched Jesus’ cloak. Jewish law condemned this woman to be shunned because of her illness. Yet, she had the faith to break through her disgrace, “If I but touch his cloak, I will be made well. Mark 5:26. Jesus senses that power had “flowed” from him. “Who touched my cloak?” Mark 5:30

The woman knelt before Jesus  and tells him what had just happened to her. “He said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace and be healed of your disease.” Mark 5:34.

 The woman’s physical healing wasn’t enough. When Jesus called her “daughter,” he was not merely acknowledging her, but publicly restoring her social, spiritual, and familial status. This term of endearment transformed her from an unclean, isolated outcast into a welcomed member of God’s family. We learn that her faith healed her. She took a great risk seeking Jesus to be healed. Jesus was moved by her faith. ‘Daughter, your faith has made you well.” Jesus reveals his compassion and love for the outcast and the downtrodden, and his respect for women.

Meanwhile, some people came to Jairus and said, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further? But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the synagogue leader, ‘Do not be afraid; only believe’” Mark 5:35-36 

The meaning of “Belief” can be understood in many ways. It is often misunderstood. “Belief” translated into Greek is “pisteuo.” 

 Day Four

Read Mark 6

To All Nations

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations… (Matthew 28:19)

There are two significant miracles in Mark 6 that can give us hope for accomplishing such a monumental task:  the miracles of Jesus feeding the five thousand and walking on the water.  

 The First Miraculous Mass Feeding

Consider Mark 6:30-44. Jesus was an amazing teacher and people flocked to him from all parts of Galilee to listen and learn from him.  On this particular day he had the rapt attention of the crowd far into the day until it was past supper time.  The disciples ask that the crowd be sent away to find food. Jesus tells them, “You give them something to eat.” They said (whine) to him, “Are we to go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?” (Mark 6:37). But Jesus insists that the disciples provide them with a meal lest they faint from hunger while on route to home. This idea is outrageous – impossible – to the disciples.  Among them they only have 5 loaves of bread and two dried fish.  How can that little bit of food feed so many?

Then Jesus asks the disciples to seat the people on the ground in groups of 50 and to bring him the bread and fish.  He blesses the food and divides it. A miracle happens.  The fish and loaves multiply again and again and again until every man, woman, and child has had their fill. In fact the leftovers fill 12 baskets.  Once counted, 5000 men are fed – and that does not include the women and children.  

Jesus walks on water and calms a storm the second time

The miracle that follows in Mark 6:45-52 should have clenched it for the disciples.  Again, we see the humanity and fallibility of the disciples.  They were stunned and frightened by the sight of Jesus walking toward them on a stormy sea.  There was no other explanation than that Jesus was coming to them as a ghost. 

In the second storm which Mark tells, there is an interesting reference.  Jesus sent the disciples on ahead to Bethsaida by boat, while he stayed behind to pray.  A strong wind arose and Jesus set out himself across the lake, by foot and not by boat. As he approached the boat, walking on water. His intention was to pass by them by. (See verse 48)  Was he testing them?  Did he see that they were able to handle the wind and sea on their own?

There have been lots of storms that Jesus has not stilled for his followers.  His disciples are not without skill in handling boats.  There are some things we can handle ourselves, knowing that God loves us, is with us, and that there is a purpose and a destiny running through our lives.  The disciples however see Jesus and they were “terrified.” (Mark 6:50) It was the walking on the water that frightened them.  God’s presence in our midst often disturbs our peace and our presumptions!  “Take heart,” says Jesus, “It is I.” (Mark 6:50)- clearly referencing to God’s self-revelation as the Great I Am.

 Day Five

I am with you Always

“And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:20

 Where do you see God at work in the miracle of reaching all nations with the reality and love of Christ? Where do you see miracles happening to you and those around you?

What part do you play in that miracle?

Baptizing them 

“…baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit… (Matthew 28:19) 

Not only are we to make disciples of all nations, we are given the instruction to baptize them, that is, to share with them the means of grace before they can prove their worthiness to be Christians.  Grace abounds on our behalf before we are aware of it. John Wesley calls prevenient grace.  The new Christian is baptized in the name of the Father, Son, the Holy Spirit, the one God, who is the perfect communion of the three manifestations of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. What higher authority may we have than that?!

Teach them to Obey

“…and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28:20)

The teaching of the disciple makes the difference between a community of disciples and a list of members on a church’s roll. Teaching the disciple takes time, and the teaching demands the response of our obedience to what we have learned.  The option is always open to whether or not we choose to follow.  Yet it is better to know the claims of the Gospel at the beginning, rather than later.  The challenge of churches in renewal today, is the realization that many of their members have joined the church without being aware of the claims of Christian discipleship and their vocation as ministers of Christ’s outreaching love. The challenge for the American church today is to teach members to be disciples.  

There is a natural division in the Gospel story between Jesus calling the disciples and Jesus sending them.  First, he calls; then, he sends. In Mark 1-5, the emphasis is on the calling and training of the disciples. With chapter 6 the focus shifts to the sending of the disciples out two by two.  

Could they have had more preparation? Of course, but the time comes, sooner than later, when in spite of all their limitations, they are to put their discipleship into practice by telling others. And even this is a way to teach and to learn.  They go out in two’s for encouragement and support.  It is still a good strategy.  Jesus gives them authority. They have none of their own.  They will preach with power and be able to drive out evil spirits and to heal the sick so long as they are doing his work and not their own.  One cannot exaggerate the risk Jesus takes in sending his disciples out to preach and to heal.  They do not understand his teaching.  They do not trust his care for them.  And yet no disciple, ancient or modern, is ever ready.  We come to understand the Gospel by proclaiming it; we learn to trust by risking.  The place to take risks is not in the church but in the world.  

 Christians spend too much time with Christians. Why is that?  (Living in the Bubble.)

 The home, the neighborhood, the place of work and play – these are the places for Christian witness! What would it take for you to be able to move into the world of the unchurched and be a Christian witness?

Jesus was an evangelist for the Kingdom of God.  Following his baptism by John, Jesus began a preaching and teaching ministry that had the “good news of the kingdom” as its center. In the original Greek “good news” is evangelia, which is the root of our word “evangelism.” The good news was the coming and the closeness of God’s reign – The Kingdom of God.  He calls the disciples to follow him in extending God’s Reign over all persons and circumstances. Our mission is not to grow the church but to grow God’s Kingdom!  The Church is, to be sure, of God, but it is very human indeed and only a tool of the Kingdom. When God’s Kingdom comes in its fullness, there will be no Church. (See Revelation 21:22)

 What are the differences between growing the Kingdom of God and growing the Church?

 The role of the disciple is to act in obedience under the authority of Christ, broadcasting the seed (Mark 4:1-20), which is the Word of God, trusting God’s provision and providence, particularly during the stormy times. 

How would we act if we really believed this?  How would our church be different if we really believed this?

 According to Dr. George Hunter in “Church for the Unchurched,” (1996, Abingdon Press) there are two kinds of churches. There are churches for church people. These are the traditional 1950-model churches described above. They are strong in denominational loyalty. Membership training consists largely in acquainting people with the polity and politics of the denomination, rather than teaching basic Christianity. In other words, they are not equipped spiritually or programmatically to welcome unchurched people. The other kind of church, according to Dr. Hunter, are churches for unchurched people.  Such churches are characterized by an apostolic faith focused in the atoning death and resurrection of Christ, and an apostolic outreach to unchurched people employing the language and music of the people they are called to reach. If they have a denominational identity, they are on the edge of their denomination.

How would you rate your congregation – as a church for church people (traditional) or as a church for unchurched people (missionary)?

In many traditional churches serving God and serving on a church committee are synonymous. Missionary churches send people into the world to serve.  

What part of God’s world do you feel sent into? Does your church help you serve God there? What could your church do to better equip you?