Lesson 871

(Lesson 871)(01-16-14) Mark 3:1-12:

"And he entered again into the synagogue; and there was a man there which had a withered hand. And they watched him, whether he would heal him on the sabbath day; that they might accuse him. And he saith unto the man which had the withered hand, Stand forth. And he saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace. And when he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other. And the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him. But Jesus withdrew himself with his disciples to the sea: and a great multitude from Galilee followed him, and from Judaea, And from Jerusalem, and from Idumaea, and from beyond Jordan; and they about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they had heard what great things he did, came unto him. And he spake to his disciples, that a small ship should wait on him because of the multitude, lest they should throng him. For he had healed many; insomuch that they pressed upon him for to touch him, as many as had plagues. And unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God. And he straitly charged them that they should not make him known."

In today's lesson, Jesus continues to cure sickness and heal the infirm as He further established Himself as the all powerful Son of God, the "great physician".
As we learn in the first part of his lesson, the Pharisees begin the process that would lead to the eventual crucifixion of Jesus.
The example of Jesus' healing the man with the withered hand, in defiance of the law of the sabbath and knowing that the Pharisees would condemn Him for it, teaches us that we should allow nothing to interfere with our Christian duty to minister to those among us who have spiritual or earthly needs, no matter where or when that need arises.

Just as Jesus did not let the tattletale Pharisees, or the law of the sabbath, stop Him from healing the man's hand, we should not to designate only certain days or hours to devote to the worship, ministry, and service, of Jesus Christ.~

Lesson 870

(Lesson 870)(01-15-14) Mark 2:23-28:

"And it came to pass, that he went through the corn fields on the sabbath day; and his disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of corn. And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful? And he said unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was an hungred, he, and they that were with him? How he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and did eat the shewbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave also to them which were with him? And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath."

Today's lesson is another example of how, Jesus' Apostles and those who place their faith in Him, were/are exempt from traditional Jewish law. (The Law of Moses).

This concept appears to be difficult to grasp for many today who contend that every word that came out of Jesus' mouth was meant for and was to be applied to, not only those who were in His presence at the time, but also to everyone of us who today read them in the New Testament. We must remember that Jesus was bound by the Mosaic law until His testament and sacrifice was complete. There were times when He said things that only applied to His own Jewish people, and there were times when He spoke to the ages.

Many of the things Jesus said related only to those to whom He was directly speaking and has no meaning to those of us who were never required to live by the rules of traditional Mosiac law.

Mosiac law defined what was, to the Jews at the time, considered "sin". Today however, true born again Christians are not bound by the rules of Mosiac law. In order for a true born again Christian to have committed a "sin" he/she must have actually done something that caused some kind of offense or harm to someone else.

Jesus made that clear when he gave the two "great" commandments, "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." (Matt. 22:37-40)
Jesus said that if we obey just those two simple and clearly defined commandments we will have obeyed the entire Law of Moses.

Jesus and His Apostles having eaten the corn on the sabbath, harmed no one, and therefore it was not a "sin" unto them.

This is a difficult lesson to explain because there are so many elements all mixed together. If anyone has a particular question that might help clarify this lesson, please don't hesitate to ask.~

Lesson 869

(Lesson 869)(01-14-14) Mark 2:13-22:

"And he went forth again by the sea side; and all the multitude resorted unto him, and he taught them. And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the receipt of custom, and said unto him, Follow me. And he arose and followed him. And it came to pass, that, as Jesus sat at meat in his house, many publicans and sinners sat also together with Jesus and his disciples: for there were many, and they followed him. And when the scribes and Pharisees saw him eat with publicans and sinners, they said unto his disciples, How is it that he eateth and drinketh with publicans and sinners? When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. And the disciples of John and of the Pharisees used to fast: and they come and say unto him, Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but thy disciples fast not? And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them? as long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days. No man also seweth a piece of new cloth on an old garment: else the new piece that filled it up taketh away from the old, and the rent is made worse. And no man putteth new wine into old bottles: else the new wine doth burst the bottles, and the wine is spilled, and the bottles will be marred: but new wine must be put into new bottles."

In today's lesson, Jesus sits down to eat with "publicans and sinners". A publican, during that age, was a tax collector and most were hated and by the Jewish people.

By eating with them, Jesus was violating the custom of the Jews whereby they were not allowed to associated with anyone who was considered to be "unclean".

The lesson herein lies in what Jesus said when responding to that accusation, "Can the children of the bridechamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them? as long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast."

Jesus was telling those people that while He was teaching the groundwork for His Church and Christianity all together, He could not spend all His time with those whose belief ran totally contrary to what He was teaching.

He further stresses this point when He talked about old wine in new bottles and new cloth on an old garments.

The religious belief system those Jews had lived with all their lives was about to be up ended and replaced with a totally new system wherein Jesus does all the work and makes the ultimate sacrifice for all who would simply place their faith in Him. The two systems were like water and oil, they could not be mixed together.

Jesus was saying that they must either hold on to the letter of the Law of Moses in its entirety, or they must repent, join in with the "publicans and sinners" by placing their faith in Jesus and His new doctrine.

In this lesson, Jesus was dining with only those who were willing to abandon the old law, and accept His new law of faith. Jesus was making it clear that His new doctrine applied to ALL who would believe.

Today, the majority of the "Christian" faith, on some level, still tries to intermingle the rules of the law of Moses with the doctrine of absolute faith which was taught by Jesus Christ. They are, in essence, putting "old wine" into "new bottles" and adding "new cloth" to "old garments".

I can't imagine why today it is just as hard as it was then to understand that in order to receive complete remission of sins, one must do nothing more than place one's faith in the life, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Eternal salvation for those who seek it, is there simply for the taking just as Paul and Silas said:
"And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house."(Acts 16:31)~

Lesson 868

(Lesson 868)(01-13-14) Mark 2:1-12:

"And again he entered into Capernaum, after some days; and it was noised that he was in the house. And straightway many were gathered together, insomuch that there was no room to receive them, no, not so much as about the door: and he preached the word unto them. And they come unto him, bringing one sick of the palsy, which was borne of four. And when they could not come nigh unto him for the press, they uncovered the roof where he was: and when they had broken it up, they let down the bed wherein the sick of the palsy lay. When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee. But there were certain of the scribes sitting there, and reasoning in their hearts, Why doth this man thus speak blasphemies? who can forgive sins but God only? And immediately when Jesus perceived in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, he said unto them, Why reason ye these things in your hearts? Whether is it easier to say to the sick of the palsy, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and take up thy bed, and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (he saith to the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy bed, and go thy way into thine house. And immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went forth before them all; insomuch that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, We never saw it on this fashion."

As Jesus preached about the coming of the kingdom, more and more people began to gather around to hear Him. He continued to baffle many, including the Jewish leadership, by casting out devils and by healing the sick.

In the example we find in today's quote, the palsied man and those who brought him had demonstrated great faith in who Jesus was by what they had gone through to get to Him, they knew that Jesus could cure the man's palsy. Jesus, in turn, rewarded the man for his faith, "When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee." This statement has significance in two ways. First, Jesus did NOT say, be cured, He said "thy sins be forgiven thee". that demonstrates that sin was the cause of the man's illness and that if that sin is removed the illness is also removed. Secondly, it demonstrated that Jesus, the Son of God, has power over sin and is capable of remitting it, and thereby curing the sickness.

Although Jesus explained to the accusing scribes that it made no difference how He went about healing the man, the end result would be the same. Being the Son of God with all power over all things, Jesus could have just as easily said, take up thy bed and walk, as He indeed did eventually say, and the result would have been the same.

Jesus knew the minds of the scribes and also knew it was inevitable that eventually they, along with the rest of the Jewish hierarchy, would conspire to kill Him. He also knew that this event was just one step in the process that would lead to His soul saving sacrifice on the cross.

The secondary lesson that comes from this quote is that Jesus forgives sin because of faith, and because of faith only. Forgiveness of sin did not then, nor does it now, require us to do anything other than have faith in Jesus Christ for it's remission.~

Lesson 867

(Lesson 867)(01-12-13) Mark 1:29-45:

"And forthwith, when they were come out of the synagogue, they entered into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. But Simon's wife's mother lay sick of a fever, and anon they tell him of her. And he came and took her by the hand, and lifted her up; and immediately the fever left her, and she ministered unto them. And at even, when the sun did set, they brought unto him all that were diseased, and them that were possessed with devils. And all the city was gathered together at the door. And he healed many that were sick of divers diseases, and cast out many devils; and suffered not the devils to speak, because they knew him. And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed. And Simon and they that were with him followed after him. And when they had found him, they said unto him, All men seek for thee. And he said unto them, Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also: for therefore came I forth. And he preached in their synagogues throughout all Galilee, and cast out devils. And there came a leper to him, beseeching him, and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean. And as soon as he had spoken, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was cleansed. And he straitly charged him, and forthwith sent him away; And saith unto him, See thou say nothing to any man: but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer for thy cleansing those things which Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. But he went out, and began to publish it much, and to blaze abroad the matter, insomuch that Jesus could no more openly enter into the city, but was without in desert places: and they came to him from every quarter."

This lesson tells of the many miracles Jesus performed in Galilee as He established His ministry across the land.

In the last part of this lesson, Jesus did something that might seem odd to some. He told the "leper" to go, show the priest that he had been cleansed, Jesus also told him to make the required offering. Jesus said, "go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer for thy cleansing those things which Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them."

The action Jesus told the leper to take reflects us back to the intent of the lesson wherein Jesus was "baptized" in water in order to fulfill the Law of Moses. Jesus instructed the leper to also obey the law of Moses by demonstrating to the priest that he had first been cleansed (baptized) and was fulfilling the third required step, required by the law,to enter into worship by making an offering as was required of him.

The example in this lesson is very important because it demonstrates that after the coming of Jesus, and after he had finalized His soul saving sacrificial ordeal, the water cleansing step (baptism in water) that had been required under the law, would no longer be required since faith in Jesus would do the necessary cleansing.

I know it seems I might harp too much about water baptism and the fact that it is NOT a required part of the doctrine of Christ, but we must realize that the vast majority of "Christians" place some portion of their "faith" in water baptism as a necessary factor in the salvation of their souls.

Jesus is now the cleansing agent, there is no longer a necessity to take a water bath before worship, or as step toward eternal salvation.

(Acts 4:12), "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."~

Lesson 866

(Lesson 866)(01-11-14) Mark 1:16-28

"Now as he walked by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men. And straightway they forsook their nets, and followed him. And when he had gone a little further thence, he saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the ship mending their nets. And straightway he called them: and they left their father Zebedee in the ship with the hired servants, and went after him. And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day he entered into the synagogue, and taught. And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes. And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God. And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the unclean spirit had torn him, and cried with a loud voice, he came out of him. And they were all amazed, insomuch that they questioned among themselves, saying, What thing is this? what new doctrine is this? for with authority commandeth he even the unclean spirits, and they do obey him. And immediately his fame spread abroad throughout all the region round about Galilee."

The first part of this lesson conveys how Jesus went about selecting the first four of His Apostles. Simon (Peter), Andrew, James and John. Peter was the first selected and therefore the first member of the Church.

The second part of the lesson tells how Jesus went into the Temple boldly teaching the word of God to all who were gathered in the temple. The priests were astonished that this man, of whom they had never heard, was more knowledgeable about the word of God than were the high priests and scribes.

(Note: A scribe was a man who made written copies of, or written changes to Mosaic law as the high priests determined the changes necessary. They were also considered to be experts concerning both the content and the intent of Mosaic law.)

Jesus also performed His first miracle by calling the evil spirits out of a man. That spirit knew Jesus was the Son of God, "thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God."
This lesson marks the beginning of the ministry of Jesus and first establishes Him, to the people, as the Son of God.~

Lesson 865

(Lesson 865)(01-10-14) Mark 1:12-15;

"And immediately the Spirit driveth him into the wilderness. And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him.Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel."

The first part of today's lesson tells about the forty day temptation of Jesus. That temptation was described in much more detail in the lesson of Matthew 4:1-11, for those who would like to refer back for those details.
The latter portion of today's quote tells us that after the death of John the Baptist, Jesus entered into Galilee "preaching the gospel of the kingdom".

It is important to note that John, Jesus and His Apostles, all preached the exact same message. (Jesus) Matt. 4:17, "From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, REPENT: FOR THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS AT HAND."

(John)Matt. 3:1-2, "In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying, REPENT YE: FOR THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS AT HAND."

(The Apostles) Matt. 10:5-7, "These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS AT HAND."

The "gospel" message that Jesus taught never changed from the beginning of His ministry through His ascension.

In verse 15 of today's quote, Jesus says, "And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel."

Strong's bible dictionary defines the word "gospel", as it is applied in this quote, as 'good news'. Therefore, Jesus was preaching 'good news' the time had come to begin preparation for the coming of His kingdom. (Salvation and His Church).

Until Jesus came, all Jews believed that in order to stay on good terms with God and to eventually get to heaven, one must strictly obey the laws that were handed down to Moses. (Those who practice the Jewish faith today, still believe they must adhere to the Law.)

The "good news" Jesus brought to those Jews, and eventually to the Gentiles as well, was that His perfect sacrifice would fulfill all the requirements of that law for those who would turn away from having faith in themselves under the Law, and place their faith in Him.
Sadly, there are still those today who claim to be Christians, and still believe they must obey the old law after they have been "saved", and thereby unwittingly place their faith in themselves instead of in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

The "good news" of the coming of the kingdom of God was some of the most wonderful news that has ever been spread.~