In Sunday’s passage from the Gospel of Mark, we see Jesus’ vulnerability, his humanness, his struggle with the prospect of the cross. He shows tenderness to his disciples and strength as he reconciles himself to his role as the Suffering Servant. We will be challenged in many ways and, more importantly, we will fall in love with Jesus all over again!
In this portion of Mark’s gospel, Jesus’ disciples prepare for the Passover meal, not realizing that they will be eating with the long awaited Passover Lamb of God! Jesus inaugurates a New Covenant, one made by God and ratified by his own blood.
In this portion of Mark’s Gospel we see a stark contrast between an extravagant act of devotion and a heinous act of betrayal. It raises the question, whose actions will we emulate–those of Mary or those of Judas?
In previous sermons, we learned what are not signs of Jesus’ return. But God wants us to know what is a sign of Jesus’ return. In Sunday’s message, we learn what happens when Jesus returns and when it begins.
In Sunday’s passage from Mark, Jesus talks about the appearance of an individual who will defile the Jewish temple just prior to His return. But who is this mysterious individual? Pulling together many threads of both Old and New Testament prophetic Scripture, many Biblical scholars have concluded that this person is none other than the end-time Antichrist. Sunday, Pastor Doug sketches out the details of God’s prophetic plan for the future.
In this portion of Mark’s Gospel, Jesus commends the giving of a poor widow and addresses his disciples misconceptions of the end times. Concerning giving, we learn that God is pleased with the sacrifice rather than the amount of the gift. With respect to the end times, Jesus addresses many non-signs of the end times that should not disturb us. These things will occur, but are not in themselves signs of Jesus’ second coming.
Can you imagine arguing with Jesus? In Sunday’s message, Jesus tells a parable condemning the Jews for rejecting both God’s prophets and now his only Son, opening the church to both Jews and Gentiles. In an attempt to put Jesus in his place, the Sadducees try to undermine his authority and popularity by asking him a series of tricky questions—the fail.
TaLKING POINTS / WALKING POINTS View the sermon summary or dig deeper into the message during the sermon, in your personal Bible study, or with your family or Community Group in application-driven discussion. TAKE ONE STEP Each week, write down one doable concrete step of obedience, small or large, that you will put into practice…
In Mark 11, Jesus says, “All things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you.” Does he mean that if we have enough faith, we can have most anything we want? That WE can bring things into existence through our words and our faith? Pastor Doug brings clarity to this misunderstood passage.
What began with a joyful procession into Jerusalem became a dark day for Israel. Jesus was rejected by the Jewish leaders. His visit to the temple was the last straw—what should have been a place of prayer had become a place of extortion. Jesus visually declared his judgment on the nation by cursing a fig tree, that, like Israel, should have been fruitful, but remained fruitless and barren.
