Houston Chinese Church - English

All the disciples scattered when Jesus was arrested, but Peter returned. While Jesus faced an unjust trial before the council, Peter faced his own test just outside, confronted by a servant of the high priest and other bystanders. Maybe Peter still believes: “Even though they all fall away, I will not.” Yet, as we know, Peter failed these tests and denied Christ three times. Although we see Peter’s failure, we also learn from his experience how to respond to our own failures and find encouragement in the midst of them.

The events in our passage unfold abruptly and chaotically, yet Jesus had predicted them on several occasions. Everything happens as written so that the Scriptures may be fulfilled. The betrayal by Judas, the desertion by his disciples, the trial by religious leaders—these developments invite us to admire the character of Christ and to consider our own response to similar situations.

As we look at Christ's perfect submission to the Father's will, may we seek to grasp the weight and depth of His intense struggles and learn what true surrender looks like. So, how then do we press forward in faith when following God feels overwhelming, troublesome, or costly?

The Passover meal was a celebration, but the Supper Jesus shared with his disciples that last night carried a somber tone. Beginning with a revelation of betrayal by one of them, it ended with a prediction of desertion by all of them. However, this contrast serves to reinforce the gospel point that the Lord’s Supper is a table of grace—not merit. It’s not for those who think they are worthy, but for those who know they are not.

Our view of someone determines how we treat them. For instance, your respect for your parent differs from your respect for a stranger. You interact with a co-worker differently than how you interact with your boss. This applies also to our treatment of Jesus. Our view of Jesus determines how we treat him. This should then prompt us to wonder: what view should we have of Jesus so that we treat him properly?

Every person has a vision of the ultimate future (aka eschatology) that shapes his/her obligations and decisions today. In today’s passage, Jesus speaks about his second coming and the end times. However, we tend to brush off such eschatology as irrelevant to our daily lives because it seems far-fetched or too far off. But, that would be a perilous mistake. Instead, let us heed Jesus’ call to stay awake because he will return one day, and that future truth should shape how we live in the present.

Mark 13 records Jesus’s Olivet Discourse with his disciples (cf. Mt 24, Lk 21). This passage is notoriously difficult to interpret. Some believe all of Jesus’s predictions were fulfilled in the first century, while others think they will be fulfilled in the future. The answer likely lies somewhere in between. While many turn to Jesus’s teaching to predict the end times, he’s more concerned with preparing his disciples to endure the challenges of our present time.

The Pharisees and Sadducees have attempted their “swings” at Jesus and now Jesus faces the last group of Jewish leaders, the Scribes. He’s faced with the question: “Which commandment is the most important of all?” Out of the 613 commandments, which one does Jesus choose? He replies with what we now know as the “Greatest Commandment” and a commandment on loving our neighbors. So how do we follow this commandment of Loving God? What does it take? What does it look like?

In this text, Jesus faces religious leaders from a sect of Judaism that denied the existence of an afterlife. The Sadducees thought they had devised a flawless theological trap for Jesus. But his response not only exposes the fallacy in their assumptions about Scripture and the power of God but provides true hope in the face of our mortality.