Jesus uses ordinary people like you and me who are sinners saved by grace for his work in the world. That statement completely blows me away and that’s exactly what we see in this section of Mark today. Jesus now goes from the lake up to a mountainside and gets away from the crowds. He calls twelve men to himself and they answered his call and went up the mountain with him. These people were called in order to firstly be with Jesus and secondly to be sent out to preach.

They were to accompany Jesus, learn from him, shape their lives to be like him, and also help him in his travels and preach! The good news of Jesus is just that - good news. The region needed to hear it, the world needs to hear it, we need to hear it. The full extent of their mission won’t be completely revealed until Pentecost but for now, they are given the authority to preach and to cast out demons. They’ll declare that the kingdom has drawn near and show it by driving out what is evil. But who exactly are these men that Jesus appoints? Well, we already know that Peter, Andrew, James, and John were fishermen and we aren’t told the background or credentials of the rest of these people. So they are essentially a bunch of nobodies! They are a bunch of ordinary and imperfect humans and they are entrusted with this amazing task. I said it before and I’ll say it again - Jesus uses ordinary people like you and me who are sinners saved by grace for his work in the world. There’s no such thing not being qualified enough to be a disciple of Jesus.

Once they descend the mountain, the crowds gather again to see and hear Jesus but his family thought he was mad. More on that later in the week. MC

Questions

Prayer

Lord God, thank you that you use ordinary people like us for your mission. Keep us from doubting this but help us to be faithful to your call. Amen.

If you’re a big celebrity in this day and age, first of all please let me know because I’d love to meet you, secondly, you would be crowded by security keeping fans away. Celebrities have different entrances and exits in airports, secret ways of getting into venues, and if they’d really like to, they would never have to be in close contact with anyone else! However, this wasn’t the case in the first century.

Just yesterday we ended with the Pharisees wanting to kill Jesus. They began their schemes about how to get rid of him. But this wasn’t the only reaction of the people around Jesus. While the leaders wanted to kill him, the crowds loved him. Jesus’ popularity was growing so much that people were following him all around the countryside. He was a first-century celebrity! It got so crowded by the lake that he even had to get into a boat to avoid being crushed. Why was he so popular? Well, the main reason given was because of his healing and casting out of demons. People were coming from everywhere to touch him to be healed and the evil spirits recognised him for who he truly was, however, he didn’t allow them to speak. If the word that Jesus was the Son of God got out, then the Pharisees may have crucified him before he completed his on earth ministry.

What are we seeing here? Well, we’re seeing the power and the authority of Jesus at work in the healing and exorcisms and we are also seeing our gracious and compassionate Lord at work in the world. We’re also seeing the people who he came to save flock to him like sheep. Jesus didn’t come to save the hypocritical but those who make him Lord. The kingdom is breaking in and the king is showing who he really is - the Son of God. MC

Questions

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we are so thankful for the gift, the power, the authority, the kingship of Jesus over every aspect of this world. Help us like the crowds to run to him in everything and to recognise him as King in our lives. Amen.

For some reason whenever I get a haircut I more often than not, end up in deep and meaningful conversations with my barber. It usually comes up that I’m a minister at a church and then the conversation either stops or they take an interesting turn. I remember one barber saying that he used to go to church but wasn’t interested anymore because of all the rules made life boring and were too hard. I tried to urge and tell him that the message of Jesus wasn’t about following rules but a relationship but he couldn’t quite comprehend it. Unfortunately, that barber shut down and so I couldn’t continue the conversation. However, I think his view of God and a lot of western society’s view is that he is an angry god waiting to smite us at any moment if we step out of line (okay I may be exaggerating slightly, but I don’t think I’m too far off!).

Now this view of God is completely and utterly wrong but this may be an accurate view of the Pharisees in Jesus day! In today’s encounter, we see them watching Jesus like a hawk to see if he was going to slip up by healing a man on the Sabbath. What does Jesus do? He doesn’t try to hide or heal this man in the back corner but he calls this man out in front of everyone! Here is a man who has a crippled hand standing before Jesus who has the ability to heal it on the Sabbath when healing was only allowed in life and death circumstances. Jesus asks the room what is better - to heal this man, to do good or to leave him unhealed, to do bad? The leaders were silent and Jesus was angry at how hard their hearts were. Jesus heals the man and the Pharisees begin scheming as to how to put him to death. The conflict here is very real! The Pharisees have a choice and so do we. Are they going to submit to Jesus and make him king over their lives, or are they going to reject Jesus and put him to death? MC

Questions

Prayer

Lord God, thank you for Jesus who gives life, who radically transforms expectations, and who has the authority and willingness to serve and heal. Please transform our hearts and our lives to make Jesus our number one priority above all things. In his name we pray, Amen.

Road laws are good things. The law of not crossing the double lines is good because it keeps me from driving into oncoming traffic. The law of not speeding is good because it keeps me from speeding off the side of the road. The law is a good thing. It is designed to keep order and keep people safe. The same can be said of the laws of the Old Testament. The law was designed to be for the people of God, to serve the people, to keep them within God’s design for them. The law was good! However, the religious leaders of Jesus’ day didn’t see it or use it for its original purpose. They became legalists about it and even put in extra laws that went beyond the extent of the original laws to create a boundary to protect people from breaking the original laws. One of the big ones for them was the Sabbath however, Jesus is going to completely shatter their expectations in the next few days.

In today’s encounter on the Sabbath day, the disciples became hungry and started picking grain and the Pharisees became annoyed and started grumbling! They were technically in breach of the complicated laws but Jesus didn’t correct nor rebuke them, but stood up for them in the face of the religious leaders. He quotes an example where the great King David, the king from the peak of Israel committed a far greater offence to the laws. In doing this, he is rebuking the leaders for their legalism. Instead of teaching the Sabbath as a gift, they turned it into a list of heavy burdens that no one could carry. But Jesus says that humanity wasn’t designed to serve the Sabbath but the Sabbath was given to serve people and Jesus is the one who has authority over it. Jesus has the right to decide what goes and what doesn’t and in him, we can find our ultimate sabbath rest knowing that Jesus urges us to come to him, and he will give us rest. MC

Questions

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you for your graciousness to us given in the Law. Thank you that you love us so much that you give us a way to live in relationship with you ultimately through Jesus. Keep us from legalism and keep us in holiness as we strive to live for you with all we have. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

As we continue to reflect on Jesus as the great forgiver, this part in Micah 7 provides the most wonderful opportunity to reflect on the sometimes perplexing nature of God! Who is like our God? (Note: ‘Micah’ means “who is like the Lord?”) Who is like the true and living God who pardons sin and forgives our transgressions? The answer? There is none other than the Lord himself!

The future that Micah looked forward to is glorious in its comprehensiveness of the just and merciful character of God. How phenomenal that whilst God could rightly remain angry at our sin, that he has indeed delighted to show us mercy. But not only that - for the victory of Jesus on the cross is so complete, that not only has the price of our sin been paid for, but our sin has been tread underfoot and hurled into the sea! Whilst we fail in our faithfulness, God will never fail in his faithfulness to us. Whilst the people of God looked forward to a future such as this, we can delight to know that it is true. We can delight to know that because God is rich in mercy, that he has indeed poured out his love for us on the cross. So don’t delay in coming to Jesus. For when you come to him, in sincere and honest repentance, we are not greeted by condemnation but by the transforming mercy of God for which he has completely carried the cost. AL

Questions

Prayer

Almighty Lord, we thank you that there is no one like you. Thank you for your compassion and mercy made possible in Christ. Please help us to delight in who you are and share the good news of forgiveness with others. Please particularly help us this week to share that news with someone we know. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

In the 1662 Book of Common Prayer (the ‘BCP’), verses of Psalm 51 appear at the very opening of daily morning prayer. Whenever I read them, they’re often a stark and sober reminder of the depth of my sin and my desperate need for God. The Psalm - when you read it in its fullness - provides such a helpful pattern as it begins with a cry for God’s mercy in relation to his unfailing love and great compassion. It continues, not seeking that God would ignore our wrong, but that he would ‘blot out’ our transgressions and ‘wash’ away our sin!

The Psalmist (David) is brutally honest, acknowledging the reality of his sin (having committed adultery with Bathsheba) and also that his sin is also against God himself. David knows that God desires for him to be faithful. David knows that what he has done is wrong. David knows that God is judge. David knows that his sin is not just one isolated incident, but also a much deeper problem. Yet David runs to God, desiring that God would wash him clean, cleansing him with hyssop, like a filthy garment that is made white. What is the extent to which David desires to made clean? That God (verse 10), would create a pure heart in him, renew a steadfast (faithful) spirit within him, and that David would continue to know God’s presence! What an ask! But phenomenally because of Jesus, that’s precisely what has been made possible.

Whilst there is no doubt that what David did was wrong, we should all be confronted by the reality that we too fall short of what God desires of us. The question is not if we have sinned, but whether we are willing to recognise it and go to the only one who can offer forgiveness. For when we go, we find not one who is without compassion or love, not one who is willing to turn a blind eye, but the one whose love is so great that he would even go to the cross to make our forgiveness possible. AL

Questions

Prayer

Gracious and loving God, thank you that we can run to you in confession and be assured of forgiveness through Christ. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Having already offended the religious elite with his claim of authority to forgive sins and his behaviour in eating with ‘sinners’, Jesus is now scrutinised because of his disciples’ absence of fasting. Fasting was a general part of religious practice in Judaism, particularly in preparation for special occasions or festivals, or as a time of repentance. John the Baptist’s disciples are fasting, the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but why not Jesus’ disciples? Jesus’ response makes at least two key points.

First, Jesus makes the point to say that now is not the time for fasting because the bridegroom has arrived! In the ancient world, when the bridegroom arrived (often after a long period of waiting), the party began! Jesus is saying that his arrival signals the beginning of good news! In the Bible, Israel (and indeed the church) is often described as the ‘bride’ awaiting the groom, but now in Jesus, that time has arrived! Jesus is saying that not only is this tremendous news, but it would therefore be totally inappropriate for them not to be feasting with him. There will be very tough times ahead but right now is not the time to fast.

Second, in his metaphor about the garments and wineskins, Jesus is signalling that a new era, that demands a new response, has arrived. Whilst you may not be familiar with sewing or wineskins, everyone would have understood that you could not sew new cloth onto an old garment, else it would shrink and tear away. Even worse, a similar approach with wineskins would result in the skins bursting as the wine fermented and thus making a mess (and a waste!). Jesus’ point: the old cannot contain the new! Jesus comes not to perpetuate the endless cycles of the past, but he has come to offer ultimate forgiveness and redemption by doing something new. You can’t contain Jesus in old categories and you cannot break the cycle of sin without his unique intervention. AL

Questions

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you that in our helplessness Jesus entered the world to do something new. Please help us to see him clearly, trust in him sincerely, and be transformed in his likeness for your glory. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Once again teaching a crowd, Jesus now calls Levi to follow him. Whilst Jesus has already called others (like the fisherman brothers, Andrew and Simon), Levi is a surprising choice because he was a tax collector. Whilst people may not be fond of the tax office, tax collectors in Jesus’ day had the reputation of being dishonest collaborators with Rome. Tax collectors restricted people’s movement and often lined their own pockets by demanding more taxes than what was actually owed. Therefore, Jesus’ choice to call Levi would have been absolutely shocking to those watching on! But things get even more surprising as Jesus not only calls Levi to follow him but then proceeds to share a meal at his house with ‘sinners’. ‘Sinner’ is a broad term that was used to describe a range of people who were considered ‘unclean’ due to their profession or actions. For Jesus - a teacher and holy man - to share a meal with such people and possibly be considered unclean by association was an absolute controversy. Hence the reaction of the Pharisees in verse 16, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”, to which Jesus responds, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.” Once again the Pharisees recognise in part the significance of what is happening but fail to see the full significance of what this means.

We don’t hear how the Pharisees respond to Jesus’ retort, but we know that tension is mounting. Not only have the Pharisees failed to see that Jesus is the one who has come to redeem sinners, but that actually, none (not even them) can be considered truly righteous (cf. Romans 3:10). Whilst we all fall short of the glory of God, how great is the news that Jesus not only welcomers sinners to his table, but that we too can receive the forgiveness that he offers! AL

Questions

Prayer

Gracious God, thank you that Jesus came into the world for sinners, including me! Please help me to be humble enough to come before you, confessing my sin, that we may rejoice in the forgiveness that you offer. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

The claim to be able to forgive sins is tantamount to claiming to be God. Whilst we might have authority to forgive someone who does wrong by us, only God has the ultimate authority to forgive all sin. That’s what the religious folk are thinking as they witness all that has unfolded so far between Jesus and the paralysed man. In their hearts (not with their mouths), the religious leaders are thinking, “He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”. They’re correct of course - no one has that authority except God. Therefore it can only mean one of two things. That Jesus is a fraud (committing the act of blasphemy, claiming to be someone who he’s not) or he is God.

No sooner than when their thoughts are finished, Jesus completing shocks them by knowing precisely what they were thinking in their hearts and then directly challenging them saying that the Son of Man (that’s Jesus) has authority to both heal and forgive! The title ‘Son of Man’ is a reference to Daniel 7 and the one who will have the authority to represent God with authority to dispense God’s judgment. How can Jesus substantiate such a weighty claim? Just look at what happens next. Having been told to get up by Jesus, the paralysed man stands up, takes his mat, and walks out in full view! What phenomenal confirmation.

The religious people are asking the right question, but they’ve tragically failed to grasp the truth that Jesus is God! Jesus’ authority is absolutely comprehensive and when we turn to him as our Lord, we too can be assured of the forgiveness that he offers. AL

Questions

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank you so much that Jesus does indeed have authority to forgive sins. Please help us to see him clearly, confess our sins, and receive the forgiveness that he offers. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Having come bursting and bounding onto the scene, Jesus has already demonstrated authority to call people, heal the sick, evict evil, and teach! People have been absolutely astounded by his authority and continue to question who he might be. But now, as Jesus returns to Capernaum, something extraordinary is about to happen as the full extent of his authority is revealed.

It’s hard to imagine just how amazing it would have been to witness this scene. Without any concerns for social distancing, the house in which Jesus is teaching (note that he is preaching the word to them) is absolutely packed! There’s no room to even squeeze through the door or even outside of the door. But the crowd won’t deter four friends from ensuring the paralysed man is able to get before Jesus. So what do they do? They dig through the roof and lower the man down! It would have been phenomenally dramatic as debris from the roof fell to the ground on top of the people who were gathered inside. What tenacity!

However, when the paralysed man is placed before Jesus, something shocking happens. Instead of declaring that the man is healed - after all, that’s what they must have been longing for - Jesus says, “Son, your sins are forgiven”. To claim the authority to forgive sins was extraordinary (more on that tomorrow) but it must have also been baffling on a personal level. Jesus’ words indicate that whilst the man’s suffering is significant, his sin - and ours - is even a more significant problem. Who can possibly offer us such forgiveness? Only God himself. At what cost has this forgiveness been bought? It will cost Jesus his life. The religious folk know the significance of the authority that Jesus has just claimed to possess, but Jesus will address their concerns head-on. AL

Questions

Prayer

Gracious God, we thank you so much that not only do you have the authority to forgive, but also that Jesus has paid the price so that we can be forgiven. Please help us not to take that for granted, but to always rejoice in you. Amen.