Providence Church

In this familiar story, Jesus calms a storm. But the main point of the story might not be what you think.

The kingdom of God comes into the world through the word of God, and bears fruit in those who receive it. Life in the kingdom begins with hearing. Does God’s word stay on the surface of your life or does it take hold of you and change you?

In these two scenes in Mark 3, we see a contrast between the crowds that had gathered around Jesus and the twelve apostles. As we compare these two groups of people, some defining marks of a follower of Jesus emerge.

There has been increasing tension in Mark 2 between Jesus and the religious leaders. By the end of this passage, they are plotting to kill him. What pushes them over the edge is two incidents related to the Sabbath, specifically what Jesus says about the Sabbath and does on the Sabbath.

No one liked tax collectors, but Jesus befriended them and dined with them. It raised questions about who was in and out, and what it means to be close to God. The story teaches us that Jesus draws near to those who know they need him. Whoever thinks he is doing fine will keep him at a distance.

Four men bring their friend to Jesus, presumably to fix their friend’s biggest problem, his paralysis. But Jesus has an even deeper healing in mind.

We generally resist any authority but our own. So, what does it take for people with “authority issues” to come under the Lordship of Jesus? We must see that he has authority over everything, and that he uses his authority for our good.

As Jesus begins his public ministry in Galilee, Mark immediately shows us the message of Jesus and the method of Jesus. And both of those things are more radical than they seem on the surface.

Mark begins the story of Jesus in the wilderness. He is preparing us for a new exodus and a new covenant. If you want to see the real Jesus, you gotta go into the wilderness. It is a place of redemption, repentance, and renewed sonship.

We all desire to change. And yet, true and lasting change can be quite difficult to achieve. What we need is a biblical understanding of how change works, which is exactly what we find in Philippians 2.