Jesus enters Jericho as He continues His journey towards Jerusalem for His passion. He encounters a blind beggar named Bartimaeus, who sees Jesus for who He truly is and cries out to Him for mercy. Utterly dependent on Him, Bartimaeus asks to regain his sight. Jesus restores Bartimaeus' sight because of his faith in Him, and in gratitude Bartimaeus follows Jesus into Jerusalem. In stark contrast to the disciples of Jesus, Bartimaeus exemplifies what true discipleship looks like.

The Unexpected Example

Jesus gives his third and final passion prediction in today’s text only to be met with a very disappointing response from two of his disciples. They sought their own great honour and demonstrated their self seeking heart. This is not distant from our own hearts today and so this text teaches us yet again that in the kingdom the so-called great are those who are willing to lay those interests down and become a servant of all. This is what Christ models for us.

On this day the church gathers as the Lord directs and invites. Our passage today gives us teaching that will reflect on our commitment and sacrifice to the Lord. All this in light of Christ's own commitment and sacrifice for us. Our works are always in the shadow of his, so let us gather and be reminded of how great our saviour is.

As we continue in Mark we are taught today that fortune in any form is but a hindrance to one’s total allegiance and faithfulness to Christ. Fortune itself is not singular nor is it a sin to be wealthy, but there exists an obstacle of great sacrifice for those who are found in wealth, again in any form. Only God can bring these barriers down so we are to place our faith in Him and His power.

Jesus continues his teaching on what it means to be a follower of him. To follow Jesus means to let go of everything, this is easier said than done because our hearts lust after so many things that are not God. The young rich ruler that speaks to Jesus may have done a lot, but he could not do the one thing that was most required of him.

Jesus teaches that the kingdom of God belongs to those that are like the children. He calls for the children to come to him. And he also tells us that we must receive the kingdom like that of a child in order to enter it. A child receives gifts with a faith that is absent of the adult’s corruption. We are not to be childish but childlike in our receiving of the kingdom. That is what warrants entry, trust in the hand that gives.

Marriage and divorce are hotly debated issues in the world and church today. We see a debate in today's text around this very matter between Jesus and the Pharisees but where one looks for permissibility the other looks to the highest honour. Instead of pointing to that which is the lowest passable action, Jesus teaches us to pursue the highest degree of obedience unto God. That is what love of God drives us towards.

Jesus gives to his disciples today a second passion prediction with a clear emphasis on the divine hand of God. Many times we think that a good and gracious God would only want good things for us in our lives but even in the life of his Son we see that His will is to have His Son delivered into the hands of men so that those who place their faith in Him would be saved by grace.

There is mystery in God's Word to the human mind, for we struggle at times to grasp beyond the limits of our human thought. Today's text teaches us the age old lesson that truly God is beyond all that we are and infinitely so. He must be the object of our prayer in all that we do, that it may be done in honour and glory of Him.