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While having a type of Passover meal with his new family, Jesus redefined the temple presence of God, gave meaning to a renewed covenant with God, and demonstrated one of the most shocking and personal acts of patient love in the entire New Testament. The Eikon team looks at this touching personal moment between Jesus and his closest disciples and discusses the immense challenge of imitating Jesus' heart and character shown here in our own lives.

Is Mark 13 about the end of the world and the rapture? The Eikon team welcomes Gianna back, looks at Mark 13 in its historical context, and delves into the relatively brief history of the church's rapture and the cultural impact it has had on modern Christianity.

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Jesus reserved his most direct critiques for spiritual leaders who used their position to advance their own prestige and position rather than laying down their lives for others. The Eikon team looks at two short passages where Jesus takes on this kind of misuse of authority and then discussed how that should warn and challenge spiritual leaders in today's church.


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The Eikon team looks at one of Jesus' most explosive confrontations. Those who were embroiled in his day's political issues demanded that he choose a side and publicly declare his loyalties. What Jesus did next shocked everyone and continues to challenge and guide us today in some of the most contentious areas of our faith.

Mark 11:12-26 depicts Jesus cursing a fig tree and acting subversively in the Temple. These are actions that are largely lost on a modern audience but ones that were clearly understood by both Jesus' disciples and the Jewish leaders, a rare occurrence that should tip us off to the importance of what Jesus was doing. What he did in the Temple was so confrontational that is likely the single act that caused Jesus to be killed. Yet, we can be very much in danger of missing the importance of justice to Jesus and the implications of not pursuing it.

The tone and focus of Mark shift dramatically in Chapter 11 as Jesus finally arrives in Jerusalem. Competing visions of the meaning of Jesus' kingship clash as the crowds do not get the crescendo they appear to be hoping for. The crowds were seeking God but were they willing to be transformed by Jesus? The Eikon team considers the depth and profundity of that question and talks about what exactly Jesus was doing and what Mark wants us to see. Today's guest co-host is Stevi Wood from Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

Note: This episode mentions a short interview update with Gianna Hearn will be at the end of the episode. Unfortunately, there are some technical difficulties with that. We will try to have that update as a separate very short bonus episode later in the week if possible. 

Mark's challenge to the church hits its high point in this account of a blind man named Bartimaeus. His warning: the disciples who were in the closest proximity to Jesus were spiritually blind and didn't know it. What does take to be the fourth soil from the parable of the sower? It wasn't the disciples who showed the way. It was one of the least likely people. The Eikon team welcomes special guest, Deniedra Fontenette, and discusses the implications of Mark's challenge for the contemporary church.

In Mark 10:32-45, Jesus lays out the way of the cross for the third time, culminating in his unmistakable direction that does not include using power over others. The Eikon team welcomes special guest Shara Saget from the DFW Church as they wrestle with Jesus' challenge and discuss how seductive power can be for Christians, Christian leaders, and churches. Have we far too often given into its temptations and allowed power and manipulation into the church?

The account of Jesus' interaction with the rich young man is one of the more well-known of all the Gospels. It's a tragic tale of a man who could not let go of the thing that he loved the most when Jesus gave him one of the most difficult challenges for anyone he called to follow him. It leaves us to wonder if we would have responded more faithfully than he did. But was the call all that unusual? Was it any different from the call we receive to follow Jesus? The Eikon team looks a little deeper into what Jesus was trying to tell this man and anyone who would be his disciple. But first, they take a look at the student loan forgiveness plan in the US and discuss those using biblical reasoning for their position on this new policy.

The disciples of Jesus wanted to keep children away from him. The Eikon team considers why that happened, what Mark wanted to convey in recounting this misunderstanding on their part, and the warning present for the church today. Can we become an obstacle to the younger generation or any other marginalized group, all the while thinking we are doing the right thing? They also discuss the church's response to what is often called postmodernity and how that plays into this conversation.