Mark ends the book with an empty tomb and some astonished women. People all throughout the book have been amazed, astonished, or even afraid. Mark draws our attention to their current position and their future direction. Will they be content to stay where they are with distant memories of Jesus or will they move forward and seek to encounter the risen King? In essence, Mark leaves each reader with this question, “What will you do with Jesus?”

Mark 15 focuses on the crucifixion of Jesus. His life was not taken from him but he willingly gave it up for our sake. We will discover in this chapter the underlying human envy of the religious leaders which led to the cross. The crucifixion can be observed from three critical vantage points: the historical, the theological, and the personal.

The gospel of Mark has been building to the last three chapters. In Mark 14, Jesus eats one last Passover meal with His disciples. During the meal Jesus confronts all twelve but focuses on two. Both are prideful. Both will fall. Jesus offered Himself to them both. One will turn back to Jesus while the other will not. Jesus still confronts people. And He still offers Himself.

How should Christ followers view this COVID-19 pandemic through a gospel lens? What might God be doing in the world and the Church? Practically speaking, how do we approach this new normal? What could be different when the crisis ends? Pastors David McNeely and Eric Ryan discuss these questions and offer gospel perspective and practical advice for our church and the larger Church.

Jesus foretells what would happen to the Temple in the future.  Some of what He said is clear, some is unclear. The bottom line is Jesus prepared His disciples for what was to come.  They did not know all the details, but they did know two truths: Life would be hard for them, but the grace of God will be sufficient for them.

We live in a deeply polarized culture, often exacerbated by cable news and social media. Christians are called to unity, and yet Christians fall on different sides of the political spectrum. Christians are called to proclaim the gospel, but we also are called to be aware and respectful of the beliefs of others. How do we engage each other and the world around us in disagreement, while keeping Jesus and the gospel in focus? Josh King discusses these questions with Professor Dan Roeber.

Find links to two of Dan's recommended resources below.

In Mark 12 everything feels so disconnected, but it’s not. This is Holy Week and Jesus is addressing some very important teachings. As Jesus is confronted with various ideologies, Mark invites us to watch and ponder. As we do, we’ll see that Jesus transcends all social and political views. It’s not that viewpoints are unimportant. We have to remember that where we have points of view, Jesus has view.

Mark turns our attention to the cross of Jesus. Everything in chapters 11 - 16 happens in one week. Some theologians have said the gospel of Mark is the passion narrative (11-16) with a long intro (1-10). Chapter 11 begins with the crowds cheering his entry into Jerusalem and ends with the chief priests and scribes trying to challenge Him. In between Jesus uses a fig tree to teach an important truth while forcefully drawing people’s attention back to the heart of worship.

Pastor Bob Evans discusses with Wildwood elder Randy Lashua how God used a physical health issue in Randy's life to impact his spiritual health and ultimately reshape his perspective of his life in Christ.

Chapter 10 is full of familiar encounters with Jesus, perhaps none so familiar as his statement: “Let the little children come to me...for to such belongs the kingdom of God.” This is the heart of the gospel, and the thread through the rest of the chapter. For Jesus’ teaching on divorce, we encourage you to revisit our Nov 17, 2017 message in the Malachi series and Feb 24, 2019 message in the Marriage series. Access both messages online or in our app.