Looking for Jesus according to Mark

[JLG]

- May I ask a question to everybody ?

- I will let people time!

- Then I will answer too!

- There is no trap!

- WHAT IS ALL THE BIBLE ABOUT EXCEPT THE FACT THAT IT IS GOD’S WORD ?

- There may be different answers depending on the elements we have!

- If nobody answers, there is no problem !

- I won’t either !

 

[JLG]

41) Looking for Jesus


Mark 3:


- Also, the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying: “He has Beelzebub, and he expels the demons by means of the ruler of the demons.” So after calling them to him, he spoke to them with illustrations: “How can Satan expel Satan? If a kingdom becomes divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand; and if a house becomes divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. Also, if Satan has risen up against himself and has become divided, he cannot stand but is coming to an end.


- We see Pharisees and scribes in front of Jesus!


- Many men against one!


- And they are supposed to know what they are talking about!


- They went to religious school!


- And when we hear their poor arguments, they have no shame!


- And Jesus takes time to teach them and show their lack of arguments!


- He shows a lot of patience to these stupid men!


- When we say things, we need a minimum of arguments!


- We need to think about what we say!


- If we don’t have arguments, it is better to say nothing!


- Making mistakes is not a problem!


- But we need to think a minimum!


- And not repeat what others say!

 

[JLG]

42) Looking for Jesus


Mark 3:


- In fact, no one who enters the house of a strong man is able to steal his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man. Only then can he plunder his house. Truly I say to you that all things will be forgiven the sons of men, no matter what sins they commit and what blasphemies they speak. But whoever blasphemes against the holy spirit has no forgiveness forever but is guilty of everlasting sin.”He said this because they were saying: “He has an unclean spirit.”


- We have many examples in the Bible of people who were condemned by God!


- The Bible tells us about the Israelites and the Jews!


- They had God’s favor!


- They took advantage of God patience!


- And they lost everything!


- And it happened many times!


- So we should be careful when we act!


- We shouldn’t let others tell us what to do but be sure it is right or wrong!


- We have the Bible and we can check many things!


- We can ask God to help us to really understand his will and his word by praying sincerely to him!


- We can keep praying to God to express to him our deep feelings, our troubles, our joys, all our thoughts!

 

[JLG]

43) Looking for Jesus


Mark 3:


- Now his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. As there was a crowd sitting around him, they said to him: “Look! Your mother and your brothers are outside asking for you.” But he replied to them: “Who are my mother and my brothers?” Then he looked at those sitting around him in a circle and said: “See, my mother and my brothers!Whoever does the will of God, this one is my brother and sister and mother.”


- Jesus makes it clear!


- He has a human family!


- But his mission was more important!


- He was on earth to accomplish God’s will!


- Thus he was concentrating on teaching people and help them become his disciples and get access to eternal life!


- And he trained the apostles and his disciples to do the same!


- There was nothing more important!


- We must not forget it!

 

[JLG]

44) Looking for Jesus


Mark 4:


- Again he began teaching beside the sea, and a very large crowd gathered near him. So he went aboard a boat and sat in it away from the shore, but the whole crowd was next to the sea, along the shore.


- Jesus knows how to adapt to the situation!


- He finds the best way so the very large crowd can listen to him!


- And it is always so!


- It reminds me that after creation, God and Jesus have kept working!


- And they keep working to prepare what comes next!


- And apparently there is a lot to do when we see what men have done with the earth!


- When we read the first part of the Bible, we see how God organizes everything for the Israelites!


- We can imagine that when Jesus comes back to put an end to this Modern world, everything will be well organized to put everything on track!


- it will be refreshing compared to the poor organization of man!

 

[JLG]

45) Looking for Jesus


Mark 4


- And he began to teach them many things with illustrations, and while he was teaching, he said to them:“Listen. Look! The sower went out to sow. As he was sowing, some seeds fell alongside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. Others fell on rocky ground where there was not much soil, and they immediately sprang up because the soil was not deep. But when the sun rose, they were scorched, and they withered because they had no roots. Other seeds fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them, and they yielded no fruit. But others fell on the fine soil, and growing up and increasing, they began to yield fruit, and they were bearing 30, 60, and 100 times more.”


- Do you understand Jesus!


- It is not possible to stay on your chair!


- Everybody must do his part!


- Everybody must speak and tell and teach about God’s word!


- Otherwise Jesus will say I don’t know you!


- Go away from me!


- And it is not necessary to be a super teacher!


- Just participate and do the best we can!

- Thus we will improve our abilities!

 

[JLG]

46) Looking for Jesus


Mark 4


- Then he added: “Let the one who has ears listen, listen. Now when he was alone, those around him with the Twelve began questioning him about the illustrations. He said to them: “To you the sacred secret of the Kingdom of God has been given, but to those outside all things are in illustrations, so that, though looking, they may look and still not see, and though hearing, they may hear and still not get the sense of it; nor will they ever turn back and receive forgiveness.”


- Do we really want to listen to God’s word!


- Or do we only take what we want?


- It is either everything or nothing!


- Do we ask God for help again and again?


- Do we really want to understand?


- Do we really want to turn back and receive forgiveness?


- Or do we only want to have a quiet life and close our eyes and ears?

 

[JLG]

47) Looking for Jesus


Mark 4


- Further, he said to them: “You do not know this illustration, so how will you understand all the other illustrations?

- That’s the question!


- Do we really want to know?


- Or do we prefer to stay with what we have or what we have been told?


- For many, when they don’t they feel more secure!

- Thus they don’t have obligations!


- But today it is getting more and more dangerous!


- Because when Jesus comes, he will ask us if we really strive to know!


- And when we try to hide behind religious leaders who are not better than political leaders, it will mean big trouble!


- And there won't be any more possibilities!


- God takes time, he is patient because he wants people to make up their minds and repent!


- But when the time arrives, it will be too late!

 

[JLG]

48) Looking for Jesus


Mark 4


- “The sower sows the word. These, then, are the ones alongside the road where the word is sown; but as soon as they have heard it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them.


- Do we still eat milk or solid food!


- God needs hard workers!


- The earth must be a paradise again!


- It implies a lot of work to turn what is today a trash can into a jewel it used to be!


- But we must look like God and Jesus!


- They don’t need people who are selfish!


- They need people who are active and ready to help!


- They need real human beings with brains and hearts!


- They don’t need artificial ones which look like machines!


- They need people who are spiritually alive, not dead!

 

[JLG]

49) Looking for Jesus


Mark 4


- Likewise, these are the ones sown on rocky ground; as soon as they have heard the word, they accept it with joy. Yet they have no root in themselves, but they continue for a time; then as soon as tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, they are stumbled.


- They accept it with joy!


- But they have no roots!


- And they stumbled!


- It is like a thermometer of our faith!


- What is the degree of our faith?


- Is it getting half-hearted? Is it getting cold? Is it getting hot?


- There are only two ways!

 

[JLG]

50) Looking for Jesus


Mark 4


- There are still others that are sown among the thorns. These are the ones who have heard the word, but the anxieties of this system of things and the deceptive power of riches and the desires for everything else make inroads and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.


- The scale is unbalanced!


- On the one hand, people hear the word!


- On the other hand, you get anxieties and the deceptive power of riches and the desires for everything!


- Ah man, man!


- He will never change!


- too predictable and for the worst!


- If only it were for the best!


- There is the word dreamer, I would say “nightmare” if it was possible!


- Or man is a nightmare for himself!


- Why does he always make the bad choices!


- Of course, you get the bad influences of others!


- You may want to do one thing but the group is there to have you make another decision!

 

[JLG]

51) Looking for Jesus


Mark 4


- Finally, the ones that were sown on the fine soil are those who listen to the word and favorably receive it and bear fruit—30, 60, and 100 times more.”


- people have different abilities and different motivations and different levels of spirituality!


- But it can always be improved!


- It means reading and studying the Bible and speaking about God’s word!


- Listening and favorably receiving it and bearing fruit!


- The more active we are the better we get!


- The most basic logic!


- No action, no improvement!

 

[JLG]

52) Looking for Jesus


Mark 4


- He also said to them: “A lamp is not brought out to be put under a basket or under a bed, is it? Is it not brought out to be put on a lampstand? For there is nothing hidden that will not be exposed; nothing is carefully concealed that will not come out in the open. Whoever has ears to listen, let him listen.” He further said to them: “Pay attention to what you are hearing. With the measure that you are measuring out, you will have it measured out to you, yes, you will have more added to you. For whoever has will have more given to him, but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.”


- We must work in the light!


- We mustn’t have anything to hide!


- We must look for a simple life without lies!


- We must do our part!


- Jesus must know who we are!


- He must know us as good workers!


- Faithful servants who are active!


- He must learn how to trust us!


- And it depends on our actions!


- No action, no trust!

 

[JLG]

53) Looking for Jesus


Mark 4


- Jesus compares God’s Kingdom as when a man casts seeds on the ground!


- When he gets up in the morning the seeds sprout and grow tall and he doesn’t know how!


- And it bears fruit!


- Then it is harvest time!


- But if nobody does anything you can’t expect a good harvest!


- A good harvest needs good workers!


- The more people care the better!


-You can’t get anything if you don’t do anything!


- Jesus was a hard worker when he was on earth!


- And he showed us an excellent example to follow!


- We can close our eyes and shut out ears but the images will stay in our memories!

 

[JLG]

54) Looking for Jesus


Mark 4: Jesus compares God’s Kingdom to a mustard grain!


- It is the tiniest of all the seeds on the earth and it becomes greater than all other vegetable plants!


- Thus we can visualize Jesus coming on earth to teach men and at the same time Jesus coming back as a warrior to clean the earth and to repay everyone according to ones’ deeds!


- He first came in peace!


- He will come to fight and to kill!


- It is going to be a terrible scene!


- And each time he will play his part!


- He will act according to his part!

 

[JLG]

55) Looking for Jesus


Mark 4: Jesus used to speak to people with illustrations!


- And he would explain them privately to his disciples!


- In fact, people who really want can understand with illustrations!


- If they don’t it is because they don’t really want!


- It was also possible to see how Jesus lived!


- He was a living example!


- Now even if he would teach his disciples privately, they didn’t understand him till his death!


- And he was using a progressive teaching so it can get into them little by little!


- On the contrary, with Paul, it was a lot more intensive, if the word is the right one!


- But the conditions were different and the activity too!


- But if we try, from time to time, to meditate on one of his illustrations, we can see how deep they are!


- And we can always learn from them!

 

[JLG]

56) Looking for Jesus


Mark 4: Jesus decides to go to the other shore!


- So they take a boat!


- There are other boats with him!


- Then a violent windstorm occurs with big waves crashing into the boat!


- But Jesus is sleeping quietly!


- And the disciples wake him up because they are terrorized!


- So Jesus tells the storm to calm down!


- He doesn’t understand why they are afraid!


- And they feel an unusual fear when they see what Jesus does!


- What about his teaching?


- Jesus did miracles only to prove who he was and where he was coming from!

 

[JLG]

57) Looking for Jesus


Mark 5: Jesus meets a possessed man who lives among the tombs!


- Nobody can bind him!


- He always frees him!


- And he keeps crying out in the tombs!


- But when he sees Jesus he runs and bows down to him!


- And he calls him Jesus, Son of the Most High God!


- His name is Legion because many spirits are inside him!


- And they ask Jesus for permission to go into a herd of swine!


- And they rush over the precipice into the sea, about 2,000 of them and they are drowned in the sea!


- It is funny to think that all the demons recognize Jesus but not the religious leaders!


- Despite all his signs!


- And he keeps reprimanding and teaching them!


- Of course, they know who he is but they don’t want to recognize him!


- Of course, they are liars with empty speeches!


- Of course, they know what to say to people!


- Or people are used to listen to what they say!

 

[JLG]

58) Looking for Jesus


Mark 5:


- The herders flee and report what has just happened in the city!


- People come to see what has happened!


- They see the man who was possessed!


- They are afraid!


- So they ask Jesus to go away!


- It tells a lot about the type of people they are!


- Something incredible has happened and they are afraid and they ask Jesus to go away!


- They should have wanted to know more about Jesus!


- What would we have done in such a situation?


- It is easier to close our eyes and ears!


- The only problem is it is a question of life and death!


- Everything we do or don’t have consequences!


- What are we doing now?

 

[JLG]

59) Looking for Jesus


Mark 5:18-20

• So Jesus cures a demon-possessed man!
• But He wants to follow Jesus!
• But Jesus tells him to go back to his relatives and report to them what has happened to him thanks to jesus!
• So he follows Jesus’ advice and he goes to Decapolis and starts proclaiming everything that has happened to him thanks to Jesus!
• Definitely someful who is grateful for what Jesus has done to him!
• And at the difference of today’s people he finds it logical to act to demonstrate he is grateful for Jesus!
• Are we grateful to Jesus?
• What do we do for that?

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Remember:

• If you think like today’s people, you will never understand the Bible!
• They used to write differently!
• They used to speak differently!
• They used to think differently!
• They used to act differently!

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