Drew Boswell

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Christ’s Power Over Every Need The Gospel of Mark Sermon Series “Teaching as Doctrines the Commandments of Men” Mark 7:1-23

Christ’s Power Over Every Need

The Gospel of Mark Sermon Series

“Teaching as Doctrines the Commandments of Men”

Mark 7:1-23

Introduction

Bee keeping suit as a sin suit.

Prayer

Religious People Focus on Little Things At the Expense of Big Things (vv. 1-5)

Now when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem, 2 they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that were defiled, that is, unwashed. 3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands properly, holding to the tradition of the elders, 4 and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as the washing of cups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches.) 5 And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?”

In Mark chapter 6 we see the feeding of the five thousand, and as the disciples are concluding the day they board a boat with 12 baskets of bread and fish. Chapter seven is the following afternoon, so it stands to reason that the disciples were eating the bread and fish from the day before. “But the objection raised is on ceremonial, not sanitary, grounds.”[1]

There are Pharisees and scribes (religious leaders in the Jewish culture) who were gathering to observe Jesus and his disciples. This is the second time that these teachers of the law had come from Jerusalem to find fault with Jesus’ teaching.

They appear to be an investigating committee and when they investigated “they saw the little things. But they never saw the big things. They saw the violations of their hand washing codes. They did not see Jesus. They never took an open loo so that the true nature of the man and his teaching might come fairly before them.”[2] They are so focused on pots and pans, and how you hold your hands when you wash them, and going through the prescribed motions, they overlook the Savior of the world.

“Not dirty hands” – that was not the point of the objection – but with hands unwashed, not ceremonially purified according to their ideas of necessity. It also says that some “some of his disciples” – Some of the disciples then, had gone through the process of being ceremonially cleaning their hands, and some had not.[3]

Being unclean or impure causes a separation between God and His people and had resulted in the people having to leave the land – The traditions and teachings of the elders were trying to accomplish three things;

“It made the basic requirement that Israel be holy to the Lord something attainable for every Jew in everyday life. The Pharisees never thought that they were voiding the commands of God – only making them more applicable.”[4]

“the tradition of the elders sought to forestall the dominant pagan culture from making inroads into Jewish life (see Lev. 20:1-7). It encouraged the devout to make conscious efforts to set themselves apart from the unwashed hordes destined for destruction. Actions, such as washing hands, were tangible positive gestures that displayed who God’s elect were.” These outward traditions were a way to show who was “in” and who was “out.”

“The tradition of the elders assumes that God created order and that human affairs prosper when things are divinely ordered – even when they seem only to be minor issues.” So for example when discussing hand washing, the elders specified “the quantity of water required, the position of the hands, and the type of vessel to be used.”[5] And they even added what to say while you are washing your hands.[6]

Does living one’s life according to the tradition of the elders keep you from being defiled?

 No, because they become a substitute for faith. Superficial preoccupation with ceremonies had supplanted a deeper faith.

 In John 17:14 we get the phrase that Christians are to be in the world, but are not to be of the world, “I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.” Being set apart, distinctly different from the world around us, is not the ultimate destination; it is beginning of a journey, a purpose. The John 17 passage goes on to say, “As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.”

 

Religious People Replace the Truth With Tradition (vv. 6-13)

6 And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, “‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; 7 in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’[7] 8 You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”

Jesus quotes the prophet Isaiah, where even during his time, this same thing was occurring. The people’s worship was hollow, vain, worthless – they were going through the traditional motions, with no desire from their heart to draw near to God – because they were “teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.” These man made commandments became a substitute for genuine heartfelt, God honoring worship.

“Tradition was the ecclesiastical version of the law – the law as it came out of the hands of the great teachers. It was regarded as equally authoritative with the written law itself, and, by some, even more so. It was the very life and mission of the Pharisees to keep the traditional interpretations in full force.”[8]

The Mishna, a collection of Jewish traditions in the Talmud, records, “It is a greater offense to teach anything contrary to the voice of the Rabbis than to contradict Scripture itself.” – the traditions of the elders have become more important than the Word of God itself.[9]

So Jesus came to heal people, cast out demons, and to teach – and this is a bondage that Jesus was intent on freeing people from. The religious leaders covered the law with these traditions, so that the original Word of God was lost, but it also shovels unnecessary weight of rules and traditions that suffocated the spirit of the people.

“They had covered up the Word of God with their oral teaching. Jesus here shows that they care more for the oral teaching of the scribes and elders than for the written law of God.”[10] They are not adding to the Word of God, they have substituted their own traditions in its’ place.

When we “teach[ing] as doctrine[s] the commandments of men” – there is no need for faith, and there is no need for heart. Your actions are not rooted in a love for God, only in wanting to appear and be in your own effort “good.” I am not a sinner, I am a godly person – see what I do!

An Example of this Substitution (vv. 9-12)

9 And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! 10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’[11] 11 But you say, ‘If a man tells his father or his mother, “Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban”’ (that is, given to God) — 12 then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother,[12] 13 thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.”

Jesus has called their teachings, “tradition of men,” “commandments of men,” and in verse 9, “your tradition” with the emphasis on your – thus disowning it himself. Jesus is completely rejecting their teachings because “it does not represent the will of God but can be used to legitimize the breaking of God’s command.”[13]

(v. 11) Corban is the word for “a gift or offering to God.” Once the offering to God was given, it could not be taken back.[14] “The single uttering of the word Corban “sacred gift” over a thing was supposed to set that thing apart from all ordinary uses and give it the character of a consecrated thing.”[15] In the case of property a person could designate it as corban, and continue to use it with the intention of upon the person’s death it would then be used as an offering to God.

So instead of supporting his father and money, a son could say that the money was an offering to God, and then the Pharisees then forbid the son from using it to support his parents (it was a gift to God) and then allowed the son to use the money for himself.

It was a tricky way to keep from following the Word of God (taking care of one’s parents) and then using the money on yourself.[16] Jesus is saying that such a vow is invalid, because it violates God’s command to honor parents.

But these traditions that find their way into the church often times tear churches apart. The author Swift describes in “Gulliver’s voyage to Lilliput, between the party which believed that an egg should be cracked at the big end and the party which believed that it should be cracked at the little end. So the big enders and the little enders fought to the death, to the complete ruin of their country.”[17] Religious people can be incredibly cruel and heartless.

 

Religious People Think They Are Made Right With God By Outward Actions (vv. 14-23)

Things That Do Not Defile Us (vv.14-19)

14 And he called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand: 15 There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”[18] 17 And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. 18 And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, 19 since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.)

Moses’ law teaches not to eat certain types of animals (crustaceans, pork, divided hoof animals, etc.) because by eating these things you break the law and thereby become ceremonially unclean. Jesus says, what makes us ceremonially clean or unclean has nothing to do with what we eat – so is Jesus disagreeing with the law?

Jesus’ teachings “not only takes issue with a major feature of traditional Jewish religious practice but also rescinds a major body of OT material dealing with such ritual laws.” Also, new gentile believers who would be reading Mark’s gospel would be asking, “so should I be following the OT ceremonial teachings?

Matthew 5:17-18 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.”

The purpose of the law was to show mankind that no matter how hard they sought to keep God’s standard, they couldn’t and were in need of a Savior. The Pharisees and their traditions undercut that intention of the law. They taught you could please God by following their rules – Jesus says that’s impossible. “Jesus’ main point is that uncleaness is moral rather than ritual.”[19]

Things That Do Defile Us (vv. 20-23)

20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

(v. 18) “And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding?” – “They had been trained in Judaism, in which the distinction between clean and unclean is ingrained, and could not understand a statement abrogating this. They had noticed the Pharisees stumbling at the parable of Jesus (Matt. 15:12). They were stumbling themselves and did not know how to answer the Pharisees.” [20]

This way of thinking was so instilled into their thinking that it was very difficult for them to change their own way of thinking. Tradition has this effect upon us, we stop seeking the higher things, and are content to follow the lower things’ “it’s just how we do things.”

Jesus releases people from the anxiety of thinking they have to follow all these rules and traditions, and the idea that their defilement or uncleanliness comes from something they may touch or eat on the outside. But, He also makes them aware that they are themselves the sources of their own defilement and the law does not give them an escape. “The only defilement worth serious consideration is that caused by the evil which comes out of the heart.”[21]

You can’t clean the heart with a fistful of water in cupped hands. If I am the source of my own defilement – and that uncleanliness causes me to be distanced from God, and I find no hope in the following the law or the traditions of the elders, how then am I made clean, how can I be brought close again to God? What must I do to be saved?

The law was given to help us realize that we have a corrupt and sinful nature, and are in need of a Savior. Jesus came to fulfill the law by being the Savior that mankind needs. Romans 7:6 “But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code.”

_____________________

[1] Archibald Thomas Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, Volume 1 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1930) 321.

[2] George Arthur Buttrick, The Interpreter’s Bible, Volume 7 (Nashville, Tennessee; Abingdon Press, 1953) 747.

[3] W. N. Clarke, Commentary on the Gospel of Mark (Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, Judson Press, 1950) 97.

[4] Clinton E. Arnold, Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 2002) 247.

[5] Arnold, 248.

[6] “Blessed is He who has sanctifies us with his commands and commanded us concerning the washing of hands” Arnold, 248.

[7] Isaiah 29:13

[8] Clarke, 98.

[9] Max Anders, Holman New Testament Commentary, Mark (Nashville, Tennessee; Holman Reference, 2000) 117.

[10] Robertson, 322.

[11] Exodus 20:12; 21:16

[12] The religious leaders were backing their teachings on Numbers 30:1-10, where it speaks of keeping a vow made to God. Jesus is rejecting the idea of using one biblical text to negate another biblical text.

[13] Larry W. Hurtado, New International Biblical Commentary, Mark (Peabody, Massachusetts; Hendrickson Publishing, 2001) 110.

[14] James A. Brooks, The New American Commentary, Mark (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1991) 117.

[15] Clarke, 100.

[16] Robertson, 323.

[17] Buttrick, 750.

[18] Mark 7:16 “If any man have ears to hear, let him hear,” “Verse 16 does not appear in NIV, (or ESV) because, though it is present in the majority of the MSS, it does not occur in the important Alexandrian witnesses. It appears to be a scribal gloss.” 680. Frank E. Gaebelein, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 8 (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 1984) 680.

[19] Brooks, 119.

[20] Robertson, 324.

[21] Alexander Balmain Bruce, The Expositor’s Greek Testament, Volume 1 (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Grand Rapids Book Manufacturers, 1967) 389.

“Quickly Bring the Best” Ephesians 2:1-10

“Bring Quickly the Best”  

Ephesians 2:1-10

Opening

In Luke 15 we see the story of the prodigal son. The boy went to his father and demanded his inheritance, even though his father was still alive (which was a great insult, and potentially hard on the family financially). But the father gives the boy his inheritance and the boy leaves home, travels far away and absolutely wastes the money. Eventually he runs out of money, finds a job taking care of pigs, and is so hungry he wants to eat the slop the pigs are eating. He comes to his senses and decides to ask his father back home if he can work on the family farm as a servant.

Luke 15:20 “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’3 22 But the father said to his servants,4 ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.”

We know that the prodigal son was not physically dead while in the far country, or physically made live when he returned home. The prodigal son was dead because he was away from home, out of touch and out of communion with the father. He is dead in his trespasses and sin against his father.

 

Prayer  

Your Past (vv. 1-3)

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

Paul begins our chapter by reminding us of our past. “Scripture uses many metaphors to describe man’s sinful state, such as blindness, deafness, fever, paralysis, leprosy, etc. but not one more forceful in meaning than this one of being dead in sins.”[1]

Man does not become spiritually dead because he sins; he is spiritually dead by his nature, therefore he is sinful. His condition has nothing to do with the way he lives; it has to do with the fact that he is dead even while he is alive.  He is spiritually dead while being physically alive.

We are “dead in the trespasses and sins,” – to trespass is a violation of a definitive law, and to sin is to miss the mark (like an archer aiming at a target). We are guilty on both accounts. It is as if there is a giant “no trespassing sign” and we willfully went past it.

“We are sinners because we have taken our own way, and we are trespassers because we have transgressed what we knew to be the revealed word of God; and so we are dead to God in our natural condition.”[2]

 And no one will deny that there are degrees of sin. If we compare Hitler who oversaw the killing of millions of Jewish people, and someone who stole a package of gummies at a gas station – are they the same? Both are sin.

 If we look at Mark 5:21ff. we see Jairus’ daughter, and by the time Jesus got to her she had only been dead for a very short period of time, yet dead still. And later when we see Jesus coming to Lazarus’s tomb (John 11) – he intentionally stayed away for days, and when it was time to roll away the stone at the entrance when “Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.”[3]

Both Jarius’ daughter and Lazarus are in different stages of corruption, yet they both are dead. You may not be Hitler, but we are all sinners by our nature, Romans 3:23 “. . . for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

Man’s common state of sin is like people trying to jump across the Grand Cannon (4 to 18mi.). 10 year old (8 feet), 20 year old Olympic long jump (30 feet), 50 year running from the IRS (50 feet) – all will fall short. We are all, “Sons of disobedience and children of wrath” are parallel verses, meaning the same thing.

(v. 2) “in which you once walked,” – The word walk is often used in the New Testament to describe a way of life. The words transgressions and sin describe the path in which people walk and the boundaries that shape their lives.[4]

Because we were spiritually dead, by nature (v. 3) “in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind” – it is our nature as human beings to live this way, and which always results in God’s Wrath. Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

In the gospel of Matthew 11:16-19 we see “But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their playmates, 17 “‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’ 18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds.” John the Baptist and Jesus were both preachers, John’s message was focused on repentance and judgement (like a funeral dirge), and Jesus’ sermons he compares to a flute at a party (good news, joyful) – but the people did not respond to either.

But in the heart of some, there is a quickening.

The Holy Spirit draws some toward Jesus.

 Your Present (vv. 4-6)

4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

(v. 4) “But God,” – dead people can’t do anything. They can’t breathe, they can’t heal, they can’t take action to please God – all they can do it decay. And since they can do nothing to improve their situation, God chose to do something to make our relationship with Him right again. He made the first move.

1 John 4:19 “We love because he first loved us.”

“being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us” – “There is an infinite resources of mercy for the vilest sinner. There is no one for whom there is no mercy” or where the mercy will run out.[5] Not just a little bit of mercy, God is rich in His mercy toward sinners.

In Genesis 1 we see that at the beginning of time, “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.” God spoke, God took action, and there was light where there once was darkness.

God saw our condition of sin and spiritual death, and out of compassion and love for His creation He took action, “made us alive together with Christ Jesus.”

Jesus’ death on a cross and his resurrection from the dead is a picture and a promise of us being made alive with Jesus. “There was a time when because of my sins Jesus Christ lay dead in the grave, but having completed the work that saves, God quickened Him from the dead and brought Him back in triumph from the tomb.”[6] We believe in Him and are brought forth from the place of the dead and are brought back to life.

“by grace you have been saved” – grace is God’s action toward us when we do not deserve His favor.

“raised us up with him and seated[7] us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” – Jesus has done all the work (dying on the cross, bearing the weight of our sin, He has done all the things required for our salvation), then we get to go with him to heaven. Jesus bought the ticket, and he turns and hands us one for free, and we get to go with him.

Your Future (vv. 7-10)

7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

(v.8) “Grace is God’s part, faith is our part.”[8]

God loves his creation so much that He sent His Son into the world to be a propitiation for our sins, but He loves His Son so much that he will not permit anyone into heaven who ignores the work of the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished.”[9]

When a person chokes or drowns and stops breathing, there is nothing he can do.  If he ever breathes again it will be because someone else starts him breathing. A person who is spiritually dead cannot even make a decision of faith unless God breathes into him the breath of spiritual life.  Faith is simply breathing the breath that God’s grace supplies.[10]

Every person lives by faith.  When we open a can of food or drink a glass of water we trust that it is not contaminated.  When we go across a bridge we trust it to support us.  When we put our money in the bank we trust that it will be there when we go to withdraw it.  Life is a constant series of acts of faith.

Human effort has nothing to do with it.  And thus, no one should boast, as if he had any part of it.  All boasting is eliminated in salvation. When we see each other in eternity, we will know that none of us deserve to be there and will bow before Jesus in his glory and grace.

(v. 10) “For we are his workmanship” – Psalm 100:3 “Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.”

Colossians 1:16 “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.”

(v. 10) “created in Christ Jesus for good works” Not in order to be saved but because we are already saved are we to do good works. As the sun was created to shine, the rose to give forth its delightful fragrance, the bird to fly, so we are created anew to do good works and thus to glorify him who created us as what we are in Christ Jesus.”[11]

(v. 10) “which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”[12] – “What Paul says is not that God prepared us that we should walk in good works (so Luther), but that he prepared the good works.”[13] The believer is saved, but then we don’t look around for just something good to do, God lays out the journey before us. Our job is to stay close to God and His Word, so that “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”

“We are saved not by but for good works, and we are saved not just for a beautiful heavenly destiny that God has prepared but for good works here, likewise prepared by God.”[14]

Conclusion – let’s go back to Luke 15, remember when the father sees the son returning home, he says, “Bring quickly the best” – for the farmer it was a robe, a ring, sandals, and a celebration meal. When our heavenly father see us he says, “Bring quickly the best” What is the best that the heavenly father gives us?

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” God gave His best so that we may have eternal life – have you received Jesus’ free gift of salvation and new life?

______________________

[1] August Van Ryn, Ephesians The Glories of His Grace (Neptune, New Jersey; Loizeaux Brothers Publishing, 1963) 40.

[2] H. A. Ironside, In the Heavenlies (Neptune, New Jersey; Louizeaux Brothers, 1979) 101

[3] Ironside, 100.

[4] Klyne Snodgrass, The NIV Application Commentary, Ephesians (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing House, 1996) 96.

[5] Ironside, 105.

[6] Ibid, 106.

[7] Seated is given in the past tense (aorist tense) indicating it being so definite that it is as if it has already fully taken place. MacArthur, 60.

[8] Archibald Thomas Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, Volume 4 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1931) 525.

[9] Ironside, 111.

[10] John MacArthur, The John MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Ephesians (Chicago, Illinois; Moody Press, 1986) 61.

[11] R. C. H. Lenski, The Interpretation of St. Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians to the Ephesians and to the Philippians (Minneapolis, Minnesota; Augsburg Publishing House, 1961) 427.

[12] “C. L. Mitton concludes his discussion on this verse with an appropriate comment: “This final phrase about our ‘walking in them’ reminds us that fine phrases or eloquent sermons about love are not what is required, but the actions, costly actions, which express in practical conduct the love which God’s saving power has created in our hearts.” David J. Williams, New International Biblical Commentary, Ephesians, Colossians, Philemon (Peabody, Massachusetts; Hendrickson Publishers, 1990) 186.

[13] Lenski, 427.

[14] Walter L. Liefeld, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series, Ephesians (Downers Grove, Illinois; Intervarsity Press, 1997) 67.

Christ’s Power Over Every Need The Gospel of Mark Sermon Series “The Equation of Trust” Mark 6:1-13, 30-52

https://youtu.be/zMCJsAxodks

Christ’s Power Over Every Need

The Gospel of Mark Sermon Series

The Equation of Trust

Mark 6:1-13, 30-52

Introduction

How well do we trust God’s saving power in our lives? Luke Aikins is a professional skydiver who jumped from twenty-five thousand feet without a parachute. He spent two years preparing to perform this stunt. He completely trusted the specially constructed net to catch him in a manner that would not cause injury. Dramatically, Aikins successfully landed in the net and walked away without a scratch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPC_h9Vmlxw.[1]

 Prayer

No Effort Minus Jesus Equals Nothing (vv. 1- 6a)

He went away from there and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. 2 And on the Sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue[2], and many who heard him were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things? What is the wisdom given to him? How are such mighty works done by his hands? 3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. 4 And Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.” 5 And he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6 And he marveled because of their unbelief.

We see Jesus’ family mentioned in Mark 3:20-21 “Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. 21 And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.” and 3:31 “And his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him.” and now he leaves his established ministry home of Capernaum, and returns to his childhood home, his hometown of Nazareth.

This was probably the first time that the people of Jesus’ hometown had ever heard him preach and many of them were amazed.[3] “They do not deny the wisdom of his words, nor the wonder of his works, but the townspeople knew Jesus and they had never suspected that he possessed such gifts and graces.”[4]

Like the scribes and Pharisee we have seen before, they are asking the right questions, “Where did this man get these things? What is the wisdom given to him? How are such mighty works done by his hands?” The answer is that he is the Son of God, the Messiah, etc. But they couldn’t get past . . .

(v. 3) “Is not this the carpenter” – This phrase tells us that Jesus was the son of a carpenter (Matt. 13:55), and here we see that he carried on the carpentry family business. The word tekton means to beget, create, craft, art. “It was a very old word, from Homer down.”[5]

(v. 3) “And they took offense at him.” – The hometown was offended that someone like Jesus, Mary’s son, a mere carpenter would dare to make such claims. Familiarity breeds contempt. “The people of Nazareth were incapable of appreciating who Jesus was because, like Jesus’ own family, they identified him with themselves so closely.”[6] Some believers who try to share with their family and friends face something similar. They may say, “I grew up with you, I knew you when you were in high school, etc.”

They are convinced, “God is not going to do anything significant here, and especially with someone that we know.” Once a town full of people are convinced that no one of importance could here come from their ranks, nothing godly will ever happen here – they are not going to serve with any significance, or give with any weight, or sacrifice toward making something work. If there is no faith in God working, then not much will happen.

(vv. 5-6) “5 And he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6 And he marveled because of their unbelief.” At this point Jesus has healed countless people, cast out countless demons, taught incredible teachings, and even raised the dead back to life – so, what is it that amazes Jesus? What does He marvel at? What does it take to push people over the line from unbelief to belief? What does it take a people who have an engrained way of thinking to change?

Jesus encounters the faith of the gentile Centurion in Matthew 8:10 “When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.”

Mark is telling us the unbelief as the cause of non-performance of miracles. They simply didn’t give Jesus an opportunity. “The people of Nazareth were so consistently unbelieving that they would not even bring their sick to Him to be healed.” [7] Jesus also, is not going to go around healing them against their will.

Effort Plus Jesus Equals Results (vv. 6b- 13)

And he went about among the villages teaching. 7 And he called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. 8 He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in their belts— 9 but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics.1 10 And he said to them, “Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you depart from there. 11 And if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to you, when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.” 12 So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent. 13 And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them.

Earlier in Mark 3:14-15 “And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach 15 and have authority to cast out demons.” The disciples have been with Jesus for some time now, and they have heard him preach, seen him perform miracles, and cast out demons. So, now they are sent two-by-two proclaiming that people should repent, and as proof of the one who sent them, they had the power over demons and to heal the sick. They cannot “preach the full gospel until after the passion and resurrection.”[8]

“The purpose of their going in pairs was so that the truthfulness of their testimony about Jesus might be established ‘on the testimony of two or three witnesses’ (Duet. 17:6.)”[9]

Jesus gives them instructions on what to take, and what not to take on this mission trip. Take a friend (two-by-two) and a staff, regular set of clothes. Do not take special traveling shoes, no extra clothes, no food, no money or a bag to put it all in. Just the bare essentials. Pick a place to stay, don’t float from house to house. They were to have absolute trust in God to supply all their needs.

God Will Provide What They Need!

The message of repentance is what John the Baptist preached (Matt. 3:2) and what Jesus has always preached (Mark 1:15), it’s what the disciples preached, but they don’t seem to understand why (repent)? You repent so that you can receive the Savior. You repent so that you can receive what you need – they don’t understand this yet.

Any time disciples of Christ go out to share His message, there will be those who reject it. He has already began preparing them with the parable of the four soils (Mark 4) where only 25% of the Word will come to fruition. So Jesus says, “And if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to you, when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.”

The shaking off the dust from their feet was to make it clear that those who rejected the message must now answer for themselves. Their message brings salvation to those who believe, and judgement to those that do not. This always happens when the gospel is preached.[10] (v. 12-13) “So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent. 13 And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them.”

14-29 death of John the Baptist[11]

Expectation Plus Effort Plus Jesus Equals Solution (vv. 30-44)

Vintage still life of an old wine jug with bread loaves and fresh fish

30 The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. 31 And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. 32 And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves. 33 Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they ran there on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. 34 When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things. 35 And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. 36 Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” 37 But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said to him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?” 38 And he said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they had found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.” 39 Then he commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. 41 And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And he divided the two fish among them all. 42 And they all ate and were satisfied. 43 And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. 44 And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.

(v. 30) “The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught.” As far as we can tell, they preached repentance, healed the sick, and cast out demons, i.e. they did what Jesus sent them out to do. In response to their tour and present condition Jesus says, “let’s take a vacation!” (v. 32) “And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves.”

But recognizing Jesus and the disciples they run to catch up with them. One town would run through the next where others would join in, so that as this group of runners went around the lake it got bigger and bigger as they went through villages, until eventually the crowd equaled five thousand people. (v.33) “But a vigorous crowd of runners would not have many sick.”[12]

This crowd ran a considerable distance to see and experience Jesus. The Good Shepherd saw them as “sheep without a shepherd,” and he had compassion on them, and he taught them many things.

What a difference between the crowd of his hometown and the crowd that literally runs after him wherever Jesus goes. Do you think they were expecting Jesus to do something wonderful?

(vv. 35-36) “This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. 36 Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” The disciples reaction to the crowd is not compassion, nor do they ask, “how can we teach them truth?” Their response is “send them away.” Shows over.

The disciples have just returned from performing miraculous healing, casting our demons, and preaching – They did not miss a meal, they had a place to stay, and they accomplished the mission. God provided what they needed (then).

But they don’t see themselves as being apart of the answer to the current situation. Jesus’ hometown could not see God working through someone they knew; here the disciples don’t see that they could be apart of the solution. They don’t think to ask, “How will God provide for this need?

If everyone is sitting around waiting for someone else to solve the problem nothing gets done. Both types of blindness lead to the same place (nothing gets done). Also, it’s way easier to just quit than to try and solve the problem. It’s easy to say “Send them home.”

So Jesus tells the disciples (v. 37) “You give them something to eat.” – Figure it out. Try. Look around, what do you have at your disposal to solve this problem? The disciple’s answer is for everything to end and let the people fend for themselves.

Jesus takes what they have, five loaves and two fish, and solves the problem. Effort plus Jesus equals problem solved.

The disciples have seen Jesus heal countless people at this point, cast out many demons, calm a storm with his words, and even raise a girl from the dead – and they have themselves cast out demons, healed the sick, and preached – but the disciples don’t say, “Jesus what would you recommend?” They try to figure it out in their own small minds, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?” – we don’t have enough resources to take care of this problem.

God Will Provide What Is Needed!

They have the right message (repentance) but they don’t have the right heart yet (shepherd’s heart). When they see the crowd, they see a problem (too much money, creates problems, stress). When Jesus sees the crowd, he sees it through a shepherd’s lens (compassion, teaching opportunity, how can we stay together?)

(v. 40) “So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties.” – The word for group here is the same as Palestinian flower garden plots or beds.[13]

 (v. 43) “And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish.” – they took the twelve baskets full of bread and fish and loaded them into the boat. Next to each disciple was a basket full of bread and fish.

Experience Plus Jesus Equals Understanding (vv. 45-52)

45 Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. 46 And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray. 47 And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea, and he was alone on the land. 48 And he saw that they were making headway painfully, for the wind was against them. And about the fourth watch[14] of the night he came to them, walking on the sea.[15] He meant to pass by them, 49 but when they saw him walking on the sea they thought it was a ghost, and cried out, 50 for they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” 51 And he got into the boat with them, and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, 52 for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.

“Immediately” after the five thousand people were fed, he made his disciples get into the boat and sent them off. John’s gospel (6:15 ff.) tells us that there is the crowd is getting wound up, and that there is danger of a messianic uprising as a result of the miracle.[16] The crowd is recognizing Jesus as the promised prophet and wanted to proclaim him as king.[17]

He apparently does not want the disciples to get swept up into this ideology, and He will try to calm the crowd down and dismiss them. Jesus did not want zealots to steal the movement away and attach their agenda and message to the miracles that Jesus was doing.

(v. 46) In Mark there are three times where Jesus retreats to pray,[18] and in each incident there is a crisis, and there is a temptation not to carry out God’s mission for him – a mission that would ultimately bring suffering, rejection, and death.

“for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.” What was it that the disciples failed to understand? What is it that their hearts are hardened toward? All Powerful God will provide what is needed, “for those who are called according to his purpose.” Jesus as the Son of God is God in the flesh who has come to provide what the entire earth needs – salvation.

Jesus has been revealed as a great teacher, a healer, raiser of the dead, one who can provide your every need – He is not just a miracle worker, He is the Son of God. If the disciples had understood this then when they saw Jesus walking on the water they would not have been terrified.

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[1] https://illustrationideas.bible/saving-power/

[2] This was the last time in the gospel of Mark that Jesus teaches at a synagogue.

[3] Frank E. Gaebelein, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 8 (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing House, 1984) 665.

[4] Archibald Thomas Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, Volume 1 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1932) 305.

[5] Robertson, 306.

[6] Gaebelein, 665.

[7] Alexander Balman Bruce, The Expositor’s Greek Testament, Volume 1 (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Grand Rapids Book Manufacturers, 1967) 378.

[8] James A. Brooks, The New American Commentary, Mark (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1991) 102.

[9] Gaebelein, 667.

[10] Ibid.

[11] I cover Mark 6:14-29 in the following sermon preached earlier in the year; https://drewboswell.com/how-do-i-please-god-with-my-life-by-persevering-in-the-face-of-difficulty-john-the-baptist-part-3-matthew-141-12/

[12] Robertson, 315.

[13] Bruce, 384.

[14] The night was divided into four watches: 6-9pm, 9-12pm, 12-3am, 3-6am.

[15] Job 9:8 and 38:16 discuss God walking upon the water.

[16] Gaebelein, 675. Hurtado also explains how the crowd would have easily seen parallels between the particular characteristics of the miracle and Moses in the wilderness, the feeding of manna, and how the tribes were arranged, etc.

[17] Brooks, 111.

[18] Mark 1:35 people not hearing the message of the gospel because they were focused on healing; Mark 6:46 overthrow of the government by uprising; Mark 14:32-36 the Garden of Gethsemane when Jesus is facing the cross.

"For by grace you have been saved through faith." Ephesians 2:8

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