Monthly Archives: May 2020

THE GOSPEL OF MARK – NEW CLOTH, NEW WINE

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NEW CLOTH, NEW WINE

18 Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?”

19 Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. 20 But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast.

21 “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. 22 And no one pours new wine into old wine-skins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wine-skins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wine-skins.” Mark 2:18-22

The people who came to Jesus with their question about fasting are unspecified: perhaps observant, perhaps curious, perhaps interested, or perhaps critical; who knows? They were looking in on a situation of religious observance from the outside. Perhaps they were more impressed by the discipline of the disciples of John and the Pharisees than by the happy-go-lucky attitude of Jesus and His disciples. These were frivolous compared with the religious austerity of the other men.

Jesus’ reply is surprising, exactly reflecting the scenario these people were questioning. What was He saying? “Haven’t you people got it yet? Don’t you recognise that it’s party time? The bridegroom is here and He has come to claim His bride. This is not time for austerity. It’s time to enter into the celebration.”

He adds two earthy but cryptic observations – new cloth, new wine; old garment, old wine-skins. This should have alerted the listeners that something big is going on here; a big upheaval in their thinking and in their system is happening. New cloth and new wine are not yet in a static and inflexible state. They have to be connected to something that will move with them.

The old system, represented by statutory fasting and all the other disciplines attached to it, has lost its heart. It is no longer flexible, elastic and living, able to move and grow. It cannot hold the new wine of the Spirit, the dynamic, mysterious life of God, without being ruptured by its power. God’s life cannot flourish in a rigid form. Jesus said that the life of the Spirit is like the wind, invisible, unpredictable but dynamic in its outcome. If we try to pour it into a rigid system of rules and ritual, it will explode the system and dissipate.

Like every other aspect of life in the Spirit, fasting must be of the heart, motivated by love and obedience and directed towards a higher purpose – seeking fellowship and oneness with the Father, flowing in harmony with the unpredictable life of the Spirit.

THE GOSPEL OF MARK – THE BRIDEGROOM IS HERE

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THE BRIDEGROOM IS HERE

18 Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?”

19 Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. 20 But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast.

21 “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. 22 And no one pours new wine into old wine skins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wine skins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wine skins.” Mark 2:18-22

In this short passage, Jesus was questioned about fasting. Why did the disciples of John fast but not His disciples, as disciples of a rabbi with authority, not as a religious discipline? Is there a difference between fasting as a discipline and fasting as setting aside physical needs to seek the Lord as Jesus did in the wilderness?

Jesus’ response to the question throws some light on the purpose of fasting. Because He was with His disciples in the flesh, there was no need to put eating aside to seek the Lord. In fact, according to Jesus, for the disciples it was a time of celebration as joyful as a wedding party. His physical presence with them made life a perpetual celebration. But, like a wedding, it would only be for a short time and then the bride and groom would leave.

Fasting is not an end in itself. It plays a part in reaching a goal. There is no merit in fasting unless it serves a greater purpose – to seek and enjoy the presence of Jesus. The appetites of the body and the humanness of the mind obscure the manifest presence of God. They form the veil which separate us from seeing and enjoying the greater glory of God’s presence. The more we learn to subdue our bodies and enrich our minds with the truth of God’s powerful and creative word, the more we will “see” Him.

Fasting has no merit other than a change of focus. We must not mix the purpose of fasting for its physical benefits with the spiritual benefit of giving God our undivided attention. Fasting does have definite physical benefit, cleansing of the system and the weight loss that goes with it. However, unless that is our focus and purpose, keep the goal of meeting with God in mind and don’t let any other motive distract.

THE GOSPELOF MARK – HE SAW LEVI

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HE SAW LEVI

Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. 14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.

15 While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Mark 2:13-17

As Jesus walked along the edge of the lake He saw Levi collecting taxes and Levi saw Him.  What did Jesus value so much in Levi that He called him to follow Him? Did He see a man whose greed had brought everything out of him that was devious and dishonest, now disillusioned with wealth, with a heart yearning for something better? Did He value in him the willingness to leave that all behind to go after God? What did Levi see in Jesus that drew him like magnet?

Why was Jesus comfortable with what the Pharisees called “the riff-raff” – people who made no pretense of being religious; people who didn’t hide their lifestyle but who felt comfortable with Him because He didn’t judge them? He accepted them as they were. The very fact that He ate with them meant that He was at peace with them.

Does that mean that He was comfortable with the way they lived? No, but it was not an issue to Him because He knew that He could offer them a better life and He knew their potential.

He valued the fact that they were who they were. If anything, He was not comfortable with their critics whose lives were equally soiled with sin but it was all hidden under a facade of “holiness”.

What kind of honesty is Jesus looking for? Not the attitude that I am a good-for-nothing worm who is always putting myself down, but an honesty that is willing to own who I am, both good and bad, and place myself in His hands to restore what is broken and clean up what is tamai- unclean – so that I can have transparent fellowship with Him in all circumstances.

As long as our hearts are open with Him and we don’t cover up and pretend, we can journey with Him in the ups and downs because we are going somewhere together and He is leading. He is always with us whether we feel Him or not.

THE GOSPEL OF MARK – SON…FORGIVEN

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SON…FORGIVEN

A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2 They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3 Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. 4 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. 5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

6 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

8 Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? 9 Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? 10 But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the man, 11 “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” 12 He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!” Mark 2:1-12

What did Jesus see and value in the paralysed man? He may seem like a passive player in this scene but he most definitely was not. Until Jesus appeared on the public scene in Galilee, the man was helpless and hopeless. There was no cure for his condition and he was doomed to lie motionless on his mat day after day, relying on someone else to help him with every little detail of his life. He was a prisoner of his useless body with no hope of ever being released.

In that condition, his mind must have been hyperactive. How much time did he spend alone, just thinking? He was unable to do any religious exercises like offering sacrifices, attending the synagogue or celebrating the feasts, which might have brought some relief to his conscience. How many times did he lie wondering what caused his condition? What an internal hell he must have endured with no answers and no-one to give him hope.

What Jesus recognised in him drew out deep compassion for the man. He must have seen a repentant heart and a desperate longing for peace. Before He addressed his physical need, Jesus touched his heart. Forgiveness was a far greater need than healing and, with a word, Jesus swept his conscience clean. The man didn’t argue with His right or ability to forgive sins; he felt it, and his strengthened body responded.

Jesus values a broken and contrite heart. Until a person owns, not only his sin, but also his responsibility for his sin, he remains a prisoner to what is worse than sin itself, the pride that refuses to be accountable for the heart that rebels against God. Jesus values the ruthless honesty that confesses, “I did it and I alone am responsible for what I have done.” This includes the thoughts and motives that may never issue in any kind of action, but that remain in the heart to poison the inner life and cast a shadow over relationships with both God and men.

THE GOSPEL OF MARK – HE SAW THEIR FAITH

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HE SAW THEIR FAITH

A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2 They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3 Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. 4 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. 5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

6 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

8 Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? 9 Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? 10 But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the man, 11 “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” 12 He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!” Mark 2:1-1

What did Jesus value in people? To what did He respond in people’s actions and attitudes towards Him? There were different responses in this story. The house was crowded with people, curiosity-seekers, people who loved being entertained by His miracles, those in need, those who learned from His teaching and, as always, the Pharisees who were both spies and critics.

Into that crowd came 5 people, four friends who carried a fifth, a paralytic lying on his sleeping mat; not through the door but through the roof. What did Jesus recognise immediately in these men that caused Him to respond? They were determined, persistent, persevering, committed, creative and confident in their approach to Jesus. They refused to allow anything to stop them from getting the paralysed man to Him.

Is it any wonder that He responded so promptly to the situation? To have people take so much trouble and effort to reach Him meant that they were not going to stop until they got what they wanted. Why does Jesus value this kind of attitude? It means that they had so much confidence in Him that they would do whatever it took to bridge the gap between their friend and Him.

What does this mean in today’s terms? We don’t have to overcome physical obstacles to reach Him but there is still a heart attitude that will bring us close to Him. What is it that hinders our confidence in His ability and His will to meet our need? How determined and persistent are we to overcome every obstacle between Him and us?

It doesn’t matter if the issue is our need or the needs of a friend. He values the attitude that recognises His heart for people and will stop at nothing until we have touched His heart. It is not God’s reluctance that we have to overcome but our reluctance to accept His unconditional love.