The King Comes To His Temple
Like the fig tree, the Temple was utterly barren of fruit and Jesus pronounced it to be dead, never to bear the fruit of true worship of God again.
Mark 11:11-25
The King Comes To His City
As He entered Jerusalem for the final time, Jesus purposefully fulfilled several Messianic prophecies, and the crowd’s joyful response was also a fulfillment of the prophecies regarding the coming of the King to His City.
Mark 11:1-11
Lessons for Disciples – True Sight
The interaction of Jesus and Bartimaeus that led to his healing and salvation is the picture of true sight and the model of real discipleship.
Mark 10:46-52
Lessons for Disciples – A King’s Ransom
Jesus the King is the Servant of the Lord Who will lay down His life to ransom His people, taking their sin and punishment on Himself, setting them free from death and restoring them from exile to be the people of God.
Mark 10:45
Lessons for Disciples – A Kingdom of Servants
Disciples must follow Jesus in rejecting the world’s grasping for power, choosing to live as servants, willing to be mistreated and suffer, trusting God the Father to vindicate His followers in His own time.
Mark 10:32-45
Lessons for Disciples – The Kingdom and Wealth
Disciples of Christ must recognize and reject the temptation to trust in riches, look to God alone as their source of identity and salvation, and use their wealth to be a blessing to others.
Mark 10:17-31
Lessons for Disciples – Entering The Kingdom
No human can enter the kingdom of God by their own works or efforts but only by the grace and work of God.
Mark 10:17-31
Lessons for Disciples – The Kingdom, Disciples, and the Little Children
Unlike the kingdoms of this world, the Kingdom of God does not give preference to the powerful or wealthy but is open to everyone who will receive it like a little child by recognizing their helplessness and great need that only Jesus can meet.
Mark 10:13-16
Lessons for Disciples – Marriage (Part 3) – Joined Together By God
When a man and a woman take covenant marriage vows God supernaturally joins them together, creating a new union that they must spend the rest of their earthly life nurturing through healthy practices so that their marriage flourishes to the glory of God and their joy.
Mark 10: 5-9
Lessons for Disciples – Marriage (Part 2)
Jesus taught that God made humans male or female and that marriage is the lifelong union of one man and one woman. Therefore any alternative ideas of “marriage” or contexts for sexual activity violate God’s design and intent.
Mark 10:1-12
Lessons for Disciples – Marriage (Part 1)
Jesus taught that marriage was given by God at creation to be the lifelong union of one man and one woman, and disciples must look to strengthen marriage, not seek excuses to divorce.
Mark 10:1-12
Lessons for Disciples – The Real Enemy
A disciple is called to live at peace with other believers, focusing on rooting sin out of their own life rather than criticizing their brothers and sisters.
Mark 9:38-50
Lessons for Disciples – The Upside-Down Kingdom
Disciples must understand the upside-down nature of the kingdom of God, for God’s Kingdom is established through the death of the King, and true greatness is found in being the servant of all.
Mark 9:14-29
Apprenticeship Through Failure
Through their failure to cast out a demon, the disciples learn that ministry and spiritual warfare are not based on technique or their own abilities, but rather by consistently walking close to God through faith and prayer.
Mark 9:14-29
The Ministry of the Messenger
Like Elijah and John the Baptist, we are called to be messengers proclaiming the King is coming, understanding that this often leads to opposition and suffering for the messenger.
Mark 9:9-13
A Glimpse of Glory
The Transfiguration is a revelation showing that the New Covenant has arrived, unveiling Jesus in His full glory so that the disciples can be sustained through the suffering that comes to Jesus and His followers.
Mark 9:1-8
The Disciple’s Cross
Disciples are called to follow Jesus, which means they must deny themselves and take up their cross, enduring persecution and suffering in this age while looking forward to the eternal reward they will be granted at the return of Christ.
Mark 8:34-38
King’s Cross
Jesus is the Messianic King Who came to suffer, be rejected, die, and be raised so that He might save us from our sin.
Mark 8:31-33
Growing Sight
The two-stage healing of the blind man is a living parable for how spiritual blindness was being healed in the disciples – and is healed in people through the ages.
Mark 8:22-30
Do You Still Not Understand?
Even after Jesus miraculously fed a multitude a second time in the wilderness, the Pharisees refused to believe and the disciples still lacked understanding of Jesus and His ways.
Mark 8:1-21
He Does All Things Well
Jesus’ miraculous healings were signs that He was the promised Messiah, the foretaste of His renewal and restoration of all creation for the glory of God.
Mark 7:31-37
Humble Faith
The Syro-Phoenician woman is a paragon of humility and faith, accepting her utter need for God’s grace and actively seeking until she receives it.
Mark 7:24-30
God’s Law in the New Covenant
In the new covenant, the ceremonial law has been fulfilled by Jesus and is no longer in effect, but the moral law, which is a reflection of God’s unchanging character, continues to define sin and righteousness for all humans.
Mark 7:14-23
Truly Clean
Jesus teaches us that impurity, which is the violation of God’s moral law, arises from inside our hearts rather than from outside sources, and therefore true cleansing is not a matter of external religious rites but rather an internal change of heart.
Mark 7:14-23
Scripture and Tradition
Jesus taught that Scripture alone is the final authority for God’s people; therefore all traditions and extra-biblical teachings and practices are helpful only when they clarify, support, uphold, and submit to the Scripture.
Mark 7:1-13