Community Christian Church

Mark has been showing us that his statement in 1:1 is not hyperbole, but fact. Jesus may be like Moses and Elijah, but he is far greater than either of them. Only God has the power to order and tame the chaos. As the Spirit hovered over the waters and brought order out of chaos so too does Jesus.

Mark shows us that Jesus is the rightful king and the true leader of Israel, not evil Herod. The main motivations of the kingdoms of this world are pride and selfish gain but Jesus’ motivation was compassion. Jesus is the one who shows genuine hospitality to his guests. He rules with compassions and gives in abundance. 

The message of the Kingdom is good news that followers of Jesus should share with a sense of urgency. However, we see that this message will not always be seen as good news because it stands in opposition to the kingdoms we build on our own power.

None of us want to be people with whom Jesus is amazed by our unbelief. A good step in following Jesus is to ask the question, "in what ways is Jesus amazed by my faith?"

Desperation is often a catalyst for faith. In our story Jesus takes that which is unclean and makes it clean;  that which was dead now lives.

Jesus is a restorer of dignity and giver of renewal. Jesus sees people one at a time.

In the calming of the fierce storm, the disciples move from asking “Do you even care?” to “Who is this man?” Fearing the right thing is an essential part of maturing in faith. “Fear of the Lord is the foundation of wisdom (Prov. 9:10).”
 
Jesus is Lord over all creation, he is with us, and he is on his throne. When things are difficult it is important to remind ourselves who Jesus is and where Jesus is. 

Jesus doesn’t want to keep us in the dark, rather He desires to illuminate us. Especially our understanding of the Kingdom.