February 9, 2020 – Mark’s Good News about Jesus – Growing Living Hearts in Stone

Growing Living Hearts in Stone


Daniel 2:36-45 - New International Version (NIV)

³⁶ “This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king. ³⁷ Your Majesty, you are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you dominion and power and might and glory; ³⁸ in your hands he has placed all mankind and the beasts of the field and the birds in the sky. Wherever they live, he has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold.

³⁹ “After you, another kingdom will arise, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth. ⁴⁰ Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron—for iron breaks and smashes everything—and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others. ⁴¹ Just as you saw that the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. ⁴² As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. ⁴³ And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay.

⁴⁴ “In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. ⁴⁵ This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands—a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces.

“The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future. The dream is true and its interpretation is trustworthy.”

What is Daniel going to do (verse 36)?

What has God given to the king  (verse 37)?

In your opinion, why is the king the head of gold (verse 38)?

How does the second kingdom compare to the king’s kingdom (verse 39)?

What is different about the third kingdom (verse 39)?

How will the fourth kingdom treat “all the others” (verse 40)?

Why does Daniel say the fourth kingdom “will be a divided kingdom” (verse 41)?

Who will “set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people” (verse 44)?

What did the “rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands” break (verse 45)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Mark 4:26-34 - New International Version (NIV)

²⁶ He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. ²⁷ Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. ²⁸ All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. ²⁹ As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.”

³⁰ Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? ³¹ It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. ³² Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.”

³³ With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand. ³⁴ He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.

What is the kingdom of God like (verse 26)?

When does the seed sprout and grow (verse 27)?

How does the soil produce grain (verse 28)?

What happens when the grain is ripe (verse 29)?

How is the mustard seed, which the kingdom of God is like, described (verses 30 and 31)?

What does the mustard seed become (verse 32)?

How much of the word did Jesus speak to them (verse 33)?

What was different about the way Jesus treated the people and His disciples (verse 34)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how is the description of the kingdom of God as being like the tiny mustard seed in Mark 4:26-34 instead of the kingdom crushing mountain of Daniel 36-45 reassuring to members of the kingdom of God today?  Why is the crushing mountain of Daniel also an important image?

Acts 11:19-26 – New International Version (NIV)

¹⁹ Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. ²⁰ Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. ²¹ The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.

²² News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. ²³ When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. ²⁴ He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.

²⁵ Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, ²⁶ and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.

What did those who were “scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed” do (verse 19)?

Who did the “men from Cyprus and Cyrene” begin to tell the “good news about the Lord Jesus” to (verse 20)?

What was with the “men from Cyprus and Cyrene” (verse 21)?

Who sent Barnabas to Antioch (verse 22)?

What did Barnabas encourage the Greek believers in Antioch to do (verse 23)?

How was Barnabas described (verse 24)?

In your opinion, why did Barnabas find Saul and bring him to Antioch (verses 25 and 26)?

What first happened in Antioch (verse 26)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how is the beginning of the fulfillment of the “vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands” crushing kingdoms of Daniel 2:36-45 seen in the results of the persecution of Acts 11:19-26?

In your opinion, how is the promise of the kingdom of God being like the seed sprouting and growing even though the man did not know how in Mark 4:26-33 fulfilled by the people scattered by persecution in Acts 11:19-26?

1 Peter 2:4-10 – New International Version (NIV)

⁴ As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— ⁵ you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. ⁶ For in Scripture it says:

“See, I lay a stone in Zion,
    a chosen and precious cornerstone,
and the one who trusts in him
    will never be put to shame.”

⁷ Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe,

“The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone,”

⁸ and,

“A stone that causes people to stumble
    and a rock that makes them fall.”

They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.

⁹ But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. ¹⁰ Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

How does Peter describe the relationship of God with “the living Stone” (verse 4)?

What are “living stones” being built into (verse 5)?

In your opinion, why is it significant that Jesus in the “chosen and precious cornerstone” of the “spiritual house” that Christians are being built into (verses 5 and 6)?

Why do “those who do not believe” stumble (verses 7 and 8)?

What are those who are “a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession” to declare (verse 9)?

What are the people who once “were not a people” (verse 10)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how are the people who were not a people but now are “living stones . . . being built into a spiritual house” on the cornerstone of Jesus in 1 Peter 2:4-10 a way to look at the stone cut out but not by human hands that will crush the metal kingdoms and become a kingdom that will endure forever in Daniel 2:36-45?

In your opinion, how does Peter combine the growing of the kingdom of God which Jesus describes as seeds sprouting and growing in Mark 4:26-33 with the Old Testament quotes about stones he uses in 1 Peter 2:4-10?

In your opinion, how are the persecuted Jewish believers speaking to the Greeks in Antioch in Acts 11:16-26 a powerful example of the Christians that Peter says “once were not a people, but now you are the people of God”?

In your opinion, what do these passages from Daniel, Mark, Acts and 1 Peter teach us about the kingdom of God?

In your opinion, as living stones growing into a mountain that endures, what do we learn from Barnabas who encourages us to remain true to the Lord with all our hearts?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

February 2, 2020 – Mark’s Good News about Jesus – Lasting Radiance

Lasting Radiance


Exodus 34:29-35 - New International Version (NIV)

²⁹ When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord. ³⁰ When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. ³¹ But Moses called to them; so Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and he spoke to them. ³² Afterward all the Israelites came near him, and he gave them all the commands the Lord had given him on Mount Sinai.

³³ When Moses finished speaking to them, he put a veil over his face. ³⁴ But whenever he entered the Lord’s presence to speak with him, he removed the veil until he came out. And when he came out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, ³⁵ they saw that his face was radiant. Then Moses would put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with the Lord.

When was Moses’s face radiant (verse 29)?

Who was afraid to come near Moses because of his radiant face (verse 30)?

What did Aaron and the community leaders do when Moses called them (verse 31)?

What did Moses do when all the Israelites came near him (verse 32)?

When did Moses put a veil over his face (verse 33)?

In your opinion, why did Moses take the veil off “whenever he entered the Lord’s presence to speak with him” (verse 34)?

When would Moses put the veil back over his face (verse 35)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Mark 4:21-25 - New International Version (NIV)

²¹ He said to them, “Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don’t you put it on its stand? ²² For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open. ²³ If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear.”

²⁴ “Consider carefully what you hear,” he continued. “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and even more. ²⁵ Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.”

Where is a lamp put (verse 21)?

What is “meant to be disclosed” (verse 22)?

Where is “whatever is concealed” meant to be (verse 22)?

In your opinion, why does Jesus say “if anyone has ears to hear, let them hear” (verse 23)?

How will what we hear be measured (verse 24)?

What will happen for “whoever has” (verse 25)?

What will be taken away from “whoever does not have” (verse 25)?

In your opinion, “has” or “does not have” what (verse 25)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how does Moses’s face that he received when he entered the Lord’s presence in Exodus 34:29-35 help us understand what it means to be the lamp that Jesus refers to in Mark 4:21-25? 

Acts 13:4-12 – New International Version (NIV)

⁴ The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus. ⁵ When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper.

⁶ They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, ⁷ who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. ⁸ But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. ⁹ Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, ¹⁰ “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? ¹¹ Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.”

Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. ¹² When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.

How were Barnabas and Saul “sent on their way” (verse 4)?

What did they proclaim in Salamis in the Jewish synagogues (verse 5)?

Who is Bar-Jesus (verse 6)?

Why did the proconsul send for Barnabas and Saul (verse 7)?

Who opposed them (verse 8)?

What filled Paul (verse 9)?

How did Paul describe Elymas (verse 10)?

What was going to be the proof that the hand of the Lord was against Elymas (verse 11)?

Why did Elymas grope about (verse 11)?

Why did the proconsul believe (verse 12)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what is the difference between Moses speaking with the Lord and having a radiant face when he talked with the people in Exodus 34:29-35 and Paul being filled with the Holy Spirt and amazing the proconsul in Acts 13:4-12?

In your opinion, how is Elymas being made blind in Acts 13:4-12 an example of Jesus’s statement in Mark 4:21-25 that “whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them”?

2 Corinthians 3:7-18 – New International Version (NIV)

⁷ Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, transitory though it was, ⁸ will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? ⁹ If the ministry that brought condemnation was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! ¹⁰ For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. ¹¹ And if what was transitory came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!

¹² Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. ¹³ We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to prevent the Israelites from seeing the end of what was passing away. ¹⁴ But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. ¹⁵ Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. ¹⁶ But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. ¹⁷ Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. ¹⁸ And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

What was transitory but still brought so much glory that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses (verse 7)?

What will be even more glorious (verse 8)?

In your opinion, what is the ministry that brought condemnation (verse 9)?

In your opinion, what is the ministry that brings righteousness (verse 9)?

Why can we be very bold (verse 12)?

Who “put a veil over his face to” (verse 13)?

What happened to the minds of the Israelites because of the veil (verse 14)?

How is the veil taken away (verse 14)?

What happens when Moses is read (verse 15)?

When is the veil taken away (verse 16)?

Where is there freedom (verse 17)?

What is happening to those who “with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory” (verse 18)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how is Moses’s transformation everytime he was in the Lord’s presence in Exodus 34:29-35 an example for those who have turned to the Lord in 2 Corinthians 3:7-18?

In your opinion, how does Jesus’s lesson in Mark 4:21-25 relate to those who have turned to the Lord and are being transformed as described in 2 Corinthians 3:7-18?

In your opinion, what should those who have turned to the Lord as described in 2 Corinthians 3:7-18 learn from the opposition of Elymas to Barnabas and Paul who were full of the Holy Spirit according to Acts 13:4-12?

In your opinion, what do these passages from Exodus, Mark, Acts and 2 Corinthians teach us about what it means to be a radiant Christian?

In your opinion, how can we be a lamp on a stand?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

January 26, 2020 – Mark’s Good News about Jesus – Parables – Lie Busting Truth Seeds

Parables - Lie Busting Truth Seeds

Psalm 115:1-11 - New International Version (NIV)

¹ Not to us, Lord, not to us
    but to your name be the glory,
    because of your love and faithfulness.

² Why do the nations say,
    “Where is their God?”
³ Our God is in heaven;
    he does whatever pleases him.
⁴ But their idols are silver and gold,
    made by human hands.
⁵ They have mouths, but cannot speak,
    eyes, but cannot see.
⁶ They have ears, but cannot hear,
    noses, but cannot smell.
⁷ They have hands, but cannot feel,
    feet, but cannot walk,
    nor can they utter a sound with their throats.
⁸ Those who make them will be like them,
    and so will all who trust in them.

⁹ All you Israelites, trust in the Lord—
    he is their help and shield.
¹⁰ House of Aaron, trust in the Lord—
    he is their help and shield.
¹¹ You who fear him, trust in the Lord—
    he is their help and shield.

What is to the Lord’s name (verse 1)?

In your opinion, “why do the nations say, “Where is their God”” (verse 2)?

Where is God (verse 3)?

How are the nation’s idols made (verse 4)?

What can’t their idols do (verses 5 through 7)?

In your opinion, how will those who make idols be like them (verse 8)?

What is the Lord to the Israelites (verse 9)?

Who should those who fear the Lord trust (verse 11)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Mark 4:1-20 - New International Version (NIV)

¹ Again Jesus began to teach by the lake. The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it out on the lake, while all the people were along the shore at the water’s edge. ² He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said: ³ “Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed. ⁴ As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. ⁵ Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. ⁶ But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. ⁷ Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. ⁸ Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.”

⁹ Then Jesus said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”

¹⁰ When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. ¹¹ He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables ¹² so that,

“‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving,
    and ever hearing but never understanding;
otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’”

¹³ Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? ¹⁴ The farmer sows the word. ¹⁵ Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. ¹⁶ Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. ¹⁷ But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. ¹⁸ Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; ¹⁹ but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. ²⁰ Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.”

Why did Jesus get into the boat (verse 1)?

How did Jesus teach them (verse 2)?

What did the farmer go out to do (verse 3)?

What happened to the seed on the path (verse 4)?

Why did the seed that fell on the rocky places spring up quickly (verse 5)?

What happened to those plants when the sun came up (verse 6)?

Why did the seed that fell among the thorns not bear grain (verse 7)?

What seed produced a crop (verse 8)?

Who has the “secret of the kingdom of God” been given to (verse 11)?

In your opinion, why does Jesus want those on the outside to be “ever seeing but never perceiving” (verse 12)?

What does the farmer sow (verse 14)?

Who takes away the seed along the path (verse 15)?

Why do those like seed sown on rocky places fall quickly away (verses 16 and 17)?

Why are those like seed sown among thorns unfruitful (verses 18 and 19)?

What do those who are like seed sown on good soil do (verse 20)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does the discussion of idols and those who worship them in Psalms 115:1-11 help us understand about those who Jesus said in Mark 4:1-20 were on the outside and therefore they would “be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding”? 

Acts 8:9-25 – New International Version (NIV)

⁹ Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, ¹⁰ and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, “This man is rightly called the Great Power of God.” ¹¹ They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his sorcery. ¹² But when they believed Philip as he proclaimed the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. ¹³ Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.

¹⁴ When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. ¹⁵ When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, ¹⁶ because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. ¹⁷ Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

¹⁸ When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money ¹⁹ and said, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”

²⁰ Peter answered: “May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! ²¹ You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. ²² Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that he may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. ²³ For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.”

²⁴ Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.”

²⁵ After they had further proclaimed the word of the Lord and testified about Jesus, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many Samaritan villages.

How did Simon amaze the people of Samaria (verse 9)?

What did “all the people, both high and low” say about Simon (verse 10)?

Why did they follow him (verse 11)?

What did Philip proclaim that caused men and women to be baptized (verse 12)?

What astonished Simon (verse 13)?

Who sent Peter and John to Samaria (verse 14)?

What did Peter and John pray for (verse 15)?

When did the Holy Spirit come to the new believers in Samaria (verse 17)?

What did Simon offer the apostles (verse 18)?

What did Simon want in return (verse 19)?

Who told Simon “may your money perish with you” (verse 20)?

What part of Simon was not “right before God” (verse 21)?

What was Simon to hope for from the Lord when he repented and prayed (verse 22)?

What held Simon captive (verse 23)?

How did Simon respond to Peter (verse 24)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how is Simon in Acts 8:9-25 different from the people of Psalms 115:1-11 whose idols are “silver and gold, made by human hands”?

In your opinion, which of the types of soil from the parable of the soils in Mark 4:1-20 do you think Simon, in Acts 8:9-25, is represented by?  Why?

Revelation 3:14-22 – New International Version (NIV)

¹⁴ “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:

These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. ¹⁵ I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! ¹⁶ So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. ¹⁷ You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. ¹⁸ I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.

¹⁹ Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. ²⁰ Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

²¹ To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. ²² Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Who is this letter to (verse 14)?

In your opinion, why would Jesus wish the people of the church in Laodicea were either hot or cold (verse 15)?

Why will Jesus spit them out of His mouth (verse 16)?

What does the church of Laodicea not realize (verse 17)?

In your opinion, why would Jesus counsel them to purchase the gold, white clothes and salve (verse 18)?

What does Jesus do to those He loves (verse 19)?

Where is Jesus and what is He doing (verse 20)?

Who will sit with Jesus on His throne (verse 21)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how are the people of the church in Laodicea in Revelation 3:14-22 similar to the people of Psalms 115:1-11 whose idols are “silver and gold, made by human hands”?  How are they different?

In your opinion, which of the types of soil from the parable in Mark 4:1-20 do you think the people of Laodicea, in Revelation 3:14-22, represent?  Why?

In your opinion, what can we learn from the Paul’s instruction to Simon in Acts 8:9-25 to “repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that he may forgive you” and Jesus’s instruction to the Laodiceans in Revelation 3:14-22 to “be earnest and repent”?

In your opinion, what do these passages from Psalms, Mark, Acts and Revelation teach us about our response to Jesus, the Word of God?

In your opinion, how do the images of the Word being sown by the farmer and Jesus standing at the door knocking, give hope to all people that whether they are hardened from worshiping idols, or are great in their own eyes, or are lukewarm, they can be touched and changed by Jesus and the Holy Spirit?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

- The January 19, 2020 – Mark’s Good News about Jesus – Rejected and Accepted Lavish Love

Rejected and Accepted Lavish Love


2 Kings 1:1-8 - New International Version (NIV)

¹ After Ahab’s death, Moab rebelled against Israel. ² Now Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria and injured himself. So he sent messengers, saying to them, “Go and consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, to see if I will recover from this injury.”

³ But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Go up and meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and ask them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going off to consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron?’ ⁴ Therefore this is what the Lord says: ‘You will not leave the bed you are lying on. You will certainly die!’” So Elijah went.

⁵ When the messengers returned to the king, he asked them, “Why have you come back?”

⁶ “A man came to meet us,” they replied. “And he said to us, ‘Go back to the king who sent you and tell him, “This is what the Lord says: Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending messengers to consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you will not leave the bed you are lying on. You will certainly die!”’”

⁷ The king asked them, “What kind of man was it who came to meet you and told you this?”

⁸ They replied, “He had a garment of hair and had a leather belt around his waist.”

The king said, “That was Elijah the Tishbite.”

Who rebelled against Israel after Ahab dies (verse 1)?

Why did Ahaziah send messengers to “Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron” (verse 2)?

Who sent Elijah the Tishbite to meet the messengers (verse 3)?

How was Ahaziah’s question for Baal-Zebub answered by the Lord (verse 4)?

In your opinion, why did king Ahaziah ask the messengers “why have you come back” (verse 5)?

How did the messengers answer the king (verse 6)?

What did the king ask the messengers (verse 7)?

How did the king know it was “Elijah the Tishbite” (verse 8)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Mark 3:20-35 - New International Version (NIV)

²⁰ Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. ²¹ When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”

²² And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.”

²³ So Jesus called them over to him and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan? ²⁴ If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. ²⁵ If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. ²⁶ And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. ²⁷ In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house. ²⁸ Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, ²⁹ but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.”

³⁰ He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.”

³¹ Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. ³² A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.”

³³ “Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked.

³⁴ Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! ³⁵ Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”

How big was the crowd that gathered when Jesus entered the house (verse 20)?

Why did His family go “to take charge of him” (verse 21)?

Who said “He is possessed by Beelzebul! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.” (verse 22)?

How did Jesus begin to speak to them (verse 23)?

In your opinion, why can a kingdom that is divided against itself not stand (verse 24)?

What has come if “Satan opposes himself and is divided” (verse 26)?

When can a strong man’s house be plundered (verse 27)?

Who can be “forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter” (verse 28)?

Who will never be forgiven (verse 29)?

What were they saying about Jesus (verse 30)?

Who stood outside looking for Jesus (verse 32)?

In your opinion, why did Jesus ask “who are my mother and brothers” (verse 33)?

Who is Jesus “brother and sister and mother” (verse 35)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how are Ahaziah from 2 Kings 1:1-8, Jesus’s mother and brothers, and the teacher of the law who came from Jerusalem in Mark 3:20-35 similar? 

Acts 5:27-42 – New International Version (NIV)

²⁷ The apostles were brought in and made to appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest. ²⁸ “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.”

²⁹ Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings! ³⁰ The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead—whom you killed by hanging him on a cross. ³¹ God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins. ³² We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”

³³ When they heard this, they were furious and wanted to put them to death. ³⁴ But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a little while. ³⁵ Then he addressed the Sanhedrin: “Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. ³⁶ Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing. ³⁷ After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his followers were scattered. ³⁸ Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. ³⁹ But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”

⁴⁰ His speech persuaded them. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.

⁴¹ The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. ⁴² Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah.

Who were the apostles made to appear before (verse 27)?

In your opinion, why did the high priest say that the apostles were “determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood” (verse 28)?

Who said “we must obey God rather than human beings” (verse 29)?

Who “raised Jesus from the dead” (verse 30)?

Why did God exalt Jesus “to his own right hand as Prince and Savior” (verse 31)?

Who are the witnesses “of these things” (verse 32)?

How did the Sanhedrin react to what the apostles said (verse 33)?

What did Gamaliel order (verse 34)?

Why did Gamaliel say that the Sanhedrin should “consider carefully what you intend to do to these men” (verses 35, 36, 37, 38 and 39)?

What did the Sanhedrin order should happen the apostles (verse 40)?

Why did the apostles rejoice (verse 41)?

How did the apostles react to the Sanhedrin’s order in verse 40 to not “speak in the name of Jesus” (verse 42)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how are Elijah in 2 Kings 1:1-8 and the apostles in Acts 5:27-42 similar?

In your opinion, what does the dispute between the Sanhedrin and the apostles in Acts 5:27-42 help us understand about Jesus statement about His mother and brothers in Mark 3:20-35?

1 John 3:1-10 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. ² Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. ³ All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.

⁴ Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness. ⁵ But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin. ⁶ No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.

⁷ Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. ⁸ The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. ⁹ No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God. ¹⁰ This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother and sister.

¹¹ For this is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another.

How can we understand that the Father has lavished great love on us (verse 1)?

Why does the world not know us (verse 1)?

What do the children of God not yet know (verse 2)?

When will we see Christ “as he is” (verse 2)?

What do those who hope in Jesus do (verse 3)?

Who breaks the law (verse 4)?

Why did Jesus appear (verse 5)?

In your opinion, what does James mean by “no one who lives in him keeps on sinning” (verse 6)?

Who is righteous (verse 7)?

Why did the Son of God appear (verse 8)?

Who is God’s seed in (verse 9)?

How can we tell “who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are” (verse 10)?

What is the message heard from the beginning (verse 11)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how does John’s statement that “the reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work”  in 1 John 3:1-10 help us understand why Ahaziah, who reached out to the god of Ekron instead of the God of Israel was never able to leave his bed in 2 Kings 1:1-8?

In your opinion, what does John’s statement that “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. ⁹ No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.” in 1 John 3:1-10 help us understand about the desire of Jesus for the teachers of the law and for His mother and brothers who were outside the circle of those He claimed as His mother and brothers in Mark 3:20-35?

In your opinion, how are the decisions and acts of the Apostles in Acts 5:27-42 an illustration of how Christians are to love one and other according to 1 John 3:1-10?

In your opinion, what do these passages from 2 Kings, Mark, Acts and 1 John teach us about the differences between those who accept the “great love the Father has lavished on us” and those who have not?

In your opinion, as recipients of the “great love the Father has lavished on us” how are we to be obedient to the command to “love one another”?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)