March 8, 2020 – Mark’s Good News about Jesus – Conditions of the Heart

Conditions of the Heart


Exodus 7:14-24 - New International Version (NIV)

¹⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pharaoh’s heart is unyielding; he refuses to let the people go. ¹⁵ Go to Pharaoh in the morning as he goes out to the river. Confront him on the bank of the Nile, and take in your hand the staff that was changed into a snake. ¹⁶ Then say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to say to you: Let my people go, so that they may worship me in the wilderness. But until now you have not listened. ¹⁷ This is what the Lord says: By this you will know that I am the Lord: With the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water of the Nile, and it will be changed into blood. ¹⁸ The fish in the Nile will die, and the river will stink; the Egyptians will not be able to drink its water.’”

¹⁹ The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt—over the streams and canals, over the ponds and all the reservoirs—and they will turn to blood.’ Blood will be everywhere in Egypt, even in vessels of wood and stone.”

²⁰ Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord had commanded. He raised his staff in the presence of Pharaoh and his officials and struck the water of the Nile, and all the water was changed into blood. ²¹ The fish in the Nile died, and the river smelled so bad that the Egyptians could not drink its water. Blood was everywhere in Egypt.

²² But the Egyptian magicians did the same things by their secret arts, and Pharaoh’s heart became hard; he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said. ²³ Instead, he turned and went into his palace, and did not take even this to heart. ²⁴ And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile to get drinking water, because they could not drink the water of the river.

What is the condition of Pharaoh’s heart (verse 14)?

Where is Moses to confront Pharaoh (verse 15)?

In your opinion, how would Pharaoh react to Moses saying “the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to you” (verse 16)?

What will Pharaoh know when Moses strikes the water of the Nile with the staff in his hand (verse 17)?

How will things change when Moses strikes the water with the staff (verses 17 and 18)?

When does the water in the streams, canals, ponds, reservoirs and even in the vessels of wood and stone turn to blood (verse 19)?

What did Moses do (verse 20)?

Where was the blood (verse 21)?

In your opinion, why does the Pharaoh’s heart become hard after the Egyptian magicians do the same things “by their secret arts” (verse 22)?

What did Pharaoh do (verse 23)?

How did the Egyptians get water to drink (verse 24)?

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

Mark 6:1-6a - New International Version (NIV)

¹ Jesus left there and went to his hometown, accompanied by his disciples. ² When the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed.

“Where did this man get these things?” they asked. “What’s this wisdom that has been given him? What are these remarkable miracles he is performing? ³ Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him.

⁴ Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town, among his relatives and in his own home.” ⁵ He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. ⁶ He was amazed at their lack of faith.

Where did Jesus go (verse 1)?

What did Jesus do on the Sabbath (verse 2)?

In your opinion, why did the listener’s reaction go from amazement to questioning that gets more and more personal, and then to taking offense at Jesus (verses 2 and 3)?

Where is a prophet without honor (verse 4)?

In your opinion, why were a few sick people still able to receive miraculous healing in spite of the general lack of miracles (verse 5)?

By what was Jesus amazed (verse 6)?

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

In your opinion, how is the pharaoh in Exodus 7:14-24 similar to the people of Jesus hometown in Mark 6:1-6a that allowed all of them (except for a few sick people in Jesus hometown) to reject the Lord?

Acts 17:1-15 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ When Paul and his companions had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. ² As was his custom, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, ³ explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead. “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Messiah,” he said. ⁴ Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women.

⁵ But other Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. ⁶ But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city officials, shouting: “These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, ⁷ and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.” ⁸ When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil. ⁹ Then they made Jason and the others post bond and let them go.

¹⁰ As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. ¹¹ Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. ¹² As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.

¹³ But when the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea, some of them went there too, agitating the crowds and stirring them up. ¹⁴ The believers immediately sent Paul to the coast, but Silas and Timothy stayed at Berea. ¹⁵ Those who escorted Paul brought him to Athens and then left with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible.

Where did Paul and him companions come to (verse 1)?

Where did Paul go on the Sabbath (verse 2)?

What did Paul explain and prove that the Messiah had to do (verse 3)?

Who was persuaded and joined Paul and Silas (verse 4)?

In your opinion, why were other Jews jealous (verse 5)?

What did the jealous Jews do with Jason and other believers when they could not find Paul (verse 6)?

What crime did they say Jason and the other believers had committed (verse 7)?

How did the city officials respond (verse 8)?

What did Jason and the others have to do (verse 9)?

Where did Paul and Silas go when they got to Berea (verse 10)?

How did the Berean Jews respond to the message (verse 11)?

What was the result of the message (verse 12)?

Why did the crowds in Berea get stirred up (verse 13)?

What did the Berean believers do (verse 14)?

What instructions did Paul send to Silas and Timothy (verse 15)?

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

In your opinion, why did Pharaoh turn from God after hearing Moses in Exodus 4:14-24 but many Berean Jews turned to Jesus and believed after hearing Paul in Acts 17:1-15?

In your opinion, why would the people of Jesus’s hometown in Mark 6:1-6a respond more like the Thessalonians Jews than the Berean Jews of Acts 17:1-15?

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ Paul, Silas and Timothy,

To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

Grace and peace to you.

² We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers. ³ We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁴ For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you, ⁵ because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake. ⁶ You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. ⁷ And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. ⁸ The Lord’s message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia—your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do not need to say anything about it, ⁹ for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, ¹⁰ and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.

Who do Paul, Silas and Timothy thank God for and continually mention in their prayers (verses 1 and 2)?

In your opinion, why does Paul link work with faith, labor with love, and endurance with hope (verse 3)?

How does God feel about these people (verse 4)?

How did the gospel come to them (verse 5)?

In your opinion, what does it mean to welcome “the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit” (verse 6)?

What did they become to “all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia” (verse 7)?

Where has their faith in God become known (verse 8)?

Who did they turn to God from (verse 9)?

Who do they wait for (verse 10)?

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

In your opinion, what can we learn from the difference between Thessalonians that Paul is writing to in 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 who turned from idols to God and the Pharaoh who received God’s message through Moses but hardened his heart and returned to the palace in Exodus 7:14-24?

In your opinion, why would the familiarity of the people in Jesus’s hometown in Mark 6:1-6a have made it more difficult for them to be like the Thessalonian Christians who Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 turned from idols to God?  What can we learn today from their difficulty?

In your opinion, what can we learn from the fact that in 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 Paul begins with thanks and praise for the Christians who dwell in the town where he had once been forced to flee from in Acts 17:1-15?

In your opinion, what can we learn from these passages in Exodus, Mark, Acts and 1 Thessalonians about the importance of the condition of the heart and what it means to the receptiveness of the message of God?

In your opinion, how is the condition of our own hearts linked to our work, our labor and our endurance?  How can we improve our heart condition today?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

March 1, 2020 – Mark’s Good News about Jesus – Overcoming Through Faith

Overcoming Through Faith


2 Chronicles 20:20-30 - New International Version (NIV)

²⁰ Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the Lord your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful.” ²¹ After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the Lord and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying:

“Give thanks to the Lord,
    for his love endures forever.”

²² As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. ²³ The Ammonites and Moabites rose up against the men from Mount Seir to destroy and annihilate them. After they finished slaughtering the men from Seir, they helped to destroy one another.

²⁴ When the men of Judah came to the place that overlooks the desert and looked toward the vast army, they saw only dead bodies lying on the ground; no one had escaped. ²⁵ So Jehoshaphat and his men went to carry off their plunder, and they found among them a great amount of equipment and clothing and also articles of value—more than they could take away. There was so much plunder that it took three days to collect it. ²⁶ On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berakah, where they praised the Lord. This is why it is called the Valley of Berakah to this day.

²⁷ Then, led by Jehoshaphat, all the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned joyfully to Jerusalem, for the Lord had given them cause to rejoice over their enemies. ²⁸ They entered Jerusalem and went to the temple of the Lord with harps and lyres and trumpets.

²⁹ The fear of God came on all the surrounding kingdoms when they heard how the Lord had fought against the enemies of Israel. ³⁰ And the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was at peace, for his God had given him rest on every side.

Who did King Jehoshaphat say the people of Judah and Jerusalem should have faith in (verse 20)?

What were the men at the head of the army to do (verse 21)?

How were the Ammonites, Moabites and men from Mount Seir destroyed (verses 22 and 23)?

What did Judah’s army see when they got to the desert (verse 24)?

How long did it take to gather up the plunder (verse 25)?

Who led the joyful return to Jerusalem (verse 27)?

In your opinion, why did they go to the “temple of the Lord with harps and lyres and trumpets” (verse 28)?

When did the “fear of God” come upon all the surrounding kingdoms (verse 29)?

Why was the kingdom of Jehoshaphat at peace (verse 30)?

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

Mark 5:21-43 - New International Version (NIV)

²¹ When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him while he was by the lake. ²² Then one of the synagogue leaders, named Jairus, came, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet. ²³ He pleaded earnestly with him, “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.” ²⁴ So Jesus went with him.

A large crowd followed and pressed around him. ²⁵ And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. ²⁶ She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. ²⁷ When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, ²⁸ because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” ²⁹ Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.

³⁰ At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”

³¹ “You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’ ”

³² But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. ³³ Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. ³⁴ He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”

³⁵ While Jesus was still speaking, some people came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue leader. “Your daughter is dead,” they said. “Why bother the teacher anymore?”

³⁶ Overhearing what they said, Jesus told him, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.”

³⁷ He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James and John the brother of James. ³⁸ When they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw a commotion, with people crying and wailing loudly. ³⁹ He went in and said to them, “Why all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead but asleep.” ⁴⁰ But they laughed at him.

After he put them all out, he took the child’s father and mother and the disciples who were with him, and went in where the child was. ⁴¹ He took her by the hand and said to her, “Talitha koum!” (which means “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”). ⁴² Immediately the girl stood up and began to walk around (she was twelve years old). At this they were completely astonished. ⁴³ He gave strict orders not to let anyone know about this, and told them to give her something to eat.

Who was Jairus (verse 22)?

Why did Jairus plead with Jesus to “please come and put your hands on her” (verse 23)?

How long had the woman in the crowd been bleeding (verse 25)?

Why did she touch Jesus’s cloak (verses 27 and 28)?

What immediately happened (verse 29)?

What did Jesus do when He realized that “power had gone out from him” (verse 30)?

In your opinion, why was the woman “trembling with fear” when she told Jesus “the whole truth” (verse 33)?

What did Jesus tell the woman (verse 34)?

When did the people tell Jairus “your daughter is dead” (verse 35)?

In your opinion, why did Jesus tell Jairus “don’t be afraid; just believe” (verse 36)?

Who did Jesus let follow Him (verse 37)?

How did the people respond when Jesus said “the child is not dead but asleep” (verses 39 and 40)?

What did Jesus say after “He took her by the hand” (verse 41)?

When did the girl stand up and begin to walk around (verse 42)?

Who was to know about this (verse 43)?

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

In your opinion, what role did faith play in dealing with the challenge of the invading kingdoms in 2 Chronicles 20:20-30 and also in dealing with the twelve years of bleeding that doctor’s care had not helped in Mark 5:21-43?

Acts 9:36-43 – New International Version (NIV)

³⁶ In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor. ³⁷ About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. ³⁸ Lydda was near Joppa; so when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, “Please come at once!”

³⁹ Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.

⁴⁰ Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, “Tabitha, get up.” She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up. ⁴¹ He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called for the believers, especially the widows, and presented her to them alive. ⁴² This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord. ⁴³ Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon.

What was Tabitha always doing (verse 36)?

Where was her body (verse 37)?

In your opinion, why did the disciples urge Peter to “come at once” (verse 38)?

What did the widows do when Peter arrived (verse 39)?

When did Peter get down on his knees and pray (verse 40)?

What happened when Peter said “Tabitha, get up” (verse 40)?

Who did Peter present Tabitha to (verse 41)?

How did many of the people in Joppa react (verse 42)?

Where did Peter stay (verse 43)?

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

In your opinion, how are having the people leading the army in 2 Chronicles 20:20-30 singing and praising the Lord and the kneeling and praying of Peter in Acts 9:36-43 different?  How are they similar?

In your opinion, what can we learn from Jairus coming to Jesus and pleading with Him for help in Mark 5:21-43 and the people of Joppa sending for Peter when Tabitha dies in Acts 9:36-43?

1 John 5:1-5 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. ² This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. ³ In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, ⁴ for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. ⁵ Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.

Who is “born of God” (verse 1)?

Who “loves his child” (verse 1)?

In your opinion, why is “loving God and carrying out his commands” proof that we love the children of God (verse 2)?

What is “love for God” (verse 3)?

Who “overcomes the world” (verse 4)?

What is the “victory that has overcome the world” (verse 4)?

“Who is it that overcomes the world” (verse 5)?

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

In your opinion, how are the people Jehoshaphat placed “to sing to the Lord and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness” at the front of the army in 2 Chronicles 20:20-30 help us understand about how John portrays those who are “born of God” having the victory that overcomes the world in 1 John 5:1-5?

In your opinion, how is the faith of the woman who was bleeding in Mark 5:21-43 and our faith in Jesus being able to call us from death in sin to being “born of God” as John described in 1 John 5:1-5 similar?

In your opinion, how is the amazing miracle of God through Peter restoring Tabitha to life in Acts 9:36-43 dwarfed by the amazing miracle of God calling for us to overcome the world by believing that “Jesus is the Son of God” as declared 1 John 5:1-5?

In your opinion, what do these passages from 2 Chronicles, Mark, Acts and 1 John teach us about overcoming through faith?

In your opinion, how should we who have “overcome the world” through our faith that “Jesus is the Christ” respond to the challenges of the world today?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

February 23, 2020 – Mark’s Good News about Jesus – Walking Humbly

Walking Humbly


Daniel 4:28-37 - New International Version (NIV)

²⁸ All this happened to King Nebuchadnezzar. ²⁹ Twelve months later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, ³⁰ he said, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?”

³¹ Even as the words were on his lips, a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. ³² You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like the ox. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and gives them to anyone he wishes.”

³³ Immediately what had been said about Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled. He was driven away from people and ate grass like the ox. His body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird.

³⁴ At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever.

His dominion is an eternal dominion;
    his kingdom endures from generation to generation.
³⁵ All the peoples of the earth
    are regarded as nothing.
He does as he pleases
    with the powers of heaven
    and the peoples of the earth.
No one can hold back his hand
    or say to him: “What have you done?”

³⁶ At the same time that my sanity was restored, my honor and splendor were returned to me for the glory of my kingdom. My advisers and nobles sought me out, and I was restored to my throne and became even greater than before. ³⁷ Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble.

Where was King Nebuchadnezzar when he said “is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty” (verses 28, 29 and 30)?

When did the voice come from heaven (verse 31)?

What has been taken away from King Nebuchadnezzar (verse 31)?

When was the prophecy of verse 32 fulfilled (verse 33)?

What happened when Nebuchadnezzar raised his “eyes toward heaven” (verse 34)?

Who did Nebuchadnezzar praise, honor and glorify (verse 34)?

Why was Nebuchadnezzar’s “honor and splendor” returned (verse 36)?

Who does Nebuchadnezzar “praise and exalt and glorify” (verse 37)?

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

Mark 5:1-20 - New International Version (NIV)

¹ They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. ² When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an impure spirit came from the tombs to meet him. ³ This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. ⁴ For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. ⁵ Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.

⁶ When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. ⁷ He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In God’s name don’t torture me!” ⁸ For Jesus had said to him, “Come out of this man, you impure spirit!”

⁹ Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”

“My name is Legion,” he replied, “for we are many.” ¹⁰ And he begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of the area.

¹¹ A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside. ¹² The demons begged Jesus, “Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them.” ¹³ He gave them permission, and the impure spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd, about two thousand in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned.

¹⁴ Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. ¹⁵ When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. ¹⁶ Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man—and told about the pigs as well. ¹⁷ Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region.

¹⁸ As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. ¹⁹ Jesus did not let him, but said, “Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” ²⁰ So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.

When did the man with the impure spirit come from the tombs and meet Jesus (verse 2)?

What happened when the man was “chained hand and foot” (verse 4)?

In your opinion, why would the man “cry out and cut himself with stones” (verse 5)?

What did the man do “when he saw Jesus from a distance” (verse 6)?

How did he ask Jesus “What do you want with me, Jesus” (verse 7)?

What had Jesus said to him (verse 8)?

Why was the name Legion (verse 9)?

What did Legion beg for (verse 12)?

How many pigs “rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned” (verse 13)?

What did people come out to see (verse 14)?

Why were the people afraid (verse 15)?

What did people plead for Jesus to do (verse 17)?

What did the man who had been demon-possessed beg to do (verse 18)?

What did Jesus tell the man to do (verse 19)?

How did the people in the Decapolis respond to the man (verse 20)?

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

In your opinion, how are Nebuchadnezzar’s actions in Daniel 4:28-37 when his sanity was restored and the actions of the man from the tombs in Mark 5:1-20 after the demons were sent away similar?

Acts 19:11-20 – New International Version (NIV)

¹¹ God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, ¹² so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.

¹³ Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.” ¹⁴ Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. ¹⁵ One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?” ¹⁶ Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.

¹⁷ When this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they were all seized with fear, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor. ¹⁸ Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed what they had done. ¹⁹ A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas. ²⁰ In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.

Who “did extraordinary miracles” (verse 11)?

What effect did the handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched Paul have on the sick (verse 12)?

In your opinion, why did some of the Jews try to “invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed” (verse 13)?

What position did Sceva have (verse 14)?

How did the evil spirit answer the seven sons of Sceva (verse 15)?

Why did the seven sons of Sceva run “out of the house naked and bleeding” (verse 16)?

What happened “when this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus” (verse 17)?

In your opinion, why did “many of those who believed now came and openly confessed what they had done” (verse 18)?

What was valued at fifty thousand drachmas (verse 19)?

What “spread widely and grew in power” (verse 20)?

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

In your opinion, how is Nebuchadnezzar as he stood on the roof of the royal palace in Babylon and boasted in Daniel 4:28-37 similar to the seven sons of Sceva as they said “in the name of Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out” in Acts 19:11-20?

In your opinion, what can we learn from the different results of Jesus casting out the “Legion” of demons in Mark 5:1-20 and the seven sons of Sceva being overpowered and beaten by the man possessed by an evil spirit in Acts 19:11-20?

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

¹ What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? ² You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. ³ When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

⁴ You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. ⁵ Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? ⁶ But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:

“God opposes the proud
    but shows favor to the humble.”

⁷ Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸ Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. ⁹ Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. ¹⁰ Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

What are the results of the “desires that battle within you” (verse 1)?

Why do Christians “quarrel and fight” (verse 2)?

What wrong motives cause Christians to ask God but not receive (verse 3)?

In your opinion, why is friendship with the world “enmity against God” (verse 4)?

What does Scripture say that God jealously longs for (verse 5)?

Who does God show favor to (verse 6)?

How should we respond to God (verse 7)?

What happens when we resist the devil (verse 7)?

When will God come near to us (verse 8)?

What are the double-minded to do (verse 8)?

In your opinion, why is it important to “grieve, mourn and wail” (verse 9)?

When will the Lord “lift you up” (verse 10)?

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

In your opinion, how is the truth of James 4:1-10 shown by Nebuchadnezzar’s “friendship with the world” and humbling himself “before the Lord” in Daniel 4:28-37?

In your opinion, what does James 4:1-10 help us understand about the motives of the people who pled for Jesus to “leave their region” in Mark 5:1-20?  How were their motives similar to the motives of the “Legion” of impure spirits?

In your opinion, what does James’s discussion in James 4:1-10 help us understand about the difference in between Paul and the seven sons of Sceva in Acts 19:11-20?

In your opinion, what do these passages from Daniel, Mark, Acts and James reveal to us about the difference between being self reliant with pride and being humble while praising the King of heaven?

In your opinion, how do we walk humbly?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)