Author: Calleen Hough

Breaking the law

The Ten Commandments were given to the Israelites shortly after they were delivered from slavery in Egypt. When they arrived at Mount Sinai, Moses was called up to God and told:

“Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.” (Exodus 19:3-6)

“God made a conditional promise to the Israelites that if they would obey him and keep his covenant, he would regard and treat them in a special way” (note on Exodus 19:5, 6). Three days later, God spoke the Ten Commandments directly to the people of Israel. “With these Ten Commandments, God’s covenant with the Israelites began. Ancient rabbis isolated 613 separate commandments in the entire law of Moses, but these ten are the principles upon which the rest are based. By themselves they are called ‘the words of the covenant’ (Exodus 34:28). The first four commandments concern man’s relationship with and especially his reverence toward God, while the latter six address man’s relationship with other human beings. The first four have total love for God as their theme (cf. Deuteronomy 6:5). The last six are summarized by the statement, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’ (Leviticus 19:18). Jesus took all the commandments in the law of Moses and summarized them with two: love God and love your fellow man (Matthew 22:35-40)” (note on Exodus 20:1-17).

Mark’s gospel tells us that Jesus made it a practice to teach his followers when he was with them (Mark 10:1). On one occasion, when he was teaching the crowds that were gathered around him, the Pharisees asked Jesus a question that was meant to trip him up. Mark 10:2 states, “And the Pharisees came up and in order to test him asked, ‘Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?’” The Greek word that is translated lawful, exesti (exˊ-es-tee) is a compound of the words ex “denoting origin (the point whence motion or action proceeds)” (G1537) and eimi (i-meeˊ), which means “I exist.” The meaning that these two words convey is a departure from existence or what we might think of as death, but their meaning also has to do with God’s covenant with Israel. Jesus’ explanation points back to the Ten Commandments and to God’s original intent when he made humans both male and female. Mark 10:3-12 states:

He answered them, “What did Moses command you?” They said, “Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce and to send her away.” And Jesus said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment. But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife,and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

And in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter. And he said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her, and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”

Adultery was among the six commandments that addressed man’s relationship with other human beings and was considered a core principle of God’s covenant with the Israelites (note on Exodus 20:1-17). Jesus’ interpretation that remarriage after divorce caused a person to commit adultery was likely a shocking revelation to the people who thought that sexual intercourse was permitted as long as the two persons were married. Jesus pointed back to the natural order that existed when God created the world and said that a husband and wife through sexual intercourse became “one flesh” and then, he concluded, “What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate” (Mark 10:8-9). The words joined together and separate not only have to do with a person’s geographical location, but also the bond between two people that is developed through shared experiences. The Greek word sun (soon) denotes a union that is the result of “companionship, consort, where one is said to be, do, suffer with someone, in connection and company with him” (G4862).

The point that Jesus wanted to make when he explained that divorce caused a person to commit adultery was that it was God’s design for relationships between husbands and wives to be permanent. Just as God designed the world so that there would be night and day, light and darkness, “God made them male and female” (Mark 10:6) because, “It is not good that the man should be alone” (Genesis 2:18). In other words, God designed man to have a lifelong connection with a person of the opposite sex rather than living his life as an independent person. Jesus followed his comment about committing adultery with an analogy of spiritual success. Jesus told his disciples, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it” (Mark 10:14-15). A child is dependent upon others for its survival. A child does not try to take care of itself. At the core of my independence is a belief that I can take care of myself, I don’t need God or anyone else.

Jesus took spiritual success one step further in his conversation with a rich young man. When the man approached Jesus, he asked him a question about the ultimate goal for someone who is trying to live a moral life. Mark tells us, “And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, ‘Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’” (Mark 10:17). The Greek word that is translated inherit, kleronomeo (klay, ron.om-ehˊ-o) in the New Testament is “spoken of the friends of God as receiving admission to the kingdom of heaven and its attendant privileges” (G2816). The rich young man may have wondered if there was some kind of a loop hole to God’s Covenant with Israel, but Jesus responded, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother” (Mark 10:18-19). Jesus skipped the four commandments that had to do with man’s relationship with God and referred only to the six commandments that addressed man’s relationship with other human beings. Remarkably, the rich young man responded, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth” (Mark 10:20). Jesus’ response indicated that even though the man was not guilty of breaking the law, his heart was not right with God. Jesus told the man, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me” (Mark 10:21). The one thing that the man lacked was a concern for others. Mark tells us the man was “disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions” (Mark 10:22).

Self-sufficiency was a stumbling block to the rich young man’s desire to obtain something that only God could give him, eternal life. Jesus concluded his discussion on the topic by pointing out that breaking the law was not the thing that would keep most people out of heaven, but a desire to rely on oneself for daily provision rather than God. Mark 10:23-27 states:

And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and said, “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.”

Jesus pointed out that it is not only difficult, but impossible for anyone to save himself. The Greek word sozo (sodeˊ-zo), which is translated saved in this verse, speaks “specifically of salvation from eternal death, sin, and the punishment and misery consequent to sin. To save, and (by implication) to give eternal life” (G4982). Without skipping a beat, Jesus followed up by stating that it is not impossible for God to save a person, even one who is wealthy, because “all things are possible with God” (Mark 10:27). God’s ability to save us is not limited by the extent to which we have broken his laws or how great a desire we have to live independent of him. The only thing that can or will stop God from saving a person is a lack of concern for the needs of other human beings.

Transformation

Mark’s gospel, as well as Luke’s, is a second hand account of the events that occurred during the ministry of Jesus Christ. “It is generally accepted and supported by the writings of the church historians that Peter was Mark’s source for the information contained in his gospel” (Introduction to the gospel according to Mark). Mark’s emphasis was on the supernatural power of the Christ. “His actions, rather than words, are given the most attention, particularly the miracles he performed to demonstrate his divinity.” The latter half of Mark’s short gospel focuses in on the events surrounding Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. Three times Mark mentioned Jesus foretelling his death and resurrection and concluded his gospel with a brief account of Jesus’ post resurrection appearance to two of his disciples. Mark said, “After these things he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country. And they went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them” (Mark 16:12-13). Luke’s detailed account of what happened on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35) indicates that Peter was one of the two disciples that saw Jesus appear in another form after his resurrection (Luke 24:34). The Greek words that Mark used to describe what happened, appeared phaneroo (fan-er-oˊ-o), another heteros (hetˊ-er-os), form morphe (mor-fayˊ) suggest that a side of Jesus that the disciples had never seen before was apparent to them on the road to Emmaus.

Peter’s close relationship with the Lord may have been limited by the human aspects of Jesus’ nature that restricted the full expression of his personality while he was alive on earth. There was a part of Jesus that Peter was completely unfamiliar with that was revealed to him on the road to Emmaus. The change that occurred through Jesus’ death and resurrection is alluded to in Mark’s account of his transfiguration. Mark tells us, “And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became radiant, intensely white, as no one on earth could bleach them” (Mark 9:2-3). The Greek word that is translated transfigured, metamorphoo (met-am-or-foˊ-o) is derived from the words meta (met-ahˊ), which means “accompaniment” (G3326), and morphoo (mor-foˊ-o), which is derived from the same word as morphe, and has a similar meaning, “form, shape” (G3445). During his transfiguration, Jesus was seen by Peter, James and John in a way that others either could not or were not allowed to. Paul explained in his second letter to the Corinthians that only believers are able to see or more specifically to look at, the glory of God and the effect of beholding the glory of the Lord is transformation. Paul said:

Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end. But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:12-18)

Paul said that we, believers are being transformed into the same image as Christ. Paul said more about this in his letter to the Romans. Paul stated, “I appeal to you therefore brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:1-2). Paul identified spiritual worship as a prerequisite to transformation and indicated that it leads to a believer being able to discern the perfect will of God.

Paul’s concern for the Galatians had to do with them becoming more like the pagans around them than Christ, their Lord and Savior. Paul asked, “Have I then become your enemy by telling you the truth? They make much of you, but for no good purpose. They want to shut you out, that you may make much of them. It is always good to be made much of for a good purpose, and not only when I am present with you, my little children, for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you!” (Galatians 4:16-19). Paul likened the process of transformation to childbirth and said that the end result is Christ being formed in us. Paul used the word morphoo, which is translated formed in this instance. It says in Genesis 2:7 that God “formed the man of dust,” indicating that there is a physical element involved in transformation. It could be that our need for transformation is rooted in the effect that sin has on our physical bodies. Paul said that believers are “transformed into the same image” of the Lord (2 Corinthians 3:18). An image is “a likeness that is (literally) statue profile or (figuratively) representation resemblance” (G1504). The second of the Ten Commandment that the Israelites were given after they were delivered from slavery in Egypt was, “You shall not make for yourself a carved image or any likeness of anything that is heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments” (Exodus 20:4-6). Idol worship was the primary reason why the Israelites were unable to keep the Ten Commandments. They were taken into captivity and punished severely for worshipping images of false gods.

Essentially, the reason why God forbade idol worship was because of the effect in has on our minds. Paul said that we should not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of our minds (Romans 12:2). The Greek word that is translated conformed, suschematizo (soos-khay-mat-idˊ-zo) means “to fashion alike, i.e. conform to the same pattern” (G4964). In other words, Paul was saying that we become like or conform to the things that we think about. Thus, renewing our minds is dependent upon us changing our thought patterns. Peter said in his first letter, “Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:13-16). The Greek word hagios (hagˊ-ee-os) means “consecrated, devoted, sacred, holy” and is “spoken of those who are purified and sanctified by the influences of the Spirit, a saint. This is assumed of all who profess the Christian name” (G40).

Transformation is typically a lifelong process for followers of Christ, but as in the case of Jesus’ transfiguration, it can also happen instantaneously. Paul talked about an instantaneous transformation of believers that will occur when Jesus returns to the earth. In the context of the imperishable body that believers will receive after the resurrection of the dead, Paul said:

I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.”
“O death, where is your victory?
    O death, where is your sting?”

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:50-57)

Paul indicated that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God and then, went on to explain that there are two kinds of bodies that humans can inhabit, a perishable an imperishable one. Paul said that believers who are alive when Jesus returns will “be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye” (1 Corinthians 15:51-52). The change that will take place in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, may not necessarily be a physical one. What happens when Christ returns is that believers are no longer subject to death, our mortal natures are exchanged for immortal ones (1 Corinthians 15:57). What this means is that there is no longer any basis for us to lose our lives. We will from that point forward experience life in an absolute sense and without end (G2222).

Paul’s instruction to “not be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind” (Romans 12:2), stressed both an internal and external change. Anakainosis (an-ak-ahˊee-no-sis) “means ‘a renewal’ and is used in Romans 12:2 ‘the renewing (of your mind),’ i.e. the adjustment of the moral and spiritual vision and thinking to the mind of God, which is designed to have a transforming effect upon the life; and stresses the willing response on the part of the believer. In Titus 3:5, ‘the renewing of the Holy Spirit’ is not a fresh bestowment of the Spirit, but a revival of His power, developing the Christian life, stressing the continual operation of the indwelling Spirit of God. Palingenesis (G3824) stresses the new birth; whereas, anakainosis stresses the process of sanctification” (G342). Paul indicated that believers are transformed by the renewing of their minds. In order for the outward transformation to take place, our minds must “undergo a complete change which, under the power of God, will find expression in character and conduct” (G3339). Paul summed up his topic of the transformation of believers in his letter to Titus, making it clear that regeneration and renewal are works of the Holy Spirit. Paul concluded, “But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration, and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:4-7).

Losing your Life

Jesus prepared his disciples for his departure from earth by telling them exactly what to expect in the final days of his ministry. Mark tells us, “And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. And he said this plainly” (Mark 8:31-32). Jesus didn’t want there to be any misunderstanding about his intention of dying for the sins of the world. Surprisingly, Peter thought that Jesus was mistaken about the need for him to sacrifice his life in order to accomplish God’s will. Mark said of Jesus, “And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, ‘Get behind me Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man’” (Mark 8:32-33). Jesus pointed out that Peter was being influenced by Satan and that his mind was focused on the wrong things. You might say that Peter had a temporal point of view; he wasn’t looking at the bigger picture. The thing that Peter missed was the fact that after three days, Jesus was going to rise from the dead (Mark 8:31).

Following his interaction with Peter, Jesus spoke to the crowd around him about a key principle of God’s kingdom that has to do with eternal life. Mark said of Jesus:

And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? For what can a man give in return for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power.” (Mark 8:34-9:1)

Jesus was looking at things from a human perspective when used the example of gaining and losing something to explain the concept of eternal life. The thing that was at stake, that which could be gained or lost when it came to eternal life was the human soul. The Greek word that is translated soul in Mark 8:36-37 is psuche (psoo-khayˊ). “The soul, that immaterial part of man held in common with animals. One’s understanding of this word’s relationship to related terms is contingent upon his position regarding biblical anthropology. Dichotomists view man as consisting of two parts (or substances), material and immaterial, with spirit and soul denoting the immaterial and bearing only a functional and not a metaphysical difference. Trichotomists also view man as consisting of two parts (or substances), but with spirit and soul representing in some contexts a real subdivision of the immaterial. This latter view is here adopted. Accordingly, psuche is contrasted with soma (G4983), body, and pneuma (G4151), spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:23). The psuche, no less than the sarx (G4561), flesh, belongs to the lower region of man’s being. Sometimes psuche stands for the immaterial part of man made up of the soul (psuche in the restrictive sense of the life element), and the spirit pneuma. However, animals are not said to possess a spirit; this is only in man, giving him the ability to communicate with God. Also breath (Sept. Genesis 1:30; Job 41:12), and in the NT, usually meaning the vital breath, the life element through which the body lives and feels, the principle of life manifested in the breath” (G5590).

One of the key indicators that is typically used to determine if a person is dead or alive is breathing. When we stop breathing, we are usually thought of as being dead. In the context of eternal life, Jesus’ statement, “whoever would save his life (psuche) will lose it, but whoever loses his life (psuche) for my sake and the gospel’s will save it” (Mark 8:35), was referring to the soul as an indicator of spiritual life or death. Jesus said, “whoever would save his life will lose it.” The Greek word that is translated save, sozo (sodeˊ-zo) is used “specifically of salvation from eternal death, sin, and the punishment and misery consequent to sin. To save, and (by implication), to give eternal life…The participle is used substantively to refer to those being saved, those who have obtained salvation through Christ and are kept by him (Luke 13:23; Acts 2:47; 1 Corinthians 1:18; 2 Corinthians 2:15; Revelation 21:24)” (G4982). From that standpoint, losing your life would mean that you stop attempting to pay the penalty for your sins against God.

The prophet Ezekiel foretold of an everlasting covenant that God would establish after Israel broke the covenant that was associated with the Mosaic Law. Ezekiel stated:

“For thus says the Lord God: I will deal with you as you have done, you who have despised the oath in breaking the covenant, yet I will remember my covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish for you an everlasting covenant. Then you will remember your ways and be ashamed when you take your sisters, both your elder and your younger, and I give them to you as daughters, but not on account of the covenant with you. I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall know that I am the Lord, that you may remember and be confounded, and never open your mouth again because of your shame, when I atone for you for all that you have done, declares the Lord God.” (Ezekiel 16:59-63)

God said that he would atone for the people. The Hebrew word kaphar (kaw-farˊ), which is translated atone for, is “A verb meaning to cover, to forgive, to expiate, to reconcile. This word is of supreme theological importance in the Old Testament as it is central to an Old Testament understanding of the remission of sins. At its most basic level, the word conveys the notion of covering but not in the sense of merely concealing. Rather, it suggests the imposing of something to change its appearance or nature. It is therefore employed to signify the cancellation or ‘writing over’ of a contract (Isaiah 28:18); the appeasing of anger (Genesis 32:20[21]; Proverbs 16:14); and the overlaying of wood with pitch so as to make it waterproof (Genesis 6:14). The word also communicates God’s covering of sin. Persons made reconciliation with God for their sins by imposing something that would appease the offended party (in this case the Lord) and cover the sinners with righteousness (Exodus 32:30; Ezekiel 45:17; cf. Daniel 9:24). In the Old Testament, the blood of sacrifices was most notably imposed (Exodus 30:10). By this imposition, sin was purged (Psalm 79:9; Isaiah 6:7) and forgiven (Psalm 78:38). The offenses were removed, leaving sinners clothed in righteousness (cf. Zechariah 3:3, 4). Of course, the imposition of the blood of bulls and of goats could never fully cover our sin (see Hebrews 10:4), but with the coming of Christ and the imposition of His shed blood, a perfect atonement was made (Romans 5:9-11)” (H3722).

Ezekiel went on to say that “the soul who sins shall die” (Ezekiel 18:4, 20). “One prominent feature of the book of Ezekiel is the declaration of individual responsibility (Ezekiel 3:16-21; 14:12-20; 18:1-32; 33:1-20). In this passage, the Lord was setting aside an old proverb in Israel (Ezekiel 18:2, cf. Jeremiah 31:29, 30) and replacing it with one of his own: ‘The soul who sins shall die’ (Ezekiel 18:4, 20). In the Old Testament, God’s people were treated as a national unit, and their sustenance and material prosperity were often affected by sins of the minority (cf. Joshua 7:1, 4-11, 16-26). Consequently, God was just when he spoke of ‘visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children’ (Exodus 20:5). This passage, however, looks beyond material ramifications and considers the eternal results of sin. This is implied by the use of the term ‘soul’ (v. 4) and the command to ‘make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit’ (v. 31). Many righteous people were going to die in the siege, and many would be carried to Babylon (as Ezekiel and Daniel were). The eternal fate of each person, however, was determined by his or her individual relationship with God” (note on Ezekiel 18:1-32).

Paul explained in his letter to the Romans that righteousness can only be obtained through faith in Jesus Christ. After he declared that “none is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God” (Romans 3:10-11), Paul went on to state:

But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. (Romans 3:21-26)

Paul indicated that Jesus was “put forward as a propitiation by his blood” (Romans 3:25), meaning that Jesus was intended to be a substitute for all who would accept his sacrifice on their behalf (G2435).

Jesus prefaced his remark about losing one’s life with the statement, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Mark 8:34). To deny oneself means “to disown and renounce self, to disregard all personal interests and enjoyments (Matthew 16:24; Mark 8:34)” (G533). This stipulation might make it seem as if Jesus wanted his followers to give up all of their material possessions and to renounce any activity that brought them pleasure, but that doesn’t appear to be the case. Jesus told his disciples shortly before his death on the cross, “I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:9-10). The Greek word that is translated abundantly, perissos (per-is-sos) means “superabundant (in quantity) or superior (in quality); (by implication) excessive” and as an adjective perissos is used to convey “over and above” having “more than enough” (G4053). Jesus indicated that being saved is what causes a person to have an abundant life (John 10:9), but the word Jesus used for life, zoe (dzo-ayˊ) suggests that atonement changes life’s appearance or nature. Rather than one’s psuche becoming more vibrant, a zoe type of life replaces or covers over their psuche after a person is born again.

Zoe is comparable to psuche in that it represents “physical life and existence as opposed to death and nonexistence,” but it goes farther in referring to life “in the sense of existence, life, in an absolute sense and without end” and “in the Christian sense of eternal life, i.e. that life of bliss and glory in the kingdom of God which awaits the true disciples of Christ after the resurrection” (G2222). Jesus explained in his parable of the rich fool (Luke 12:13-21) that abundant life is not about having the security of material possessions, but about having the kind of security that eternal life provides. After the rich man had torn down his barns and built larger ones to store his crops, “God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you’” (Luke 12:20).

Jesus differentiated between psuche and zoe when he told his disciples, “Whoever loves his life (psuche) loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life (zoe)” (John 12:25). Losing your life in this verse seems to be connected with an acceptance or rejection of the thoughts, feelings, and desires that our souls generate with us. Paul gives us an example of hating your life in his letter to the Romans, where he confessed, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” (Romans 7:24). On the other hand, an example of loving your life might be found in the words of King Nebuchadnezzar, who said, “Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?” (Daniel 4:30). Following this statement, Nebuchadnezzar lost his life from a spiritual standpoint, when God issued a decree against him. Daniel tells us, “While the words were still in his mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, ‘O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you is it spoken: “The kingdom has departed from you, and you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the breast of the field. And you shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will”’” (Daniel 4:31-32).

Lip service

Jesus’ frustration with the hypocrisy of the Jewish religious leaders was evident in his response to their inquisition into his teaching and ministry. When he was asked, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the traditions of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” (Mark 7:5), Jesus told the scribes and Pharisees, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men’” (Mark 6-7). Jesus pointed to the inconsistency between the Jews’ worship of God and what was in their hearts. Jesus said, the Jews’ hearts were far from God, and in vain did they worship him. The Greek word that is translated vain, maten (matˊ-ane) is a derivative of mataios “through the idea of tentative manipulation, i.e. unsuccessful search, or else of punishment); folly, i.e. (adverb) to no purpose” (G3155). The scribes and Pharisees’ worship was not intended to bring them closer to God, but only to give the impression to others that they were close to the LORD. Jesus indicated that their worship was an empty, futile effort.

Jesus went on to explain that the scribes and Pharisees had established traditions that contradicted the Ten Commandments, giving the people of Israel the false impression that it was alright for them to bend the rules. Jesus used a parable to drive home his point that the condition of an individual’s heart is what really mattered to God. Jesus explained to his disciples:

“Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” (Mark 7:18-23)

Jesus linked a person’s actions to his thoughts and said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him” (Mark 7:20). The Greek word that Jesus used, koinoo (koy-noˊ-o), which is translated defiles, is derived from the word koinos (koy-nosˊ), the base word for the terms koinonia (koy-nohn-eeˊah) and koinonos (koy-no-nosˊ). Koinonia has to do with fellowship and communion with Christ (G2842). Jesus’ reference to becoming defiled was likely meant as false fellowship or believers being connected to unbelievers instead of to each other and Christ.

Jesus’ accusation against the scribes and Pharisees contained both positive and negative aspects. Isaiah’s prophecy stated, “This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me” (Mark 7:6). The Jewish religious leaders were half right in that they were honoring God with their lips, but because their hearts were not right with God, it appeared that they were only giving him lip service, a verbal but insincere expression of their agreement with God’s commandments. In his letter to Titus, the Apostle Paul made note of the fact that there were many who were teaching false doctrine and claiming to be Christians who were not. Paul said:

For there are many who are insubordinate, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision party. They must be silenced, since they are upsetting whole families by teaching for shameful gain what they ought not to teach…To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled. They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work. (Titus 1:10-16)

Paul indicated that unbelievers may profess to know God, but will demonstrate whether or not they are a follower of Christ by their actions. The Greek word that is translated deny in Titus 1:16, arneomai (ar-nehˊ-om-ahee) means “to contradict, i.e. disavow, reject, abnegate” (G720).

The people of Israel demonstrated their denial of God for many years before they were taken into captivity. In the desperate years leading up to Israel’s conquest by the Assyrians, the Israelites resorted to cannibalism and the king of Israel, rather than repenting and seeking God’s help, threatened to kill the prophet Elisha because of the nation’s problems. Second Kings 6:24-31 states:

Afterward Ben-hadad king of Syria mustered his entire army and went up and besieged Samaria. And there was a great famine in Samaria, as they besieged it, until a donkey’s head was sold for eighty shekels of silver, and the fourth part of a kab of dove’s dung for five shekels of silver. Now as the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman cried out to him, saying, “Help, my lord, O king!” And he said, “If the Lord will not help you, how shall I help you? From the threshing floor, or from the winepress?” And the king asked her, “What is your trouble?” She answered, “This woman said to me, ‘Give your son, that we may eat him today, and we will eat my son tomorrow.’ So we boiled my son and ate him. And on the next day I said to her, ‘Give your son, that we may eat him.’ But she has hidden her son.” When the king heard the words of the woman, he tore his clothes—now he was passing by on the wall—and the people looked, and behold, he had sackcloth beneath on his body—and he said, “May God do so to me and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat remains on his shoulders today.”

The king of Israel appeared to be mourning when he tore his clothes in response to the woman’s trouble, but his threat to kill Elisha, who was God’s appointed spokesman, contradicted his action and showed that his heart was hardened toward God.

The Apostle John described having fellowship with God as walking in the light. John said:

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. (1 John 1:5-10)

John said that confessing our sins will result in God forgiving our sins because he is faithful and just, but John also indicated that denying our sins makes God a liar, proving that his word is not in us.

Jesus used the example of a tree and its fruit to illustrate his point to the Pharisees that the heart was the source of each person’s thoughts and actions. Jesus said, “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned” (Matthew 12:33-37). Jesus’ emphasis on the words that we speak had to do with a key aspect of salvation, confession or rather making a profession of faith. Paul explained this aspect of salvation in his letter to the Romans. Paul said:

For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them. But the righteousness based on faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. (Romans 10:5-10)

Paul indicated that believing originates in the heart, but it is with the mouth that one confesses and is saved. The Greek word that is translated confesses, homologeo (hom-ol-og-ehˊ-o) means “To speak or say the same with another, e.g., to say the same thing, i.e. to assent, accord, to agree with” and also “to promise” (G3670). When a person confesses that Jesus is Lord, he is agreeing with what is written in the Bible, the inspired word of God. If the person believes in his heart what he is saying is true; it is not just lip service, but a promise, an actual profession of faith and will result in the person being saved.

Overcoming unbelief

One of the primary obstacles that Jesus faced in his mission to save the world was the unbelief of the people of Israel. Mark’s gospel tells us when Jesus came to his hometown, they “took offense at him” (Mark 6:3). The Greek word that is translated offense, skandalizo (skan-dal-idˊ-zo) means to “scandalize.” In a moral sense, skandalizo means “to be a stumbling block to someone, to cause to stumble at or in something, to give a cause of offence to someone. It says in Mark 6:1-6:

He went away from there and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. And on the Sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things? What is the wisdom given to him? How are such mighty works done by his hands? Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. And Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.” And he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. And he marveled because of their unbelief.

Jesus’ family, friends, and neighbors saw him as an ordinary man. Rather than accepting him as their Messiah, the Son of God, the people in his hometown associated Jesus with his occupation, and referred to him as “the carpenter” (Mark 6:3). Mark said that Jesus could do no mighty work or miracles there because of their unbelief.

Unbelief is the state a person is in before embracing the gospel, but it can also be a violation of faith or apostasy (G570). The writer of Hebrews admonished the people of Israel because of their unbelief. Hebrews 3:12-19 states:

Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. As it is said,

“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”

For who were those who heard and yet rebelled? Was it not all those who left Egypt led by Moses? And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient? So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief.

The writer of Hebrews associated unbelief with the heart, and also indicated that a person could become hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

In his parable of the sower, Jesus identified different locations that the seed could end up after it was sown and explained to his disciples that the seed represented the word of the kingdom or the gospel. Jesus said, “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart” (Matthew 13:19). According to Jesus the intended destination for the gospel is the heart, but Satan tries to keep us from understanding God’s word so that it doesn’t have any effect on us. Jesus went on to explain that the seeds that fell on rocky ground are, “the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away” (Mark 4:16-17). The seeds that fell on rocky ground may have been a direct reference to Jesus’ twelve disciples, who were noted by Mark as abandoning Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Mark said, “They all left him and fled” (Mark 14:50). After Jesus fed five thousand people with five loaves of bread and two fish, he came to his disciples in the middle of the night walking on the sea. Mark tells us, “And he got into the boat with them, and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened” (Mark 6:51-52).

The reason why Jesus’ disciples were utterly astounded when he walked across the water and got into the boat with them was because there was no logical explanation for what had just happened, they may have even thought they were losing their minds or were hallucinating. Mark says, “When they saw him walking on the sea they thought it was a ghost” (Mark 6:49). Mark’s assessment of the situation was linked to what had happened the day before. Mark said, “They did not understand about the loaves” (Mark 6:52). The Greek word that is translated understand, suniemi (soon-eeˊ-ay-mee) means “to bring together in the mind, to grasp concepts and see the proper relation between them. Hence, to comprehend, understand, perceive” (G4920). At this point in the disciples’ relationship with Jesus, it is likely that they were grappling with the fact that God had become a man, that the man they knew as Jesus, was actually God. In one of Jesus’ final conversations with his disciples, John lets us know that his disciples still couldn’t completely comprehend how Jesus, a man, could also be God. John writes:

Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves. John 14:8-11)

Jesus told Philip that the Father dwelt in him, that he was in the Father and the Father was in him. Jesus was speaking “of the relation in which one person or thing stands with another…thus to remain in or with someone, i.e. to be and remain united with him, one with him in heart, mind, and will” (G3306). Jesus concluded his conversation with Philip with the statement, “Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works” (John 14:11). Believing means that you have faith in someone or something. “Particularly, to be firmly persuaded as to something…with the idea of hope and certain expectation (Acts 18:8)” (G4100). The Greek word pisteuo (pist-yooˊ-o), which is translated believe, is derived from the word pistis (pisˊ-tis), which speaks “(of religious truth, or the truthfulness of God or the religious teacher), especially reliance upon Christ for salvation” (G4102).

Jesus’ miracle of feeding five thousand people with five loaves and two fish was motivated by compassion. Mark tells us about Jesus, “When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things” (Mark 6:34). The Greek word that Mark used that is translated shepherd, poimen (poy-maneˊ) is translated pastors in the King James Version of Ephesians 4:11 where Paul talks about the various manifestations of grace in the context of unity in the body of Christ. Paul said, “And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, but craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way unto him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love” (Ephesians 4:11-16). Paul identified the goal of Christianity to be attaining the unity of faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God. The role of the pastor or shepherd in this endeavor is to act as a spiritual guide for believers whose faith is being developed as they grow in their knowledge of the Son of God.

Paul said in his letter to the Romans that the Israelites were like branches that had been broken off because of their unbelief, and then added, “But you stand fast through faith (pistis)” (Romans 11:20). Standing fast implies that there is a force that is trying to move you or perhaps, knock you down. The Greek word histemi (hisˊ-tay-mee), which is translated stand fast, is used metaphorically in Acts 7:60 as “to impute, e.g. sin unto someone” (G2476). Histemi is used three times in Ephesians 6:11-14 where Paul talks about putting on “the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil” (Ephesians 6:11). Paul concluded his discussion of spiritual warfare with the statement, “In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one, and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication” (Ephesians 6:16-18). Paul indicated that we must take up the shield of faith, suggesting that faith involves an intentional effort on our part to protect ourselves from spiritual attacks. Paul said that we can not only use our faith to protect ourselves from the enemy’s attacks, but we can also use our faith to launch a counter attack by praying in the Spirit at all times. From that standpoint, it could be said that prayer is a weapon that believers have at their disposal to overcome their unbelief.

Miraculous power (1000 posts)

The spiritual decline of the nation of Israel resulted in God intervening in the lives of the Israelites more and more through prophets instead of their king, until the time when the people of Israel were taken into captivity (2 Chronicles 36:17-21). A prophet was an inspirited spokesman. “Moses was the greatest prophet of the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 34:10) and the example for all later prophets. He displayed every aspect of a true prophet, both in his call, his work, his faithfulness, and, at times, his doubts. Only Abraham is called a prophet before Moses (Genesis 20:7)” (H5030). Moses indicated that a prophet was someone that the LORD had put his spirit upon (Numbers 11:29), but the LORD himself said, “If there is a prophet among you, I the LORD make myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream. Not so with my servant Moses. He is faithful in all my house. With him I speak mouth to mouth, clearly, and not in riddles, and he beholds the form of the LORD” (Numbers 12:6-8). The Hebrew word that is translated form, tᵉmuwnah (tem-oo-nawˊ) refers specifically to “embodiment” and is used in a figurative sense to refer to “manifestation” (H8544). This seems to suggest that Moses could see Jesus, who is described in Colossians 1:15 as “the image of the invisible God” and in Hebrews 1:3 “the exact imprint of his nature” (KJV).

Not long after King Solomon’s reign ended, Israel’s kings became corrupted by the idolatry that King Solomon introduced (1 Kings 11:4-8). Afterward, the first notable prophet to enter the scene was Elijah, who raised a widow’s son from the dead (1 Kings 17:17-24), and defeated the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18:20-40). At a low point in Elijah’s career, 1 Kings 19:5 states that as he lay down and slept under a broom tree, “an angel touched him and said to him, ‘Arise and eat.’” First Kings 19:7 goes on to say, “And the angel of the LORD came again a second time and touched him and said, ‘Arise and eat, for the journey is too great for you.’” “There is a distinct possibility that various Old Testament references to the ‘angel of the LORD’ involved preincarnate appearances of Jesus Christ, the Son of God” (note on Exodus 23:20-23). When the word of the LORD came to Elijah, it says in 1 Kings 19:9 that “he said to him, ‘What are you doing here Elijah?’” The Apostle John referred to Jesus as the Word (John 1:1) and said of him, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14).

The thing that distinguished Elijah and his successor Elisha from other Old Testament prophets was the miraculous power that was displayed through them on a regular basis. Before the LORD took Elijah up to heaven, Elisha asked Elijah to give him what appeared to be the key to his spiritual success. Second Kings 2:9-14 states:

When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Ask what I shall do for you, before I am taken from you.” And Elisha said, “Please let there be a double portion of your spirit on me.” And he said, “You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it shall be so for you, but if you do not see me, it shall not be so.” And as they still went on and talked, behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha saw it and he cried, “My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” And he saw him no more.

Then he took hold of his own clothes and tore them in two pieces. And he took up the cloak of Elijah that had fallen from him and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. Then he took the cloak of Elijah that had fallen from him and struck the water, saying, “Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?” And when he had struck the water, the water was parted to the one side and to the other, and Elisha went over.

Elisha’s ambitious request for a double portion of Elijah’s spirit was granted to him even though Elijah’s said, “You have asked a hard thing” (2 Kings 2:10). The Hebrew word that is translated a hard thing, qashah (kaw-shawˊ) means “to be dense, i.e. tough or severe” and is used in Exodus 7:3 in reference to Pharaoh’s heart being hardened. “This word marks the restlessness, impatience, petulance, and irritability with which Pharaoh’s course of action was characterized while he was resisting the urgent appeals of both Moses and his own people” (H7185).

Elisha’s request for twice the amount of Elijah’s miraculous power appears to have been motivated by his own lack of belief in God. It might be said that Elisha was asking for the right thing, but for all the wrong reasons. When Elisha struck the water with Elijah’s cloak, he asked, “Where is the LORD, the God of Elijah?” (2 Kings 2:14), suggesting that Elisha didn’t have a personal relationship with the LORD, but was merely imitating what he had seen Elijah do. Even so, “The water was parted to the one side and to the other, and Elisha went over.” It may have been that Elisha’s faith was only lacking until he saw the tangible evidence that the LORD was with him as he had been with Elijah. It says in 2 Kings 2:19-22, “Now the men of the city said to Elisha, “Behold, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord sees, but the water is bad, and the land is unfruitful.” He said, “Bring me a new bowl, and put salt in it.” So they brought it to him. Then he went to the spring of water and threw salt in it and said, “Thus says the Lord, I have healed this water; from now on neither death nor miscarriage shall come from it.” So the water has been healed to this day, according to the word that Elisha spoke.”

Jesus explained to the Jews who had believed in him that God, his Father, was the source of all that he said and did. Jesus told them, “I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father” (John 8:38), and then, Jesus went on to say, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works Abraham did, but now you seek to kill me, a man who had told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did” (John 8:39-40). Jesus’ explanation seems to suggest that learning is necessary for one’s faith to be expressed, and that we naturally do what we have learned from others. Jesus later expanded on this point in a conversation with his disciple Philip. John 14:8-11 states:

Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.

Jesus told Philip, “The Father who dwells in me does his works” (John 14:10). The works that he was referring to were the miracles that Jesus performed on a regular basis (G2041). Jesus told Philip that if it was impossible for him to believe that he and his Father were one, then he should at least be able to “believe on account of the works themselves” (John 14:11).

On one occasion, John pointed out to Jesus that someone was doing miracles who was not a follower of Christ. John 9:38-41 states, “John said to him, ‘Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.’  But Jesus said, ‘Do not stop him, for no one who does a might work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. For the one who is not against us is for us. For truly, I say to you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward.’” Jesus used the term mighty work to describe what was happening. The Greek word that Jesus used is translated as miracle in the King James Version of the Bible and is translated elsewhere as power (G1411). This seems to suggest that miraculous power is not dependent on one’s faith, but on something that both believers and unbelievers have in common.

Mark’s gospel contains an account of a woman who was healed as a result of coming in contact with Jesus’ garments. Mark tells us:

And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse. She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my garments?” And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’” And he looked around to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.” (Mark 5:24-34)

Mark indicates that Jesus was able to perceive that power had gone out from him. The Greek word that is translated power, dunamis (dooˊ-nam-is) means “miraculous power (usually by implication, a miracle itself)…Dunamis almost always points to new and higher forces that have entered and are working in this lower world of ours” (G1411). The new and higher forces in the form of power that went out from Jesus were what caused the flow of the woman’s blood to be dried up. Jesus’ statement, “Your faith has made you well” (Mark 5:34) indicated that the woman was born again as a result of her encounter with Jesus (G4982).

The Greek word dunamis is derived from the word dunamai (dooˊ-nam-ahee). “Dunamai means to be able, to have power, whether by virtue of one’s own ability and resources (Romans 15:14); or through a state of mind, or through favorable circumstances (1 Thessalonians 2:6); or by permission of law or custom (Acts 24:8, 11); or simply to be able, powerful (Matthew 3:9; 2 Timothy 3:15)” (G1410). Jesus told the Jews who were seeking to kill him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise” (John 4:19). Jesus used the words dunamai and ou (oo) to convey his complete inability to do anything of his own accord (G1410/3756). This was intended to make it clear to the Jews who wanted to kill him that it was God’s will that was determining when and how miraculous power came out of Jesus. Jesus went on to say, “For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel. For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will” (John 4:20-21). Jesus described regeneration as a joint effort between him and his Father. The Father raised the dead, which involved the physical restoration of life. But, Jesus was the one who imparted spiritual life, which prevented spiritual death from occurring in the future. In the case of the woman who had a discharge of blood, it was the release of the Father’s power that dried up her flow of blood, but only Jesus could to save her.

The secret of the kingdom of God

One of the key features of Jesus’ ministry on earth was the new doctrine or teaching that he introduced to the Jewish religion. It says in Mark 1:22, “they were astonished at his teaching” and in 1:27-28, “they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, ‘What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him.’ And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee.” Mark later tells us that Jesus “was teaching them many things in parables” (Mark 4:2). A parable is a comparison. “Specifically, a parable, i.e. a short story under which something else is figured or in which the fictitious is used to represent and illustrate the real” (G3850). Jesus told his disciples, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables” (Mark 4:11).

The secret of the kingdom of God that Jesus was referring to was the gospel, “the Christian dispensation” which wasn’t revealed to the Jews until Jesus came into the world (G3466). Jesus depicted the process of preaching the gospel in his parable of the sower. Jesus said:

“Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil. And when the sun rose, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away. Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. And other seeds fell into good soil and produced grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” And he said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” (Mark 4:3-9)

Jesus’ statement, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear” was expanded upon and clarified in Paul’s doxology at the end of his letter to the Romans. Paul concluded, “Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith—to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen” (Romans 16:25-27). Paul spoke of the revelation of the mystery being disclosed and made known to all nations, “according to the command of the eternal God” (Romans 16:26). When Jesus said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear,” he was essentially commanding or activating the faith of those who were believers in the crowd around him.

Paul indicated that the purpose of the revelation of the mystery being disclosed was to “bring about the obedience of faith” (Romans 16:26). The Greek word that is translated disclosed, phaneroo (fan-er-oˊ-o) means “to render apparent” or make clear (G5319). Therefore, obedience is dependent upon God’s word being made clear to us. After Jesus told the parable of the sower, he met with his disciples privately and asked them, “Do you not understand this parable?  How then will you understand all the parables?” (Mark 4:13). Jesus wanted his disciples to know that he had just revealed to them a foundational principle of the kingdom of God. Their understanding of that principle was critical to their spiritual development. After stating this, Jesus went on to disclose the meaning of parable to his disciples. Jesus said:

“The sower sows the word. And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them. And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away. And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” (Mark 4:14-20)

Jesus identified the word as the real thing that the fictitious seed was intended to represent. The seed was not only symbolic of the word, but its characteristics were also similar to the word so that it helped people to understand what Jesus was talking about when referred to the word. Jesus also likened sowing the seed to hearing or preaching the gospel, and used the phrases “when they hear” and “who hear” to indicate the different effects of hearing the word on the people who were listening.

Jesus’ final statement in his explanation of the parable of the sower was intended to refer his disciples back to the secret of the kingdom of God. Jesus said, “But those that were sown on good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold” (Mark 4:20). Jesus identified a second step that was necessary for the word to take root in a person’s heart, grow, and eventually to bear fruit in the person’s life. Jesus indicated a person must hear the word and accept it. The Greek word paradechomai (par-ad-ekhˊ-om-ahee), which is translated accept, is derived from the words para (par-ahˊ) a “preposition with the primary meaning of near, nearby, expressing the notion of immediate vicinity or proximity” (G3844), and dechomai (dekhˊ-om-ahee), which means, “To receive, admit with the mind and heart, i.e. by implication: to approve, embrace, follow (Matthew 11:14; Luke 8:13; Acts 8:14; 11:1; 17:11; 1 Thessalonians 1:6; 2:13; James 1:21)” (G1209). Matthew and Luke used two different words to describe the second step that Jesus identified. Matthew said you must hear the word and understand or comprehend it (Matthew 13:23; G4920). Luke indicated that you must hear the word and “hold it fast in an honest and good heart” (Luke 8:15), meaning, in a figurative sense, that you must retain the word in your memory or keep it in the forefront of your mind because the word of God is important to you (G2722).

John’s gospel contains an explanation of the Israelites unbelief. John said:

Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him, so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

“Lord, who has believed what he heard from us,
    and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”

Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said,

“He has blinded their eyes
    and hardened their heart,
lest they see with their eyes,
    and understand with their heart, and turn,
    and I would heal them.”

Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him. Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God. (John 12:37-43)

The verse that John quoted from Isaiah 6:9-10 to explain the Israelites’ unbelief (John 12:40) was also used by Jesus to explain the purpose of him using parables to teach the Israelites about the kingdom of God (Mark 4:12). Paul clarified in his second letter to the Corinthians who the person was that had blinded the people’s eyes. Paul said, “And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case, the god of this world has blinded the minds of unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Corinthians 4:3-4). The phrase the god of this world refers to “the devil, who is the archenemy of God and the unseen power behind all unbelief and ungodliness. Those who follow him have in effect made him their god” (note on 2 Corinthians 4:4, KJSB).

Paul made a clear connection between hearing the gospel and having faith in his letter to the Romans. Paul concluded his message of salvation to all with this statement:

How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. (Romans 10:14-17)

Paul used the Greek word akoe (ak-o-ayˊ) to describe the type of hearing that was required to have faith. Akoe refers to “that which is or may be heard: a thing announced, instruction, teaching” (G189). In other words, akoe is an audible message that is received from a person who is authorized/qualified to distribute it. Paul asked the question, “And how are they to preach unless they are sent?” (Romans 10:15). Paul’s question indicated that preaching the gospel was intended to be reserved for those whom God had set apart for that work, “prophets, messengers, teachers, angels,” individuals that were considered to be agents sent from God (G649).

Jesus clarified his message in the parable of the sower with the illustration of a lamp being placed under a basket. Jesus asked, “’Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed, and not on a stand? For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret except to come to light. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.’ And he said to them, ‘Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you. For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away’” (Mark 4:21-25). Jesus instructed his disciples to pay attention to what they heard. What Jesus meant by paying attention was to not be blinded by the devil. The Greek word blepo (blepˊ-o), which is translated pay attention, means “to be able to see, i.e. to have the faculty of sight, and as spoken of the blind, to recover sight” (G991). The point that Jesus wanted to make was that his gospel message was being brought out into the open so that those who were interested in a relationship with God could easily find their way to him, but it required an intentional effort on the part of those who wanted to know the secret of the kingdom of God. Jesus said, “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you” (Mark 4:24), suggesting that faith is given to us in limited portions based on the amount of effort we expend trying to understand Jesus’ gospel message. Therefore, the greater the effort we make to pay attention to the word, or you might say, to intentionally take the blinders off when we are hearing God’s word, the greater the amount of faith we will receive from God as a result of it.

God’s family

The LORD’s unconditional promise to David that he would be the father of an everlasting kingdom (2 Samuel 7:16) changed the way God dealt with the nation of Israel. God told David, “I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever” (2 Samuel 7:12-16). “This refers initially to Solomon but was ultimately fulfilled in Jesus Christ, the ‘Son of David’ (Luke 1:31-33; Acts 2:25-35) who reigns at God’s right hand (Psalm 2:7; Acts 13:33)” (note on 2 Samuel 2:13). The Father/Son relationship between God and Jesus Christ made it possible for believers to become members of the family of God (Ephesians 1:5).

Paul tells us in Romans 8:14 that being led by the Holy Spirit is an indicator that you are a child of God. Paul said:

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. (Romans 8:14-17)

Paul said that the Holy Spirit’s activity inside of a believer bears witness to the fact that he has a parent/child relationship with God.

Jesus repeatedly referred to God as your Father in his Sermon on the Mount. Jesus said, “’You have heard that it was said, “You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven’” (Matthew 5:43-45). The Greek word that is translated sons, uihos (hwee-osˊ) is spoken of “those whom God loves and cherishes as a father. Generally of pious worshippers of God, the righteous, the saints (Matthew 5:9, 45; Luke 6:35; 20:36),” but is also used to refer to, “One who derives his human nature directly from God, and not by ordinary generation: spoken of Jesus (Luke 1:35); implied of Adam (Luke 3:38)” (G5207). Jesus told his followers:

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:7-11)

Jesus compared a believer’s relationship with God to that of a natural born child and its parent and said that we should expect to receive good things from God when we ask him for them. The Greek word aiteo (ahee-tehˊ-o), which is translated ask, has to do with prayer, and “is strictly a demand of something due” (G154/4441). Just as a child is dependent upon his or her own parents to provide daily food and shelter, so is a child of God dependent upon him to provide the daily necessities of spiritual life.

Jesus made it clear to his disciples that he didn’t recognize relationships that were established through physical birth. Mark tells us, “And his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him. And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you.” And he answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother” (Mark 3:31-35). Jesus considered his followers to be his family and said the thing that distinguished them from everyone else was that they do the will of God. Jesus elaborated on this point in his Sermon on the Mount. Jesus said:


“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’” (Matthew 7:21-23)

Jesus used the Greek word ginosko (ghin-oceˊ-ko) to indicate his lack of a spiritual relationship with a person. Ginosko is used “in the sense to know, as being what one is or professes to be, to acknowledge (Matthew 7:23)” (G1097). “In the New Testament ginosko frequently indicates a relation between the person ‘knowing’ and the object known; in this respect, what is ‘known’ is of value or importance to the one who knows, and hence the establishment of the relationship, e.g., especially of God’s ‘knowledge,’ 1 Corinthians 8:3, ‘if any man love God, the same is known of Him’…”such ‘knowledge’ is obtained not by mere intellectual activity, but by operation of the Holy Spirit consequent upon acceptance of Christ.”

Paul described the spiritual birthing process that every believer has to go through in his letter to the Ephesians. Paul stated:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. (Ephesians 1:3-6)

Paul indicated that the process of spiritual birth begins with God choosing us and also stated that God chose us “before the foundation of the world” (Ephesians 1:4). That means that God’s family was established before he even thought about creating the world. After God chose the members of his family, he exercised his love toward them by determining in advance that each one of them would be adopted and become “heirs of His covenanted salvation” (G5206; Ephesians 1:5). The process of spiritual birth concludes with God blessing all who were predestined to become his children by giving them the grace to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior so that their sins can be forgiven and they can go to heaven to be with him when they die (Ephesians 1:6-10).

Jesus told the Jews who claimed that God was their Father, but did not believe his gospel message, that they belonged to a different family, the family of Satan. John 8:31-47 states:

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?”

Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.”

 They answered him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works Abraham did, but now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did. You are doing the works your father did.” They said to him, “We were not born of sexual immorality. We have one Father—even God.” Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.”

Jesus differentiated between those who were descendants of Abraham who were actually members of God’s family and those who were not. The key characteristic of a member of God’s family is telling and believing the truth.

Jesus encouraged his followers to not be anxious and told them that they could depend on God to take care of them because they were members of his family. Jesus said, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:25-33). Jesus said that the way God takes care of his children is by adding things to them. The Greek word prostithemi (pros-tithˊ-ay-mee) has to do with placing something near or in the pathway of the person that it is intended for and means “to place additionally” (G4369). In other words, God gives his children more than they already have or more than they can provide for themselves. Jesus used the example of the lilies that grow in the field compared to King Solomon, who was the richest man who ever lived, and said, “I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” (Matthew 6:29-30).

Spiritual Sickness

Jesus’ selection of Matthew, who was identified as a tax collector (Matthew 10:3), as one of his twelve apostles drew criticism from the Jewish religious leaders because they considered Matthew to be a traitor. Mark 2:15-17 tells us:

And as he reclined at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. And the scribes of the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Jesus used the Greek term iatros (ee-at-rosˊ) to describe the role he was playing when he ate with tax collectors and sinners. Iatros is derived from the verb iaomai (ee-ahˊ-om-ahee), which means “to cure” or “to heal” with regard to physical treatment, but is used figuratively, “of spiritual ‘healing’” (G2390). Jesus described spiritual sickness in Matthew 13:15 where he said, “’For this people’s heart has grown dull, and with their eyes they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn and I would heal them.’”

Jesus associated the righteous with those who are well and said that they had no need for spiritual healing, but only sinners. The Greek word that is translated sinners, hamartolos (ham-ar-to-losˊ) is derived from the word harmartano (ham-ar-tanˊ-o), which means “to miss the mark, swerve from the way” (G264). Jesus told his disciple Thomas, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6, emphasis mine). When Jesus said that he was the way, he meant that he was the author and medium of access to God and eternal life (G3598). To miss the way or mark means that a person has not accepted Jesus as the propitiation for their sins (Romans 3:25). Paul explained in his letter to the Romans that there is no distinction between those who need redemption and those who do not because “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith” (Romans 3:23-25).

Jesus’ statement, “Those who are well have no need of a physician” (Mark 2:17) was intended to trigger his listeners’ awareness of their lost condition. The Greek word ischoo (is-khooˊ-o) “denotes to be strong, to prevail and indicates a more forceful strength or ability than dunamai” (G2480). Dunamai was used in Matthew 19:25 in connection with entering the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 19:23-26 states:

And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can (dunamai) be saved?” But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

The Greek word that is translated impossible, adunatos (ad-ooˊ-nat-os) is the negative of dunatos (doo-nat-osˊ), a derivative of dunamai. Literally, what Jesus was saying was that it could never happen. There was no possibility that a person could be saved through his own effort.

Jesus said that he came not to call the righteous, but sinners (Mark 2:17). It says in Romans Chapter 8 that believers are predestined to be conformed to the image of God’s Son, “in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers” (Romans 8:29). Paul went on to say, “And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified” (Romans 8:30). Being called by Jesus is one of the steps in the process of spiritual rebirth. “The new birth and regeneration do not represent successive stages in spiritual experience, they refer to the same event but view it in different aspects. The new birth stresses the communication of spiritual life in contrast to antecedent spiritual death; regeneration stresses the inception of a new state of things in contrast with the old” (G3824). When Jesus healed a paralytic, he linked the healing of the man’s body with the forgiveness of his sins. Mark’s gospel tells us:

And when he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them. And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!” (Mark 2:1-12)

Mark indicated that Jesus was preaching the word to them when four men opened up the roof of the house and let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. Mark also noted that Jesus saw the faith of the men who had brought the paralytic to him and perceived in his spirit that the scribes were questioning in their hearts his authority to forgive the paralytics sins. Jesus was perfectly in tune with what was going on in the spiritual realm and decided to demonstrate his authority so that people would understand how he was able to make the paralytic’s condition disappear. Jesus commanded the man to rise, pick up his bed, and go home (Mark 2:11).

Jesus’ ability to heal spiritual sickness is based on the authority that has been given to him by God. Jesus told his disciples before he ascended to heaven, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matthew 28:18). Paul elaborated on this fact when he said that God had seated Jesus at his right hand in the heavenly places, “far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all” (Ephesians 1:20-23). Jesus’ all-encompassing authority makes it possible for him to exercise God’s power in whatever way he wants or needs to. Jesus told his disciples, “With God, all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26). The only thing that hindered the people of Israel from being made well by Jesus during his ministry on earth was the people’s unwillingness to admit they were sinners who needed God’s forgiveness.  

Preaching the gospel

Mark’s gospel opens with a statement that sets the context for the rest of his message. Mark informs his readers that his message is about, “The beginning of the gospel Jesus Christ, the Son of God” (Mark 1:1). In other words, Mark was saying, this is how it all got started, we were told that the Son of God is here. Mark went on to talk about John the Baptist’s preparation for Jesus’ arrival (Mark 1:2-8), and then, recounted how John baptized Jesus in the Jordan River. Mark said:

In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” (Mark 1:9-11)

Mark indicated that it wasn’t Jesus who informed the people of Israel about his identity, but God himself who said, “You are my beloved Son” (Mark 1:11). Mark also clarified that it wasn’t Jesus’ story that was being told, but “the gospel of God” (Mark 1:14). Mark stated, “Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel’” (Mark 1:14-15).

Mark used the Greek word kerusso (kay-roosˊ-so) to describe what Jesus was doing. Kerusso means “to herald (as a public crier), especially divine truth (the gospel)…Especially to preach, publish, or announce religious truth, the gospel with its attendant privileges and obligations, the gospel of dispensation…’To preach Christ’ means to announce him as the Messiah and urge the reception of His gospel” (G2784). Kerusso is translated as both preached and proclaiming in Mark chapter one. Jesus’ brief message, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15), suggests that there was a simple formula for accepting Christ as one’s Savior, “repent and believe in the gospel.” Mark’s gospel is the most simple and direct of the four gospels. Mark seems to cut to the chase and doesn’t waste any time trying to convince people of the truth. Mark just states the facts and then, lets people draw their own conclusions.

Mark briefly described what a typical day for Jesus and his disciples probably looked like in Mark 1:35-39. Mark stated:

And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, and they found him and said to him, “Everyone is looking for you.” And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.” And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.

Jesus indicated that he came out in order to preach the gospel. The Greek word that is translated came out, exerchomai (ex-erˊ-khom-ahee) is derived from the words ex “denoting origin (the point whence motion or action proceeds)…primarily meaning out of, from, of, as spoken of such objects which before were in another, but are not separated from it, either in respect of place, time, source, or origin” (G1537), and erchomai “in the sense of to come forth before the public” (G2064). This seems to suggest that it was necessary for people to see Jesus, who was described by Paul in 2 Corinthians 4:4 as “the image of God,” in order for the gospel to be preached.

Paul explained in his second letter to the Corinthians that the gospel is veiled or hidden from those who are perishing. Paul stated:

We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (2 Corinthians 4:2-6)

Paul referred to the devil as the god of this world and said that he has blinded the minds of unbelievers (2 Corinthians 4:4). The mind is where perception comes from and is what makes it possible for us to think and plan our activities. Without our minds, we wouldn’t have the ability to understand the world or people around us. When Paul said that the devil has blinded the minds of unbelievers, he meant that the devil could skew their perception by making them conceited, proud, arrogant; unaware of their need for a Savior.

Matthew’s gospel tells us:

At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:25-30)

Jesus said no one knows the Father except the Son, “and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him” (Matthew 11:27). The Greek word that is translated chooses is boulomai (booˊ-lom-ahee). Boulomai has to do with exercising the will, being willing to do something (G1014). The Apostle Peter indicated that the Lord is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9, KJV). Therefore, it can be assumed that the rest of Jesus’ statement is an explanation of how people get to the point of repentance. Jesus said that we must 1) come to him, and that we must 2) take his yoke upon us, and 3) learn from him; and then, Jesus added as a word of encouragement, “For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:30).