"Do not just hear the Word of God and think hearing is enough. DO what it says!" James 1:22

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Mark Lesson 8

MARK 6


Object lesson: Use strips of clear packing tape to demonstrate how time spent in God's Word makes us stronger and more useful. Students pass the strips around, sticking it to one another's shirt sleeves or backs, while the teacher delivers the Wrap Up. In the end of the Wrap Up show how the  used strips don't stick together as well as the clean strips held by the teacher. So it is when we spend our time doing other things while avoiding special time with God in His Word.

How many of you have special "dates" with your parents?
How many of you have siblings and your parents try to spend special time with each of you?
Maybe some of you have special dates with a Godparent or special aunt or uncle.
My daughter and I enjoy going to Earth and Fire for our special dates while my son and I enjoy seeing a movie and going out for pizza afterwards.

Why do we do this?
Why do we need to spend special time with our loved ones?

No Jesus - No Peace
Know Jesus - Know Peace

Recently in our Wrap Ups, we've talked about how most people did not have the right idea about Who Jesus really is. We've talked about being good soil and what that soil will produce.
And we've talked about God's power
which is available to all who believe in and follow His Son.

How well do you know Jesus?

Jesus went home in the beginning of our lesson this week. I wonder if He had hoped to spend some special time with His family and friends while He was there. That didn't happen though, did it? As a matter of fact, Mark 6:3 says the people in Jesus's hometown "took offense at Him" which means they thought He was not acting like He was "on their side." They STILL didn't realize WHO Jesus really was, did they? Remember our Wrap Up a few weeks ago? Runner, softball player, hunter... I'm still Mrs. Gettelfinger. Teacher, Preacher, Healer... Jesus is still GOD. The people of His hometown saw Jesus as JUST a man... a man who healed a few sick people.

How well do you know Jesus?

King Herod thought Jesus was John the Baptist come back to life to haunt Herod for cutting off John's head. Herod KNEW John was a "holy man" (v.20.) Therefore, if Herod thought Jesus was John come back to life, then Herod had to thing of Jesus as a "holy man" also.
Did Herod think of John as God?
Even someone smart enough or blessed enough to be king
did not understand that Jesus is God.

How well do you know Jesus?

Before Jesus sends the apostles out two by two in vv.7-13, He spends time with them -teaching them. Listen... this part is important... remember all those parables we talked about a couple lessons back -the seed, the soil, the lamp, the thief? Mark 4:34 says, "He spoke to them only in parables, but privately to His own disciples he explained everything." Before the apostles are sent out two by two, Jesus teaches them PRIVATELY. And while in their presence, He gives them authority over demons. We know the apostles were successful with their mission because v.30 tells us how they shared their experiences with Jesus. That's when Jesus tells them to "come away by yourselves to a desolate (private) place and rest awhile (v.31.)"

How well do you know Jesus?

But before the apostles can get away for some rest, we hear the story of how Jesus fed more than 5000 people with just two fish and five loaves of bread. Jesus and His apostles needed to rest. Instead of telling the huge crowd to find the nearest city and go have dinner, Jesus put His plans for His own well-being aside and fed the crowd. Jesus made "special time" for the crowd. After all, the people in the crowd were children of God just as the apostles were.

How well do you know Jesus?

Let's talk about the people in the crowd. Do you think they knew Who Jesus really was? Do you think knew and understood the fact that Jesus was God? Even the apostles had not fully understood that Jesus was God. If the apostles had understood this fact, THEY would have fed the crowd when Jesus told them in v.37, "YOU give them something to eat."

How well do you know Jesus?

If the apostles and the crowd were all God's children and none of them fully realized Who Jesus was, what makes these two groups any different from one another? Name some of the differences between the two groups...

the apostles could heal...
many in the crowd probably came to Jesus to be healed.

the apostles could preach the Gospel...
the entire crowd came to hear the Gospel.

the apostles were Followers of Christ...
many in the crowd were merely "seekers" of Christ.

The most important difference between the two groups was that the apostles SPENT TIME ALONE -privately- WITH JESUS. The crowd had not had that kind of time with Him. Therefore, the apostles were stronger, more capable FOR CHRIST. Because of their time alone with Jesus, the apostles KNEW Him better than the people of the crowd.

There is a difference between knowing OF Jesus and KNOWING Him.

How well do you know Jesus?

(This is the part which is difficult to explain. Basically, the packing tape which was passed around from person to person will eventually not stick to anything. When the tape remains clean and is stuck to another clean strip, it is extremely difficult to tear apart. So it is when we make "special time" in God's Word and keep it important above all else that we become stronger and more capable of sharing the Gospel just as the apostles shared in our lesson.)

So how much time do YOU spend as Jesus suggests in Mark 6:31...
"Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest awhile."
How well do you know Jesus?

Will you make time for Jesus... just YOU and God's Word this week...
and then will you try to do that each and every week of your life? 

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