10 Jan - Mark 8

Today we are reading Mark 8 in the Tattoo Church Reading Plan. Here are some things to think about:

1. Mark 8 starts with another instance of Jesus feeding thousands of people, this time with only seven loaves a bread and few fish.
2. Then we see Jesus scold his disciples for not grasping what was happening. That Jesus was demonstrating that he was the Messiah, the Savior, the one the Jewish people had been looking for.
3. We see Jesus heal a blind man by spitting on his eyes. Kind of gross right? I wonder if the blind man cared or was he just ecstatic to have his vision restored? I would probably be like thanks Jesus but umm, seriously, did you have to spit on me? Either way it was pretty cool how Jesus healed him and then said not to go back into his village and tell everyone. Jesus just wanted to meet his needs.
4. Later we see Peter, one of his disciples, come to understand just who Jesus is. Afterwards Jesus tells them that he will suffer and be crucified. Peter tries to rebuke him because he can not see how dying would achieve God’s purpose but Jesus corrects him.

At the end of Mark 8 the words of Jesus are recorded where he tells us that anyone who wants to follow him must be willing to even die. This is a pretty big price to pay for following Jesus isn’t it? But people throughout history have had to pay that price. Living in the United states, it’s hard to even imagine living somewhere that we could be killed for our faith but those places do exists. I wonder who would still identify themselves as Christians if they would die for it. Jesus said, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?” How about you, would you still be a follower of Jesus if you could really be killed for it? If not, what is it about this life that you value so much that you would not be willing to give it up for God? Be honest with God and ask God to help you love him more and this life a little less. Maybe you don’t follow God. Maybe you don’t because you think it’s weak, or for the weak minded. I can understand that line of thinking but does reading what Jesus said at the end of this chapter give you a different feeling of what God asks of us if we want a relationship with him? God always calls us to something bigger than we expected. We see that all the time in the Bible. When you decide to follow Jesus if you’re not living a bigger life than you were before you may be missing the life you were meant to live.