June 24, 2024: Monday Bible Study on the Gospel of Mark 11:1-6
Good morning my dear friends in Christ. I pray that this day is filled with God's safety and grace for you.
Once again, this morning I am asking you to continue to pray first thing in the morning, throughout the day, and as the very last thing you do at night before falling asleep. Talk to God about His Love for you and offer Him a truly heartfelt thanks. Remember to tell Jesus how much you love Him throughout your day. Please continue praying for Steve, for Jeff, for Kandice, for me, and all of the people you know who are victims of cancer. Please offer prayers of thanksgiving for the Gospel centered lives of our brother and sister, the Prasek’s, as they spend their summer in Minnesota, which has been battling unusually hot weather so far this summer. Please pray too for Mark and Linda Backer as they summer in Wisconsin. Pray too for Pam and Madison who are new to our parish. Let's rejoice in their presence with us on Sundays. Also, if you have not been able to be to church, remember our July 7th Gospel Music Sunday, and BBQ burger lunch after service. Cost $2 per person (Please know that if this is too much for you to cover, your cost will be covered.), to cover the cost of the burgers and related condiments. Please bring a picnic style dish to share or a dessert. The July Journeys Newsletter will be out this coming Sunday on June 30th. Be certain to check it for upcoming events for you at Church.
Now, on to our study for today in Mark 11:1-6. It certainly has seemed like it has taken us many days of study to get through Chapter 10 of Mark, and of course it closes with the first part of Jesus setting His sights on Jerusalem. At this point, Jesus and His disciples are journeying toward the City of David with everyone who needs to be there for the celebration of the Passover. He has left Galilee in the North of Israel and has now come south through the highlands past Jericho, and now arrived within the allowed one mile distance from Jerusalem that any faithful Jew is able to walk on the Sabbath. Both Bethany (house of dates), and Bethphage (house of figs) are within that one-mile range. I know that in three of the Gospels it would appear that the only time that Jesus appears in Jerusalem is for this particular celebration of the Passover. However, in the Gospel of John Jesus is often in Jerusalem. This also makes sense, because He and His disciples are hosted many times by Mary, Martha, and Lazarus in Bethany. We must understand that the Gospels offer a very short covering of Jesus' ministry. Their writers are determined to keep us laser focused on Jesus' ministry, crucifixion, and Resurrection. So much so that we really learn very little about Christ's other supporters in Jerusalem, Joseph of Arimathea, and those he symbolically refers to when He speaks about the hen gathering his brood together in Matthew 27:37. In this passage for instance we discover that there is a person nearby who believes that Jesus is the Lord, when he allows the disciples to take the donkey on which Jesus will enter triumphantly in the city, just as a conquering general would do to indicate his peaceful intentions to the people he has defeated. Donkeys were treasured by the people in Jesus' time. They were important for carrying the burdens of commerce and home. Even today, especially in the Palestinian Gaza strip, donkeys are doing the same work for many of the people there today as they did in Christ's time. Like us they can be loving, cuddly, intelligent, and difficult, all at the same time. Jesus enters into Jerusalem in an effacing manner, and the people hope that He is the King coming to crush, smash, and shatter the enemies of the people, which in Christ's time would have been the Romans. Though Christ looks like this is intent, and in some ways, he does come to conquer evil and its difficult and treacherous outcomes. He has really come in a different kind of humility. He has humbled Himself before God to bring hope, joy, peace, and love to God's children by His willing sacrifice. Christ has the very same power as the Father, but instead of destroying sinful people, He bears the forgiveness of our loving Father in Heaven into the whole world. He is prepared to do all that it takes. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life."(John 3:16) May His humble love for you transform your heart every day, filling it with God's Grace.
With love in Christ, Pastor Kim
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