Author: Dave

Follow Up

Discussion Questions – December 4, 2024

The following questions were shared during our discussion time on Wednesday, December 4, 2024. I took some time to look up these questions:

Stories of Jesus Calming the Stormy Sea and Walking on Water

The stories of Jesus calming the stormy sea in Mark 4:35-41 and Jesus walking on the water in Mark 6:45-52 are two separate incidents in the Gospel of Mark. Here’s how they differ and connect:

1. Jesus Calms the Storm (Mark 4:35-41)

Setting: This occurs as Jesus and the disciples cross the Sea of Galilee after a long day of teaching (including the parables in Mark 4).
Event: A great storm arises while Jesus is asleep in the boat. The disciples wake Him in fear, and He rebukes the wind and the sea, bringing immediate calm.
Focus: Jesus demonstrates His authority over nature, questioning the disciples’ faith after they express fear.

2. Jesus Walks on the Water (Mark 6:45-52)

Setting: After the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus sends the disciples ahead by boat while He stays to pray on a mountain.
Event: The disciples struggle against strong winds as they row. In the early morning, Jesus walks on the water toward them. When they see Him, they are terrified, thinking He is a ghost, but He reassures them and calms the wind.
Focus: This incident emphasizes Jesus’ divine nature and ability to defy natural laws. It also highlights the disciples’ ongoing struggle to fully grasp who He is.

Key Differences and Continuity

Timeline: The two events are separated by time, with Mark 5 (healing miracles and teachings) occurring between them.
Context: In Mark 4, Jesus is present with the disciples in the boat. In Mark 6, He approaches them from a distance.
Lessons: Both events reveal Jesus’ divine power but focus on different aspects of faith and trust. Mark 4 addresses fear in immediate danger, while Mark 6 highlights faith amidst confusion and awe of Jesus’ identity.

These distinct incidents together underscore the growing revelation of Jesus’ divine authority and the disciples’ journey toward understanding Him.

Mark 5: Demons and the Swine

The Significance of Demons Entering the Swine (Mark 5)

Demonstration of Authority Over Demons:
By casting the demons into the swine, Jesus demonstrates His supreme authority over spiritual forces of evil. This act visibly shows His power to the onlookers, as the demons’ presence and their destructive intent are made manifest when they drive the pigs to their deaths.
Value of Human Life:
The man’s deliverance from the demons highlights the immense value Jesus places on human life and freedom. While 2,000 pigs are lost, Jesus prioritizes the healing and restoration of one person.
Judgment on Demons:
Allowing the demons to enter the swine could also be interpreted as a form of judgment. They beg not to be sent out of the area or into the abyss (a place of ultimate confinement and punishment for evil spirits, as referenced in Luke 8:31), and Jesus grants their request—but their newfound “home” is destroyed almost immediately.
A Testimony to the Community:
The destruction of the swine served as a dramatic event that drew the attention of the community, forcing them to confront Jesus’ authority and the reality of spiritual forces. However, instead of marveling at the man’s deliverance, they respond with fear and ask Jesus to leave.

What Happens to the Demons After the Swine’s Death?

The Bible does not explicitly state what happens to the demons after the swine rush into the sea and drown. However, a few possibilities can be inferred based on biblical theology:

Release Back into the Spiritual Realm:
Since the demons are spiritual beings, they may not “die” in the sense that the swine do. They could have been released back into the spiritual realm, free to roam and seek another host (as implied in Matthew 12:43-45, where Jesus describes unclean spirits wandering).
Symbolic Judgment:
The drowning of the swine might symbolize the eventual destruction and defeat of evil powers. While the demons might continue to operate in the interim, their ultimate fate is the judgment of God, as described in Revelation 20:10.
Binding or Limitation:
In allowing the demons to destroy the swine, Jesus might have limited their activity temporarily, demonstrating His control over their plans without revealing the exact outcome.

Spiritual Lessons

Jesus’ authority over evil and His ability to bring complete freedom is central to this account.
The story challenges us to consider how we respond to Jesus’ power—like the healed man, with gratitude and a desire to follow Him, or like the townspeople, with fear and rejection.
It reminds us of the destructive nature of evil and the ultimate futility of its rebellion against God.

Who Touched Me? – Mark 5

When Jesus asks, “Who touched me?” in Mark 5:30, it is not because He lacks knowledge. Instead, His question serves a greater purpose, aligning with His teaching and relational style. Here’s a breakdown of why He might have asked this question:

1. To Invite the Woman to Publicly Acknowledge Her Faith

Jesus likely knew who touched Him (consistent with His divine nature), but by asking the question, He gave the woman an opportunity to come forward and share her story.
This public declaration of her faith and healing would:
- Affirm her boldness and trust in Him.
- Encourage others to believe in Jesus’ power.
- Restore her dignity, as her condition had rendered her socially and religiously unclean for years.

2. To Highlight the Personal Nature of His Ministry

Jesus’ question emphasizes that His power is not impersonal or mechanical. The woman’s healing wasn’t just the result of touching His garment—it was her faith in Him as the source of healing. By asking, “Who touched me?” Jesus underscores that He is aware and involved in every act of faith directed toward Him.

3. To Teach the Disciples and the Crowd

The disciples react incredulously because many people were pressing against Jesus in the crowd.
However, Jesus distinguishes this touch of faith from the casual jostling of the crowd.
This moment teaches that proximity to Jesus is not enough—faith is the key to experiencing His power.

Did Jesus Know the Answer?

Yes, Jesus likely knew the answer. His question was not for His own knowledge but for the benefit of the woman, the disciples, and the crowd. It was an intentional act to:

Bring the woman into the light.
Affirm her faith publicly.
Highlight His power and compassion.

In this way, Jesus’ question was both rhetorical and relational, inviting deeper understanding and connection.

Lesson 10 Outline – Brett

Lesson 10: Mark 4:35-5:43

Introduction
- Overview of Mark chapter 5 and a bit of chapter 4 (verse 35)
- Title of the teaching: “To Sentence and to Serve”
Jesus’ Authority
- Jesus’ authority over spiritual beings and human beings
- How Jesus uses His authority with both creations
Jesus’ Authority to Sentence
- Jesus’ use of authority to sentence the deep (chaos, sin, death)
- The calming of the storm in Mark 4:35-41
- Jesus’ authority over the deep – symbolism of water as chaos
Jesus’ Authority Over Demons
- Jesus encounters the demoniac in Gerasene
- Explanation of demon possession vs. mental illness
- Jesus’ authority to sentence demons to swine
- Analysis of the demons’ reactions: running, bowing, shrieking, confessing, begging
Jesus’ Authority Over Disease and Despair
- Story of the woman with the issue of blood (Mark 5:25-34)
- Jesus healing the woman’s disease and ending her despair
- Reflection on why Jesus heals some but not all
Jesus’ Authority Over Death
- Jesus raises Jairus’ daughter from the dead (Mark 5:35-43)
- Jesus’ authority to overcome death as a foreshadowing of His resurrection
Responses to Jesus’ Authority
- Begging responses from demons, people of Gerasene, Jairus, and the sick woman
- Judgment responses: Demons, Gerasene people, and those who reject Jesus
- Surrendering to Jesus and being sent by Him
- Jesus’ authority to serve and His compassion through identification, contamination, and resurrection
Conclusion
- Reflection on personal responses to Jesus’ authority
- Will we beg, be judged, reject, surrender, or be resurrected?
- Philippians 2:5-11: All will bow and confess Jesus as Lord

Lesson 9 Outline – Jeremy

Lesson 9: Parables

Lesson 9: The Parables of Jesus

Introduction
- Story about George Frideric Handel and Bob Coughlin
- Purpose of music and its connection to serving others
- Connection to the mission of Jesus
Purpose of Jesus’ Parables
- Earthly stories with heavenly meanings
- Designed to provoke thought, evoke truth, cloak mystery, and invoke action
Point 1: Provoke Thought
- Parables were intentionally provocative, sparking deep reflection
- Amusing vs. thought-provoking: Jesus’ stories required meditation
- Example: Parable of the Tenants (Mark 12:1-12)
Point 2: Evoke Truth
- Jesus’ parables were intended to awaken truth about God’s kingdom
- Shift in understanding of the kingdom of God
- Illustration: Art Museum example
- Advice to study parables deeply, like digging for treasure
- Example: Parable of the Tenants in context with Isaiah 5
Point 3: Cloak Mystery
- Jesus used parables to reveal truth to receptive listeners, while concealing it from the hostile ones
- Reference to Mark 4:11-12: The secret of the kingdom of God
- Parables reveal the hearts of men
- Example: The Parable of the Sower
Point 4: Invoke Action
- Parables should lead to action
- Example: The Parable of the Tenants teaches us to be humble hearers of God’s word
- Application: Stewardship of our lives, families, and responsibilities
- Call to be doers of the word, not just hearers
Conclusion
- George Handel’s quote about his music’s purpose: to make people better, not just entertain
- The connection between Handel’s music and the kingdom of God (Revelation 11:15)
- Final prayer: Seeking to be better and recognize our role as tenants under the King of Kings

Lesson 8 Outline – Mark

Introduction
- Opening remarks and prayer
- Mark’s personal background and connection to farming
Discussion on Mark Chapter 4:1-34
- Main headline: The “secret of the kingdom of God” (Mark 4:10-12)
- Explanation of the term “secret” or “mystery” in scripture
- The kingdom of God revealed in parables
  - Old Testament mystery now revealed through Jesus
  - Jesus’ teaching style and purpose of parables
The Parable of the Sower
- Story of two types of people: those who know Jesus and those who do not
- Interpretation of the parable elements
  - The sower as Jesus and His followers
  - The seed as the gospel of the kingdom
  - The soils as different heart conditions
Lessons from the Parable of the Sower
- Characteristics of the sower
  - Jesus as a humble, unassuming sower
  - The sower’s indiscriminate scattering of seeds
  - Abundance of seeds symbolizing liberal sharing of the gospel
  - Resilience of the sower despite challenges
- Illustrative story about the cost of sowing and farming
The Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20)
- Call for believers to be sowers of the gospel
- God’s love for all people (1 Timothy 2:1-6)
- Encouragement to share the gospel universally, without judgment
Personal Reflections and Challenge
- Reflection on personal hesitation in sharing the gospel
- Scriptural encouragement (Colossians 4:5-6)
- Call to prayer for wisdom in sharing the gospel
- Challenge to listeners: Reflect on their own gospel sharing practices
Invitation to Non-Believers
- Explanation of the gospel message and salvation through Jesus Christ
- Call to repentance and faith in Jesus
Closing Remarks
- The growth of the kingdom of God from a mustard seed to a global movement
- Exhortation to fulfill the Great Commission

Mark Study – Lesson 7 Application Questions

Jesus often withdrew to pray, despite the relentless demands of the crowd (Mark 3:9-10). Reflect on your current prayer life. What distractions keep you from spending focused time with God, and how can you prioritize prayer to strengthen your relationship with Him?

In Mark 3:22-27, Jesus challenges the accusation that His work is of Satan by explaining that a kingdom divided against itself cannot stand. How can this principle apply to your own relationships or personal integrity? Are there areas in your life where division or inconsistency is preventing unity or growth?

Jesus redefines family as those who do the will of God (Mark 3:31-35). What “idols” or misplaced loyalties (e.g., family, career, reputation) might be competing with your devotion to God? How can you re-align your priorities to put God above all else?

Lesson 7 Outline – Scott

Opening Remarks

Introduction and context before the election
- Importance of faith over political outcomes
- Prayer for leaders and the country
Reminder of the teachings on Jesus’ power and authority

Overview of Mark Chapter 3:7-35

Review of recent lessons and introduction to this chapter
Visualization of scenes from the narrative
- Healing on the Sabbath
- Crowds seeking Jesus
- Family’s concern about Jesus
- Accusations by the scribes
- Jesus’ response about his true family

Key Themes

Pressure

Jesus faces immense pressure from various groups
Sources of Pressure
- Followers seeking healing
- Religious leaders feeling threatened
- Disciples trying to understand his mission
- Jesus’ humanity under pressure
Jesus’ response: retreating to pray and selecting disciples

Identity

Common views of Jesus’ identity
- Some consider him a teacher or myth
- Family thinks he is out of his mind
- Scribes accuse him of being possessed
C.S. Lewis’ perspective on Jesus’ identity
Jesus’ response to accusations
- Refuting claims of demonic possession
- Warning against blasphemy of the Holy Spirit

… it’s not about specific actions like cursing, murder, or adultery, but rather the persistent, willful rejection of the Holy Spirit’s testimony about Jesus’ divinity and role as Savior. It involves repeatedly choosing to deny the truth of the Gospel, calling light darkness and vice versa. The warning is particularly directed at those who know and understand the message of Christ but continue to ignore it. The focus is on a continuous, habitual rejection, not a one-time lapse, underscoring a deep and ongoing refusal to accept Christ.

Call

Jesus’ true family: those who do God’s will
Definition of God’s will: desire for all to be saved
Personal call to each individual

Applications

Practical responses to pressure
- Quiet, pray, involve others
Reflection questions
- Where are you with Christ?
  - Encouragement to accept the gospel
  - Support available from leaders and small groups
- How to help those who have wandered
  - Use love and prayer rather than logic to reach out
  - Importance of kindness in bringing others back to faith

Closing Prayer

Blessing for those listening and engaging in group discussions

Outline Summary of Lesson 6 Lecture on Spiritual Warfare

1. Introduction and Background

Speaker: Jim Erickson, filling in for Mike Crawford.
Acknowledgement: Diverse Christian views on spiritual warfare.
Purpose: To understand and respond effectively to spiritual warfare.

2. Main Goals and Approach

Objective: To help believers discern and respond effectively to spiritual warfare.
Categories of Belief: Avoiding extremes – “ditches” of dismissiveness and hyper-spiritualism.

3. Three-Part Framework for Addressing Spiritual Warfare

Determine: Assess if one leans toward dismissiveness or hyper-spiritualism.
Calibrate: Align perspectives with Scripture; identify root causes of temptations.
Respond: Take action based on accurate spiritual diagnosis and Biblical guidance.

4. Understanding Spiritual Warfare

Definition: Opposition to God’s work by demons and Satan.
Key Points:
- Spiritual warfare persists post-resurrection.
- Not all temptations stem from demonic influence.
Purpose of Demonic Activity: To destroy, deceive, and distract believers from God’s work.

5. Types of Temptation

Four main sources:
- Fallen nature (flesh)
- Fallen world and its culture
- Lies or untruths
- Spiritual warfare (demonic influence)

6. Practical Application for Recognizing Spiritual Warfare

Triage Approach: Discern sources of temptations.
Biblical Counsel:
- Physical urges: Practical responses (e.g., distraction or exercise).
- Mental/ideational temptations: Met with truth and Biblical thought.
- Direct spiritual warfare: Involves prayer, focus on Jesus, and brotherly support.

7. Responding to Spiritual Warfare

Steps Outlined in Workbook (pages 59-61):
- Fix focus on Jesus’ sovereignty over all spiritual realms.
- Submit to God’s authority; resist the devil.
- Seek fellowship support for prayer and accountability.

8. Closing Encouragement

Emphasis: Brotherhood and mutual support.
Goal: Application-oriented approach to foster group discussion and personal reflection.

Seaside Prayers

Excerpt from The Red Sea Rules: 10 God-Given Strategies for Difficult Times by Robert J. Morgan

Some situations have offered me just two options—I could either panic or pray. My tendency is to panic, like the Israelites by the Red Sea or the disciples on the Sea of Galilee. I’ve had my share of hyperventilating, heart-racing panic attacks. But the Lord has spent years trying to show me that prayer is the means by which I can, if I choose, stay even-tempered, self-possessed, cool-headed, and strong-spirited, even in a crisis.

When we can’t press forward, move sideward, or step backward, it’s time to look upward and to ask God to make a way. In a time of uncertainty, the patriarch Jacob said, “Let us arise and go up to Bethel; and I will make an altar there to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me in the way which I have gone” (Gen. 35:3).

Referring to his days as a fugitive, David wrote, “In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried out to my God. He heard my voice from His temple” (2 Sam. 22:7). The writer of Psalm 107 declared,

They cry out to the LORD in their trouble, And He brings them out of their distresses.
He calms the storm,
So that its waves are still. (vv. 28–29)

That’s just what happened as the Israelites cried out to God at the Red Sea, except there the waves became trembling walls of water, held back by invisible dams.

I’m not talking now about our regular, daily quiet-time prayer habits, important as they are; I’m talking about crisis-time prayers. Prayers of importunity and intensity. Prayers during life-threatening or soul-shattering events. “This kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting” (Matt. 17:21). “Pray hard and long,” Paul wrote in Ephesians 6:18 (The Message). The Israelites were in crisis in Exodus 14, and their seaside cry was

urgent,
united,
unfeigned,
but unbelieving.

The urgency of their prayer was obvious, evidenced by the verb cried. I had a friend in college who gave me a little booklet her father, Cameron Thompson, had written, titled Master Secrets of Prayer. My copy is now underlined and tattered, but I still treasure it and have these words underlined:

There comes a time, in spite of our soft, modern ways, when we must be desperate in prayer, when we must wrestle, when we must be outspoken, shameless and importunate. Many of the prayers recorded in Scripture are “cries,” and the Hebrew and Greek words are very strong. Despite opinions to the contrary, the Bible recognizes such a thing as storming heaven—“praying through.” The fervent prayer of a righteous man is mighty in its working.

I remember such times in my own life—when my father suffered a heart attack, when a job possibility blew up in my face, when a friend was overdosing on cocaine, when my child got involved in the wrong crowd. There was little I could do except plead with God. Sometimes these prayers are prolonged. Twice in my life I’ve spent the entire night in prayer.

Other times, however, my prayers are quite short. I’ve recently learned a new prayer technique from the writings of missionary Amy Carmichael. She learned it from the famous Bible teacher Dr. F. B. Meyer, who once told her that as a young man he had been irritable and hot-tempered. An older gentleman advised him to look up at the moment of temptation and say, “Thy sweetness, Lord.”

Amy Carmichael developed many variations of that prayer. When meeting someone she didn’t like, she would silently pray, “Thy love, Lord.” In a crisis, she’d whisper, “Thy help, Lord,” or “Thy wisdom, Lord.”

Sometimes when I’m worried, I just lift my heart to heaven and say, “Lord . . . ,” followed by the name of one for whom I’m concerned.

Looking back over the years, I’ve never faced a crisis in which, in response to earnest prayer, whether prolonged or instant, God didn’t make a way. James 5:16 tells us: “The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and wonderful results” (NLT). That’s the great secret of those who put their hands in the hand of the One who can part the seas. United

Morgan, Robert J. . The Red Sea Rules: 10 God-Given Strategies for Difficult Times (pp. 40-44). HarperCollins Christian Publishing.

HEBREWS 6:9-20 When Dealing with Doubts… Remember

Doubts are question marks that often punctuate what should be clear statements of theological fact or unquestioned imperatives of moral truth. For those who are immature in their faith or who have grown sluggish in responding to spiritual things, doubts can drive them into despair. But they don’t need to! For those who are willing to remember the character and promises of God, doubts can serve as mere ellipses . . . pauses in the walk of faith that serve to turn our attention heavenward toward God, who alone is able to give us hope in the midst of despair, assurance in the midst of uncertainty, and confidence in the midst of questioning.

What do we do when the storm clouds roll in and cast shadows of doubt over the landscape of our lives? When on stormy seas, the tendency is to focus on the wind and the waves rather than on the Lord. That was Peter’s problem when the Lord had called him to walk with Him on the turbulent water. When Peter took his eyes off Jesus —the Forerunner and Anchor in the midst of the churning sea —he began to sink in fear (Matt. 14:27-31).

Amid the storms of our own lives, God gives us an anchor for the soul (Heb. 6:19). When doubt says, “Only a fool would believe these things,” remember: “It is impossible for God to lie” (6:18). When doubt tells you, “God has abandoned me,” remember “the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath” (6:17). Even though the circumstances around you may continue to pummel you with painful blows, you can have a quiet confidence that God has a purpose, that He’s in control, and that your soul is anchored firmly in the heavenly realm.

Excerpt From
Insights on Hebrews (Swindoll’s Living Insights New Testament Commentary Book 12)
Charles R. Swindoll

Jesus – Superior in Our Own Lives

Charles Swindoll on Hebrews 3:6b

The superiority of Jesus will do us no good if we don’t place Him as superior in our own lives. This was the problem facing these Jewish Christians. They were tempted to abandon their Messiah and go back to Moses. This would have been a disaster, a step backward to an inferior ministry. Never forgetting his purpose in writing, the author of Hebrews emphasizes, in the second part of Hebrews 3:6, his readers’ response to the superiority of Jesus.

He reminds them, first, that we-believers in Jesus Christ—are the household over which Christ rules as Son (Hebrews 3:6). However, the author seems to place a conditional element on this promise: “If we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end.” At first blush, this verse seems to say that if we fail to hold on to our faith and hope in Christ, then we could somehow be kicked out of God’s house-hold, disowned, or disinherited. Does this mean our salvation is contingent on our subsequent faithfulness? Absolutely not.

The conditional construction, indicated by “if,” has different meanings. Sometimes it does indicate a conditional relationship, as in the phrase, “If you eat your broccoli, then you can have dessert.” The implication is: If you don’t eat up, no dessert for you! But it doesn’t lead to that person becoming a real musician in the same way that, in the other example, eating broccoli enables one to have dessert. This is how the author is using the term here. He’s saying that the continuance of faith and hope is proof of the reality of a person’s authentic membership in the family of God.

Now, we shouldn’t obsess over a little segment of a person’s life in which they go astray, have a lapse, or fall down and struggle to get up. All of us have dips and rises on the bumpy ride of spiritual growth. However, we can look at the life as a whole, see how a person’s life ends, and observe the evidences of true Christianity. That’s proof that there’s a reality there that backs up the claim. And if a person who claims to be a Christian appears to utterly fall away and fails to endure in faith and hope until the end of their life, then perhaps that person had never been a member of the family of God in the beginning.

Those who are truly in the household of faith live under the Father’s roof and the Son’s watchful eye. However, they are not immune to stumbling, tripping, and even falling flat on their faces. We never cease to be frail, fallen, and vulnerable people, saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. But those who are true believers—and therefore members of the household of faith—have Christ as their high priest. He ministers like no one else can. He is able to catch us when we stumble, steady us when we trip, and pick us up when we fall. He strengthens us in our frailty, forgives us when we fail, and comforts us in our weaknesses. If we endure in this faith and hope —with Christ at our side—to the end, then it will be manifest to all that we truly are members of His household.
This message was something the Hebrew believers desperately needed to hear. Some had fallen; others were teetering; others may have been reaching out for something to steady their tottering faith.

The author points them to Christ-superior to all others, even superior to Moses. All they needed to do was reassert their faith and hope, their confidence in Him-not good works, not spiritual disciplines, not striving to make themselves more worthy in God’s eyes, but confidence in Christ. Behind this hopeful message, however, was the hint of a warning. If they didn’t endure in their faith, but rather abandoned their Messiah and ran back to Moses, their claims to be members of God’s household would be suspect. Only by getting right with Christ would their identity as God’s children be assured.

Excerpt From Insights on Hebrews (Swindoll’s Living Insights New Testament Commentary Book 12) Charles R. Swindoll