The Remains of the Day June 4
Mark 8:8 So they ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments. 9 Now those who had eaten were about four thousand. And He sent them away, 10 immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha.
It is time to return home.
The great fest is over. Everyone has eaten – there is no indication of the source of the bread and fish. Jesus and His disciples seemed to have had an endless supply.
People have come and gone as they needed to do. Some could not remain but others arrived late. All there at the end were fed.
You turn back toward your home. Reality has not changed. Rome still rules, and their puppet, Herod, still plays the role of king of this small piece of the empire. The religious rulers still claim their right to a portion of your income.
And yet the world has changed. Now you understand the identity of God better. The words of the prophets as spoken by Jesus take on new meaning. The statutes of the Law as they were intended now make clear the character of God, and the character that He desires for us.
What is real? What is true?
That which is true is real. The burden that men place upon one another, the lies they speak and the power they exert for the moment – all of these may destroy the lives of good men and women. But they do not destroy the knowledge of God and the hope that springs eternal from the truth of His character.
Your life will be changed for the better by this experience, and perhaps those whom you tell can also share in the peace that comes from truth and a new relationship with the Creator.
Seeking a Sign June 5
Mark 8:11 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him. 12 But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation.”
Still on the western bank of the Sea of Galilee in the land nominally Jewish, some of the religious leaders approach Jesus. They want to see a sign, a miracle, or some other ceremonial or supernatural proof of Jesus’ legitimacy.
Jesus sighed deeply in His Spirit. That is, He feels grief and distress.
Of all the people who should recognize the truth of Jesus’ words and actions, religious leaders should be the most able. Use of the word “should” expresses a contradiction between reality and theory, between actuality and intention, and between religion and spirituality.
The demand for a sign is the same as the adversary’s temptations in the wilderness in Matthew 4. Jesus must verify His identity by performing a miracle. He again rejects the temptation.
Jesus' words and actions are evidence to be tested against Scripture rather than doctrine, against God’s recorded Word rather than man’s interpretation of Scripture.
But the Pharisees have taught the untruths they ardently believe, and a whole generation is missing the truth that stands before them. It is as though a generation of children were forced to hide behind a mask in fear of the Pharisees’ misinterpretation of reality.
Fear masks truth.
Jesus teaches the peace of God that reigns in the beginning (Genesis 1 and 2) and at the end of the story (Revelation 21 and 22). He teaches us how to have this peace even through the turmoil of the middle.
The Bread of Life June 6
Mark 8:13 And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side. 14 Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat. 15 Then He charged them, saying, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”
16 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have no bread.”
The disciples, the shepherds in training, are again at sea with their Teacher. Their understanding grows in spurts, and then retreats. In good weather on a calm sea, they forget the lessons of the storm and of the feeding of the multitude. Indeed, they have overlooked a basic necessity of even a peaceful journey: food.
The single loaf of bread to be divided among thirteen people becomes an opportunity for another object lesson – or two – from Jesus.
Looking at the leavened bread, the shape grown by the fermentation of yeast, Jesus tells them, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”
The disciples need food, and we can understand that both literally and figuratively. Looking at the single loaf before them, they take Jesus’ meaning literally.
There are many parables in life, literal events explaining reality when interpreted figuratively. Like the disciples, we take life’s seeming reality and neglect its underlying meaning.
The Spirit will speak the true meaning as we are able to listen.
Beware the Leaven June 7
Mark 8:15 Then He charged them, saying, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”
16 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have no bread.”
Luke 12:1 makes Jesus’ intention here clearer: “… He began to say to His disciples first of all, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.’”
The question of leavened and unleavened bread arises often in the Old Testament.
The cultivation of yeast itself took days of allowing moistened grain to ferment, to begin decay. Adding some of this partially decayed grain to a fresh batch of grain hastens the process, requiring hours rather than days to grow the loaf.
Once leaven is mixed with the new grain, it cannot be removed, for it has become thoroughly integrated, inseparable from the grain.
When we are taught lies from whatever source and we believe them, they become ingrained within us. Unlearning the lies is almost impossible, requiring repentance (return to knowledge before the lies), a sort of death to the life we have lived under the rule of the lie.
Better to keep the eye of the mind focused on the truth, and let truth reign in the heart from this new beginning to a better ending. The University of Unlearning is a difficult school.
Looking at the spiritual context, the disciples can draw their spiritual food from God through Jesus, or from mankind through the religion of the Pharisees and Sadducees, or from the generally atheistic political players such as Herod.
Jesus is warning that the leaven (hypocrisy) of man’s religion or irreligion will not yield a spiritual loaf.
Coming to Our Senses June 8
Mark 8:17 But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, “Why do you reason because you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive nor understand? Is your heart still hardened? 18 Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember?
We have at least 5 senses: sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. We record the stimulation of these senses and put them into our memory to help us to navigate through the world.
Remember the parable of the prodigal son? A youth had demanded his inheritance from his father, taken it and wasted it on a short good time, and was reduced to wages that left him in hunger even as he worked at feeding pigs. “When he came to his senses,” (Luke 15:17 NIV) he resolved to return and apologize to his father and take the lowest job his father would give.
The prodigal son had lost his senses. He did not perceive things in their proper light, or listen to what he heard, or store in his memory the good tastes, smells, and feel of his life as a privileged son.
Jesus asks His disciples if they have lost their senses and the stored memories of what they have experienced with Him. He is at once grieved and incredulous.
They are resorting to the reason of their minds outside of the context of the reality they have experienced with Jesus.
We run into trouble when our ideas, based on false perceptions and thoughts without substance, lead us astray like prodigal sons and daughters. Jesus is calling us back to our senses, the spiritual sense of the reality that underlies all else.
Reasoning Fails June 9
Mark 8:18 Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember? 19 When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?” They said to Him, “Twelve.”
20 “Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?” And they said, “Seven.”
21 So He said to them, “How is it you do not understand?”
The Pharisees have been refused a sign because of their refusal to accept the signs already given. The disciples have seen signs and have believed, but have now lapsed into a self-focus that is no better than that of the religious leaders.
He has already remarked on the unbelief of His countrymen in Nazareth (Mark 6:6). The frustration with His disciples at this point is evident in Jesus’ barrage of questions.
The disciples have just had a lesson in multiplication, but all they see is a single loaf and do not see the larger perspective of divine mathematics.
There is also the perspective that we have what we need at any given moment. But we worry about having what we need for the succession of minutes beyond this one.
Just as the works of the hands have crowded God from the reality of the Pharisees, the works of the mind have crowded Jesus and His teaching from the disciples’ minds.
Jesus reminds them of the math lesson and asks, “How is it you do not understand?” The disciples are not stepping out in faith because all they see is air beneath their footing, not the hand of the Father holding them.
And what is beneath our feet?
Seeing Unclearly June 10
Mark 8:22 Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him. 23 So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town. And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.
24 And he looked up and said, “I see men like trees, walking.”
And they have returned to the Bethsaida on the eastern side of the lake, the Gentile area.
Is it coincidental after the blindness of His disciples (Mark 8:18) that Jesus’ next miracle is the gift of sight to a blind man?
We know nothing of the man except of his blindness. He does not ask help from Jesus, but the friends who brought him make the request. He is probably a Gentile, and his silence may be his lack of belief that this Jewish rabbi is going to accomplish anything. His friends have enough faith to lead the man to Jesus, but his own willingness we may question.
As with the deaf-mute in Chapter 7, Jesus takes the blind man away from the multitude. Jesus uses spit from His mouth on the man’s eyes and touches him with His hands.
Jesus’ first treatment of the man, spittle on the eyes and a touch of His hand, yields only a partial healing. We do not see a partial healing elsewhere in the Gospels. Jesus heals completely, or he does no works because of their unbelief (e.g. Matt. 13:58).
This partial healing falls in the middle between complete healing and none. Is the man’s willingness in this effort also between commitment and no commitment, between faith and skepticism?
Next day
Mark 8:8 So they ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments. 9 Now those who had eaten were about four thousand. And He sent them away, 10 immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha.
It is time to return home.
The great fest is over. Everyone has eaten – there is no indication of the source of the bread and fish. Jesus and His disciples seemed to have had an endless supply.
People have come and gone as they needed to do. Some could not remain but others arrived late. All there at the end were fed.
You turn back toward your home. Reality has not changed. Rome still rules, and their puppet, Herod, still plays the role of king of this small piece of the empire. The religious rulers still claim their right to a portion of your income.
And yet the world has changed. Now you understand the identity of God better. The words of the prophets as spoken by Jesus take on new meaning. The statutes of the Law as they were intended now make clear the character of God, and the character that He desires for us.
What is real? What is true?
That which is true is real. The burden that men place upon one another, the lies they speak and the power they exert for the moment – all of these may destroy the lives of good men and women. But they do not destroy the knowledge of God and the hope that springs eternal from the truth of His character.
Your life will be changed for the better by this experience, and perhaps those whom you tell can also share in the peace that comes from truth and a new relationship with the Creator.
Seeking a Sign June 5
Mark 8:11 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him. 12 But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation.”
Still on the western bank of the Sea of Galilee in the land nominally Jewish, some of the religious leaders approach Jesus. They want to see a sign, a miracle, or some other ceremonial or supernatural proof of Jesus’ legitimacy.
Jesus sighed deeply in His Spirit. That is, He feels grief and distress.
Of all the people who should recognize the truth of Jesus’ words and actions, religious leaders should be the most able. Use of the word “should” expresses a contradiction between reality and theory, between actuality and intention, and between religion and spirituality.
The demand for a sign is the same as the adversary’s temptations in the wilderness in Matthew 4. Jesus must verify His identity by performing a miracle. He again rejects the temptation.
Jesus' words and actions are evidence to be tested against Scripture rather than doctrine, against God’s recorded Word rather than man’s interpretation of Scripture.
But the Pharisees have taught the untruths they ardently believe, and a whole generation is missing the truth that stands before them. It is as though a generation of children were forced to hide behind a mask in fear of the Pharisees’ misinterpretation of reality.
Fear masks truth.
Jesus teaches the peace of God that reigns in the beginning (Genesis 1 and 2) and at the end of the story (Revelation 21 and 22). He teaches us how to have this peace even through the turmoil of the middle.
The Bread of Life June 6
Mark 8:13 And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side. 14 Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat. 15 Then He charged them, saying, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”
16 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have no bread.”
The disciples, the shepherds in training, are again at sea with their Teacher. Their understanding grows in spurts, and then retreats. In good weather on a calm sea, they forget the lessons of the storm and of the feeding of the multitude. Indeed, they have overlooked a basic necessity of even a peaceful journey: food.
The single loaf of bread to be divided among thirteen people becomes an opportunity for another object lesson – or two – from Jesus.
Looking at the leavened bread, the shape grown by the fermentation of yeast, Jesus tells them, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”
The disciples need food, and we can understand that both literally and figuratively. Looking at the single loaf before them, they take Jesus’ meaning literally.
There are many parables in life, literal events explaining reality when interpreted figuratively. Like the disciples, we take life’s seeming reality and neglect its underlying meaning.
The Spirit will speak the true meaning as we are able to listen.
Beware the Leaven June 7
Mark 8:15 Then He charged them, saying, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”
16 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have no bread.”
Luke 12:1 makes Jesus’ intention here clearer: “… He began to say to His disciples first of all, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.’”
The question of leavened and unleavened bread arises often in the Old Testament.
The cultivation of yeast itself took days of allowing moistened grain to ferment, to begin decay. Adding some of this partially decayed grain to a fresh batch of grain hastens the process, requiring hours rather than days to grow the loaf.
Once leaven is mixed with the new grain, it cannot be removed, for it has become thoroughly integrated, inseparable from the grain.
When we are taught lies from whatever source and we believe them, they become ingrained within us. Unlearning the lies is almost impossible, requiring repentance (return to knowledge before the lies), a sort of death to the life we have lived under the rule of the lie.
Better to keep the eye of the mind focused on the truth, and let truth reign in the heart from this new beginning to a better ending. The University of Unlearning is a difficult school.
Looking at the spiritual context, the disciples can draw their spiritual food from God through Jesus, or from mankind through the religion of the Pharisees and Sadducees, or from the generally atheistic political players such as Herod.
Jesus is warning that the leaven (hypocrisy) of man’s religion or irreligion will not yield a spiritual loaf.
Coming to Our Senses June 8
Mark 8:17 But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, “Why do you reason because you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive nor understand? Is your heart still hardened? 18 Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember?
We have at least 5 senses: sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. We record the stimulation of these senses and put them into our memory to help us to navigate through the world.
Remember the parable of the prodigal son? A youth had demanded his inheritance from his father, taken it and wasted it on a short good time, and was reduced to wages that left him in hunger even as he worked at feeding pigs. “When he came to his senses,” (Luke 15:17 NIV) he resolved to return and apologize to his father and take the lowest job his father would give.
The prodigal son had lost his senses. He did not perceive things in their proper light, or listen to what he heard, or store in his memory the good tastes, smells, and feel of his life as a privileged son.
Jesus asks His disciples if they have lost their senses and the stored memories of what they have experienced with Him. He is at once grieved and incredulous.
They are resorting to the reason of their minds outside of the context of the reality they have experienced with Jesus.
We run into trouble when our ideas, based on false perceptions and thoughts without substance, lead us astray like prodigal sons and daughters. Jesus is calling us back to our senses, the spiritual sense of the reality that underlies all else.
Reasoning Fails June 9
Mark 8:18 Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember? 19 When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?” They said to Him, “Twelve.”
20 “Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?” And they said, “Seven.”
21 So He said to them, “How is it you do not understand?”
The Pharisees have been refused a sign because of their refusal to accept the signs already given. The disciples have seen signs and have believed, but have now lapsed into a self-focus that is no better than that of the religious leaders.
He has already remarked on the unbelief of His countrymen in Nazareth (Mark 6:6). The frustration with His disciples at this point is evident in Jesus’ barrage of questions.
The disciples have just had a lesson in multiplication, but all they see is a single loaf and do not see the larger perspective of divine mathematics.
There is also the perspective that we have what we need at any given moment. But we worry about having what we need for the succession of minutes beyond this one.
Just as the works of the hands have crowded God from the reality of the Pharisees, the works of the mind have crowded Jesus and His teaching from the disciples’ minds.
Jesus reminds them of the math lesson and asks, “How is it you do not understand?” The disciples are not stepping out in faith because all they see is air beneath their footing, not the hand of the Father holding them.
And what is beneath our feet?
Seeing Unclearly June 10
Mark 8:22 Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him. 23 So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town. And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.
24 And he looked up and said, “I see men like trees, walking.”
And they have returned to the Bethsaida on the eastern side of the lake, the Gentile area.
Is it coincidental after the blindness of His disciples (Mark 8:18) that Jesus’ next miracle is the gift of sight to a blind man?
We know nothing of the man except of his blindness. He does not ask help from Jesus, but the friends who brought him make the request. He is probably a Gentile, and his silence may be his lack of belief that this Jewish rabbi is going to accomplish anything. His friends have enough faith to lead the man to Jesus, but his own willingness we may question.
As with the deaf-mute in Chapter 7, Jesus takes the blind man away from the multitude. Jesus uses spit from His mouth on the man’s eyes and touches him with His hands.
Jesus’ first treatment of the man, spittle on the eyes and a touch of His hand, yields only a partial healing. We do not see a partial healing elsewhere in the Gospels. Jesus heals completely, or he does no works because of their unbelief (e.g. Matt. 13:58).
This partial healing falls in the middle between complete healing and none. Is the man’s willingness in this effort also between commitment and no commitment, between faith and skepticism?
Next day
