A Cup of Water Jul 16
Mark 9:41 For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.
The disciples’ work is to lead the people into the freedom of a relationship directly with God. Their pay is whatever the people give to them – lodging, food, even a cup of water.
That a man is casting out demons in the name of Jesus paints the man as a true follower of Jesus. That any person gives a disciple even a cup of water also paints the person as a follower of Christ, one who recognizes and accepts the message.
Receiving the message compels the service of giving, and having the message within yields the reward, the peace that passes understanding.
In the instant of giving as little as a cup of water, a union exists. Whether that union lasts beyond the moment depends on how deeply the message of Jesus is ingrained in the heart.
This message is written in Matt. 10:42. The difference in wording may mask the meaning: “And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward.” “These little ones” might well be translated as “the least of these,” referring to followers of Jesus.
They are victorious who only serve a drink of water, experiencing the kingdom of God. More service renews that experience over and over.
Do Not Cause to Sin July 17
Mark 9:42 “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea.” (See also Matt. 18:6.)
We might understand the sense of the verse better as follows: “But whoever causes the least of these followers to sin….”
Jesus is still speaking to John of the man who cast out demons but was not a disciple walking with Jesus. He has affirmed that the man is “on our side.” Now He speaks of those who cause the followers of Jesus to sin, even the least of these who are only beginning to believe. The presence of the child is meant as a metaphor for believers who have the innocent faith of a child while being led into sin by an evil person.
The fate of such an evil one is worse than for those who are weighted down and cast into the sea to drown. Such a punishment is not Jewish, but is a Greek and Roman (Gentile) measure. To be cast into the sea is to be denied to be buried with one’s fathers, an eternal separation, like a casting out into utter darkness. Figuratively from a Jewish perspective, the sea is chaos.
A worse punishment might be hard for a typical Jewish listener to imagine, so Jesus provides such images in the following verses.
The Worm and the Fire July 18
Mark 9:43 “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched— 44 where
‘Their worm does not die
And the fire is not quenched.’” (vss. 45-48 repeat for foot and eye)
This passage is very bold and graphic. The literal interpretation is so extreme as to force us to read it symbolically. The three body parts – the hand, foot, and eye – are what we do, where we go, and the focus of our sight.
The quotation is Isaiah 66:24, the last verse of his book. After the new heaven and the new earth are restored, all shall see the corpses of those who revolted against God. Their worm does not die, like the maggot that feeds on the dead.
The crimson or scarlet color of dye also comes from a “worm,” a grub. And the fire is red, so there may be a connection here.
God’s point through Isaiah is that mortal man’s body, subject to the worm at death, is in rebellion. The righteousness of God, as a raging fire, cleanses. The cycle continues from one generation through the next.
In Jesus’ usage, the hand, foot, or eye is not the sinner, but the will that guides each. To effectively cut it (the sinner) off is to cut the sinful guiding thought from the mind and from the heart.
The idea of an everlasting torment in a place called Hell is fueled by passages such as these. There is no need for such a place. We are quite efficient at creating our own.
Fire… July 19
Mark 9:49 “For everyone will be seasoned with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt. 50 Salt is good, but if the salt loses its flavor, how will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace with one another.”
The use of salt and fire here is perplexing. We live in a different time in which the symbolism of these two things is less apparent. Even the literal importance of both fire and salt has been lessened by electricity (light and heat) and refrigeration (food preservation).
Jesus is speaking to Jewish people in terms they understand, so let us look through the lens of their Law and Prophets.
Keep in mind the context of Isaiah 66:24. This is an end of time prophecy. The faithful of all nations will bring a sacrifice “to My holy mountain in Jerusalem” (vs. 20). All who come to worship God,
“And they shall go forth and look
Upon the corpses of the men
Who have transgressed against Me.
For their worm does not die,
And their fire is not quenched.
They shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.” (vs 24)
Isaiah begins the chapter by condemning those who worshipped false images and “Who cast you out for My name’s sake” (vs 5). Evil has tested the faithful. Perhaps we could say that the faithful had been “seasoned with fire,” made stronger by the trial..
For four thousand years before Jesus, metals were “seasoned with fire” to make them stronger. This was a well-established practice and provides a figurative picture of what happens to those faithful to God when the godless rule.
And Salt July 20
Mark 9:49 “For everyone will be seasoned with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt. 50 Salt is good, but if the salt loses its flavor, how will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace with one another.”
Sacrifices seasoned with salt can be understood through the lens of Isaiah looking back on the time of the Israelites in the Sinai Desert.
From the time of Moses, certain sacrifices were to be “seasoned with salt,” as in Lev. 2:13:
“And every offering of your grain offering you shall season with salt; you shall not allow the salt of the covenant of your God to be lacking from your grain offering. With all your offerings you shall offer salt.”
Note the reference to “salt of the covenant,” a reference to the covenants with God, for example, with Aaron and the Levite priesthood (Num. 18:19) and (later) David (2 Chr. 13:5). Salt was recognized both as a purifier/antiseptic and an enhancer of flavor.
The preservative nature of salt made it symbolic with covenants, formalized relationships.
The flavor of salt testifies to the nature of the substance. A tasteless salt casts doubt on the substance as being salt. The relationship that has lost its flavor is lifeless, as meaningless as tasteless salt for the enjoyment of a meal or preservation of food.
To have “salt in yourselves” is to maintain the covenant nature of a relationship with God. The life and endurance of that relationship are what secures life and enhances endurance in the world.
A Contentious Issue July 21
Mark 10:1 Then He arose from there and came to the region of Judea by the other side of the Jordan. And multitudes gathered to Him again, and as He was accustomed, He taught them again.
2 The Pharisees came and asked Him, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” testing Him.
Jesus and the disciples have moved further south to Judea. Here the Pharisees ask Jesus whether divorce is lawful.
Both the secular and the spiritual standards governing relationship between the sexes have been issues since shortly after there was only one man and one woman.
The primary initial conflict had been multiple wives. Lamech, the great-great-grandson of Cain, boasted of two wives (Gen. 4): Zillah, Strong’s 6741, “shade, shadow,” probably lived in the background, doing the work; Adah, Strong’s 5711, “ornament,” may have been the first trophy wife.
The Ten Commandments destroyed the concept of multiple wives, a tradition practiced even by Jacob/Israel. Soon after the Ten Commandments had become law, Moses had been faced with the question of divorce. A law intended to remove polygamy resulted in a new law establishing a new tradition, serial polygamy.
The question is interesting because even the Pharisees were divided on this contentious issue. The more liberal teaching of Hillel allowed divorce for any cause while Shammai held only flagrant immorality allowed divorce. John the Baptist’s view on this question had cost him his life.
The Pharisees undoubtedly saw that this was a no win question for Jesus, one that would alienate some followers regardless of which way He answered.
Neither…Nor July 22
Mark 10:3 And He answered and said to them, “What did Moses command you?”
4 They said, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce, and to dismiss her.”
5 And Jesus answered and said to them, “Because of the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept. 6 But from the beginning of the creation, God ‘made them male and female.’ 7 For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, 8 and the two shall become one flesh’; so then they are no longer two, but one flesh. 9 Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”
Jesus does not give the “yes” or “no” response expected. Responding to legalists, Jesus asks them what the law gave as an answer to the question.
The questioners are now questioned and answer from the Law of Moses, Deut. 24:1, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce, and to dismiss her.”
The Pharisees look to the Law, the books of Moses, for the answer to questions of the Law. The dispute between Hillel and Shammai is based on differing interpretations of the same Scripture, and Jesus is not going to choose one man’s interpretation over another.
Jesus acknowledges the Law’s allowance for divorce, but He makes two points clear.
First, divorce is allowed because of the hardness of the people’s hearts. This was not the original intent of marriage and divorce is a concession to mankind’s nature.
Second, this source justifying divorce came from a retelling or repetition of the Law (“Deuteronomy”). Divorce is an amendment to the prior understanding of marriage, as Jesus makes clear.
Next day
Mark 9:41 For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.
The disciples’ work is to lead the people into the freedom of a relationship directly with God. Their pay is whatever the people give to them – lodging, food, even a cup of water.
That a man is casting out demons in the name of Jesus paints the man as a true follower of Jesus. That any person gives a disciple even a cup of water also paints the person as a follower of Christ, one who recognizes and accepts the message.
Receiving the message compels the service of giving, and having the message within yields the reward, the peace that passes understanding.
In the instant of giving as little as a cup of water, a union exists. Whether that union lasts beyond the moment depends on how deeply the message of Jesus is ingrained in the heart.
This message is written in Matt. 10:42. The difference in wording may mask the meaning: “And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward.” “These little ones” might well be translated as “the least of these,” referring to followers of Jesus.
They are victorious who only serve a drink of water, experiencing the kingdom of God. More service renews that experience over and over.
Do Not Cause to Sin July 17
Mark 9:42 “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea.” (See also Matt. 18:6.)
We might understand the sense of the verse better as follows: “But whoever causes the least of these followers to sin….”
Jesus is still speaking to John of the man who cast out demons but was not a disciple walking with Jesus. He has affirmed that the man is “on our side.” Now He speaks of those who cause the followers of Jesus to sin, even the least of these who are only beginning to believe. The presence of the child is meant as a metaphor for believers who have the innocent faith of a child while being led into sin by an evil person.
The fate of such an evil one is worse than for those who are weighted down and cast into the sea to drown. Such a punishment is not Jewish, but is a Greek and Roman (Gentile) measure. To be cast into the sea is to be denied to be buried with one’s fathers, an eternal separation, like a casting out into utter darkness. Figuratively from a Jewish perspective, the sea is chaos.
A worse punishment might be hard for a typical Jewish listener to imagine, so Jesus provides such images in the following verses.
The Worm and the Fire July 18
Mark 9:43 “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched— 44 where
‘Their worm does not die
And the fire is not quenched.’” (vss. 45-48 repeat for foot and eye)
This passage is very bold and graphic. The literal interpretation is so extreme as to force us to read it symbolically. The three body parts – the hand, foot, and eye – are what we do, where we go, and the focus of our sight.
The quotation is Isaiah 66:24, the last verse of his book. After the new heaven and the new earth are restored, all shall see the corpses of those who revolted against God. Their worm does not die, like the maggot that feeds on the dead.
The crimson or scarlet color of dye also comes from a “worm,” a grub. And the fire is red, so there may be a connection here.
God’s point through Isaiah is that mortal man’s body, subject to the worm at death, is in rebellion. The righteousness of God, as a raging fire, cleanses. The cycle continues from one generation through the next.
In Jesus’ usage, the hand, foot, or eye is not the sinner, but the will that guides each. To effectively cut it (the sinner) off is to cut the sinful guiding thought from the mind and from the heart.
The idea of an everlasting torment in a place called Hell is fueled by passages such as these. There is no need for such a place. We are quite efficient at creating our own.
Fire… July 19
Mark 9:49 “For everyone will be seasoned with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt. 50 Salt is good, but if the salt loses its flavor, how will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace with one another.”
The use of salt and fire here is perplexing. We live in a different time in which the symbolism of these two things is less apparent. Even the literal importance of both fire and salt has been lessened by electricity (light and heat) and refrigeration (food preservation).
Jesus is speaking to Jewish people in terms they understand, so let us look through the lens of their Law and Prophets.
Keep in mind the context of Isaiah 66:24. This is an end of time prophecy. The faithful of all nations will bring a sacrifice “to My holy mountain in Jerusalem” (vs. 20). All who come to worship God,
“And they shall go forth and look
Upon the corpses of the men
Who have transgressed against Me.
For their worm does not die,
And their fire is not quenched.
They shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.” (vs 24)
Isaiah begins the chapter by condemning those who worshipped false images and “Who cast you out for My name’s sake” (vs 5). Evil has tested the faithful. Perhaps we could say that the faithful had been “seasoned with fire,” made stronger by the trial..
For four thousand years before Jesus, metals were “seasoned with fire” to make them stronger. This was a well-established practice and provides a figurative picture of what happens to those faithful to God when the godless rule.
And Salt July 20
Mark 9:49 “For everyone will be seasoned with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt. 50 Salt is good, but if the salt loses its flavor, how will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace with one another.”
Sacrifices seasoned with salt can be understood through the lens of Isaiah looking back on the time of the Israelites in the Sinai Desert.
From the time of Moses, certain sacrifices were to be “seasoned with salt,” as in Lev. 2:13:
“And every offering of your grain offering you shall season with salt; you shall not allow the salt of the covenant of your God to be lacking from your grain offering. With all your offerings you shall offer salt.”
Note the reference to “salt of the covenant,” a reference to the covenants with God, for example, with Aaron and the Levite priesthood (Num. 18:19) and (later) David (2 Chr. 13:5). Salt was recognized both as a purifier/antiseptic and an enhancer of flavor.
The preservative nature of salt made it symbolic with covenants, formalized relationships.
The flavor of salt testifies to the nature of the substance. A tasteless salt casts doubt on the substance as being salt. The relationship that has lost its flavor is lifeless, as meaningless as tasteless salt for the enjoyment of a meal or preservation of food.
To have “salt in yourselves” is to maintain the covenant nature of a relationship with God. The life and endurance of that relationship are what secures life and enhances endurance in the world.
A Contentious Issue July 21
Mark 10:1 Then He arose from there and came to the region of Judea by the other side of the Jordan. And multitudes gathered to Him again, and as He was accustomed, He taught them again.
2 The Pharisees came and asked Him, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” testing Him.
Jesus and the disciples have moved further south to Judea. Here the Pharisees ask Jesus whether divorce is lawful.
Both the secular and the spiritual standards governing relationship between the sexes have been issues since shortly after there was only one man and one woman.
The primary initial conflict had been multiple wives. Lamech, the great-great-grandson of Cain, boasted of two wives (Gen. 4): Zillah, Strong’s 6741, “shade, shadow,” probably lived in the background, doing the work; Adah, Strong’s 5711, “ornament,” may have been the first trophy wife.
The Ten Commandments destroyed the concept of multiple wives, a tradition practiced even by Jacob/Israel. Soon after the Ten Commandments had become law, Moses had been faced with the question of divorce. A law intended to remove polygamy resulted in a new law establishing a new tradition, serial polygamy.
The question is interesting because even the Pharisees were divided on this contentious issue. The more liberal teaching of Hillel allowed divorce for any cause while Shammai held only flagrant immorality allowed divorce. John the Baptist’s view on this question had cost him his life.
The Pharisees undoubtedly saw that this was a no win question for Jesus, one that would alienate some followers regardless of which way He answered.
Neither…Nor July 22
Mark 10:3 And He answered and said to them, “What did Moses command you?”
4 They said, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce, and to dismiss her.”
5 And Jesus answered and said to them, “Because of the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept. 6 But from the beginning of the creation, God ‘made them male and female.’ 7 For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, 8 and the two shall become one flesh’; so then they are no longer two, but one flesh. 9 Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”
Jesus does not give the “yes” or “no” response expected. Responding to legalists, Jesus asks them what the law gave as an answer to the question.
The questioners are now questioned and answer from the Law of Moses, Deut. 24:1, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce, and to dismiss her.”
The Pharisees look to the Law, the books of Moses, for the answer to questions of the Law. The dispute between Hillel and Shammai is based on differing interpretations of the same Scripture, and Jesus is not going to choose one man’s interpretation over another.
Jesus acknowledges the Law’s allowance for divorce, but He makes two points clear.
First, divorce is allowed because of the hardness of the people’s hearts. This was not the original intent of marriage and divorce is a concession to mankind’s nature.
Second, this source justifying divorce came from a retelling or repetition of the Law (“Deuteronomy”). Divorce is an amendment to the prior understanding of marriage, as Jesus makes clear.
Next day
