Mark 8:22-26-- Walking, Not Jumping

And they came to Bethsaida. And they brought a blind man to Jesus and implored Him to touch him. Taking the blind man by the hand, He brought him out of the village; and after spitting on his eyes and laying His hands on him, He asked him, "Do you see anything?" And he looked up and said, "I see men, for I see them like trees, walking around." Then again He laid His hands on his eyes; and he looked intently and was restored, and began to see everything clearly. And He sent him to his home, saying, "Do not even enter the village."

There are a number of blind men that Jesus healed in his ministry (Mark 10:51-52; John 9), but this is the first of two healings of blind men in Mark.  This story is unusual in the Bible, because it is a healing that was miraculous, but not instant. The blind man was brought to Jesus by others who asked Jesus to heal him.  Again, Jesus shows that the faith of one’s friends or supporters is enough for Jesus to heal someone (see commentary on Mark 2:1-12).  Jesus used spit on the blind man’s eyes and laid his hands on the eyes.  Jesus sometimes used his spit to heal people (Mark 7:33; John 9:6).  It seemed that Jesus knew that his healing might not be complete, for he asked him if the man saw anything.  His sight was not completely healed, so Jesus laid hands on him again.  Then Jesus commanded him to go straight home and not to enter the village.  Since everyone Jesus told to be quiet about their healings proclaimed it to everyone they met (Mark 1:44-45; 7:36), Jesus is trying to avoid the situation by telling the man not to be where people gather.  Many commentators see the healing of the blind man to be used by Mark as a symbol of the disciples’ lack of understanding.  Blindness is often used in Scripture as a metaphor for lacking understanding (Exodus 23:8; Isaiah 32:3-4; John 9:39; John 12:40; Romans 2:19; II Corinthians 4:4; II Peter 1:9).  The context of the surrounding stories is about the disciples’ only partial understanding of Jesus’ teaching, even as the blind man was only partly healed at first.

Often we are taught, or it is implied, that once we become a Christian, we have arrived.  Everything that we need is right there, we have the whole kingdom and the whole Spirit and we don't need anything else.  Some of us are taught that our salvation is guaranteed, so we don't need anything more.

However, the way of salvation isn't a gate that we pass through, but it is a path that we walk.  And the path has bumps and bandits, mountains and migraines.  The path isn't easy, and we don't receive everything we need right off. 

Look at the disciples:   It took them three years to get the basics, and after they were still learning and growing and trying to get along with people.  Discipleship is a life long process because we never become perfect and we always struggle with our human weakness.

Jesus is our God, but isn't it interesting that as powerful as he is, he does not choose to heal us completely the first time.  He does not choose to grant us everything we need to be a full disciple as soon as we are saved.  Perhaps he doesn't want us to be complacent.  Or perhaps he knows that, as humans, if we jump in the deep end the first time swimming, we will drown.  He eases us in, a step at a time, giving us a lifetime to grow.

This means that we aren't finished and we always have to be listening for opportunities to be a better disciple.  No matter how experienced we are, we can always learn something else.  Let us walk with humility, letting God teach us daily.

Mark 8:13-21 -- Teaching the Life of Faith

Leaving them, He again embarked and went away to the other side. And they had forgotten to take bread, and did not have more than one loaf in the boat with them. And He was giving orders to them, saying, "Watch out! Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod." 

They began to discuss with one another the fact that they had no bread. And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, "Why do you discuss the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet see or understand? Do you have a hardened heart? Having eyes do you not see? Having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember, when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces you picked up?" 

They said to Him, "Twelve." 

"When I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of broken pieces did you pick up?" 

And they said to Him, "Seven." 

And He was saying to them, "Do you not yet understand?"

Mark is now concluding his subject of the disciples’ ignorance.  They quickly leave the region where the Pharisees argued with Jesus, and Jesus gives them a warning about the Pharisees and Herod.  The symbol of leaven is used to describe a thing easily overlooked that becomes pervasive (cf. Matthew 13:33).  A Jewish tradition is to search for leaven all throughout the house on the day before Passover to make sure that none accidentally enters the bread (based on Exodus 12:15).  Jesus is warning about the Pharisees and Herod in this.  What is the leaven?  It could be looking for signs (as in the last story), as Herod might be known to seek signs (Luke 23:8).  In the context of Mark, however, what both Herod and the Pharisees have in common is a seeming to be religious or seeking God, but not actually having the reality of it.  Thus in Luke’s version, the leaven is called “hypocrisy” (Luke 12:1). 

However, the disciples, when the heard the saying, completely misunderstood it.  They were thinking about the bread they had forgotten to bring on the journey across the sea.  When Jesus mentioned “leaven” they spoke of this concern.  For Jesus, this was the last straw.  

Back in 4:11-2, Jesus separated his disciples from the crowd due to their faith.  This faith, Jesus explained, was to give them greater understanding than the crowds.  However, when Jesus taught them about the provision of God, in two separate episodes, the disciples didn’t get it.  They were still thinking in a “poverty mentality”—that there is never enough for the need.  Jesus had been trying to look at God’s supply, which should free them up to do God’s work, whatever it may be.  Now Jesus is comparing them with the crowds, who were judged with ignorance so that they would not understand.  Jesus is seeing his disciples in the same situation, because he had taught them something clearly two times—even granting huge baskets of excess in order to make his point—but the disciples were still in fear of not having enough.  In his exasperation he has them repeat his lessons, and after they give the correct answer, he asks, “Do you not yet understand?”

Jesus has made it clear that faith is a lifestyle, not a doctrine.  In practice, this is exactly what most Christians believe.  That if a person becomes a Christian, they need to conform to a certain kind of lifestyle, and then they belong to the in group.  

Unfortunately, most Christians misunderstand what lifestyle Jesus is talking about, just as much as the disciples misunderstood what "leaven" Jesus was talking about.

Most Christians think that the "right" lifestyle is a morally conservative lifestyle.  People who don't drink, who don't smoke, who don't use foul language.  People who have sex the right way, who follow copyright laws, who who put their grocery carts back in the proper places.  People who go to church every week, pray everyday, read their Bibles, follow the proper fasts and do everything their clergy tells them to do.  It's nice, and there's some good things there, but it's not the way of Jesus.

What Jesus had been trying to teach the disciples is the pattern of a faith-based lifestyle.  This is a life that steps out and takes chances based on God's power, love and promises.  It is a life that expects God to do crazy things to display His mercy and compassion.  The faith life expects God to act in unexpected ways and sees it happen.  The faith life prays, not out of duty, but out of expectation that God will fulfill his promises, even if it seems unlikely.  

The faith life can feed people from almost nothing.

The faith life can heal people without insurance.

The faith life can provide housing when it doesn't make sense.

The faith life gives out of love when there is nothing left.

The faith life loves when no love can be expected in return.

The faith life needs no resources, because God is enough.

The faith life empowers the weak, upholds the imprisoned, enriches the poor and restores the sick.

This is the life that Jesus showed us.

This is the life he expects us to live.

Mark 8:10-12-- The Only Wrong Question

And immediately He entered the boat with His disciples and came to the district of Dalmanutha. The Pharisees came out and began to argue with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, to test Him. Sighing deeply in His spirit, He said, "Why does this generation seek for a sign? Truly I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation."

Here we have a quick context while Mark warms up to his point about the disciples.  It seems strange that Jesus would refuse to grant a sign when he had already given so many.  Some might ask, “Why doesn’t he just say that he had already performed many miracles as proof?”  Two items—first of all, these are Pharisees who had not seen the work of Jesus, but had only heard about it.  Their first response is that of questioning and testing.  Secondly, Jesus never performed “signs” like Elijah on Mt. Carmel—a blatant display of God’s power to prove who God was.  Jesus was releasing people from judgement who did not deserve it due to repentance.  Jesus only uses “this generation” in a negative light (Mark 8:38; Matthew 11:16-19; 12:41-45; Luke 17:25)—not speaking of all Jews, but only of those who disbelieve in him or in John.  This is not to say that signs are wrong (Genesis 15:6; Judges 6:7; II Kings 20:8) for those who are looking for assurance of God’s promise.  But Jesus recognizes that a sign will not convince the unbelieving (Luke 16:31). 

The only wrong question is the one that is already answered.

The only wrong question is the one asked to pull the rug out from under truth.

The only wrong question is the one that condemns the innocent.

The only wrong question is the one that doesn't seek answers.

The only wrong question is the one that hides one's motivation.

The only wrong question is the one that is used to oppress.

The only wrong question is the one that destroys.

The only real question is one that is listening for an answer.

Mark 8:1-9-- Failing to Learn Faith

In those days, when there was again a large crowd and they had nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples and said to them, "I feel compassion for the people because they have remained with Me now three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way; and some of them have come from a great distance." And His disciples answered Him, "Where will anyone be able to find enough bread here in this desolate place to satisfy these people?" And He was asking them, "How many loaves do you have?" And they said, "Seven." And He directed the people to sit down on the ground; and taking the seven loaves, He gave thanks and broke them, and started giving them to His disciples to serve to them, and they served them to the people. They also had a few small fish; and after He had blessed them, He ordered these to be served as well. And they ate and were satisfied; and they picked up seven large baskets full of what was left over of the broken pieces. About four thousand were there; and He sent them away.

This story seems like just a repetition of a the previous text about feeding the five thousand (6:33-44).  Many of the elements are similar—Jesus having compassion, questions about how much food, giving thanks and breaking the food, the disciples serving the people, having leftovers and a huge crowd.  

Mark repeats quite a bit here to show two things—the continuing ignorance of the disciples, and some items that are highlighted because of differences in the two texts.  The disciples are placed again in a situation where a large crowd of people need to eat.  If they had learned from their previous experience, then they would know that they could just break the bread under the authority of God, distribute it and everyone will be fed.  God’s provision is so sufficient, that no one will be hungry.  But the disciples, although having more bread than the previous time, are still claiming that the bread was insufficient.  Thus, Mark is pointing out their ignorance, although they should have learned.  

A couple items are different from the previous story.  In the previous story, the disciples noticed that the people didn’t have food.  In this story, Jesus goes to the disciples and offers them a test of what he had taught them before.  They failed.  Also the amount of food collected afterward is different.  The first amount of leftovers was twelve baskets—enough for each one of the apostles to carry.  This amount is seven—the same amount as the bread they started with.  They had seven loaves, they fed four thousand people and they came out of it with one basket of bread for each loaf of bread they began with.  That should teach them—but it doesn’t.

It is easy to point out the flaws of Bible characters.  We laugh at the ignorance of the children of Israel in the desert, are shocked at David's immorality, and shake our heads at the disciples continued ignorance.  As usual, it is easy to look at the problems of others and ignore what is in ourselves.

No matter how often I am faced with the same situation, I am anxious about money.  Will I have enough to pay the bills? Can I keep my financial promises?  No matter how often the Lord steps in, I am concerned about my health.  No matter how often the Lord helps others more generously than I, I still worry about them and if they will be safe or cared for. 

Mind you, it is easy to presume that the Lord will do something that He didn't promise to do.  But it is easier to fail in my faith, not believing that the Lord will step in an help when He said He would.  

We live in a society of skepticism   This has its benefits.  Questioning things means that we don't get taken by foolish superstition or presupposition.  But it also means that we are influenced by doubts and questions and frank disbelief in God's power and love.  God save us from that. Just like the disciples, we not only doubt the Lord, we don't give a second thought to Him stepping in with another miracle.