Jesus Talks About Inner Purity, Mark, Chapter 7

“So the Pharisees and teachers of religious law asked Him, “Why don’t Your disciples follow our age-old tradition” They eat without first performing the hand-washing ceremony.”

Jesus replied, “You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote, ‘These people hone Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. Their worship is a farce, for they teach man-made ideas as commands form God.’

For you ignore God’s law and substitute your own tradition.” (vv 5-8, NLT)

Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. “All of you listen,” He said, “and try to understand. It’s not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart.”

Then Jesus went into a house to get away from the crowd, and His disciples asked Him what He meant by the parable He had just used. “Don’t you understand either?” He asked. “Can’t you see that the food you put into your mouth cannot defile you? For food doesn’t go into your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then goes to the sewer.’ (By saying this,He declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God’s eyes.)

And then He added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you. For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these vile things from from within; they are what defile you.” (vv 14-20, NLT)

The Death of John the Baptist, Mark Chapter 6

“For Herod had sent soldiers to arrest and imprison Joh as a favor to Herodias. She had been his brother, Philip’s wife, but Herod had married her. John had been telling Herod, “It is against God’s law to marry your brother’s wife.: So Herodias bore a grudge against John and wanted to kill him. But without Herod’s approval she was powerless, for Herod respected John; and knowing that he was a good an holy man, he protected him. Herod was greatly disturbed whenever he talked with Joh, but even so, he liked to listen to him.

Herodias’s chance finally came on Herod’s birthday. He gave a party for his high government officials, and the leading citizens of Galilee. Then his daughter, also named Herodias, cam and performed a dance that greatly pleased Herod and his guests. “Ask me for anything you like,” the king said to the girl,”and I will give you whatever you ask, up to half my kingdom!”

She went out and asked her mother, “What should I ask for?”

Her mother told her, “Ask for the head of John the Baptist, right now, on a tray!”

So the girl hurried bak to the king and told him, “I want the head of John the Baptist, right now, on a tray!”

Then the king deeply regretted what he had said: but because of the vows he had mad in front of his guests, he couldn’t refuse her. So he immediately sent an executioner to the prison to cut off John’s head and bring it to him. The soldier beheaded John in teh prison, brought his head on a try, and gave it to the girl, who took it to her mother. When John’s disciples heard what had happened, they came to get his body and buried it in a tomb. (vv 17-29, NLT)

Jesus Rejected at Nazareth

Jesus left that part of the country and returned with His disciples to Nazareth, His hometown. The next Sabbath He began teaching in the synagogue, and many who heard Hi were amazed. They asked, “Where did He get all this wisdom and the power to perform such miracles?” Then they scoffed, “He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And His sisters live right here among us.” They were deeply offended and refused to believe Him.

Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in His hometown and among His relatives and His own family.” And because of their unbelief, He couldn’t do any miracles among them except to place His hands on a few sick people and heal them. He was amazed at their unbelief. (vv. 1-6, NLT)

Jesus Heals in Response to Faith, Part II, Mark Chapter 5

“While He was still speaking to her, messengers arrived from the home of Jairus, the leader of the synagogue. They told him, “Your daughter is dead. There’s no use troubling the Teacher now.”

But Jesus overheard then and said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid, Just have faith.”

Then Jesus topped the crowd and wouldn’t let anyone go with Him except Peter, James and John (the brother of James). When they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw much commotion and weeping and wailing. He went inside and asked, “Why all this commotion and weeping? The child isn’t dead; she’s only asleep.”

The crowd laughed at him. But he made them all leave, and He took the girl’s father and mother and His three disciples into the room where the girl was lying. Holding Her hand, he said to herm, “Talitha koum”, which means “Little girlle, get up!” And the girl, was twelve years old, immediately stood up and walked around! They were totally amazed. Jesus gave them strict orders not to tell anyone what had happened, and then He told them to give her something to eat. (vv. 35-43, NLT)

Jesus Heals in Response to Faith, Part 1, Mark Chapter 5

Jesus got into the boat again and wen back to the other side of the lake, where a large crowd gathered around Him on the shore. Then a leader of the local synagogue, whose name was Jairus, arrived. When he saw Jesus, he fell at His feet, pleading fervently with Him. “My little daughter is dying,” he said. “Please come and lay Your hands on her; heal her so she can live.”

Jesus went with him, and all the people followed, crowding around him. A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding. She had suffered a great deal from many doctors, she had to pay them, but she had gotten no better, in fact, she had gotten worse. She had heard about Jesus, so she came up behind Him through the crowd and touched his robe. For she thought to herself, “If I can just touch his robe, I will be healed.” Immediately, the bleeding stopped, and she could feel in her body that she had been healed of her terrible condition.

Jesus realized at once that healing power had gone out from him, so he turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my robe?”

His disciples said to him, “Look at this crowd pressing around you. How can you ask, “Who touched me?”

But He kept on looking around to see who had done it. Then the frightened woman, trembling at the realization of what had happened to her, came and fell to her knees in front of Him, and told him what she had done. And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace. Your suffering is over.”(vv. 21-34, NLT)

Parable of the Lamp, Mark Chapter 4

Then Jesus asked them, “Would anyone light a lamp and then put it under a basket or under the bed? Of course not! A lamp is placed on a stand, where its light will shine. For everything that is hidden will eventually be brought into the open, and every secret will be brought into the light. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”

Then He added, “Pay close attention to what you hear. The closer you listen, the more understanding you will be given – and you will receive even more. To those who listen to My teaching, more understand will be given. But to those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them.” (vv. 21-25, NLT)

Jesus Chooses the Twelve Apostles, Mark Chapter 3

Afterward, Jesus went up on a mountain and called out the ones He wanted to go with Him. Then He appointed twelve of them and called them His apostles. They were to accompany Him, and He would send then out to preach, giving them authority to case out demons. These were the twelve He chose:

Simon (whom He named Peter),
James and John (the sons of Zebedee (but Jesus nicknamed them “Sons of Thunder”),
Andew [Simon Peter’s brother],
Philip,
Bartholomew,
Matthew,
Thomas (son of Alphaeus)
Thaddeus,
Simon (the zealot)
Judas Iscariot (who later betrayed Him). (vv. 23-19, NLT)

A Discussion about the Sabbath, Mark Chapter 2

One Sabbath day as Jesus was walking through some grainfields, His disciples began breaking off heads of grain to eat. But the Pharisees said to Jesus, “Look, why are they breaking the law by harvesting grain on the Sabbath?”

Jesus said to them, “Haven’t you ever read in the Scriptures what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He went into the house of God (during the days when Abiathar was high priest) and broke the law by eating the sacrificed loaves of bread that only the priests were allowed to ear. He also gave some to his companions.”

Then Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made to meed the needs of the people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord, even or the Sabbath!” (vv. 23-28, NLT)

Jesus Casts out an Evil Spirit, Mark Chapter 1

Jesus and His companions went to the town of Capernaum. When the Sabbath day came, He went into the synagogue and began to preach. The people were amazed at His teaching, for He taught with real authority – quite unlike the other teachers of religious law.

Suddenly, a man in the synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit began shouting, “Why are you interfering with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who you are – the Holy One of God!”

Jesus cut short, “Be quiet! Come our of the man,” He ordered. At that, the evil spirit screamed and threw the man into a convulsion, and then came out of him.

Amazement gripped the audience, and they began to discus what had happened. “What sort of teaching is this?” they asked excitedly. “It has such authority! Even evil spirits obey Hi orders!” The news about Jesus spread quickly throughout the entire region of Galilee.” (vv. 21-28, NLT)

The Final Judgment, Matthew Chapter 25

“But then the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit upon His glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered in His presence, and He will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep at His right hand and the goats at His left.”

“The the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you fed Me, I was thirsty and you gave Me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited Me to your home. I was naked, and you gave Me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for Me. I was in prison, and you visited Me.’

:Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see You hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give You something to drink? Or a stranger and show You hospitality? Or naked and give You clothing? When did we ever see You sick or in prison and visit You?’

“And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of he least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to Me!”

“Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. For I was hungry , and you didn’t feed Me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give Me a drink. I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite Me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give Me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit Me.’

“Then they will say, ‘Lord when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked or sick or in prison, and not help You?’

“And He will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help Me.’

“And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.” (vv. 31-46, NLT)