 Mark 9 — 16 Questions and Answers |
| Q. There are a lot of verses pertaining to the Kingdom of God. Is it still to come? | A. Mark 9:1 = No. It came before the death of Jesus' disciples. |
| Q. When? | A. Acts 1 = at Pentecost. |
| Q. How do we know that was the beginning of the Kingdom of God? | A. Mark 9:1 = It came with great power. |
| Q. What should we remember NOT to say when praying for a miracle? | A. Mark 9:2 = "If" God can, please do (whatever). |
| Q. What is the truth about healing? |
A. Mark 9:25 = Anything is possible if you believe. Note: It costs us nothing to believe God. Wait a minute, I take that back. It costs our nailing our doubt to the cross permanently to believe God. |
| Q. How can I stop myself from doubting? | A. Mark 9:24 = You can't. Ask Jesus to help you not to doubt. |
| Q. Are there demonic spirits with certain roles? |
A. Mark 9:25 = Yes. This boy had a spirit of deafness and muteness. Note: When praying for deliverance from a specific thing, call it by the name of the illness: the spirit of anger or addiction or bitter root of disrespect of parents, or whatever. Tell it to go in Jesus'name. Then loose its opposite, in this case, loose patience, freedom or honor of parents. |
| Q. What should precede deliverance? | A. Mark 9:29 = Prayer and fasting, especially when deafness and muteness are present. |
| Q. What is more important than healing ministry? | A. Mark 9:30–31 = Sitting down with God's Word and letting Him teach it to us. |
| Q. Why is that more important? | A. Mark 9:31 = God's Word in us prepare us for tough times ahead. |
| Q. What puts us in the ideal place in our Christian life? | A. Mark 9:35 = Being a servant to all, accepting the smallest child as important as God Himself. |
| Q. Do some people not quite comprehend salvation and yet respect believers? | A. Mark 9:38–41 = Yes. |
| Q. Who is for Jesus? | A. Mark 9:39–41 = Those not against Him. |
| Q. Example please? | A. See below: |
| For Jesus | Against Jesus |
| 1. Respects and helps believers | 1. Persecutes believers |
| 2. Defends believers | 2. Falsely accuses believers |
| 3. Mimicks God's work, though doesn't fully understand it | 3. Loves rituals of religion |
| Q. Do all believers know God's Word well? | A. Mark 9:42 = No. |
| Q. How should I relate to them as one who knows better? |
A. Mark 9:42 = As one to protect what faith he has. Note: Which causes unity to happen! |
| Q. How could my hand cause me to sin against a weaker brother or child? |
A. Mark 9:37–41 = In the context of this verse, 1) Treating children badly would be physically bullying them insted of loving them with a pat on the head or a loving hug 2) With a weaker brother, it would be using your exalted place in church to halt him with your hand to stop him from his own calling, or to prevent him from using his spiritual gifts in church, or else judging his unique brand of evangelism that seems off to you. |
| Q. Why do believers stumble? | A. Mark 9:37–41 = Because I railroad them into believing that God doesn't accept their ministry or simplicity, causing them to turn and run from God. If I am harsh, a person takes that harshness as if from God. What does a child feel after his sunday school teacher backhands him or behaves roughly? That God is mean and behaves roughly. What does a weaker brother who doesn't read the Word much feel when treated roughly by believers he looks up to? Like the Christian walk is too hard to live and if God is like that, he'll be happier in Hell. The problem with children and weaker brethren is that they know instinctively that they are worthy of unconditional love. We come along and as believers they look up to, trash the image of God to them, and make them terrified of God. We represent God, therefore, we must behave like Jesus did. Let the Word flow to you from the throne of God. The love God gives you flows through you in unending life–giving health. There is no reason to resist! Your obedience to reading God's Word will smooth over your rough spots and go out from you to a dry and thirsty land. |
| Q. How can my foot cause a weaker brother to stumble? | A. Mark 9:39 = Sending him off the right path on his journey toward God. Not encouraging him and reminding him that he is loved and God is always with him, no matter what. |
| Q. How can my eye cause someone to stumble? |
A. Mark 9:39–41 = I judge him with my eyes. I see something and label him. Only God can judge rightly. Note: This passage is used many ways. Every new generation can find a new application for their day. The point is for each new generation to not be one that lacks love. Be excited for every new work, for the life of every child born; see all things as a tremendous gift. See God's sovereignty turn every evil into good. And avoid behaving sinfully at all cost! |
| Q. Why are there weaker brothers and imperfect children in my life? |
A. Mark 9:49 = They are purifying fire to me. Note: If you run away from imperfect people, you will miss the purifying fire that wll burn the slag off your ever–transforming heart. If you stay, you may not treat them harshly (no one means to be mean), but you know that something about these people threaten you. Rather than treat them roughly or run away, ask God what He would like to teach you through them. Apply the fruit of the Spirit to every person, regardless of their personality. You do your part and let God serve them through you. Be a vessel of honor. Feel the refining fire! |
| Q. What else is the enduring testing by fire called? | A. Mark 9:50 = Seasoning with salt. |
| Q. Which means...? |
A. Mark 9:49 = Maturing, living by virtues that make you a leader, respected for your peaceable disposition. Note: This only comes by refining fire! Remember the context! |
| Q. Did Jesus teach only at the Sermon on the Mount? | A. Mark 10:1 = No. He taught God's ways to everyone who gathered around Him. |
| Q. When did Jesus begin preaching? | A. Matthew 4:17 = Right after John the Baptist was arrested. |
| Q. Where did Jesus preach? |
A. Matthew 4:13 = 1) Zebulun and Naphtali 2) Matthew 4:23 = Galilee (in the synogogues; the Ten Towns, Syria, Jerusalem, Judea, from east of the Jordan River 3) Matthew 8:5 = Capernaum 4) Matthew 8:28 = Gadarenes 5) Matthew 9:1 = Back to Galilee 6) Mark 2:1` = Away again (to Capernaum?) 7) Matthew 13:54 = Back to Galilee again 8) Mark 6:45 = Bethsaida 9) Awah again (Jesus walked on water on this trip) 10) Matthew 14:34 = To Genneseret 11) Matthew 15:21 = Back to Galilee, Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea 12) Matthew 15:21 = Tyre and Sidon 13) Matthew 15:21 = To the Sea of Galilee 14) Matthew 16:13 = Caeserea Philippi 15) Matthew 17:22 = Back to Galilee 16) Matthew 17:24 = Capernaum again 17) Matthew 19:1 = Back to Galiliee, Judea, east of the Jordan River 18) Matthew 20:29 = Jericho 19) Mark 11:1 = Bethany 20) Matthew 21:1 = Bethpage, Mount of Olives 21) Matthew 21:1 –23 = Jerusalem at the synagogue 22) Matthew 24:3 = Back to Mount of Olives 23) Matthew 26:6 = Bethany 24) Matthew 26:18 = Back to Jerusalem 25) Matthew 26:36 = Gethsemane 23) Matthew 27:33 = Golgotha |
| Q. What is a good example of faith? | A. Mark 10:46–52 = Bartimaeus had faith enough to receive healing from blindness. |
| Q. How did he display his faith? |
A. 1) Mark 10:47 = He went directly to Jesus, calling Him Son of David, acknowledging Jesus as King and Healer. 2) Mark 10:48 = Not intimidated by objectors of his request to be sighted (some folks thought Jesus was offended by him) 3) Mark 10:49–51 = He told Jesus exactly what he wanted from Him. |
| Q. This was an act of faith? |
A. Mark 10:52 = Yes. Note: Faith heals. Believe God for His promises. Belief is faith. Faith heals! |
| Q. How does Jesus sometimes see that we accomplish His will? |
A. Mark 11:2–6 = He makes others to work with us willlingly, even though they don't know why they support us. Note: In a world containing trillions of people, God works out all things in us to accomplish His will. We can't even fathom God's entire will while all of us are busy working toward one goal. I visualize an erupting volcano with lava flowing in reverse from every direction. One purpose is being carried out in trillions of people over five millenniums (thus far anyway)! |
| Q. What did the Israelites who welcomed Jesus as King expect? | A. Mark 11:9–10 = That Jesus would take His place as their King. |
| Q. Where did Jesus go first in Jerusalem? | A. Mark 11:11 = To the Temple. |
| Q. What did He do there? | A. Mark 11:11 = Jesus looked at averything in the Temple in detail and left. |
| Q. Jesus didn't overturn tables at that time? |
A. Mark 11:11 = No. Jesus went back the following morning and did that. Note: Timing is everything. If you need to correct a situation, it is best to wait for instructions. God shows us the problem, then we wait for wisdom in handling it. |
| Q. What was the purpose of the Temple? | A. Mark 11:17 = The Temple served as a place of prayer for all nations. |
| Q. What do people do to corrupt the Temple's original purpose? |
A. Mark 11:17 = They us it: 1) to make money 2) for a thief's hideout |
| Q. What lesson is there in the cursed fig tree? |
A. Mark 11:21–26 = 1) Words are powerful 2) Faith makes words more powerful to do God's will. |
| Q. What requirement is there to move mountains? | A. Mark 11:25 = Forgiveness of all your friends and enemies. |
| Q. Why do people argue about the Scriptures? |
A. Mark 12:24 = 1) They don't know the Scriptures 2) They don't know the power of God. Note: Bingo! It is one thing to talk about God's Word and another thing to do it. To know the Scriptures is ndeed to know God's power. The point is that recorded acts of God's intervention are for showing us what God can and will do for us. |
| Q. What is a serious error in belief? | A. Mark 12:27 = That there is no eternity; that we live for nothing eternal. |
| Q. Why is this a serious error? | A. Mark 12:27 = Hope of eternal life gets us motivated to live toward that end. There isonly one hope. Jesus is it! |
| Q. What is the most important commandment in the Bible? |
A. Mark 12:29–30 = To love the One and only living God with all that we are: mind, soul, body, strength. Note: This is foundational to loving. If I live according to this verse, my life is blessed and intervened by God. Everything I do will be for His Kingdom and He will see to it that I accomplish the life He predestined me to live. My behavior won't auto–fix itself, but I will desire to search out those helps that will teach me how to fix it. Like Cleansing Stream and good Christian counseling or counseling tools in the form of books. "The Healing of the Inner Man" by John and Paula Sandford will gently tweak all that is affected by Adamic sin and set me on my feet. I'll be enthusiastic about it, about risking everything for God's sake. By the way, the Sandfords are wonderful people. I didn't learn about them until after I walked through a terrible trial. The refuge I escaped to was my church; the prayers and counseling I received there were based in theis book and its sequel, "The Healing of the Wo8nded Spirit." I had been utterly hmiliated before discovering these books. I am utterly happy that these precious folks have succeeded in my own heart's desire. Fruitful strategy is possible after all! It is still my heart's desire to raise up a large family of powerful Christians who will multiply the work of God's Kingdom. That prayer is thirty years old and still burns strong within me. |
| Q. Is there a commandment of equal importance? | A. Mark 12:31 = Yes. To love neighbors like I love myself. |
| Q. Is there such a thing as self–hate or loathing? |
A. Mark 12:31 = No. No one hates himself. Note: Contrary to popular belief, even a masochist hurts himself for the pleasure of pain, however twisted his thinking may be that he does it out of self–loathing. Those who chaim to hate themselves bask in joy at the attention they receive from thier wallows. A suicidal one loves the attention he gets from threatening his own death. Claims to hate oneself are merely wiles to gain sympathy. The best you can do for one like this is to make him aware of his sin of self–absorption. This is not coolness if it is done out of genuine concern and in a display of unconditional love towards him. Clear up the confusion. Show him his power to make choices. Help him take his sin to the cross and repentance will follow. We change only from the inside out. How we treat others reflects on how we treat ourselves. The entire Bible is based on these two commandments. Love God; love a machochist too! |
| Q. How do I know when someone comprehends love? |
A. Mark 12:33 = When he treats people like Jesus did and sets them higher than religious jargon. Note: At times, we have to make the choice to love a brother in trouble or accept some new, erroneous teaching, however well–intended it may be. Man's laws are imperfect. The plumbline falling from Heaven is love. Would you be willing to change churches for the sake of one who is cast out in error? Can you leave quietly for the sake of unity in the overall work God is doing on this planet? |
| Q. Who gives us right understanding of God's ways? | A. Mark 12:34 = God does. |
| Q. Can we come to the right conclusions about God without being saved first? | A. Mark 12:34 = Yes. |
| Q. How? |
A. Mark 12:34 = Seeking God for the sake of seeking Him without hidden agendas brings us close to Him. Taking God's Word at face value. Note1: Doesn't this set you at ease about evangelism? God brings us people who already seek Him. God reveals truth so that they are ready to receive the Gospel. Note 2: I have people in my life who are seekers. They hang around the right kind of people and want honesty and truth in their lives. They are not saved yet, but their hunger for righteousness is refreshing. They don't take God for granted and their realness permeates their entire 24/7 lives. |
| Q. Is Jesus impressed with the amount of money rich people give to their churches? | A. Mark 12:41–43 = No. Jesus doesn't need money. Rich folks don't give enough to make it sacrificial giving. |
| Q. How much do rich people give? | A. Mark 12:44 = They take advantage of our charitable giving right–off which is not taxable. Instead of giving to Uncle Sam, they give to church, so either way, it's not hurting them, but it does hurt Uncle Sam. We all pay high taxes these days. If you want to help your church in the USA, you can arrange to give part of your 1040 taxes to a charity. If you do that, you are considered generous, though not really. Give to caesar and give to God. We need to pay our government their share. |
| Q. Is Jesus impressed with how much poor people give? | A. Mark 12:44 = Yes. Anything poor people give is sacrificial giving. |
| Q. Was Jesus impressed with David's rebuilt Temple? | A. Mark 13:1–2 = No. The Temple is just a man–made thing. |
| Q. Where is the Mount of Olives? | A. Mark 13:3 = Across the valley from the Temple. |
| Q. Is there a lapse of time between the destruction of the Temple (60 AD) and the end times? | A. Mark 13:7 = Yes. |
| Q. What are the signs of the end times? |
A. Mark 13:5–37 = 1) False preachers 2) Many led astray 3) Wars everywhere 4) A lapse of time comes next 5) Bigger wars(This time marks the beginning of the end) 6) Earthquakes around the world 7) Famine 8)Persecution in the synoguges 9) Arrests for following Jesus 10) Evangelism to political leaders via those arrests 11) The gospel will reach the far corners 12) The Holy Spirit will speak through you when speaking in your own defense 13) Betrayal, even to the death within families 14) Hated by non–believers; some will survive to the end 15) The sacrilegious object that causes desecration will stand where it should not be 16) People in Judea will flee to the hills, leaving suddenly with no time to pack 17) No mercy for pregnant women (we should pray that flight not be in winter) 18) Greater horror, like none ever before, nor will it be repeated 19) God will shorten that time for believers' sake 20) More false preachers and now false messiahs performing signs and wonders to deceive even believers if possible 21) Weather phenomenon: sun and moon darken, stars fall from the sky 22) Jesus will come back in the clouds with great power and glory 23) Angels will gather believers from earth and heaven. |
| Q. What should we do, knowing the inevitable end is coming suddenly? | A. Mark 13:35 = Keep alert and watch for it all your life. |
| Q. Did Jesus have to die? | A. Mark 14:21 = Yes. It wa an ancient plan carried out. |
| Q. Was Jesus peaceful about His coming death? | A. Mark 14:33 = No. On the First Day of Unleavened Bread (the day the Passover lambs were sacrificed), Jesus began to be filled with horror and deep distress; His soul was crushed with grief to the point of death. Jesus did not want to be alone. He prayed for rescue, if it were possible to deliver mankind any other way. |
| Q. How do we keep temptation at bay? | A. Mark 14:38 = Keep alert and pray. It is a discipline to be developed. |
| Q. When religious fakes betray true believers, where do they do it? |
A. Mark 14:53 = 1) At their homes 2) In the courts (not at church!) |
| Q. Do they make sure their charges are factual? |
A. Mark 14:58–59 = No. They go by hearsay; they count on hearsay! Note: Good timing again! Don't you just love how God works? The devil looks for people of little faith (which is a result of unwillingness to be devoted to God and His Word) to tear up their more mature in Christ brethren. If you are ripe like a weakened brother, watch out! You won't even see Satan coming! |
| Q. What do miracles show? |
A. Mark 16:15–18 = Miracles confirm God's Word through believers to unbelievers. Note: See Matthew for notes on the Death and Resurrection of Jesus. |