Mark 2

Mark 2:1

After seeing Jesus’ work begun in chapter 1, here in chapter 2, we will see it belittled by the religious establishment that was jealous of the attention given to the radical Rabbi from Galilee. “…And it was noised that he was in the house.” I love this phrase. If people were to summarize the sounds they hear coming from your home, would they say, “Oh yes, Jesus is there. No doubt about it”? The only thing that will alter the family is a return to the family altarwhen fathers and mothers take the time to gather their families around the Word to worship the Lord. I know it’s not always easy to find the time, but regardless of how young or old our kids might be, such a time is essential if our homes are to be known as those in which it is “noised” that Jesus is inside.

Mark 2:2

Hearing that Jesus did miraclesthe sick were healed, the demonized liberated, blind eyes opened, lepers cleansedno doubt people came to be touched by Him. Therefore, I suspect some were initially disappointed when He began preaching. Yet the ministry of Jesus Christ centered around the teaching and preaching of the Word because faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Rom_10:17).

Mark 2:3

In this story, we first see Jesus looking up. As He’s preaching the Word, He hears commotion overhead and sees the faith of four men finding a way to bring their friend to Him. After looking up, Jesus looked down at the man before him and said, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” I wonder if the four friends were initially disappointed. He’s not here for forgiveness, they could have thought. He’s here for healing. But Jesus was dealing with the root problem, the most important issue. Church historians suggest this man was paralyzed as a result of an immoral lifestyle. If this be so, forgiveness would be the gnawing need of his heart. Jesus always deals with the root. And the root issue is always sin. So although they might have frustrated the four friends on the roof, I believe Jesus’ words were what the paralyzed man longed to hear more than anything else.

Mark 2:6

Next we see Jesus looking around at the scribes, who judged Him with envy (Mar_15:10).

Mark 2:8

Finally, we see Jesus looking within, at the hearts of the scribes who were so eager to ensnare Him. “You will see that I have power to meet this man’s greatest need now and eternallythe forgiveness of His sinsby My healing of His paralysis,” Jesus declared.

Mark 2:13

Levi, also known as Matthew, was a tax collectordespised by his countrymen due to the fact that he collected money for their dreaded oppressors, the Romans. But Matthew’s occupation didn’t prevent Jesus from calling him, because Jesus specializes in using the despised and rejectedpeople just like us!

Mark 2:15

The Good News for any of us who feel off the wall, out to lunch, or incapacitated is that Jesus, the Great Physician, came especially to help people like us.

Mark 2:18

According to the Talmud, there is one time a man is absolved of duty, even prayer: at a wedding ceremony. The only duty a man had at a wedding ceremony was to rejoice. Thus, Jesus is saying, “This is not the time to be fasting.” And He says the same thing today. I don’t know when Christianity began being associated with grumpiness, for ours is not a call to religion, but to relationship, not to sadness, but to gladness, not to a funeral, but to a wedding.

Mark 2:20

If a church does not have the presence of Jesus, if the joy of the Lord is not there, services will be like funerals. But if the Lord is there, it’s time to rejoice and celebrate the gospel and our great salvation. We’re forgiven. We’re on our way to heaven. The Lord is risen. Happy is the people whose God is the Lord! (Psa_144:15).

Mark 2:21

There are those who suggest that Jesus came to reform Judaism. Jesus, however, says “I’m not talking about patching up the old system or refilling old wineskins. Something new is happening.” The question then arises: What did He mean when He declared in Matthew 5 that He came not to destroy the old, but to fulfill it? Perhaps the answer is best illustrated with an acorn. If I set an acorn on the ground and hit it repeatedly with a hammer, it would soon be destroyed. If, on the other hand, I bury it in the ground, it would likewise be destroyed. But in the second case, its destruction would bring about fulfillment, for it would bring forth a whole new tree. When Jesus said, “I have come to fulfill the Law,” it was in the sense of the buried acorn. That is, once the law shows us we’re sinners in need of a Savior, its work is completefulfilled in the Person of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Mark 2:23

Although it was against Pharisaical tradition to pick grain, it was not against Old Testament Law, for Deu_23:25 allowed those who were hungry to pick grain no matter the day.

Mark 2:25

In appealing to the fact that, while fleeing from Saul, David ate the showbread from the tabernacle, Jesus is declaring that human need always has priority over religious ritual, that the law is fulfilled in love (Mat_22:37-40).

Mark 2:27

The Old Testament regulations were not meant to be burdens, but to be blessingsgiven not for punishment, but for protection. When reading Old Testament Scriptures in this light, the law provides beautiful principles to free us to live life the way it was meant to be, the Sabbatha day when man stops his work in order to reflect and relaxbeing a perfect example.