Q&A: Mark 8

Mark 8 Q and A

Here are some brief answers to our questions from our Sunday evening service.

1. Elsewhere Jesus says his burden is light and he brings rest for the weary, but here he says we must take up our cross to follow him. How do we reconcile this?

To take up our cross means to follow God's plans for our lives, not our own. This is a choice we make. Taking up our cross is the choice. Then, actually doing that, following that path day to day, is not easy - and this is where we need to bring our burdens to Jesus and he will carry us. But we need to make that choice first - to lay down our life, and then bring our burdens to Jesus and trust Him.

2. This all sounds very scary. Jesus is asking a lot of very broken people. Where does grace fit into all this?

I think the confusion we can make is to think that grace makes following Jesus easy. It doesn't. Following Jesus is difficult - more difficult perhaps for some than others. Grace is about the free gift of eternal life. That there is nothing we do to earn or deserve it. Ephesians 2:8-9 -

We are saved BY grace.

And while the day-to-day Christian life is not easy, and God never promises that it will be easy, our salvation is never dependant on how WELL we do it. IN fact, the apostle Peter shows us this again and again - he made so many mistakes. But he tried hard. But failed again and again. However, he was not saved by how well he did it. He was saved by grace. Broken people make mistakes. And with every mistake we make as broken people, we have a wonderful reminder of how generous God is - that we are saved not depending on how well we do, but on the kindness of God. As much as we are saved by grace, and are children of God, with the assurance of salvation, Jesus is reminding us that it will not be easy. We will make mistakes. But that in no way compromises our assurance.

3. What if I’m not strong enough to deny myself? It feels impossible. Am I not saved then? I’m really trying.

We are not strong enough. No one is. When Jesus was saying how impossible it is for a rich man to be saved, because of their love for worldly wealth, the disciples ask him how anyone can be saved...

In our sinful state, none of us can be saved. We don't even have the desire to work against the sin in our life. Yet God saved us. Like Ephesians 2:8-9, here is another passage of Scripture that reminds us of this amazing fact:

Christians are far from perfect. But the joy of faith is that it does not depend on us, but on God, the object of our faith.

4. How do I help my friends SEE that saving our souls is even more critical than saving our planet?

This is such a challenge in our world today. The state of our environment is, and should be, a great concern for us all. I think this conversation has a few aspects to consider:

a. Christians should show their concern for the environment. Our planet is under our care, as Genesis 1 says:

b. The world we live in sustains human life. If we care for human life, we should care for our planet! If Christians care about people, and their suffering and survival, we should care about our planet and show people we care.

c. Saving souls is surely the most important thing we can see happen on this earth - this is what echoes in eternity. But this happens through relationships, through friendships and through trust.

d. Our priorities can really impact people. Apart from the environment, there are many things we can care for and be active about. Poverty, child trafficking and human slavery, debt relief for suffering nations, injustice and war... the list is endless. These things ALL matter. The question is, how do we show our priority for God's plans of salvation for humanity? I think one way is by showing our serious care for all of these things, because these are all about caring for people. Only then perhaps can we see the conversation turned towards the inevitable: "What real hope is there for our world?" "Is there something more?" These conversations are borne out of relationships and so we do need to be talking about these worldly concerns with people OUT OF our love for people themselves.

5. In the discussion on the boat what, if any, is the significance of the numbers 12 and 7 baskets?

They may be nothing, but 7 is often a number used in the Bible to indicate perfection (7 days of creation, 7 churches of Revelation), and 12 is often a Biblical number symbolising completion (12 tribes of Israel, 12 apostles, etc). So in this case, it may be representing a very full or complete number, or it may just be the number of baskets left over. I think there is significance in the numbers of 7 and 12 here though.

6. Why all the spit?

Although often seen as holding some sort of healing powers in ancient times, modern day has identified that spit is not really that effective as an antiseptic! But this act of spitting would certainly have connected with people. Most of all, what we see with Jesus is in the fact that he even touches people when he heals them (while healing others who are not even present!), is that he cares for people. He connects with people physically - and these are often people who are outcasts like the leper or the bleeding woman. Jesus is human and human touch is an important part of relating to one another.

Although people thought touching Jesus had some miraculous power (thinking for example that his robe was magic), he dispelled those untruths. But not once did people seem to think his spit was magical. It just seemed a common thing in healing work.

7. Should denying ourselves include giving away our earthly possessions? Not owning a smart phone? Or perhaps not using the internet?

It is important to hear the qualification Jesus gives here:

"for the gospel" is the qualification here. We can give up food and possessions and smartphones - but will this be helpful for the gospel? If you have a pornography or gambling addiction, getting rid of your smartphone may be a very helpful thing to do FOR THE GOSPEL. Giving up possessions or wealth to fund ministry locally or missions overseas can certainly be useful FOR THE GOSPEL. But denying ourselves things just for the sake of denying them can often end up making us feel like we are earning our salvation. So we do need to be thoughtful about what and why we are denying ourselves things. Denial of earthly things can certainly be great for the gospel.

8. Is it possible to change the order of what Jesus says of deny yourself, take up your cross and following Him?

I think there is sense in this order:

a. Lay down your own life/purpose/plans

b. Take up your cross/God's plans/God's purposes

c. Follow him

I think Jesus says this in order because it is impossible to follow Jesus when we are still holding onto our own plans and our own life. As Jesus says in Matthew 6, No one can serve two masters. We need to lay down our life to take up the life God has for us. Only then can we follow him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength.

9. Though we know Jesus’ power. It is extremely difficult to have faith during hard time. Any suggestion, please?

Jesus teaches us that "big faith" is not required. It is not how "big" your faith is that matters. It is the object of your faith. Trust in ourselves and we will not stand. Trust in Jesus, even with our tiny human faith, and we will stand. I think it is really helpful to remember that it is not how hard we "try" with our faith in hard times. It is how much we lean on Him, rely on Him, trust in Him. The best way to show our trust in God is to pray. This is how we hadn't over our worries to Him.

Ephesians 6:18 reminds us to pray in all circumstances,s but also reminds us to pray for one another. Remember in those difficult times that others are praying for you also.

10. Why are the disciples so dumb

To make us feel better? They are real people like you and me. They are no better or worse than you or me. They are humans. Sinful. Broken. They made mistakes - big mistakes! They rejected Jesus, turned their back on him, yet through the power of the Holy Spirit saw the birth of the Church of Jesus. It proves again and again that God is the one at work in us. If it was up to us and how "good" we are, it would be a disaster!

11. Can denying yourself be taken as denying the desires our sinful flesh has?

Yes. Deny sinful desires. Deny worldly pleasures. Deny consuming too much of the world. Gluttony, arrogance, pride, envy, jealousy - these are all things that feed our worldliness. However, there are also "good" things we might deny. I might deny a promotion for the sake of caring for my family or for the sake of ministry - both good things for the kingdom of God. It is not a bad thing or an evil thing to take a promotion (as an example), but sometime we may choose not to for what we believe is better for the gospel. Denying ourselves comes in many forms. Some are denying giving in to human sinfulness, whilst others may be denying good things that may not be the best for the kingdom.

12. In today's society what do we need to give up as we look after our family.

This can look different for each of us. We can give up excess, overtime, pay increases, promotions, a career path, long hours... I think the biggest lie is that if we earn more and work more, our family are better off. But this is not true. Many have to work very hard and long hours just to provide the minimum for their family. But many choose to work more to provide excess for their family. There needs to be a line. How do I NEED to look after my family? This is also why it is important not to judge others. We may not know their situation with work, career, finances, medical issues, mental health struggles... overall however, I thin we need to all give up the world's view of what we need and turn to God and ask him what we need, or what our family needs. No one needs a Netflix subscription or a smart phone. But society tells us we do. It;s not wrong to have these things, but it's not helpful to consider them a "need" for us or our family.

13. Can verse 8:18 be interpreted as the ‘inward call’ or ‘special grace’ ? (The terms are in the resource reading given in the Q and A a few weeks ago.)

I don't believe this is what "inward call" or "special grace" refers to in that article. An important thing to remember here is that the disciples have not yet received the Holy Spirit. We need to keep remembering this. The Holy Spirit is how God shows his call and displays his grace in us. This moment is yet to come. For now, we are seeing the disciples wrestling with faith and understanding. It is only through the sending and receiving of the Holy SPirit that we see the disciples step up to be new creations in Jesus. Compare how they are here with Acts 1. It is an amazing transformation.

14. It is hard to know what/how God wants us to deny ourselves. Any suggestions?

I start with this question: When did I last deny myself anything? In other words, when is the last time I made a choice not to have something I wanted, that I could have had. It might be a takeaway coffee, a dinner out at a restaurant, a new car, a holiday, a career choice, or it could be giving in to sinful desires.

And when I did that, was it for the sake of the gospel?

Then I ask myself: What woudl be good for me to deny myself for the sake of the gospel?

It's not helpful to deny ourselves just for the sake of denying ourselves. That makes it seem like "the more I do without, the better I am", which is not true. The question is: If I deny myself this or that, will that be good for the gospel? If I deny myself this career choice, will I be able to serve God in a better capacity? If I deny myself this coffee, what will I do with the time or money I save?

15. Did I miss the "assurance" in the service tonight? I feel like we confessed sins, but weren't told he is faithful to forgive us until quite a bit later?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xvxiuI_k8A at 17:35 - the words before confession from 1 John 1:8-9 remind us why we confess, but also offer words of assurance:

Often we do have other words of assurance after the confession, but our liturgy is there to serve us, not to constrain us. So we do have freedom to "change it up" a bit! :)

16. Are ‘Deny myself’, ‘Surrender to the Lord’ and ‘Prioritise God as our prime life goal’ different in their meanings?

I think they are all helpful pointing us to the same end - dneyt self means to lay down our life, our plans, our own purposes, for the sake of taking up God's plans for us. Surrendering to him and prioritising him seem to bem to be similar ways of saying "deny self".

17. Since it's impossible to deny myself perfectly even though I try my best, how do I handle the guilt I feel for failing over and over? And shame from others?

Guilt and shame come from Satan's hand - he wants us to think that we are not good enough for God. However, God calls us his children and his friends...

We have high status in our relationship with Jesus. As 1 John 1:9 says:

We must surely trust this promise - that we are forgiven and cleansed and purified. Shame and guilt have no place in our lives when we have been declared right with God. Shame stems from setting our pride on a high pedestal. Humility and thankfulness are the best antidotes to shame and guilt.

Know from the Scriptures that you have a God who deeply loves you and has set you free from the powers that want you to feel that you don't belong or that you should not have what he has done for you. It is true that we do not deserve God's grace and forgiveness, but it is also true that he has given it to us freely because we are worth it in his eyes.

18. Had the conversation continued, would Jesus give permission to call him Al?

I have to say, the third verse of that song is quite stunning, if not a little bit strange...

A man walks down the street
It's a street in a strange world
Maybe it's the third world
Maybe it's his first time around
Doesn't speak the language
He holds no currency
He is a foreign man
He is surrounded by the sound, the sound
Cattle in the marketplace
Scatterings and orphanages
He looks around, around
He sees angels in the architecture
Spinning in infinity
He says, "Amen and Hallelujah!"

Paul Simon