Today's message in the college Bible study at Watkinsville First Baptist was on Mark 8:1-21. I learned a lot, so I want to share my notes.
We come to Mark 8:1-13, the feeding of the four thousand, in Gentile territory. How do we know that? Well, Mark 7:24-37 takes place in Tyre and "the region of the Decapolis" (v. 31). The Syrophoenician woman was a Greek; in other words, she was a Gentile. And when we go back to the healing of the demon-possessed man in Mark 5:1-20, we see that the man went into the Decapolis (the Ten Cities) and told what Jesus had done for him; this was Gentile territory, as hinted at by the fact that there were pigs in the area, which are considered unclean to Jews.
So what's so great about the fact that Jesus was back among the Gentiles? For one thing, the Pharisees hated it when this "religious leader" chose to spend so much time with "unclean" Gentiles. They were expecting the Messiah to come with power to overthrow the authorities of the world and establish the kingdom of the Jews on earth, but Jesus clearly wasn't doing that. But the main point is this: Jesus told His disciples to give food to the crowd of four thousand, something which they were far from being able to do. They had seven loaves of bread, enough to feed themselves and maybe a handful of the preferred Gentiles in the crowd. But Jesus took the little they had and made plenty out of it, making enough to satisfy the entire crowd of Gentiles. It may just be because Perspectives has given me an eye for God's missionary heart in Scripture, but this picture of Jews giving the bread Jesus blessed to all the Gentiles present looks to me like a pre-crucifixion display of God's love for all peoples. For too long, the Jews had believed that being the "chosen people" meant that they were to be the only ones saved by the Messiah, but they had forgotten what God said in Isaiah 49:6: "He says: 'It is too small a thing for You to be My Servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make You a light for the Gentiles, that You may bring My salvation to the ends of the earth.'" Jesus made it clear that the blood of His sacrifice was to be sufficient to cover the sins of all peoples, and that includes Gentiles.
An interesting point that was brought up is that this passage in Mark deals with the danger of self-sufficiency. Jesus warns in verse 15 against the "yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod." The Pharisees relied on their own abilities to uphold the Law of Moses, while Herod, being king, simply had to call on his authority as king to get away with anything. The disciples discussed among themselves on their boat that they had forgotten to bring bread, but they had just seen Jesus provide enough bread and fish to feed thousands. Twice. The disciples had had seven loaves of bread for the four thousand, but Jesus was able to make enough to feed everyone; yet the disciples still argued among themselves because they had only one loaf of bread. They were relying on their own self-sufficiency instead of on Christ. Jesus could have produced a month's worth of bread from that single loaf, but they failed to remember His identity as the Son of God. So Jesus' warning about the yeast of the Pharisees and of Herod is a warning against self-sufficiency: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight" (Proverbs 3:5-6). If we rely on God and not on ourselves, only then will we succeed in carrying out God's will.
I also find it interesting how many loaves the disciples brought to Jesus to feed the five thousand and the four thousand and how many baskets full of leftovers they brought back from each crowd. For the four thousand, the disciples brought to Jesus seven loaves of bread and a few small fish, and they came back with seven baskets of leftovers; for the five thousand, the disciples brought five loaves and two fish and returned with twelve baskets of leftovers. To me, this shows how God works: when we come to God in faith, He can turn the little we have into plenty and produce a bountiful harvest from it. The less we have when we come to Him, the greater harvest He can produce for Himself; the weaker we are, the stronger He shows Himself to be; the more astonishing the success, the more glory He receives. We just have to trust Him to lead us in His will.
Nothing we have can add to the success of God's ministry, so give God all control and let Him use the little you have to bring many to salvation.
We come to Mark 8:1-13, the feeding of the four thousand, in Gentile territory. How do we know that? Well, Mark 7:24-37 takes place in Tyre and "the region of the Decapolis" (v. 31). The Syrophoenician woman was a Greek; in other words, she was a Gentile. And when we go back to the healing of the demon-possessed man in Mark 5:1-20, we see that the man went into the Decapolis (the Ten Cities) and told what Jesus had done for him; this was Gentile territory, as hinted at by the fact that there were pigs in the area, which are considered unclean to Jews.
So what's so great about the fact that Jesus was back among the Gentiles? For one thing, the Pharisees hated it when this "religious leader" chose to spend so much time with "unclean" Gentiles. They were expecting the Messiah to come with power to overthrow the authorities of the world and establish the kingdom of the Jews on earth, but Jesus clearly wasn't doing that. But the main point is this: Jesus told His disciples to give food to the crowd of four thousand, something which they were far from being able to do. They had seven loaves of bread, enough to feed themselves and maybe a handful of the preferred Gentiles in the crowd. But Jesus took the little they had and made plenty out of it, making enough to satisfy the entire crowd of Gentiles. It may just be because Perspectives has given me an eye for God's missionary heart in Scripture, but this picture of Jews giving the bread Jesus blessed to all the Gentiles present looks to me like a pre-crucifixion display of God's love for all peoples. For too long, the Jews had believed that being the "chosen people" meant that they were to be the only ones saved by the Messiah, but they had forgotten what God said in Isaiah 49:6: "He says: 'It is too small a thing for You to be My Servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make You a light for the Gentiles, that You may bring My salvation to the ends of the earth.'" Jesus made it clear that the blood of His sacrifice was to be sufficient to cover the sins of all peoples, and that includes Gentiles.
An interesting point that was brought up is that this passage in Mark deals with the danger of self-sufficiency. Jesus warns in verse 15 against the "yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod." The Pharisees relied on their own abilities to uphold the Law of Moses, while Herod, being king, simply had to call on his authority as king to get away with anything. The disciples discussed among themselves on their boat that they had forgotten to bring bread, but they had just seen Jesus provide enough bread and fish to feed thousands. Twice. The disciples had had seven loaves of bread for the four thousand, but Jesus was able to make enough to feed everyone; yet the disciples still argued among themselves because they had only one loaf of bread. They were relying on their own self-sufficiency instead of on Christ. Jesus could have produced a month's worth of bread from that single loaf, but they failed to remember His identity as the Son of God. So Jesus' warning about the yeast of the Pharisees and of Herod is a warning against self-sufficiency: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight" (Proverbs 3:5-6). If we rely on God and not on ourselves, only then will we succeed in carrying out God's will.
I also find it interesting how many loaves the disciples brought to Jesus to feed the five thousand and the four thousand and how many baskets full of leftovers they brought back from each crowd. For the four thousand, the disciples brought to Jesus seven loaves of bread and a few small fish, and they came back with seven baskets of leftovers; for the five thousand, the disciples brought five loaves and two fish and returned with twelve baskets of leftovers. To me, this shows how God works: when we come to God in faith, He can turn the little we have into plenty and produce a bountiful harvest from it. The less we have when we come to Him, the greater harvest He can produce for Himself; the weaker we are, the stronger He shows Himself to be; the more astonishing the success, the more glory He receives. We just have to trust Him to lead us in His will.
Nothing we have can add to the success of God's ministry, so give God all control and let Him use the little you have to bring many to salvation.
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