The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, United States Grow Pray Study Guide for Friday, 09 March 2018 "'Another large crowd' – of Gentiles this time"Daily Scripture
Mark 8:1 It was during that time that another large crowd gathered, and they had nothing to eat. Yeshua called his talmidim to him and said to them, 2 “I feel sorry for these people, because they have been with me three days, and now they have nothing to eat. 3 If I send them off to their homes hungry, they will collapse on the way; some of them have come a long distance.” 4 His talmidim said to him, “How can anyone find enough bread to satisfy these people in a remote place like this?” 5 “How many loaves do you have?” he asked them. They answered, “Seven.” 6 He then told the crowd to sit down on the ground, took the seven loaves, made a b’rakhah, broke the loaves and gave them to his talmidim to serve to the people. 7 They also had a few fish; making a b’rakhah over them he also ordered these to be served. 8 The people ate their fill; and the talmidim took up the leftover pieces, seven large basketsful. 9 About four thousand were there. 10 After sending them away, Yeshua got into the boat with his talmidim and went off to the district of Dalmanuta.
11 The P’rushim came and began arguing with him; they wanted him to give them a sign from Heaven, because they were out to trap him. 12 With a sigh that came straight from his heart, he said, “Why does this generation want a sign? Yes! I tell you, no sign will be given to this generation!” 13 With that, he left them, got into the boat again and went off to the other side of the lake.
14 Now the talmidim had forgotten to bring bread and had with them in the boat only one loaf. 15 So when Yeshua said to them, “Watch out! Guard yourselves from the hametz of the P’rushim and the hametz of Herod,” 16 they thought he had said it because they had no bread. 17 But, aware of this, he said, “Why are you talking with each other about having no bread? Don’t you see or understand yet? Have your hearts been made like stone? 18 You have eyes — don’t you see? You have ears — don’t you hear? And don’t you remember? 19 When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?” “Twelve,” they answered him. 20 “And when I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?” “Seven,” they answered. 21 He said to them, “And you still don’t understand?”
***Reflection Questions
Mark’s purpose, in telling this story (not long after Mark 6:30-44), was not merely to say, “Jesus did it again!” This event likely took place in the region of the Ten Cities, the Decapolis (cf. Mark 7:31), and if so, most of the 4,000 would have been Gentiles. Jesus fed them as bountifully and as caringly as he did the Jewish crowd in chapter 6. Yet when he tried to use the image of yeast to warn his disciples against teachings different from his, they took him with an almost silly literalism.
- Acts 11:1-3 and 15:1-6 show that some early Christians, trained in the Jewish faith, found it hard to accept Gentiles as full citizens in God’s Kingdom. How would Mark’s stories of Jesus miraculously feeding two crowds, one Jewish and one Gentile, point toward God’s view of that issue? Are there any people who, for whatever reasons, you aren’t sure “fit” in God’s family today?
- What was “the yeast of the Pharisees,” and “the yeast of Herod”? The Pharisees wanted a Messianic kingdom set up just for law-keeping Jews; Herod and company wanted a political kingdom that treated them as legitimate kings. Jesus' vision was different from both, higher and more expansive, and he wanted his disciples to “get it.” How do you see Jesus' kingdom (for which we pray each week in worship)? Have there been times when Jesus' actions and teachings expanded your sense of the kingdom’s reach and impact?
Lord Jesus, it seems all your disciples could see in your feedings of large crowds was fish and bread. Help me focus my attention on your life-changing power and compassion, on your kingdom that is higher and greater than anything I could imagine. Amen.
Read today's Insight by Darren LippeDarren Lippe helps facilitate Journey 101 “Loving God” classes, guides a 7th-grade Sunday school class, is a member of a small group and a men’s group, and serves on the curriculum team.
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The boys have been having fun lately with various Classic Dad meme postings. One video particularly tickled them: “Dad in Khaki Shorts & White Tennis Shoes.” Unfortunately, I happened upon them watching this clip while wearing my, um, khaki shorts and white tennis shoes. This is known in the parenting business as “bad timing.” These memes extend to strict rules about the thermostat, love of outdoor grills, and domineering the remote control: A Dad is asleep in front of the TV. Son changes the channel. Dad wakes up and says, “Hey, I was watching that.”
Or like the Son seeking career advice: Dad, I’m trying to get a job with this company that sells moisturizer. What should I do? Apply daily.
One of my favorite exchanges is between a Father and Son sitting on the front porch. Son: How far away is the moon? Father: I used to know, but I’m not sure. Son: Is that a Sycamore tree? Father: I think it is Elm or Oak. Son: Which star is… oh never mind. Father: No, Son. Always ask questions – how else will you learn?
Today’s passage raises all sorts of questions. Let’s take a look and see what we might learn.
Why does Jesus travel to the North of Galilee to the nation of Phoenicia – a prosperous Gentile region that was considered an economic rival of Jerusalem? Jesus’ choice to travel here wasn’t accidental. (When you walk everywhere you go, you don’t make excursions on a whim.) I would submit Jesus wanted to expand His ministry to the Gentile population. Mark would understandably document this scene since he is writing for a predominately Roman audience. Mark’s readers would have been very familiar with this Ten Town region and would have been comforted when Jesus extended radical hospitality to a non-Jewish crowd.
How could Jesus attract a crowd of 4,000 people? Jesus had already been busy healing people and casting out demons in the area, so word of these miracles would have traveled quickly even to these non-Jewish regions. More impressively, this isn’t a crowd on the Temple steps in densely populated Jerusalem; this is by the lakeshore. We always talk about the Israelites anxiously waiting for their Messiah, but sometimes we may overlook the yearning the Gentiles must have felt to know their Creator.
So, this lakeside revival is beginning to wrap up. Jesus has compassion on the crowd. They’ve been there 3 days and He knows they don’t have provisions to see them safely home. This is fascinating on 2 levels: One, the crowd apparently didn’t expect to stay with Jesus so long. His persona and message must have been so compelling they didn’t want it to end. Two, Jesus isn’t going to leave His newest followers in a lurch. He takes steps to ensure they are properly prepared for their journey home.
Finally, there isn’t a dramatic miracle scene here. Jesus simply thanks God for the bread and it is amazingly multiplied. I would submit Mark doesn’t want us to be distracted from the key themes of the scene.
So what might this mean for us today?
- Jesus’ message is never limited by geography, nationality, or ethnicity.
- What inconveniences might we be willing to endure to hear God’s message for our lives today? (I mean, besides parking lot traffic or weak coffee – because that would be over the top.)
- Instead of rushing off to our next gig, perhaps, like our Phoenician friends, we should carve out time in our schedule to just linger with God.
- God is always attentive to our needs – large or small.
- Sometimes, the most amazing miracles start with just saying, “Thank you, God.”
***
You might also like
- Jesus ministered outside of Israel's borders
- Purify the inside, not the outside
- "It's me. Don't be afraid."
- "He had compassion on them"
- Prayer Tip: A Question and a Calling
- Or download this week's printable GPS.
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Scripture quotations are taken from The Common English Bible ©2011.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
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