Wednesday 5 August, 2015
Mark 10:32-34
32 They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again he took the Twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him. 33 “We are going up to Jerusalem,” he said, “and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, 34 who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise.”
On the way to Jerusalem we have Jesus leading the way followed by the disciples and then others. The disciples were filled with awe or amazed with Jesus while those further behind were afraid. Jesus took his disciples aside and told them what was to happen concerning his death. He did not share this information with the others.
Jesus disciples were in awe of him while the other folks following along were overwhelmed with fear. Jesus disciples or followers had been with Jesus for about 3 years and knew him well. After all they had done life with Jesus and complete awe was the result. The others who were tagging along did not know Jesus the same way and were freaking out. It was also the disciples that were let in on what was to happen next and Jesus ultimate purpose. This encourages me to know Jesus better.
Jesus accurately foretold what was to come concerning his betrayal and the gruesome details of his treatment and death. God was in complete control. Jesus knew exactly what to expect and what was to come. I do wonder how the disciples took this information. How did they feel? Jesus had mentioned this to them before. Was Jesus speaking figuratively or was he serious? No matter how the disciples took the news, God’s will was going to come to pass. I am encouraged that as believers we too can understand God’s will from his word and see it come to pass in our lives.
Dear God, thank you for the relationship we can have with you through your son, Jesus. Help us to understand your purpose for our lives as clearly as Jesus understood his. Amen
Written by Ainslie Woods
Interesting observation Ainslie. It seems that those who were with Jesus in the good times were in a far better positioned to endure with Jesus through the hard time. It reminds me of Genesis 41 where 7 good years was followed by 7 bad year of drought. Ultimately It is better to build faith and relationship in the good times then to wait until the hard times and have nothing stored in the barn.
Thanks Ainslei
The disciples were filled with awe and the others with them were filled with fear.
Jesus here is on his way to Jerusalem where, after healing a blind man in Jericho, he will make a triumphal entry into the city of Jerusalem via the mount of olives, riding on a colt. To a casual reader in modern times this seems like a collection of interesting anecdotes about Jesus’ life, but there is an indication here that to those who were with Jesus, his actions and approach to Jerusalem had significant meaning.
It was foretold across the old testament that the Messiah would enter Jerusalem (Zechariah 9:9) and visit the Temple (Malachi 3:1) and there was an understanding from elsewhere in scripture that The Messiah would bring about an enormous shift in the way that people lived their lives. The people clearly had an idea that Jesus might be the Messiah, but they really had no idea what that meant for them, so their response was awe, or fear.
The same misreading of Christ happens today both inside and outside the Church. Regardless of whether people are certain that he is The Messiah, they have a sense that he is important because of what he has done in the lives of His followers across history and today.
The trouble is that people see Jesus as fulfilling so many different roles that they miss his actual mission, which is what he is telling the disciples about here in this passage.
Jesus, may I always see your death on the cross as central to everything you do, everything I have and every way that the world operates. May I never lose sight of the significance of the sacrifice and the love poured out on the cross.