relationships (Mark 9:30-50) Learning and Teaching Opportunities

(Mark 9:30-50)

30 And from there they went out and began to go through Galilee, and He did not want anyone to know about it. 31 For He was teaching His disciples and telling them, “The Son of Man is to be handed over to men, and they will kill Him; and when He has been killed, He will rise three days later.” 32 But they did not understand this statement, and they were afraid to ask Him.

TODAY'S TAKEAWAY:

This is a multilayered lesson for us:  to know how Jesus teaches us, and to know how we should teach others, with several reasons behind it.  First of all, one needs to understand what Christianity is.  

• As soon as we have humbly repented of our sins and ask that the Lord Jesus be our Lord and Savior, believing that He is the Son of God (part of the Holy Trinity) who died for us to pay for all sin, and rose again to have victory over death and freedom from sin:
• The Lord Jesus forgives us of all sin (past, present and future)
• The Lord covers us with His holy righteousness
• The Lord gives us His indwelling Holy Spirit
• Who changes us from the inside out
• Who seals us for all eternity so we cannot lose our salvation
• Who will help us better understand scriptures and God's will
• Who will help and equip us to apply God's will

Since the Lord has given us His word (the Bible, which contains everything we could possibly ever need to know), He wants us to understand His message to us, so that we can know Him better, trust Him more, and continue to draw closer to Him in a love relationship.  Being a believer is all about having a personal relationship with the Lord God, so there will be a desire to get to know Him better and better.  

It is very clear, even from these verses, that God does not expect His children to know and understand everything immediately.  In fact, until we reach heaven, we will not know and understand everything, so it is a continuous journey that we should be thrilled to take WITH the Lord!  The awesome part is that the Lord knows all things, and is more than thrilled to pour His wisdom into us, and yet, knowing our struggles and limitations, is so very patient and gracious towards us.

In those days, Jewish teachers often explained the more complex topics to their students in private.  One reason was so that others would not become confused or frustrated.  Another was so that the advanced students would not be publicly shamed when they were rebuked or when they struggled to grasp a concept.  Students also knew not to disrespect teachers by confronting them with questions they might not know how to answer.  But, rarely were students expected to fully emulate their masters, let alone exceed their master's knowledge and ability.  

For Christians, the greatest part about having Jesus as our private teacher, is that He is always with us, He always knows the answer, He is always able to help us, He always wants us to ask Him to help, and He always wants us to ask Him to do things for us, with us, in us, and through us.

In the same way as Jesus did, with God's help, we are to teach others and our children with patience and with grace.  With God's help, we should strive to teach 'age-appropriate" lessons that clearly point others to the Lord.  With God's help, we are to strive in living our lives by example!