Rob Parker's Blog

One of the best lessons we learn from Jesus is a life that was unselfish.  Everything Jesus had done was stemmed by doing the will of His Father.  He never once had his own agenda or plans.  Rather he came to be a servant and to reflect servant leadership to those around him.

We see this best in the first half of this chapter.  I know that many see the washing of the diciples feet as one of the greatest examples of leadership but what about the Gethsemane account?  Here you have Jesus knowing he was going to die, knowing he was going to be betrayed and denied and still chose to do the will of His Father.  Was there hesitation and struggle?  The bottom line was Jesus desired to be obedient to God.

For each of us living in our western world we operate quite contrary to Jesus’ model.  We function in expecting God to line up His will with our will rather then the other way around.  The problem occurs when we realize that is not how God works.

Today, meditate on the Gethsemane account.  Ask God to give you both the desire and ability to say as Jesus said, “Not my will but yours!”

For the past two months we have been going through Scripture on a daily basis.  We have gone through John, Daniel, some of the Psalms and Proverbs and now we are almost through Mark.  There is a common theme in both the books o f the Old Testament and the New Testament.  That theme is, there is something next!

What do I mean by something next?  We red in John Jesus had pointed to the afterlife.  He had pointed to the end when all death and destruction would be gone away with.  He wrote that there would be a better, perfect place.  We read the same thing in Daniel and now in Mark that there is an eternal place, an eternal plan for those who follow the way of Yahwah, of Christ.

As we have read about the perfect eternal dwelling there is an urgency in the writers voice.  Mark tells us to “Keep Watch, to Watch Out,” because noone knows when this will take place.  He writes of Jesus teaching of a parable in reference to this. For some this maybe terrifying, thinking about the afterlife.  That was not the intention, rather Jesus’ teachings and Daniel’s teachings were to encourage us, to prepare us for that which is better then now.

How do you react to the words of Jesus?  Does fear creep in or excitement?  Today, be alert to what is going on around you.  God is preparing an eternal dwelling where there is no pain or sorrow, no fighting and only love and unity.  May we be ready and say in confidence, “Come Lord Jesus, come!”

Saturday Psalm 5

“Teacher,” they said, “we know how honest you are. You are impartial and don’t play favorites.”

How often do we see favoritism and partiality played out around us every single day.  This seems to be such a childish behavior, something that happens on the playground but no.  Who did our kids learn it from?  They learned it by watching the “adults” around them.

As a Chrisitian, a follower of Jesus, we are given the example that we do not play favorites.  Jesus was impartial to the people around him.  We probably could even take it a step further and say he went out of his way to do more for the less fortunate then those who had any form of power or positiion.

This weekend be aware of how you respond to the people around you.  Ask yourself who do you tend to be drawn to more, those who can do something for you or those you can do something for?

For so many, Christianity is looked at as self rightous, narrow-minded and seperatist.  I find that very hard to believe when you read the words of Jesus.  Just look at Mark Chapter 10.  It is in this chapter that there are so many different situations and each situation Jesus handles the situation at hand in reference to the heart of that person.

It was the teachers of the Law that wanted to pin Jesus down and have him answer in a way to trap him.  The disciples and others wanted to keep the children and lame away from Jesus not to bother him but he welcomed them.  Matter a fact he was bothered by how the children were pushed aside.  What about the rich man, he wanted to be that person who did all the right things and Jesus confronted the treasure he valued most.  And what about the two who wanted to be great, Jesus said, greatness is symbolized by being a servant rather then a king.

There is a lesson about the Christian faith and how we deal with people.  First, Jesus dealt with the heart of the person.  He was more concerned with the deception that had taken hold rather then the perfect person.  God wants to deal with our hearts.  Secondly, Jesus dealt with each person differently.  He never swayed from who he was or what he stood for.  Rather he was sensitive to the person in front of him and dealt with the situation by dealing with the individual.

Today, we will all interact with many people.  Be like Jesus and look past the surface and ask God to help you speak to the heart of the person before you.