Mark 3 "Jesus Prays Before Choosing His Apostles"

“And He went up to the mountain and He called to Him those He Himself wanted. And they came to Him.” (v.13)

Jesus often retired to a place of solitude for prayer and communion with His Father. Here in our text we see Him going up to a mountain to pray and consider whom He would call to become His Apostles from among His many disciples. Luke’s gospel tells us that when He retired to the mountain for solemn prayer, He continued all night in that duty before He made His choice (Luke 6:12). 

These twelve were to be His Apostles, to preach in His name, to work miracles, to cast out demons, heal the sick, and to withstand persecution, even unto death. Therefore, this decision was not one to be taken lightly nor done without seeking His Father’s guidance. This shows us that much consideration and prayer should go into the selection of persons for ministry, and that nothing in so important a work should be done in haste.

This then becomes a blueprint for us in every important decision we need to make in our lives. Go to our mountain, call upon God, and continue to pray until our spirit is sure of His leading.  

The Truth: “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.” (James 1:5) 

Mark 2 "The Power of Jesus"

When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” And some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts, “Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” (vv.5-7)

Here in chapter 2 we find Jesus in a great deal of controversy with the religious leaders of His day, the scribes and the Pharisees. The first encounter took place at a house in Capernaum, where 4 men brought a paralytic to Jesus to be healed. They had to lowered him through the roof on his bed, because they could not get near to Jesus because of the crowd (vv.1-4). When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you” (v.5). This immediately brought out a reaction from both those who brought him and the scribes in attendance. 

Can you imagine how the friends on the roof felt? They went to a lot of trouble to see their friend healed of his paralysis, and now the teacher only wants to forgive his sins. We might imagine them shouting, “No, he’s paralyzed! We wanted him to walk, not to be forgiven!” Jesus did not mean that the paralyzed man was especially sinful or that his paralysis was directly caused by sin. Instead, He addressed the man’s greatest need and the common root of all pain and suffering – man’s sinful condition. 

The scribes on the other hand reacted in a different manner, they questioned Jesus's authority saying, "Who can forgive sins but God alone?" Yes, they used the right kind of logic. They correctly believed that only God could forgive sins, and they are even correct for examining this new teacher. Their error was in refusing to see who Jesus really was, though He was fulfilling the scriptures (Isaiah 35) right before their eyes, they did not see Him - The Son of God, who has the authority to forgive sins.

Jesus, perceiving in His spirit that they were all questioning in their hearts said to them, “Why do you reason about these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Arise, take up your bed and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins”; He said to the paralytic, I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.” Immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went out in the presence of them all, so that all were amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!” (vv.8-12).

For men, both real forgiveness and the power to heal are impossible, but for God, both are easy. It is a logical assumption that if Jesus has the power to immediately heal this man’s disease, He also has the authority to forgive his sins. Imagine if Jesus had failed. His ministry would be shattered. The crowd would slowly leave the house. The scribes would smile and say, “He can’t heal or forgive.” The four men would struggle to pull up the paralyzed man who looked more dejected and embarrassed than ever. The homeowner would look at his roof and think it was all for nothing.

But Jesus did not nor could not fail, because all He needed to heal this man was His word. There is wonderful healing power in the word of Jesus, in the promises of Jesus, for those who come to Him in faith. This man came to Jesus in faith, even if it was the borrowed faith of his friends. 

And, He can do the very same for you if you would simply ask. 

The Truth: "But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on Him, and by His wounds we are healed." ~ Isaiah 53:5.

Mark 1 "Jesus Baptized"

 “In those days Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. Immediately coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens opening, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon Him; and a voice came out of the heavens: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.” Immediately the Spirit sent Him out into the wilderness. And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him.” (vv.9-13)

Mark's gospel begins with a brief description of the ministry of John the Baptize. Mark indicates that John's ministry of preaching and baptism fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah (40:3). That he was sent to set the stage for the coming Messiah and announce His purpose. John's message promised that the one who came after him would indeed baptize with the Holy Spirit.

What I find significant in our text is, that the first action Jesus took after He was baptized (and once He began His public ministry), was to respond to the prompting of the Holy Spirit (v.12). Even though it meant He would be without shelter, without food, exposed to the wild beasts, and buffeted by Satan for forty days, He responded anyway.

Jesus' actions exemplify the two most important dimensions of a life of purpose; 1) He knew what God the Father had called Him to do, and 2) He was responsive to the calling of the Holy Spirit in His life. We too have a purpose to fulfill. May we continually listen to the “still small voice” of the Spirit guiding us to His purposes in our lives, and be responsive to that leading.

The Truth: “For it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:13)

Daniel 12 "Israel's Time of Trouble"

"At that time Michael shall stand up, the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, every one who is found written in the book. And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt.” (vv.1-2)

Here Daniel is telling us that, “at that time,” the time of Israel’s future great trouble – referring to the calamity known as the Great Tribulation, also known as the time of Jacob’s trouble (Jeremiah 30:7), a time of such trouble that no nation has ever seen, the angel Michael (also called the archangel), shall stand up. And every one who's name is found written in the book, shall be delivered. 

The Jewish people have known many times of trouble through their history. From the horrors at the fall of Samaria and Jerusalem to the terrors wrought by Antiochus Epiphanes, to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, to the persecutions from the church during the Dark Ages, to the pogroms of Europe, to the 20th Century Holocaust. One could say Israel’s history has often been a time of trouble. Yet this time, it will be different. Jesus described it in Matthew 24:21 saying: “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.” 

But despite the terrors of that coming time, deliverance is assured. No matter how great the attack is against the Jewish people, God promises to preserve them (a remnant). He will never break His promise to Abraham: “And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you” (Genesis 17:7).

So how will this deliverance take place? Well, we know that; 144,000 (12k from the 12 tribes) are sealed by God and protected from the plaques of the Great Tribulation, and those who flee to the wilderness – to the “rock” city of Petra as directed by Jesus (Matthew 24, Mark 13) will also be preserved by God (Isaiah 16). But, those that do not flee, the antichrist will then go and make war against the remnant of the people that stay in the land, and there will be a horrible devastation of those who remained until Jesus comes and ends it all. And Daniel tells us that exact time in verse 11, “‪From the time that the regular sacrifice is abolished and the abomination of desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days,” until His coming.

Then, 45 days later (v.12), He will gather together the nations for judgment and separate them as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And to those in His right hand, "Come ye blessed of the Father. Enter into the kingdom that was prepared for you from the foundations of the earth." To those on His left, "Depart from Me, workers of iniquity, into the everlasting darkness which was prepared for Satan and his angels."

"He that has an ear to hear, let him hear."

The Truth: “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:11-15)

Daniel 11 "The Anti-Christ's Predicted End"

"He will pitch the tents of his royal pavilion between the seas and the beautiful Holy Mountain; yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him.” (v.45)

Here in chapter 12, Daniel lays out details of the battles which take place before Armageddon, along with the defeat of the anti-christ and his rule. During the great tribulation, the Antichrist will be attacked in a pincer movement from both the north and the south, yet he will be successful, sweeping through like a flood (v.40).

He will also invade Israel, the beautiful land, ignoring some nations that are in alliance with him but conquering others, including Egypt, Libya, and Sudan (the Cushites) (vv.41-43). Then, reports of nations from the east and the north coming to attack will both terrify and infuriate him, leading him to pursue a course of genocidal warfare against his enemies, especially many of the Jewish people (v.44; Zech 13:8-9).

The Antichrist will then establish his military capital in Israel, pitching his royal tents between the Mediterranean Sea and the city of Jerusalem, situated on the beautiful holy mountain (v.45a). There the nations of the earth will gather (Zech 14:2) at Mount Megiddo to begin the campaign of Armageddon (Rev 16:13-16).

At that time, when the nation of Israel calls on the Messiah, Jesus will return (Mt 23:37-39) to deliver them, and the Antichrist will meet his end, with no one to help him (v.45b).

The Truth: “Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse and his army. But the beast (anti-christ) was captured, and with it the false prophet who had performed the signs on its behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. The rest were killed with the sword coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.” (Revelation 19:19-21)

Daniel 10 "Daniel's Prayer Heard"

Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia. Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come.” (vv.12-14)

God responded to Daniel’s prayer the very moment he made his request known. Daniel had been in great and serious prayer for three full weeks (Daniel 10:2). However we see here in our text that the angel was delayed because, "the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood him." Since this prince was able to oppose the angelic messenger to Daniel, we know this was more than a man. This prince was some kind of angelic being, and we know he was an evil angelic being because he opposed the word of God coming to Daniel and stood against the angelic messenger.

The word prince has the idea of a ruler or authority. This fits in well with the New Testament idea that angelic ranks are organized and have a hierarchy (Ephesians 1:21, Ephesians 6:12, Colossians 1:16, Colossians 2:15). These angelic ranks seem to include both faithful angels and fallen angels. Apparently, this was a demon of high rank that opposed the answer to prayer. On three occasions, Jesus referred to Satan as the prince of this world (John 12:31, 14:30, and 16:11).

Since the angel was dispatched immediately and Daniel’s period of prayer and self-denial was 21 days (the three full weeks of Daniel 10:2), we see that the answer to the prayer was delayed by the prince of the kingdom of Persia.

Thus, there may be hindering factors of which a praying Christian knows nothing as he wonders why the answers to his requests are delayed. Nevertheless, he is to keep on praying. 

Like Daniel, our prayers are heard and like him we must be both patient and persistent. We must also strive in our prayer life to understand what God wants to accomplish in our present situation. 

Humbling ourselves before the creator of the universe is a good start, as God is not some genie we can summon for our three immediate wishes. It may take some time. 

True revelation and understanding will only come as we truly seek His will and not our own.

The Truth: “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done.....” (Matthew 6:10)

Daniel 9 "Daniel's Prayer"

"Then I set my face before the Lord God to make request in prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.” (v.3)

This is one of the great chapters of prayer in the Bible. Here Daniel is interceding for the nation of Israel, asking God to have mercy on them and forgiveness for their rebellion and disobedience. By all indications this prayer may have taken days, as we see in the latter part of the verse it was done with fasting while wearing sackcloth and ashes.

Interestingly enough, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national fast in the midst of the Civil War. He said of this nation, “We have forgotten God, we have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace, multiplied, enriched, and strengthened us; and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, and too proud to pray to the God that made us! It behooves us then, to humble ourselves before the offended Power, to confess our national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness.”

Daniel did precisely that. His prayer offered during the Exile, is one of the Bible’s great intercessory prayers. To demonstrate his humility and sorrow for the sins of the nation, he fasted and put on sackcloth and ashes. His prayer revealed; faith in Jeremiah’s prophecy that the Exile would last seventy years, it showed humility and a submissive knowledge of God’s person and Law, along with an understanding that God’s punishment was just.

Today, the most important area of service that we can do for the state of our country, is to pray – and more so as we see the Day of the Lord approaching. For His punishment will be just.

The Truth: “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.” (Luke 21:36”)

Daniel 8 "The Vision Interpreted "

 Then it happened, when I, Daniel, had seen the vision and was seeking the meaning, that suddenly there stood before me one having the appearance of a man. And I heard a man’s voice between the banks of the Ulai, who called, and said, “Gabriel, make this man understand the vision.” So he came near where I stood, and when he came I was afraid and fell on my face; but he said to me,”Understand, son of man, that the vision refers to the time of the end.” Now, as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep with my face to the ground; but he touched me, and stood me upright. And he said, “Look, I am making known to you what shall happen in the latter time of the indignation; for at the appointed time the end shall be. (vv.15-19)

Daniel was still in the midst of his vision when he saw himself on the shores of this Persian river. He heard someone instruct Gabriel to "explain the vision to Daniel." Gabriel assured Daniel that this vision had to do with end times, a latter time of the indignation. The terms "time of the end" and "latter time of the indignation" commonly refer to what we think of as the end times, not events fulfilled more than a 100 years before the birth of Jesus (in the time of Antiochus Epiphanes).

Though this prophecy was fulfilled in Antiochus Epiphanes, it also has a later fulfillment in the Antichrist, referring to "the time of the end." Antiochus Epiphanes is sometimes called the “Antichrist of the Old Testament.” He prefigures the "Antichrist of the New Testament." Just as Antiochus Epiphanes rose to power with force and intrigue, so will the later Antichrist. As Antiochus persecuted the Jews, so will the Antichrist. As Antiochus stopped sacrifice and desecrated the temple, so will the Antichrist. And just as Antiochus seemed to be a complete success, so will the Antichrist.

For us, Daniel’s prophetic vision of the “time of the end,” draws nearer every day. His vision prefigures the rule of the Antichrist in the coming end of days. He shall come to power through flattery (a smooth talker), striking a covenant with Israel (Daniel 9:27), deceiving many, looking like the man of peace, having the power of Satan to do signs and lying wonders. He will exalt himself, he will sit as God in the temple of God, showing himself to be God (2 Thessalonians 2:4). But he will eventually be defeated by the hand of Christ (Revelation 19:20).

Daniel’s vision will have it’s ultimate fulfillment in the not so distant future. Therefore, let every man who has an ear to hear, hear this, and keep your eyes on Israel, the center of all this future action.

The Truth: “ But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who had performed the signs on its behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. The rest were killed with the sword coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.” (Revelation 19:20-21)