Category: Uncategorized

Mark 9:48
You get the idea that Jesus wants to get this point across. Why? It is so vital. To miss this is to miss it all. The is a problem to be solved, there is a hell to fear.

Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us Christ! You have made a way to escape the terrible destiny of traitors. You always do the best thing. You are loving and just. Thank you! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise you, Amen.

Mark 9:47
Jesus helps us understand what he is saying by this repeat using different parts of the body. The feet, hands, and eyes are significant. Your feet represent where you go. Your hands represent what you do. And your eyes represent what you absorb. It is in these three areas that we get in trouble. Sin sneaks in by these inroads, and choke the Word in our hearts.

Heavenly Father, thank you for your Word. May we always value it! You have given us so much. We will seek to honor you with our choices, where we go, what we do, what we think. Thanks for the life you give us in Christ. We have no need for the things of this world because of all that we have in him. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise you, Amen.

Mark 9:46
Looking at the word ‘worm’ here we see that he is speaking of the deterioration of the body. Of course, normally this process would be finished after a time. However, he seems to indicate that in hell the punished will have physical bodies which will experience eternal degradation. Obviously, we do not completely understand what this entails. But, Jesus says it in such a way that the point must not be lost on us. Hell is a real, physical place, and the damned will be cast there physically.

Heavenly Father, your mercy is so wonderful! Though as imperfect beings we struggle to understand just how undeserving we are, we realize that life in Christ is infinitely more than what we deserve. Never could we have come from what we are in the flesh to what you have made us in Christ. The shed blood of your Son on Calvary changed us forever where we met him at the cross. I am so thankful for salvation in the Lord Jesus! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Mark 9:45
In order to avoid confusion here, we must understand something of Jesus’ perspective. Those who he is speaking of entering into life with just one foot would be entering into the life of the blessed. Whereas, those having two feet would be embarking upon a life of wickedness only to be ended by being cast into hell. In other words, he’s not just speaking of the ultimate destiny of people, but also the means by which they get there.
So, we see a real contrast between the life of the blessed and the life of the wicked. Why? Why is Jesus so concerned to illustrate this contrast? The answer is easy. While living this life here on earth, we tend to think that all is secure, all is well. It’s very easy to go through our lives forgetting the spiritual aspect altogether. Jesus hopes to help the disciples have the eternal perspective even in this present life. They would need to help people understand that feeling secure in the here and now was not enough. Sin must be taken care of. The Savior must be accepted. Eternal life must commence today, not someday way off later on.

Heavenly Father, thank you for warning us! You don’t just give us the truth as something to cling to in the last moments of our fleeting existence. Instead, you have given it to us for every moment of our lives here. You care not just about our future destiny, but about our lives here and now. Thank you for helping us to understand that, though we miss it sometimes, there is a great difference between living here with Christ, and without him. Thank you for the difference! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Mark 9:44
Jesus’ teachings on the subject of hell are quite specific. He has a lot to say about it. In fact it is one of his primary subjects. Between this verse and the previous one he uses two different words to describe the nature of the fire. He literally tells us it is unquenchable fire that shall not be quenched.
Why so much about hell? Well, Jesus loves his people. Of that we can be certain. Jesus doesn’t want anybody to go to hell. But he’s not going to prevent that destiny if people reject the truth.

Heavenly Father, thank you for forgiveness in your Son. Thank you for the love that you have for us. It is wonderful that you tell us the truth. And, it is understandable that you expect us to believe it. Thank you for sending the Lord Jesus. Thank you for his teaching. I praise you for your wonderful Word! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Mark 9:43
Once again we find ourselves looking at some of Christ’s intense teaching. Why did Jesus use such extreme examples? What is he trying to teach his disciples here? He had been talking about this man that the disciples saw doing miracles in Christ name. But at this point he’s turned his attention to a related subject. He’s teaching them about those who might cause offence. And, at this juncture, he is addressing personal issues that might cause offence.
But what does this offense mean? What is offence? This verse reveals the answer. Offense is anything that might cause a person to miss the eternal blessing of life in glory. In other words, offense is that which prevents us from truly being children of God. It is any false teaching, any personal issue, any sin, that keeps us from being saved.
Later on, when we read the writings of the disciples, we can see that they learned this lesson well. They constantly spoke to Christians with language that encouraged a check up on each person’s own soul. They did not try to cause doubt, but they did encourage one to make sure their faith was genuine. This is what Jesus is after in this verse. He is expressing how extremely important it is for people not to ‘miss the boat’ on salvation.

Heavenly Father, thank you so much for salvation. Thank you for making it available to us through your precious Son, the Lord Jesus. Help us to realize that your Word is here for our benefit. The reason for the teachings that we find there is us. Our welfare, what’s best for us, is what you have in mind all the time. You never want anything for us that will hurt us. Thank you for teaching us through your Word. Thank you for Christ! You are worthy of all the praise and all the glory! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Mark 9:42
Though persecution is a reality, it will not go unpunished. Christians have no reason to retaliate for persecution. Instead, the proper response is pity. What awaits those who would stand against the work of the Spirit is more than enough retribution.
Just as a good father protects his children, God will protect us.

Heavenly Father, you know the future, and you have told us what we need to know about it. You have plans for your saints, and you are not unaware of the suffering of your people. The fact is that this is all about you and how good you are. Your glory is the cause for all of it. You deserve the credit for any good thing. You alone are worthy! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise you, Amen.

Mark 9:41
One of the things that we seem to miss completely in Scripture is the paradigm for ministry. Why does Jesus say, ‘because you belong to Christ’? Why does that matter? Well, time and time again in Scripture we see this pattern. Giving, charity, ministry have as the object God’s people. Even in the case of evangelism, the goal is to bring people to Christ. So, we are to minister to the church, not the world?
Well, we minister to the world by ministering to the church. Among Christian ministers we find many patterns. Some don’t seem to minister at all. They just preach fiery damnation and figure they’ve done their job. Others minster only to the world, and let Christians fend for themselves. Still others will help only those in the church. But the right balance is to minster to all, with our primary focus being ministry to the church. Why? Because as we can see from this verse and others, this is the Bible way.

Heavenly Father, may we be truly benevolent like you are! You give and give. Your goodness never expires, or gets tired. You are always there, and you always care. May we be ministers with your heartbeat. We will give you the praise! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise you, Amen.

Mark 9:40
This is a good principle for us to remember. Often, it’s difficult to know the right balance when it comes to cooperating with others. On the one hand, we do not want to compromise the truth; but on the other, we have to work together. Jesus gives us the principal here, if someone is working towards the same goal that we are, we should work not against them but with them. So, you might say, it’s better to try to identify your friends than to spend all your time identifying your enemies.

Heavenly Father, we are thankful for you allowing us to be your ministers. Help us to remember that we must work together. You don’t intend for anyone of us to win the world all by ourselves. We are to work with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ to bring people to you. Help us to rely on your strength, and not our weakness to make a difference in the world. Thank you! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Mark 9:39
We know from Acts 19 and the story of the sons of Sceva that those who did not know the Lord would not be able to cast out demons. So, this man who the disciples had seen must have known the Lord. Likely he was a disciple of John who had now believed in Christ.

Heavenly Father, thank you for using us in the ministry. It is so nice to be involved in your work in this world. You know what is best, and you have given your children a big job to do. But you have given us what we need to do it. Thank you! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise you, Amen.