We are looking at Mark chapter 13, which we have explained is a perplexing passage. Last time we looked at the opening verses which helped explain the context of the disciples’ questions asked in verse four. But also, the placement in the Gospel of Mark. That central to this chapter is the Temple, mainly Jesus’ judgement, found in verse two, “Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be

Perplexing passages can be found throughout the Bible. Passages that have created differences in opinions throughout the church’s history. To find someone who has a new interpretation of a passage is nothing new. Any time spent on the internet would give you a plethora of perplexing passages. When I speak of perplexing passages, I speak of those that we would understand the passage differently but still fall within the same camp. These perplexing passages create a different understanding of what

Here comes the third and final question asked by those seeking to have Jesus stumble over his words. As the water begins to increase, the bubbles form on the bottom of the pot; the conflict continues to grow, with no sign of it stopping. Eventually, this conflict would bubble over. The Pharisees came to Jesus and asked about taxes, the Sadducees came to Jesus and asked about marriage in heaven, and now it is the Scribes who come and ask

When boiling water for cooking, you can see the temperature increase as small air pockets form on the bottom of the pot, and as they begin to increase, you know the temperature of the water is rising. Eventually, the water starts to bubble and move rapidly; steam begins to rise from the pot. Jesus had dealt with conflict throughout his ministry; on these occasions, they would seem as if the bubbles were forming on the bottom of the pot, then

A 1997 Peanuts comic strip of the beloved Snoopy begins in the first frame with Snoopy sitting at his typewriter on top of his kennel. "Dear IRS," Snoopy starts to write, "I am writing to you to cancel my subscription. Please remove my name from your mailing list." Taxes are never a fun topic; I have never met an excited person about paying taxes. Without getting into a whole different topic, I will do what I always do, work our

The conflict continues to grow, and the tension in the air could be cut with a knife. The religious leaders have sought to destroy Jesus; however, the opportune time has not come up for them, and through God's providence, neither has Christ's time come. The religious leaders have tested Jesus before (Mark 8:11). Jesus had come to Jerusalem and rebuked the leaders, pointing them to the 'den of robbers' which they had set up in the court of the Gentiles.

Last week we saw the living parable of the fig tree as a representation of the temple. The temple was that of the rotten figs that could not be eaten and not the good ripe figs. Mark sandwiched the cleansing of the temple with this living parable of the fig tree. This week we will be looking at the lesson from the fig tree. After returning to Bethany for the night, they walk past the fig tree that Jesus had

Following the anti-climactic entry of Jesus, who arrived at the Temple, no one was there. The Temple is one of the important themes in the following chapters. Jesus has finally arrived in Jerusalem, and the conflict continues to rise between the Pharisees and chief priests. The disciples have been told three times what will happen to Jesus (Mark 8:31, 9:31, 10:33-34). The conflict has continued throughout the Gospel of Mark. We, as readers, have known the plan of the Pharisees