Mark – Part 4

May 14^th, 2017 (Mark 6: 30-56)

• What does verse 34 tells us about the nature of Jesus and His compassion?
• Why did Jesus first ask His disciples to feed the crowd?
• Why did Jesus ask for a bread count, a people count, and a left-over count? Were these factors for His information or for theirs?
• Why do you think Jesus surprised His disciples by walking on water? Why did He try to pass by the boat?
• Why tell them, “It is I, be not afraid?”
• What does verse 52 remind us about how the stages of the apostles’ faith developed? Does our faith develop the same way?
• Why does Jesus allow healings by touching His garments? (Vs. 56)

May 21^st, 2017 (Mark 7:1-13)

• Was Jesus saying that it was ok for His disciples to disregard the tradition of the elders?
• On what was this tradition even based?
• Would Jesus’ response change if they had been questioning Him on why His disciples did not obey matters of the actual law? How so?
• What was the meaning behind Jesus’ terminology of “…setting aside the commandments of God…” in verse 9? Were they ignoring the commandments, breaking the commandments, or both?
• What was the Lord’s objection to their tradition?
• Is it ok to have traditions in the church today?
• How do we know the difference between “good” traditions and “bad” traditions? Who gets to decide which is which?

May 28, 2017 (Mark 7: 14-23)

• Is it true that nothing which goes into a man “defiles” a man? What about excess alcohol and hard drugs?
• How could Jesus declare all foods “clean” (vs. 19) when Moses’ law was still in effect with its provisions about clean and unclean foods? Was Jesus a “law-breaker”?
• How do things which proceed out of the heart “defile” a person?
• How does coveting, deceit, envy, etc. specifically “defile” us?
• What specific steps should we take to guarantee our heart is clean?

June 4, 2017 (Mark 7: 24-37)

• Why do you think Jesus didn’t want people knowing that He was in this region of Tyre and Sidon?
• Why did He at first refuse to heal the woman’s daughter?
• Was Jesus’ answer to the woman harsh? Is He calling her a “dog”?
• In your opinion, what about the woman’s answer changed the Lord’s mind about healing her daughter?
• Why do you think Jesus healed the man in the Decapolis in such a fashion by putting His fingers in the man’s ears, spitting, touching the man’s tongue, looking to heaven and speaking? Isn’t this diametrically opposed to how He just healed the Syrophoenician woman’s daughter, and other healings of His ministry thus far?
• Other than being a miraculous event, what was so special about making the “deaf to hear and the mute to speak”? (Vs. 36)

June 11, 2017 (Mark 8: 1-21)

• Why is the feeding of the 4,000 repeated when Mark has already told us about feeding 5000? Is this just another version of the same story, or a different event?
• We saw this when Jesus fed the 5000 in Mark chapter 6, but what does Jesus’ “compassion” in verse 2 say about Him and His nature?
• Why did the Pharisees ask for a “miraculous sign” when “signs” were being performed around them constantly?
• Why does Jesus bring up the “yeast” of Pharisees AND Herod? (Vs. 15)
• The disciples clearly didn’t understand the meaning of this parable. Why did they have such a hard time grasping the message? (Vs. 21)
• Do you think Jesus was more confused or upset that they still didn’t get it?

June 18, 2017 (Mark 8: 22-38)

• Once again, why didn’t Jesus want the healed blind man saying anything about the event? (Vs. 26)
• Why didn’t the disciples know who Jesus was?
• How did Simon Peter know who Jesus was?
• Why did Peter rebuke Jesus for speaking of his coming death?
• Why was Jesus so tough on Peter? (Vs. 33)
• Define each of these three actions: What does it mean to: deny self, take up your cross, and follow Jesus?
• Of those three actions mentioned in question #5, which do you think is the most difficult? Why?
• How do we know when, or how, we’re truly “ashamed” of the words of Jesus? (Vs. 38)