Week 13

The Gospel of Mark: Peter’s Story of Jesus by Steve Petty

Bible Interpretation and study

Mark 8: 1-26

As we traveled a great crowd followed us and once again, they had nothing to eat. So Jesus called us to him and said, “These poor people have had nothing to eat for three days because they have been following us. I don’t think they have the strength to go home.” Someone answered, “There is no place out here to find bread for them all, we are in a pretty deserted place.” So Jesus asked us about our food supply, “How many loaves of bread do you have?” “Seven,” we said. Then he told us to instruct the crowd to sit on the ground, and he took the seven loaves, held them up to heaven and gave thanks for them and broke them and gave them to us to distribute. So we did that and we gave some to everyone. We had some fish also, and Jesus blessed these and we gave a bit to everyone. Everyone ate and was filled and we collected up seven baskets full. We counted about four thousand people at this feeding. Then he sent them all away to their homes. We immediately followed Jesus to the boat and went over to Dalmanutha.

The Pharisees came out again and started even more arguments with Jesus. To test him, they asked him to produce a sign from heaven. We could tell this troubled Jesus because he sighed heavily, like his heart would break, and he said, “Why do people want earthly signs to prove what is real in heaven? This generation will get no signs from heaven or from me.” With that he turned on his heal and we embarked for the opposite side.

We were in such a hurry to leave, no one had re-supplied the boat and we could only find one loaf of bread to eat. Jesus looked at us and said, “Be careful that the yeast of these Pharisees and of Herod does not infect you, too.” We were confused and someone whispered, “He said that because we have no bread.” But Jesus heard him and said, “Why are you talking about having no bread? Don’t you understand yet? Which is harder your heads or your hearts? You have eyes, but you fail to see? You even have ears, but you don’t hear anything. Don’t you remember anything? When we served the five thousand with five loaves and two fish, how many baskets were there left over?” And someone said, “Twelve.” “And after we just fed the four thousand with seven loaves, how many baskets? He asked. And someone said, “Seven.” “Good,” he said, “you remember, but do you still not understand?”

We came again to Bethsaida and they brought him a blind man to heal. Jesus took him outside the village and putting saliva over his eye, laid is hands on him and asked, “What do you see?” “Trees!” he said, “walking, or maybe men.” Jesus touched him again and his sight was clear and he could see everything. So Jesus sent him straight home. “Don’t bother to go back to the village,” he said.

Bread of Heaven, Crust of Earth

We sometimes forget that Jesus fed thousands of people on at least two occasions. The first time was the five thousand men, not counting women and children. This time it simply says four thousand. The first time it appears they are with him most of the day and late in the day they are hungry. Now, we learn they have been away with Jesus for three days. They must have learned to travel with more food. This occasion though less well known, has more of the element of a miracle about it. Since they seem to have exhausted the food supplies that they had before, and all the food they have between them are the seven loaves, and then they find “some” fish. Further, the people seem to lack the strength to walk home without some additional sustenance. So Jesus, using the same formula; sit down, hold the loaves up to God, give thanks for the food, break it and hand it to the disciples to distribute. Everyone eats and there are seven baskets left over.

The continuing development is the attacks of the Pharisees, trying to discredit Jesus before the crowds who follow him. Now they challenge him to produce a sign from Heaven. But Jesus declines the challenge, knowing that any sign he produced would be ground for further arguments.

Leaving there they again take to the boats. Jesus makes the comment that instigates a frustrating lecture. “Be careful that the yeast of these Pharisees … does not infect you.” The disciples think he is talking about bread, but he is talking about attitude. The yeast can also be the Kingdom, (Matthew 13:33) “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”

The attitude of love can enter the heart in a small way, and permeate our whole being. Or the attitude of negativity and distrust can do the same. Be careful not to let your attitude become like the Pharisees. Be sure to let the bread of Heaven fill your hearts.

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Bread of Heaven, Crust of Earth

Jesus feeds the second massive crowd, over four thousand people with seven loaves of bread and has seven baskets left over. Yet the Disciples quarrel over one loaf, thinking it cannot be enough for the thirteen people in the boat.

It is not that Jesus feeds the crowd a marvelous dinner of steak and potatoes. But they do have enough.

The Disciples are afraid they will not have enough. In the same passage in Matthew (16:8) Jesus says to them, “Oh men of little faith, …”

What kind of faith does Jesus have? ______

What kind of faith do the Disciples have? ______

When Jesus says , “Be careful that the yeast of these Pharisees and of Herod does not infect you, too,” what does he meam? When have you “gone negative” and let negative thoughts and attitudes fill you up? How did that feel? Looking back, what could you have done different?

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What are the things of life that infect you and cause you to become negative, to complain, to see the short falls of life?

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When those things start to overcome you, what can you do to allow the Yeast of God’s Kingdom to infect you instead?

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