Lesson Focus: We Want to See God Working in Our Lives

Mark 8:1-26

“I Don’t Get It!”

Scripture: Mark 8:1-26

Memory Verse: “Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you

no remember.” Mark 8:18

Lesson Focus: We want to see God working in our lives.

Activities and Craft: Coloring Page, Work Sheet

Craft for 1st and 2nd Graders: “Self Portrait”

Give each of the kids the empty portrait. Tell them to draw themselves. Have them add “googly eyes to the picture. Remind them that we want to see, hear and remember what God is doing and has done for us.

Introduction: Get a bag or sack. Put several items into the bag. Set them out and tell the kids that you will give them 30 seconds to remember the things in the bag. Put them back into the bag and then see if the kids remember. Tell them that today we are going to be talking about remembering what God is doing and has done in our lives.

Bible Study:

Mark 8:1-10; Feeding the Multitude Again

√ What is the scene in verse 1?

1. Lots of people
2. Nothing to eat

√ What does Jesus tell the disciples?

1. He has compassion for all of the people
2. Concerned that they have nothing to eat
3. Concerned that they have come from a great distance.

√ How did the disciples answer Jesus?

√ Does this story and the disciples answer sound familiar?

√ Why did they not learn from the last time that Jesus fed the 5, 000? Why were they

not getting it?

√ Is this the same event or is this a different feeding of the multitudes?

√ What is different about this feeding of the multitude?

1. 7 loaves of bread instead of 5
2. “some small fish” instead of 2 fish
3. 7 baskets of leftovers
4. 4,000 who ate

√ What is the same in this feeding of the multitude and the other feeding?

1. Jesus asked the disciples for a solution?
2. The disciples in both cases say that there is no way to feed this many people.
3. Jesus asks the disciples “what do they have.”
4. Jesus prays and gives thanks for the food
5. Jesus tells the multitude to sit down
6. Jesus has the disciples pass out the food
7. Everyone was filled

Mark 8:11-12; The Battle with the Pharisees

√ Who are the Pharisees? (religious Jewish leaders)

√ What did they want from Jesus? (a sign from heaven)

√ Why did they want a sign? (to test Jesus – they wanted to catch Him doing

something wrong. Their hearts were not right.)

√ How did Jesus respond to them?

1. Jesus sighs
2. Jesus tells them that they are only looking for a “show”
3. Jesus tells them that they will not get a “show”
4. Jesus leaves them.

Mark 8:13-21: Jesus tackles the “I don’t get it” heart.

√ Are there times in your life when you don’t get what God is doing? That you

struggle to understand?

There are times when we don’t understand. When we think that God is not working we need to be honest with God and take these concerns to Him. But ultimately, we need to trust that God is working even when we don’t understand.

But there are other times when we “fail” to see God working. God is working and we do not see it. Our heart and ears and mind are closed to seeing God work. This is the problem with the disciples. They just “don’t get it!”

√ What are the disciples thinking about in Mark 8:14? (they only have 1 loaf of

bread.) What did Jesus just do? (He fed 4,000)

√ What does Jesus start talking about? Jesus is giving them a warning.

1. Warns them to beware of the “evil” of the Pharisees (or religious leaders.)
2. Warns them to beware of the “evil” or the government (Herod.)

In the Bible yeast is another word for evil.

√ What is yeast? It is the substance that helps the gluten to grown in bread. It makes the bread rise. If we did not have yeast in our bread our toast would be as flat as a pancake. The Bible uses the word “yeast” as a word picture of evil. Evil grows! Jesus is saying to beware of the evil that is practiced by others. Have your eyes wide open so that you can avoid their evil.

√ What did the disciples think that Jesus meant? (they are still stuck on the bread thing…)

√ Does Jesus know what they are thinking?

√ Do you think Jesus is a little upset at the disciples?

√ What does Jesus ask the disciples? (Is your heart still hard?)

Mark 8:18;

Eyes – but don’t see

Ears – but don’t hear

Mind – but don’t remember

Mark 8:19-20:

Reminder Lesson:

1. When Jesus fed the 5,000 – how many leftover baskets? (12)
2. When Jesus fed the 4,000 – how many leftover baskets? (7)

Mark 8:21

√ What is Jesus’ last question?

“How is it you do not understand?”

The disciples have seen many miracles. They were there when He fed both sets of multitudes, so why are they not getting it? Jesus is telling them it is because of the “hardness of heart.” They were following Jesus – but they had become hardened to what He was doing. They were not really seeing and understanding and remembering all that Christ had done. Maybe all of the miracles where becoming to “routine”… every day another miracle.”

This is actually a scary thing for me. How many times do I miss what God is doing because I am not fully awake “spiritually?” How many times do I miss what God is doing because I’m thinking about all of the things in my life and not focused on Jesus? How many times do I hear God’s Word and miss out because I do not apply it and live it out? How many times do I forget what God has done for me in the past?

I believe an important truth of Scripture is to “remember” what God has done in the past. God had the Israelites take stones and set them up in places so that they would remember what God had done there. Jesus set up the Lord’s Supper so that we would “remember His death, until He comes.”

We do not want to have “hard hearts.”

We want to see what God is doing and join in with Him.

Now, as a class we are going to remember what God has done for us.

Conclusion:

Testimonies: Ask the kids to come forward and share what God has done and is doing in their lives. Take the time to remember and to praise God for how He is working. We don’t want to forget!