Mark

Sunday Reflection – Transfiguration Sunday, February 11, 2024

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Recorded 2021

Seeing Moses and Elijah with Jesus

Mark 9 2  Six days later Jesus took Peter, James, and John with him. They went up on a high mountain, where they could be alone. There in front of the disciples, Jesus was completely changed. 3 And his clothes became much whiter than any bleach on earth could make them. 4 Then Elijah and Moses appeared and were talking with Jesus.

5 Peter said to Jesus, “Teacher, it is good for us to be here! Let us make three shelters, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 6 But Peter and the others were terribly frightened, and he did not know what he was talking about.

7  The shadow of a cloud passed over and covered them. From the cloud a voice said, “This is my Son, and I love him. Listen to what he says!” 8 At once the disciples looked around, but they saw only Jesus.

9 As Jesus and his disciples were coming down the mountain, he told them not to say a word about what they had seen, until the Son of Man had been raised from death.

Kids Korner: Transfiguration (Feb. 11th)

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Read Mark 9:2-9 with your family.

When Jesus lived, 2000 years ago, the Hebrew people believed that Elijah (their greatest prophet) would return to earth and help end the suffering under the Roman occupiers. They also saw Moses (the giver of the laws of their religious tradition) as the greatest person in Hebrew history. So imagine these men who had been awaiting Elijah and respecting Moses their whole lives, seeing both of them with Jesus.

It was incredible. They didn’t know how to act. Peter got his voice back first suggested making special huts for all of them so they could keep the experience to themselves. Peter, James and John believed Elijah was back for good, and Moses was there to teach them, and they realized Jesus was as important as both men.

This is when the disciples finally start to understand that there is something very, very special about Jesus beyond his healing and teaching people.

Imagine then when God said Jesus was who to follow while Elijah and Moses disappeared again.

The disciples were given a new message by God: don’t look to the people of the past, but look to Jesus who was right there with them, to show how God wanted everyone to take care of each other and understand God’s love.

Sunday Reflection – February 4, 2024

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Making the Community Whole

Mark 1 29 As soon as Jesus left the synagogue with James and John, they went home with Simon and Andrew. 30 When they got there, Jesus was told that Simon’s mother-in-law was sick in bed with fever. 31 Jesus went to her. He took hold of her hand and helped her up. The fever left her, and she served them a meal.

32 That evening after sunset, all who were sick or had demons in them were brought to Jesus. 33 In fact, the whole town gathered around the door of the house. 34 Jesus healed all kinds of terrible diseases and forced out a lot of demons. But the demons knew who he was, and he did not let them speak.

35 Very early the next morning before daylight, Jesus got up and went to a place where he could be alone and pray. 36 Simon and the others started looking for him. 37 And when they found him, they said, “Everyone is looking for you!”

38 Jesus replied, “We must go to the nearby towns, so that I can tell the good news to those people. This is why I have come.” 39  Then Jesus went to their synagogues everywhere in Galilee, where he preached and forced out demons.

Kids Korner: Serving and helping Jesus (Feb. 4th)

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Read Mark 1:29-39 with your family.

The Gospel of Mark moves fast. We aren’t even out of chapter 1 and already Jesus has been performing healings and teaching so much he has already become well known.

This story starts with Peter’s mother-in-law who was very sick. Jesus asked her to ‘rise up’, the same word used at the end when Jesus dies and is then resurrected, or rises up. The people who heard this story in the first century would have made that connection quickly.

And then we read that she ‘served’ Jesus and the other people in the house. One of the poor choices of the early Bible translators was how they turned the Greek word for ministry into ‘serving’ for all the women, and then made it seem like they were serving food. For men, they always treated ‘serving’ as ministry.

Women were doing ministry too. They were not serving food. Peter’s mother-in-law was also a disciple of Jesus and helped Jesus with his ministry. Women and men worked with Jesus to spread the good news that Jesus had come to share.

Sunday Reflection – January 28, 2024

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First aired in 2021

The Unclean Spirit

Mark 1 21 Jesus and his disciples went to the town of Capernaum. Then on the next Sabbath he went into the synagogue and started teaching. 22  Everyone was amazed at his teaching. He taught with authority, and not like the teachers of the Law of Moses. 23 Suddenly a man with an unclean spirit in him entered the synagogue and yelled, 24 “Jesus from Nazareth, what do you want with us? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are! You are God’s Holy One.”

25 Jesus told the evil spirit, “Be quiet and come out of the man!” 26 The spirit shook him. Then it gave a loud shout and left.

27 Everyone was completely surprised and kept saying to each other, “What is this? It must be some new kind of powerful teaching! Even the unclean spirits obey him.” 28 News about Jesus quickly spread all over Galilee.

Kids Korner: Be silent (Jan. 28th)

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Read Mark 1:21-28 with your family.

This is the first story of healing in Mark’s Gospel. One of the curious things about this story is how the unclean spirit knew who Jesus really was, but none of the people around Jesus understood that he was the Messiah.

Jesus didn’t want any of the people around him to know until he was ready to tell them, so he told the unclean spirit to be quiet. Jesus did that a lot throughout the whole Gospel of Mark.

There was so much to teach his disciples that Jesus needed time to share everything. If they knew who Jesus was right away, they might not have listened and learned the way they did. Sometimes people are so overwhelmed by how important a person is, or how famous, that they don’t listen to what is being said. Jesus didn’t want that to happen.

Sunday Reflection – January 14, 2024

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Peter, Andrew, James and John

Mark 1 14 After John was arrested, Jesus went to Galilee and told the good news that comes from God. 15  He said, “The time has come! God’s kingdom will soon be here. Turn back to God and believe the good news!”

16 As Jesus was walking along the shore of Lake Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew. They were fishermen and were casting their nets into the lake. 17 Jesus said to them, “Follow me! I will teach you how to bring in people instead of fish.” 18 Right then the two brothers dropped their nets and went with him.

19 Jesus walked on and soon saw James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They were in a boat, mending their nets. 20 At once Jesus asked them to come with him. They left their father in the boat with the hired workers and went with him.

Kids Korner: Follow me (Jan. 21st)

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Read Mark 1:14-20 with your family.

Throughout Jesus’ ministry in Galilee and Judea, he asked many people to follow him. Women, men, children… everyone was invited to spend time with Jesus and learn about God’s love for them, and then share that love with their families, friends and neighbours.

Jesus’ followers, known as ‘disciples’ went everywhere with him. Even when he was trying to get a break and spend time by himself, his disciples always found him and didn’t leave.

Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John were the first disciples that Jesus found as we read in the Gospel of Mark. These four were especially close to Jesus, and when Jesus only took a few of his followers with him for special times of prayer or travel, it was always Peter, Andrew, James and John.

Even though they might not have understood everything Jesus tried to teach them, they were still very good friends.

Sunday Reflection – Advent II, December 10, 2023

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Staying alert for the coming of the Son of Man

Mark 1 This is the good news about Jesus Christ, the Son of God. 2  It began just as God had said in the book written by Isaiah the prophet,

“I am sending my messenger
to get the way ready
    for you.
3 In the desert
    someone is shouting,
‘Get the road ready
    for the Lord!
Make a straight path
    for him.’ ”

4 So John the Baptist showed up in the desert and told everyone, “Turn back to God and be baptized! Then your sins will be forgiven.”

5 From all Judea and Jerusalem crowds of people went to John. They told how sorry they were for their sins, and he baptized them in the Jordan River.

6  John wore clothes made of camel’s hair. He had a leather strap around his waist and ate grasshoppers and wild honey.

7 John also told the people, “Someone more powerful is going to come. And I am not good enough even to stoop down and untie his sandals. 8 I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit!”

Kids Korner: Getting ready with John the Baptist (Dec. 10th)

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Read Mark 1:1-8 with your family.

The first person we meet in the Gospel of Mark, is John the Baptist. He had a special job to do. He was called to get everyone ready to welcome Jesus.

At the time of John and Jesus, people were waiting for the Messiah to make life better for the Hebrew people, but they had no idea when that would happen. John told them it was coming soon, in their lifetimes.

That was very good news indeed for the Hebrew people. They wanted the Romans gone, and they believed the Messiah would do that for them.

They were all very excited while they waited for Jesus.