Mark
Copyright © 2008 Darroll Evans

 

CHAPTER 9

 

Mark 9:1 And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That there be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power.

 

The first verse in chapter 9 actually belongs at the end of chapter 8!

 

Then (after the things of chapter 8), Jesus said to His followers, “Verily (Gr. ameen-amhn), truthfully I tell you that there are some standing here who shall not taste of death till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power.”

 

That came to pass immediately following the resurrection! He was seen by over 500 people as He walked among them in His resurrection!  They witnessed the power of the resurrection!

 

1 Cor 15:4-6
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve:
6 After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep.

 

Mark 9:2-13
2 And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John, and leadeth them up into an high mountain apart by themselves: and he was transfigured before them.
3 And his raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow; so as no fuller on earth can white them.
4 And there appeared unto them Elias with Moses: and they were talking with Jesus.
5 And Peter answered and said to Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.
6 For he wist not what to say; for they were sore afraid.
7 And there was a cloud that overshadowed them: and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him.
8 And suddenly, when they had looked round about, they saw no man any more, save Jesus only with themselves.
9 And as they came down from the mountain, he charged them that they should tell no man what things they had seen, till the Son of man were risen from the dead.
10 And they kept that saying with themselves, questioning one with another what the rising from the dead should mean.
11 And they asked him, saying, Why say the scribes that Elias must first come?
12 And he answered and told them, Elias verily cometh first, and restoreth all things; and how it is written of the Son of man, that he must suffer many things, and be set at nought.
13 But I say unto you, That Elias is indeed come, and they have done unto him whatsoever they listed, as it is written of him.

 

Six days after what happened in chapter 8 through 9:1, Jesus took Peter, James, and John, and led them up into a high mountain.  There, He was transfigured (Gr. metemorphoothee-metemorfwqh) before them.

 

Just think about that.  Those three were allowed to see Christ in His glory.  They saw the “real” Christ Jesus!

 

His clothing became shining to the point of being “exceeding white as snow,” so that nothing on earth was as white.  True righteousness has nothing that can compare!

 

And, Elijah and Moses appeared, were talking with Jesus.  I have no doubt that they were offering praises to the Lord of Lords!

 

Peter spoke up, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three tabernacles (Gr. skeenas-skhnaV/tents), one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” Mark tells us, “Peter said that since he did not know what else to say, because he and the others were afraid!”

 

Then, a cloud enveloped them, and they heard a voice saying, “This is my beloved Son! Hear him!”

 

Suddenly, as they looked around, Moses and Elijah disappeared.  They saw only Jesus! If we look to God, we will see only Christ Jesus!

 

As they came down the mountain, Christ Jesus ordered them to tell no one what things they had seen, until He was resurrected.  With instructions so simple and straight ward it is difficult for us to understand how they could not have believed.

 

As they descended the mountain, the three apostles questioned what Jesus meant when he spoke of being raised from death.

 

Resurrection, as we now understand it was almost unheard of in those days.

 

Finally, they asked Jesus, “Why do the scribes say that Elijah must first come?”

 

Jesus told them, “Truthfully, Elijah came, and restored all things! He taught how it is written of the Son of man, that He must suffer many things, and be treated with contempt.”

 

Jesus continued, “Elijah has come, and they have done to him all those things that are written concerning him.”

 

In this matter, Jesus spoke of John the baptist as having the spirit of Elijah.

 

Mark 9:14-27
14 And when he came to his disciples, he saw a great multitude about them, and the scribes questioning with them.
15 And straightway all the people, when they beheld him, were greatly amazed, and running to him saluted him.
16 And he asked the scribes, What question ye with them?
17 And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit;
18 And wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him: and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away: and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not.
19 He answereth him, and saith, O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him unto me.
20 And they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him; and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming.
21 And he asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child.
22 And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.
23 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.
24 And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.
25 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him.
26 And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead.
27 But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.

 

When they came upon the other disciples, they saw a great multitude with them. The scribes were questioning the disciples that remained at the base of the mountain.

 

When the crowd saw Christ Jesus, they ran to Him. And, He asked the scribes, “What are you asking them?”

 

Then, one in the crowd spoke up, “Master, I brought my son to you. He has a dumb (Gr. alalon-alalon/mute) spirit. No matter where I take him, he “teareth” (Gr. reessei-rhssei/convulses), he ‘foameth’ (Gr. afrizei-afrizei/suffers epilepsy), “gnasheth” (Gr. trizei-trizei/grits) his teeth, and “pineth away” (Gr. xeerainetai-xhrainetai/withers away).”

 

The father continued, “I spoke to Your disciples and they attempted to cast the spirit out, but they could not.”

 

The situation called for a healing, but in those days, and under those circumstances, a demon was responsible for the problem.  Many so-called “faith healers” attempt a one size fits all approach to dealing with demons.  They look for a demon under every rock. 

 

Christ knew the difference. I remember listening to a person who is known a “faith healer,” he told of a woman who asked him to deal with the “demon” buffeting her.  He prayed about it and was told that she had a vitamin deficiency.  She took the necessary vitamins and corrected the situation.

 

Jesus acted in response and said, “O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I suffer you? Bring him to me.”

 

When all else fails try Jesus!

 

That young man was brought to Jesus and straightway (Gr. euthus-euquV), immediately, the spirit attacked him, and the young man had an epileptic seizure.

 

Jesus asked his father, “How long has this been going on?”

 

Asking questions is not a sign of unfaithfulness!

 

His father said, “Since he was a child! And many times it has ‘cast him into the fire, and into the waters, in an attempt to destroy him.’ But, if You can help, please have compassion on us, and help us.”

 

Notice that the demon not only effected the young man, it effected the lives of his entire family. Because of that the father used the word “us.”

 

Jesus said, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.”

 

The father responded immediately!  He cried out with tears, and said, “Lord, I believe! Help (Gr. boeethei-bohqei/aid) my unbelief!” In essence, the man was asking Christ to relieve or take away his disbelief or unfaithfulness!

 

Worry is a form of disbelief!  Many worry about tomorrow because they do not trust Christ to work on their behalf tomorrow!

 

That is perhaps one of the better known exchanges in the entire Bible!

 

When Jesus saw how the crowd reacted, He rebuked the foul spirit saying, “You dumb and deaf spirit, I command you to come out of him, and do no more harm to him!”

 

The spirit cried, made one last effort at rebellion, and came out of him. The young man lay there very quietly.  His father asked if he was dead.

 

Then, Jesus took the boy by the hand, lifted him up; and he arose.  He was healed, delivered, and whole!

 

Mark 9:28-32
28 And when he was come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, Why could not we cast him out?
29 And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.
30 And they departed thence, and passed through Galilee; and he would not that any man should know it.
31 For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day.
32 But they understood not that saying, and were afraid to ask him.

 

When Jesus and the Apostles come into a house, Jesus’ disciples asked him privately, “Why couldn’t we cast him out?’

 

Some demons have greater power than others.

 

Jesus told them, “This kind comes out only through prayer and fasting.”

 

Many do not understand that there is a hierarchy within the demon world.  Lucifer is the highest ranking demon, but he has an order to his world of rebellion.  Or at least as much order as rebels can muster.

 

Then, Jesus and His disciples left and secretly traveled throughout Galilee.

 

At this point, Jesus taught his disciples, “The Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men. They shall kill him, and afterward He shall rise the third day.”

 

Surprise! They did not understand, and furthermore they were afraid to ask what He meant.

 

The fear of appearing ignorant is perhaps the greatest obstruction to spiritual understanding!

 

Mark 9:33-37
33 And he came to Capernaum: and being in the house he asked them, What was it that ye disputed among yourselves by the way?
34 But they held their peace: for by the way they had disputed among themselves, who should be the greatest.
35 And he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all.
36 And he took a child, and set him in the midst of them: and when he had taken him in his arms, he said unto them,
37 Whosoever shall receive one of such children in my name, receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me, receiveth not me, but him that sent me.

 

Jesus and the Apostles finally came to Capernaum. There, He asked them, “What was it the dispute among you all?”

 

But, they kept quiet because they had debated among themselves who should be the greatest.

 

They did not debate who “was” the greatest, but who would be the leader after Christ died.  That is the way with men.

 

Jesus told them, “If any man desires to be the leader, he shall actually be the least, and servant of all.”

 

Jesus took a child, set him in the middle of them, and when He had taken the child in his arms, He said unto them, “Whosoever shall receive one such children in my name, receives me, and whoever shall receive Me, does not just receive Me, but also Him that sent Me.”

 

In John 10:30, Jesus reminds us that, “I and my Father are one.”

 

If we worship the Father, we shall worship the Son, and all that is accomplished through the Holy Spirit!

 

Anybody who does not accept Christ Jesus also does not accept the Father!

 

Mark 9:38-50
38 And John answered him, saying, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, and he followeth not us: and we forbad him, because he followeth not us.
39 But Jesus said, Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me.
40 For he that is not against us is on our part.
41 For whosoever shall give you a cup of water to drink in my name, because ye belong to Christ, verily I say unto you, he shall not lose his reward.
42 And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.
43 And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:
44 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
45 And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:
46 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
47 And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire:
48 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
49 For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.
50 Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltness, wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.

 

The Apostle John said, “Master, we saw someone casting out devils in Your name, and he did not ‘follow’ us, so we rebuked him, because he did not follow “us.”

 

How did John mean that?

 

Did he mean that the man was not following the Apostles or was John referring following Christ? 

 

How did Jesus respond?

 

Jesus said, “Forbid him not! Because there is no man who shall do a miracle in My name that can lightly speak evil of me. He that is not against us is acting on our part. Because, whoever shall give you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, shall not lose his reward. But, whoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in Me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea. And, if your hand offends you, cut it off. It is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched. Where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched. And, if your foot offends you, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life lame, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched, where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched. And, if your eye offends you, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched. Because, every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt. Salt is good, but if the salt has lost its saltiness, what good is it?”

 

Christ closes by saying, “Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.”

 

Remember, as Christians, you are the salt of the earth! (Matthew 5:13)

 

Chapter 10
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