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Scripture Reading        : Mark 2:13-28

Theme                            : Legalistic Objections to the Servant’s Ministry

This entire passage showed how the Pharisees objected to Jesus’ ministry using their legalistic standards. Jesus used two analogies of new cloth on old garment and new wine in old wineskins, to show the complete incompatibility of the Gospel of repentance with the Pharisaic legalism. The Pharisees focused on ritual, whereas Jesus, the Perfect Servant, focused on man’s true need.

1. Jesus associated with sinners. The Pharisees used the term “sinners” to describe all who did not respect the Mosaic Law or rabbinic traditions. Such sinners were worthless in their sight and they would not even be found eating together. Their legalism prevented them from showing compassion to sinners. Jesus, on the other hand, had compassion on sinners. The Perfect Servant came precisely for the purpose of saving sinners (Mark 2:17).

2. Jesus did not fast. It was unlikely that Jesus fasted but not His disciples. Though Mark 2:18 tells us that the charge was against Jesus’ disciples, it is reasonable to deduce that the charge was directed towards Jesus. It was still early in Jesus’ ministry; the antagonism against Him was not full blown yet, so the charge was seemingly brought against the disciples.

3. Jesus did not obey the Sabbath. To the Pharisees, “plucking heads of grain” was work and amounted to breaking the Sabbath. Jesus used an Old Testament passage to show the Pharisees that God did not create the Sabbath to be a legalistic bondage, but for the purpose of His people’s benefit as they rested. Jesus’ claim that He was greater than the Sabbath means that He was claiming to be God.

Praying the Scripture

1. Are there any legalistic practices that we still adhere to (e.g. keeping the Sabbath on Sundays), even after repenting and believing in the Gospel? Pray that we will have the wisdom to identify any legalism in our own hearts and put off all self-righteousness.

2. Are we more concerned over rituals than man’s true needs? One example could be forbidding the use of church premises (or our own homes) so that the cleanliness of the place could be maintained. Pray that we can use the resources that God has given to us to serve people in the church.

3. Do we find the teachings of the Bible burdensome? Jesus said that “the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” (Mark 2:27) Let us pray that we will believe that God’s will is best for us (Romans 8:28), so that we will not find it burdensome to obey His will.

经文：马可福音2:13-28

主题：对仆人事工的律法主义性抗议

这整段经文显示法利赛人是如何以自己律法主义性的标准抵挡耶稣的事工的。耶稣使用了两个比喻，即缝在旧衣上的新布和装在旧皮袋里的新酒，表明悔改的福音与法利赛人的义是完全不符的。法利赛人注重的是礼仪，但那完美仆人耶稣注重的是人真正的需要。

Scripture Reading        : Mark 2:1-12

Theme                            : Jesus’ Power to Forgive Sin          

1. Jesus’ Proclamation. Mark 1:14-15 summarizes the Galilean ministry of Jesus. Wherever He went throughout Galilee, Jesus would preach the same message of repentance and belief in the Gospel as the basis of salvation. Jesus showed that He was not just the messenger of God, but He is God Himself, who has the power to forgive sins (Mark 2:5). Therefore, when a sinner repents and believes in the Gospel, he is to put his faith in Jesus Christ, who is the one who forgives.

2. Jesus’ Perception. Jesus is God and He is able to perceive the hearts of men. Jesus knew what the Pharisees and scribes were thinking in their hearts.

3. Jesus’ Proof. The purpose of the miracle was not to produce faith in the hearts of the people there. The paralytic and his friends already had faith in Jesus (Mark 1:5) before the miracle, not after. The miracle, therefore, authenticated Jesus’ proclamation to have the power to forgive sins.

Praying the Scripture

1. The original Greek word order of Jesus’ speech in Mark 2:5 is – Forgiven are your sins. The paralytic did not ask Jesus for physical healing, and from Jesus’ proclamation, we can deduce that the paralytic was more concerned for his sin. Jesus, knowing the greatest need for sinners is true forgiveness of sin, did exactly that for the paralytic. Let us pray that we will know our true spiritual need, rather than temporal, physical needs.

2. Jesus had compassion on the man and wasted no time in assuring him that he is forgiven. Let us pray that we too may have compassion on others when we are counseling or comforting the afflicted.

3. Having the right theology does not mean that a person is saved. The Pharisees and scribes had the right theology when they said that only God can forgive sins, but they failed to recognize Jesus as God. We must place our faith in the right person, Jesus Christ, and submit to Him as God and Saviour. Let us pray that we will not only have the right theology, but have the right faith as well.

经文：马可福音2:1-12

主题：耶稣赦罪的大能     

Scripture Reading        : Mark 1:35-45

Theme                            : The Ministry of the Servant II      

1. Jesus Prayed. Jesus found a time and a place where He could pray to God the Father in an undisturbed manner. His act of prayer showed both His intimacy with the Father and His dependency on the Father.

2. Jesus Preached. Jesus told His disciples that the reason He came out was in order to preach in different places. Certainly, Jesus preached the Gospel of God, calling people to repent and believe in the Gospel (Mark 1:14-15), wherever He went. Wherever Jesus went, He preached the Gospel and authenticated His identity by casting out demons.

3. Jesus Pitied. Healing diseases and casting out demons did not just authenticate the Lord’s ministry, but He also healed the sick because He pitied them (Mark 1:41). Having compassion on the suffering truly showed the Perfect Servant’s heart – He was here to serve, and not to be served. It is this compassion that moved Him to ultimately offer His life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45).

Praying the Scripture

1. The Son of God prayed to the Father when He became man. Even now, He continues to pray for His followers at the right hand of God (Romans 8:34). If we truly claim to follow Christ, we too must pray often and also pray for others, rather than pray for ourselves most of the time. Let us pray and ask God to give us strength to persevere in prayer, and wisdom to know how we can pray for others.

2. Jesus preached the Gospel wherever He went, because it is the message of the Gospel that is “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16). Let us pray that we too may preach the Gospel to the lost whenever we have the opportunity.

3. Jesus’ ministry was marked by His compassion for the lost. Let us pray that we too may have compassion for those who do not know our Lord, especially for people around us (e.g. our family, friends and colleagues).

经文：马可福音1:35-45

主题：仆人的事工（二）

Scripture Reading        : Mark 1:21-34

Theme                            : The Ministry of the Servant I       

Jesus and His disciples came to Capernaum, a fishing village located on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. It was the hometown of Simon and Andrew (Mark 1:16; 1:29), who were fishermen by trade before they followed Jesus. Jesus’ ministry was characterized by:

1. Authority in Teaching. The synagogue was established during the time of Israel’s captivity/exile (586 – 537 BC). The temple in Jerusalem was destroyed, and the Israelites (also known as the Jews) in exile established the synagogue in order to worship God. After the Israelites returned from the exile, they rebuilt the temple, but the synagogue continued to be a place where the Jews met for worship on the Sabbath day, because many Jews lived far away from the temple in Jerusalem. Jesus came to the synagogue and “taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.” (Mark 1:22)

2. Authority over Demons. Jesus not only taught with authority, but He also demonstrated His authority by casting out a demon in a man. Jesus would not allow the demon to speak, even though the demon acknowledged that Jesus is “the Holy One of God.” (Mark 1:24) This is because Jesus did not need the testimony of a demon. He is the Son of God (Mark 1:1) and God the Father already testified concerning Jesus (Mark 1:11). Jesus also cast out many other demons, not permitting them to speak for the same reason (Mark 1:34).

3. Authority over Illnesses. Jesus also demonstrated that He is the Son of God by healing people of their physical illnesses.

Praying the Scripture

经文：马可福音1:21-34

主题：仆人的事工（一）

耶稣和祂的门徒来到位于加利利海以北的渔村迦百农。那是西门与安德烈的故乡（16, 29节）；他们跟随耶稣之前是全职渔夫。耶稣的事工有以下的特质：

Scripture Reading        : Mark 1:14-20

Theme                            : The Beginning of the Servant’s Ministry

Mark 1:14-15 is a summary of the entire Galilean ministry of Jesus Christ, recorded from Mark 1:16-4:34. It identifies the time of its beginning, notes that Galilee was the chief scene of the work, and gives a summary of His message.

1. The Charge of the Messenger. After John the Baptist was arrested (Mark 6:17-18), Jesus became the Messenger of God by proclaiming and developing the same message of repentance preached by John. Jesus was no ordinary messenger; He is God Himself delivering the message. In the person of Jesus men are confronted by the kingdom of God in its nearness. The Lord’s kingship is both a present reality, since God is exercising His authority now in the hearts of believers, and also a future hope, when God puts down all opposition at the final judgment.

2. The Calling of the Disciples. Jesus called four men, Simon and Andrew, James and John, who would eventually become part of the Twelve Apostles. Jesus would make them “become fishers of men” (Mark 1:17), meaning they will lead many people to believe Jesus after His death, resurrection and ascension. The four men immediately followed Jesus.

Praying the Scripture

1. To believe means more than to give credence to the message; it involves a personal commitment to, and reliance upon, that which is believed. The call to believe the Gospel, points to the good news as the basis of faith. In order to be saved, we must repent from our sins and believe the Gospel according to Jesus, as recorded in the Bible. The demands for repentance and faith run parallel. Repentance without faith leads to despair; faith without repentance from sin becomes presumption. Let us pray that we will genuinely repent from our sins and have faith in Jesus and the Bible.

2. The word “immediately” occurs 41 times in the Gospel of Mark. One commentator called this “servant language”, showing the urgency of a servant’s response to the master’s command. Let us pray that we will immediately respond to Jesus’ call to follow Him, and serve Him by preaching the Gospel to the lost, so that we too may “become fishers of men.”

经文：马可福音1:14-20

主题：仆人事工的开始     

马可福音1:14-15是对耶稣基督的整个加利利事工（可1:16-4:34）的总结。它记载了事工开始的时间，加利利为事工的主要地点，并给予了耶稣信息的概要。

Scripture Reading        : Mark 1:1-13

Theme                            : The Coming of the Perfect Servant          

One of the main themes of the Gospel of Mark is Jesus Christ as the Suffering Servant. Mark wrote the Gospel to encourage Christians in Rome during the persecution brought about after the Emperor Nero set fire to Rome but accused the Christians of doing so. Mark wanted to show the Christians in Rome that their Lord also suffered and died, but a greater glory awaits those who persevere in trials. One of the key verses highlighting the theme of the Suffering Servant is Mark 10:45.

1. The Announcement of the Perfect Servant. John the Baptist made the announcement that the Perfect Servant, the Saviour, will be coming. John the Baptist was the herald whom the Old Testament prophesied about. The Perfect Servant is Jesus Christ, who is God, because He will “baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” (Mark 1:8)

2. The Baptism of the Perfect Servant. John was “proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” (Mark 1:4) Jesus, however, is perfect and He has no sin, so there is no sin that He needs to repent from. However, Jesus was here to save sinners, so He was baptized in order to identify with sinners. God the Father bears witness that the Perfect Servant was doing everything in submission to God’s will.

3. The Challenge of the Perfect Servant. The Perfect Servant was challenged by the Devil in the wilderness, but all these happened within the sovereign plan of God, because it was the Holy Spirit who “drove him out into the wilderness.” (Mark 1:12)

Praying the Scripture

1. John the Baptist was very humble and he accepted his God-given task as the herald who would come before the Saviour. He regarded himself as “not worthy to stoop down and untie” (Mark 1:7) the strap of Jesus’ sandals. Let us pray that we will be willing to serve our Lord humbly, just like John the Baptist.

2. Salvation does not only involve Jesus bearing our sins on the cross; it also includes Jesus imputing onto us the righteous life that He lived (2 Cor. 5:21). Jesus had no need to repent from any sin, but He was baptized in order to identify with us, the real sinners. Let us thank Jesus for living a life of righteousness on our behalf.

3. The temptation of Jesus was within God’s sovereign plan. For the Christians in Rome undergoing persecution, it was a great encouragement to know that the persecution that they faced was according to God’s sovereign will. Let us pray that we will acknowledge God’s sovereignty in our lives, especially during trials and persecution, and pray that we will have the strength to persevere.

经文：马可福音1:1-13

主体：完美仆人的到来     

马可福音的其中一个主题是：耶稣基督，受苦的仆人。马可写这福音的目的是要鼓励当代的罗马信徒；尼禄王曾放火烧罗马，却咬定那是基督徒所干的，此而使他们遭受逼迫。马可想要显示给罗马信徒说他们的主也是受苦受死的，但凡在试炼中忍耐的必有更大的荣耀。其中强调受苦仆人这主题的经文是马可福音10:45。