Mark 8: During those days another large crowd gathered. Since they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said, 2 “I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat.

Mark 8: If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance.”

Mark 8: His disciples answered, “But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?”

Mark 8: “How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked. “Seven,” they replied. 5 “How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked. “Seven,” they replied.

Mark 8: He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to distribute to the people, and they did so.

Mark 8: They had a few small fish as well; he gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them. 8 The people ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.

Mark 8: About four thousand were present. After he had sent them away, 10 he got into the boat with his disciples and went to the region of Dalmanutha.

Mark 8: The Pharisees came and began to question Jesus. To test him, they asked him for a sign from heaven. 12 He sighed deeply and said, “Why does this generation ask for a sign? Truly I tell you, no sign will be given to it.”

Mark 8: Then he left them, got back into the boat and crossed to the other side.

Larry Cline – Hardin Valley Church Of Christ – 3/1/2015

Two Questions For Jesus

1. Why did He do the one miracle? Why would He not want to?  Decapolis is a region filled with Gentiles  Seems He doesn’t want to do miracles here (chapter 7)

Why did He?  The people show up with a need and Jesus cannot deny His nature.  Whenever Jesus came in contact with a legitimate human need the result was predictable.  COMPASSION

2. Why did He refuse to do another? Pharisees meet Him as He returns The Pharisees came out and began to argue with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, to test Him. (Mark 8:11 )

Realize every time the Pharisees show up in Mark’s gospel it is to:  Engage Jesus in controversy about the law.  Question His authority.

They don’t question His power or ability, they question His legitimacy. They trotted their theory out earlier… The scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons.” (Mark 3:22)

The request for a sign may seem innocent but Jesus sees it as an insidious rerun of satan’s temptation… He’s heard these words before.

Their request was not due to their desire to see the hand of God but it was proof to the fact that they were blind to the hand of God.

Pivotal scripture - Leaving them, He again embarked and went away to the other side. (Mark 8:13 )

Mark 8: And they had forgotten to take bread, and did not have more than one loaf in the boat with them. 15 And He was giving orders to them, saying, "Watch out! Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."

16 They [began] to discuss with one another [the fact] that they had no bread. 17 And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, "Why do you discuss [the fact] that you have no bread? Do you not yet see or understand? Do you have a hardened heart? 18 “Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember,

19 when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces you picked up?” They said to Him, "Twelve." 20 "When [I broke] the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of broken pieces did you pick up?" And they said to Him, "Seven." 21 And He was saying to them, "Do you not yet understand?"

16 They [began] to discuss with one another [the fact] that they had no bread. 17 And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, "Why do you discuss [the fact] that you have no bread? Do you not yet see or understand? Do you have a hardened heart? 18 “Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember,

Mark 4: and He was saying to them, “To you has been given the mystery of the kingdom of god, but those who are outside get everything in parables, 12 so that While seeing, they may see and not perceive, and while hearing, they may hear and not understand, otherwise they might return and be forgiven."

Two Questions For Mark

1. Who is on the “outside”?  The difference between insiders and outsiders is not that one group hears and the other doesn’t.  The difference is that the outsider sees but doesn’t receive, he hears but doesn’t understand.

The outsiders according to Mark are those infected with the yeast of the Pharisees and Herod…unbelief.

The more miracles they saw the harder their hearts got!  Faith can lead to miracles but miracles do not necessarily lead to faith.

The tragedy here is that the disciples, the insiders, are starting to act like outsiders.

51 Then He got into the boat with them, and the wind stopped; and they were utterly astonished, 52 for they had not gained any insight from the [incident of] the loaves, but their heart was hardened. (Mark 6:51-52 )

20 “When [I broke] the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of broken pieces did you pick up?” And they said to Him, “Seven.” 21 And He was saying to them, “Do you not yet understand?” (Mark 8:20-21 )

2. Who is on the “inside”?  What does it take to move from the outside to the inside?  You must understand the cross.

Two Questions For Us

1.Do we: want to see Jesus clearly?

2. Do we: want to follow Jesus closely?  We have a sign…the cross!  Do you still not understand or are you starting to see?