Day 54 Bible Readings – Mark 7: 20-23 (ESV)

Exodus 33 & 34, Mark 7: 1-30, Psalm 34: 1-10

Mark 7: 20-23 (ESV)

“And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

In verses 20 through 23 from Mark 7, we read how Jesus responded to the Pharisees when they questioned him about why his disciples did not observe the ceremonial washing rituals before they ate food. Christ tells us that God is more concerned with what comes out of a person, then what comes into him through food. Christ tells us that food or unclean hands do not defile us. We are already defiled by our sinful nature. Christ then gives us a list of 13 evil things that live in our hearts. William Barclay wrote in his book The Gospel of Mark that “Every outward act of sin is preceded by an inward act of choice; therefore Jesus begins with the evil thought from which the evil action comes.” I like Barclay’s theory that every outward act of sin is only made because we made an inward act of choice. Every sin known to man can be connected to the list of 13 evil things that Christ said lives in our hearts. It is only with the help of God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, can we hope to overcome these 13 evil things that Christ said lives within us and live a live of peace and righteousness.

Day 53 Bible Readings – Exodus 32: 1 (ESV)

Exodus 31 & 32, Mark 6: 30-56, Psalm 33: 12-22

Exodus 32: 1 (ESV)

“When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, “Up, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.”

In verse 1 from Exodus 32, we read that the people of Israel got tired of waiting for Moses because they hadn’t seen him for 40 days after he went up into the mountains to talk to God. In one Bible commentary I wrote, the author said that how we feel about God’s delays in our life is a measure of our spiritual maturity. I think the people of Israel felt abandoned by Moses and were afraid despite their miraculous passage through the red sea and all they saw God do during the 10 plagues against Egypt. They didn’t trust God or Moses enough to wait for his return, and they went back to their old ways of wanting another God to lead them. Not knowing when Moses was coming back or if he was even coming back led the people of Israel to doubt God and Moses. When we have doubts about God and his love and care for us, we often look for security and love elsewhere. Other things become our God or our Idol so we can feel that sense of security. But once we doubt God and turn to sin, we can cause even more delays to what we want. By doubting God, the people of Israel were punished and would be delayed 40 years before they entered the land promised to them. And the generation that wanted Aaron to make new idols for them did not live long enough to even enter the promised land. We see a clear example in Exodus the price we could pay for doubting God’s plan for our lives.

Day 52 Bible Readings – Mark 6: 12-13 (ESV)

Exodus 29-30, Mark 6: 1-29, Psalm 33: 1-11

Mark 6: 12-13 (ESV)

“So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent. And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them.”

In verses 12 and 13 from Mark 6 we find out that the disciples of Jesus, who went out two by two to proclaim his teachings, were able to case out demons and heal many sick people. We have to imagine what it must have been like for the apostles of Jesus to do this work and find out that they could do miracles like Jesus. It must have been so mind-blowing to these twelve men who had never done anything like this in their lives. Here again The Chosen series has done an excellent job of depicting for us to see what might have happened when the disciples went out and the miracles they performed. You can see them doing everything Jesus told them to do on faith and their shock when they were able to heal and perform miracles. There is no dialogue in these scenes, and I think the actors did a great job to show the elation of the disciples when they were able to perform a miracle like Jesus.

Enjoy The Chosen series, Season 3, Episode 4 – Two by Two: 

Day 51 Bible Readings for February 21 – Mark 5: 41-43 (ESV)

Exodus 27 & 28, Mark 5: 21-43, Psalm 32

Mark 5: 41-43 (ESV)

“Taking her by the hand he said to her, “Talitha cumi,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise.” And immediately the girl got up and began walking (for she was twelve years of age), and they were immediately overcome with amazement. And he strictly charged them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat.”

In verses 41-43 from Mark 5, we read about the healing of the daughter of Jairus. It is an amazing miracle for Jesus to bring a little girl who had been dead long enough for mourners to come and start their traditional wailing. But Jesus healed her with only three of his disciples present and the parents of the little girl. The best depiction that I’ve seen of these verses from Mark 5 is from the series The Chosen Season 3, Episode 5. It’s one thing to read about this miracle, but it is something else to experience it as it might have actually happened in real life. You get to hear the mourners and their wailing, the fear of the girls’ parents, and their joy when they see their daughter brought to life.

Enjoy The Chosen, Season 5, Episode 3 - Raising Jairus' Daughter -