Pastor Shaun Marksbury

They were on the road going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking on ahead of them; and they were amazed, and those who followed were fearful. And again He took the twelve aside and began to tell them what was going to happen to Him, saying, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death and will hand Him over to the Gentiles. They will mock Him and spit on Him, and scourge Him and kill Him, and three days later He will rise again.” Some think that the crucifixion was outside of Christ’s control.   Typically, these would be those who would also deny that God had a plan in it or that it had significant meaning for you or me.   In this short passage, however, we see the boldness of Christ in facing what He knew was coming.   He even explains to His disciples what is about to take place so they are prepared—and we should notice His control. First, notice His det...

And Jesus, looking around, said to His disciples, “How hard it will be for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God!”   The disciples were amazed at His words.   But Jesus answered again and said to them, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!   It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”             They were even more astonished and said to Him, “Then who can be saved?” Looking at them, Jesus said, “With people it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God.” We sometimes assume that Jesus is only there for our comfort and happiness.   However, as we saw with the rich young ruler, Jesus gave him the law (vv. 19, 21) and then allowed the man to walk away sad (v. 22).   It’s not that Jesus didn’t feel compassion for him (cf. v. 21a), but this man needed to know the harsh truth.  ...

And he said to Him, “Teacher, I have kept all these things from my youth up.” Looking at him, Jesus felt a love for him and said to him, “One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” But at these words he was saddened, and he went away grieving, for he was one who owned much property. Like in the parable of the soils (Mk 4:3–20), the rich young ruler indicates initial growth, but his heart is stony underneath.   He loved something more than God.   Specifically, he bowed before the altar of money. The commandments reveal his idolatrous state .   As we discussed last time, Jesus used the Law to reveal this man’s heart—even altering the command, “Thou shalt not covet,” to highlight his sin of fraud.   Jesus wants to demonstrate the full weight of the Law, which includes the intents of the heart and demands entire perfection (cf. 5:21–48).   However, Jesus’s words fall...

And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone.   You know the commandments, ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’ ” One of the primary uses of God’s law is to stress the gulf between the His holiness and man.   In other words, as we read God’s Word, reveals how unholy we are, and how much we need God’s grace.   Yet, the rich young ruler failed to see his need for forgiveness and mercy. We can’t see others as good .   Some have taken Jesus’s words here to mean He denies being good (and that He couldn’t therefore be God), but He doesn’t say that.   As the parallel text records, Jesus asked, “Why are you asking Me about what is good?” (Mt 19:17).   In other words, Jesus forces the man to ponder the weight of the word “good,” to not use it superficially or flippantly. We can’t see ourselves as good .   This man use...

As He was setting out on a journey, a man ran up to Him and knelt before Him, and asked Him, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”   And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone. Jesus is leaving from the house where He taught His disciples about marriage and blessed the children (vv. 10–16).   He’s heading toward Jerusalem (v. 32) when this man approaches.   Everything externally about this man’s demeanor is that of worship, and he comes with the paramount question: “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?” (v. 17).   Note that, regardless of how close he came to the answer, it wasn’t close enough. This man’s mindset has brought him close to getting eternal life.      He’s a ruler, perhaps in a synagogue (Lk 18:18), and wealthy (v.22), which people perceived to be a sign of God’s blessing (cf. vv. 23–24).   He runs to Jesus, an undignified act for such men, and then falls on his k...

And they were bringing children to Him so that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked them.   But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant. Following His teaching on marriage, Jesus is greeted by several parents and their children.   It’s possible that they’re still in the home where He just answered disciples’ question about divorce (vv. 10–12).   How the disciples now react reveals a character flaw Jesus disdains, and we’d do well to recognize and root it out of ourselves. The disciples’ attitude was one of criticism.   Verse 13 says that they continually turned people away, scolding the parents while they did so.   Perhaps the disciples wanted more from Jesus, and they saw inconvenience in the stream of mothers with children in tow.   Jesus taught too many high and lofty ideas to be bothered with crying infants. Sadly, this attitude is a pattern.   Peter rebuked Jesus for teaching that the Son of Man must suffer (8:31–32).   ...

Last time, we saw that the Pharisees were “testing” Jesus (v. 2), asking Him a question to cause Him problems.  Jesus brought them back to Scripture, demonstrating God’s consistent teaching on the matter.  In doing so, Jesus affirms God’s Word on marriage.  As such, we can learn a good deal about marriage here, though none of it is popular today. Jesus affirms God’s definition of marriage.   Adam and Eve were created “male and female,” a biological reality that logic demands.  He speaks of “the two” (v. 8), for marriage doesn’t consist of more than two parties.   He also said that those two “shall become one flesh,” affirming the blessing of sexual copulation in marriage while also emphasizing the necessity for a “male” and “female” compatibility.  The competing definitions of marriage, whether they be same-sex, polyamorous, etc., have no place in Jesus’s teachings. Jesus affirms the inviolability of marriage.   The definition ...