Reflecting on Mak's Gospel - Mark 5:1-20

One of the best known of the stories told by Jesus is the one which we known as the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32). It is longer than many parables and contains a variety of elements but, as that title suggests, centres on a wayward son who fritters away the family estate on expensive and debauched living. Was that story drawn from true life? Did that father ask Jesus to look out just in case he encountered this profligate character?

Putting it another way, is this Mark’s account of the reality version? Certainly, both stories feature a guy who has got it wrong and a herd of pigs. This character whom Jesus encounters on the other side of the lake is clearly someone who we would describe as ‘having issues’. It is someone to avoid. He is potentially dangerous. The man is described as being with an unclean spirit. Jesus’ repertoire includes healing, telling stories and driving out unclean spirits. Today we would be less likely to think in terms of unclean spirits but, as Megan McKenna (On Your Mark: Reading Mark in the Shadow of the Cross) points out – “unclean spirits are also found today, in religious circles and groups, in nationalistic impulses and the military, in economic systems, and in the institutions of empire.”

She points to the contextual importance of this story – “Rome ruled with brutal disregard and disdain for the peoples of the empire, colluding with local ruling groups to protect Roman interests in the economy, such as slavery and natural resources.  ….  Because the military was constantly present, this story represents a major exorcism of the effects of empire and militarism, the slavery and degradation that affect everyone in the area.”

We can, then, read this story on different levels. The literal level describes the healing and the effect that had on those around the healed man. This was a powerful event – though I guess there might well have been a rather unhappy pig farmer somewhere on the edge of the story. I wonder where we fit into the story. I wonder how it feels when Jesus’ presence becomes what McKenna calls “a power to be reckoned with in our lives.”

But I wonder also what the story says about the demons, or unclean spirits, that can do so much damage in our lives and society. It is a transformational story. Here, as so often, we see Jesus making a difference. However, interestingly, there were a lot of people who remain unconvinced as they began persuading Jesus that he ought to leave this area, though that attitude becomes less surprising if we guess that it might have been the pig farmers who led that particular movement.

So, is this story representative of a politically subversive movement, an attempt to challenge the power of the empire? Is it just a recognition that some people are in desperate situations, and desperately need God’s love? However we apply those, I love the statement is verse 19 that calls out for multiple applications – tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and what mercy he has shown you. I wonder what we will say when we do that.

Reflecting on Mark's Gospel - Mark 4:35-41

I once was at sea in a fairly small boat when a storm blew up. There was so much spray that I am not sure whether it was raining or not. There was certainly a significant wind and the boat was literally tossed out of the waves. I was too busy trying to keep slightly dry to think about being scared, but I was very glad to get back to dry land.

This must have been a BIG storm. Four of the disciples were fishermen and they were used to all that the water could throw at them. How interesting that Jesus manages to sleep through the great gale and the boat’s being swamped. He must have been really at peace, or absolutely shattered, or both. I simply cannot imagine sleeping through such an experience.

However, it is also touching that the disciples let him sleep. It suggests that they were already realising just how much stress was being placed on him, and so they did not want to disturb his rest; and, of course, we are told that this journey happened in order to escape the crowds. Jesus and the disciples were in search of a bit of peace and quiet, and did not bargain on running into a major storm. I wonder how we react when the unexpected crosses our path.

Eventually it becomes too much for the disciples. In any case, they do not want him to drown without even having been aware of the danger. So Jesus is shaken awake, and asked to help bail out the boat. He does help, but not in the way that the disciples expected. He tells the storm to calm down, and then asks them why they are afraid.

Some have suggested that the demand to ‘be still’ was addressed to the disciples, not the wind, but that is not how the story is reported and, as Vincent Taylor (The Gospel according to St. Mark) points out – “the attitude of Jesus to nature as the vehicle of divine power made it as natural for him, as it is difficult for us, to address the wind and the sea.” I wonder how we respond when Jesus asks us if we are afraid. I wonder if we are ready to find peace in the middle of the storm, whatever the ‘storm’ may be. I wonder how we react to the miraculous, indeed how we define the miraculous. I think we need to be ready to accept that God can do some amazing things. Jesus demonstrates that this may be. This incident may help us to see that, in Taylor’s words – “we ought not to close our minds to the possibility that, just as in his sayings there are uprushes of divine illumination, so in his works there may have been outflowings of divine power transcending the normal tenor of his conscious life.”

Reflecting on Mark's Gospel - Mark 4:33-34

Jesus speaks to those around. He proclaims the word. He tells people things and they can hear him. He speaks in parables. He explains the parables to the disciples but, presumably at least sometimes, leaves everyone else wondering about the meaning of what he is saying. Jesus’ fundamental task is to proclaim the Kingdom but, interestingly, there is a hidden note in what he is saying. As Donald English (The Message of Mark) puts it – “The teaching, like the miracles, point in a clear direction, but the destination cannot be seen from the vantage point of the hearing or the seeing. That destination is found only be perceiving that there is more to the ministry than meets the eye or the ear.”

I wonder how much we understand of what Jesus says to us at any given moment. I wonder if there are ‘parables’ we hear, or even love, and not just those recorded by the gospel writers as having been voiced by Jesus, whose meaning we miss because we just do not get ‘it’. I wonder if we struggle to understand what Jesus really wants to say to us. Responding to the Kingdom message is not always easy. As English says – “the elements in the struggle are evident, as is the mounting sense that to get anywhere near the action is to be fascinated and challenged by it.”

I wonder with which piece of Kingdom action God would God would like us to engage today?

Reflecting on Mark's Gospel - Mark 4:30-32

The propagating theme continues with another parable about seeds and growth, as does the theme of what God offers as we are continuing with the exploration of what God’s Kingdom is like. This is a parable of contrasts but, in particular, emphasises the impact that something small may make. The mustard seed is described as the smallest of all the seeds on earth. Yet it produces a large shrub. In many ways the mustard seed is typical of what happens in the garden, rather than being exceptional. I am frequently amazed at how quickly my weeds can grow – but the same often applies to the plants that I want to see.

The growth of plants is quite amazing, even phenomenal. But how much more can we say that about God’s Kingdom. This parable and its predecessor are, as Eduard Schweizer (The Good News according to Mark) puts it – “expressions of the kind of confidence which catches sight of God’s ultimate fulfilment even in a very unpromising beginning.”

The mustard seed was seen, in Jesus’ day, as symbolic of great growth. It was, and is, quite incredible that this tiny seed that you can hold in the palm of your hand has the potential to become a large shrub, or tree, where birds can build nests. However, the main point is that we can say exactly the same about God’s Kingdom. As Schweizer has it – “the astonishment at the miracle of the mighty plant which grew from a tiny seed is predominant in the parable.”

Both miracles, and God’s Kingdom, are equally everyday occurrences and spectacular events. What we need to do is to look. If we were to note down a list of ‘miracles’ that we have seen over the past week, I wonder what would be on that list; and I further wonder whether it would alter the list if we took a slightly different approach and listed the hints of God’s Kingdom that we have seen over the same period. Such things may be large or small, but I wonder how many might be comparable to the mustard seed. As Schweizer points out – “we are asked by the text if we are willing to understand our time as a time upon which, ever since Jesus sowed the seed, the light of the coming Kingdom has been shining.”

Reflecting on Mark's Gospel - Mark 4:26-29

We now have a second parable about sowing seed or, at least, what happens to sown scene. We might describe this as the parable of the growing seed. In a sense, the suggestion is that the Kingdom just happens. It is like seed that is sown. It will grow, even if we do nothing. Verse 28 – the earth produces of itself, first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. The earth will produce some kind of harvest from the seed. As Kim Huat Tan (Mark) says – “This parable is about the germinating seed, growing without any human input. What is emphasised is the inscrutability of the growth of the kingdom, but the results are assured and will be clear to all.”

As is normal for parable, the idea is not developed and there are all sorts of things we can consider if we use our imaginations. Of course, there are things that the farmer can contribute to enhance the chance of a good harvest. The ground can be prepared. The seed can be cared for, for example by watering and weeding. The optimum moment can be selected to gather the harvest. Other things, especially weather conditions, can be controlled. So, we might say, though it is not specified, it is with the Kingdom. As God’s people, we can contribute to what should be, with acts of justice and peace and kindness. However, there is much that beyond us, and thank God for what God does. After all, in the end it is God’s Kingdom, and not dependent on us, though we are called to live in Kingdom ways.

I wonder how much we do fits in with the ethos of God’s Kingdom. I wonder what acts of justice and peace and kindness, and indeed representing all the other fruits of the Spirit, we are not doing that we should.

Reflecting on Mark's Gospel - Mark 4:21-25

This first of a series of three parables simply makes the point that there is no point in producing a light if you are going to hide it. This is obvious, but sometimes the obvious needs to be stated. The image of light is a powerful one, and frequently used in the Bible. Indeed, Jesus identifies himself as the light of the world (John 8:12). Here it is simply stated that nobody brings a light in order to hide it or to cover it up. As Brendan Byrne (A Costly Freedom) states, this is an “appeal to commonsense practice in everyday Palestinian village life.”

The light needs to be seen. So, by implication, does the work of God; and so does the Kingdom, even if we all get to see are glimpses. Jesus makes that point here by repeating the statement recorded at the end of the parable of the sower about the vitality of listening. Let anyone with ears to hear listen! To that we might add: let anyone with eyes to see look!

This is followed by a couple of statements which reflect on what the Kingdom, the crucial thing that Jesus came to proclaim, is like. The first of these comes from the marketplace and talks about measures, The second statement builds on this, but presses the image further as it talks about more being given to those who have although then, perhaps surprisingly, about those who have nothing losing even the little they have. The main point concerns God’s generosity. As Byrne puts it – “where God’s gift of the Kingdom finds true receptivity (repentance and faith) on the human side, not only is that capacity filled, but more and more will be added as the journey of faith continues.”

The main point of these discussions and illustrations is to reassure the disciples about what God offers them, but the warning note is an important inclusion, a reminder of the need to look for what God is doing. I wonder what we have seen God doing in recent days. I wonder if there were things we missed because we failed to look with sufficient care or to listen with enough focus.

Reflecting on Mark's Gospel - Mark 4:13-20

Parables are not normally explained. They stand on their own, making interesting, challenging and powerful points. However, the parable of the sower is an exception, and Mark reports how Jesus offers an explanation.

It is all about understanding and reacting to the word that has been proclaimed. Jesus is now away from the crowds and with the immediate disciple group, though a group that is identified as being larger than the core twelve. Verse 10 has referred to those who were with him along with the twelve. He has been discussing the purpose of the parables, and now asks them if they understand. There is then a very explicit explanation.

The seed is the word. Some receive it, but it has no effect. That is like the seed that lands on the path. Satan is blamed for this lack of response. Others receive it with great joy, but their enthusiasm quickly disappears and they forget what they have heard. That is like the seed that lands on rocky ground, and is unable to take root. Others do not really respond because they are so caught up with other things. That is like the seed that falls among weeds, and is choked by them. Then, other seed lands on good ground. That seed is fruitful, though the yield varies significantly.

The first three types of ground that are named indicate that, as Megan McKenna (On Your Mark: Reading Mark in the Shadow of the Cross) puts it – “although the prophets, especially Isaiah and John the Baptist, had gone before the Word to prepare the way, calling to repentance and conversion that would lead to forgiveness of sin, many did not repent or convert their ways and so could not absorb Jesus’ teaching.”

However, this account of failed farming is only part of the story and, presumably, a minority part. Only a very careless farmer will sow an equal amount of seed on good and bad ground. Some seed will land in the wrong place, but surely the majority will land on good ground and grow. After the growth, as McKenna states – “then the harvest will begin. It will be enormous, wildly impossible, starting at thirtyfold and growing in some places with a harvest of a hundredfold!”

I wonder what fruit we are bearing. I also wonder if it is worth contextualising that thought with a mention of the fruits of the Spirit, as listed to the Galatian Christians – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22/23) – though that is that just one possible approach to that question.