MARK

Mark Chapter 14

• Mark 14:1 After two days was the feast of the Passover, and of unleavened bread: and the chief priests and the scribes sought how they might take him by craft, and put him to death.
• 2 But they said, Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar of the people.

The Lord had already angered the chief priests and scribes so that they planned to take Him to be put to death. Like the modern politicians though they feared the people. They put off their plans until after the feast day. Since many of the people liked Jesus, they had to find a way to discredit Jesus in the eyes of the people.

We have more running for elections today who spend more time destroying the reputation of their opponents than they do talking about the issues they stand for. I really dread election time.

It may be hard for those of us who live in free countries to understand how people could feel so strongly about what a person preaches or teaches. The fact that they would actually put someone to death if their ideas do not match the ideas of the established order of that time is mind boggling to me. There are countries today where one can lose their life for preaching a different religion than the native religion of that particular region but in free countries it is hard to fathom. If we live in a free country where we can speak without fear of death we should be very thankful.

Imagine in the United States we are allowed to get on the radio or TV and criticize our own president without any fear of being arrested much less put to death. We can start churches and preach anything we want and not be hurt. Where has that been allowed any other place on earth now or in the past?

Instead of being thankful for these freedoms many abuse it by not governing themselves and they use the freedom to pedal pornography, filth, vulgar movies and violent video games to destroy the minds of our children. If we abuse these freedoms; God may allow us to lose those freedoms.

Back to the subject at hand. All during these verses we must remember that Jesus came to this point willingly. They really could not touch Jesus until His ministry here was finished. Jesus would not die on that cross until the time God allowed it. The hand of God protected Jesus up until the time He planned for Jesus to die to save all those that would receive the plan of salvation God planned for us.

They made plans to destroy Jesus and turn the people against Jesus but it did not happen until God moved back His protective hand and allowed it to happen to fulfill His desire to save the lost.

• Mark 14:3 And being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard very precious; and she brake the box, and poured it on his head.
• 4 And there were some that had indignation within themselves, and said, Why was this waste of the ointment made?
• 5 For it might have been sold for more than three hundred pence, and have been given to the poor. And they murmured against her.
• 6 And Jesus said, Let her alone; why trouble ye her? she hath wrought a good work on me.
• 7 For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but me ye have not always.
• 8 She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint my body to the burying. 

You have heard the saying, "Judge not that ye be not judged," these passages here kind of bring out the true meaning of those words. Some use the "judge not" verses to get by with sin. "We are not suppose to judge," is their cry if we try to teach against sin. That verse does not mean that we can't preach against adultery, stealing, murder etc. If that was the case, we couldn't have any laws at all. Here is a good example about what judging means.

This woman in love and pure motives brought an expensive box of ointment foreseeing the coming burial of Jesus. She anointed Jesus with this ointment. She probably poured the whole bottle upon His head. This was a compassionate act. She understood what many others did not understand.

Those that witnessed this act, not seeing within the heart of this woman, judged by outward appearance only. Notice that they were in fact judging the thoughts of their own heart rather than seeing the motives of this woman.

They cried out against the waste of money. Why, because they desired to complain and find fault against the savior. Politicians today do the same thing to their opponents. This is true judging.

They were passing judgment unfairly upon the woman and misjudging the thoughts of her heart. She was showing compassion, faith in the words of Jesus and knowledge of the reason Jesus came. Her accusers were judging and being false accusers.

Jesus tells us to judge a righteous judgment. We still preach and teach what Jesus taught. The bible tells us to reprove, rebuke, correct and turn the sinner to the right way. That is not judging but is preaching the word and obeying the call of God. Judging is looking for faults, hoping to see the faults and trying to accuse people of things blindly without seeing the motive of their hearts or nit-picking and finding fault about things that are nonessential to the truth of God and his Word.

Jesus' answer was surprising to them. He said that she was doing this in preparation for the time He was to be put to death and buried. He added that the poor will always be here to do well to them but He will not always be here in person. He is reminding them that they can help the poor anytime. I believe that those that criticize a waste of money in this manner are the very ones that do not give to the poor when they get the opportunity.

I've heard people speak like this. I've heard comments like, why should we give to missionaries overseas when there is poor in our own cities?

The trouble with those statements is that I doubt whether people with that attitude toward giving actually give to the poor in their own cities. If one feels this way then give to the poor in their own cities and let those that want to give to the missions continue doing so. There are needs everywhere and enough places to give for all of us to contribute.

• Mark 14:9 Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her.

Jesus rewarded this particular lady with a memorial to her. She would be remembered for this act and preachers would preach this all over the world. This prediction is being fulfilled now. I am mentioning her, I have heard lots of preachers preach about this lady and I have heard my past Sunday school teachers teach this lesson many times.

• Mark 14:10 And Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went unto the chief priests, to betray him unto them.
• 11 And when they heard it, they were glad, and promised to give him money. And he sought how he might conveniently betray him.

It would appear that Judas was the main one of them that was being critical of the woman and perhaps the answer Jesus gave angered him enough that it opened the door to Satan entering his heart. This may have been the last straw of temptation he needed to betray Jesus Christ. Money seemed to be his weakness. In another place, it was said that Judas was the one who kept charge of the money. We see clearly that Satan used money to tempt Judas into betraying Christ. We need to watch the weak areas of our lives and guard against yielding to our natural human instincts in those areas.

• Mark 14:12 And the first day of unleavened bread, when they killed the passover, his disciples said unto him, Where wilt thou that we go and prepare that thou mayest eat the passover?
• 13 And he sendeth forth two of his disciples, and saith unto them, Go ye into the city, and there shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher of water: follow him.
• 14 And wheresoever he shall go in, say ye to the goodman of the house, The Master saith, Where is the guestchamber, where I shall eat the passover with my disciples?
• 15 And he will show you a large upper room furnished and prepared: there make ready for us.
• 16 And his disciples went forth, and came into the city, and found as he had said unto them: and they made ready the Passover.

Part of the Law of God that was given to Moses was the observing of the Passover feast of unleavened bread. Jesus came to fulfill the law and He kept the law from His youth up never faltering at any point. He kept this law on our behalf. He had to fulfill it and usher in a new way of salvation that changes the heart instead of outward observances.

In the days of Exodus when they had to leave Egypt quickly, they had no time to allow bread to rise. They had to eat unleavened bread and leave in a hurry. That was the reason it was against the Law of Moses to eat leavened bread during Passover. Some say that leaven represents evil. Jesus had to partake of the Passover to be obedient and fulfill the law. On the actual day of the Passover He would be sacrificing Himself to be the final permanent Passover lamb to bring the new covenant and the permanent way of salvation.

There is no need for animal sacrifices now. Jesus was the final sacrifice and all that is needed for our salvation. Until Jesus died and rose again from the grave the Law of Moses was still in effect and Jesus kept the law in order to fulfill it.

This was similar to the time when Jesus told the disciple to fetch a donkey for Him to ride into Jerusalem. God prepared the place for the Passover the same as that little donkey was waiting for the Lord to use it. It was customary for different families and homes in those days to have rooms prepared for out of town guests to celebrate the Passover.

• Mark 14:17 And in the evening he cometh with the twelve.
• 18 And as they sat and did eat, Jesus said, Verily I say unto you, One of you which eateth with me shall betray me.
• 19 And they began to be sorrowful, and to say unto him one by one, Is it I? and another said, Is it I?
• 20 And he answered and said unto them, It is one of the twelve, that dippeth with me in the dish.
• 21 The Son of man indeed goeth, as it is written of him: but woe to that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! good were it for that man if he had never been born.

Jesus knew who would betray Him and He was giving him a chance to back out. He gives a warning of woe to the man and even says that it would be better if he had not been born. The betrayal of Jesus was prophesied in the Old Testament. Jesus, knowing the heart of Judas, knew he would carry through with the betrayal, but in order for God to be a just and fair God, He sends warning and a way out. Judas did not have to carry through with his plans, he could have resisted the devil and decided to back out of his plan.

How do I know that? Because God created us with the power to choose and say yes or no. If Judas had no choice then why would Jesus bother to warn him? The teaching that there is nothing we can do to change our destiny is wrong. We can make wrong or right choices that change the events in our lives. All those who receive Christ are pre-destined to have eternal life, all those who reject Christ are pre-destined to suffer eternal hell, this is what I believe pre-destination means and not that we cannot have any choice or say so in the matter. If we had no choice and could not help our future in any way then why bother preaching the gospel at all? Yet time and time again the Lord says to us, "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel."

The gospel is the good news. The good news being Jesus came to save the lost. Jesus is the way of salvation. Jesus is the Passover lamb, the new and living deliverance from the curse of sin, the eternal salvation, and the only way to be saved from the wrath that is coming on those who do not obey God.

• Mark 14:22 And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this is my body.
• 23 And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it.
• 24 And he said unto them, This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many.
• 25 Verily I say unto you, I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the kingdom of God.

This is one observance that we need to keep on a regular basis. It is the remembrance of the time when Jesus offered His own body as our Passover sacrifice. When we eat the bread, it represents that body that was broken and killed for our sins. The cup containing the fruit of the vine represents the blood Jesus shed to wash away our sins.

The new covenant would now be in place as soon as Jesus died and shed that blood and the Old law would have then been fulfilled. That which is perfect has come to make the way of salvation. The Old is no longer in effect. Here is an agreement Jesus made with all of His believers. He said that He would not drink of the fruit of the vine until we who believe are with Him and we drink of the fruit of the vine together.

• Mark 14:26 And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.
• 27 And Jesus saith unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered.
• 28 But after that I am risen, I will go before you into Galilee.
• 29 But Peter said unto him, Although all shall be offended, yet will not I.
• 30 And Jesus saith unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this day, even in this night, before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice.
• 31 But he spake the more vehemently, If I should die with thee, I will not deny thee in any wise. Likewise also said they all.

Here Jesus in sorrow foretells of their fear and that they will be offended at Him and be scattered out of fear. Peter and the others immediately boast of their faithfulness until death. Jesus again warns Peter that he not only will be offended but also will actually deny knowing Him (Jesus). Our flesh is so weak, we should never boast in ourselves.

Notice the difference in Peter in the book of Acts than he was here. This was before the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Once Peter repented of his denial and was filled with the Holy Spirit he was stronger in the Lord. We need to see our own weakness in the flesh and recognize our dependency upon the Lord for strength and be filled with the Holy Spirit He has provided to give us that strength.

I will point out also that the disciples fleeing for their lives here is a fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies. Zechariah 13:7, I will smite the shepherd and the sheep shall be scattered.

• Mark 14:32 And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane: and he saith to his disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray.
• 33 And he taketh with him Peter and James and John, and began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy;
• 34 And saith unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch.
• 35 And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him.
• 36 And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.

These scriptures should break our hearts if we have any feeling at all. It should also convince us once and for all that Jesus truly is the only way of salvation. If there had been another way, I'm sure God would have chosen it. Look at the anguish Jesus is suffering here in the garden. Not only was the perfect, pure Son of almighty God going to suffer pain, torment and one of the worse deaths imaginable but He was getting ready to bear in His own body every foul, ugly, vulgar sin the human race ever committed. He was getting ready to pay the penalty for every filthy sin we ever committed even though He himself did none of those things. The just suffered in place of the unjust so that the unjust could be just. Just as if he or she never sinned.

Remember too, that Jesus could have backed out at any time and God would have sent the angels to rescue Him. He obeyed the will of the Father and endured until the work He came to do was finished.

• Mark 14:37 And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour?
• 38 Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.
• 39 And again he went away, and prayed, and spake the same words
• 40 And when he returned, he found them asleep again, (for their eyes were heavy,) neither wist they what to answer him.

Watch and pray. We cannot emphasize this enough. If Jesus needed to pray how much more do we need to pray in this day of the teaching of evolution, irreverence and lack of fear of God.

Many decades ago even drunks and harlots respected the name of the Lord. One didn't see the widespread disrespect toward God and His word that we see now. The bible was the final authority but now it is questioned and torn apart. Some have tried to change it to fit their agenda or lifestyle. The believer needs to watch and pray even more that they do not become swept away by such a tide of filth, unbelief and mockery of the things that are holy.

We should not be surprised however; Jesus said these things would happen. The bible warns of mockers and scoffers of the last days. It also warns that in the latter times people would prefer fables instead of truth. Just look at Christmas. Santa is preferred above the Bethlehem story.

Hollywood pipes out a large baptism of filth, violence and irreverence toward preachers of the gospel. If they have any preachers in their movies they are pictured as religious fanatics and lunatics. These are signs of the times and we need to stay prayed up as they used to say. Watching continually for not only the state of our own souls but our families, our neighbors, and whomever else God brings on our heart. Our eyes must be focused upon our Lord.

Remember the story of Peter when he walked upon the water. Just as soon as his eyes got off the Lord and onto the storm, he began to sink. The study of the word builds faith, prayer builds our relationship to God, watching keeps us mindful of the will of the Holy Spirit. These three things strengthen us in the time of temptation. The spirit is ready, Jesus said but the flesh is weak. We need to keep in mind that the flesh is weak and is always dependent upon our Lord. We need that one on one fellowship with the Lord at all times.

• Mark 14:41 And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.
• 42 Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand.
• 43 And immediately, while he yet spake, cometh Judas, one of the twelve, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders.

There seems to be a period of time between verse 41 and 42. Jesus allowed them to sleep and rest. Judas then brought a whole multitude of people with him to betray the Lord.

• Mark 14:44 And he that betrayed him had given them a token, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he; take him, and lead him away safely.
• 45 And as soon as he was come, he goeth straightway to him, and saith, Master, master; and kissed him.
• 46 And they laid their hands on him, and took him.
• 47 And one of them that stood by drew a sword, and smote a servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.
• 48 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Are ye come out, as against a thief, with swords and with staves to take me?
• 49 I was daily with you in the temple teaching, and ye took me not: but the scriptures must be fulfilled.
• 50 And they all forsook him, and fled.

At the beginning of the betrayal Judas seemed to have been very bold and full of zeal for what he was doing. He actually betrayed the Lord by a kiss.

One of the disciples, tradition says, Peter, drew a sword and cut off one of the men's ear. So at least one attempted to defend Jesus. Another gospel shows the Lord healing the ear that was cut off. The reason it is not mentioned in all the gospels is probably because all of the disciples may not have witnessed that healing. They may have been concerned about getting away themselves.

When they took Jesus another gospel states that a force of some kind made the men fall back. This showed clearly that they had no power to take Jesus unless Jesus himself allowed it. It also showed that Jesus was defending His disciples. They were saved to preach the gospel after He left. He did not allow them to be arrested at this time.

This is a very important part of the gospel story. Understanding this will enable us not to be angry at those who took Christ and put Him to death. Jesus came to do just that of His own free will. To hate the Jewish nation and the descendants of these Jews for killing Christ is so ridiculous. Vengeance was brought on that nation for rejecting God in 70 A.D. We are never to hate descendants of those that did evil. Every generation must be held accountable for what they do in their lifetime.

Refusing the gift that God sent will bring judgment but those who claim to be believers in the Lord Jesus Christ are to preach the gospel with the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God, they are not to "hate" or persecute those who reject their message. God alone is the one to bring judgment. Our message is to save the lost not to force the gospel on anyone. True conversion can never be forced.

Religion that uses force to convert followers are missing the whole point. God could have made us all robots to do His will but He allowed us to be able to choose. When we choose to love and serve Him, then it is precious in His sight because we are serving Him willingly.

Verse 50 says they forsook Jesus and fled out of fear for their lives when these men came to take Jesus. They lost that fear later. In the book of Acts when the apostles were baptized in the Holy Ghost, you see quite a difference in their lives. They had what is called, "Holy Boldness."

• Mark 14:51 And there followed him a certain young man, having a linen cloth cast about his naked body; and the young men laid hold on him:
• 52 And he left the linen cloth, and fled from them naked.
• 53 And they led Jesus away to the high priest: and with him were assembled all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes.
• 54 And Peter followed him afar off, even into the palace of the high priest: and he sat with the servants, and warmed himself at the fire.
• 55 And the chief priests and all the council sought for witness against Jesus to put him to death; and found none.
• 56 For many bare false witness against him, but their witness agreed not together.
• 57 And there arose certain, and bare false witness against him, saying,
• 58 We heard him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and within three days I will build another made without hands.
• 59 But neither so did their witness agree together.
• 60 And the high priest stood up in the midst, and asked Jesus, saying, Answerest thou nothing? what is it which these witness against thee?
• 61 But he held his peace, and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?
• 62 And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.
• 63 Then the high priest rent his clothes, and saith, What need we any further witnesses?
• 64 Ye have heard the blasphemy: what think ye? And they all condemned him to be guilty of death.
• 65 And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to buffet him, and to say unto him, Prophesy: and the servants did strike him with the palms of their hands.
• 66 And as Peter was beneath in the palace, there cometh one of the maids of the high priest:
• 67 And when she saw Peter warming himself, she looked upon him, and said, And thou also wast with Jesus of Nazareth.
• 68 But he denied, saying, I know not, neither understand I what thou sayest. And he went out into the porch; and the cock crew.
• 69 And a maid saw him again, and began to say to them that stood by, This is one of them.
• 70 And he denied it again. And a little after, they that stood by said again to Peter, Surely thou art one of them: for thou art a Galilaean, and thy speech agreeth thereto.
• 71 But he began to curse and to swear, saying, I know not this man of whom ye speak.
• 72 And the second time the cock crew. And Peter called to mind the word that Jesus said unto him, Before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice. And when he thought thereon, he wept.

Jesus now is facing a trial. Imagine the pure Son of God who did nothing but heal, love and tell of eternal life, is being put on trial. This is hard especially for those living in the United States to imagine. Someone in danger of losing their lives for something they preached is mind boggling to think about. Nevertheless we know that Jesus came to subject Himself to this to face these trials on our behalf.

Looks like Peter is trying his best not to forsake Jesus. Peter is criticized for denying Jesus but at least he didn't run away like the others. He tried to follow the Lord like he said he would but when he stood with the crowds surrounding Jesus, he was alone without anyone to support him. He was in fact unequally yoked with unbelievers. He ended up doing the very thing he vowed not to do;  deny the Lord.

This is why we are warned not to be unequally yoked with unbelievers. One pulls against the other. This is why witnessing is done by pairs when they go door to door. One is to be the silent prayer partner and the other do the talking. Also being filled with the Holy Spirit, watching and praying prepares one not to be unequally yoked.

The ones accusing Jesus had such a hard time finding anything against him that they had to bring in false witnesses who were paid to testify against Him. The things he was accused of seemed ridiculous to us but we must consider the time they lived in. They were under Roman rule and the kings had to answer to Rome for almost everything that happened. If one like Jesus was drawing followers, that gave his enemies reason to accuse him of rebellion against the authority of Rome.

He was falsely accused though. Jesus at His first coming was not a threat to the government of that day. In fact if He had come to overthrow the government and release the Jewish nation from Rome, he would have been more widely accepted because that is the kind of Messiah they were looking for. They were not looking for a Messiah that preached against sin, preached repentance from sin and preached about a life hereafter.

Another fact to consider is that the Jewish people were under the Law of Moses. The law given by Moses was from God and it was in effect.

Throughout the years the law was distorted in order to profit those who used the law for their own gain. They left off the observance of the love of God and mercy. They did not keep the law themselves but judged harshly those that broke their commandments of men. This also happened in the church in later years.

Throughout the Middle ages until the Protestant Reformation and even in some churches after that;  the church added doctrines and commandments of their own and completely replaced the meaning of the original scriptures. Oh my prayer daily is that I never add to or take away from the scriptures. My words are not the scripture just my own views on the scripture. I may be wrong at times and am just searching and developing a love for the scriptures. My words cannot and must not ever take the place of the Holy Scripture. I would be grieved if they were. DC