Mark 7 DB w/ Lena's Journalin' Today

Scripture selections are taken from the Rock Church Daily Bread Reading schedule for each month. “Lena’s Journalin’” are Lena’s comments on the specific passages from her Daily Journal.

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Mark 7:1-37 -
Jesus Teaches about Inner Purity
1One day some Pharisees and teachers of religious law arrived from Jerusalem to confront Jesus. 2They noticed that some of Jesus' disciples failed to follow the usual Jewish ritual of hand washing before eating. 3(The Jews, especially the Pharisees, do not eat until they have poured water over their cupped hands, F26 as required by their ancient traditions. 4Similarly, they eat nothing bought from the market unless they have immersed their hands in water. This is but one of many traditions they have clung to—such as their ceremony of washing cups, pitchers, and kettles. F27 ) 5So the Pharisees and teachers of religious law asked him, "Why don't your disciples follow our age-old customs? For they eat without first performing the hand-washing ceremony."
6Jesus replied, "You hypocrites! Isaiah was prophesying about you when he said,
7 'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far away. Their worship is a farce, for they replace God's commands with their own man-made teachings.' F28
8For you ignore God's specific laws and substitute your own traditions."
9Then he said, "You reject God's laws in order to hold on to your own traditions. 10For instance, Moses gave you this law from God: 'Honor your father and mother,' and 'Anyone who speaks evil of father or mother must be put to death.' F29 11But you say it is all right for people to say to their parents, 'Sorry, I can't help you. For I have vowed to give to God what I could have given to you.' F30 12You let them disregard their needy parents. 13As such, you break the law of God in order to protect your own tradition. And this is only one example. There are many, many others."
14Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. "All of you listen," he said, "and try to understand. 15You are not defiled by what you eat; you are defiled by what you say and do! F31 "
17Then Jesus went into a house to get away from the crowds, and his disciples asked him what he meant by the statement he had made. 18"Don't you understand either?" he asked. "Can't you see that what you eat won't defile you? 19Food doesn't come in contact with your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then comes out again." (By saying this, he showed that every kind of food is acceptable.)
20And then he added, "It is the thought-life that defiles you. 21For from within, out of a person's heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, 22adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, eagerness for lustful pleasure, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. 23All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you and make you unacceptable to God."
The Faith of a Gentile Woman
24Then Jesus left Galilee and went north to the region of Tyre. F32 He tried to keep it secret that he was there, but he couldn't. As usual, the news of his arrival spread fast. 25Right away a woman came to him whose little girl was possessed by an evil spirit. She had heard about Jesus, and now she came and fell at his feet. 26She begged him to release her child from the demon's control. Since she was a Gentile, born in Syrian Phoenicia, 27Jesus told her, "First I should help my own family, the Jews. F33 It isn't right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs."
28She replied, "That's true, Lord, but even the dogs under the table are given some crumbs from the children's plates."
29"Good answer!" he said. "And because you have answered so well, I have healed your daughter." 30And when she arrived home, her little girl was lying quietly in bed, and the demon was gone.
Jesus Heals a Deaf and Mute Man
31Jesus left Tyre and went to Sidon, then back to the Sea of Galilee and the region of the Ten Towns. F34 32A deaf man with a speech impediment was brought to him, and the people begged Jesus to lay his hands on the man to heal him. 33Jesus led him to a private place away from the crowd. He put his fingers into the man's ears. Then, spitting onto his own fingers, he touched the man's tongue with the spittle. 34And looking up to heaven, he sighed and commanded, "Be opened!" F35 35Instantly the man could hear perfectly and speak plainly!
36Jesus told the crowd not to tell anyone, but the more he told them not to, the more they spread the news, 37for they were completely amazed. Again and again they said, "Everything he does is wonderful. He even heals those who are deaf and mute."
FOOTNOTES:F26: Greek washed with the fist. F27: Some Greek manuscripts add and dining couches. F28: Isa 29:13. F29: Exod 20:12; 21:17; Lev 20:9; Deut 5:16. F30: Greek `What I could have given to you is Corban' (that is, a gift). F31: Some manuscripts add verse 16, Anyone who is willing to hear should listen and understand. F32: Some Greek manuscripts add and Sidon. F33: Greek Let the children eat first. F34: Greek Decapolis. F35: Greek text uses Aramaic "Ephphatha" and then translates it as "Be opened."
Copyright Statement: Holy Bible, The New Living TranslationCopyright © 1996 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.
~ Lena’s Journalin’ ~
From yesterday’s Journalin’.
Another way to gage whether you or I am more like a Pharisee than like a disciple, is offense. Are we offended by the Bible or the people of God who preach it to us? If when we sit under the word of God, we pick apart the preacher with a fine toothed comb or pick out area’s that they are ungodly or constantly question a teacher’s words, we are dealing with that which opposes humility, which is pride.
Pride is like the #1 enemy of God. The Pharisees dealt with pride big time. Pride tries to tell us no one knows more than we do, and that we have some knowledge about everything, enough to judge most situations and rise above most knowledge with opinions. If one of our root issues is pride, we are ever looking for wrongs in others or the things they work with. “Your disciples don’t wash like we do, why? Notice the critical spirit trying to point out the sins of others? This is quite dangerous where close fellowship with the Holy Spirit is concerned. When one is always looking for something to point out somewhere that may be off or wrong they are dealing with pride and self exaltation. Self exaltation will purposely show the faults of others, to elevate self. Maybe not “intentionally”, but this is the way to expose this. If this is a symptom, there is that root problem and if one is willing God can help one uproot this trait and root on purpose.
Remember Lucifer? What was his declaration before God’s Throne? I will ascend above and be as the Most High? He was saying he didn’t agree with God that God was #1. He didn’t agree with God that there was only One like Him, nor did he agree enough to bow before Him any longer, bowing would show that he was believing there was one greater than himself.
So God set up a specific instruction to men, who are His created lovers. There shall be no other god’s before Me, not even the god of personal opinions.
Many times sin is hidden to the sinner, masked over as a family trait or whatever. This is the shadow that needs light shown on it. God’s word is a lamp unto our feet, a light unto our pathways. If one is walking out a spiritual journey, breaching in the gap between men and God, they will purposely walk in the light of truth. They will want shadows of death exposed to them that they may see clearly where they’ve been walking and where they are going.
So light says, ok that symptom is a symptom of self exaltation, having another god before God and of pride, all of which are God’s enemies. WOW, I now see that. Lord, please forgive me for participating in that. Since I’ve done these things as habits in life and even my dad and granddad were also exercised in this same trait, it may be hard for me to keep seeing it. Help my eyes to stay opened to truth, and help keep my heart after the desire for more truth, more truth than just this issue. Lord, I’ve got to depend on Your help to see this and not participate in it’s pull on my life anymore.
So I start to be critical, because I’ve been doing it for years, the Holy Spirit reminds me of the trait, I come against that by blessing with my mouth, out loud, in an area I would have criticized or added my own opinion to. I ask God for the right words of blessing. I read His word further to see more of this truth and encouragement to walk in its ways. I’m open to the scrutiny of His words to change me through revelation. I believe for His power to deliver me from evil. I pray about it in Jesus’ powerful name, expecting the Holy Spirit to keep showing me and leading me out of the bondages of this sin.
That is so opposite ignorance of God’s words and religious activity. I’ve entered into spiritual warfare, Divine combat. I’m overcoming my own and God’s enemies over my life, breaking down walls and removing ancient gods set up for me and my children.
Remember an attribute of a disciple is you come closer to the teacher and inquire of what he’d said that you did not “get”. What a contrast to criticizing what was said and never asking the teacher what they meant. A disciple is not asking in debate, he’s inquiring for more, to see what he’s not been able to see. He is humble enough to think in his own heart, hey that contradicts my initial response and opinion, maybe I need to open my heart, to a foreign-to-me idea and get closer to God’s heart so I can hear it beat.
The Pharisee was wanting everyone to believe he was right and there was no proving of wrong, it was all a contest of wills. The disciple receives what he may not yet have seen or known. One is open to God, the other ultimately is deceived into subconsciously think he is god.
If you knew, as you now do today, that a pharaseeitical spirit is against God, would you not be on watch to guard yourself of that spirit? Would you not set up a guard about your own spirit to disallow him into your thoughts and into your heart?
That is spiritual warfare, being on guard of self, and disallowing anything that rises against your God and his wonderous work of growth in you, to have any place in you. How would you know what to guard your person from? All of that is found inside of the word of God and inside of the fellowship of those who love Him and serve Him with all of their hearts. The key is to guard oneself first and govern ones self first, that others may be led into self government by your example and later on, also your teaching. We are all teaching by example. The Pharisees governed others, knowingly or unknowingly, intentionally or unintentionally rather than governing their selves first. They thought they were already governed and already perfected, not embracing the thought of continually humility and perfection as a process.
It is only by being found in another that we’re made perfect and through the One man Christ, we are made perfect, not on our own, but by His great grace and tremendous sacrifice of love for us.
Come in a bit closer, disciple of the Lord. Can you hear His heart beating for you?

Daily Repetitive Verses:

John 3:17
You know these things – now do them! That is the path of blessing.