Epaggelia

The Displeasure of the Disciples & The Lord’s Teaching: v41-45

There will be times when we are displeased with brothers in the church, even leaders. When this happens, we should remember that the Lord can teach us and wants us to learn from this displeasure. It is not a time to exercise judgment and/or protest, it’s a time to learn and treat displeasing brothers with God’s wisdom, service and love. In this case, the disciples must learn that the purpose of leadership is to serve, not subjugate or manipulate the people we rule, but to serve! This is the exact opposite of worldly leadership. Jesus took this type of leadership to the extreme, in that He served to the extent that he gave service that was sacrificial to the point of death. Why? Because only he could give divine purity in a sacrifice for our sins, Php. 2:5-8. We on the other hand, can serve to give gratitude, praise, wisdom & love. This took time for Jesus to learn and he mastered it, Read Hebrews 5:8, so can we!

The Son of David, powerfully merciful towards Blind Bartimaeus, v46-52

Mark records this miracle as done just before Jesus makes his triumphant entry into Jerusalem for the passion week. Why? Because this is the type of King Jesus is! Powerfully merciful in his rule over all voluntary subjects. When Jesus meets Bartimaeus, it is as he has called the calling, note: Bartimaeus was calling first, but was hindered, so Jesus called him. This is a serviceable Messiah. When Bartimaeus called, he used the term “Son of David” v47, see Isaiah 9:6-7, and knew what the correct meaning was, as his reply was using the title “Lord” in v51. A Messiah that was royal by divine appointment in Jehovah as God. Can you imagine Jesus of Nazareth accepting this kind of kingship? He wore a crown of thorns on a cross with this title, see John 19:19, and he exercised authority by changing the old into the new forever, Acts 6:14. That is the kind of powerful mercy that can cause the blind to see, physically, and most of all, for us, spiritual sight from the Light of the world. Even though Jesus told Bartimaeus that once healed, he could “Go his way”, Bartimaeus chose to follow “Jesus in The way”, a great lesson for us today, if you want to see Jesus as the King of kings and Lord of lords.

Christ Rides Triumphantly into Jerusalem; 11:1-11

The preparation for His sacrifice begins and ends near the “Mount of Olives”, it’s where he sends the disciples out to get the colt/donkey and it’s where he prays to commit himself as the sacrifice. The base of the Mt. Olives is where the garden of Gethsemane is, which means “oil press”. Appropriate for what Jesus was about to do, He would be put under the greatest pressure for the sake of our sin, and it would eventually kill him. Once the disciples obeyed the command to retrieve the new donkey, Jesus would exert another miracle over creation. No one can immediately ride an untrained donkey and have it perfectly obey his every motion. Jesus is exhibiting complete control over everything concerning his sacrifice, the preparation planning even the smallest of details, like the reaction of the public about a possible theft! When the public put down palm leaves/branches for Jesus to ride upon, they were expressing joy, it is reminiscent of the Feast of Tabernacles, a most joyous feast, Lev. 23:40 & Neh. 8:15 but in actual fact they were in Jerusalem for the Feast of unleavened bread and entry into the Passover, a most solemn feast, Lev. 23:4-7. This may explain why critics of Jesus tried to demand Jesus silence the public and calm the rejoicing down, but nothing could stop His control, see Luke 19:37-40.