Matthew 8:18-34 --- Mark 4:35-5:20 --- Luke 8:19-39 --- Luke 9:57-62

Matthew 8:18-34 --- Mark 4:35-5:20
Luke 8:19-39 --- Luke 9:57-62

Matthew 8:18-34

Would-Be Followers of Jesus (Lk 9.57—62)

Matthew 8:18 Now when Jesus saw great crowds around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. 19 A scribe then approached and said, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” 20 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” 21 Another of his disciples said to him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” 22 But Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

Jesus Stills the Storm (Mk 4.35—41; Lk 8.22—25)

23 And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. 24 A windstorm arose on the sea, so great that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. 25 And they went and woke him up, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” 26 And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a dead calm. 27 They were amazed, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him?”

Jesus Heals the Gadarene Demoniacs (Mk 5.1—20; Lk 8.26—39)

28 When he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demoniacs coming out of the tombs met him. They were so fierce that no one could pass that way. 29 Suddenly they shouted, “What have you to do with us, Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” 30 Now a large herd of swine was feeding at some distance from them. 31 The demons begged him, “If you cast us out, send us into the herd of swine.” 32 And he said to them, “Go!” So they came out and entered the swine; and suddenly, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and perished in the water. 33 The swineherds ran off, and on going into the town, they told the whole story about what had happened to the demoniacs. 34 Then the whole town came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their neighborhood.

Mark 4:35-5:20

Jesus Stills a Storm (Mt 8.23—27; Lk 8.22—25)

Mark 4:35 On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” 36 And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him. 37 A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. 38 But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” 39 He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm. ( We have a little plaque hanging in the restroom that we received as a gift many years ago. The name at the bottom says Audrey J. Brennan. The plaque says, “Sometimes the Lord calms the storm, sometimes He lets the storm rage … and calms His child.” ) 40 He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?” 41 And they were filled with great awe and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”

Jesus Heals the Gerasene Demoniac (Mt 8.28—9.1; Lk 8.26—39)

Mark 5:1 They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. 2 And when he had stepped out of the boat, immediately a man out of the tombs with an unclean spirit met him. 3 He lived among the tombs; and no one could restrain him any more, even with a chain; 4 for he had often been restrained with shackles and chains, but the chains he wrenched apart, and the shackles he broke in pieces; and no one had the strength to subdue him. 5 Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always howling and bruising himself with stones. 6 When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and bowed down before him; 7 and he shouted at the top of his voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me.” 8 For he had said to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!” 9 Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” He replied, “My name is Legion; for we are many.” 10 He begged him earnestly not to send them out of the country. 11 Now there on the hillside a great herd of swine was feeding; 12 and the unclean spirits begged him, “Send us into the swine; let us enter them.” 13 So he gave them permission. And the unclean spirits came out and entered the swine; and the herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea, and were drowned in the sea.

14 The swineherds ran off and told it in the city and in the country. Then people came to see what it was that had happened. 15 They came to Jesus and saw the demoniac sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the legion; and they were afraid. 16 Those who had seen what had happened to the demoniac and to the swine reported it. 17 Then they began to beg Jesus to leave their neighborhood. 18 As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed by demons begged him that he might be with him. 19 But Jesus refused, and said to him, “Go home to your friends, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and what mercy he has shown you.” 20 And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed.

Luke 8:19-39

The True Kindred of Jesus (Mt 12.46—50; Mk 3.31—35)

Luke 8:19 Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. 20 And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.” 21 But he said to them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.”

Jesus Calms a Storm (Mt 8.23—27; Mk 4.35—41)

22 One day he got into a boat with his disciples, and he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side of the lake.” So they put out, 23 and while they were sailing he fell asleep. A windstorm swept down on the lake, and the boat was filling with water, and they were in danger. 24 They went to him and woke him up, shouting, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And he woke up and rebuked the wind and the raging waves; they ceased, and there was a calm. 25 He said to them, “Where is your faith?” They were afraid and amazed, and said to one another, “Who then is this, that he commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him?”

Jesus Heals the Gerasene Demoniac (Mt 8.28—9.1; Mk 5.1—20)

     26 Then they arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. 27 As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs. 28 When he saw Jesus, he fell down before him and shouted at the top of his voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me”— 29 for Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many times it had seized him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilds.) 30 Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” He said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him. 31 They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss.

     32 Now there on the hillside a large herd of swine was feeding; and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter these. So he gave them permission. 33 Then the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

     34 When the swineherds saw what had happened, they ran off and told it in the city and in the country. 35 Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. 36 Those who had seen it told them how the one who had been possessed by demons had been healed. 37 Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. 38 The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, 39 “Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him.

Luke 9:57-62

Would-Be Followers of Jesus (Mt 8.18—22)

Luke 9:57 As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 58 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” 59 To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” 60 But Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” 61 Another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” 62 Jesus said to him, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

Devotionals, Videos and more ...

American Minute
by Bill Federer

George Washington was born this day, February 22, 1732. In his Inaugural Address, he said: “It would be peculiarly improper to omit, in this first official act, my fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who rules over the universe.” Washington continued: “ ‘No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the Invisible Hand which conducts the affairs of men more than the people of the United States. Every step by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of Providential agency.”

Federer, B. (2003). American minute. St. Louis, MO.: Amerisearch, Inc.

Proverbs
by D.H. Stern

Proverbs 19:5-7

A false witness will not go unpunished;
whoever breathes out lies will not escape.

Many ask favors of a generous person—
to a giver of gifts, everyone is a friend.

A poor man’s relatives all hate him;
even more his friends stay away from him.
He may pursue them with entreaties,
but they aren’t there to be found.

Stern, D. H. (1998). Complete Jewish Bible-OE
: An English version of the Tanakh (OT) and
B'rit Hadashah (NT) (1st ed.). Clarksville, Md.: Jewish
New Testament Publications.

My Utmost For The Highest
by Oswald Chambers

The discipline of spiritual tenacity

Be still, and know that I am God. --- Psalm 46:10..

     Tenacity is more than endurance, it is endurance combined with the absolute certainty that what we are looking for is going to transpire. Tenacity is more than hanging on, which may be but the weakness of being too afraid to fall off. Tenacity is the supreme effort of a man refusing to believe that his hero is going to be conquered. The greatest fear a disciple has is not that he will be damned, but that Jesus Christ will be worsted, that the things He stood for—love and justice and forgiveness and kindness among men—will not win out in the end; the things He stands for look like will-o’-the-wisps. Then comes the call to spiritual tenacity, not to hang on and do nothing, but to work deliberately on the certainty that God is not going to be worsted.

     If our hopes are being disappointed just now, it means that they are being purified. There is nothing noble the human mind has ever hoped for or dreamed of that will not be fulfilled. One of the greatest strains in life is the strain of waiting for God. “Because thou hast kept the word of My patience.”

     Remain spiritually tenacious.

Chambers, O. (1993). My Utmost for His Highest

Prayer
the Poetry of R.S. Thomas

Prayer

Baudelaire's grave
not too far
from the tree of science.
Mine, too,
since I sought and failed
to steal from it,
somewhere within sight
of the tree of poetry
that is eternity wearing
the green leaves of time.

Thomas, R. S. Selected poems, 1946-1968

Swimming in the sea of the Talmud:
Talmudic discorse and logic

     The Talmud was originally an “oral law:” it was for a long rime memorized and passed on, without being written down. This necessitated a terse, sparse style that could be committed to memory and easily recalled. Thus, more was left unsaid in a discussion than was actually expressed. The Rabbis who taught and transmitted these statements knew their own intent; they could elucidate their brief teachings with precise explanations and extensive commentaries. However, once the Oral Torah was written down and the original teachers passed from the scene, there could never be total certainty as to what the text actually meant. In some ways, studying Talmud is like playing a 2,000-year-old game of “Telephone,” where one person whispers a message to a second, who whispers it to a third: We try to make sense of a communication that sometimes seems incomprehensible.

     A common difficulty is found in an extended debate or conversation. Two Rabbis argue back and forth, sometimes in multiple exchanges. But instead of identifying the speaker at each stage, the Gemara simply notes “He said …” and “he said …”. It requires the concentration of a chess-master to follow each move, and to keep track of who is saying what.

     Western civilization is much beholden to Greek values, philosophy, and thought. The Greek approach to logic, exemplified by the “outline form”—is the one we have been inculcated with in all of our educational endeavors. We move from the general to the specific, from the simple to the complex, starting at the “beginning,” moving to the “middle,” and finishing up at the “end.” At any given point we know where we are, where we’ve been, and where we are headed.

     Rabbinic logic is of a totally different nature. It does not function on the same horizontal (beginning to end) or vertical (bottom to top) planes. A circle is a more appropriate model: Without beginning or end, going on eternally. (Consider the Jewish custom of finishing the yearly reading of the Torah and then immediately beginning the cycle all over again.) You can start learning Talmud with any text. You break into the circle at any point and then move on from there.

     While western logic assumes you know only what you have been taught previously, rabbinic logic works under the assumption that you are already familiar with everything the Rabbis are discussing. This requires the learner to stop frequently along the way, to pause, and “catch up” by looking up and learning another source or concept before being able to continue. In some sense, it is like learning to swim by being thrown into the deep end of the pool. At first it’s a struggle to even stay afloat. But after a while, you find yourself navigating quite freely and capably in even the most difficult conditions. This means, however, that you can’t go very quickly. The Talmud cannot be “read”; it is learned, slowly, methodically, and thoroughly, step by step.

     The Rabbis operated on the “logic of association.” One idea brings to mind a second, and that leads us to a third. For example, early in Masekhet Shabbat, there is a discussion about candle lighting at the onset of the Sabbath. That leads the Rabbis to consider candle lighting for the festival of Hanukkah. Once involved in the laws of lighting the candles, the Rabbis move on to discuss the origin and meaning of Hanukkah. When the topic of Hanukkah is completed, the Gemara returns to its original subject, Shabbat, as if saying, “Oh yes, where were we?” Going off on tangents is typical of the Talmud. We are thus taught: No topic is off-limits. Everything in the Talmud—and in life—is interrelated and interdependent. Every text is “relevant” and personal because any text can and does lead us into any and every subject.

Katz, M., & Schwartz, G. (1998). Swimming in the Sea of Talmud: Lessons for Everyday LIving . Philadelphia, PA: The Jewish Publication Society.

Take Heart
by Diana Wallis

“Woman,” he said, “why are you crying?” --- John 20:15

     Let us turn to the depth of Mary’s love. And how intensely she loved may be most surely gathered from her refusal to believe that he was lost. There was nothing more to be done; the grave was empty. Mary could not tear herself away but stood outside at the sepulcher weeping. There is a kind of love that faces facts, and it is a noble and courageous love. But there is an agony of love that hopes against hope and beats against all evidence. No one will ever doubt John’s love to Jesus. No one will ever doubt the love of Simon. But the fact remains that on that Easter morning Peter and John went to their homes again, and only a woman lingered by the grave. She must linger and watch in the teeth of all the facts. Measured by a test like that, there is not a disciple who can match the love of Mary.

     The unceasing wonder of it all is this, that to her first he should have showed himself, neither to John nor to Peter had there been a whisper—no moving of pierced feet across the garden—all that was kept for a woman who had been a sinner and out of whom there had been cast seven devils. It is very notable that the first word of Christ after he had risen from the dead was Woman. “Woman, why are you crying?”

     That he should pass by Pilate and the people and his mother and John and James and Simon Peter, that he should show himself first and foremost to a woman who had nothing to her credit but her love, I tell you that even the genius of a Shakespeare could never have conceived a scene like that.      --- George H. Morrison

Wallis, D. (2001). Take Heart: Daily Devotions with the Church's Great Preachers (27). Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications.

Teacher's Commentary by L.O. Richards
Commitment

     There was the eager disciple (v. 57) who volunteered to follow Jesus anywhere—till Jesus warned that discipleship might be uncomfortable. There was the reluctant disciple (v. 59) who, when commanded to follow, wanted to wait until his father had died and been buried! Jesus rejected the excuse. “Go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” There is no evidence that this reluctant disciple obeyed.

     There was also the someday disciple (v. 61), who wanted only a little time. Just to say good-bye to the home folks. Then, someday soon, he would follow. This too was unsatisfactory.

     You see, what Jesus seeks is the now disciple (v. 62). Jesus wants the person who will put his or her hand to the plow and, without looking back, move straight out to do God’s will.

     The figure of the plowman is succinct. As a teen, I plowed with an old one-horse hand plow, settling the reins around my shoulders, grasping the handles firmly, struggling to hold the blade level and steady, to make an even furrow. As the first furrow was cut into the virgin ground, I picked out a pair of marks at the far end of the field to line up carefully. If I looked back, the plow wandered, and the furrow snaked off across the field. Only by looking ahead, with eyes fixed on my guiding marks, could I do my job.

     This is what Jesus asks of us. To fix our eyes ahead, on Him, and not to look back. We are to take the plow, now, and commit ourselves to His task.

Richards, L., & Richards, L. O. (1987). The Teacher's Commentary (323). Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books.

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