Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

I’m Jemima L Yeggs, a.k.a. Stinker.  Pink Lady Apple Yeggs, my landlady and my auntie, wants to read about how younger people, especially couples respond to what the Bible says.  And she wants to know how God is at work at Lily the Pink.

Mary, Arabella, and I were in our “green room.”

Stormie and Joan were already in the classroom playing with the other children.  I confirmed Easy was awake and watching them, but then again, Dr. Ellie and Dr. Ben should be watching Joan anyway.  Ethan was on the swooning couch and he was hungry today.

Arabella was fixing my hair, “Aunt Jemima, you have half the verses this week from both Mark and Luke.  Will we have anything left for next week?”

I replied, “Arabella, have you lost faith in me?”

B.B. snickered, “I thought we were to have faith in God.  People let you down.”

Arabella grumbled, “Yeah.  You are good, Aunt Jemima.  Maybe the best, but really?  You can mess up just like me and B.B.”

B.B. said, “Speak for yourself, Fireball.  I may have to switch sides just thinking of being the class clown like you are.”

Arabella huffed, “We both mess up, Aunt Mary.  We are not perfect.  You have your ways of messing up and I have mine.  I didn’t say we made the same mistakes.”

I sighed, “Before you two start a war, yes, I have thought this through.  This week exhausts Mark, but there is an equal number for next week that are Luke only verses that are quotes from the Old Testament, but a couple were also in Matthew.  It is not bad to do some repetition.”

Dr. Ellie burst into the room.  “B.B., thank you so much for setting up a camera in the play area.  Joan, Dinah, Ellie Kay, and Misty are playing with Stormie, and they are quite the team.  Stormie is the youngest in preschool.  She is ahead in verbal skills, but the others are catching up.  But I think Dinah will be bilingual, French and English pretty soon.  With the camera on them, we can see how they learn how to cooperate together.”

I sighed, “And when one cries, maybe we will know who threw the first punch.”

B.B. laughed, “I hope not in Sunday school.”

I shrugged, “Anything is possible.”

Arabella laughed, “Yeah, like when two of the mothers are in the restroom at the same time.”

I looked at my three friends.  “I’m ready for class.  Let’s go before we need a referee in the play area.”

Arabella, giggling, held the door and bowed.

Rev. Joseph led us in prayer.

Emmett and the choir sang There is Power in Jesus – The Book of Mark Worship Song.

I said, “Nice song, guys.  I didn’t know Carla had such pipes.  She and Menzie blended well.  But how much of the Book of Mark was that?”

Emmett bowed, “Aunt Jemima, the stories come from Mark 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, and 10.”

Samuel asked, “Where are we searching for Jesus today, Aunt Jemima?”

I smiled, “We are looking at the Gospel of Mark.  Arabella, do you need Mr. Dictionary?”

Arabella nodded, “Aunt Jemima, I think I just need the who, what, when stuff.”

Easy smiled, “No comedic interlude?”

Arabella replied, “Nope.“

I groaned, “Emmett, is your sister sick?”

Sarah’s tablet said, “Yes, but I doubt if it’s contagious.”

Easy said, “Okay, ‘When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying.’ (Acts 12:12).  So, Mary’ house was one of the places that the apostles gathered.  They think this might have been the upper room used for the Last Supper and maybe where they were when the Holy Spirit came upon the believers on Pentecost after Jesus had ascended.  And they think that John Mark was the young man who ran at the Garden of Gethsemane. The book of Mark is the only one that mentions that odd fact.  ‘A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, he fled naked, leaving his garment behind.’ (Mark 14:51-52).  If the Last Supper had been at Mary’s house in her upper room, it makes sense that the young man joined the disciples on the way to the Garden.  As for writing the Gospel of Mark, most scholars think that John Mark simply took dictation from Peter.  That seemed to be Mark’s calling.  Paul split up with Barnabas because Mark had left early in the first mission trip, but when Paul wrote to Timothy, ‘Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry.’ (2 Timothy 4:11).“

Arabella said, “Thank you, Mr. Dictionary.”

Todd (Mark 4:12) “so that, “‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’””

Todd said,”We have had this verse, or ones like it a lot lately.  Before I accepted Jesus, none of this stuff in the Bible made sense.  But Mark mentions it twice.  ‘Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear? And don’t you remember?’ (Mark 8:18).  And you included a verse from Luke.  ‘He said, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that, “‘though seeing, they may not see; though hearing, they may not understand.’’ (Luke 8:10).  They relate to verses in Isaiah 6, Jeremiah 5, and this one in Ezekiel.  ‘“Son of man, you are living among a rebellious people. They have eyes to see but do not see and ears to hear but do not hear, for they are a rebellious people.’ (Ezekiel 12:2).  It’s what everyone here has mentioned at one point or another.  The hardest road to travel is that eighteen inches between the head and the heart.  Unless you travel it, you will never understand.”

I said, “Excellent!”

Patty (Mark 9: 48) “where “‘the worms that eat them do not die, and the fire is not quenched.’

Patty said, “Jesus is quoting Isaiah.  ‘“And they will go out and look on the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; the worms that eat them will not die, the fire that burns them will not be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind.”’ (Isaiah 66:24).  But we read a few commentaries, and I don’t understand this one.”

I smiled, “That should be a lesson to all.  I know you are looking these things up in commentaries and study Bibles, but after reading it, when you don’t understand, it is okay to ask for more information.  With Jerusalem built on top of a mountain, there are valleys all around the city.  One of those valleys is the valley of Ben Hinnom.  ‘He desecrated Topheth, which was in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, so no one could use it to sacrifice their son or daughter in the fire to Molek.’  (2 Kings 23:10).  This is talking about Josiah who desecrated the altar used to slaughter children and then burn their bodies.  Josiah was the grandson of Manasseh.  Josiah was a good king destroying the places that were used for worship of false gods.  And this is what 2 Chronicles says about Manasseh.  ‘He sacrificed his children in the fire in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, practiced divination and witchcraft, sought omens, and consulted mediums and spiritists. He did much evil in the eyes of the Lord, arousing his anger.’  (2 Chronicles 33:6).  But everyone focused on Manasseh, but almost the same words are said about Ahaz, the grandfather of Manasseh in 2 Chronicles 28.  But then in Jeremiah…  ‘This is what the Lord says: “Go and buy a clay jar from a potter. Take along some of the elders of the people and of the priests and go out to the Valley of Ben Hinnom, near the entrance of the Potsherd Gate. There proclaim the words I tell you, and say, ‘Hear the word of the Lord, you kings of Judah and people of Jerusalem. This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Listen! I am going to bring a disaster on this place that will make the ears of everyone who hears of it tingle.’ (Jeremiah 19:1-3).  And a couple of verses later, ‘So beware, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when people will no longer call this place Topheth or the Valley of Ben Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter.’ (Jeremiah 19:6).  So, Patty, what is the context of what Jesus talked about?”

Patty looked shocked, “It was talking about leading a child down a wrong path.  If we did that, it would be better if a millstone were tied around our neck and we were thrown into the sea.  So, the worms that never die were eating the bodies of little children?  And what about the fires?”

I sighed, “As far as the worms are concerned, I think Jesus is talking about the people that do bad things to children, not the children themselves, since they were being cremated.  I have heard that it was said that the fires in the Valley of Ben Hinnom never went out.  They were cremating that many children.  And what does a fire that never goes out remind you of in the Bible?”

Patty, with tears in her eyes, “The Lake of Fire?  Hell?”

I frowned, “And leading a child to be bad instead of being good is one problem.  Slaughtering infants was part of worshipping Molek.  But today, over one million babies are still being aborted each year in the USA and the world total averages 73 million.  That would keep the fires in the Valley of Slaughter burning constantly.  On one hand, adoptions are expensive.  It might be less expensive if there were more children to choose.  But part of Sex Education in schools should be a focus on abstinence.  Please, even if you have protection, save that for marriage.  I was impulsive, but my man here was strong.  He kept me from making that mistake.  But I do not think abstinence is taught very much.  It might be mentioned and then they move on.”

Arabella said, “Looks like you’re making up for lost time.  You have Stormie and another bun in the oven.”

I groaned, “Thank you for announcing that, Fireball.  I have a long way to go.  I’m not even showing yet.”

Anna (Mark 10:4, Luther Bibel) “Sie sprachen; Mose hat zugelassen, einen Scheidebrief zu schreiben und sich zu scheiden.”

Anna smiled, “And now in English. ‘They said, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce and send her away.”’ (Mark 10:4).”

Anna said, “We had this last week or the week before. ‘If a man marries a woman who becomes displeasing to him because he finds something indecent about her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house,’ (Deuteronomy 24:1).  There were provisions made for divorce, but God meant marriage to be forever.  And I do not see myself with anyone other than Bubba.”

I smiled, “Thank you, Anna.  You haven’t set a date, have you?”

Bubba said, “I haven’t asked her yet.”

I sighed, “Anna, he said ‘yet.’  Hang onto that for now.”

Bubba (Mark 11:17) ‘And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’”’

Bubba smiled, “We’ve had this one too.  ‘“It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be a house of prayer’; but you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’” (Luke 19:46).  The part about being a house of prayer is a quote from Isaiah… ‘these I will bring to my holy mountain and give them joy in my house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.”’ (Isaiah 56:7).  And in Jeremiah, ‘Has this house, which bears my Name, become a den of robbers to you? But I have been watching! declares the Lord.’ (Jeremiah 7:11).  That’s where you get the den of robbers.  But I’ve been thinking.  The tax collectors collected the taxes for Rome, and the Romans expected the tax collectors to skim some off the top to cover their own expenses.  So, they were cheating their own people.  I’m thinking that one of the reasons that the religious leaders were plotting to kill Jesus was that they were getting rich off the sacrifices.  The money exchangers and sellers of animals for sacrifice took their cut, and the priests took their cut.  As I have heard, if there is something bad going on, follow the money.”

Sophia smiled, “In murder cases, money is one motive, sometimes people being killed over a few dollars.  Some of it is emotions, stemming from injury, unfaithfulness, revenge, and those kinds of triggers that cause the emotional response.  But then there are those people who are crazed with power and of course those that are crazed with psychological disorders.  But you are right, Bubba.  One thing that is always done is to follow the money.”

Marika (Mark 12:19) ‘“Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother.”

Marika said, “This is in Luke also. ‘“Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother.’ (Luke 20:28). This is about the inheritance of the land, the land that was given to that family when Joshua apportioned the land. Deuteronomy talks about this… ‘If brothers are living together and one of them dies without a son, his widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband’s brother shall take her and marry her and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to her.’ (Deuteronomy 25:5).”

Luke (Mark 12:26) “’Now about the dead rising—have you not read in the Book of Moses, in the account of the burning bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’?”

Luke said, “This is in Luke also. ‘“But in the account of the burning bush, even Moses showed that the dead rise, for he calls the Lord ‘the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ ’ (Luke 20:37).  Jesus is quoting Exodus. ‘Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.’ (Exodus 3:6).  Jesus uses this argument that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are alive and in Heaven.  So, there is life after death.  God is a God of the living.”

I will take the next one.  It’s so much of a spider web, that I would hesitate even giving it to Blaise (Mark 12:36) “David himself, speaking by the Holy Spirit, declared: “‘The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.”’”

I said, “This is in Luke also. ‘David himself declares in the Book of Psalms: “‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’’ (Luke 20:42-43). And again in Luke. ‘At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.’ (Luke 21:27). Jesus is talking about how David went before Him, and David spoke of Him, the Messiah.  Yet, the Messiah is the I AM, always existing.  For the Old Testament, we have.  “The Lord says to my lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’  (Psalm 110:1).  And then in Daniel, ‘“In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence.’ (Daniel 7:13).  Now we could look at Acts 2:34-35. 1 Corinthians 15:27; and Hebrews 1:13.  All of them speak of the world is the footstool of Jesus.  The thing here is that Jesus is at God’s right hand.  He intercedes for us and He will return.  Those are promises Jesus made, and God does not break His promises.  Now, we have a couple that are left.”

Susana (Mark 13:14, Reine-Valera 1995) ‘‘»Pero cuando veáis la abominación desoladora de que habló el profeta Daniel, puesta donde no debe estar (el que lee, entienda), entonces los que estén en Judea huyan a los montes.’

Susana smiled, “And now in English.”

Susana (Mark 13:14) ‘‘“When you see ‘the abomination that causes desolation’ standing where it does not belong—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.’

Susana smiled, “This is Jesus talking about the destruction of the temple.  Daniel says, ’ “His armed forces will rise up to desecrate the temple fortress and will abolish the daily sacrifice. Then they will set up the abomination that causes desolation.’ (Daniel 11:31).  And then in the next chapter, ‘“From the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination that causes desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days.’ (Daniel 12:11).  I do not know who this abomination is, but Jesus is stronger.  Evil will be destroyed and sent into the Lake of Fire.  They will forever taste their own desolation.”

I smiled, “I love the way you incorporated those two words, Susana.”

Trey (Mark 14:27) “““You will all fall away,” Jesus told them, “for it is written: “‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’”

Trey said, “I think Zuzka had this one last week. ‘“Awake, sword, against my shepherd, against the man who is close to me!” declares the Lord Almighty. “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered, and I will turn my hand against the little ones.’ (Zechariah 13:7).  And what Easy started off with is a great tie in.  He talked about how the scholars think the young man who ran home naked was John Mark.  While Peter followed at a distance, the others scattered and hid.  A moment of self-preservation saved their lives.  But then, other than John, they all died the death of a martyr.  But that is only after they had done what Jesus told them to do.  Go out and make disciples.”

Grannie Fannie (Galatians 1:3-5) “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.”

Lauren ran up to Grannie Fannie and hugged her.  “Are you ready to drive us?”

Brooke said, “Stormie, church time!”

Stormie laughed and said, “Aunt Brooke.  Church!  Yay!”

Joan said, “Me go too!”

Credits

When I am using quoted verses in the New Testament, I got those verses (different translations) from Seeing Jesus – Bible Encounter Study Guide by Marilyn Hickey.  The concept of doing this in a Sunday school setting is based on her book.  When the youngster gives the other verse, Aunt Jemima had sent the comparison verse from the Hickey book, but occasionally, a verse is added (easily found in the cross references).  The rest is from internet searches, a variety of commentaries and study Bibles, and personal knowledge.

Here is There is Power in Jesus – The Book of Mark Worship Song from Secret Place Worship.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.