Jesus Christ, The Son of God
by St. Mark
·
Go through the whole world and
preach the gospel to all people. Whoever believes and is baptized will be
saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. Believers will be given the
power to perform miracles; they will drive out demons in my name; they will
speak in strange tongues; if they pick up snakes or drink any poison, they will
not be harmed; they will place their hands on sick people and these will get
well.
·
My God, my God, why did you
abandon me?
·
This is the Good News about Jesus
Christ, the Son of God. It began as the prophet Isaiah had written: “God said,
‘I will send my messenger ahead of you to open the way for you.’ Someone is
shouting in the desert, ‘Get the road ready for the Lord; make a straight path
for him to travel!”
·
So John appeared in the desert,
baptizing and preaching. “Turn away from your sins and be baptized,” he told
the people, “and God will forgive your sins.”
·
“The man who will come after me is
much greater than I am. I am not good enough even to bend down and untie his
sandals. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy
Spirit.”
·
Jesus came from Nazareth in the
province of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. As soon as Jesus
came up out of the water, he saw heaven opening and the Spirit coming down on
him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my own dear Son. I am
pleased with you.” At once the Spirit made him go into the dessert, where he
stayed forty days, being tempted by Satan. Wild animals were there also, but
angels came and helped him.
·
After John had been put to prison,
Jesus went to Galilee and preached the Good News from God. “The right time has
come, “he said, “and the Kingdom of God is near! Turn away from your sins and
believe the Good News!”
·
“Come with me and I will teacher you to catch
people.” (Simon and Andrew the fishermen)
·
Jesus and his disciples came to
the town of Capernaum, and on the next Sabbath Jesus went to the synagogue and
began to teach. The people who heard him were amazed at the way he taught, for
he wasn’t like the teachers of the Law; instead, he taught with authority. Just
then a man with an evil spirit came into the synagogue and screamed, “What do
you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Are you here to destroy us? I know who you
are—you are God’s holy messenger!” Jesus ordered the spirit, “Be quiet, and
come out of the man!” The evil spirit shook the man hard, gave a loud scream,
and came out of him.
·
The people were all amazed that
they started saying to one another, “What is this? Is it some kind of new
teaching? This man has authority to give orders to the evil spirits, and they
obey him!”
·
Jesus healed many who were sick
with all kinds of diseases and drove out many demons. He would not let the
demons say anything, because they knew who he was.
·
Very early in the morning, long
before daylight, Jesus got up and left the house. He went out of town to a
lonely place, where he prayed.
·
Jesus travelled all over Galilee,
preaching in the synagogues and driving out demons.
·
“We must go on to the other
villages around here. I have to preach in them also, because that is why I
came.”
·
A man suffering from a dreaded
skin disease came to Jesus, knelt down, and begged him for help. “If you want
to, he said, “you can make me clean.” Jesus was filled with pity, and reached
out and touched him. “I do want to,” he answered. “Be clean!” At once the
disease left the man, and he was clean. Then Jesus spoke sternly to him and
sent him away at once, after saying to him, “Listen, don’t tell anyone about
this. But go straight to the priest and let him examine you; then in order to
prove to everyone that you are cured, offer the sacrifice that Moses ordered.
·
“My son, your sins are
forgiven.” Some teachers of the Law who
were sitting there thought to themselves. “How does he dare talk like this?”
This is blasphemy! God is the only one who can forgive sins!” at once Jesus
knew what they were thinking, so he said to them, “Why do you think such
things? Is it easier to say to this paralyzed man,’ Your sins are forgiven,’ or
to say, ‘Get up, pick your mat, and walk?’ I will prove to you, then that the
Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed
man, “I tell you, get up, pick your mat, and go home!” While they all watched,
the man got up, picked up his mat, and hurried away. They were all completely
amazed and praised God, “saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”
·
People who are well do not need a
doctor, but only those who are sick. I have not come to call respectable
people, but outcasts.
·
Nor does anyone pour new wine into
used wineskins, because the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the
skins will be ruined. Instead, new wine must be poured into fresh wineskins.”
·
So they watched him closely to see
whether he would cure the man on the Sabbath. Jesus said to man, “Come up here
to the front. Then he asked the people, “What does our Law allow us to do on
the Sabbath? To help or to harm? To save someone’s life or to destroy it?” But
they did not say a thing.
·
Then Jesus went up a hill and
called to himself the men he wanted. They came to him, and he chose twelve,
whom he named apostles. “I have chosen you to be with me, “he told them. “I
will also send you to preach, and you will have authority to drive out demons.”
·
Some teachers of the Law who had
come from Jerusalem were saying, “He has Beezebul in him! It is the chief of
the demons who gives him the power to drive them out.”
·
How can Satan drive out Satan? So
if Satan’s kingdom divides into groups, it cannot last, but will fall apart and
come to an end.
·
‘I assure you that people can be
forgiven all their sins and all the evil things they may say. But whoever says
evil things against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, because he has
committed an eternal sin.
·
Whoever does God wants are my
brother, sister, and my mother.
·
Listen! Once there was a man who
went out to sow grains. As he scattered the seeds in the field, some of it fell
along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some of it fell on rocky
ground, where there was little soil. The seeds soon sprouted, because the soil
wasn’t deep. Then, when the son came up, it burned the young plants; and
because the roots had not grown deep enough, the plants soon dried up. Some of
the seeds fell among the bushes, which grew up and choked the plants, and they
didn’t bear grain. But some seeds fell in good soil, and the plant sprouted,
grew, and bore grain: some had thirty grains, others sixty, and other one
hundred. And Jesus concluded, “Listen, then, if you have ears!”
·
Jesus explains the parable: The
sower sows God’s message. Some people are like the seeds that fall along the
path; as soon as they hear the message, Satan comes and takes it away. Other
people are like the seeds that fall on rocky ground. As soon as they hear the
message, they received it gladly. But it does not sink deep into them, and they
don’t last long. So when trouble or persecution comes because of the message,
they give up at once. Other people are like the seeds sown among the thorn
bushes. These are the ones who hear the message, but the worries about the love
for riches, and all other kinds of desires crowd in and choke the message, and
they don’t bear fruit. But other people are like seeds sown in good soil. They
hear the message, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirty, some sixty and some
one hundred.
·
Does anyone ever bring in a lamp
and put it under a bowl or under the bed? Isn’t it put on the stand?
·
Whatever is hidden away will be
brought out into the open, and whatever is covered up will be uncovered.
·
The same rules you use to judge
others will be used by God to judge you—but with even greater severity.
·
Those who have something will be
given more, and those who have nothing will be taken away from them even the
little they have.
·
Jesus preached his massage to the
people, using many other parables like these; he told them as much as they
could understand. He would not speak to them without using parables, but when
he was alone with his disciples; he would explain everything to them.
·
Why are you frightened? Do you
still have no faith? But they were terribly afraid and began to say one
another, “Who is this man? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
·
Jesus, Son of the Highest God!
What do you want with me? I beg you, don’t punish me! So Jesus asked him, “What
is your name!” The man answered, “My name is ‘Mob’—there are so many of us!
·
“If I just touch his clothes, I
will get well.”
·
My daughter, your faith has made
you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your trouble.
·
Little girl, I tell you to get up!
“Give her something to eat.”
·
“Where did he get all this?” they
asked. “What wisdom is this that has been given him? How does he perform
miracles? Isn’t he the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James,
Joseph, Judas, and Simon? Aren’t his sisters living here? And so they rejected
him.
·
Jesus said to them, “Prophets are
respected everywhere except in their own hometown and by their relatives and
their family.”
·
Then Jesus went to the villages
around there, teaching the people. He called the twelve disciples together and
sent them out two by two. He gave them authority over the evil spirits and
ordered them, “Don’t take anything with you on the trip except a walking
stick—no bread, no beggar’s bag, no money in your pockets. Wear sandals, but
don’t carry an extra shirt.” “Wherever you are welcomed, stay in the same house
until you leave that place. If you come to a town where people do not welcome
you or will not listen to you, leave it and shake the dust off your feet. That
will be a warning for them!”
·
Jesus performed miracles when he
fed five thousands with five loaves and two fish, and his disciples collected
the left by twelve baskets and the fish. He also walked on the water to see his
disciples when they were on the boat between three and six o’clock in the
morning.
·
And everywhere Jesus went, to
villages, towns, or farms, people would take their sick to the market-places and
beg him to let the sick at least touch the edge of his cloak. And all who
touched it were made well.
·
“Tell me, who do people say I am?”
“Some say that you are John the Baptist,” they answered; others say that you
are Elijah, while others say that you are one of the prophets.” “What about you
he asked them.(disciples) “Who do you say I am?’ Peter answered, “You are the
Messiah.”
·
“The Son of Man must suffer much
and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law.
He will be put to death, but three day later he will rise to life.”
·
“If any of you want to come with
me,” he told them, “you must forget yourself, carry your cross, and follow me.
For if you want to save your own life, you will lose it; but if you lose your
life for me and for the gospel, you will save it. Do you gain anything if you
win the whole world but lose your life? Of course not! There is nothing you can
give to regain your life. If you are ashamed of me and of my teaching in this
godless and wicked day, then the Son of
Man will be ashamed of you when he comes in the glory of his Father with
the holy angels.
·
“How right Isaiah was when he
prophesied about you! (Pharisees) You are hypocrites, just as he wrote: “These
people, say God, honor me with their words, but their hearts are really far
away from me. It is no use for them to worship me, because they teach human
rules as though they were my laws!” “You put aside God’s command and obey human
teachings.” (You have a clever way of rejecting God’s laws in order to uphold
your own teaching.)
·
“Listen to me, all of you, and
understand. There is nothing that goes into you from the outside which can make
you ritually unclean. Rather it is what comes out of you that make you
unclean.”( all foods are fit to be eaten; the evil ideas from your heart which
lead you to immoral things; to rob, kill, commit adultery, be greedy, and do
all sorts of evil things; deceit, indecency, jealousy, slander, pride, and
folly)
·
(a gentile woman and Jesus) “Let’s
feed the children. It isn’t right to take the children’s food and throw it to
the dogs” “Sir,” she answered, ‘even the dogs under the table eat the
children’s leftovers!”
·
(Pharisees want to trap Jesus)
“Why do people of this day ask for a miracle?
No, I tell you! No such proof will be given to these people.
·
If you are ashamed of me and of my teaching in
this godless and wicked day, then the Son of Man will be ashamed of you when he
comes in the glory of his Father with the angels. And he went on to say, “I
tell you, there are some here who will not die until they have seen the Kingdom
of God come with power.
·
Six days later Jesus took with him
Peter, James, and John, and led them up a mountain, where they were alone. As
they looked on, a change came over Jesus, and his clothes became shining
white—whiter than anyone in the world could wash them. Then the three disciples
saw Elijah and Moses talking with Jesus.
·
Then a cloud appeared and covered them (Peter,
James and John) with its shadow, and a voice came from the cloud, “This is my
own dear Son—listen to him!”
·
A man in the crowd answered,
“Teacher, I brought my son to you, because he has an even spirit in him and
cannot talk. Whenever the spirit attacks him, it throws him to the ground, and
he foams at the mouth, grits his teeth, and becomes stiff all over. I asked
your disciples to drive the spirit out, but they could not.”
·
Everything is possible for the person who has
faith.
·
Only prayer can drive this kind (deaf and dump
spirit) out, nothing else can, answered Jesus.
·
Whoever wants to be first must place himself
last of all and be the servant of all.
·
Whoever welcomes me, welcomes not only me but
also the one who sent me.
·
John said to Jesus, “Teacher, we
saw a man who was driving out demons in your name, and we told him to stop,
because he doesn’t belong to our group.”
·
Do not try to stop him, “Jesus
told them, because no one who performs a miracle in my name will be able soon
afterward to say evil things about me. For whoever is not against us is for us.
·
I assure you that anyone who gives you a drink
of water because you belong to me will certainly receive a reward.
·
(hell, the fire that never goes out, the worms
never die)
·
“Everyone will be purified by fire
as a sacrifice is purified by salt. Salt is good; but if it loses its
saltiness, how can you make it salty again?
·
Have the salt of friendship among yourselves,
and live in peace with one another.
·
No human being must separate what God has
joined together.
·
“Let the children come to me, and do not stop
them, because the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I assure you that
whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.
·
A man ran up, knelt before Jesus, and asked
him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to receive eternal life?” “Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked him.
“No one is good except God alone.
·
Do not commit murder; do not commit adultery;
do not steal; do not accuse anyone falsely; do not cheat; respect your father
and your mother. (The commandments)
·
How hard it will be for rich people to enter
the kingdom of God!
·
How hard it is to enter the Kingdom of God! It
is much harder for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God than for a camel
to go through the eye of a needle.
·
Those who leave home or brothers or sisters or
mother or father or children or fields for me and for the gospel will receive
much more in this present age.
·
“We are going up to Jerusalem where the Son of
Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the teachers of the Law. They
will condemn him to death and then hand him over to the Gentiles, who will make
fun of him, spit on him, whip him, and kill him; but three days later he will
rise to life.”
·
But I do not have the right to choose who will
sit at my right and my left. It is God who will give these places to those for
whom he has prepared them.”
·
For even the Son of Man did not
come to be served; he came to serve and to give his life to redeem many people.
·
“What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus
asked the blind man. “Teacher,” he answered, “I want to see again.” “Go,” Jesus
told him, “your faith has made you well.”
·
When they arrived in Jerusalem,
Jesus went to the Temple and began to drive out all those who were buying and
selling. He overturned the tables of the moneychangers and the stools of those
who sold pigeons, and he would not let anyone carry anything through the Temple
courtyards. He then taught the people: “It is written in the scriptures that
God said, ‘My Temple will be called a house of prayer for the people of all
nations.’ But you have turned it into a hideout for thieves!”
·
When you say and ask for something, believe
that you have received it, and you will be given whatever you ask for.
·
Pay to the Emperor what belongs to the
Emperor, and pay to God what belongs to God.
·
The Lord our God is the only Lord. Love the
Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with your entire mind,
and with all your strength. (The most important commandment). The second
commandment is this: ‘Love your neighbor as you love yourself.’
·
“Watch out for the teachers of the Law, who
like to walk around in their long robes and be greeted with respect in the
marketplace, who choose the reserved seats in the synagogues and the best
places in feasts. They take advantage of widows and rob them of their homes,
and then make a show of saying long prayers. Their punishment will be all the
worse.”
·
“Have faith in God. I assure you
that whoever tells this hill to get up and throw itself in the sea and does not
doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done
for him. For this reason I tell you: When you pray and ask for something,
believe that you have received it, and you will be given whatever you ask for.
And when you stand and pray, forgive anything you may have against anyone, so
that your Father in heaven will forgive the wrongs you have done.”
·
“I tell you that this poor widow put more in
the offering box than all the others. For the others put in what they had to
spare of their riches; but she, poor as she is, put in all she had—she gave all
she had to live on,”
·
“Watch out, and don’t let anyone fool you.
Many men, claiming to speak for me, will come and say, ‘I am he!’ and they will
fool many people. And don’t be troubled when you hear the noise of battles
close by and news of battles far away. Such thing must happen, but they do not
mean that the end has come. Countries will fight each other; kingdoms will
attack one another. There will be earthquakes everywhere, and there will be
famines. These things are like the first pain of childbirth.
·
But before the end comes, the gospel must be
preached to all people. Everyone will hate you because of me. But whoever holds
out to the end will be saved.
·
You will see, “The awful horror standing in
the place where he should not be.” Pray
to God that these things will not happen in the winter! For the trouble of
those day will be far worse than any the world has ever known from the very
beginning when God created the world until the present time. Nor will there
ever be anything like it again. But the Lord has reduced the number of those
days; if he had not, nobody would survive. For the sake of his chosen people,
however, he has reduced those days.
·
“Then, if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is
the Messiah! or, ‘Look, there he is!’—do not believe it. For false Messiahs and
false prophets will appear. They will perform miracles and wonders in order to
deceive even God’s chosen people, if possible. Be on your guard! I have told
you everything ahead of time.
·
“In the day after that time of trouble the sun
will grow dark, the moon will no longer shine, the stars will fall from heaven,
and the powers in space will be driven from their courses. Then the Son of Man
will appear, coming in the clouds with great power and glory. He will send the
angels out to the four corners of the earth to gather chosen people from one
end of the world to the other.
·
No one knows, however, when that day or hour
will come—neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son; only the Father knows.
·
‘She poured perfume on my body to prepare it
ahead of time for burial. Now, I assure you that wherever the gospel is
preached all over the world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.’
·
“This is my blood which is poured out for
many; my blood which seals God’s covenant.”
·
Jesus said to them (disciples),
“All of you will run away and leave me, for the scripture says, ‘God will kill
the shepherd, and the sheep will all be scattered.’ But after I am raised to
life, I will go to Galilee ahead of you.”
·
Peter answered, “I will never leave you, even
though all the rest do!” Jesus said to Peter, “I tell you that before the
rooster crows two times to night, you will say three times that you do not know
me.” Peter answered even more strongly, “I will never say that, even if I have
to die with you!” And all the other disciples said the same thing.
·
“The sorrow in my heart is so great that it is
almost crushes me. Stay and keep watch.” (Jesus said to Peter, James and John)
·
“Father,” he prayed, “my Father! All things
are possible for you. Take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet not what I
want, but what you want.”
·
“Keep watch, and pray that you will not fall
into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
·
Peter was still down in the court
yard when one of the High Priest’s servant women came by. When she saw Peter
warming himself, she looked straight at him and said, “You, too, were with
Jesus of Nazareth.” But he denied it. “I don’t know…I don’t understand what you
are talking about,” he answered, and went out into the passageway. Just then a
rooter crowed. The servant woman saw him there and began to repeat to the
bystanders, “He is one of them!” But Peter denied it again. A little while
later the by standers accused Peter again, “You can’t deny that you are one of
them, because you, too, are from Galilee.” Then Peter said, “I swear that I am
telling the truth! May God punish me if I am not! I do not know the man you are
talking about!” Just then a rooster crowed a second time, and Peter remembered
how Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows two times, you will say
three times that you do not know me.” And he broke down and cried.
·
The chief priests were accusing
Jesus of many things, so Pilate questioned him again, “Aren’t you going to
answer? Listen to all their accusations!” Again Jesus refused to say a word,
and Pilate was amazed.
·
They took Jesus to a place called
Golgotha, which means “The place of the skull.” There they tried to give him
wine mixed with a drug called myrrh, but Jesus would not drink it. Then they
crucified him and divided his clothes among themselves, throwing dice to see
who would get which piece of clothing.
·
It was nine in the morning when they crucified
Jesus.
·
At noon the whole country was covered with
darkness, which lasted for three hours.
·
At three o’clock Jesus cried out with a loud
shout, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?’ which means, “My God, my God, why did
you abandon me?” With a loud cry Jesus
died.
·
The army officer who was standing there in
front of the cross saw how Jesus had died. “This man was really the Son of
God!” he said.
·
After Jesus rose from death on
Sunday, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had driven out seven
demons. She went and told his companions. They were mourning and crying; and
when they heard her say that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they
did not believe her.
·
After the Lord Jesus had talked
with them (disciples), he was taken up to heaven and sat at the right side of
God. The disciples went and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them
and proved that their preaching was true by the miracles that were performed.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………..
Shortened
by Mr. Chokchai Songsiengchai for easy meditations.
