Mark 4:35

Mark 4:35 says, And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side.  Jesus was still being followed by a multitude, and He told the disciples that it was time to go over to the other side of the sea.  Even if we have multitudes coming to us to hear about Jesus, we still need to be open to the possibility that He may lead us somewhere else.  Verse thirty-six adds, And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships.  The disciples sent the multitude away and took Jesus in a ship to cross over the sea.  They may not have known exactly where Jesus was taking them, but they were obedient to His leadership, and so must we be today as followers of Christ.  Verse thirty-seven continues, And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.  While Jesus was asleep, a strong storm arose, which was in danger of sinking the ship.  Even with Jesus close to them, the disciples were afraid because they focused on the storm.  Today, we may be in the middle of a great storm, but our focus should always be on Jesus and not the storm.  We know that even if we are focused on the storm that Jesus is not asleep.  Verse thirty-eight states, And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? We also know that the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, is with us at all times, so we should never have a need to worry, no matter what is going on in our life.  Verse thirty-nine adds, And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.  Jesus got up, and told the sea to be calm, and it was.  Verse forty continues, And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? After their reaction to the storm, Jesus then asked the disciples why they were afraid and if they had no faith.  If we are afraid when the storms come in life today as Christians, then we might need to ask ourselves where our faith is.  Verse forty-one adds, And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him? The disciples still did not fully understand Who Jesus was, so they questioned His ability to have the sea obey Him.  If you are in the middle of a great storm as a follower of Christ today, then it is time to focus once more on Jesus.  He is more powerful than any storm, so we need to simply keep our faith in Him. 

Mark 4:30

Mark 4:30 says, And he said, Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it?  Jesus asked what He could compare the kingdom of God to.  Verse thirty-one adds, It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: When we think of the kingdom of God, we may often attempt to describe its grandeur, but Jesus compared it to a mustard seed.  I believe our emphasis should not be on heaven and how great it will be, but on spreading the seed of the gospel.  Verse thirty-two continues, But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it. Jesus said the mustard seed was the smallest seed when planted, but that it grew into the largest of herbs. The gospel of Christ is a small, simple to understand truth, but when it is planted and accepted in the life of an individual, it should grow to be more important than anything else.  Verse thirty-three says, And with many such parables spake he the word unto them, as they were able to hear it.  We are told that Jesus spoke to people in parables as they were able to hear them.  I don't believe that Jesus was attempting to hide the truth, but that in order to understand His teachings people had to put their faith in Him and allow the truth to be revealed to them by God.  We will never understand God's word until we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord.  For too many people, the gospel and all of God's word will never be more than a story, no different than any other ancient story, but as Christians, the gospel has taken root and should grow daily as we study God's Word.  Verse thirty-five adds, But without a parable spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.  We are told that Jesus did not speak without speaking in parables, and that when He was alone with the disciples, He expounded His teachings to them.  We need to gather together in worshipping God, but we also need time alone with God so that as we study God's word, the Holy Spirit can expound it to us.

Mark 4:26

Mark 4:26 says, And he said, So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground.  Jesus compared the kingdom of God to something simple to understand again.  Like a man planting seed, we are to plant the seed of the Gospel.  Verse twenty-seven adds, And should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how.  After a man plants seed, he then goes about his everyday life.  He doesn't sit watching the seed to see what will happen.  Once we plant the seed of the gospel in a person's life, we should go on living our everyday life.  While the man who planted the seed was sleeping, the seed was bursting out in new life.  We cannot make the gospel bear fruit, but God does that, just as He causes the seed to bring forth new life.  Verse twenty-eight continues, For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear. The growth from the seed isn't immediate but comes in stages.  First there is the blade, then the developing ear, then the full-grown ear.  We cannot expect new Christians to be fully developed when they accept Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Lord.  They are fully saved, but they will need to be nurtured in their faith, some more than others, as we all do.  Verse twenty-nine concludes, But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come. When the fruit is fully developed, it is harvested.  I believe the gospel bears fruit when a person accepts Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Lord, but the true harvest will not come until a person dies or until Jesus Christ returns.  Until then, we should all continue to develop in our Christian life.  We as Christians have the responsibility to spread the gospel, but we cannot force it to bear fruit.  Of course, the first step is to accept the seed of the gospel when it is planted. 

Mark 4:21

 Mark 4:21 says, And he said unto them, Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed? and not to be set on a candlestick? We need to shine the light of the gospel in the world.  It is too easy to allow the gospel to become hidden by other things that we say and do. We can let it be hidden under the bushel of doubt or anger.  The Light is not going to shine brightly if all that people see is negativity on the part of Christians. Verse twenty-two adds, For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested; neither was any thing kept secret, but that it should come abroad. Also, the light of the gospel will reveal all the things that we attempt to keep secret.  There are no sins that are hidden from God.  Verse twenty-three continues, If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.  So, as stated, if you have ears, may you hear and accept the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Light of the world.  Verse twenty-four states, And he said unto them, Take heed what ye hear: with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that hear shall more be given.  As Mark tells us, we do need to take heed of what we hear.  We can let the noise and lies of the world drown out the voice of God if we aren't careful.   Mark also tells us to be careful about how we treat other people.  As Christians, we are to deal honestly with other people.  If we are stingy with what God has blessed us with, we may find that God is stingy with His blessings on us.  I believe this also refers to how we forgive those who have somehow wronged us.  If we aren't forgiving of others, why do we expect God to forgive us, since we have all wronged Him at some time.  Verse twenty-five adds, For he that hath, to him shall be given: and he that hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he hath.  To him that hath does not refer to material wealth, but to spiritual gifts.  If we have spiritual gifts, or even one spiritual gift, and use them wisely, God will bless us with more opportunities to exercise that gift or gifts.  If we don't use it, it will be taken away.  Since as Christians we all have at least one spiritual gift, then the question is whether we are using it or not.  We cannot attempt to make this about material wealth, believing that if God has blessed us materially that He is going to bless us with more while taking away from those who have less.  If we want to have more spiritually, it begins by accepting God's gift of salvation through putting one's faith in Jesus Christ.  If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, then be generous in using your spiritual gift or gifts.