Daily Bread 2011 - Mark 7
Daily Bread 2011 – Friday February 18th, 2011 Mark 7
17 After he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about this parable. 18 “Are you so dull?” he asked. “Don’t you see that nothing that enters a person from the outside can defile them? 19 For it doesn’t go into their heart but into their stomach, and then out of the body.” (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.) 20 He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. 21 For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, 22 adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. 23 All these evils come from inside and defile a person.”
What Does This Mean?
One of the great paradigms Jesus had to confront in the Jewish religion was that a right relationship with God was defined by what happened on the outside. What a person wore, what they ate, or their outward expressions of worship. The Pharisees and teachers of the Law wrongly assumed that if you could somehow manipulate or control the outward manifestations of the sinful nature, one could become holy.
But instead of teaching about outward appearances, Jesus went inward. Jesus went to the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Jesus reframed the whole question of sinfulness by stating that it was from what came out of a man from within his heart that defiled him. The outward manifestations were the result of what was going on inside. Of course these manifestations bring consequences, but they start from inside of us.
What Does This Mean For Us?
Many people try to change human beings, by trying to control or manipulate outward behaviors. The reason it is never works is it doesn’t deal with the source of the problem, the root issue. The human heart is deceptive above all else the bible teaches. It is from a flawed heart come of all of the sinfulness in our lives.
If we want to truly change we will need a change of heart. It is an inside job. It is a job of transformation that Jesus came to bring as we come to him in faith and say, “I can’t, you can, I think I’ll let you.”
As Jesus takes control of our lives and we surrender our lives to Him, He changes us from the inside out. As we receive His love, we begin to truly love ourselves and see ourselves from God’s perspective. This brings about inner healing and begins a process of transformation that began when we came to God by faith in His Son, and will be finished when He calls us home and brings complete healing.
Jesus we know that without your grace we will only be a whitewashed tomb. We might fool some by looking good on the outside, yet we know true transformation only comes as we come to grips with who we are, who you are, and let you change us from the inside out through your steadfast love, Amen.
17 After he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about this parable. 18 “Are you so dull?” he asked. “Don’t you see that nothing that enters a person from the outside can defile them? 19 For it doesn’t go into their heart but into their stomach, and then out of the body.” (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.) 20 He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. 21 For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, 22 adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. 23 All these evils come from inside and defile a person.”
What Does This Mean?
One of the great paradigms Jesus had to confront in the Jewish religion was that a right relationship with God was defined by what happened on the outside. What a person wore, what they ate, or their outward expressions of worship. The Pharisees and teachers of the Law wrongly assumed that if you could somehow manipulate or control the outward manifestations of the sinful nature, one could become holy.
But instead of teaching about outward appearances, Jesus went inward. Jesus went to the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Jesus reframed the whole question of sinfulness by stating that it was from what came out of a man from within his heart that defiled him. The outward manifestations were the result of what was going on inside. Of course these manifestations bring consequences, but they start from inside of us.
What Does This Mean For Us?
Many people try to change human beings, by trying to control or manipulate outward behaviors. The reason it is never works is it doesn’t deal with the source of the problem, the root issue. The human heart is deceptive above all else the bible teaches. It is from a flawed heart come of all of the sinfulness in our lives.
If we want to truly change we will need a change of heart. It is an inside job. It is a job of transformation that Jesus came to bring as we come to him in faith and say, “I can’t, you can, I think I’ll let you.”
As Jesus takes control of our lives and we surrender our lives to Him, He changes us from the inside out. As we receive His love, we begin to truly love ourselves and see ourselves from God’s perspective. This brings about inner healing and begins a process of transformation that began when we came to God by faith in His Son, and will be finished when He calls us home and brings complete healing.
Jesus we know that without your grace we will only be a whitewashed tomb. We might fool some by looking good on the outside, yet we know true transformation only comes as we come to grips with who we are, who you are, and let you change us from the inside out through your steadfast love, Amen.
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