UNBELIEF OR FAITH
In reading in the gospel of Mark, you see Jesus and His healing of many. The leprous man, the paralytic man, the man with the withered hand. All of them Jesus had compassion on and made them whole. Think about the leper. He had to leave the colony, which was against the norm. Then he had to make his way to the synagogue and when he found Jesus he knelt and implored, Jesus to heal him. The paralytic, how many years did he lay on his bed? And when he got to Jesus he couldn’t get in the door because of the mass of people. But not to be deterred his friends lifted him down through the roof and positioned him in front of Jesus. Faith propelled each of them to get to Jesus no matter the obstacle.
Now the Pharisees were a different story. Jesus called them whitewashed tombs. You snakes! You brood of vipers! You tithe to a mint leaf but forget justice and mercy and faith. They looked good on the outside but were full of dead man’s bones. Again, the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him. But He sighed deeply in His spirit. Mark8:12
Can you just see Jesus, taking a deep breath and sighing? And deeply in His spirit? I can feel that. Jesus didn’t plead with them, but Mark says He left them, got into the boat and departed to the other side.
When others rebuff us or refuse to hear the gospel or call us names, we can taste a little of what Jesus must have felt. But Jesus said, blessed are you who believe. We are blessed.
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