Our reading challenge for the day is Mark chapter 1-5. I'll hit a few highlights. You make comments too and fill in the gaps. What strikes you as specially significant?
Mark's Gospel is action-packed. Look how Mark kicks the action off showing Jesus hard at work - in the very first chapter being the baptizer in the Holy Spirit, the one who is tempted in the wilderness, who comes to preach once John is put into prison, who calls disciples, who goes around healing . . . it makes our head swim as we think how busy Jesus is. A good devotional practice in a quick reading of a short account like Mark's is to write a list of all the many things Jesus is doing, as we realize the Gospel is all about Jesus and his works.
In chapters 4 and 5 Mark has Jesus speaking and performing parables. Yes, it seems that Jesus can not only speak in parables, but he can also do actions which have the significance of a parable. Consider how he casts demons out of a man. The demons leave the man and are still harmful, but Jesus has them bring harm to creatures which are considered unclean. The healed man, on the other hand, is clean and in his right mind. Look at some of the parables and see what Jesus' main point might be.
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