In this episode we are joined by the Rev. Lynne Ellis as we go further into the book of Mark and look at to how the heart of faith knows that God alone has the power to do all things.

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As we continue through the book of Mark, our passage Mark 4:35-5:19 again answers the question: Who is Jesus?

The first thing we see is human reactions to human circumstances – Jesus (and the disciples) are tired by the burden of ministry. But rather than finding rest, they encounter a storm (as is so often the case). The disciples panic and rebuke Jesus for his lack of awareness.

We then see the divine reaction. Jesus commands creation to be calm and creation obeys. Jesus then rebukes his disciples for their lack of faith (their lack of awareness). But the disciples are starting to see more of who Jesus is and respond with due reverence our Lord and Saviour.

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In this episode we are joined by the Reverend Deborah Moyo from StreetHope Ministries. We look at the parable of the sower and the seed and we are challenged to live out our faith in all circumstances.

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Our passage today (Mark 3:20-35) answers the question: Who is Jesus? As people start to question whether the power he was demonstrating came from God or the forces of evil… And it’s not just the jealous Pharisees that were asking these questions, even Jesus’ own family had begun to question his sanity.

Jesus teaches that He is not a servant of the forces of evil, of Satan but that He was sent by God to challenge and defeat the forces of evil (as well as to challenge those who would oppose this opposition -mostly the teachers of the law). He again reiterates that He came to establish a new kingdom, which meant a new family of God, a family that by grace, through faith, all are welcome and we are accepted into!

We're also told that all sins can be forgiven except for one, so we may ask ourselves how do we know that we haven't committed that sin?

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In this episode we continue through the book of Mark, chapter 2:13-3:19. Our passage opens with the calling of Levi (Matthew) – a tax collector, a despised, unclean, traitor. Jesus then proceeds to (appear to) break one of the 10 Commandments by ignoring the mandate to fast and do no work (he heals a man with a withered hand). He then calls the remainder of the 12 disciples. Through all this we see that Jesus had come to form a counter-community - to heal those on the outside (the sick and lost), not those who considered themselves the elite on the inside (holier than everyone and self-righteous).

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In this episode we conclude Chapter 1 of Mark and move to Chapter 2. We see Jesus continue to assert his spiritual authority through his healing ministry. We see that in cases where Jesus heals there is most often an approach, petition & response, healing & instruction. In the case of the healing of the leper, a social and religious outcast approaches Jesus. Jesus shows no concern for contracting disease or being declared religiously unclean and exercises a “super-priestly” authority to not only declare the man clean, but to actually heal him. In the case of the healing of the paralytic, it is the man’s friends who approach Jesus on his behalf. Jesus exercises the divine authority to forgive sins.

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In this episode we are joined by Clarke Scheibe, who takes us through Mark 1:21-39 and how Jesus' authority was undeniable, yet brought conflict. We are challenged with questions regarding our faithfulness and if we are declaring the full authority of Jesus in our lives, even if it means we will also experience conflict.

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As we continue in Chapter 1 of Mark, we see Jesus’ next step in his ministry was calling his followers. And we see that the disciples do not choose Jesus, he chooses and calls them -we are called by grace. The disciples leave everything behind (their careers and even their family) to answer this call- we follow by faith. Jesus gives them a new purpose in life…they go from being fishermen to fishers of men – we are transformed by discipleship. And so, each one of us can be thankful that God has chosen us, accept his call, and be resolute in our faith as we follow him and allow him to transform us according to his will and purposes: “to do all the good works [he has] prepared for us to walk in…”

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