Mark 8
Mark 8:1-38
1 In those days, the multitude being very great and having nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said to them,
2 “I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat.
3 And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way; for some of them have come from afar.”
4 Then His disciples answered Him, “How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?”
5 He asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven.”
6 So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground. And He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude.
7 They also had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He said to set them also before them.
8 So they ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments.
9 Now those who had eaten were about four thousand. And He sent them away,
10 immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha.
11 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.
12 But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation.”
13 And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.
14 Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.
15 Then He charged them, saying, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”
16 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have no bread.”
17 But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, “Why do you reason because you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive nor understand? Is your heart still hardened?
18 Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember?
19 When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?” They said to Him, “Twelve.”
20 “Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?” And they said, “Seven.”
21 So He said to them, “How is it you do not understand?”
22 Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.
23 So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town. And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.
24 And he looked up and said, “I see men like trees, walking.”
25 Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up. And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.
26 Then He sent him away to his house, saying, “Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town.”
27 Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples, saying to them, “Who do men say that I am?”
28 So they answered, “John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.”
29 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered and said to Him, “You are the Christ.”
30 Then He strictly warned them that they should tell no one about Him.
31 And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.
32 He spoke this word openly. Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him.
33 But when He had turned around and looked at His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, “Get behind Me, Satan! For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.”
34 When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
35 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.
36 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?
37 Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
38 For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”
In every manifestation of God’s power and glory, there is a wonderful opportunity for inspired faith in the Worker of those signs. This is what can soften the heart for the reception of new life. For those who have already believed, though, there is a continual residence of His very presence that should need no further sign or validation.
Though the greatest manifestation of God is present in His glory and presence, there is often yet a requirement of what would be considered to be a sign for validation of His movements. Until there is an exposure of demonic activity or the performing of a miracle or healing, His presence alone makes no impression. In this case, Jesus had just fed the masses again with an amazing miracle, and yet because it wasn’t happening before their eyes, there was no satisfaction with Jesus alone. What Jesus offers in the following of Him has much more to do with taking up a cross of self-denial than feeding an appetite for supernatural sideshows. From Jesus’ perspective, the demonstrations of power that are made to be verifying signs for those with no relationship are small potatoes to the transformation to all of life that comes with uniting with Him in Spirit. Especially for those who would claim intimacy with Him, it can almost be dishonorable, with continual access to the wonder of His presence by the Spirit, for them to be more impressed with something He easily does by faith than the wonder of who He is right here and now. As His goal is for us to live, move, and have our being in Him, ever accessing the magnitude of His mountain-moving power, how frustrating it must be for us to disregard what is ours continually for something that seems to be more real because of an impressive sign. This is surely a great inhibitor of God’s movements, when there is yet a need within for an outward spectacle before the soul can be engaged enough to fight off repose. Maturity in Him will be much more effectively authenticated in the one who can actually do all things (have or not have worldly demonstrations) through Christ who is right here and right now empowering with a strength that is treasured and embraced as significant above any moving of a mountain. It is from that assurance and honor of the continual treasure of His nearness that faith will come for the effortless manifestations. When faith is in a person, place, or thing where He has apparently visited, there is little faith for what is already manifested in the treasure of His Spirit within.
Where the spectacular is perceived to be His presence, there can be a diminishing of what has been promised never to subside or withdraw – His very presence. When the ones operating in the amazing are elevated as controllers of the demonstrations, the reality of His infinite power within can be relegated to insignificance. To everyone who believes, He has already given the same power that raised Christ from the grave. The belief, though, isn’t in the sign yet to be seen, but in what has already been received in new life. It’s from what we already have that virtue flows for the supernatural. Peter said that it was from what He already had that He gave healing to the crippled man. He wasn’t looking for something to come from somewhere or someone else. He was simply releasing from what was already present within.
When time and passion is spent on looking around for where God is really moving, when there is yet a need for validation in a sign of His authentic presence, there can be a great disabling of His desired working within. A simple adjustment of gratification from without to within can open doors for supernatural flowing of virtue that will expose God’s glory and draw to eternal transformation and not just momentary impression.