Mark 6
1 And he went out from thence, and came into his own country; and his disciples follow him.
2 And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands?
They knew Christ family, but they didn't know Him. Joseph of Arimathea would take Christ on long trips away from His home is why they didn't know Him. They're amazed by all He does. These events can be found as it was well recorded in historical accounts in Glastonbury. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iR5Ylrc7J14
3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him.
4 But Jesus, said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.
Ever tried to feed God's Word to a family member or old friend? It's hard to do when they know every aspect of your past.
5 And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them.
Christ Jesus didn't do much for those within His own because of their lack of faith. When people reject, move on, there are people out there that might accept The Truth.
6 And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching.
7 And he called unto him the twelve, and began to send them forth by two and two; and gave them power over unclean spirits;
Christ gives this power and authority 2 by 2 because the law requires two witnesses. Yet we today can do this with God as our witness. You have this power over evil †
8 And commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey, save a staff only; no scrip, no bread, no money in their purse:
You can't be a beggar and have faith at the same time. They took their staffs = large sticks to ward off things that came their way without killing, just another form of protection.
9 But be shod with sandals; and not put on two coats.
Shod = to bind under one's self, keep it at low end, don't call attention to yourself. Travel light and keep what is taught simple.
10 And he said unto them, In what place soever ye enter into an house, there abide till ye depart from that place.
The first house that welcomes you is where you should stay until you leave that community.
11 And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.
When people reject you and The Truth, don't EVER let it bring you down. "Don't EVER let them see you sweat!"
12 And they went out, and preached that men should repent.
13 And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them.
It's God that does the healing and we show our faith in His power by being obedient.
14 And king Herod heard of him; (for his name was spread abroad:) and he said, That John the Baptist was risen from the dead, and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him.
Because of all the things Christ is doing, Herod believes He is John the Baptist who has come alive again.
15 Others said, That it is Elias. And others said, That it is a prophet, or as one of the prophets.
So many rejecting Who He really is, Christ Jesus, The Messiah.
16 But when Herod heard thereof, he said, It is John, whom I beheaded: he is risen from the dead.
I believe here Herod is questioning his life and the things he had done.
17 For Herod himself had sent forth and laid hold upon John, and bound him in prison for Herodias' sake, his brother Philip's wife: for he had married her.
Herod knows his sin in having Philip's wife. It not only goes against God but also common law of the land.
18 For John had said unto Herod, It is not lawful for thee to have thy brother's wife.
19 Therefore Herodias had a quarrel against him, and would have killed him; but she could not:
She wanted to silence John because He was letting everyone know about this sinful act of taking his brother's wife. She doesn't have the power to kill anyone for any reason.
20 For Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just man and an holy, and observed him; and when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly.
Herod did more to listen to what John had to say than most do in the world today while calling themselves a Christian.
21 And when a convenient day was come, that Herod on his birthday made a supper to his lords, high captains, and chief estates of Galilee;
The convenience is for Herodias evil plot while Herod is in his drunken stupor feeding his flesh.
22 And when the daughter of the said Herodias came in, and danced, and pleased Herod and them that sat with him, the king said unto the damsel, Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee.
23 And he sware unto her, Whatsoever thou shalt ask of me, I will give it thee, unto the half of my kingdom.
Let's face it, he is begging for sex with his niece. He has put down any moral thought for a few seconds of evil pleasure.
24 And she went forth, and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist.
25 And she came in straightway with haste unto the king, and asked, saying, I will that thou give me by and by in a charger the head of John the Baptist.
She said "by and by" because she didn't want him to have any second thought about it. She wants an answer now.
26 And the king was exceeding sorry; yet for his oath's sake, and for their sakes which sat with him, he would not reject her.
He had made a promise to her and now in front of all the drunks around him, he would go through with taking the head of John.
27 And immediately the king sent an executioner, and commanded his head to be brought: and he went and beheaded him in the prison,
28 And brought his head in a charger, and gave it to the damsel: and the damsel gave it to her mother.
We have people just as sick in the world today. Do you have the eyes to see those that support this behavior today? They're leading whole Country's.
29 And when his disciples heard of it, they came and took up his corpse, and laid it in a tomb.
30 And the apostles gathered themselves together unto Jesus, and told him all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught.
The apostles give a report of all the things they have done and taught to the people.
31 And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.
Everyone needs some time to unwind.
32 And they departed into a desert place by ship privately.
33 And the people saw them departing, and many knew him, and ran afoot thither out of all cities, and outwent them, and came together unto him.
As they're floating to the other side, many people are walking along the shoreline to meet them when they dock.
34 And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things.
They ran to Him and He feed them. If you don't seek Him you won't know how to live. You will ALWAYS walk aimlessly in the dark.
35 And when the day was now far spent, his disciples came unto him, and said, This is a desert place, and now the time is far passed:
His disciples are reminding Him that it is late in the day when they see all these people waiting on shore. They're tired and hungry.
36 Send them away, that they may go into the country round about, and into the villages, and buy themselves bread: for they have nothing to eat.
37 He answered and said unto them, Give ye them to eat. And they say unto him, Shall we go and buy two hundred pennyworth of bread, and give them to eat?
38 He saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? go and see. And when they knew, they say, Five, and two fishes.
Five in Biblical Numerics = "grace, that grace = unmerited favor would be given through the cross. Fish in Greek letters of a cipher, "iota" will bring you to spell out "ichthus" = "Jesus Christ Son of God Savior". "Jesus" = "Jehovah is salvation" = "Iesous", "YHVH" = Father and Joshua is YHVH's Savior". "Christ" = The "Anointed one".
39 And he commanded them to make all sit down by companies upon the green grass.
40 And they sat down in ranks, by hundreds, and by fifties.
They sat in groups and It was very orderly.
41 And when he had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and brake the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before them; and the two fishes divided he among them all.
Some may not believe this and its because they refuse to. In the spiritual sense, Christ Jesus being our living Bread feeds Millions of souls.
42 And they did all eat, and were filled.
Any time we sit down with The Lord, we are fed. It's up to us to do so. I see many that say they're Christians, but just don't have time to feed themselves. 2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. Matthew 7:22-24 22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. 24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
43 And they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments, and of the fishes.
44 And they that did eat of the loaves were about five thousand men.
With the number of 5,000 men, can you imagine how many more this number would be adding the women and children to it. There is a great multitude there being fed.
45 And straightway he constrained his disciples to get into the ship, and to go to the other side before unto Bethsaida, while he sent away the people.
Christ instructed His disciples to go to "Bethsaida" = "house of fish". It's named such because it's a fishing community.
46 And when he had sent them away, he departed into a mountain to pray.
47 And when even was come, the ship was in the midst of the sea, and he alone on the land.
The disciples are in the middle of the sea, while Christ is on shore.
48 And he saw them toiling in rowing; for the wind was contrary unto them: and about the fourth watch of the night he cometh unto them, walking upon the sea, and would have passed by them.
The fourth watch is 3am to 6am and Christ sees them fighting against the wind while He walks on shore past their position in the sea, on His way to Bethsaida.
49 But when they saw him walking upon the sea, they supposed it had been a spirit, and cried out:
I'm sure it would mess with all of our heads.
50 For they all saw him, and were troubled. And immediately he talked with them, and saith unto them, Be of good cheer: it is I; be not afraid.
He sets them straight. BE HAPPY, ITS ME, DON'T BE SCARED!
51 And he went up unto them into the ship; and the wind ceased: and they were sore amazed in themselves beyond measure, and wondered.
That's right! Whenever you have Christ enter your life, the storms cease to be as bad as you thought they were.
52 For they considered not the miracle of the loaves: for their heart was hardened.
They were blessed to see this miracle of feeding thousands and yet their flesh is getting in the way of the things Christ Jesus can do. We do the same today when we doubt Him in our lives, allowing fear or rejection of others, etc. in our lives.
53 And when they had passed over, they came into the land of Gennesaret, and drew to the shore.
54 And when they were come out of the ship, straightway they knew him,
Christ was in His Spiritual body on the ship and once on shore, back to His earthly flesh body. Another sign for them and us today about the end of this flesh.
55 And ran through that whole region round about, and began to carry about in beds those that were sick, where they heard he was.
56 And whithersoever he entered, into villages, or cities, or country, they laid the sick in the streets, and besought him that they might touch if it were but the border of his garment: and as many as touched him were made whole.
They sought out Christ in order to be made whole. Hard as you try, your own way or any other way, it will never be [The ONLY Way]. †