1 00:00:02,800 --> 00:00:14,280 Speaker 1: Life. Audio, our news feeds are often full of situations 2 00:00:14,360 --> 00:00:17,360 Speaker 1: unfolding where you might think to yourself, why doesn't someone 3 00:00:17,520 --> 00:00:20,960 Speaker 1: stop this? And in March chapter fifteen, that's the tension 4 00:00:21,000 --> 00:00:25,400 Speaker 1: that we are going to enter into. Jesus is arrested 5 00:00:25,680 --> 00:00:31,280 Speaker 1: and mocked and beaten and humiliated and finally executed on 6 00:00:31,560 --> 00:00:34,720 Speaker 1: a cross. And one of the strangest parts about the 7 00:00:34,760 --> 00:00:38,000 Speaker 1: whole story is how quiet Jesus is through all of it. 8 00:00:38,520 --> 00:00:42,919 Speaker 1: He doesn't complain, he doesn't protest, he doesn't use his power, 9 00:00:42,960 --> 00:00:45,239 Speaker 1: he doesn't escape or retaliate. 10 00:00:45,400 --> 00:00:47,199 Speaker 2: He's actually silent. 11 00:00:47,800 --> 00:00:49,400 Speaker 1: And if you were going to write a story about 12 00:00:49,440 --> 00:00:51,559 Speaker 1: the Son of God, I don't think this is the 13 00:00:51,600 --> 00:00:55,120 Speaker 1: one you would write, which really raises the question why 14 00:00:55,400 --> 00:01:03,120 Speaker 1: did Jesus choose surrender? Hey, everyone, welcome back to how 15 00:01:03,120 --> 00:01:06,720 Speaker 1: to Say the Bible. Each week we come honestly to Scripture, 16 00:01:06,840 --> 00:01:11,600 Speaker 1: bringing our disappointments, our hurts, our questions, and we find 17 00:01:11,760 --> 00:01:14,400 Speaker 1: that time and time again God meets us in his 18 00:01:14,440 --> 00:01:17,840 Speaker 1: Word with comfort and encouragement and an understanding of what 19 00:01:17,880 --> 00:01:21,720 Speaker 1: it looks like to actually flourish, to have abundant life here. 20 00:01:21,880 --> 00:01:25,000 Speaker 1: And now I'm so glad that we are here together 21 00:01:25,120 --> 00:01:28,280 Speaker 1: walking through these last chapters in the Book of Mark, 22 00:01:28,640 --> 00:01:32,319 Speaker 1: we've seen all of this action leading up to this moment. 23 00:01:32,440 --> 00:01:36,080 Speaker 1: We've seen how people come to Jesus, how they devote 24 00:01:36,080 --> 00:01:38,319 Speaker 1: themselves to Jesus, how they surrender to Jesus, what it 25 00:01:38,360 --> 00:01:42,040 Speaker 1: looks like to kind of move toward salvation. And now 26 00:01:42,080 --> 00:01:46,119 Speaker 1: we have these culminating events which are actually so painful 27 00:01:46,280 --> 00:01:49,040 Speaker 1: to read. And every time I go back to the 28 00:01:49,080 --> 00:01:53,760 Speaker 1: crucifixion narrative and what the Church calls the passion of Christ, 29 00:01:54,200 --> 00:01:58,120 Speaker 1: it's interesting that it's called the passion, because passion actually 30 00:01:58,240 --> 00:02:02,720 Speaker 1: means to suffer, to not have action. And Mark and 31 00:02:02,800 --> 00:02:06,920 Speaker 1: every Gospel is full of the action of Jesus. And 32 00:02:07,000 --> 00:02:11,720 Speaker 1: now the action of Jesus is simply staying silent, just 33 00:02:11,919 --> 00:02:16,119 Speaker 1: simply allowing these things to happen to him. And when 34 00:02:16,160 --> 00:02:18,680 Speaker 1: I read this particularly, and I just invite you to 35 00:02:18,720 --> 00:02:20,960 Speaker 1: do so, and I know that it's difficult to if 36 00:02:21,000 --> 00:02:25,120 Speaker 1: you really are trying to picture the scene is incredibly uncomfortable. 37 00:02:25,520 --> 00:02:27,600 Speaker 1: But one of the things that really stands out to 38 00:02:27,639 --> 00:02:30,160 Speaker 1: me every time I go back to these parts of 39 00:02:30,200 --> 00:02:34,040 Speaker 1: the Gospel is the reminder that this is humans, like, 40 00:02:34,160 --> 00:02:37,400 Speaker 1: this is who we are, This is the response. 41 00:02:37,480 --> 00:02:38,480 Speaker 2: Of human beings. 42 00:02:38,520 --> 00:02:41,600 Speaker 1: This is what we can do to one another. And 43 00:02:42,160 --> 00:02:44,000 Speaker 1: when you look on your social media or your news 44 00:02:44,000 --> 00:02:46,880 Speaker 1: feed and you wonder, as events unfold around the world 45 00:02:46,880 --> 00:02:49,840 Speaker 1: and in your own neighborhood, how could anything like this happen? 46 00:02:49,919 --> 00:02:53,200 Speaker 1: I mean, this is the story of who Jesus is, 47 00:02:53,400 --> 00:02:58,200 Speaker 1: and we see what mankind can look like at its worst. 48 00:02:58,320 --> 00:03:01,359 Speaker 1: That's what you and I can look like at our 49 00:03:01,480 --> 00:03:05,280 Speaker 1: worst when we walk through Mark chapter fifteen together. So 50 00:03:05,840 --> 00:03:08,280 Speaker 1: what we see happening here just a couple of an 51 00:03:08,280 --> 00:03:10,639 Speaker 1: overview sort of highlight reel, if so to speak, a 52 00:03:10,639 --> 00:03:12,880 Speaker 1: low light reel of what's happening in Mark chapter fifteen. 53 00:03:13,360 --> 00:03:15,600 Speaker 1: So Jesus is going to stand before Pilot. This is 54 00:03:15,600 --> 00:03:19,079 Speaker 1: a really interesting story. It's kind of a historical context 55 00:03:19,080 --> 00:03:22,920 Speaker 1: would say that Pilot was likely to sort of bow 56 00:03:23,000 --> 00:03:26,880 Speaker 1: under pressure, and so he seems very conflicted this whole 57 00:03:26,919 --> 00:03:29,640 Speaker 1: passage in what's being asked of him. And so he 58 00:03:29,720 --> 00:03:32,240 Speaker 1: brings Jesus up before the Jews, and he also brings 59 00:03:32,320 --> 00:03:36,520 Speaker 1: up Brabus, who's a known insurrectionist. He's a known like 60 00:03:36,640 --> 00:03:40,320 Speaker 1: rabble rouser within the Jewish community. And Pilots, like you know, 61 00:03:40,440 --> 00:03:43,800 Speaker 1: you guys can choose one person to release, and the 62 00:03:43,880 --> 00:03:47,720 Speaker 1: crowd chooses Brabus. And what's crazy about this is if 63 00:03:47,760 --> 00:03:51,560 Speaker 1: you remember when Jesus enters Jerusalem. That's what we celebrate 64 00:03:51,600 --> 00:03:55,880 Speaker 1: on Palm Sunday, when Jesus enters Jerusalem, and all of 65 00:03:55,880 --> 00:03:58,600 Speaker 1: these crowds are like Hosanna, blessed is he who comes 66 00:03:58,640 --> 00:03:59,560 Speaker 1: in the name of the Lord. 67 00:04:00,080 --> 00:04:01,080 Speaker 2: Jesus is our Savior. 68 00:04:01,600 --> 00:04:04,000 Speaker 1: It's the same crowd like it's some of the same 69 00:04:04,000 --> 00:04:06,920 Speaker 1: people that were there in Jerusalem at that beginning are 70 00:04:06,960 --> 00:04:09,960 Speaker 1: now here in Jerusalem at this ending and are asking 71 00:04:10,000 --> 00:04:13,560 Speaker 1: for Barabbas to be released. A crowd can turn quickly. 72 00:04:14,440 --> 00:04:18,120 Speaker 1: Jesus is mocked and crucified in this chapter. Then darkness 73 00:04:18,160 --> 00:04:20,760 Speaker 1: covers the land for three hours between the hours of 74 00:04:20,800 --> 00:04:21,680 Speaker 1: twelve and three. 75 00:04:22,480 --> 00:04:23,440 Speaker 2: Jesus dies. 76 00:04:23,800 --> 00:04:26,960 Speaker 1: He legitimately dies, he gives up his spirit, he is 77 00:04:27,000 --> 00:04:27,919 Speaker 1: physically dead. 78 00:04:28,320 --> 00:04:29,640 Speaker 2: And then we see that the. 79 00:04:29,600 --> 00:04:33,440 Speaker 1: Temple curtain tears, which is a really interesting detail that 80 00:04:33,480 --> 00:04:35,960 Speaker 1: we're going to get into a little bit. So Notice 81 00:04:36,000 --> 00:04:39,360 Speaker 1: how the crowd shifts. Notice that Jesus speaks very very little. 82 00:04:40,200 --> 00:04:43,440 Speaker 1: Notice that people on the outside seem to recognize what's 83 00:04:43,440 --> 00:04:47,120 Speaker 1: happening more than people on the inside. For instance, the 84 00:04:47,240 --> 00:04:50,320 Speaker 1: Roman centurion, when he sees what happens, when he sees 85 00:04:50,360 --> 00:04:54,160 Speaker 1: the darkness, when he feels I feel like he feels 86 00:04:54,200 --> 00:04:55,720 Speaker 1: the spiritual realm around him. 87 00:04:55,760 --> 00:04:56,600 Speaker 2: He's the one who. 88 00:04:56,560 --> 00:04:59,159 Speaker 1: Says, surely this is the son of God, like he 89 00:04:59,279 --> 00:05:02,160 Speaker 1: is outside the faith. Meanwhile, people inside the faith are 90 00:05:02,160 --> 00:05:06,960 Speaker 1: mocking and humiliating Jesus. Notice this sort of dichotomy between 91 00:05:07,000 --> 00:05:10,920 Speaker 1: outsiders and insiders that's continuing from Mark chapter fifteen when 92 00:05:10,960 --> 00:05:13,680 Speaker 1: we saw the woman who anointed Jesus at Bethany, and 93 00:05:13,760 --> 00:05:17,080 Speaker 1: then Judas the insider who's betraying Jesus. 94 00:05:26,160 --> 00:05:27,680 Speaker 2: So a little bit of backstory here. 95 00:05:28,240 --> 00:05:34,000 Speaker 1: Crucifixion had a specific place in the Roman culture. Crucifixion 96 00:05:34,160 --> 00:05:37,719 Speaker 1: was used for public humiliation and shame. Anyone who was 97 00:05:37,760 --> 00:05:41,600 Speaker 1: crucified was done so to be a symbol for others. 98 00:05:41,640 --> 00:05:44,800 Speaker 1: It was a horribly painful death. It's where we actually 99 00:05:44,839 --> 00:05:49,000 Speaker 1: get the term excruciating. That crux in the middle of 100 00:05:49,040 --> 00:05:53,880 Speaker 1: excruciating is crucifixion. It was a death basically by smothering 101 00:05:54,400 --> 00:05:57,000 Speaker 1: your body. You can't hold your body up any longer, 102 00:05:57,040 --> 00:06:00,080 Speaker 1: and so you smother your own lungs. It was a 103 00:06:00,240 --> 00:06:06,440 Speaker 1: horribly painful, long agonizing death, and Rome used crosses and 104 00:06:06,480 --> 00:06:11,240 Speaker 1: crucifixions to communicate their dominance, to communicate other people's weakness, 105 00:06:11,680 --> 00:06:15,240 Speaker 1: and to communicate who and what they were rejecting and 106 00:06:15,360 --> 00:06:19,320 Speaker 1: what they were rejecting from society. And what is so 107 00:06:19,600 --> 00:06:22,360 Speaker 1: crazy about I have a cross on right now. The 108 00:06:22,400 --> 00:06:26,200 Speaker 1: idea that the cross has become the symbol of Christianity 109 00:06:26,400 --> 00:06:30,440 Speaker 1: is it was the symbol of highest shame. And is 110 00:06:30,480 --> 00:06:34,280 Speaker 1: it interesting that the redemption of Jesus takes the thing 111 00:06:34,360 --> 00:06:37,400 Speaker 1: that seems the most shameful and actually can make it holy, 112 00:06:37,520 --> 00:06:40,919 Speaker 1: That the thing that seems like obvious defeat becomes a 113 00:06:40,960 --> 00:06:44,560 Speaker 1: place of victory. When we think about Jesus silent, and 114 00:06:44,600 --> 00:06:47,720 Speaker 1: we asked the question, why did he respond this way? 115 00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:49,640 Speaker 1: Why after all the teaching that he had done, and 116 00:06:49,720 --> 00:06:51,520 Speaker 1: all the healing, and all the miracles and all that 117 00:06:51,560 --> 00:06:53,960 Speaker 1: he could have done in this moment, was he silent? 118 00:06:54,080 --> 00:06:57,800 Speaker 1: We actually see Jesus fulfilling the prophecies that were made 119 00:06:57,960 --> 00:07:02,000 Speaker 1: about the Messiah in Isaiah, the prophet Isaiah six hundred 120 00:07:02,080 --> 00:07:05,000 Speaker 1: years before Jesus was born. Isaiah fifty three, verse seven. 121 00:07:05,560 --> 00:07:09,640 Speaker 1: It says that the Messiah he was oppressed and afflicted, 122 00:07:09,800 --> 00:07:13,440 Speaker 1: yet he did not open his mouth there's this idea 123 00:07:13,520 --> 00:07:20,520 Speaker 1: of the silent, suffering servant that Jesus allows mankind to 124 00:07:20,680 --> 00:07:25,080 Speaker 1: do and be its worst, And Jesus's love extends to 125 00:07:25,320 --> 00:07:28,200 Speaker 1: all of those people. So if you've ever wondered where 126 00:07:28,240 --> 00:07:31,040 Speaker 1: is the extent of Jesus's love, you actually get to 127 00:07:31,080 --> 00:07:33,480 Speaker 1: see the extent of his love right here in this moment, 128 00:07:33,520 --> 00:07:36,400 Speaker 1: because the worst things that humans can ever do to 129 00:07:36,440 --> 00:07:39,120 Speaker 1: other humans are happening, and in the midst of that, 130 00:07:39,320 --> 00:07:42,720 Speaker 1: Jesus is just vulnerably opening his arms and allowing it 131 00:07:42,760 --> 00:07:45,560 Speaker 1: to happen. He had all power and authority for it 132 00:07:45,600 --> 00:07:48,960 Speaker 1: to not happen. So he's doing this for a reason. 133 00:07:49,040 --> 00:07:51,040 Speaker 1: He's doing this out of obedience. It's not like he 134 00:07:51,080 --> 00:07:53,960 Speaker 1: was caught off guard. It's not like Jesus lost his power. 135 00:07:54,200 --> 00:07:58,520 Speaker 1: He actually chooses to allow all of these things to 136 00:07:58,640 --> 00:08:01,920 Speaker 1: happen to him. And at the very end, and some 137 00:08:02,000 --> 00:08:04,520 Speaker 1: of the only words that Jesus says, it says that 138 00:08:04,640 --> 00:08:08,000 Speaker 1: right before Jesus died, he cried out in a loud voice, 139 00:08:08,040 --> 00:08:10,480 Speaker 1: my God, my God, why have you abandoned me? 140 00:08:10,560 --> 00:08:11,760 Speaker 2: Why have you forsaken me? 141 00:08:11,880 --> 00:08:16,600 Speaker 1: This is verse thirty four, and all through history, theologians 142 00:08:16,600 --> 00:08:20,120 Speaker 1: have pointed to this moment as the moment where Jesus 143 00:08:20,200 --> 00:08:24,600 Speaker 1: took the sin of the world upon himself, because sin 144 00:08:24,920 --> 00:08:28,520 Speaker 1: separates us from God. I've used this analogy before, but 145 00:08:28,840 --> 00:08:30,400 Speaker 1: the way I like to think about sin because a 146 00:08:30,440 --> 00:08:32,400 Speaker 1: lot of people are like, wait, God is all powerful, 147 00:08:32,440 --> 00:08:35,520 Speaker 1: so you can't anything like God can decide what can 148 00:08:35,559 --> 00:08:37,959 Speaker 1: be in his presence. But I like to use a 149 00:08:38,000 --> 00:08:40,520 Speaker 1: law of nature to sort of illustrate what this means. 150 00:08:40,559 --> 00:08:43,240 Speaker 1: God is holy. In him, there is no wrongdoing. In 151 00:08:43,360 --> 00:08:46,280 Speaker 1: him is all light. And so if you think of 152 00:08:46,320 --> 00:08:49,400 Speaker 1: God and his holiness as light, and you think about 153 00:08:49,480 --> 00:08:52,760 Speaker 1: sin as darkness, what we know as a law of 154 00:08:52,840 --> 00:08:57,400 Speaker 1: nature is that light always obliterates darkness. There's no such 155 00:08:57,440 --> 00:09:00,559 Speaker 1: thing as a darkness that can overcome light. If you've 156 00:09:00,559 --> 00:09:03,680 Speaker 1: ever been in a completely dark room, if you have 157 00:09:03,840 --> 00:09:08,280 Speaker 1: the faintest light, any light at all, that light will 158 00:09:08,320 --> 00:09:12,280 Speaker 1: penetrate any darkness. So darkness can feel thick and dark 159 00:09:12,320 --> 00:09:14,920 Speaker 1: and impossible, but as soon as light enters in, it's 160 00:09:14,960 --> 00:09:17,920 Speaker 1: always obliterated. So when you think about the idea that 161 00:09:17,960 --> 00:09:20,720 Speaker 1: God is light, that God is holy, and you think 162 00:09:20,720 --> 00:09:24,160 Speaker 1: about sin as darkness, when sin comes into the light, 163 00:09:24,240 --> 00:09:27,560 Speaker 1: it is obliterated. It cannot stand in the presence of God, 164 00:09:28,120 --> 00:09:30,320 Speaker 1: and so when the sin in us is in the 165 00:09:30,360 --> 00:09:32,800 Speaker 1: presence of light, we ourselves will be obliterated if we 166 00:09:32,840 --> 00:09:36,440 Speaker 1: came close to that light. Theologians and church historians have 167 00:09:36,520 --> 00:09:39,040 Speaker 1: always said that this moment here on the cross is 168 00:09:39,080 --> 00:09:42,680 Speaker 1: when Jesus allowed the darkness of sin to come to him, 169 00:09:42,720 --> 00:09:45,720 Speaker 1: to fall on his shoulders, and he experienced, for the 170 00:09:45,800 --> 00:09:50,160 Speaker 1: first time in his life separation from God because of 171 00:09:50,200 --> 00:09:52,880 Speaker 1: the sin that he was bearing the weight for us, 172 00:09:53,120 --> 00:09:58,720 Speaker 1: the sin, past, present, and future. He experienced separation from God, 173 00:09:58,760 --> 00:10:01,280 Speaker 1: and that is the place where he he finally cries out. 174 00:10:01,400 --> 00:10:04,600 Speaker 1: This is actually the worst pain of all the pain 175 00:10:04,640 --> 00:10:09,079 Speaker 1: that he's experiencing physically and emotionally. He's been humiliated, he's 176 00:10:09,120 --> 00:10:12,280 Speaker 1: been mocked, he's been made fun of. He's experiencing the 177 00:10:12,280 --> 00:10:15,040 Speaker 1: most agonizing death that you can experience. And in all 178 00:10:15,080 --> 00:10:18,280 Speaker 1: of that pain, the most painful moment, the time where 179 00:10:18,280 --> 00:10:20,760 Speaker 1: he actually has to cry out, is when he takes 180 00:10:20,800 --> 00:10:24,640 Speaker 1: the sin upon himself. That the most agonizing thing our 181 00:10:24,640 --> 00:10:28,400 Speaker 1: soul can experience is being separated from God. So when 182 00:10:28,400 --> 00:10:31,880 Speaker 1: we want to understand what Jesus has done, we understand 183 00:10:31,920 --> 00:10:34,600 Speaker 1: that in that moment he took the sin upon himself 184 00:10:34,640 --> 00:10:37,720 Speaker 1: and then he says it is finished. And when he dies, 185 00:10:37,920 --> 00:10:42,000 Speaker 1: that temple curtain tears. And if we understand again the 186 00:10:42,080 --> 00:10:46,880 Speaker 1: Jewish system of worship, there was God designed a system, 187 00:10:46,920 --> 00:10:50,000 Speaker 1: a temple that would be a way of connecting to God. 188 00:10:50,559 --> 00:10:53,200 Speaker 1: And in this temple system, there was a curtain that 189 00:10:53,280 --> 00:10:56,280 Speaker 1: separated the most holy place, the place that only a 190 00:10:56,320 --> 00:10:59,240 Speaker 1: priest could enter once a year after being consecrated and 191 00:10:59,280 --> 00:11:01,880 Speaker 1: following all of these rituals to sort of be as 192 00:11:01,920 --> 00:11:04,400 Speaker 1: clean as possible to enter into the presence of God. 193 00:11:04,800 --> 00:11:06,880 Speaker 1: And what we know happens when Jesus gives up his 194 00:11:06,920 --> 00:11:10,360 Speaker 1: spirit is that that temple curtain tears in half. And 195 00:11:10,440 --> 00:11:13,160 Speaker 1: it really is like, oh, the Holy of Holies has 196 00:11:13,200 --> 00:11:16,960 Speaker 1: opened that through the breaking of Jesus's body, he has 197 00:11:17,000 --> 00:11:21,480 Speaker 1: allowed now through him, we can experience full communion with God. 198 00:11:21,520 --> 00:11:24,080 Speaker 1: We can enter the Holy of Holies now because of 199 00:11:24,120 --> 00:11:26,920 Speaker 1: what Jesus has done. Think back to what Jesus did 200 00:11:26,960 --> 00:11:29,880 Speaker 1: at the Passover meal with his disciples. Just right before this, 201 00:11:30,080 --> 00:11:33,120 Speaker 1: he breaks the bread, He actually breaks it open. He says, 202 00:11:33,160 --> 00:11:36,280 Speaker 1: this is my body broken for you, and the temple 203 00:11:36,800 --> 00:11:41,280 Speaker 1: curtain tears, It breaks open when Jesus fulfills what he 204 00:11:41,360 --> 00:11:43,319 Speaker 1: came to do when he says it is finished, when 205 00:11:43,360 --> 00:11:45,760 Speaker 1: he has taken the sin of the world upon his 206 00:11:45,840 --> 00:11:50,200 Speaker 1: shoulders and he has sacrificed himself on behalf of us. 207 00:11:51,280 --> 00:11:55,160 Speaker 1: The temple symbolized separation from God's presence, and its tearing 208 00:11:55,760 --> 00:11:59,920 Speaker 1: means our access to God is restored. All separation is removed, 209 00:12:00,120 --> 00:12:13,640 Speaker 1: and now reconciliation can begin. Friends, this part of Mark 210 00:12:13,720 --> 00:12:17,160 Speaker 1: has always connected deeply from me to themes in this 211 00:12:17,200 --> 00:12:19,240 Speaker 1: book and Bible study that I've written for you called 212 00:12:19,280 --> 00:12:22,480 Speaker 1: Not What I Signed up For, finding the strength, purpose, 213 00:12:22,600 --> 00:12:25,880 Speaker 1: and faith to get through a season you didn't expect. 214 00:12:26,400 --> 00:12:28,920 Speaker 1: If you've ever felt like you find yourself in an 215 00:12:29,080 --> 00:12:33,360 Speaker 1: unknown season with an unknown timeline and you feel disoriented 216 00:12:33,400 --> 00:12:36,000 Speaker 1: and lost. If you've ever felt like you're suffering and 217 00:12:36,040 --> 00:12:39,120 Speaker 1: that God is silent, this book is for you. Together, 218 00:12:39,200 --> 00:12:41,640 Speaker 1: we actually walk through the story of Joseph from the 219 00:12:41,679 --> 00:12:44,080 Speaker 1: Book of Genesis, both in the book and in the 220 00:12:44,080 --> 00:12:47,679 Speaker 1: Bible study, which includes a free video series. So if 221 00:12:47,679 --> 00:12:50,720 Speaker 1: you're looking for a resource for yourself, or for your 222 00:12:50,760 --> 00:12:52,560 Speaker 1: Bible study or for your small group, I'd love for 223 00:12:52,600 --> 00:12:54,160 Speaker 1: you to check out Not What I Signed up For? 224 00:12:55,240 --> 00:12:58,200 Speaker 1: All right, friends, So as we walk through this very 225 00:12:58,320 --> 00:13:01,560 Speaker 1: uncomfortable chapter, we can ask ourselves a question, Okay, what 226 00:13:01,600 --> 00:13:03,360 Speaker 1: does this mean? And we sort of talked about some 227 00:13:03,480 --> 00:13:07,960 Speaker 1: of these huge theological concepts, like the actual foundation of 228 00:13:07,960 --> 00:13:11,000 Speaker 1: what we believe in our faith happens in these chapters. 229 00:13:11,320 --> 00:13:15,559 Speaker 1: But let me share a couple more. One, silence from 230 00:13:15,600 --> 00:13:19,280 Speaker 1: God does not mean absence. We see here Jesus being silent. 231 00:13:19,360 --> 00:13:22,280 Speaker 1: We see him experiencing God is silent. It does not 232 00:13:22,440 --> 00:13:25,000 Speaker 1: mean that God is not present. That is always a 233 00:13:25,000 --> 00:13:28,200 Speaker 1: hard thing to walk through. But I take such great 234 00:13:28,240 --> 00:13:31,880 Speaker 1: comfort in this chapter knowing that Jesus has gone before us, 235 00:13:31,960 --> 00:13:34,320 Speaker 1: and that He's borne the weight of real silence and 236 00:13:34,360 --> 00:13:37,960 Speaker 1: separation so that we never have to. The second thing 237 00:13:38,000 --> 00:13:41,320 Speaker 1: we know from this chapter is that Jesus's death and 238 00:13:41,400 --> 00:13:45,240 Speaker 1: resurrection is like a shift in the cosmos. This is 239 00:13:45,320 --> 00:13:47,640 Speaker 1: not just a here's your ticket to heaven, here's a 240 00:13:47,640 --> 00:13:51,439 Speaker 1: personal experience of salvation. Jesus had to die at excruciating 241 00:13:51,480 --> 00:13:53,600 Speaker 1: death because you didn't pay your parking tickets. 242 00:13:53,720 --> 00:13:55,640 Speaker 2: That's not what this is about at all. 243 00:13:55,720 --> 00:14:00,120 Speaker 1: What we are talking about is a historical shift in 244 00:14:00,160 --> 00:14:04,319 Speaker 1: an understanding of how Jesus has gone before us, so 245 00:14:04,360 --> 00:14:06,400 Speaker 1: that as the pioneer of our faith, as it says 246 00:14:06,440 --> 00:14:08,720 Speaker 1: in the Book of Hebrews, so that we might be 247 00:14:08,800 --> 00:14:12,120 Speaker 1: able to experience real communion with God. That we are 248 00:14:12,160 --> 00:14:15,760 Speaker 1: no longer blocked from the access and the presence of 249 00:14:15,840 --> 00:14:20,360 Speaker 1: God's power, God's holiness, God's love, God's majesty. We have 250 00:14:20,520 --> 00:14:23,960 Speaker 1: access to the wisdom of God. We can experience a 251 00:14:24,120 --> 00:14:28,360 Speaker 1: spiritually awake life because of what Jesus did on the cross. 252 00:14:28,400 --> 00:14:31,240 Speaker 1: This is not just about a transaction, It is about 253 00:14:31,280 --> 00:14:35,800 Speaker 1: a complete transformation of the way the world works right 254 00:14:35,840 --> 00:14:40,680 Speaker 1: here in this powerful and painful moment. Another thing I 255 00:14:40,680 --> 00:14:42,600 Speaker 1: think we can learn is that suffering does not mean 256 00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:46,160 Speaker 1: that God has lost control. Suffering is a part of life. 257 00:14:46,160 --> 00:14:48,800 Speaker 1: But we don't have to suffer alone. Because our Jesus, 258 00:14:48,840 --> 00:14:51,040 Speaker 1: who it says again in the Book of Hebrews, was 259 00:14:51,080 --> 00:14:54,160 Speaker 1: tempted in every way but did not sin. He knows 260 00:14:54,240 --> 00:14:57,600 Speaker 1: what it is to experience the human condition. We see 261 00:14:57,640 --> 00:15:01,400 Speaker 1: in full relief that Jesus knows eis exactly how difficult 262 00:15:01,480 --> 00:15:04,320 Speaker 1: and painful it can be to be a human, and 263 00:15:04,360 --> 00:15:06,760 Speaker 1: he goes before us and brings us comfort because he 264 00:15:06,800 --> 00:15:10,640 Speaker 1: walks with us. So what does this mean for us today. 265 00:15:11,360 --> 00:15:13,720 Speaker 1: A couple of things I think we can ask, Can 266 00:15:13,760 --> 00:15:18,720 Speaker 1: I trust God when circumstances feel unresolved? Can I trust 267 00:15:18,760 --> 00:15:22,440 Speaker 1: God with the unknowns in my own story based on 268 00:15:22,600 --> 00:15:25,920 Speaker 1: the way that these circumstances played out in this story? 269 00:15:26,600 --> 00:15:28,800 Speaker 1: And then what does surrender look like for you today? 270 00:15:28,840 --> 00:15:31,960 Speaker 1: What does it look like to actually surrender at the 271 00:15:31,960 --> 00:15:35,320 Speaker 1: foot of the cross knowing that Jesus has taken your 272 00:15:35,360 --> 00:15:39,720 Speaker 1: sin upon his shoulders? If you knew that in every 273 00:15:39,880 --> 00:15:43,280 Speaker 1: part of yourself, how would you feel like, even if 274 00:15:43,280 --> 00:15:44,840 Speaker 1: you don't feel it right now? If you just ask 275 00:15:44,920 --> 00:15:48,280 Speaker 1: yourself the question if I knew I was right with God, 276 00:15:48,800 --> 00:15:51,080 Speaker 1: and I knew I was right with God today and 277 00:15:51,160 --> 00:15:54,600 Speaker 1: tomorrow and the rest of my life, just theoretically, how 278 00:15:54,600 --> 00:15:55,440 Speaker 1: would I feel? 279 00:15:55,760 --> 00:15:57,720 Speaker 2: How would I act? What would I do? 280 00:15:58,160 --> 00:15:59,880 Speaker 1: I don't know about you, but immediately what comes to 281 00:16:00,080 --> 00:16:02,800 Speaker 1: mind for me is like, well, I would be pretty lighthearted, 282 00:16:02,960 --> 00:16:07,000 Speaker 1: and I'd be pretty joyful. I'd probably be pretty freed 283 00:16:07,120 --> 00:16:10,160 Speaker 1: up in this world. And if you can't get there. 284 00:16:10,040 --> 00:16:12,880 Speaker 2: Yourself, maybe just start by asking what would that feel like? 285 00:16:13,000 --> 00:16:15,280 Speaker 1: And then what would it look like to move toward that, 286 00:16:15,880 --> 00:16:19,640 Speaker 1: to actually see that this place of rejection and shame 287 00:16:20,280 --> 00:16:23,760 Speaker 1: and a symbol of the worst that humanity can do. 288 00:16:24,200 --> 00:16:26,480 Speaker 1: Actually has become a place of victory. It becomes a 289 00:16:26,520 --> 00:16:29,440 Speaker 1: place where we feel and can be released from the 290 00:16:29,480 --> 00:16:33,920 Speaker 1: worst the world can throw at us. Here's our sealm 291 00:16:33,960 --> 00:16:37,600 Speaker 1: for today, Psalm thirteen, verse one. The Psalms invite us 292 00:16:37,680 --> 00:16:40,760 Speaker 1: to honest lament, and we see Jesus doing that here. 293 00:16:41,320 --> 00:16:44,000 Speaker 1: Psalm thirteen one says how long Lord, will you forget 294 00:16:44,040 --> 00:16:47,480 Speaker 1: me forever? And here's a one sentence prayer I'd love 295 00:16:47,520 --> 00:16:50,960 Speaker 1: to offer you. If you find yourself in an unresolved 296 00:16:51,000 --> 00:16:55,200 Speaker 1: season or a suffering season, God help me trust that 297 00:16:55,280 --> 00:16:58,560 Speaker 1: your silence is not the same thing as your absence. 298 00:16:59,280 --> 00:17:01,120 Speaker 2: What looked like feet in Mark. 299 00:17:01,000 --> 00:17:05,800 Speaker 1: Fifteen is actually victory and redemption unfolding in real time. 300 00:17:06,800 --> 00:17:09,600 Speaker 1: Subscribe now so you don't miss the final episode in 301 00:17:09,640 --> 00:17:11,880 Speaker 1: the Book of Mark, and head over to Nicoleunis dot 302 00:17:11,880 --> 00:17:14,360 Speaker 1: com slash real Talk to stay connected. 303 00:17:18,359 --> 00:17:20,960 Speaker 3: How to Study the Bible with Nicole Unice is a 304 00:17:20,960 --> 00:17:24,439 Speaker 3: production of live audio and Salem Media. If you like 305 00:17:24,480 --> 00:17:26,920 Speaker 3: what you heard today, please take a second to rate 306 00:17:27,000 --> 00:17:30,159 Speaker 3: and review the podcast in your favorite podcast app so 307 00:17:30,200 --> 00:17:33,359 Speaker 3: that more listeners like you can find the show. For 308 00:17:33,480 --> 00:17:46,080 Speaker 3: more faith filled inspirational podcasts. Visit us at liveaudio dot com.