Danny closed out our last few months of study in the book of Mark with a look at longing in Mark 12:35-44. In our culture, the concept of longing is becoming lost. With so much available on demand, we've become conditioned to avoid waiting and longing. It's become uncomfortable for us. If we were to place ourselves in the story of Mark, they were a people deeply longing for the Messiah to deliver them and rescue them. They've longed so intensely for the Messiah that it’s shaped everything about them, and it’s been intensifying for centuries.
They carried the expectation that the prophesied king would come as royalty and would conquer the earthly kingdom. This expectation wasn't unreasonable, but it was misguided. So when the man claiming to be the Messiah they'd been longing for, even preparing for, is a homeless man claiming to be God, we can understand the Pharisees confusion and even outrage. But because their longing was misguided, they missed the very thing they had devoted their lives to.
Jesus was revealing the way of the Kingdom of God and inviting them and us to let go of the need to control. To accept the reality and freedom that comes when we put Jesus in control. It is by laying down our desires, our longings, denying ourselves, and giving our longings to Jesus, that we find peace. It is where we find fulfillment. Paul calls it the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, that will guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7.
We invite you to spend time this week and ask our Father to show you if there are any misguided longings in your life, if there is something he'd like you to lay down for him, and what next step he'd like you to tangibly take this week.
POWERED BY BLUBRRY
