Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Throughout his gospel, Mark increasingly builds the crescendo of what Jesus' life and ministry as God's suffering servant. But in chapter 10, the climactic moment of this developing theme happens: the clearest picture of his glory, reign, and rule. "The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (10:45).
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | All through his gospel, Mark uses paradigms that non-Jews would be familiar with as a way of showing who Jesus is: i.e, King-and-kingdom, sight-and-blindness, natural-and-supernatural, reaping-and-sowing. In chapter 9, he uses another paradigm to show who Jesus - the mountaintop, the valley, and the middle. In doing so, we see who Jesus is to us in all of our highs and lows of life.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In chapter 8, Mark draws a connection between increasing clarity of physical sight with increasing clarity of spiritual sight, i.e., seeing Jesus for who He really is. Mark 8 shows us that we all bring presuppositions, biases, expectations, brokenness, pride and sin into our seeing of Jesus - and how Jesus challenges them so that we may see Him for who He is, and live.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In chapter 3, Mark convincingly shows the extent and expansiveness of Jesus' authority: on the earth, over the earth, and in heaven: specifically, over the Sabbath, Synagogue, & Sanhedrin; over the Spirits and Satan; and over Sin and Salvation.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In the first 15 verses, Mark writes about how Jesus will bring the Kingdom of God into the earth; but starting in verse 16 and onward, Mark shows Jesus bringing that Kingdom of God to earth. In essence, the second half of Mark 1 serves as a microcosm of how Jesus overall brings the Kingdom of God to earth, and what He will continue to do throughout the entire gospel: namely, through reaching, teaching, healing, and restoring.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Mark opens his gospel in a dramatic fashion, introducing the hero we've all wanted. However, Mark explains that God sends us a hero who doesn't arrive or arise to power through the systems of the world; instead, He would do so in a counter-cultural way, challenging and convicting our concept of a king and a kingdom, and bringing His own through repentance and belief - reigning in the hearts of men.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The book of Jeremiah closes, not-officially, with the book of Lamentations - Jeremiah's 'epilogue' of sorts, his closing thoughts and feelings about everything he's experienced as a prophet and what he's had to endure. Chapter 3 spotlights the 'hinge' of his entire lament, i.e., what his hopes and his heart hangs on to in the midst of unyielding pain and disappointment.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | After decades of rejecting Jeremiah's words, the people finally come to Jeremiah asking his advice and guidance. They're in pain and have no plan. Jeremiah gives them 2 options, except tragically, they choose what makes sense to them instead of following God's clear decrees.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Jeremiah 36 features arguably one of the most-epic-least-known books in the entire Bible; where God reproduces and replicates His Word in a hostile culture that wants to destroy it. He does the same today as well.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Jeremiah 35 features a unique story where God brings the Rechabites (a quasi-Amish subculture) into the Temple, for the purpose of making a point to the larger Israelite population. Chapter 35 shows us legalism, immorality, and the path to discernment.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In Jeremiah 23, God calls out the many faux leaders and false prophets in Israel, specifically listing 5 main, signs of these types of leaders - signs that are just as relevant for us today.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In Jeremiah 12, God gives the prophet Jeremiah a sobering indictment - to have faith in His plan, even when it doesn't feel fair, just, or right. The solution to this discouragement is greater faith in the righteousness, love, and compassion of God.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Jeremiah puts the people of God on notice, right as they are walking into the Temple for a worship service. According to God's Word through Jeremiah, worship has more to do with our heart posture towards and our relationship with Him and less about the building we walk into or the rituals that we keep on a certain day of the week.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In chapter 2, Jeremiah recounts why 8 different reasons why Israel abandoned the LORD. Their 8 reasons are just like ours today. God responds to Israel's straying just like He responds to us - there's 1 main reason to stay.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The book of Jeremiah opens with Israel's pseudo-religious context and God's call for Jeremiah to preach repentance over self-made righteousness.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | John 20 highlights what makes Jesus Christ truly unlike any other religious leader or person to have ever lived: the resurrection. In John 20, the gospel writer provides proof for the resurrection for the mind, a picture of the resurrection for the body and soul, and a plea of the resurrection for the heart.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | John 19 features Jesus' big, heroic accomplishment - the apex moment of his message, mission, and ministry - giving his life as an atonement for sin on the cross. As we'll see, all heroes follow Jesus' heroism: a hero fulfills his high calling, defeats evil, and ushers in a new order of goodness into the world.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | At the unjust trial of Jesus, the religious leaders show their true colors of legalism and lawlessness. Time and time again, they try to uphold certain laws while violating others - all trying to justify what they want.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In John 18, Jesus treks from the Temple Mount, through the Kidron Valley, to the Mount of Olives - and back again. His path symbolizes the gospel message, what He'd go through, and where He'd take us.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In John 17, Jesus shares what's weighing on his heart, right before going to the cross: his people. And he has one main hope and plea for them: their unity.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Jesus introduces his followers to 'another Helper' who will come once He leaves; in fact, Jesus even says that it will be an advantage for Him to leave so that the Holy Spirit can come. So, who is the Holy Spirit? What is His role? How does work?
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | John 15 recounts one of the seven 'I Am' statements of Jesus, "I am the vine." As His 'branches,' the where, how, when, and why behind God's pruning in our lives, He does so to produce the maximal good and glory.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | When Jesus says, "I am the way, the truth, and the life" He challenges and critiques the 3 main worldviews in our culture today: Universalism, Relativism, and Hedonism.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In John 12, Jesus announces that His hour had finally come - namely, his death, resurrection, and glorification. Now arrived the purpose of why He had come all along - to die as a substitute for our sin, as the true, better, and ultimate Passover Lamb.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In John 12, Jesus interacts with 6 different types of individuals and groups, each one representing 6 different ways we can respond to Jesus. Are we compulsive? comfortable? critical? curious? or a canceller? Whatever the case may be, Jesus speaks to each of us and welcomes us with open arms.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Looking at Genesis 4 and 14, as well as other texts across Scriptures, we see a common exhortation that financial generosity is a right response to God's stature, a true trust in God's character, and a high honor in God's kingdom culture.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | John 7 features 20 questions in sum, each one pinging between Jesus, the Jewish leaders, and the crowds. All in all, there are always bigger questions underneath our expressed questions; and the following audio points out 7 reasons we might question Jesus.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In John 6, Jesus makes an audacious statement of divinity - namely, that He is the true bread from heaven, the ultimate fulfillment of God's provision for His people when they cannot provide for themselves.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In John 5, Jesus meets a man who is an invalid, who has been suffering and seeking salvation - in more ways than one. Jesus meets him where he is and restores him to who God called him to be.
Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Jesus meets with a Samaritan woman at Jacob's Well, telling her about a type of water that, if she should drink it, she will never be thirsty again. His offer is still available to us today.
