As we approach the most important day of the Christian calendar, it’s helpful to take a refreshing scholarly look at Mark 14-16. In addition to spiritual application, these lessons focus on the historical and sociological context of the crucifixion, burial, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. It’s amazing to see how, even on the cross, Jesus…
This week we reviewed the Resurrection of Jesus as recorded in the first eight verses of chapter 16 of Mark’s Gospel. We focused our discussion on the historicity of the Resurrection and the authenticity of Mark’s account. I also taught on this passage on Easter Sunday 2016. That lesson focused more on the textual criticism…
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Jesus: Dead and Buried. This week we studied what happened at the moment of Jesus’ death when He “cried out with a loud voice and gave up the ghost.” We briefly discussed His descent into Sheol and the various ways of understanding this part of our Christian theology. In addition to this, we observed how…
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This week we examined a couple so-called “discrepancies” between the Gospel accounts of the crucifixion (e.g., time of day and wording of the inscription), as well as what happened on the Cross. Some people mocked Jesus as they passed by, the chief priests and scribes mocked Him among themselves (typical), and even those crucified with him mocked…
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This week we took our time working through the first twenty verses of Mark 15. What we discovered is that Pilate, although Governor of Judea, was a very weak leader who could not stand up to the manipulation of the Sanhedrin. With His eyes fixed on the cross, we watched Jesus endure everything from verbal abuse…
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This week we studied Peter’s repentance after he realized his denial of Jesus; clarified the “three” trials; and learned a little bit about the first-century Roman Prefect, Pilate. This lesson served as a warning against becoming cocky in our faith (no pun intended), because we’re all vulnerable to temptation. We were encouraged as we discussed Jesus’ response to the…
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