Lord, Have Mercy

Jesus tells his disciples he’s going to die and rise — for the third time.✝️

Why don’t the disciples really get it? 🤔Can their brains just not fathom what he’s saying? Has God not opened their eyes just yet?

They don’t yet fully grasp 🙈what it means to be the Messiah — that he has to die.

Do we really get it? 🧠💭 We might understand that it happened objectively, but, subjectively, we sometimes forget the cross and what it truly means.

But the comfort is that even when we doubt, it’s still true. 🤲 

❓ Are the disciples saved at this point? Yes — because Christ called them.

📖 Compare and contrast the three passion predictions in Mark:
1️⃣ First, in the land of the Gentiles, he focuses on the Jewish authorities and what they’re going to do.
2️⃣ Second, in Judea, he focuses on the Gentile authorities and what they’re going to do.
3️⃣ Third, on the way to Jerusalem, it’s the most detailed of the predictions.

📜 Mark 10:35-45
This section contrasts the theology of the cross ⚔️ and the theology of glory.🏆

James and John 👥are asking for a theology of glory right after Jesus talks about the cross.

In a theology of glory, you’re close to God if something really amazing is happening.🌟 But Jesus was glorified in his death on the cross.

If you expect to find God only in things people would call glorious, you risk calling good evil and evil good. ❌

But can they drink the cup 🍷and handle the baptism Jesus is about to endure? Jesus hints that they will be martyred, but he doesn’t say it in words they can understand because they can’t bear to hear.

📜 Mark 10:46-52
The blind man calls out to Jesus for mercy.🙏 

Blind Bartimaeus 👀 looks to Jesus to be the Messiah and show him mercy as a poor, blind beggar.

❓ Why does Jesus make the blind man tell him what he wants?

Jesus has a way of prompting us to speak 🗣️ about things we’d rather not discuss.

We’re asked to pray for specific things, but sometimes all we have is, “Lord, have mercy.” 🤲

Contributor Rev. Harrison Goodman is the Higher Things Content Executive.

Contributor Eli Lietzau is the pastor at Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO. 

#higherthings #lcms #lutheran #jesus 

What is The Uncultured Saints?

We’re told the same thing over and over. Christianity doesn’t fit with today’s culture. The thing is, it isn’t the culture saying it. It’s the church. We’ve done a great job figuring out what we’re not. Sometimes we forget what we are. We’re the saints, washed in the blood of the lamb. We’re sinners Jesus made holy. This defines us. There are places Christianity doesn’t fit with today’s culture because Christianity isn’t bound by culture. We’re free in Christ to be uncultured. Not against it. Not apart from it. Undefined by it, because we’re defined by something greater. Join Pr. Goodman and Pr. Lietzau, the uncultured saints, as we tackle today’s issues through the lens of the Lutheran Confessions and find answers to today’s questions rooted in a timeless truth in Christ.