Mark 8:1-13

Steve Motyer has returned to the theme of hardened hearts in Mark. 6L52 is a key passage. Even the disciples has hardened hearts in that they could not understand the meaning of what Jesus has done.

Here in Mark 8, the second feeding, this time 4,000, the disciples are obedient but there is never any mention of their reaction.

Right after this we have the Pharisees coming and arguing with Jesus and demanding a sign. This is ironic. We have just witnessed a marvelous sign, one that cannot be missed, explained away. Yet their hard hearts caused them to miss it. One wonders what sort of sign would have satisfied them. I do not think anything would have been sufficient.

Motyer suggests that Jesus' response means "No sign CAN be given to this generation." "They are incapable of of seeing the sign because something within them resists the sight." - Motyer.

Perhaps the opposite of this is the sign of Jonah, which the Ninevites did respond to. They repented, or made a serious attempt to. God saw their intention and relented of his judgment.

I think God produces amazing signs all the time, in big ways and in personal ways. And yet most of us are like the Pharisees and even like the disciples. We are incapable of understanding the importance and we soon forget all about it.

I am afraid that describes me. I think DW is better at it than I. I once heard a teaching about setting up monuments in our mind. These monuments are the marvelous things we have seen and heard God do. When we are in need of encouragement we are to look at the monuments and remember.

The Old Testament has examples of this. The Israelites especially remember their deliverance from Egypt and their miraculous walk through the Red Sea. At the Passover dinner they remember it again. At communion we remember too what God did for us on the cross. Both of these are like monuments. We look up and are encouraged.