Calvary: the Hill Sermons

Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem marks His holy presentation as King. This prophecy-fulfilling moment draws us ever nearer to the truth that Jesus is not the Messiah the people expected (Mark 11:1-11).

An uphill hike to Jericho is interrupted by a desperate man named Bartimaeus pleading with Jesus to have mercy on him. In Bartimaeus' example, we see a profound example for how one must submit oneself into Jesus' discipleship (Mark 10:46-52).

Jeremiah continues his ministry of prophecy but he's met with a new opposition -contradicting prophets. Jeremiah's prophecies are rivaled by those who claim that judment is not coming and that all will be well. Even in Jeremiah's own town, he's dismissed and despised, but God maintains that His words will still come to pass.

James and John, the sons of Zebedee make enemies when they ask Jesus to grant them places on His left and right in His kingdom. Jesus uses this as an opportunity to teach them how authority in His kingdom (Mark 10:32-44).

For hundreds of years, God has been sending Israel prophets to warn them about His coming judgment. Jeremiah has been called to be a tester of metals, but God continues to only find straw.

Heads turn when one approached Jesus with sincerity and desperation. Kneeling before Jesus, this man asks a deeply personal question which launches Jesus' dissertation on the economy of His kingdom (Mark 10:17-31).

Jeremiah is called to ministry when judgment is close at hand. God has looked upon His people and found them astray. Jeremiah was appointed for a time such as this.

Our discipleship to Jesus affects every aspect of our lives. In this passage, we see how Jesus has a stern opinion on how we operate of members in our family households (Mark 10:1-16).

The book of Isaiah ends with God's judgment, but we see that God's ultimate reconciliation is as much a mark of judgment as it is of salvation. God's resolution of all things is both in justice as well as in mercy.

Jesus uses provocative language to bring gravity to the discussion of sin in the life of a believer. In this passage we learn how replacing our objects of temptation lead to life but nurturing means to sin leads to death (Mark 9:42-50).

God looks upon Israel's piety and their religious practices and judges them for being emotionally vacant. Despite the appearance of spirituality, God's desire is for His people's heart dedication. In the future, however, God will fully reconcile His people to Himself, though the sequence of events may be a bit unclear. So, God's people look toward Him and wait for His coming.

When Jesus and three of His disciples descend from the mountain of transfiguration, they come to find the remaining disciples in a heated argument with the Jewish scribes. The scribes were ridiculing Jesus' disciples for their inability to cast a demon out of a young boy. Jesus, frustrated, calls out 'how long?!'

Jesus teaches His disciples that denying themselves is the way toward Life in Christ. Shockingly, He compares discipleship unto Him as a shameful death sentence. Yet, Mark intentionally fast-forwards to Jesus' transfiguration to show that self-denial comes hand-in-hand with glorification (Mark 8:34-9:13).

God promises that despite His righteous anger, He will uphold His covenant and therefore bless His people. God has great compassion even for the sinner and He will abundantly pardon their guilt. He will also expand His plan of salvation to the foreigner as well as the eunuch. God sees the licentiousness of Israel's priesthood and the idolatry of the people, yet His goodness remains available.

Here in Mark 8, we have the only example of a miracle of Jesus' that takes place in stages. Similarly, we see the gradual understanding of Peter's confession of Jesus as Messiah, but not as the Sacrifice. We, like the blind man, often grow in stages, God looks on our lack of understanding with deliberation as well as patience [Mark 8:22-33].

Isaiah tells of a coming Servant of the LORD who will rule and restore. He contrasts this Servant's faithfulness with Israel's disobedience and assures Israel that God will bring them comfort and a coming salvation. Unexpectedly, however, Isaiah begins to describe the execution of this Servant.

Beyond the signs, wonders, and miracles Jesus has performed, still the people do not believe He is from God. Wherever Jesus goes, He is met with misunderstanding and opposition, yet He continues to manifest characteristics of the God of Israel (Mark 7:31-8:21).

God reminds His people that He's chosen them and that He will not let them go. However, He foretells the coming judgment which He will send through foreign nations. Yet, just as He will send judgment through a foreign nation, He will also bring relief and deliverance through another; namely through a leader named Cyrus.

When a Gentile woman comes to Jesus begging Him to deliver her demon-possessed daughter, Jesus reminds her that He's here to preach the Gospel to the Jews first, but Jesus rewards her faith with a miracle. We're reminded in this passage how God did not want to save Israel alone, but rather that He used Israel to bring salvation to the whole world (Mark 7:24-30).

Isaiah 40 begins a new section of the book, much like the New Testament is a pivot from the Old. This new section opens with a voice in the wilderness preparing the way of the Lord, then God promises a faithful Servant. God continues to rebuke His people for their idolatry, but promises that He Himself will take them back.

God promises the judgment coming through Sennacherib. Meanwhile, Hezekiah comes down with an illness that's got him shut in. Isaiah assures Hezekiah that he will recover but Hezekiah's successor will be the worst king Judah has ever seen.

In this passage, Jesus confronts the innate hypocrisy involved in human moralism. He contends that humans are not defiled by external maladies, but instead that humans themselves are the defilers. Jesus turns the holiness code upside down by showing that what people need are not the washing of hands but the internal cleansing of the heart (Mark 7:1-23).

Mark implicates Jesus with the God of the Old Testament who sits enthroned above the flood and treads upon the waves. Using language and imagery from Exodus and Malachi, Mark proves that Jesus is both the fierce and glorious God but also the gracious servant (Mark 6:45-56).

God, through His prophet Isaiah, rebukes his people for their complacency, urging them to take seriously the coming judgment. God promises a coming redemption, but judgment will come first; even global judgment. Even so, passed the destruction, lush new life will arise. This shows God's righteousness as well as His grace.

Jesus, mourning the death of John the Baptist, departs to the wilderness to pray. The multitudes follow Him; so He takes the time to teach them, but because they're in the wilderness, they find themselves hungry without anything to take for sustenance. It is here where Jesus is found in the same position as God over Israel wandering in their wilderness. Like the God of the Old Testament, Jesus mir...