What do I know with Isaac Carroll
What do I know with Isaac Carroll
Mark 8, Bread of Compassion
The bread of compassion fills both stomachs and souls in our exploration of Mark chapter 8 - where Jesus feeds 4,000 hungry followers and challenges us to examine what truly satisfies our deepest hunger.
Jesus demonstrates extraordinary compassion by refusing to send away crowds who had followed him for three days without food. The miracle that follows is more than just an impressive display of divine power - it's rich with symbolic meaning. Seven loaves of bread, seven baskets of leftovers, all connected to biblical completeness and God's provision for both Jews and Gentiles alike. This numerical significance reveals how Jesus fulfills God's promises to all peoples.
When Jesus warns his disciples about the "leaven of the Pharisees," they completely miss his point, thinking he's concerned about physical bread. How often do we similarly miss spiritual truths because we're focused on material concerns? The healing of a blind man using saliva presents another fascinating miracle with layers of meaning - perhaps echoing God's creation of humanity from dust, now being recreated through Christ's touch.
The chapter reaches its climax when Peter correctly identifies Jesus as "the Christ" but then immediately rebukes him for predicting his suffering and death. Jesus's shocking response - "Get behind me, Satan" - highlights how easily our human thinking can oppose God's purposes. His subsequent teaching delivers one of scripture's most profound paradoxes: "Whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and the gospel will save it." This challenge to surrender our ambitions, comfort, and control strikes at the heart of discipleship.
What profit is there in gaining everything this world offers while forfeiting your soul? Join us in this deep dive into Mark 8 and consider what you might need to lose in order to truly live.
May God bless you and lead you always.
Welcome to the podcast. I'm Isaac Carroll and this is what Do I Know. Alright, in today's Bible study we are going to be in Mark, the 8th chapter, and we're going to begin at verse 1. In those days, when there was again a large crowd and they had nothing to eat, jesus summoned his disciples and he said to them I feel compassion for the people because they have remained with me for three days already and have nothing to eat and if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on. And his disciples replied to him when would anyone be able to find enough bread here, in this desolate place, to satisfy these people? And he was asking them. And they said and he directed, asking them. He told the disciples to serve them as well. And they ate and were satisfied. And they picked up seven large baskets full of what was left over, of the broken pieces.
Speaker 1:About 4,000 men were there and he dismissed them and immediately he got into a boat with his disciples and came to the region of Dalmuthah and the Pharisees came out and began to argue with him, demanding from him a sign from heaven to test him out. And began to argue with them, demanding from him a sign from heaven to test him. Sighing deeply in his spirit, he said why does this generation demand a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation. And leaving them, he again embarked and went away to the other side and the disciples had forgotten to take bread and did not have more than one loaf in the boat with them. And the disciples had forgotten to take bread and did not have more than one loaf in the boat with them. And as he was giving orders, saying Watch out, beware the leaving of the Pharisees and the leaving of Herod, and they began to discuss with one another the fact that they had no bread. And Jesus, aware of this, said to them why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet comprehend or understand? Do you still have your heart hardened? Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember, when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets of broken pieces were picked up? They said to him twelve. When I broke the seven for the 4,000, how many large baskets full of broken pieces were picked up? And they said to him seven. And he was saying to them do you not yet understand? All right, let's stop here at verse 21. Once again, jesus teaches us compassion. All right, here he is. He's been teaching the people and they've been with him for three days and he doesn't want to send them away hungry because they might faint on the way. Showing us compassion.
Speaker 1:Now, I've always been intrigued by the numbers used in the feeding of the 5,000. They're always so specific. The feeding of the 5,000, there was five loaves and two fish, which is seven. And in the feeding of the 4,000, there was five loaves and two fish, which is seven. And in the feeding of the 4,000, there were seven loaves. Now they do mention fish, but that isn't given a number, but it's almost always seven. And we've come to understand biblically seven is a representation of completion. How do we know this? Well, god gave us a complete week, which was seven days. You can't find that in any other source of timing the time it takes to go around the sun a year, 24 hours in a day. Everything has a season and a time with the spinning of the earth, but the seven days has no reference except from God. So we know that seven is a number of completion. So we have seven and he's feeding 5,000.
Speaker 1:Now, when he fed the 5,000, he fed them in a Jewish region of Tagba, on the Sea of Galilee, and it says that there was 12 baskets left over. What does this 12 represent? Well, in the Jewish region, there's 12 tribes of Israel, 12 baskets left over. What about the 4,000? Well, the 4,000 was fed in the area of Decapolis, which is a Gentile region. It says that there were seven large baskets left over. What does the seven represent? Well, if we look at scripture and scripture should always define scripture in Deuteronomy 7, it says this when the Lord, your God, brings you into the land that you are entering to possess, he will drive out before you many nations the Hittites, the Gergesites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perzites, the Hevites and the Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger than you. Now you have seven full baskets in the era of the Decapolis. These seven nations are represented in the Gentiles, and God's showing provision for them as well. Because what is he feeding everybody? He's feeding them bread.
Speaker 1:Now, why is bread significant? Well, many times Jesus says I am the bread of life. In John 6, verse 33, it says For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. Sir, they said to him give us this bread at all times. Jesus answered I am the bread of life. After this, he tells the disciples to watch out Beware the leaving of the Pharisees and the leaving of Herod. What is leaving Leaving? Well, generally, leaven is a substance that's like yeast that's added to a dough. That helps it rise right, that helps it plump up.
Speaker 1:The disciples are worried that they don't have enough bread. When Jesus mentions leaven, they're concerned that he's upset with them about not bringing enough bread, forgetting that he had just fed 4,000 people with seven loaves. They forget that Jesus isn't worried about earthly things. Whenever Jesus talks, it's always a spiritual thing concerning the kingdom of heaven. And then he corrects them harshly and he says to them are you so hard hearted that you do not understand? Yet you have eyes, but you cannot see and ears, yet you do not hear and understand. Basically, calling them no better than the people they had been preaching to, who refused to listen. It's a harsh reprimand from Jesus. What was Jesus warning them about, the Levite? What was he trying to teach the disciples? Well, in Luke 12, starting in verse 1, it says this Alright, what is hypocrisy.
Speaker 1:Let's review Matthew 23, starting in verse 2. It says the scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses' seat, so practice and observe everything they tell you, but do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. They tie up heavy burdens and loads and lay them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to remove them. All their deeds are done for men to see. They broaden their phylacteries and they lengthen their tassels. They love the places of honor at banquets and chief seats at the synagogue, the greetings in the marketplace and the title of rabbi which they are addressed.
Speaker 1:But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher and you are all brothers. Do not call anyone on earth your father, for you have one father and he is in heaven. Nor are you to call anyone an instructor, for you have one instructor and that is Christ. The greatest among you shall be your servant, for whoever exalts themselves will be humbled and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. He goes on to say woe to you, scribes and pharisees, you hypocrites. You shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces and you yourselves do not enter, nor will you let any one of those who wish to enter. Woe to you, scribes and pharisees, you hypocrites. You traverse the land and sea to win a.
Speaker 1:Now, if you really think about this, this all comes back to compassion. Why do we feed people? Why do we preach to people? Why do we clothe them? Is it because we're a chosen people? Is it because we're the elect, or is it because jesus loved and he wants us to love as well? Let's continue in verse 22.
Speaker 1:And they came to bethsaida and some people brought a man who was blind to jesus and they begged him to touch him. Taking the man who was blind by the hand, he brought him out of the village. After spitting in his eyes and laying his hands on him, he asked him Do you see anything? And he looked up and he said I see people, for I see them like trees walking around. Then again he laid his hands on his eyes and looked intently and was restored and began to see everything clearly. And they sent him to his home, saying do not even enter the village.
Speaker 1:Jesus went out along With his disciples to the village of Caesarea, philippi. On the way, he questioned his disciples, saying to them who do people say that I am? They told him saying John the Baptist and others say Elijah and others one of the prophets. And he continued questioning him. But who do you say that I am? Peter answered and said to him you are the Christ. And he warned them to tell no one about him. And he began to teach them that the Son of man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and to be killed.
Speaker 1:And after the third day he rise from the dead. As he was stating the matter plainly and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning around and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter. He said Get behind me, satan, for you are not setting your mind on God's purpose but on man's. And he summoned the crowd together with the disciples and said to them If anyone wants to come after me, he must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it. But whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel will save it. For what does it benefit a person to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? For what could a person give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation. The Son of man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with his holy angels. Alright, that comes to the end of Mark 8. Alright, once again they bring a man to be healed. First time, it was a man who was deaf and couldn't speak very well. Now they're bringing a blind man to Jesus Again.
Speaker 1:Jesus uses spit, which is an odd thing. We talked about this in the last podcast. Jesus doesn't need props to heal. We know this. So what is the point? Jesus is obviously trying to teach us something with these lessons and what I see and this is just me I've read where people say saliva has healing factors and there's all these different ideas. I'm thinking back to Genesis, when God made Adam. It says God picked up the dust from the ground and he molded it in his hands and he formed Adam. I can just imagine God picking up the dirt and spitting in it and forming it into a person. The clay is already there. Jesus uses spit to. He fixed a man's ears. He used a spit to rub in the man's eyes and work it, almost as if he was making them new. This is just me. This is just what I see, and maybe there's something more to this saliva or more to this teaching that I don't know yet, but that's what I see when I read it.
Speaker 1:All right, jesus moves into the region of Caesarea, philippi, and he asked the disciples who do people say that I am? And they come up with all different things, like John the Baptist or Elijah or some other prophet of old. And he asked well, who do you think that I am? And Peter says you are the Christ, the son of God. And he told Peter it is God who gave you this information. And then Jesus goes on to explain plainly what is going to happen.
Speaker 1:And then Peter takes him aside and I guess he completely forgets that this is God he's speaking to. It shows our unbelief and how quickly we can lose track of where we're at. He takes Jesus aside and he starts rebuking Jesus, Rebuking him. He says no, lord, this can never happen to you. Jesus looks at his disciples and he rebukes Peter and he says get behind me, satan, for you are thinking about the things of this world, but not the things of heaven. And it spurs Jesus to gather everyone together and he brings them all in and he says listen, the person who wishes to gain his life, to save his life, will lose it, but the person who's willing to lose his life for the sake of the gospel and for Christ would save it.
Speaker 1:He goes on really to explain what he's trying to say by saying what is the profit of man if he gains the whole world yet loses his soul? What does he mean by this? Well, if a person is willing to lose their life now we always equate this with the life that we die what does that have to do with gaining the whole world? The life he's referring to is the life we would live, the life we choose our stuff, our desires, our plan. We try to coexist with God. We have dreams, we have aspirations, we have work, we have things that we want, things we want to achieve. We want success, not for just ourself but for our family, and we try to work all this around in the kingdom of God At the same time trying to live a life for Christ, yet still live our lives. Live a life for Christ, yet still live our lives.
Speaker 1:And Jesus says those who are willing to lose everything that they want, everything that they desire to seek the kingdom of God first to let everything else go. The people who are willing to do this would gain their life, and those who are not willing would lose it. Jesus is always pointing to the after. There's something far greater than this life. There is something far more substantial than this life the afterlife, the life that's coming, the life that we have in Jesus. I'm going to end this one here. We'll be in Mark 9 in our next Bible study. Until then, I love you guys. God bless you. Goodbye.