Devotionals for Kids Mark 1-10 Michael Perry Jonathan Perry
Welcome to the one thing you can do that will change your life and can change the world! As you learned at SpringHill, God has graciously provided us His words and messages in the Bible. But to think of the Bible as a book of rules, or an owner s manual, or even just a collection of letters and stories is to miss its true nature and power. The Bible is more than these things, it s one big, exciting and challenging story, it s the story, the story about God, the world and His love for His people. This story takes us from the moment God created the universe to the creation of us, His people, designed for a special mission on earth with a unique relationship with Him. Early on in the story, we learn of the one single act that cut off our relationship with God, followed by the rest of the story, which is a record of His intentional work to restore that relationship as well as reclaim and restore His world. So beyond this incredible story, why should you invest time in reading the Bible? First, it s God s Word and it tells us the most important story in the world. When the God who created all things, including us, gives us a story, we re wise to read it. Secondly, because the Bible itself promises that those who read God s Word will be changed by God s Spirit. In other words, reading the Bible is a spiritual exercise that does spiritual things to us. Finally, because if our goal is to grow closer to Jesus, so we can become more like Him, we need to know more about Him. And the best source of knowing God, and understanding Him and His Son Jesus, is in the pages of the Bible. This is why we ve designed and produced this Bible reading program. Our goal is that these journals will help you begin the practice of daily Bible reading. The schedule is simple - you ll read about one chapter a day, 6 days a week, with the goal of finishing the entire Bible in three years. All it ll require is 10 minutes a day of your time. That s it. So make the commitment to do the one thing that can change your life and change the world, begin making Bible reading one of your daily commitments. We hope you enjoy these devotionals, and we hope to see you again at SpringHill. Sincerely, Michael and Jonathan Perry Devotionals for Kids 2
Day 1: Mark 1 The book of Mark tells the story of Jesus with a special emphasis on the things He did during His ministry. In this first chapter, there is no review of Jesus birth and childhood as found in Matthew and Luke. Instead, the focus of Mark is on Jesus three-year ministry. One of the key phrases you ll find throughout Mark is at once (or a similar phrase). In this first chapter alone, it appears three times. This phrase creates a sense of urgency and action in Mark s version of Jesus life. For example, just in this first chapter we read about Jesus calling His first disciples, driving evil spirits out of people, and healing the sick. We feel the fast-paced, action-filled ministry of Jesus. Yet we ll also read throughout the book of Mark that Jesus also spends significant time away from the crowds and finds time alone with His Heavenly Father. It appears that Mark wants us to understand that Jesus powerful, life-changing ministry is found in His source, which is God in Heaven. 1. In verse 8, John the Baptist says, I baptize you with water but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. What does it mean to be baptized with the Holy Spirit? 2. In verses 17-18, Simon and Andrew left their current life to follow Jesus. What are some things you need to leave behind to follow Jesus better? 3. In verses 35-37, Jesus finds a solitary place to pray to God. I would suggest as your start your journey of reading through the bible, to find a solitary place where you feel connected with God even if it is once a week. Devotionals for Kids 3
Day 2: Mark 2 One of the characteristics of Jesus and His ministry that challenged the religious leaders of His day was His love for and interaction with "sinners". In Jesus day, "sinners" were people who did not strictly follow the Law or the endless religious practices and traditions of Jewish people (i.e. tax collectors). This would include fasting, praying and the rules concerning the weekly holy day called the Sabbath. Sinners also included people who had some kind of physical deformity or disease, like the paralyzed man carried by his friends to Jesus on a matt. Yet when confronted by His association with "sinners", Jesus makes it clear that His mission was to bring spiritual healing to spiritually broken and hurting people. Jesus hung out with sinners, He had meals with sinners and He had sinners who became His followers because it was what His mission was to do. It is a mission that has not changed even to this day. The only difference is that it's now His followers' responsibility to continue to carry it out. 1. In verses 1-12, a Paralytic man has friends who go to great length to help him out. Have you ever gone to great length to help out a friend? What can you do this week to help a friend out? 2. Verse 17 talks about how the sick need a doctor. Are there sick people in your life that you can reach out to? If so, what are the specific ways you can reach out to them? Devotionals for Kids 4
Day 3: Mark 3 Even though Jesus popularity was exploding among the people of Israel, there were some who were not excited about His ministry. First, there were the religious leaders, most of whom lived in and around Jerusalem. They came out to the country to see and hear Jesus for themselves. It was obvious they didn t like what they were hearing about Jesus and certainly didn t like what they saw upfront and in person. As a matter of fact, they disliked Jesus and what He was doing so much they started to tell the crowds that he was performing all these miracles with the power of Satan. A crazy accusation considering many of His miracles were chasing demons out of people s lives. Then there was Jesus own family mother and siblings they all began to question what Jesus was doing, finding it hard to believe that their son and brother could become such a celebrity. Of all the people you d think would be supportive of Jesus, you would think it would be His family. But families don t always support a person s commitment to their faith because they don t always understand it. Followers of Jesus often experience the same responses opposition, questioning, doubts from the world and those who are closest to them. 1. Jesus faced adversity for what he believed in and for what He did. Have you ever faced adversity for what you believe in? If so, how did you respond? 2. In verses 13-19 Jesus picked his disciples. Finding a Christian community is very important. Have you found one? When you have faced adversity, who or where can you go for help? Devotionals for Kids 5
Day 4: Mark 4 Just to make sure his readers didn t come to believe that Jesus only did miracles, Mark shares some of Jesus teachings in chapter 4. As Jesus did in much of His teachings, He used parables (stories that illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson) (Earthly story with an heavenly meaning) to help His listeners learn. Jesus used parables as His teaching method for a couple of reasons. First, parables helped make His teaching memorable. Secondly, by using parables Jesus was able to reach His followers (those who believed in Him) while non-believers and those opposed to Jesus were left to ponder the meaning of His parables. These teachings not only taught a spiritual truth but were spiritual in nature, requiring God s Spirit to open the minds and hearts of the those hearing and those listening. Now having seen the two sides of Jesus ministry; the miraculous works, including Jesus calming a storm, and His transforming teaching Jesus disciples ask, Who is this? (vs. 41). It s a question not only the disciples ask, but it s a question Mark wants His readers to ask who is this Jesus? 1. Verses 1-20, Jesus tells a parable about 4 kinds of seeds, which kind of seed are you? Why would you say that? 2. Verses 21-25 Jesus talks about a lamp being place where it can be seen and not under a bowl. Has your light been hiding under a bowl? What does it mean or what does it look like to place your lamp on a stand? 3. Verses 35-41 talks about the disciples showing little faith. Has there ever been a time in your life when you showed little faith? How did God provide for you during that time? Devotionals for Kids 6
Mark 5: Day 5 After a chapter full of Jesus teachings, Mark brings us back to Jesus works. In chapter 5 we see three different miracles, each providing us a glimpse into the power and authority of Jesus. The first miracle was an exorcism of a legion of demons from a very sick man. Ironically, when called out by Jesus, the demons asked to go into what Jewish people would consider unclean animals - a nearby herd of pigs. Both the loss of income as well as exposure to this religiously looked down upon occupation of being a pig farmer caused the local people to ask Jesus to leave their area. But Jesus was not done for the day. After sailing to the other side of the lake of Galilee, He and the disciples are greeted by a crowd of people looking to be healed or looking to see another miracle. The second miracle Mark records is of a woman who has been ill for 12 years. Her illness (a continuous bleeding) would have made her unclean preventing her to participate in any of the ceremonies in the Jewish religious life. The final miracle is truly powerful and packed full of meaning raising a young girl from the dead. Jesus demonstrated in this one miracle His power over the greatest fear people have the finality of death. In these three miracles, Jesus showed His authority over the spiritual realms, over health issues with the physical body, and most importantly - over death. 1. Verses1-20 is a story about Jesus casting demons into pigs. This shows that Jesus has the power over demons and that they even feared him. Are there any demons in your life? Are you willing to surrender them? God can cast them away for & from you. 2. Verses 21-34 talks about a sick woman touching Jesus cloak and being healed. Jesus is pleased with her because she showed faith by touching him. In what ways can you reach out and show faith by touching Jesus cloak? 3. The last part of the chapter talks about Jesus raising a girl from the dead. Is there anything in your spiritual life that God needs to raise from the dead? Devotionals for Kids 7
Day 6: Mark 6 Part of Jesus mission was to prepare some of His followers to continue His work after he leaves the earth to go be with His Father in Heaven. The people Jesus picked for this Holy job is what we now call the 12 disciples (see chapter 3). They were men from different walks of life who would become Jesus closest friends and confidants. Jesus invested much of His time in them, He took them on retreats (vs. 31), He trained them to do His work, and then sent them out (vs. 7-13). He listened to their stories when they returned (vs. 30) and even included them in His own great works and miracles (like feeding the 5000 with a few loaves of bread and a couple of fish). What was Jesus looking to accomplish in the lives of His 12 disciples? To build their faith in Him. This is why He sent them out, included them in His work, and why He walked on the water out their fishing boat. Jesus knew the most important task He could do for the future leaders of His Church would be to build a strong faith in Him. If they had faith in Jesus, nothing would be impossible for them including facing severe trials, persecution, and even death. 1. In what ways can your train for God s work? Is this a daily training? Are you willing to be disciplined and take on the training that is needed to do Gods holy tasks? 2. The disciples were persecuted for showing their faith. Have you been persecuted for standing up for your faith? If not, what ways can you show your faith? Devotionals for Kids 8
Day 8: Mark 8 Have you ever thought about the reason why Jesus told those he healed to not tell anyone? He said this to the blind man whom He gave sight in Mark 8:23-26. Why would Jesus want people to be quiet about the good works He did for them? You would think He d want the people He healed to tell the world about His good works. Yet Jesus didn t want that kind of publicity. The answer to this question may be found in the other situations where Jesus told His disciples to not tell others what they knew and what they had seen while being with Jesus. These situations all revolved around Jesus revealing to His disciples His true identity (see vs. 27-30) that He was the promised Messiah. Jesus knew that if the public began to believe He was more than just a prophet (the Messiah) they would try to make Him an earthly king of Israel, potentially even by force. Jesus came not to be the earthly king of Israel but instead the King of God s Kingdom. He would set His people free, not from political bondage, but from spiritual bondage. 1. In verse 34 Jesus says if anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. What does it mean to deny yourself and take up your cross? What does that look like in your daily life? 2. We have read about many miracles this past 7 days. What miracles or God Sightings have you seen in your life this week? If none come to mind, take the time to look closely for them this week. Devotionals for Kids 9
Day 9: Mark 9 In our last reading we talked about Jesus wanting to keep quiet about the reality of who He was the promised Messiah. Even among the disciples there was some misunderstandings of what this meant. This may have contributed to Jesus reluctance to have others speak on His behalf. This happens again in chapter 9 when Jesus takes His closest disciples up to a mountain where they see Jesus in His heavenly glory. There they find Jesus meeting with two Old Testament saints Moses and Elijah (don t you want to know what they talked about?). After this remarkable experience, Jesus gives the three disciples orders to not tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man was raised from the dead (vs. 9). This event confirms the identity of who Jesus was, and is; the promised Messiah - the one who came to save the people from their sins. The responsibility of His disciples (but only after Jesus left this earth) was (and still is today) to make sure this Good News is shared with all people. 1. In verse 35, Jesus says if anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last and servant to all. This is about being humble and serving all (including our enemies). How can you impact the kingdom of God by being humble and serving other in your day today? 2. Jesus uses a hyperbole (an intentional exaggeration to make a point) about cutting limbs off to keep from sinning. Is there anything you need to cut off to keep yourself from sinning? 3. In verse 50, we read about how salt is good until it looses its saltiness. What kinds of things can we do daily to stay salty? Devotionals for Kids 10
Day 10: Mark 10 Part of Jesus mission was to bring forth and introduce His Kingdom and its values to the world. We see this part of His ministry so clearly in this chapter. Jesus literally turns the values of the world upside down. First, He makes it clear that the sacredness of marriage and the value of women in His sight, a value much different from the ancient world as well as our world today. Next, He elevated the place of children in society and uses them as an example of the kind of faith we are to have. This is followed by Jesus discussion with a wealthy, young man who He tells to give away all His riches. In the ancient Jew s eyes, riches and material possessions are seen as good. They are believed to be a sign of God s blessings. So the young man and Jesus listeners are shocked when He tells the man to give away all he owns (his blessings). Again Jesus introduces a new social order it s not having lots of stuff that blesses you. Instead, the blessing comes when you give away what you have to others who are in need. Finally, we read about two of Jesus disciples who quietly lobby to be placed in the two highest positions of authority in God s Kingdom right behind Jesus. Once again Jesus turns the world s idea about authority around by claiming that those that want to be have power and authority must first be the servants to others. 1. In verses 17-31 Jesus talks to a rich man about entering the kingdom of heaven. The problem with the rich man is that money is his god. Because he puts money fist he cannot enter the kingdom. Is there anything you have first before God? If so, how can you replace that idea with God? 2. In verse 43-45 talks about life of service and how Jesus came to earth to serve and gave his life as a ransom for many. How does serving everyday look like? Devotionals for Kids 11