NEW TESTAMENT 2023 - WEEK 13 [MATTHEW 14; MARK 6; JOHN 5-6] - Creative Come Follow Me with Maria Eckersley
2023 WEEK 13 [MATTHEW 14; MARK 6; JOHN 5-6]
“Be Not Afraid”
March 27 – April 2
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Transcript
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Hey everybody. Welcome back. This is week 13 of Creative. Come follow me for the New Testament and this week we are in Matthew, and Mark and John we're covering some really big miracles like the feeding of the 5,000 and the healing of the man at the pool of Bethesda and Peter walking on the water and the Savior in the fourth watch when he goes and he stills the storm.
I mean, there are some big moments that happen, but I would say probably the biggest moment is the Savior's Bread of Life sermon. In fact, it's that sermon that made me decide that this is where we should advance to an orange belt level. So if you're following along in the Discipleship Dojo card, this is where you shift from yellow, orange, and that's because this is one of those pinnacle sermons that teaches us.
he Come Follow Me Manual has [:And it basically mentioned two things that called out to me. First it said that all of the Savior did these wonderful things. A big portion of his ministry was to empower others to do wonderful things, especially his apostles who he's training in his Discipleship Dojo. So you see that happen this week in a few different places, and I'll point it out.
Another big thing that I love is he en encourages people to accept him and have faith in him, even when they can't fully understand what he's teaching them. That's a lot of what you're gonna get in the Bread of Life sermon. It's this invitation to have faith and believe even when you can't quite wrap your head around exactly what he's trying to say.
He knows that they'll understand in time, but he's asking people to just have faith in who he is. He also makes a big push to teach about the witnesses that we have. So if you're struggling to have faith in him, if that's a big leap, then he gives you all these additional evidences that you can lean on.
the miracles themselves, but [:But this is a big week where if you're in the course, you're gonna wanna dive into the notes. They're a little longer this week just cause there's so much to cover. But if you're hoping to go a little bit deeper into any of these miracles or into the sermon itself, and find out more about what the prophets and apostles have said regarding these verses, go into the notes.
But for those of you who can't, or if you're just in a hurry, stick with me and I'll guide you through it so that when you do get to your scriptures, you can jump in with both beat and enjoy all the goodness that's in front of you. So how are you guys? Let's get started. Grab your scriptures, grab your notes.
It's time to jump into.
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rt about King, her, I almost [:Herd is not a king, he's a Ted shark. He, so he's over a certain area of the Jews and he's put in place by Romans, and he is someone who is, um, Falling prey to his lust. I, I don't know his full story, but I do know from the verses that when you study that essentially he has taken his brother's wife for his own.
And that is an unlawful marriage, especially according to the Jews. And so John the Baptist made that really clear that their union is unlawful and that creates some enemies for John the Baptist because Herod and his new wife hous, um, are pretty much against John the Baptist at this point, cuz they're angry at his outcry.
of people, in fact, a lot of [:What's interesting to me is when push comes to shove, He leans on the side of his own lust and his own pride and and falls. So you'll see if you look in five, he fears the multitude. He, he wants to execute John, but he won't because he's afraid of the multitude lashing out against him. But when it comes to his wife and his wife's daughter, things turn.
So on his birthday party, you can see him verse six. Essentially what happens is hous that the new wife has her daughter dance before herd. What's particularly creepy about that is the daughter would be herd's niece, right? Because it used to be his brother's wife. So this is a very incest kind of vibe.
you go into the study in the [:And that's kind of what's happening to her. When push comes to shove, essentially what happens is the daughter dances before him. She pleases him so much that he says, I'm gonna give you whatever you want. And she, of course, because her mother's influenced her, asks for the head of John the Baptist. So then herd's stuck.
He can either keep his word in front of all the people that he just made this big boastful promise, or he can please the Jews that he rules over. And when push comes to shove, he chooses to hold onto his pride and his lust and his weakness. So he has John executed. What's interesting about this is I think the way the savior responds to it.
t, and so he is taking every [:is training ground. So you see that the disciples of John bury the body and then come and tell Jesus about it. And Jesus does two things. First, he goes to a solitary place. I think he needs to grieve and he needs to process this, and he needs to talk to his father in heaven. And then he shows compassion.
So if you look at 14 and Jesus went forth, he doesn't stay in this solitary place, he doesn't stay in his grief, he goes forth and he saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion toward them and he healed their sick. To me, I see this as an incredible lesson on how to handle grief. I think he knows his apostles are gonna have this kind of weight and grief after he goes and they're gonna need to know how to deal with it.
eels all these things and he [:Um, you know, she, she was dealing with chemo at the time and her husband, I think, gives her this recommendation that shes, she should serve in some small ways and she first bristles at it and then over time tries it and then realizes what a balm it is to her sickened body to have this outlet. And I think that's what the savior is trying to teach all of us in this moment of incredible grief where he turns outward because he chose to turn outward, more people gravitate towards him.
ace where there's not enough [:So they come to Jesus and say, you know, like, should we send the people home? And Jesus's response is empowering. Remember that's what he does this week and all the weeks he's trying to help empower them to live up to their priesthood privileges. And I think he's trying to teach them how. So if you look in the verses, he says in 16, but Jesus said unto, unto them, they need not to part, give you them to eat.
The apostles don't have any food, , they don't know how to solve this problem. To me, it is very similar to the brother Jared, just like we talked about last week. I think they're, he is presenting them with a problem and saying, use your creative talent, use your energy, come up with a solution. And so they struggle, but they come up with something, right?
acious, I can work with that [:And what he often will say to me is, Maria, I can work with that. You know, like I talked to you about it before. I almost picture it like, um, you know who those competition shows like Project Runway or Top Chef or any of those competition type shows where the real masters can take anything and create something incredible out of it.
You know, they can take seat belts and make a prom dress or people on Top Chef can take like gas station food and make something that tastes like it's from a gourmet restaurant that teaches you that they are a master. That's the same thing that the Savior does here. He's saying, I can work with that. I just need you to bring me something to multiply.
Bring me something and I can work with it. And again, I think he's trying to help them see you can do this too. They're gonna need to perform their own miracles down the road. And he wants them to understand like, this is within your grasp. Let me show you how it's done. So you get a taste of what he does.
He takes the loaves and the [:I really love that the disciples are the ones, or the apostles are the ones that take it to the multitude. There is something about that visual that I think is really powerful. He doesn't have everybody make a great big line and come through a buffet of sorts. He has them sit in companies. In fact, we'll see this in some of the other gospels, but he invites them to sit in an organized way and then the apostles take things to them.
I think he's showing them, you know, the order of heaven, that there is order and process, and that these men who are gonna be your leaders, they are your servants. They are here to bring you food and to give you what I multiplied. There is something really powerful about that message in the visual to me.
[:Not that we can produce this same kind of miracle. I mean, no one can produce the same kind of miracle that I'm aware of, but I think he's trying to teach his apostles and us that there are privileges that we need to rise to that when we choose to use our powers for good and then turn to him to be the multiplier, miracles can happen.
In fact, they have happened and they can happen again. , we learn in verse 21 that in addition to the 5,000 men, it's women and children, these families, almost like King Benjamin style families who come and participate in this miracle, witness it, consume it, and I'm sure want to go tell everyone they know because pretty soon a massive multitude is following the savior.
parts. Like right after this [:He wants them to process things and understand. I also think he's trying to help his apostles grow up a little bit in their understanding. They, they're maturing at a different rate than other people and he, he has a test for them. So basically the Savior sends them out on the Sea of Galilee and he goes apart to pray.
What's interesting about this is this is a bit of a shift from the last miracle we saw on the Sea of Galilee. Last time the Savior was in the boat and he was sleeping. This time he is apart, maybe on one of those mountains that's around the Sea of Galilee. And it's kind of interesting to me that he, there's this progression.
ns that are aligned with his [:Do things better on their own, and that means you have to put 'em to the test and they have to fail a little bit. I mean, that's what every Good Dojo leader would do, right? So that's what you're gonna see play out in this next miracle. So in the second half of Matthew 14, you're gonna see the sea and the storm, and you're gonna see what happens with Peter.
So when you own the verses first, it talks about how the winds are contrary in 24. So things are not going well. Steve Galilee is about seven miles at least a distance that Nate, they need to cross and the winds are going against them, which means they are toiling all through the night. This is those that fourth watch story.
ust had this big day in this [:and now they go straight into a boat at evening and row all night long. I can't even imagine how tired their arms are. First from hauling food for 5,000 people and then from rowing for like nine hours straight. So they're in the fourth watch and they are struggling and then they see something coming.
So if you look in 25 in the fourth watch, Jesus went onto them walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled saying it is a spirit. And they cried out with fear. I think this is the same thing we talked about when we were telling the Christmas story. You know like there's a reason angels say fear not when they , when they come.
Sometimes I think religious experiences are kind of scary at first. Everything is unfamiliar and you're not, it's hard to get your bearings things. I mean, they've never seen somebody walk on the water before. And I just think that's important to help our kids understand cuz they're gonna have some spiritual encounters that can be.
the first time you go to the [:And so that's what Jesus does. He tries to help bridge that cap. So in 27, but straightway Jesus speak unto them, saying, be of gir. It is. I be not. That is one of my very favorite phrases. In fact, it's in several of the gospels because oftentimes when I am afraid, that is the phrase that comes back to my mind, be of good cheer.
It is. I be not afraid when we know that it is him. You can be of good cheer even when the storm has instilled. In fact, I love that he's giving them this instruction when the storm is still raging and their muscles are still tired. He says, be a good cheer because it's me, . You know, it's that same message that we've heard from President Nelson over and over again about trusting in the focus of our life and on the circumstances.
you don't need to be afraid. [:And I feel like this is Peter advancing. He's in the same spot that, that the apostles were when they were trying to figure out what food they could possibly give the 5,000. He's in a spot where he is like, I don't know how I'm gonna come. I just know if you asked me to, it can be done the same way. The apostles just before had come and said like, we have this spread, we have the as fish, what can we do?
I feel like Peter understands. He's like, I don't know how it's gonna work, but if you asked me to, I know I can do it. Part of the reason I think that works is because of what they learned on the water. Last time when Peter was on the boat with the savior last time and the savior said they were gonna get across, they got across.
lt in the last test and he's [:In fact, if you look in 29, it says he walked on the water to go to Jesus. There's a great talk from Elder Hollands. I can't remember if I put it in the notes. It's in his book, our Daystar Rising, but he essentially says, we should applaud this moment. Peter is the only person other than the Savior in the history of ever who has walked on the water that we know of.
This isn't. We should celebrate even imperfect faith like this because he accomplished something incredible. In fact, I think that's what the Savior sees. I love I, there was a talk for Michael Wilcox years ago that I listened to where he talked about the empty seats and he says, you, you wanna picture the boat from the Savior's perspective that he doesn't, he can see the empty seat that Peter could have been sitting in and shows to get out of his comfortable seat on the boat and come out on the water.
And there's something [:I think you get credit for all the things you could have chosen when you choose to like try to advance, to try to come closer. and that's what I think he is speaking to Peter, right when he talks about his little faith. So when you look in the verse it says, but when Peter saw the wind boisterous, this is verse 30, he was afraid and beginning to see, he cried, Lord, save me.
rfectly and that he couldn't [:Doesn't mean the savior isn't pleased with him. I think he's saying this is a beginning. You're sprouting. This is great. You know, I, I, I see this as a moment of rejoicing cuz I think the savior can see the empty seat in the boat and he can see where Peter. Just like we talked about a couple weeks ago, Peter's a fisherman.
He spent his whole life on the water. If he was sinking in the water, he should be swimming to the boat. You know, like his instincts and everything he's learned his whole life would tell you, swim to the boat. But he doesn't. He reaches for the savior. He turns that direction and I think that is a big jump in his sprout.
I think the savior sees that and he says, it's little faith. Don't doubt. Embrace what you know about who you are and what you can do. Trust in it. And so I think for me, I read it as encouraging. When you go a little bit further, you see that as soon as they get to the boat together, the wind ceases. And this is when the apostles advanced their own testimonies.
They all where they, where [:When they get out on the boat. There's more people to help and teach and save, and so he does. In fact, you see that all the people who come to him who reach out to the savior are made whole.
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hat are on the inside of the [:And I feel like that's our job in this life as well, that we can't see ourself as just this middle space, this mortal experience. We came from something great and we will be something great, and our job is to knock down those walls so that the light can shine in and we can see ourselves fully. When I read Mark six, especially the part where they talk about, isn't this just the carpenter's.
I feel like this is giving you an understanding of what happens when you choose to only see the middle room, when you choose to only like you put these mortal blinders on and you refuse to break down those walls because he is a carpenter son, just like we talked about last week. He is Mary's son, but he is not only a carpenter's son.
wo, you can see that they're [:I feel like this is a spiritual impression that they're getting about the savior. That there is something here and they're dazzled by it. And then what happens every time you get a spiritual experience is the, the adversary comes and tries to douse it with. Mortality with those mortal blinders, he's, he doesn't want you to knock down those walls.
So he tries to douse them with reality that they can see and taste and smell. And for them that is just this, isn't this just the boy from Nazareth? So that's how they react because of that reaction where they just neutralize that spiritual experience. Essentially what happens is he can do no mighty works.
was a really powerful piece.[:I think oftentimes I see myself with just these mortal blinders, you know, I get opportunities to do something scary and hard and challenging and like inspiring, and I see myself as just the carpenters . Then I just kind of shut down and I think when I choose. When I choose that for myself, or I choose to see others that way, I think he is surprised at my lack of belief.
I, I just think they're, it's interesting to see that he has emotions towards them, that he marvels because of their unbelief, because he's done all these miracles. They've heard the witness, they've seen things. They should know that he's capable of so much more. The same way I should know, you know, I've seen him perform miracles in my life already, so I shouldn't be afraid.
oo, that he marvels, that we [:When you go a little bit further, you're gonna see that he gives his apostles power, just like we've talked about in the past. He's trying to endow them with power and to send them on their way without first or script or any supplies. When you look in 13, you see. what happens because of this choice, they, they go through, they go on the missions in these pairs, and they go out and accomplish great things.
We don't have a whole lot of detail about what they do. You just know in 13 that they cast out many devils and anointed many with oil, many that were sick and healed them. To me, I, I think that first moment when they anointed someone with oil and put their hands on their head for that very first miracle was probably a lot like walking on the water.
their own walk on the water [:And then you learn a little bit as you go further in sixths about Herod. So this is the same story we heard before about why John the Baptist died. There are a few key things that I think are worth noting in Mark six. First off, I think you wanna see that Herod is afraid of the ghost of John. This is really interesting to me the same way I um, I have a friend who doesn't believe in God and doesn't believe in the afterlife, but is afraid of ghosts and
The contradiction of that always kind of makes me laugh cuz it just seems sort of silly, right? And I think that's kinda what you see with Herod. He clearly isn't afraid of God. He'd beheaded his prophet, but he's afraid of the ghost of God that it might, you know, like there is a contrast that comes that I have a hard time wrapping my head around.
ieved in, that he. Had faith [:Not deep enough that he could stand up to his wife and her demands or the pride that he felt in the room when he'd made this big promise. The other thing you see is what he offered. The dancing girl in front of him, his niece, basically in 23, he offers, offers her half of his kingdom. I don't know why that jumped out at me this time.
Maybe it's because of what we write in the Old Testament with Esther. I just thought that was such an interesting contrast that Esther has offered half of the kingdom as well. And what she chooses to do is to leverage that to save an entire people. And what this girl does, I think at the request of her mother, is to leverage that power in order to destroy a prophet of God.
And the contrast between those two young women was just sort of stark and instructive to me. And then you go a little bit further and you see why he hasn't beheaded that he's afraid because of this oath. I think he probably made this promise to this girl in a moment of. Stupidity. Maybe even drunken stupid, I'm not sure.
[:I, I didn't take the time to look it up, but it's in my margin. It says the vast majority of work in the church is done by people who don't feel very well . And I just love that quote. I wonder sometimes if that's what's happening in the mark account of the feeding of the 5,000. Cuz what you learn at the very beginning, right after the death of John, the, the John the Baptist, that they have come back from their missions and they are tired, you know, they've been working hard and they just got home and they're telling the savior everything that's happened.
eat like. , he can see their [:What's amazing to me is what happens next? Basically, the people see them go and they run on foot to catch them. The disciples went in a ship, but everybody else must have like run along the coastline to try and keep up with them so that they could get to this solitary place. And this is where you see that same verse about the savior having compassion on them, that he sees this multitude who is running to keep up to be where the savior is.
And they, and he has compassion on them. And so he stops and he teaches them. And that's what makes me think of that quote of, I think the apostles are tired. I think the saviors probably tired, but when compassion and fatigue are weighed out, the savior always leans towards compassion and he stops and he teaches.
I wonder if that impacts his [:He sees these people who are eager for guidance. In fact, what he says in 34 is that he, the reason he has compassion is because they were sheep not having a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things. These are people who are eager to hear his words and understand his teachings. And so, you know, I mean, no great teacher can resist a room like that or a desert like that you, he is eager to help them understand who he is and why he came.
So he starts to teach them and then they start to get hungry. And so you have that same miracle play out just with a slightly different, What I like in the market count is what you see in 36. First, would the apostles come to the savior? They say they have nothing to eat, meaning it seems to me like they, they've looked over the masses and they're like, we've got nothing.
We need to send them home so they can get food, and then they come up with a solution, right? So in 37 he answered and said into them, give you them to eat right? This is that invitation of like, well, what do you wanna do about getting air in your barges? What do you wanna do about getting light? And so they come up with a solution.
So they say, [:I don't know if that's how this played out, but if the apostles in this moment are saying like, this is all we have in the coffer, but we could buy enough bread with just this, I think the savior loves those kind of. Efforts, you know, when we do the very best we can to scrape together whatever mortal solution we can come up with and then come to him.
He rewards that with grace. I've seen that in my life multiple times where, you know, it's the same thing without, with the 16 stones, it's, this is the best I can come up with. Will you touch it and bring it light? And so that's what happens. He basically invites them to see things his way. So in 37 he answered and said on to them, give you them to eat.
And they say unto, shall [:Oftentimes the savior, when he is, when the spirit's prompting me with an answer, I feel like the answer is often like, Maria, did you look again? Like, go look again. You know, I know you think you don't have any solutions. Go look again. It's almost like the story with Elijah and the servant opening his eyes.
You know, he's basically saying like, there are chariots out there. You're just, your eyes weren't open to see them go and see. So now their eyes are opening and they're like, there must be something out there. And when they knew, they say, okay, we have five loaves and two fishes. This may have been something that they were aware that they had before, but they never thought of it as a potential solution.
e commanded them to make all [:And the two fishes divided among them all the. . One of the things I love about this story, I had never read it with a sacrament lens, but I actually think we get to see this miracle play out all the time. The reason this came to me this week is Will was in charge of bringing the bread last week, and he only brought like this half loaf of bread.
And I was like, will, that's not gonna be enough. And he said, oh mom, we only need a couple of pieces. And I was thinking about like, our congregation is pretty big, oftentimes we're halfway into the gym, how can only a couple pieces feed a whole congregation? And then I watched it play out and he was absolutely right.
very Sunday. We get to see a [:And I just loved that piece of the story. Not only that, but there is so much left over that they can gather it up into 12 baskets. The reason this jumped out at me is I think anytime I doubt that his grace is sufficient no matter what it is, if it's a sin that I'm trying to deal with, if it's, if I forgiveness, I'm trying to seek, if it's forgiveness, I'm trying to offer others.
If it's whatever it is that I need, the power of the atonement of Jesus Christ for this miracle story should be evidence to my heart that his grace is sufficient. If he can feed 5,000 plus their families with five loaves and two fish, he can do miraculous things with me. One of the most comforting verses in scripture is one that talks about how God never slumbers or sleeps, and I think you get just a taste of that at the end of Mark.
What's interesting about the [:Either way, I feel the fact, the very fact that the savior's up between 3:00 AM and 6:00 AM after this enormously miracle field day, where, you know, it takes effort and energy out of him that he is up in those hard hours with his apostles. That just, you know, I think he is with us, I think in all of our trials and all of our fourth watch moments, he is with us even if we can't see him close.
And, and that's what's happening with the, these apostles. In fact, one of the things that was interesting to me as I was sort of, you know, going down the rabbit hole of this idea is I was led to the verses. In Yosemite when he asked three of these apostles to wait with him and watch with him during these hours of hardship.
He waits and he watches and [:But regardless, the very fact that he's ever taken a boat before this is remarkable to me. Cuz if you can walk on the water , why doesn't he, you know, why did, why was he in the boat the last time? And then it brought my mind back to those temptations of the adversary. I think the savior is very careful to only use his power and his priesthood to do and to serve.
And when it's the will of. And for whatever reason in this moment, it's the will of God that he walk on the water to get to these apostles. And so he does. He walks towards them. You don't get the story of Peter walking on the water this time. You just get the story of the miracle of the storm being stilled.
m, be a good cheer. It is. I [:What was interesting to me is I wondered how they could hear him. You know, like if there really is this epic storm and they're so tired, how did they hear him? I then it was interesting cause I'm reading the book Mormon alongside the New Testament, and I was reading that part about Nephi and Lehigh when they're in the prison and.
they can hear the voice, you know, all, even the people who are in the prison with them can hear the voice and they describe it as this piercing whisper. In fact, I wrote it in my margins, what does he call it? The voice of perfect mildness. It is this piercing sound, and I think there must have been something to that in this storm, because whatever he says and however far away he is, when he says it, it gets through to them and he gets on the boat and the storm stills.
d, for behold, they consider [:And then I started to think about what I had just read in the book, Mormon. So there's this part where that same nephi when he's trying to teach the people and they won't listen, and he's aching, he's in his garden tower. Ignore this part. It's like right before the savior comes again, you're in Heliman and it's, he's wrestling with the fact that no one believes.
And then he gets this visit, he gets this witness from the Lord that he. He has power to accomplish what needs to be accomplished. In fact, what's, you can go in Heliman and read, I think it's in chapter 10, but he talked about how he'll now have the power to move mountains and he'll have power to do things according to the will of God that God trusts, that he would not ask for something that's out of the realm of what God would want him to do.
I found myself wondering if [:What I showed you with the story of the loaves and the fishes and feeding 5,000 people, that priesthood power that I used, that's available to you. So why did you toil for nine hours on the water? Why didn't you pray sooner? Why didn't you try to still the storm? I don't, I don't know for sure, but part of me thinks that maybe that's what he's trying to teach each of us.
There's a great talk from, I think it was Elder Ud Dff, about living up to your privileges and appreciating the power of the priesthood, studying it and putting it to use. And I think I felt my heart pull towards those verses in that way that I think we live below our privileges and I think he wants to empower us to take care.
see the same promise you saw [:In fact, the way it's written in Mark, it says that people carry the sick and infirm in their beds towards the savior and that they line the streets with the sick, and anybody who touches the hem of his garment is made whole, just like we saw with the wound, with the issue of blood.
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John five has one of my favorite miracles. It's the healing of the man at the pool of Bethesda. So this happens on the Sabbath in Jerusalem at the time of a feast or Passover, some kind of celebration is happening and the Savior is there in Jerusalem, which means he could be at any number of places, you know, at synagogue's teaching on the streets.
And instead he goes to this somewhat pagan place. I mean, this is a place where people have a superstition that if they can get into the water, in fact, if they can be the first one in the water after it's troubled or after it moves, then they can be healed. It's this superstition and the savior chooses to go there of all places,
[:That this is a way to show compassion because you see the way the savior interacts with him first all, first of all, he goes where this man is, despite the fact that this is not a place that the savior would hang out. He goes here cuz this is where this man is who needs help. So I think there's something important for me to understand about when I want to really help someone who is grieving or dealing with pain or loss, I have to meet them where they are.
rst and never can get there. [:You can see that in verse six. He doesn't ask the man to justify what has happened. He doesn't ask a whole history. He doesn't pry into any of the details. He just simply asks, do you want to be whole? And the man's response is really interesting. So he says in seven, sir, I have no man. When others are able to go into the water and have somebody to carry them into the water, he doesn't have that.
And he's struggling cuz he can never get into the water first. Other people rush ahead of him. It's really interesting to me that the savior takes the time to hear this piece of this man's story because again, the savior doesn't believe in this tradition. He knows. That the waters can't heal on their own.
em weep and then he goes and [:I think when we're talking about how to minister to people who need the right kind of compassion, uh, it has to look like this. It has to be something where we choose to just let them. , let them speak and let them be heard and not try to placate and not try to correct and not try to justify why these horrible things have happened, but just to let them be heard and then to bless them with service and dignity.
And that's what the Savior does. So an eight Jesus sayeth unto rise, take up their bed and walk. And he does. This is what happened. The man in this moment, I don't know what kind of miracle has to happen in order for legs who that have been impotent for 38 years to all of a sudden be able, not just to stand up, but to carry a bed and walk.
I mean, think how much physical therapy that would require. This all happens in an instant and this man is healed. And what's interesting to me is what happens after. So the Pharisees see him carrying his bed and they call him on it cuz it's the Sabbath. And according to the oral tradition, you can't do any work on the Sabbath.
consider carrying things. , [:What probably the most powerful part of this whole story to me is this understanding that sometimes you have to embrace the spirit of law. Like you have to let the people who need to be loved matter more than the rules that need to be followed. Sometimes you have to embrace that flexibility. , what came to my mind is I was studying, this is, you guys will have to forgive me for all the cancer stories, but we, Jason and I are making these videos for our posterity
they put the band on him and [:The first thing he said to me is, Marie, do you wanna get outta here, ? And I was like, no, you've just got a minute to the hospital. We are not going anywhere. And he was like, no. Like if I'm gonna, I wish I could remember the exact word he said, but he is like, if, if I'm gonna face this cancer and I'm gonna deal with all this, I'm gonna do it on my terms.
And so he put on a sweater and he threw his jeans on and he's like, we're gonna go. We took a drive to 7-Eleven to get a random garbage gummy food, and then come back to the hospital. Of course got caught by the , the people in the ED as we were coming back in. But he was like, in that moment I could've been really strict about the rules and I could have said, no, Jason, the nurses will never let you off this floor.
d in that moment is when all [:It's powerful. And I didn't, I didn't know it then, but I certainly can feel it now. And I think we have to approach our ministering and our even just caring for our friends and our family in that way, that we have to let the person to be loved matter the most. And we have to find ways to give them dignity when they need help.
And I think the Savior's a beautiful example of that. , breaking the rules of the hospital did not earn us popularity among the nurses. It does not earn the savior popularity among the streets of Jerusalem either. In fact, the Pharisees turn violently against him cuz now they're seeking to slay him. If you look in verse 16, but by 18 they're, it gets higher cuz now he's starting to compare himself with God and that's where they start to turn from instead of just him breaking the Sabbath.
powerful about the Savior's [:In fact, if you go a little bit further, you see. Other authority that he has received. So he talks about how he has power over life. This is a huge claim, especially to the scribes and the Pharisees. It's in 21 for as the father raises up the dead and quickener them even. So the son quickness whom he will, he's already shown that he has power over death.
We saw it with Gru's daughter. We saw it with the widow of Nae and her son. He's shown that he has this God-like power, and so they should see this as evidence. In fact, this whole second half of Mark five or of John five, it reminds me of the book of Mor. Do you remember when Alma is bantering back and forth with Koho, and Koho wants a sign?
hing around you is evidence. [:So he talks about what he's been given power to do, that he has power to judge. He has this authority given him. He talks about the resurrection that is coming, that there will be a resurrection of the just and the unjust. Especially if you look in the J S T, you can see a little bit more of that. He's trying to teach them that he is the son of God, that he is this fulfillment of prophecy, that these Pharisees who love the scriptures and have studied the scriptures are missing it, that he is the fulfillment of those scriptures.
And then he tries to give them all the witnesses. So this last column of text is all the witnesses that the savior is trying to offer them. Just like Alma gave Koho. So the first one you see is in 31, that he's a witness of himself. But the law of witnesses says you can't just have one witness. You can't be your own witness.
, he witnesses [:So that's another witness that Jesus Christ is who he says he is. The uh, one of my favorites is in 36. This is where he talks about his works. That his works are a witness. I love this cuz it's not a person that he's citing, it's all the good he's done. All the people that they could talk to about the works.
The man that he just healed at the pool of Bethesda is evidence that he is who he says he is. Cuz everything we've studied so far is saying that you can't have bad fruit come from a good tree and vice versa, who's like these good works that I do to benefit mankind. They, they are evidence of who I. And then he talks about a big mighty witness in 37, where God, the Father himself, has born witness of him.
you've seen God, the Father [:You're missing the connection. The love of Moses that you cherish, it was supposed to lead your eyes to me and you're missing it. So he is inviting them to search like diligently search and try and see me in the words. They love Moses. They praise Moses. And so he talks about how Moses himself testified of Jesus Christ.
In fact, it says in 47, but if you believe not his writings, how will you believe my words? I think it's interesting that the savior goes through all these witnesses, and I think a big reason he does this, even though he knows the scribes and Pharisees will not listen, is because this becomes evidence against them.
ed in the book of Mormons. I [: [:---
At the beginning of John chapter six, you see those same two miracles back to back the feeding of the 5,000 and the storm on the Sea of Galilee. But there are a few things in John that are a little bit different than what we saw in the other gospels. So I think it's worth your time to study, especially, I like what you find in verse five and verse six.
This is in this account. It seems like the savior is the one coming to Philips saying like, what do you think we should do? If the people are hungry, what should we do? And it says in six that he does this to prove him. Cuz he himself knew what he would do. What I like about this is I actually feel like this happens to me in Revelation all the time where I come to the Lord hoping for a specific answer, like, I have a problem, I want a specific answer.
rit often prompts me is with [:Maybe the Lord really will Abra. If not, maybe he really will answer. It's like he's prompted with questions and then he has to act on those questions. When he does that, he's proving that he's all in. And I feel like that's what the savior's doing with these apostles. Another thing you get in the John account is you see that, that the solution comes from a little lad.
What I like about this, I, I just, okay. As a mom who has boys, I can't imagine, I mean, if this little lad has been carrying the five loaves and the two fish, and they're in a desert, solitary place all day, I can't imagine how mangled that food looks. . I mean, have you ever pulled something out of your kid's backpack or out of their pockets and you're just like, you know, I just, I wonder how mangled this food was from this boy.
I also wonder if he really [:I think the Savior responds to that faith. Sometimes I wonder if this miracle is less for the apostles who are learning how to use their priesthood power to control the elements as it is to show this little boy that when he brings something to the table, the savior can multiply it. It is. It is in a remarkable miracle that this little boy got to see firsthand and see how his little offering could reach everyone.
I just think there's power in it. So you see the miracle play out that nothing will be lost. All the fragments are gathered up that everybody is filled the same way we've seen in the past, and then you see that this apostles wonder about how it all happens. In fact, the reaction that happens in the multitude is they're filled, and so they make assumptions.
They've been [:They are hoping for a certain kind of savior and they're expecting a certain kind of savior that will come and defeat the Romans and put them in power. What is interesting to me is I feel like what they're really hoping for is to be passive. They're hoping for a savior who will come and solve their problems and feed their bellies and take care of their enemies.
g part, you have to see what [:You learn a few things in the John account that you don't see in others. For example, you learn in 19 how far they went. So when they had rode about five and 20 or 30 for lungs, meaning like three, three and a half miles, nine hours to go three miles is a long time. Like they're making very slow progress.
I think one of the people I read said it was like 70 football fields, like that's a long way to row after they've already been so tired and he comes on the water just like he has before and says it is I be not afraid. A new miracle that comes up in the John account that you don't see in the others is in 21 where he says, and then they willingly received him into the ship and immediately the ship was at land.
s or what it looks like, but [:I know a lot of you have probably read or heard the talk from Michael Wilcox. He's one of my favorite teachers about the fourth watch and this idea of when you're in the fourth watch, know that there will be an end to the fourth watch. And if you don't find, if the end doesn't come, then either it's not the fourth watch or you'll build, you're built tight like a dish.
You can find a link in the note to watch that B BYU Education Week talk. But one of the reasons I struggle with that, with only seeing it this way is I really feel like what the savior is trying to teach the apostles is you have power to control your circumstances more than you are like I think he's trying to help them see that you don't always have to labor in the fourth watch.
I, I don't just need to keep [:You know, there's precedent in the scriptures for people like Moses and Josh went, even Elijah who stopped the reins in the heavens. There are prophets who have power over the waters. They have already seen the savior have power over the waters in a previous storm. So I think he's trying to help them understand you have power here.
And I don't think that necessarily means that everything in my life is rosy if I learn to tap into my power. I do think it means that my fourth watch moments can be more joy filled than. Just endurance. You know, president Hinkley said that this life is to be enjoyed, not just endured. And sometimes I think when we study the fourth watch story and we only see it as like, well, I just have to keep going.
oundings. I think it's both. [:I also think there's power in understanding that it might, there might be a way to quicken that rescue. If we live up to our privileges, we understand the power that he's already blessed us with and learn how to use it better. When you feed that many people, it causes ripple effects. Lots of people follow the savior.
In fact, they're chasing after him wherever he goes, they get to the place where he hits land after crossing the sea, and they wonder how he even got there. Like you can see that there is a stir happening and the savior sees all these. Thousands follow. So not just the 5,000 that he fed and their families, but probably those they've told about what had happened.
, he says, barely, [:Not because you saw the miracles, but because you did eat of the loaves and were filled. The J s t clarifies that a little bit, that they, they don't wanna believe his words, they don't wanna act. They want to be passive recipients of the blessings. They don't want the other piece, they just want what he can offer them.
And so he clarifies what I love is the way he chooses to do it. At 27, he says, labor not for the meat, which perishes, but for the meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the son of men shall give unto you. For whom, for him have God the father sealed. , he has something that is so much more fulfilling than what they are feasting on.
t it's called the Father who [:And he says, all those people are dead. That manna, even though it was divined and was not intended to fill forever, what I am is the bread of life and I feel forever. So he tries to teach them this big doctrine in a way that's understandable to them and they just struggle with it. You can see them kind of wrestle with it and he tries to clarify.
So you wanna go a little slower through these verses, but like in 35, and Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life. He that come up to me shall never hunger. And he that believe it on me shall never thirst. I found this kind of interesting cuz. I, part of me is like, but sometimes I do hunger , sometimes I do thirst.
I just, I think what he's trying to teach her is not that by being a disciple, you will never have hard times that you will never hunger in this life and you'll never thirst in this life. What he's trying to help them see is like way beyond this life that if you choose to follow my gospel, you will learn to become like me.
hat we talked about with the [:I think that's the invitation of eternal life. It is this understanding that you're becoming as he is, so that you can do what he can do, and you will never hunger and you will never thirst. It doesn't mean you won't be uncomfortable in this life. It means the uncomfortable feeling you have in this life is worth it because of who you're becoming in the process and in the long run, you will never hunger and you will never thirst.
He goes a little further and he teaches them more deeply about his work. So in 39 he talks about how this, he only does the will of the father, and the father has told him that he should lose nothing. So this is where you learn more about the resurrection, that all will be brought back. That's the promise that all will be brought back.
e gift is murmuring civilian [:And you see that in the Book of Mormon. You see it in a few different places. But what was powerful to me is I think the opposite of murmuring is choosing to ask and seek and knock. These are hard doctrines to understand. In fact, they're gonna call them hard sayings later. It's hard to wrap your head around it.
But he's saying, if you don't understand, ask and seek and knock. Try to find out what I need. You know, come, let's have a dialogue, let's have a relationship. And they simply want to be passive recipients and they, they just don't engage. But it's an invitation, I think, for us to engage. So we're supposed to set aside the tendency to murmur and to doubt and to bicker about what we don't understand, and instead to lean in and seek something deeper.
hing deeper. How he is this. [:This is something that was, they were really familiar with in their, the way they practiced their religion. Like the Passover lamb was something they took into themselves. Even the old Testa, old Testament, do you remember when we were studying they had, he had to like eat the book. Do you remember that? We made a pastry puff book because you had to consume the words.
These are words that are pretty familiar to the Jews, so that he was teaching in this way about how his, his sacrifice will be what allows them to have access to the fullness to this everlasting life Shouldn't have been such a hard saying, but sadly it is. In fact, that's where we're gonna go. , our gospel is a line upon Lion Gospel, which means sometimes he's gonna ask you to act without all the lines.
I talked to you about those [:He hasn't instituted the sacrament yet. That's gonna come right before his crucifixion at the last supper. So they're gonna have to learn this line upon line. Some of the apostles will be on the amount of transfiguration, and I'll get a better understanding, but it's gonna take time. What the savior is asking all the multitude and the apostles in this moment of these hard sayings that they haven't quite fully wrapped their head around is to trust in what you do know.
Like this is, I think, when we're supposed to look back at all those witnesses he just cited for us in the previous chapter and say, I don't know what this means, but I trust that you are a God who accomplishes good work. I trust that you are a God who is witnessed by God the Father and the Holy Ghost and the prophets like you are written in the scriptures.
I do know, and it can carry [:But they don't understand all that yet. What I think is really powerful about the difference between what the multitudes do and what the apostles do, especially Peter, is the apostles choose to trust in the faith they already have in order to carry them through the things they don't underst. and you see it play out.
So in 60, when they say there's a hard saying, they talk about the savior comes back at them and is like, I know I are you offended at this? Like things are gonna get intense here. To be a follower, a follower of Christ means you're gonna have to be an active agile disciple. This is not a passive faith where I'm gonna feed your belly and guide you through the wilderness.
and that's what he's trying [:What's interesting to me is what happens next? So if you own 66 from that time, many of his disciples went back and walked to know more with him. I think he knows who believes. But what's interesting is not all those who believe are the ones who stay. Some even who believe in him choose to go back. This was kinda haunting for me cause I think all of us are in this spot where we have to decide like, do you believe and how much are you willing to sacrifice?
hen there's every other path [:Right. I just think there's an, an emphasis on that. And so he asks his apostles who have the same agency that all of those multitudes had in 67, and then Jesus said unto the 12, will you also go away? I think Xavier knows the answer already. I I think you see that at the end of this chapter when he talks about Judas knowing that there's gonna be someone who portrays him.
The reason I think he asks this is so that. Peter has to witness to himself what he knows and so the other apostles can hear it. So in 68, Simon Peter answered him and said, Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou has the words of eternal life. I don't think Peter understands much better than any of the other apostles or multitudes what this sermon on the bread of life fully means.
he same reason I have to get [:He chooses to stay despite not having a full understanding, and because of that, his increases in light and knowledge as he chooses to stay, and I think it's the same promise he offers to us as well.
[:---
Welcome back you guys. This is the creative side of week 13. There's a lot of creative directions you go with this week study, so I just had to narrow it down to three. But lemme tell you what I've got in store. For those of you on YouTube or listening in the podcast, I'm just going gonna give you a quick preview of the three object lessons.
minutes of video to [:So I wanted a visual way to demonstrate that. So I've created a piece of paper for you that has loaves and fishes. It's a. And then I'll show you a way to multiply it. So you're gonna make this little six by six piece of paper, turn into something that's so big that like two kids could be inside it. And I'll show you how.
The second one, I really love the verse that's about the apostles going out and performing the miracles that the savior taught them. What I particularly love is they talk about how the apostles used oil, they anointed with oil. I think this is one of those things that my kids have seen a lot of times, they've seen a lot of healing blessings happen at our house.
t help you use your oil more [:So if you ever need quick access, you'll have it handy. . I am also giving you some tools that you can put on the consecrated oil you have at your house. So if you have one of these little vials or these little bottles, I'm giving you some labels so that you can let your kids know what this bottle even is.
And then on each, there is a QR code that takes you to the instructions on the church website for how to use the oil, how to consecrate it, how to do the blessing, how to seal the anointing. All those things are linked in. So I'm hoping that makes that a little bit easier. The last object lesson isn't so much an object lesson as it is a challenge.
lessons we've studied so [:So if you have a mixed age group in your family, you may wanna make two teams. If you haven't played Kahoot before, you're just gonna need a couple smartphones. One for each team or one for each player. If you have that many on hand. And you're also gonna need something to display the questions on like a TV or a computer monitor, something that you can cast, you know, a website up to.
If you can get that set up, then you should be good to go. All right, you guys, let's get into the detail guys. We made it through quarter one, . All right? Just like you've probably seen on the chart at the very last week of every quarter, we have a Cahoot challenge because my goal you guys, is that your kids will.
Everything you've studied so far, and if you're anything like my family, we've been a little hit or Miss . Some weeks we've done great and some weeks we haven't not done so great. So my hope with this challenge is that you'll actually flip through the Come Follow Me Manual as a family or as a class and recap each lesson so there's only 13 so far.
ck recap of what you studied [:So the idea is really simple. I create multiple choice questions in the Kahoot challenge. You're gonna cast those up on a big screen or on a laptop screen, and then your kids are gonna use devices to answer the questions. So on their device, they'll see the four multiple choice options and they'll have to pick fast.
In fact, Kahoot rewards winners or rewards the people who choose the correct answer first. So they're motivated to choose fast and choose right. And then at the end of the 25 questions, you'll be able to see very clearly who the winner is. But the big benefit is that you can also see the questions that they struggled with.
where they're a little hazy, [: [:---
All right you guys. That is it for week 13. Okay. I hope you enjoy this very miracle field week. It is rich with miracles and doctrine and understandings about who the savior is and why he cares so much about us. So I promise you're gonna love your study. If you have questions about the object lessons or how they play out, you're welcome to join me on Instagram.
So Monday mornings at:It's a quick way to get direct access to my inbox. So if you have a question about the doctrine or about the printables or how to pull something off, send me a message that way and I will happily reply. But, all right, you guys. I think that's it for this week. If you're listening on the podcast or watching on YouTube, I just wanna say thanks for being here.
ot to me and they help other [: