NEW TESTAMENT 2023 - WEEK 15 [MATT 15–17; MARK 7–9] - Creative Come Follow Me with Maria Eckersley
2023 WEEK 15 [MATT 15–17; MARK 7–9]
“Thou Art the Christ”
April 10 – April 16
Follow Maria on:
CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST DISCLAIMER: This podcast represents my own thoughts and opinions. It is not made, approved or endorsed by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. or The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Any content or creative interpretations, implied or included are solely those of Maria Eckersley ("MeckMom LLC"), and not those of Intellectual Reserve, Inc. or The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Great care has been made to ensure this podcast is in harmony with the overall mission of the Church. Click here to visit the official website of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Transcript
---
Welcome back you guys. I hope you enjoyed general conference and Easter and now you're all in to get into the synoptic gospels today, cuz that's where we are. We are in week 15, which is Matthew 15, 16 and 17, and the mark seven, eight, and nine. And they match up story wise pretty well. There are a few key differences that I'll be sure to point out, but the theme of these different stories for me was about hope and where hope really comes from.
I think. The savior, especially in the this week's study, starts to get really transparent about his mission. Not that I ever think he was trying to mask it before, but we believe in a line upon Lion Gospel, which means he can't teach you everything all at once, and he couldn't teach it to his apostles that way either.
ries to get clearer in these [:Cuz in most of this week's study, we're about six months out from the crucifixion. So this happens. Most of this study happens in the fall around the Feast of Tabernacles time. We know that cause it's the amount of transfiguration and we'll get into all those details in just a minute. But that tells you that you have about six months left before the savior's passing occurs and before his resurrection happens.
And that means the apostles have to. Pivot. In fact, one of the phrases I really love from the series that's chosen is when the character who plays the savior says, get used to different because his gospel is the same yesterday, today, and forever. But that doesn't mean that what we understand about the gospel in our mortal perspective is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
foot planted and then to be [:That's what I saw all throughout this week. I see the savior trying to teach. Rest in a different way. He's trying to help people set down what is encumbering them and find hope and what lasts. And that means they're gonna have to set down traditions, set down false assumptions about people and groups of people, and resolve contention.
I think some of that contention is gonna be on the inside. It's things they're wrestling with, like doubts and fears and false traditions. And some of it's gonna be on the outside, dealing with how they interact with people, how they judge people, and how they carry this work forward. So you're gonna see all of that in all of these chapters.
a lot of ground to cover. So [: [:---
One of the Savior's best ways to resolve conflict is to teach truth, and that's what he does with the scribes and the Pharisees who are frustrated at the fact that the apostles of the Savior are not going through all the rituals of washing before eating that are customary according to the oral tradition of the law of Moses.
What is really interesting about what the Savior does is he doesn't necessarily get into the weeds about why it is they don't need to do the washing. What he does is he says, here's where you are missing. Like you are so focused on this smaller thing that you're missing. What is bigger? And the bigger thing is there's a commandment to take care of your parents that you are setting aside, let's focus on what is actually a commandment of God instead of on all this extra that you've created.
sive compulsive disorder and [:There are lots of good people who end up loving monk for who he is, but it is a constant struggle for him to create connection with anyone because he's so worried about the germs. And that's kind of how I see the Pharisees. They, they struggle to connect. And what the savior came to teach is everything in my gospel is about connection, connecting to God and connecting to your fellow men.
And you can't have that if you're constantly worried about the germs. Now, in this situation, they don't see germs like we see germs today, but they are seeing others as unclean. That's why they would be afraid to touch the woman with the issue of blood or to touch the son of. Widow of na, they would've been afraid to touch those people because they were unclean in some way.
ing to get them to just shed [:So if he can teach the scribes and the Pharisees and anyone else who will listen to them, that you don't need so much water. You don't need all these extra, we can simplify and make everyone's lives better. So he tries to teach them that they just don't quite. But he talks to 'em about honoring their father and their mother, that they shouldn't take their funds that are supposed to be, to provide for their parents and put them towards the church in some way, their version of the synagogue or the temple or whatever it is.
There were some who were misappropriating their funds and so he, he tries to show them, look, you're so fixated on these small oral commandments that you've given yourselves, these traditions of men that you're missing the big commandment that God gave to you, which is to honor your father and your mother.
he walks through what really [:But in vain they do worship me teaching for doctrines, the commandments of men. What I think is interesting about that phrase is doctrines are, there are very few doctrines of God. In fact, elder Redner talks about how they're, they are so limited in number. They are key eternal truths that are doctrines of God and all these other.
End up being commandments of men. And we have to be really careful that we're constantly checking these extra commandments we make for ourselves and make sure that we're still, that we're not superseding a commandment from God. And I think we do that sometimes. I think I do that, sometimes I get so fixated on how I think a commandment should be carried out.
others. It tends to make me [:In fact, a lot of what we're gonna learn this week is about the power of revelation. What you need revelation for, I feel like is to help you know what your discipl. Has to look like, you know, we talked a few weeks ago about understanding what your prescription is like. We all have the same basic struggles, but we each need to fine tune our prescription to know exactly what, what my discipleship has to look like.
And I think that's what he's trying to teach them. He's trying to help them understand that they need revelation in order to know the doctrines. And if they know the doctrines, then they'll know what things they can set aside, what traditions of men they can let go of and where they should put their focus.
lind, Bo shall fall into the [:Meaning, if you don't understand and really hold on to that understanding of revelation, that God will and does and always has spoken to men. And then when we get up ourselves and when we listen to our prophets and apostles like we did last week, we have access to sight. And any anywhere else, we look for guidance.
We can end up being blind, leading the blind. So we have to zero in on, on real revelation and then he tries to teach them what really defiles. So if you go in the next few verses, he talks about it's what's in your heart and what comes out. And their hearts right now are struggling and are darker than they should be cuz they're constantly judging and they're constantly misusing their time and not focused where he wants them to be.
to take in. This is where a [:Push back. In fact, the Savior's response to her is, I'm not sent to help you. I'm sent to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. And she worships and says, please, Lord, help me. And then in 26 he says, but he answered and said, it is not me to take the children's bread and cast it to the dogs, essentially saying, this isn't my work.
That's one of those verses I call the, I call these, uh, like it's like an electrocution verse. Remember how I told you guys in the doctrine covenants that sometimes I have to picture an extension cord when I'm reading? Hard sayings because basically what I've learned is that it, if I go to grab an extension cord and there the rubber coating is gone, or even just worn thin in certain places, you can actually feel a shock, right?
is that insulation that goes [:I'm missing context, so you can get some context. By studying Jesus the Christ and learning how they use the word dog, you can get some context by studying how he treats Gentiles throughout his ministry. You know, we've seen many already. We can get context by understanding the order of the work, and this is where I found the most.
Basically, I started picturing the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000 and that the Saviors strategy was to not dump out the food to all the people. Instead, he created order. He filled the apostles first so that they could go out and fill everybody else. And that's what I think he means when he says, I am sent to the law sheep of the house of Israel.
es as they go out and spread [:She implores him and he of course, in his moment of compassion just overflows and heals. But I think he's trying to teach both his apostles and all the Gentiles that they are valued, that they matter to him, but there is an order to things and there is a way that the church is gonna run and, and he, I think he's trying to set that precedent so that later down the road, The apostles understand.
The reason I think that fits for me is because of what you see in the next part of the second half of Matthew 15, and that's where he feeds 4,000 people, similar to the miracle we saw with the feeding of the 5,000, except for those were all Jews, at least what we understand is that was kind of a, almost a, not a recreation of manna from heaven.
ughter is struggling and the [:Redirects her. I don't think this is about how much he loves Jews and how much he loves Gentile. We know the character of Christ. He loves all of his people, and he intends for the gospel and all the healing, and all the blessings that come with it to roll out to everyone. It's just gonna take some time.
And I think he's trying to help as apostles understand that so that after he's gone, when Peter gets that revelation to take the gospel to all the world, to all the Gentiles, that dream that he has, that it, the revelation, those lying upon line learnings that he's getting as an apostle can click into place and he can say, oh, this isn't just a new dream that I got today.
This is something he's been teaching me way back from when we met that Gentile wound with her daughter on the road. You know what I mean? I think he's trying to teach all those things. So you're gonna see all of that at the end of chapter 15.
[:---
his to two different groups. [:And the teacher to me just loves it. So in the first half of 16, the scribes are seeking for a sign, but not just any sign, they want a sign from heaven. The reason they specify that they want it from heaven is some scribes and Pharisees believed that any, any miracle that happened on Earth could technically be a product of the devil.
So therefore, if Christ really wanted to show that he is the Messiah, then he should do something in the heavens. He should make mani fall from heaven. He should do something in the skies. And this is a different kind of sign seeking. And essentially the savior's response is quick and sharp. And he says You've had signs enough.
erywhere around you? All the [:They've seen signs and they refuse. So basically what he says is, at least the way I read it, is the sign in the heavens that you will see won't come until his crucifixion. So he talks about the sign of Jonas or Jonah, that that's the sign they're gonna see when he is crucified. There will be darkness, there will be storms, there will be terror of sorts that occurs in the skies because of.
What happens to the savior, but at that point it is too late. So unlike the Ninevites who repented and returned to the Lord, these Jews won't, they will, they will see the sign of Jonah, but they will not turn and they will not follow even when they finally do see things happen up in the skies. So he tries to teach them that warning.
. But basically the apostles [:Most of the time when the Savior references Levin, it's about this slow change that occurs, and it's usually a negative one because that's kinda what happens with yeast. It eats at things and it creates these pockets of air. And that's what he talks about when he is talking about the doctrines of the scribes and the Pharisees, that they will lead to Aposty because they've.
Distorted the doctrines of God and created their own commandments of men. So it was warning about that, but the apostles don't get it, and they think it's because they didn't bring bread. And I just, my heart just went, cause I feel like this happens to me all the time where I just jump to conclusions about what Revelations might mean.
ria, slow down. There's more [:Just let it settle. And so I think he tries to teach that to his apostles as well. Then they get to Caesar of Philippi, and this is where they have the big discussion about whom new men say that I am. What's cool about this happening in this particular place is this area of Cesia Philippi. We went there in Israel.
It's just this beautiful place that is the beginning of the Jordan River. So long story short, if you don't care about the biology, as much as I love it, you remember when we studied natural springs when we were studying. This idea of water coming down onto the mountain, seeping into the soil and getting purified and then bursting forth in some random place.
That's a natural spring. That's what happens. That's where the Jordan River comes from. The snow melts in on the mountain and it soaks in and then springs forth out of these three natural springs and then becomes the mighty Jordan. The Jordan River that we see today is at least what I read from geologists this week, it's 2% of its size that it, we think it was at the time of the savior.
ighty river and it is fed by [:So if you look in 15, he say it unto them, but whom say ye that I am first. He wants to know what men say of him, and then he wants to know what our his apostles think. Sometimes I think we read this and we think we're not supposed to care what men think. We're supposed to only care what we know. And ultimately, I guess that's true.
The, the witness of the Holy Ghost is the most powerful. But I also believe what we read from Alma, that the witnesses of people around you are supposed to fill up your cloud. So I don't think it's wrong that others see him as John the Baptist, or as they see him as a great prophet. The apostles who know him best should take all of those.
visual that helps me is, uh, [:That's kinda how I picture my testimony, you guys, especially when I read what Peter says because basically my testimony comes from what I see and what I hear and what I feel and what I hear from other people. Like my testimony comes from those physical mortal elements all around me, and it combines to be this thing, right this, this beginning testimony.
What I love about the witness of the Holy Ghost is it actually creates this seal on my testimony. It is lasting, it is permanent, it is fuller and richer. It fills in all the cracks and crevices that my mortal understanding would've missed. It is something. There is a, a ceiling power to the Holy Ghost when it comes to testimony that I find comforting, and I feel like that's for me how I read Peter's response.
wered and said, thou art the [:And in this moment when the Savior asked him, I imagine the Holy Ghost is like, whew. You know, swooping in to seal what Peter has already come to understand about the Savior in this power packed seed of truth. That is, he is the son of God. And so that's what Peter can testify of and that's what leads us to where you go next, which is all about why Revelation matters so much.
But what, what I love about what you see in 17, before we jump ahead, is it says, blessed Art thou Simon Bar Jonah for flesh and blood had not revealed it unto the My Father, which is in heaven. It's not that it's wrong to take evidences and witnesses from the mortal world around you. Everything denotes there is a God.
ame way Morona directs us to [:What the principles that it teaches and then pray for understanding and answers will come. And I think that's what the Savior was trying to teach here as well, that he wants us to understand. Where does your belief come from? It isn't coming from just the world around your, or just your experiences in this life, or does it come from those experiences plus the gift of the Holy Ghost.
And I think in some cases the gift of the Holy Ghost can even supersede any mortal experience we've had. There are some rare instances when the Holy Ghost has taught me something that I have no understanding of in my physical world, and there is incredible power there. But for me, most of the time, my testimony has come from putting together the Legos of my life and then asking the Lord to seal it with a revelatory experience to help me know that what I think I understand is fully true, and then plus a little bit more.
Now that Peter has [:Peter is advancing, and so you see him advance. Basically what he teaches in 18 is that Peter, It says, thou are Peter and upon this rock will I build my church? And the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. It's really tempting to read the rock phrase and think that must mean that he's referring to Peter as this foundation stone.
But that's not the case. Especially what we get from Joseph Smith teaches that this is all about revelation. That this ability to ask and seek and knock and gain a witness of what the God's will is, is the rock. In fact, when I, when I considered the rock, that phrase, I like to think of it as all the Godhead working at once.
r father in heaven about the [:Cuz if Peter can understand that process the same way, I felt like when you look in Joseph Smith history, when Joseph Smith gets to that point where, After the first vision. There's a mountain of things he has not learned yet and a whole bunch of lines that he has not built onto his testimony. But he knows some things for certain.
He knows God is real. He knows Jesus Christ is separate from God and also real and lives. He knows that there is no church he's supposed to join, that there is something else coming. He knows some things for certain because of his experience in this sacred growth. And so he can say to his mother in that moment, I am well enough off.
with my father in heaven. I [:That's a steady rock that we can build on. So when you go a little bit further, you're gonna see what he's asked to do with that rock. So in 21, this is another pivot point. Basically the savior. Now that he has Peter right here and ready and knowing that there's something big that's coming, he's gonna receive the priesthood keys.
That's what you see in 19. He won't get them today. He's gonna get them about a week from now on. The amount of transfiguration, which in addition to all the other things, I think is kind of interesting, that the savior plants this seed where he says, keys are coming, you will be able to do magnificent things in my name for my work.
by keys and to study it out [:And then he gives him this space to be in a different kind of place. He's not gonna give him the keys in this place. He's gonna give them the keys in a holy place. So that week of time creates. Space, mental space for Peter to process what is going to happen and to start asking questions and seeking and knocking and physical space so that they can be in a sacred spot up on a mountain, not in this area of Caesar R of Philippi, where there's also shrines to other gods and other things.
This is a. You can see the savior planting seeds of revelation. And I just love that cuz that's what we've just been talking about in the, the verses before that sometimes the savior plants ideas in my mind and they're not a fullness, they're not in close, but it's like, Maria, just think about this. And then I wrestle and I think, and then a week later or a month later or a year later, I get another like, oh, you know, I just, I love that part about the gospel.
and it will never end, and I [:From that time forth began Jesus to show unto his disciples how he must go unto Jerusalem and suffer many things of the elders and the chief priest inscribes and be killed and be raised again. The third day, to me, in the side, I wrote transparent teaching because I think that's what the Savior is demonstrating because they have an understanding.
They have a basis of knowledge about who he is and his work. He can start to teach them bigger doctrines about what will happen down the road. I don't think he was trying to mask any of this before. They just needed a certain spiritual maturity to grasp it. And guys, they still won't fully grasp it even when he is on the cross and even when they see him as a resurrected being, they're still processing all this, but you can see him.
lieve in his gospel, and his [:And that's where Peter gets corrected. So Peter hears the Savior talk about how he's going to be suffer at the hands of men and be crucified. Well, doesn't say crucified, be killed and then come back. And Peter is troubled. In fact, he says in 22. And Peter took him and began to rebuke him, saying, be it far from the Lord.
This shall not be unto the, what I love about this moment with Peter is he's seen the Savior walk on water. He's seen him raise people from the dead. He has seen remarkable miracles. And so to him, the idea, I think of the Jews or the Romans, even being able to crucify or to kill the Savior seems.
s, basically, get the behind [:But I actually think it makes a lot of sense. It shows me that they have a, a relationship in their leadership structure that he can take a rebuke this harsh and Peter response because he doesn't go home and wallow and he, you know, he, he turns and he's like, okay, there's something more I'm supposed to learn here.
And the rebuke is that he's supposed to get behind the savior. I don't think this is, Pushing Peter aside, I think he's reminding him his place in this gospel, his place as an apostle and who will basically be the prophet once the savior is ascended, is as someone who follows the savior. So he needs Peter to get behind him the same way.
e Bishop. You should talk to [:But they couldn't see what I could see and what Jason could see so clearly that this calling was a gift. It was an exhausting, draining gift. And so whenever someone said that to me, I was basically saying, I need you to get behind me. Like I, there's gonna be weak points where I'm gonna. I'm gonna wish that same thing.
So what I need is not someone who like feeds that fire. I need someone who comes behind me and says, Maria, this is the right thing. You know it's the right thing you've prayed about. It's the right thing. Keep him going. Get him back to Bishop. Like that. That is someone who is on my team, and I feel like that's what the savior is saying to Peter.
this is how the savior wants [:And that's the same thing. If I have people trying to help me, that's how I want them to channel their energy too. Don't try to channel your energy toward getting the safe president to release Jason. Channel your energy towards the work that we are trying to accomplish. Let's do whatever we can to get Jason to be able to do his calling, get behind me and help, help me in this goal.
And so then he teaches that epic doc doctrine almost as a bookend to that thought. So if you look in 25, for whosoever will save his life, shall lose it, and whosoever will lose his life, for my sake shall find it. Or what is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul? And what shall a man give in exchange for his soul when we as loving, comforting friends or family try to get people to set down the commandments in order to make their life more comfortable?
iful example of it. He loves [: [:---
I read a quote from James Talman that basically said, what happens on the Mount of Transfiguration is almost incomprehensible to me. So the very fact that we're gonna try and teach it with such limited verses is tricky. Not, not that it's not worth our attention, I just think it's really important. Uh, remember that the amount of transfiguration, what happens in this sacred, holy place is sacred and holy and not fully.
is, this is that holy place [:Much like we saw with Moses in the Old Testament and Abedi in the Book of Mormon. His countenance is bright. Joseph Smith describes it almost like they're seeing him in his celestial form or in his god-like form, meaning like maybe he's been masked this whole time during his condescension. And this is when they get to see the real, the real God that they have been walking with, um, in this key moment.
And then they, Moses and Elias and potentially other heavenly beings like John the Baptist in some, it just depends on who you read and when and you read it. But, uh, there are heavenly beings who come to restore. These keys. And because the savior has essentially six months left, and so he's setting the stage for the time when Peter will need to lead this church, that these three, who will become basically the first presidency of the church that Christ established in his time will need these keys.
ts glorified form that they, [:So I think you have to read these verses with a wide lens and an understanding that what is sacred and preserved isn't for us to pry into and guess that that's, that's sort of how I approach it. So you'll see all that play out. I really love the interaction with the apostles and the savior on the mount.
So what you do have in the verses is you see Peter's response, so he sees. Joseph Smith talks about how Moses and Elias, or Elijah are called to help bolster the savior and to strengthen him for the big work that is ahead of him and, and restore the keys. Both, both of those things happen. So Peter says in verse four, Peter said, unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here if that will let us make the three Tabernacles, one for the one for Moses, one for lies.
ially outside and they, they [:Maybe he's trying to stretch out this divine moment just as long as possible. I don't know. But I think it's almost similar to what we see with Joseph Smith in the first vision. I think he came to the. Expecting or hoping, I would say, to receive forgiveness of his sins, to feel settled about who he is, connected to God, and to know which church to join.
He had no idea when he walked into that grof that he was gonna get an answer that no, you're not gonna join any of those churches. I think sometimes Peter is in that same spot where he is like, do you, it's good that we're here. Do you want us to build new things? And, and the Savior's response is, is, uh, actually, I guess he doesn't, he doesn't technically respond.
right cloud, overshadow them [:Doesn't that feel like the sacred grove? I think Peter has a mighty work to do and he's gonna need keys and authority to do it, and he's gonna need understanding and. I feel like he came to this mount maybe expecting, similar to what Joseph Smith expected to get some light and some knowledge, and instead he's gonna get a boatload.
He's gonna understand a lot more about the plan of salvation because of this experience. And I think the reaction to that much light and knowledge all at once is you fall on your face and you're afraid. That's what happens in six. They fell on their face and were sore, afraid. And then Jesus came and touched them and said, arise, be not afraid.
do, were you, you feel this [:It's not quantity, it's the depth of the revelation. I felt clear, clear direction and sometimes it scares me a little sometimes my reaction, much like the shepherds in the field, when they see the angel, you know, outside Bethlehem, they are afraid. And I love that The savior's constant reaction when we are afraid is to reach down and to say it's okay, arise.
You know? It's the same thing Peter felt in the water in this moment that he is sinking. He's like, I, I don't know if he can kind of start to see his calling and what, what it's really gonna be like when the savior isn't there and he feels like he's sinking in this weight of this calling. I don't know, that's me projecting, but I think it's beautiful that the saviors are response is a rise and he touches them and he brings them up and then they go down the mountain together.
of those. We don't leave the [:We have, he comes with us and down the mountain. And I think you see that with these apostles too. I can't imagine how hard it was to go down that mountain and to know what they were going down towards. Both for the savior who will suffer and die and deal with all those things in the next six months.
And for the apostles who, as they inch closer to that timeline, see the weight of their calling getting heavier and heavier. And I just, I can't imagine quite what that would be like, but I think it's beautiful that they go down. Sometimes your, your descent from the mountain is abrupt and jarring. I felt that many times when I come back from the temple and you're like back into reality, your house is a wreck and the kids are fighting and you know, it's just real life in this fallen world that we live in.
like we saw with Moses, how [:The other apostles are down here trying to help, help everybody else, and one of the ways they're trying to help is there's a man who has a son who is taken with a devil. It's described differently in Matthew and Mark, but essentially it's, they describe him as a lunatic. So he's having fits of some kind that end up causing him to tumble into fires and into water, and his father is at wit's end and is struggling.
What's tricky about the the apostles is he had brought his son to the apostles and they couldn't heal him, and so there's struggle. I imagine this is one of those spots where there's inter contention and outer contention. I just think in the father's heart, there's gotta be some worry about why the apostles couldn't for me, anytime.
ike you come up with a whole [:This is almost like a contrasting story with the woman of the Gentile woman we read about in the earlier parts of Matthew. This is a father who's bringing his son and he is a Jew, and so you'd think this hurts would align and he would get healing, but the apostles can't do it. The interesting thing is what happens next?
So when you go in the verses, it says, and Jesus rebuked the devil and he departed out of him and the child was cured from that very hour. And then in 19 then came the disciples to Jesus apart and said, why could we not have cast him out? Which is a very natural question. And then the Savior's response is interesting.
s a grain of mustard seed, I [:I think this is just my reading of this. I wonder sometimes if what the Savior is frustrated at is that it is the Father who brings the son to the Savior and not the apostles themselves. When they struggled to heal him, they didn't. Immediately bring him to the savior. It's the father who brings him. And I wonder, this is just me, but I wonder if that's his frustration.
If there is something you can't accomplish in your calling that I have called you to do, come to me. Seek, help, ask, seek, knock, find out what you could have done better. What they're gonna learn is they should pray and fast. Those are amplifying powers that will help them do better in these miracles that they're trying to perform.
, it's not so much about the [:It's that you let Christ shine through whatever faith you have and then it expands. You know, it is. It is about letting Christ access what faith you currently have and letting it. Grow because of that. And we're gonna see that a little bit better in Mark, but I think you get a taste of it here in Matthew as well.
So they learn a little bit about prayer and fasting and then at the end of this, you're gonna see about the tribute money and the fish. This is just one of those remarkable add-on miracles. I don't, I'm not entirely sure I understand what it's trying to teach me, but basically there's a tribute that's due at the temple that all Jewish males are supposed to pay.
And so when the apostles are approached by the tax collectors to say, doesn't Jesus pay this tribute? And they ask Jesus, he says, you know, this is my father's house and normally a person. It is their house. They don't pay tribute, but in order to keep the peace, we're gonna do something different. So that's when you flip the page and you see in 27, not withstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea.
cast a hook in and catch one [:He says, notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go to the seat. There are many ways to solve a problem and all of them are, are doable to the Lord. He could have handled this in lots of different ways, but his course is to choose not to offend. He's going to find a way to accomplish what needs to be accomplished without compromising his values or the commandments of God.
r how I can resolve conflict [:And I think there are answers. It's not perfect and there are times when offense will happen and has to happen, but I think there are creative approaches to, to fill in that middle where there are, there are more potential choices at my disposal than sometimes I think of. I never would think of getting coined out of a fish's mouth.
And there's sometimes in life, I feel like when I prayed, help resolve contention that he gives you uncommon solutions that if you just have the trust to like try it, you see a miracle sort of play out.
[:---
Thankfully, Matthew set the stage for us. We know the basics of the storylines, so we can go a little bit faster through Mark, but there are a few key things that jumped out at me I didn't want you to miss. For example, when he is talking about the scribes and the Pharisees having trouble with the disciples and the apostles not going through those washing rituals, I really like what it says into.
nd when they saw some of his [:It doesn't mean that you pretend that there aren't questions there. It means you rest on what you do know. You let the Holy Ghost teach you what is lasting and what is true while you sift out or even sometimes set on a shelf. What you don't understand, there is something powerful about choosing to not find fault.
nating their funds and going [:So the savior tries to teach them about it. I do really like the way it's phrased and ate for laying aside the commandments of God. You hold the tradition of men cuz when he is talking about, they're getting so into the washing of things and trying to wash the Gentile off of anything they touched. And it's that phrase of that you hold to the traditions of men that I liked.
I think this is essentially what happens. Anytime I loosen my grip on the iron rod in order to hold tight to any doctrine of men, I have to let go of the iron rod. I have to let go of something I believe is true or important over here and you can't do both, that you can't serve two masters. We learned that.
mething over here that seems [:And he's saying clinging to the rod. If you clinging to the rod, you'll never hold to the, to the traditions of men. So he warns them about that. Another one I love is in 13 where he says, because they've chosen to set aside the commandments of God and follow these traditions of men, they're making the word of God of none effect.
Ooh, this one was cool to me, you guys, cuz I feel sometimes when my faith has faltered a little bit in the past and I stop feeling the goodness of the Holy Ghost. You know, there are times when other people will talk about that. They feel the spirit so strong and they're in a room and the root spirit is there.
what discipleship looks like.[:I stop doing my callings as well. I stop reading my scriptures. I stop praying to, or any kind of meaning. I stop in a lot of ways. And what happens then is then the blessings of the gospel have none effect. The same way we saw in Nazareth where because they chose not to believe in Jesus Christ, he couldn't perform miracles there.
What's tricky about that is oftentimes when we're in that spot of kind of a aposty slump, what happens is we start to say like, none of this is real. I don't feel anything. Yeah. I, there are times I've put that in my head, you know, like either everybody out here is faking it, like at a hypnotist show, or I, I don't get it.
And, and neither of those is good. And I feel like what he's trying to help us understand is like, You are choosing to not carry out your belief. What you know to be true is actually neutralizing the spirit's power to witness to you. You're not gonna be able to see these signs until you believe and act on those beliefs, and then you will know, but you've gotta plant those seeds.
[:He's talking about how all these sins come from within. You're worried about what's on the outside and what others can see. You gotta go turn into the heart. For me, this sounds just like what you read in the Book of Mormon, where this, the natural man is an enemy to God. I don't think he's saying everything in us.
Wicked or you know, evil. What he's saying is, you're in a fallen world and you're a natural man. You are going to have a tendency to slide. So you need to yield. In fact, that's what that verse teaches in the Book of Mormon. The natural man is an enemy to God unless he yields to the enticing of the Holy Spirit.
yield and what that yielding [:So I, I love those verses. You go a little bit further when you go into 27. But Jesus said under let the children be filled first. So this is that interaction with the gentile woman, and I think what's powerful about this, I read recently that when you think about the brother of Jared, he is also a Gentile.
Because remember he lived before Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He's way before, and he is someone that the savior. When he encountered the savior, he almost seemed su, the savior's almost surprised that he was there. You know that part where you read and eat there, where he's just, he's delighted, but it's, I think Elder Holland called him a, a wonderful but uninvited guest, meaning like all the other prophets who came to see God face-to-face were invited and to this opportunity.
r if there's a little bit of [:You know, to me it's almost like the metaphor she uses is he says, you know, I can't take the bread that's intended for my, the children of my kingdom. That if you look in the photo notes in the Joseph Smith translation, it's intended for the children of my kingdom. I can't. To the dogs. It's for those who are covenant keeping people, those blessings are available through covenants.
And she says, I'll just take the crowns. You know, that's her response. And it feels to me like the woman with the issue of blood who's like, I just need the I, I just wanna touch the fringe. Like I have enough faith in you, even though I don't know you like others do in your faith. I have enough faith to believe that if I just got the crumbs that could help my daughter.
the Gentile woman's daughter [:It's this healing of a man who is deaf and who can't speak or has a speech impediment of some kind, and it's the manner of healing that kind of calls out to me. Basically, the savior touches him, so he takes him away from the multitude in 33, and he put his fingers into his ears and he spit and he touched his tongue, and then he looks up to heaven and commands him to be opened.
And then he is. And the miracle is he speaks plainly, you know, kind of the same way the man with palsy is able to get up and walk and the man at Bethesda is able to pick up his bed, like is this instant fix? But what I love about this one is the way he interacts with this man who can't hear. I wonder if this is, you know, what we read about in the Book of Mormon and even the doctrine covenants about how the savior.
mized to this man and to his [:I also love that he speaks plainly because like all those other miracles, it proves that God has power over time. Jesus Christ is someone who can take what should take physical therapy months or years to correct and he can, he can heal it and he can make up for time. To me, this is just as miraculous as the water turning to wine, something that also should have taken time.
Going from not being able to speak and be understood by anyone to speaking plainly is power over time, and that's a remarkable miracle. We should not pass.
[:---
that this, he has compassion [:And it doesn't matter who they are or where they come from, he wants them to be filled. And I think that's compassion is the root. All of his goodness, his charity, that pure love he has for man, mankind. It just can't be contained and that creates this miracle of feeding of the 4,000. I also think it's interesting that you learn, well in both accounts, you learn that there are seven baskets left over.
One of the scholars I read talked about how seven in Hebrew terms is perfection, right? Seven days of the creation, seven means fully finished and complete. And there's something really lovely about when the savior chooses to feed Jew and Gentile together in this mixed multitude, there is a sense of completion.
I wonder sometimes if some of the Jews thought this was a miracle that was just, Theirs, you know, like the feeding of the 5,000. If they thought that was a miracle, that was reserved for the Jews, cuz it, they have history, you know, the man that falls from heaven. It's, I wonder if some bristled at the fact that this is a miracle he will do.
t just for the Jews, but for [:And I, I think there's a really beautiful parallel spiritually in that story. You're also gonna see the, the instruction about the Pharisees and the Levin and warnings about Apostacy that the apostles are trying to understand. But what's interesting about the market count is he uses this almost an object lesson of a healing.
So he heals a man who is blind and he's teaching the apostles at the same time. In fact, it seems to me that he's taking this opportunity to perform a miracle to help bolster this man who was blind and also. Help his disciples and apostles understand revelation better cuz this is a miracle that we see happen in stages, which is really rare.
who's brought to the savior [:To me, this is almost like that first layer of revelation or the first few layers even. You can see some form and some shape. You get a feel of where God wants you to go. And it's what you do in this moment that I think makes a pivotal difference. At least it has for me because this man could have seen.
Man has trees walking and been terrified and run the other way and said, I'd rather be blind. You know, I don't want this fuzzy vision. And I think what's pivotal is that he stays and then the savior can give him added light and added knowledge. So he looked up, he sees this, and then in 25 after that he put his hands again on his eyes and made him look up and he was restored and saw every man clearly.
when when things seem fuzzy, [:And I know, you know, like there's been a lot of times when my prayers are, I wake up and my eyes are a little fuzzy. I can't, I can tell he's had. An impact on me. But I, the, the, I see men has streets and I can't see clearly. And that's those moments where you have to lean in and say, I trust that there is more light and more knowledge coming, so I'm gonna stay.
And that's what he does. And his revision, his vision is restored and not just restored, but restored clearly. Now he can see clearly. So to me it's an object lesson about how revelation comes, which is beautiful. Cuz at the end of this chapter, this is where you see them talk about whom do men say that I am.
And you [:It's this added warning of it's not just about losing yourself in service, it's about choosing not to be ashamed. It's about hushing your fears and embracing. The middle vision moment and saying that I can, I can trust that there is more clarity coming and I will continue and I will not be ashamed. I think there's power when we take that stance.
[:---
e of the additions of Joseph [:So if you look in the Joseph Smith translation all over Mark, you're gonna see a lot of changes. This week in particular, there's a few key ones. So if you look in nine verse two, I really, I really like this one. It's not necessarily a critical doctrine, but I just think it teaches you something about.
What this savior's been trying to teach us throughout all these chapters about asking and seeking and knocking, because this is where you learned that after six days Jesus taken him up with him, Peter, James, and John, and leaded them up into a high mountain apart by themselves and he was transfigured before them.
And then when you go down the phrase and he leaded them, if you go down to the footnotes, you can see Joseph Smith translation who asked him many questions concerning his sayings and Jesus lead them. I love this beast. Like on their way up the mountain, they're asking questions. This is what inspired that thought for me in the Matthew account where you see that Jesus gives them a week, he says to Peter, I'm going to give you the keys.
me, I just picture him like [:Are, I'm sure I'm gonna, I'm gonna go induce the sacred thing. And I want, there are things I want to understand about my life or my circumstances. So I come to the temple with questions. I come with seeking and even expecting to find not full answers, but at least additional light and knowledge. And I'm telling you guys, when I come with that perspective, the temple experience changes for me.
I'm sure you felt something similar, but I love that addition from Joseph Smith. Another key addition is in verse four. This is where you learn that in addition to Moses and Elijah, John the Baptist is there, which is different than what you see in the other counts. And it's not corrected in the Matthew account.
estore the melnick. I'm sure [:The way other Holland described it in his book is he says, Moses and Elias, no. He said, at least Moses and Elias were there, as well as other heavenly beings. And I'm like, okay, that's a good way to phrase that. So there's, there's more happening here that we don't have the full story, but at some point we will.
And I love that this is essentially men as trees walking, right? Like I can read these verses and it's a little fuzzy to me and I don't fully understand it, but it's better than what I saw before. I had revelation from Joseph Smith and before I had a witness from Mark's account. I am getting clear revision.
It's just not fully clear yet. But if I take those questions and concerns to the Lord, I can get more clarity. And I think that's the promise that you see play out in the. So they have questions after this experience about what rising from the dead will mean. That's what you see in 10. I thought this was kind of interesting cuz they seem baffled by the fact that the savior will be able to resurrect himself and I wonder if this is them trying to wrestle with what resurrection really means.
I mean, he's [:And so they're wrestling and questioning with each other about what it is and then they question him about Elias. Kinda like we saw in the Matthew account about forerunners and who they are and is he a 4runner? And you get more clarification, you can go in the notes and learn a little bit more, but I really love the way it plays out.
If you go a little bit further down in 15 says and straightway all the people when they be held him, were greatly amazed running to him and saluting him. Now, this is just me theorizing here, but do you remember when we read in the Old Testament that when Moses came down from C, his face was glowing to the point that they asked him to veil his face?
s if that's what's happening [:You, you don't get to big how much you shine. I think you see that with the men and I, it's like he, I don't think he's even aware of his countenance. Others are, and Alma responds to it, but I just think there's so. Beautiful about that little verse to me. You go a little further and you see that situation with the son.
What I love about the Mark account is when the father approaches the son, you get a little more detail in Mark. So this is when you hear, you'll probably hear elder Holland's words resonating in your ears cuz he's got that beautiful talk that's all about this story. But this is when the man approaches the apostles who couldn't heal his sun.
r, how long is it since this [:But if thou can't do anything, have compassion on us and help us, it's the harmony of 22 and 23 that I loved when I studied this week. He knows the savior can do things he doesn't. What the savior can do. In fact, the elder, Brenda, I talked about that maybe this father isn't struggling with his faith, that the savior can heal.
Maybe he's struggling with the faith to believe that the savior would heal him, his family, his individual circumstances, and that I could relate to. I don't think. There have been very few moments where I've doubted the power of God. Sometimes I doubt my ability to be worthy of the power of God or my ability to be seen by God that maybe other people are getting revelation and understanding and I just, it just doesn't work for me.
ame phrase. So the Father in [:My priesthood power is at work, but I need your faith in order for it to happen. Do you have enough faith to believe? And this is when the father cries out 24 and straight away the father of the child cried out and said with tears, Lord, I believe help thou mine unbelief. There are a few phrases in scripture that I think are more tender than that one.
I just think we all understand it, right? We all, to some degree, see through a glass darkly and we are struggling to believe, and I love this promise, that if what the Savior is saying is this father's faith, even though he thinks it's insufficient is enough. Cuz here's what I learned more clearly this week with the help of the spirit and from reading some prophets.
I, what the savior is [:To have miracles happen in your life, you just have to act on the faith that you do have. And that I think is what the father's able to do in that moment. He's able to say, there are a lot of things I don't understand and I don't know how to lean on those, so I'm just gonna lean on what I know. If thou can't do all things, have compassion, if you can do anything, have compassion on us.
And because he chooses to believe in this moment and ask the Lord to help him with what he doesn't understand, miracles come. That's a promise. That whatever our vision looks like in these middle moments, that we, when we lean on him and say, I know you can help, there's power in that promise. Because we can trust that we don't have to be perfect.
We don't have to [:And it's just one of the most beautiful in all scripture to me. And I think he's using it to teach this father and this son and the apostles about his work, and this is where he also adds in that additional piece about prayer and fasting. In fact, what I love, I can't remember which prophet I read. They talked about fasting being a voluntary mini famine, that you are essentially depleting yourself of comfort so that you can relate.
It's what we read about in Isaiah. Remember when he was talking about this is not the fast I've chosen. What is it? Is this not the fast I've chosen? We talked about this in the Old Testament. It's fasting is supposed to give us compassion for those who are without, so that we will then overflow with compassion the way the savior does and give abundantly.
thout, so we can get answers [:And so when we were running, he would go and deliberately find the sewer manhole covers and jump on them and be like, power up. And then he would surge for it. And I think prayer and fasting is like that. I think when we're hoping for miracles, prayer and fasting is like this power up. It's this little belt I can get on to give me some more oomph for the miracles that I so desperately need, or for the revelation to help me understand why the miracles didn't come the way I thought they would.
this transparent teaching in [:He's not beating around the bush. He's teaching his apostles clearly that he will suffer at the hands of men, they will be able to kill him, and he will rise again. In my mind, when you teach truth with the spirit, meaning you're gonna have to customize this to the learner that you're trying to approach, when you do that well, I feel like you're comforting in advance.
The apostles are gonna go through what will be like a P T S D, right? When they see their savior crucified and spit on and struggling and eventually. Die the same thing that the, the certain women who follow him will struggle and have this weight. And if they can cast their mind back or if the Holy Ghost more accurately can help them cast their mind back to these moments of truth where the Savior taught them clearly, they can get comfort in that moment, even though the Savior isn't there.
customize it to make it more [:And if I customize the doctrine to what would be comfortable to a teenager now, it won't help him when he's 30. I need the true doctrine that lasts throughout time. And I think you see the Savior teach that beautifully when he says it so plainly to his apostles. And then they have that same discourse.
But there's an interesting addition in Mark about who is the greatest. So the apostles are. Questioning who? Who is the greatest among them? I don't even know. In this one, it doesn't make it sound like they're wondering which apostle is the greatest. I just wonder if they're wondering how to get greatness.
I don't know. But his answer is the same thing we read from King Benjamin about service that in 34, but they held their peace for along the way. They had disputed among themselves who should be the greatest, and he sat down and called the 12 and say it then to them. If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all and servant of all.
ve with not me but him. That [:It's all about humility. It's all about service. Giving over. There's this great quote from President Hinkley. I can't, I can't cite it, it's not written in my margin. But he basically said, do you wanna have a happier life? Then lose yourself in this gospel. Like choose to serve and give and do whatever the Lord asks you to do, and you'll find joy, and I love that promise.
When you fill the page, you see another warning about little ones. So this is in 42, and whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that shall that believe in me. It is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck and were cast into the sea. I gotta tell you guys, I have always read this verse about abuse, and I think it can apply there.
ime. This isn't just a verse [:Crush it or when we derail it by teaching false doctrine or by not teaching at all. When we derail the faith of someone who is beginning. And I don't think it just means a child. I think it's anyone who has a beginning faith. If we then crush that faith or derail it or dilute it, we are at risk of condemnation.
Millstones are heavy. So I just, I'd never read it that way before. Which changes how you read the rest of the verses. Cuz this is where he talks about if, uh, your hand offends you cut it off. If your, I offends you pluck it out. It's this, you need to be in line with what the gospel teaches. In fact, the Joseph Smith translation of these verses focus this on leadership, that this is kind of the, I, I can't remember which prophet I read, but it said that these verses form the basis of church discipline of sorts for leaders.
bout you or your personality [:Because I think the inherent promise is whatever joy you thought you were gonna get from that hand or that eye or that foot is nowhere near the joy that is available to you if you choose to sacrifice it in order to become more like he is. Joy is found when we are like he is, and if I have to make some big cuts to make that happen, I should do it.
[:---
the object lessons and give [:And then for those of you who are in the full course, you'll be able to see after this video, another 15, 20 minutes about how to pull off each one individually. But let me walk you through the basics. Okay. The first one that I thought really needed attention, it's in the Come Follow Me manual as well as what are keys and why did Peter receive them On the Mount of Transfiguration, Xavier talks about giving them to Peter, and then a week later he actually receives them on the Mount.
And this is a pivotal critical doctrine to understand the priesthood and how it applies to us today. The tricky thing is it's hard to teach it, especially cuz there's not very many visuals other than a key. So I wanted to create some analogy that would help you teach it to your families and classes. So I've created a way to.
Teach big concepts of the priesthood in small bite size ways to help your family understand it. And then I've provided printable tools for you to pull that off. So these are just basically cards that will walk you through how to teach your kids about what the priesthood is, what is that power of God?
walk you through it in just [:But I love this approach about faith that if you have faith as must a grain of a mustard seed, then you can move mountains. I especially love it because what we've learned from President Nelson. So I wanted a quick visual so that your kids could understand it. So this week in the principals, you have a couple.
First off, I just thought it would be cute to have a little seed packet so that you could give your kids actual mustard seeds and show them how incredibly small they actually are. I bought these for a couple dollars at Walmart. You could fill up many, many seed packets with these, but I actually wanted something that's not just a a handout.
ntable and you'll be good to [:The last one guys, it's game week and you know I love Game Win. So this is to help you teach that principle that we see beautifully in Mark about the father who comes to the savior hoping for healing for his son, and is he basically declares, I believe, help thou mine unbelief. What I love about this is there's that great talk from Elder Holland about holding the ground you've already won.
And that to me is like setting up a game automatically. When I hear those phrases, I'm like, oh, there's a game that needs to happen. So we created a game this week that just involves dice and a big group of people. You could play it with two people going against each other, or you could play on teams with a bunch of people at once.
But to set it up, you're gonna. Three dice for each person. They don't necessarily have to match in color, although that makes it a little easier to keep track of things. But you need three dice for each person playing. And then you need some dividers. So we played this out on our kitchen table, and I just created dividers with knives and well, you could use post-it notes, you could use almost anything that you have on hand.
t you can lay down to create [:And then you'll have all the equipment you need to play the game. And trust me, you don't wanna miss this one. All right, that's your supplies list. Now, for those of you in the course, we're gonna go in a lot deeper.
[:---
Okay, guys. Week 15 is a wrap. Thank you for being here. Those of you in the podcast are on YouTube.
I'm grateful you're here. Those of you in the chorus, I hope you have fun this week with these object lessons. Just get into your scriptures of all else spells. Find a way to open up your scriptures and learn some of these doctrines. I think they dovetail in so beautifully. With the words we read at conference, I hope you are richly fed this week As you study, if you have questions, you're welcome to join me on Instagram.
That's Monday morning at:The other thing I would tell you is if you are in the course and you have questions, feel free to message me on the discussion boards or just reply back to that weekly email that you get that should help. Those will come right to my inbox and it's a quick way to respond to me. But otherwise, I hope you really enjoy this week.
Uh, as. As always, I would remind you that if you are listening to this in the podcast form and you are a member of the course, there is a private podcast that you can access as well. So I have a public podcast, that's the insights. It's freely available to anybody who wants to listen. And then there is another version that is a private podcast that's for those who are subscribers.
That way you can listen to the insights and all the object lessons as you're out and about on the go. So again, if you need that link, just message me back either in a direct message on the course, like in the discussion boards, or just reply back to one of the emails you get in your inbox and I'll, I'll hook you up.
All right, you guys, that's it for week, team week, week 15. I hope you enjoy it and I'll see you on Monday.
