“Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him. But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation.”

Matthew in his account (12:39) tells us “But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.”

It is in the same chapter 8 of Mark that we read later on:

“And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.” (Verse 31)

The evil intention behind seeking a sign was not to seek Christ but to tempt Him. Jesus showed his tender love and compassion to the multitudes while these Pharisees and critics wanted Jesus to show them a sign. There was no need left for them to ask such a thing because they had seen plenty of signs (i.e., miracles).  Even if Christ had not shown any miracle or sign, the most amazing truth was that the one who spoke and stood before them was the very sign Himself come down from Heaven – The Living Bread of Life! All they needed was to do one work (not works) and it was to repent of their sins and believe on Him whom the Father sent into this world,(John 6:28-29,34-35) Now Christ’s miracles were the signposts pointing sinners to the fact that Jesus is the Christ the eternal Son of God and that  believing in His Name they might have eternal life, (John 20:30-31)

Now we learn as Mark teaches us that after the great miracle of feeding four thousands, the disciples had forgotten to take bread with them into the boat. Christ warned his disciples at that point about the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod, (Mark 8:15). By leaven it is understood here in this context the leaven of unbelief.

What shocks us is that the disciples of Jesus were reasoning and arguing among themselves and the subject of their reasoning was bread. The disciples were so dull in their understanding of their Glorious Lord Jesus who was with them. They knew what Christ had done but they failed to see who He was and what He could do. Hence Christ opens their minds by asking them multiple questions about his two miracles of feeding the thousands. It is worth noting that in 5 verses (Mark 8:17-21) Christ asks at least nine questions.

The leaven of unbelief is so prevalent today. The teaching of the power of the Gospel (Romans 1:16) is so much twisted by present day false prophets and prosperity gospel preachers. The way leaven works is that it is so little but it influences the whole lump. They are spreading this leaven in its subtlety. They are stopping and robbing people to see the Glory of the Christ Crucified. The power of the Gospel does not lay in signs and wonders but in Christ and His Righteousness. Paul speaks of “this power” in Romans 1:17 and then expounds this in the rest of his epistle to the Romans. Man has broken and violated the Law of God. He is guilty before God and is under the wrath of God (Romans 1:18) The Gospel is the power of God because guilty sinners are and can only be reconciled to God on the basis of Christ and his perfect righteousness which is by faith alone. The well known words of the prophet Habakkuk are quoted in Romans 1:17, as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”

We must pay heed to Christ’s warnings of “Beware! and the warnings of the Holy Bible. There are many warnings which start with the word “Beware!” and I mention just few references here for your study,(Matthew 7:15;10:17;16:12 Luke 12:1;20:46 Galatians 5:15 Philippians 3:2 Colossians 2:8)

What about you? Are you still seeking a sign like the enemies of Christ and his Gospel?  Dear reader, I ask you the same question which Jesus asked to his disciples, “…How is it that ye do not understand?” (Mark 8:21)

I shall close this note by turning you to the warnings found in the epistle to the Hebrews:

Hebrews 2:3 “How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard [Him]”

Hebrews 4:1 “Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it.”

Hebrews 9:27-28 “And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.”

Hebrews 12:28-29 “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. For our God is a consuming fire.”

Note from Pastor E John dated 31 Oct 2011

Picture taken by H.Webb in October 2011, sunrising on the Sea of Galilee

The Christian’s great concern in the above verse is the fear of God in the assembly of the saints.  God is not simply to be feared but greatly to be feared. There are two different words used (Psalm 89:7) in the Hebrew text ( עָרַץ and יָרֵא ) for “fear ” to teach us that the Covenant keeping God of all grace, is truly to be feared and revered in the true churches of Christ.  The assembly of the Christian saints, is a family but it is a family under the one Headship of Christ where the rule of Christ the King is to be exercised and actually seen. Christ is the Head of His Church. He has purchased her by paying the price with His own Blood. The Church of Christ must never forget that she was not bought by the blood of lambs and goats which could not cleanse the guilty conscience but by the most precious Blood of the Lamb of God. This Lamb of God is the Eternal Son of God. Christ’s Life and Death on the Cross is able to cleanse us from all our sins and iniquities. Thank God! now the Lamb is continually being worshipped in Heaven as the victorious Lamb of God. Before the Psalmist speaks about the fear of God in Psalm 89:7, dear reader, please pay attention to what he says in the following two verses  ”And the heavens shall praise thy wonders, O LORD: thy faithfulness in the congregation of the saints. For who in the heaven can be compared unto the LORD? who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the LORD? (Psalm 89:5-6)  The Church of Christ here upon earth exists to the praise and glory of her God. The Holy Spirit was given to the church to teach her all things, and to bring all things to her rememberance (John 14:26) about her Lord. The Holy Spirit does this work by and through the Holy Word.

One of the very well known verses to us is Proverbs 1:7, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” The question is, do you fear the LORD? Or are you “one of those fools” who depise Christ & Him Crucified? The writer to the Hebrews writes this for us “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. For our God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12:28-29)

Note from the Pastor

Dated: 14 July 2011

“Give unto the LORD the glory due to His name; Worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.” (Psalm 29:2)

“….for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” (Romans 3:22-26)

“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” (Romans 5:1-2)

“Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” (2-Cor 7:1)

“Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord.” (Hebrews 12:14)

“He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” (Revelation 21:7-8)

Genesis 26:24

We read in Genesis chapter 26 that the LORD appeared to Isaac twice. First time (26:2) to stop him from going down to Egypt and Isaac obeyed the LORD.  When the LORD in his Sovereign providence stopped Isaac, He not only reminded him of the Oath that He had made with Abraham on the Mount Moriah, (Genesis 22:16-18) but assured Isaac that He will “perform” the Oath. Now the second time when the LORD appeared to Isaac (26:24) he was no longer living in the valley of Gerar in the  neighbourhood of the Philistines but back in Beersheba, the place where Isaac had been in the closet communion and fellowship with his God. It is the same place where after the mount Moriah experience Isaac came back with his father Abraham and dwelt there. Isaac knew for the rest of his life that the LORD provided a lamb for him and the LORD was going to provide the Lamb in future in the fullness of time.  Isaac had fears as he came back in Beersheba and the Philistines had been giving him and his family hard time to discourage them. But the LORD drove his fears away and encouraged the hearts of his people by reminding them about the Gospel promises. Coming back to Beersheba also meant that Isaac in his life of sanctification had to separate himself from the world to make a distinct stand, and yet he was not out of the world. Here is a great lesson for true Christians to learn. As Jesus said, “They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world” John 17:16

 Today there is so much fear in the world. There are many things to make people fearful. Man’s one big fear is the fear of death, which came into the world as a result of first Adam’s sin of disobedience (Romans 5:12) But thank God for Jesus, the second Adam, by whose obedience “..many are made righteous” (Romans 5:19)

 True remedy to man’s fears is the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.  The angel’s message to shepherds at night was ” Fear not!” Why? “for , behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy…For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”  (Luke 2:10-11) Jesus is truly God and truly man.

 Sin brings fears but Jesus is the Saviour from Sin, who is able to drive sinners fears away. The Death of Jesus Christ as an Atonement for our sins is the key to understand how our fears are driven away. The promise “Fear not for I am with thee” is the blessed promise and assurance for those who are redeedmed by the Blood of the Lamb of God, that is Jesus Christ and Him Crucified. (Amen!)

The seasons of nature change, our lives go through seasons of change but how great it is to know that the LORD does not change. Here is a verse from one famous Christian hymn to remind us of our communion with our God:

Through all the changing scenes of life,
in trouble and in joy,
The praises of my God shall still
My heart and tongue employ.