The middle of Mark’s Gospel has Jesus turning his attention to Jerusalem and the mission of the cross. Three times Jesus told his disciples that he was going to suffer, die, and rise again, but they could not comprehend what he was saying. 

This section begins and ends with Jesus healing blind men. These are more than random miracles. They are bookends to Jesus' announcement of his death and they serve as indictments against the disciples who could not see what Jesus was telling them. 

In the first example in Mark 8:22-26, Jesus healed a blind man in stages. After initially touching his eyes everything was blurry. When Jesus touched him again, he was able to see everything clearly. 

The second example in Mark 10:46-52 introduces us to Blind Bartimaeus who called Jesus the “Son of David.” That might seem like an insignificant detail at first, but it was a clear Messianic title. He was the first person, apart from Peter in Mark 8:29, to confess that Jesus was the Christ. 

This section is focused on seeing Jesus clearly: Who he is, what his mission was, and the implications of what that means for the life of his disciples. 

A LESSON ON THE CROSS AND SUFFERING

We can be overly critical of the disciples who didn’t understand Jesus’ prediction of his death. However, they didn’t have the theological understanding of a suffering servant. Sure, they had Isaiah 53, but that is much easier to understand in hindsight. Jesus only announced the details of his death and resurrection with the twelve disciples. He didn’t want the crowds and the demons he had encountered to know his ultimate plan. This implies that no one, not even Satan, anticipated that Jesus intended to die in Jerusalem. 

The disciples had witnessed the massive crowds flocking to Jesus. He had just fed 5,000 men on a hillside in Galilee. They believed this was a sign their revolution would be a success. They heard what Jesus said, but they interpreted it through their own lens of triumphalism. 

Consider Peter’s rebuke in context. He wanted Jesus to inspire his followers to join their cause. Jesus rebuked Peter, turned to the crowds following them, and said, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? For what can a man give in return for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels” (Mark 8:34-38).

Without knowing what Jesus said to the disciples privately, these words could be seen as a call to arms against Rome. Like the disciples the crowds had largely misunderstood Jesus’ ministry. When he asked who the people thought that he was, they answered with John the Baptist, Elijah, or just another prophet. None of them saw him as the Messiah, and certainly not a suffering savior. 

The Transfiguration of Jesus, in Mark 9:2-13, addressed these misunderstandings. Jesus wasn’t just the Messiah, he is God. Moses and Elijah talked with him on the mountain as a testimony of the plan for Jesus to suffer and die. It was foretold throughout the Law and the Prophets. 

Peter’s initial response, to rebuke Jesus, not only revealed that he missed the point of his mission, but he was unwilling to accept the implications. Jesus told them that the path to greatness is in self-denial. Our understanding of who Jesus is and what he came to do shapes our understanding of discipleship. Jesus’ willingness to be obedient to the point of death demands that we take up our own cross and follow him. 

A LESSON ON HUMILITY AND WITNESS

As Jesus and the disciples made their way south through Galilee, he continued to explain that he was going to die and rise again. The disciples didn’t even bother to ask what he meant. They were too busy discussing which of them was the greatest. 

In the first century Middle East culture, it was common for people to categorize themselves into hierarchical structures. We can imagine how the conversations started. Peter, James, and John had just summited the Mount of Transfiguration. The disciples who remained were unable to cast out demons. There were plenty of reasons for the disciples to point out their own strengths and the weaknesses of others. 

Jesus rebuked them “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all” (Mark 9:35). Then he drew their attention toward a child, and said, “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me” (Mark 9:37). This brings us to three examples of Jesus referencing children to teach his disciples what it means to be great in his kingdom. 

First, Jesus told them that they needed to treat a child with the same honor that they would treat him. We would roll out the red carpet for Jesus, get out the best china, prepare a five course meal, and hang on every word he said. No one would do that for a toddler. 

Jesus is God, yet he lowered himself to take on human flesh. He ministered to the poor, the broken hearted, sinners, and those rejected by society. His own disciples were made up of fishermen and tax collectors. Christlikeness is not determined by those who have the largest platform, but those who lower themselves to minister to those who have nothing to offer in return. 

Second, Jesus warned his disciples not to lead little children into sin. This fits within the earlier teaching on self-denial, “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul” (Mark 8:36)? Jesus pointed out that if we do not put Christ first in our lives, we are misleading those who follow our example. 

When we put our own needs in front of others, when we seek our happiness over our commitment to do what is right, we are demonstrating the priorities of our heart. We should not be surprised that the next generation has rejected our faith when we have sought our own kingdoms over the Kingdom of God. 

Mark 9:42-48 contains the harshest words of Jesus in the entire Gospel. It declares that it would be better to go to heaven maimed than suffer hell's eternal flame. This is a hyperbolic illustration to demonstrate the importance of ordering our affections correctly. Heaven and hell are real and our eternal destiny is of greater importance than the pleasures of this world. 

Third, this section ends with the disciples rebuking people for trying to bring their children to Jesus, but he declared, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it” (Mark 10:14-15). 

Not only were the disciples told to honor children and warned against leading them astray, but a child’s faith was held up as the standard for everyone else. Jesus pointed out the contrast between a child and the rich young man who thought that he could earn eternal life based on his obedience to the law. Jesus reiterated, “Many who are first will be last, and the last first” (Mark 10:31). 

We should not think that our faith is any greater than that of a child. It is not the measure of our faith, but the one we are putting our faith in that makes all the difference. 

A LESSON ON SACRIFICE AND SLAVERY

As Jesus and the disciples approached Jerusalem, he repeated for a third time that he was going to die and rise again. And how did the disciples respond? John and James asked Jesus for the two most important seats of honor in the kingdom. If Jesus succeeded in their expectations to take the city back from Rome, they wanted to be assured that they were considered to sit on his left and his right. 

Even after Jesus explained the severity of what he was going to endure, they responded that they were ready and willing to do whatever it took to earn their seats of honor. Let’s give James and John the benefit of the doubt. They probably meant what they said, they just didn’t understand the true cost. Inevitably, the disciples would suffer in partnership with Christ in advancing his kingdom, but it wouldn’t happen in the way they imagined it. 

Jesus’ kingdom does not operate like the kingdoms of this world. It does not grow by assertion of power and control. Jesus said, “Whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all” (Mark 10:43-44). 

During his encounter with the rich young man, Jesus told him, “Go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me” (Mark 10:21). What would have happened if he actually did what Jesus said? He would have become like the people he was rescuing out of poverty. 

This is exactly what Jesus did for us. He did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45). Jesus gave up his riches in heaven to purchase us out of slavery to sin. So he told James and John that they needed to have the same mindset. In order to be considered great, they needed to be servants and slaves. 

The standard for following Christ was demonstrated in who Jesus is, what he did, and how he did it. He lowered himself and took on the form of a servant. He denied himself and was obedient to the point of death on the cross. He put our needs before his own. He lifted up and honored the lowest people. He gave all that he had in order to purchase us out of slavery. The gospel, that Jesus suffered, died, and rose again, is not just our hope for salvation, it is the pattern of life for his disciples.