Aug. 11, 2024

Last week we ended with Jesus choosing his 12 disciples in Chapter 3. This week we continue in Chapter 3 where Jesus is accused of being of Beelzebub and His own family thinks he has lost his mind.

Mark Lesson 5 Study Questions

1.    He is out of His mind: The brothers of Jesus didn’t believe in Him until after His ____________, and during His earthly ministry they prodded Him to ______ Himself (John 7:3-5).

2.     He has Beelzebub: Actually, they accused Jesus of being ___________ by Satan. “He hath Beelzebub, implying that Beelzebub hath Him, using Him as his agent. The expression points to something more than an alliance [but] to ____________, and then on a grand scale.” 

3.    His own people misunderstood Jesus, but the scribes who came down from Jerusalem viciously and cynically attacked Jesus. Because of their official position, this was the _______ step in the plot to destroy Jesus referred to in Mark 3:6. Before they could destroy Him, they had to first __________ Jesus in the eyes of the multitude.

4.    No one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods: With this Jesus answered the charge that He was in ________ with the Devil. He said, “I’m not under Satan. Instead, I am proving that I am _______ than he is.”

5.    Because they said, He has an unclean spirit: These religious leaders were in danger of __________ of the Holy Spirit because they looked at the perfectly good and wonderful work of God in Jesus and officially pronounced it the evil of _______. This pointed to a settled rejection of heart against Jesus – possible evidence of the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.

6.    He who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness: Therefore, when we ____________ reject the work the Holy Spirit wants to do in us and when we have a continued, settled __________ of what He wants to tell us about Jesus, then we blaspheme the Holy Spirit. The blasphemy of the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven – not because it is a sin “too big” for God to forgive, but because it is an ___________ of heart that cares nothing for God’s forgiveness. It never has forgiveness because it never _______ forgiveness God’s way.

7.    Who is My mother, or My brothers? We might have expected that Jesus’ family would have special __________ before Him. It almost surprises us that they do not. Yet the brothers of Jesus never seemed to be ____________ of His ministry before His death and resurrection (John 7:5).

8.    Then He taught them many things by parables: The word parable comes from the idea of “to set along-side.” As Jesus used parables, the idea was to set a __________ truth along-side a _______ truth of living.

9.    A parable isn’t exactly an illustration. A good teacher can illustrate by stating a truth and then illustrating the truth through a story or an analogy. But when Jesus used parables, He didn’t start by stating a truth. Instead, the parable was like a _________. Jesus’ listeners stood at the doorway and heard Him. If they were not __________, they stayed on the outside. But if they were interested, they could walk through the doorway and think about the ______ behind the parable and what it meant to their lives.

10.    Lest they should turn, and their sins be forgiven them: In light of this, how blessed are those who do __________ the parables of Jesus. Not only do they gain the benefit of the _________ truth illustrated; they also display some measure of responsiveness to the ________.