And Peter – Mark 15-16

Joy: You’re listening to Season 2 of the Lifting Her Voice podcast.   This is Episode #295 and today we’ll read Mark chapters 15-16 together. But go, tell his disciples and Peter.

Welcome

Welcome to the Lifting Her Voice podcast, Season 2!  I’m your host, Joy Miller, and I invite you to grab your Bible and join me – from the beginning – simply reading God’s word together.  We built some spiritual muscles in 2020 with just the New Testament.  But this year we’re going all out, cover-to-cover, Old Testament and New.  So, whether with your first cup in the morning, your commute to work, or as the last thing on your mind before sleep, God’s Word will equip you for every good work.  I’m really glad you’re here!

Mark Chapter 15

Jesus Faces Pilate

As soon as it was morning, having held a meeting with the elders, scribes, and the whole Sanhedrin, the chief priests tied Jesus up, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate.

So Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

He answered him, “You say so.”

And the chief priests accused him of many things. Pilate questioned him again, “Aren’t you going to answer? Look how many things they are accusing you of!” But Jesus still did not answer, and so Pilate was amazed.

Jesus or Barabbas

At the festival Pilate used to release for the people a prisoner whom they requested. There was one named Barabbas, who was in prison with rebels who had committed murder during the rebellion. The crowd came up and began to ask Pilate to do for them as was his custom. Pilate answered them, “Do you want me to release the king of the Jews for you?” For he knew it was because of envy that the chief priests had handed him over. But the chief priests stirred up the crowd so that he would release Barabbas to them instead. Pilate asked them again, “Then what do you want me to do with the one you call the king of the Jews?”

Again they shouted, “Crucify him!”

Pilate said to them, “Why? What has he done wrong?”

But they shouted all the more, “Crucify him!”

Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them; and after having Jesus flogged, he handed him over to be crucified.

Mocked by the Military

The soldiers led him away into the palace (that is, the governor’s residence) and called the whole company together. They dressed him in a purple robe, twisted together a crown of thorns, and put it on him. And they began to salute him, “Hail, king of the Jews!” They were hitting him on the head with a stick and spitting on him. Getting down on their knees, they were paying him homage. After they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple robe and put his clothes on him.

Crucified between Two Criminals

They led him out to crucify him. They forced a man coming in from the country, who was passing by, to carry Jesus’s cross. He was Simon of Cyrene, the father of Alexander and Rufus.

They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means Place of the Skull). They tried to give him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it.

Then they crucified him and divided his clothes, casting lots for them to decide what each would get. Now it was nine in the morning when they crucified him. The inscription of the charge written against him was: The King of the Jews. They crucified two criminals with him, one on his right and one on his left.

Those who passed by were yelling insults at him, shaking their heads, and saying, “Ha! The one who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself by coming down from the cross!” In the same way, the chief priests with the scribes were mocking him among themselves and saying, “He saved others, but he cannot save himself! Let the Messiah, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross, so that we may see and believe.” Even those who were crucified with him taunted him.

The Death of Jesus

When it was noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. And at three Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lemá sabachtháni?” which is translated, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”

When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “See, he’s calling for Elijah.”

Someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, fixed it on a stick, offered him a drink, and said, “Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down.”

Jesus let out a loud cry and breathed his last. Then the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. When the centurion, who was standing opposite him, saw the way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”

There were also women watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. In Galilee these women followed him and took care of him. Many other women had come up with him to Jerusalem.

The Burial of Jesus

When it was already evening, because it was the day of preparation (that is, the day before the Sabbath), Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Sanhedrin who was himself looking forward to the kingdom of God, came and boldly went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’s body. Pilate was surprised that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he had already died. When he found out from the centurion, he gave the corpse to Joseph. After he bought some linen cloth, Joseph took him down and wrapped him in the linen. Then he laid him in a tomb cut out of the rock and rolled a stone against the entrance to the tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses were watching where he was laid.

Mark Chapter 16

Resurrection Morning

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they could go and anoint him. Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they went to the tomb at sunrise. They were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone from the entrance to the tomb for us?” Looking up, they noticed that the stone — which was very large — had been rolled away.

When they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side; they were alarmed. “Don’t be alarmed,” he told them. “You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they put him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you to Galilee; you will see him there just as he told you.’”

They went out and ran from the tomb, because trembling and astonishment overwhelmed them. And they said nothing to anyone, since they were afraid.

[Some of the earliest mss conclude with 16:8.]

The Longer Ending of Mark: Appearances of the Risen Lord

[Early on the first day of the week, after he had risen, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. She went and reported to those who had been with him, as they were mourning and weeping. Yet, when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe it.

After this, he appeared in a different form to two of them walking on their way into the country. And they went and reported it to the rest, who did not believe them either.

The Great Commission

Later he appeared to the Eleven themselves as they were reclining at the table. He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who saw him after he had risen. Then he said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes; if they should drink anything deadly, it will not harm them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will get well.”

The Ascension

So the Lord Jesus, after speaking to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word by the accompanying signs.]

Close

Mark 16:7 holds one of the most precious treasures of the good news of a relationship with Jesus Christ.  It certainly speaks to me.  

I don’t know about you, but there have been times in my life that I have really messed up.  I have behaved in ways that look nothing like a Christian.  I have been unkind, I have been rebellious, and I have pulled plenty of Jonahs, knowing what the Holy Spirit was prompting me to do and heading in the other direction.  And, tragically, all this after I called myself a follower of Jesus.  If you know my testimony, you know that I was all over the Savior part of the Gospel, but didn’t quite embrace the Lord-of-my-life part.  If you would like to hear my story, go to Season 1 of the podcast, Episodes 94 & 95.

Peter too, really messed up when he denied knowing Jesus.  He was shattered and ashamed.  Is it going too far to think he may have assumed that he could no longer be a disciple?  That this monumental failure was the end of his career as an apostle?  

And then the angel is speaking with the women at the tomb.  In Mark 16:6-7, this is a bit of what he says:  …He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they put him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter…  The angel specifically singles Peter out. Jesus obviously had no intention of firing Peter.  Can you imagine what that must have meant to him?  How grateful, how relieved he must have been?  Has He said that to and about me?  But go, tell his disciples and Joy!  Read that phrase aloud and say your name.  I dare you to consider how much He loves you.

Prayer

Let’s pray.  Dear Jesus, thank You for making it possible for me to hear those words, and Joy. Thank You for loving me, for including me in Your family, for forgiving my worst shortcomings and rebellion.  Lord, I thank You that You have offered this free gift of grace to all who will simply come.  

Your word in Romans 10:13 says that all those who call on the name of the Lord will be saved. If there is anyone within the sound of my voice who has not called on Your name in faith, I pray You give them the courage to do that now, Lord.  Help them to see that their sin, like mine, has caused them to miss Your mark of perfection.  Help them to  confess it to You and ask for forgiveness.  I pray that simple heartfelt act would start them on a life with You as their Lord and Savior.  Thank You, Father.  Amen.

If you just prayed to give your life to Christ, won’t you tell me about it at Lifting Her Voice.com, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.  

Thank you for joining me here today.  I pray that by spending time in His Word every day, you will be changed.  Visit me at Lifting Her Voice.com with your comments and questions.  And don’t forget to visit the Blog page while you’re there.  If you like the podcast, it would be great if you’d give it a five-star review and share it with everyone you know.  Don’t forget to subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.  See you tomorrow!

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Christian Standard Bible(r), Copyright (c) 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible(r) and CSB(r) are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.