** Unlocked은 Keys for kids Ministries에서 지원받은 프로그램입니다. 원본으로 듣고 싶으신 분들은 홈페이지 Unlocked.org로 들어가시면 <May 5, 2021>에서 다시 들으실 수 있습니다.**
Jesus: The Suffering Servant
• READ: ISAIAH 53; MARK 10:32-45; PHILIPPIANS 2:6-11; HEBREWS 4:15-16
Who is Jesus? This is the question Mark wants his audience to wrestle with. Throughout his account of Jesus’ life, Mark shows different people, including Jesus’ disciples, as they wrestle with the same question: Who is Jesus?
Mark illustrates how people didn’t really know who Jesus was. They figured out He was the Messiah, the Son of God who came to rescue them, but they thought that meant He would rescue them from the oppression of their Roman rulers. They expected Him to lead them in a political uprising, taking back their land in glorious victory.
They failed to realize that, in the kingdom of God, glorious victory comes only through humble self-sacrifice. Jesus, the promised Messiah, would indeed gain victory over evil, sin, and death, but only by becoming the Suffering Servant the prophet Isaiah predicted in Isaiah 53. Jesus’ followers expected Him to become King, but they didn’t expect His coronation to happen on a cross.
This surprising truth was both a comfort and a challenge to Mark’s audience, who were primarily Gentile (non-Jewish) Christians probably experiencing some level of persecution. It’s a challenge because, if we follow a Suffering Servant King, then we can expect to suffer also. If Jesus gave up every part of Himself for us, it’s fitting that we daily give up every part of ourselves for Him.
But this challenge comes with a comfort. Throughout the Gospel of Mark, we see Jesus extending love to the marginalized—to people who are suffering. Mark shows us Jesus is deeply, personally acquainted with our suffering. He knows our hurts, and He hurts with us. He cares about us so deeply that, in Mark, we see Him take our sin and suffering into Himself on the cross. And we see Him defeat suffering and death by resurrecting from the dead. The Suffering Servant is infinitely stronger than suffering. So, tell me, who is Jesus? • Taylor Eising
• Are you ever surprised by how Jesus—King of the universe—came, or what He did?
• When you’re suffering, how could it be comforting to know that Jesus knows your hurts?
• What does it look like to live, by the Holy Spirit, in the loving humility Jesus demonstrated?
“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45 (NLT)
** Unlocked은 Keys for kids Ministries에서 지원받은 프로그램입니다. 원본으로 듣고 싶으신 분들은 홈페이지 Unlocked.org로 들어가시면 <March 28, 2021>에서 다시 들으실 수 있습니다.**
The Triumphal Entry
• READ: LUKE 19:28-44
The tale of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem is listed in all four of the gospels. In this account, Jesus rides a donkey’s colt into the city as people— His people—threw their cloaks to the ground at His feet, shouting, “Hosanna!”
But only one gospel, Luke, mentions a key factor that drastically changes the mood of the whole story: when He looked out over that great city of Jerusalem, Jesus wept (Luke 19:41).
The Greek word translated "wept" literally means “wailed.” Imagine the scene now: throngs of people cheering and welcoming their long-awaited Savior, celebrating His arrival. Suddenly, He begins weeping loudly as He views the city before Him.
Kind of puts a damper on what should be a wonderful, celebrated story, doesn’t it? You see, the people of Jerusalem wanted Jesus as a leader, but not in the eternal sense they truly needed. No, they wanted Him to be a military king who would rescue them from the clutches of the Romans—not the King of the universe, not the King who would conquer sin and death. They had no desire to open their minds to Jesus so He could save them as He had come to do.
Jesus knew the people would quickly turn on Him when they determined He was not the kind of ruler they wanted. After all, it’s possible some of the very same people present were in the crowd yelling for His crucifixion merely a few days later.
The same story happens repeatedly today. People refuse to put their trust in Jesus—the risen King of the universe and the only Savior from sin and death. Even Christians lapse into treating Him as someone to fix our problems when we ask, instead of living our lives in light of His kingdom. So, today, consider: What is Jesus to you? • Aleia Lenz
• Have you ever thought of Jesus in a different way than you do now? If so, what changed?
• We are all sinners in need of a Savior (Romans 3:23). To learn more about what this means and why Jesus is that Savior, check out our "Know Jesus" page.
Surely he [Jesus] took up our pain, and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. Isaiah 53:4-5 (NIV)
