Welcome to another enlightening session of Add Bible, where today’s journey takes us through Mark Chapter 9. Witness the extraordinary Transfiguration of Jesus and understand its profound significance, as it unfolds through the eyes of Peter, James, and John. The narrative further illustrates the miraculous power of belief as Jesus drives out an unclean spirit, inviting us to question and deepen our faith. Moreover, we dive into the Old Testament themes that discuss prophecy and its fulfillment, revealing God’s constant presence and His response to human cycles of righteousness and rebellion. This episode challenges us to align our lives
Welcome to Add Bible, an audio daily devotion from the Ezra Project. We join Allen J. Huth as he shares Bible passages and comments from over 30 years of his personal Bible reading journals.
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Today is Mark chapter 9. Mark chapter 9 is 50 verses, so we’ll listen in to Faith Comes By Hearing’s reading of Mark 9. Mark 9
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And he said to them, Truly I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God, after it has come with power.
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And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became radiant, intensely white, as no one on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. And Peter said to Jesus,
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Rabbi, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.
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For he did not know what to say, for they were terrified. And a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice came out of the cloud.
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This is my beloved son.
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Listen to him. And suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone with them but Jesus only. And as they were coming down the mountain, he charged them to tell no one what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what this rising from the dead might mean.
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And they asked him, Why do the scribes say that first Elijah must come?
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And he said to them, Elijah does come first to restore all things, and how is it written of the Son of Man that he should suffer many things and be treated with contempt? But I tell you that Elijah has come, and they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is written of him.
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And when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them and scribes arguing with them. And immediately all the crowd, when they saw him, were greatly amazed and ran up to him and greeted him.
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And he asked them, What are you arguing about with them?
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And someone from the crowd answered him,
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Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a spirit that makes him mute, and whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able.
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And he answered them, O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me.
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And they brought the boy to him. And when the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. And Jesus asked his father, How long has this been happening to him?
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And he said, From childhood. And it is often cast him into fire and into water to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.
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And Jesus said to him, If you can, all things are possible for one who believes. Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, I believe.
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Help my unbelief.
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And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again. And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, He is dead. But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. And when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, Why could we not cast it out?
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And he said to them, This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.
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They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And he did not want anyone to know, for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them,
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The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he will rise.
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But they did not understand the saying, and were afraid to ask him. And they came to Capernaum, and when he was in the house, he asked them, What were you discussing on the way? But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. And he sat down and called the twelve, and he said to them, If anyone would be first, he must be last of all, and servant of all. And he took a child and put him in the midst of them, and taking him in his arms, he said to them, Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me.
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and whoever receives me receives not me, but him who sent me.
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John said to him, Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him because he was not following us.
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But Jesus said, Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. For the one who is not against us is for us. For truly, I say to you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward. Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell, where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched. For everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good, but if the salt is lost its saltiness, how will you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves and be at peace with one another.
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I shared yesterday on Mark 8 that at this time in 1986 I was moving from Denver to Nashville. On this day I was in Jefferson City, Missouri flying back to Denver to move. And I did read on the plane that day, Mark 8 and 9, but I didn’t make a note, a journal entry. In 1996, I read Mark chapter 9 in two different days, half on one day, half on another. On the first half day, it was a Saturday, and I didn’t make any notes. But on Sunday, I did. I wrote about the end of Mark 9. To be first, be a servant. Bring the children to Jesus. It is better to suffer and sacrifice than to allow sin to keep us out of heaven. And in 2006, I was reading the Old Testament and the New Testament on each day so that I would get through the whole Bible in a year. So on Mark chapter 9, I read half of it on one day and half of it on the second day. So I wrote on those days, If you can, all things are possible to him who believe. I do believe. Help my unbelief. So that was my summary of the first part of Mark 9. The next day I wrote, Jesus taught the disciples about his death and resurrection before it took place, but they did not want to receive it. We will summarize Mark chapter 9 by looking at a couple of verses. The first one is related to the story of the transfiguration. Verse 7 says, And a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice came out of the cloud. This is my beloved son. Listen to him. How could Mark have recorded such an event? He wasn’t there. But remember in our book introduction we said that Mark was Peter’s writer. And Peter was one of the three that saw the transfiguration. That’s why Mark can record it. He gets his information from Peter. The next verse is related to the story of the demon-possessed young boy. The father says to Jesus in verse 22, But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us. And Jesus said to him, If you can, all things are possible for one who believes. Do you have an if-you-can attitude about God? Do you have an if-you-can attitude about Jesus? Or do you believe that all things are possible because you believe in God? You believe in Jesus. Next, Jesus predicts his death and his resurrection. Verse 31 says, For he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. and when he is killed, after three days he will rise. Here in Mark 9, it’s apparent that Jesus knows where he’s going. He’s headed for the cross. He knows how he’s going to die, and he knows that he’s going to rise from the dead. That’s amazing, isn’t it? Sometimes I fantasize when I read the scriptures. I think about things, and I think, is it a coincidence that Jesus reveals that he’s going to die and rise from the dead right after the transfiguration? Was it Elijah and Moses that came and delivered that message to him? Maybe, maybe not. Maybe he knew it from the foundations of the earth. But thinking about things like that helps me engage in the scriptures that I’m reading. Let’s pray. Lord, I pray that we do not have doubt about what you can or cannot do. And if any of our listeners today have any doubt, I pray this verse over them. I believe. Help my unbelief. All things are possible for one who believes. I choose to believe in you. You’ve helped my unbelief disappear over the life of my Christian walk with you. I’ve seen you do amazing things. You have turned my unbelief. Thanks for listening to AdBible Today. Maybe you wonder if Old Testament prophecy is true, came true already, or is coming true in the future. First, most prophets had a recurring theme. God loves us. Because he loves us so much, he gave us commandments, rules, statutes to live by. If we live by them, we can be blessed beyond what we can think or imagine. But when we choose to disregard, ignore, and set aside his rules, we are subject to his curses. We live under curses until things get so bad we cry out to God. He’s always there, waiting for our cry. Most often, but not always, He responds with grace, love, mercy, and forgiveness. We get back in line, then the cycle repeats. The Old Testament prophets cover this cycle over and over. Sometimes we wonder how the Israelites could have been so foolish. Yet, in our day, we have the same choice. We know God loves us. We generally know the rules, and we’d know them a lot better if we were more consistent in our time in God’s Word. Yet, we decide, like those in the Old Testament, to ignore them and live out our lives. Things don’t often go well, so we finally cry out to God. As we see in the Old Testament, prophecy comes true as God restores rebellious, disobedient people like us back into right relationship with Him. But it is not always the case. Sometimes he has enough and does not deliver them. So yes, Old Testament prophecies are true, they came true, and they will come true in the future as we cycle through the same life choices the Israelites made. Thus, the value of reading all the Old Testament prophets. Maybe we will learn what they tried to teach. God loves us. Keep his rules, love him back, and enjoy his blessings. Our host stations are hearing from you listeners. People are calling in to say thanks for adding AdBible to their program selection. Thank you for tuning in to this program. AdBible is sponsored by the Ezra Project, a ministry started in 2002 to connect God’s people to God’s Word. We speak in churches, provide audio and written resources at EzraProject.net, and find radio as a way to reach deeply committed Christians. You can learn more about the Ezra Project by searching us from your phone, tablet, or computer. You may really enjoy the short video describing how the Lord led us to start this ministry and how he has blessed it for decades. 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