Wednesday -Mark 10:13-16

"Do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." -James 1:22

This week we were trying different reading methods to change our perspective. How many different methods did you try? Did you try any not on the list? Did you find any of the methods hard or weird? Did you discover any new methods you might use again in the future?

What reading method will you use on the last day for this reading challenge?

Here are six ways you can read this passage:

1) Read Mark 10:13-16 out loud and slowly. What did you hear?
2) Read Mark 10:13-16 silently and slowly. What did you see?
3) Write out a portion of the passage. What did you feel?
4) Listen to Mark 10. What did you hear?
5) Read Mark 10:13-16 in NIV? What did you see?
6) Read Mark 10:13-16 in NLT? What did you see? 

Questions about your reading:

What main insight do you have about this passage after reading it different ways?
After reading different ways, which method did you prefer? Why?
What are some other ways you could read Scripture this week?

Mark 10:13-16The Message (MSG)

13-16 The people brought children to Jesus, hoping he might touch them. The disciples shooed them off. But Jesus was irate and let them know it: “Don’t push these children away. Don’t ever get between them and me. These children are at the very center of life in the kingdom. Mark this: Unless you accept God’s kingdom in the simplicity of a child, you’ll never get in.” Then, gathering the children up in his arms, he laid his hands of blessing on them.

Tuesday -Mark 10:1-12

"Do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." -James 1:22

We are working at changing our perspective this week. By trying different methods of Scripture reading, we are giving ourselves the opportunity to see if we can pick up insights we would have missed. The challenge is to use at least three different reading methods.

Here are six ways you can read this passage:

1) Read Mark Mark 10:1-12 out loud and slowly. What did you hear?
2) Read Mark 10:1-12 silently and slowly. What did you see?
3) Write out a portion of the passage. What did you feel?
4) Listen to Mark 10. What did you hear?
5) Read Mark 10:1-12 in NIV? What did you see?
6) Read Mark 10:1-12 in NLT? What did you see? 

Questions about your reading:

What main insight do you have about this passage after reading it different ways?
After reading different ways, which method did you prefer? Why?
What are some other ways you could read Scripture this week?

Mark 10:1-12The Message (MSG)

10 1-2 From there he went to the area of Judea across the Jordan. A crowd of people, as was so often the case, went along, and he, as he so often did, taught them. Pharisees came up, intending to give him a hard time. They asked, “Is it legal for a man to divorce his wife?”

3 Jesus said, “What did Moses command?”

4 They answered, “Moses gave permission to fill out a certificate of dismissal and divorce her.”

5-9 Jesus said, “Moses wrote this command only as a concession to your hardhearted ways. In the original creation, God made male and female to be together. Because of this, a man leaves father and mother, and in marriage he becomes one flesh with a woman—no longer two individuals, but forming a new unity. Because God created this organic union of the two sexes, no one should desecrate his art by cutting them apart.”

10-12 When they were back home, the disciples brought it up again. Jesus gave it to them straight: “A man who divorces his wife so he can marry someone else commits adultery against her. And a woman who divorces her husband so she can marry someone else commits adultery.”

Monday -Mark 9:42-50

"Do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." -James 1:22

We are working at changing our perspective this week. By trying different methods of Scripture reading, we are giving ourselves the opportunity to see if we can pick up insights we would have missed. The challenge is to use at least three different reading methods.

Here are six ways you can read this passage:

1) Read Mark 9:42-50 out loud and slowly. What did you hear?
2) Read Mark 9:42-50 silently and slowly. What did you see?
3) Write out a portion of the passage. What did you feel?
4) Listen to Mark 9. What did you hear?
5) Read Mark 9:42-50 in NIV? What did you see?
6) Read Mark 9:42-50 in NLT? What did you see? 

Questions about your reading:

What main insight do you have about this passage after reading it different ways?
After reading different ways, which method did you prefer? Why?
What are some other ways you could read Scripture this week?

Mark 9:42-50The Message (MSG)

42 “On the other hand, if you give one of these simple, childlike believers a hard time, bullying or taking advantage of their simple trust, you’ll soon wish you hadn’t. You’d be better off dropped in the middle of the lake with a millstone around your neck.

43-48 “If your hand or your foot gets in God’s way, chop it off and throw it away. You’re better off maimed or lame and alive than the proud owner of two hands and two feet, godless in a furnace of eternal fire. And if your eye distracts you from God, pull it out and throw it away. You’re better off one-eyed and alive than exercising your twenty-twenty vision from inside the fire of hell.

49-50 “Everyone’s going through a refining fire sooner or later, but you’ll be well-preserved, protected from the eternal flames. Be preservatives yourselves. Preserve the peace.”

Sunday -Mark 9:38-41

"Do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." -James 1:22

How is your reading going this week? Have you found a method you really like? Have you found one you dislike? Have you used the same three every day or have you tried new methods?

Preference for one style or way of reading is good. We often like a specific method because it fits with how our brain is wired. Study and reading methods are tools to helps us listen to God's Word.

Different tools help with different jobs. Different methods help us see Scripture in different ways. We are half way through the week's different perspective challenge. Keep going! You're doing great! What three reading methods will you try today?

Here are six ways you can read this passage:

1) Read Mark 9:38-41 out loud and slowly. What did you hear?
2) Read Mark 9:38-41 silently and slowly. What did you see?
3) Write out a portion of the passage. What did you feel?
4) Listen to Mark 9. What did you hear?
5) Read Mark 9:38-41 in NIV? What did you see?
6) Read Mark 9:38-41 in NLT? What did you see? 

Questions about your reading:

What main insight do you have about this passage after reading it different ways?
After reading different ways, which method did you prefer? Why?
What are some other ways you could read Scripture this week?

Mark 9:38-41The Message (MSG)

38 John spoke up, “Teacher, we saw a man using your name to expel demons and we stopped him because he wasn’t in our group.”

39-41 Jesus wasn’t pleased. “Don’t stop him. No one can use my name to do something good and powerful, and in the next breath cut me down. If he’s not an enemy, he’s an ally. Why, anyone by just giving you a cup of water in my name is on our side. Count on it that God will notice.

Saturday -Mark 9:33-37

"Do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." -James 1:22

This week we are using different methods of reading to change our perspective. Different ways of reading gives us the opportunity to notice different details. The challenge is to use at least three different reading methods.

Here are six ways you can read this passage:

1) Read Mark 9:33-37 out loud and slowly. What did you hear?
2) Read Mark 9:33-37 silently and slowly. What did you see?
3) Write out a portion of the passage. What did you feel?
4) Listen to Mark 9. What did you hear?
5) Read Mark 9:33-37 in NIV? What did you see?
6) Read Mark 9:33-37 in NLT? What did you see? 

Questions about your reading:

What main insight do you have about this passage after reading it different ways?
After reading different ways, which method did you prefer? Why?
What are some other ways you could read Scripture this week?

Mark 9:33-37The Message (MSG)

33 They came to Capernaum. When he was safe at home, he asked them, “What were you discussing on the road?”

34 The silence was deafening—they had been arguing with one another over who among them was greatest.

35 He sat down and summoned the Twelve. “So you want first place? Then take the last place. Be the servant of all.”

36-37 He put a child in the middle of the room. Then, cradling the little one in his arms, he said, “Whoever embraces one of these children as I do embraces me, and far more than me—God who sent me.”

Friday -Mark 9:14-32

"Do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." -James 1:22

We are working at changing our perspective this week. Just like in the art project I mentioned yesterday. By trying different methods of Scripture reading, we are giving ourselves the opportunity to see if we can pick up insights we would have missed. The challenge is to use at least three different reading methods.

Here are six ways you can read this passage:

1) Read Mark 9:14-32 out loud and slowly. What did you hear?
2) Read Mark 9:14-32 silently and slowly. What did you see?
3) Write out a portion of the passage. What did you feel?
4) Listen to Mark 9. What did you hear?
5) Read Mark 9:14-32 in NIV? What did you see?
6) Read Mark 9:14-32 in NLT? What did you see? 

Questions about your reading:

What main insight do you have about this passage after reading it different ways?
After reading different ways, which method did you prefer? Why?
What are some other ways you could read Scripture this week?

Mark 9:14-32The Message (MSG)

14-16 When they came back down the mountain to the other disciples, they saw a huge crowd around them, and the religion scholars cross-examining them. As soon as the people in the crowd saw Jesus, admiring excitement stirred them. They ran and greeted him. He asked, “What’s going on? What’s all the commotion?”

17-18 A man out of the crowd answered, “Teacher, I brought my mute son, made speechless by a demon, to you. Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, grinds his teeth, and goes stiff as a board. I told your disciples, hoping they could deliver him, but they couldn’t.”

19-20 Jesus said, “What a generation! No sense of God! How many times do I have to go over these things? How much longer do I have to put up with this? Bring the boy here.” They brought him. When the demon saw Jesus, it threw the boy into a seizure, causing him to writhe on the ground and foam at the mouth.

21-22 He asked the boy’s father, “How long has this been going on?”

“Ever since he was a little boy. Many times it pitches him into fire or the river to do away with him. If you can do anything, do it. Have a heart and help us!”

23 Jesus said, “If? There are no ‘ifs’ among believers. Anything can happen.”

24 No sooner were the words out of his mouth than the father cried, “Then I believe. Help me with my doubts!”

25-27 Seeing that the crowd was forming fast, Jesus gave the vile spirit its marching orders: “Dumb and deaf spirit, I command you—Out of him, and stay out!” Screaming, and with much thrashing about, it left. The boy was pale as a corpse, so people started saying, “He’s dead.” But Jesus, taking his hand, raised him. The boy stood up.

28 After arriving back home, his disciples cornered Jesus and asked, “Why couldn’t we throw the demon out?”

29 He answered, “There is no way to get rid of this kind of demon except by prayer.”

30-32 Leaving there, they went through Galilee. He didn’t want anyone to know their whereabouts, for he wanted to teach his disciples. He told them, “The Son of Man is about to be betrayed to some people who want nothing to do with God. They will murder him. Three days after his murder, he will rise, alive.” They didn’t know what he was talking about, but were afraid to ask him about it.

Week 6: Different Ways to Hear -Mark 9:2-13

"Do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." -James 1:22

My high school art teacher had an assignment. She created a tower of things. It had a ladder, boxes, toys, fabric, and small stuff like fruit, flowers, and paint cans. We each sat around the structure and had to draw what we saw. No two pictures were the same because no two artists had the same perspective.

I always thought it would have been interesting if after our first drawing we would have moved over one chair. By moving seats we would have noticed elements of the sculpture we hadn't seen before. The change in location would have given us a new perspective that helped us see more of what had always been in front of us.

What would happen if we changed our Bible reading perspective? We often read the Bible one or two ways. Either we silently read the passage by ourselves or in group settings someone reads to us. Both are good ways to "listen to the word" but they are not the only possibilities. You can read it out loud, you could listen to an audio version, you could read it slowly thinking about each word, you could write out a portion of the passage, or you could change translations. This week I challenge you to read the daily Scripture in at least three different ways.

Here are six ways you can read this passage:

1) Read Mark 9:2-13 out loud and slowly. What did you hear?
2) Read Mark 9:2-13 silently and slowly. What did you see?
3) Write out a portion of the passage. What did you feel?
4) Listen to Mark 9 (you can stop it after verse 13). What did you hear?
5) Read Mark 9:2-13 in NIV? What did you see?
6) Read Mark 9:2-13 in NLT? What did you see? 

Questions about your reading:

What main insight do you have about this passage after reading it different ways?
After reading different ways, which method did you prefer? Why?
What are some other ways you could read Scripture this week?

Mark 9:2-13The Message (MSG)

2-4 Six days later, three of them did see it. Jesus took Peter, James, and John and led them up a high mountain. His appearance changed from the inside out, right before their eyes. His clothes shimmered, glistening white, whiter than any bleach could make them. Elijah, along with Moses, came into view, in deep conversation with Jesus.

5-6 Peter interrupted, “Rabbi, this is a great moment! Let’s build three memorials—one for you, one for Moses, one for Elijah.” He blurted this out without thinking, stunned as they all were by what they were seeing.

7 Just then a light-radiant cloud enveloped them, and from deep in the cloud, a voice: “This is my Son, marked by my love. Listen to him.”

8 The next minute the disciples were looking around, rubbing their eyes, seeing nothing but Jesus, only Jesus.

9-10 Coming down the mountain, Jesus swore them to secrecy. “Don’t tell a soul what you saw. After the Son of Man rises from the dead, you’re free to talk.” They puzzled over that, wondering what on earth “rising from the dead” meant.

11 Meanwhile they were asking, “Why do the religion scholars say that Elijah has to come first?”

12-13 Jesus replied, “Elijah does come first and get everything ready for the coming of the Son of Man. They treated this Elijah like dirt, much like they will treat the Son of Man, who will, according to Scripture, suffer terribly and be kicked around contemptibly.”