Key Thought

Jesus wants us to know that being his follower is not just another religious take on the same old religious agenda. Jesus wants us to know that his words and his way of life are not just another new thing to tack onto the same religious teaching. Jesus brings something new, fresh, and comprehensive. To try to mix it into the other religious interests in our lives is to miss the point. What Jesus brings is bigger, bolder, and new! Let's realize that to call Jesus our Lord means we surrender every part of our lives to him ... and that ultimately means we surrender the "religious" parts, too.

Today's Prayer

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LORD God Almighty, I offer you myself -- all of myself, body, soul, Spirit, and mind -- to serve you. I want you to have complete rule in my life. Please tear down any idols that I have so that only you reign in my heart. Open my eyes to see your truth in fresh and new ways. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Today's Verses in Context

The followers of John and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came to Jesus and said, "John's followers fast, and the followers of the Pharisees fast. But your followers don't fast. Why?" Jesus answered, "{When there is a wedding,} the friends of the bridegroom are not sad while he is with them. They cannot fast (be sad) while the bridegroom is still there. But the time will come when the bridegroom will leave them. The friends are sad when the bridegroom leaves. Then they will fast. "When a person sews a patch over a hole on an old coat, that person never uses a piece of cloth that is not yet shrunk. If he does, the patch will {shrink and} pull away from the coat. Then the hole will be worse. Also, people never pour new wine into old wine bags. Why? Because the new wine will break the bags, and the wine will be ruined with the wine bags. People always put new wine into new wine bags." On the Sabbath day, Jesus was walking through some grain fields. Jesus' followers were walking with him. The followers picked some grain {to eat}. The Pharisees saw this and said to Jesus, "Why are your followers doing that? It is against the {Jewish} law to do that on the Sabbath day." Jesus answered, "You have read what David did when he and the people with him were hungry and needed food. It was during the time of Abiathar the high priest. David went into God's house and ate the bread that was offered to God. And the law {of Moses} says that only priests can eat that bread. David also gave some of the bread to those people with him." Then Jesus said to the Pharisees, "The Sabbath day was made to help people. People were not made to be ruled by the Sabbath day. So the Son of Man is Lord (master) of every day, even the Sabbath."

— Mark 2:18-28 (ERV)

Easy-to-Read Version copyright © 2001 by World Bible Translation Center. All rights reserved.