Tag Archives: discipleship

Love and Hate; Light and Dark

Posted on April 4, 2016 by Don Merritt

Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning. This old command is the message you have heard. Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen … Continue reading →

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My Dear Children

Posted on April 4, 2016 by Don Merritt

 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for … Continue reading →

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What Would You Do?

Posted on April 1, 2016 by Don Merritt

Not too long ago, I heard about a guy who was called to minister to members of the Hell’s Angels. This guy wanted to serve our Lord, he wanted to bring hope to those who need to hear about Jesus, … Continue reading →

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Naked Before God, part 2

Posted on March 31, 2016 by Don Merritt

Last time we came to an important understanding in this study of the metaphor that is nakedness before God and that understanding is that we are always naked before Him, for none of us has or ever will have secrets … Continue reading →

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A Few Final Thoughts on Mark

Posted on March 30, 2016 by Don Merritt

I didn’t want our tour through the gospel of Mark to end; I was having too much fun. But alas, there are only 16 chapters. You might have noticed that there are more verses in chapter 16 than I have … Continue reading →

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The Kingdom Comes

Posted on March 29, 2016 by Don Merritt

Mark 16:1-8 Parallel Texts: Matthew  28:1-8; Luke 24:1-8, 12; John 20:1-10 When Jesus was born in that manger in Bethlehem nobody would have noticed, but God sent choruses of angels out to the fields and they were seen by the … Continue reading →

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The Moment They’ve Been Waiting For!

Posted on March 29, 2016 by Don Merritt

Mark 15:24-32 Parallel Texts: Matthew 27:31-44; Luke 23:26-43; John 19:17-27 All those sleepless nights, the opportunities missed, the embarrassments in public, the plots, the cabals, the treachery… all of it had come to fruition for the loving and righteous men … Continue reading →

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Roman “Justice” on Display

Posted on March 28, 2016 by Don Merritt

Mark 15:1-20 Parallel Texts: Matthew 27:11-30; Luke 23:2-25; John 18:28-19:16 As usual, Mark is pithy, and a more complete version is available in the other accounts. The main thing that Mark conveys about this whole situation of Jesus before Pilate … Continue reading →

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Looking for an Excuse

Posted on March 28, 2016 by Don Merritt

There’s an old saying about excuses. OK, well maybe it isn’t all that old, but it’s a pretty good one, at least I think it is a good one. True it isn’t famous or anything… fine, you got me, but … Continue reading →

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Final Hours Together

Posted on March 26, 2016 by Don Merritt

Mark briefly describes the time Jesus spent with the disciples after their last meal together, quite a contrast with the several chapters John gave to the  “Farewell Discourse.” Mark breaks this into three short scenes: Jesus Predicts Peter’s Denial Mark … Continue reading →

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