Mark 9

Christ in the Bible: Mark’s Gospel

Keith Simons

This commentary has been through Advanced Checking.

Chapter 9

Jesus with Moses and Elijah

Verses 1-10

Before Jesus began his work for God, Jesus had left the people. He went away from the towns. He was alone for 40 days (Mark 1:12-13). Jesus always obeyed God his father. So during those days, Jesus prayed. And he prepared for his special work.

Soon, Jesus would begin his most important work for God. Jesus already knew what would happen. There would be many troubles for him, and he would die (Mark 8:31; Isaiah chapter 53). This work would be very difficult. But God had sent Jesus for this reason (John 3:16). Because of it, God would save men and women. And after it, God would cause Jesus to be alive again. And Jesus would receive the most important place in *heaven.

So Jesus had to prepare himself for this difficult work. Again, he left the people. He took three *disciples with him. And like Moses and Elijah (Exodus chapter 19; 1 Kings 19:8-18), he went up a high mountain to pray.

Moses and Elijah lived long before this event happened. Perhaps they came down from *heaven to meet Jesus. Or perhaps Jesus and the *disciples went into *heaven (2 Corinthians 12:2). We do not know.

The *disciples saw bright light and then they saw a cloud. These things showed that God was present. The *disciples were afraid. But still, they wanted to be there.

The voice that came from the cloud was God’s voice. He repeated his words in Mark 1:11. And he told the *disciples that they must listen carefully to Jesus’ words. They had wanted to stay there with Moses and Elijah. But God had sent Jesus to teach them. And Jesus would teach them everything that they needed to know.

Then the cloud went away, and the *disciples were alone with Jesus.

Jesus told the *disciples that they must not speak about this event yet. They must keep it secret. But when he became alive again, they could speak about it. The *disciples could not understand Jesus’ words. But they knew that those words were important.

Elijah and John

Verses 11-12

The *disciples were thinking about Malachi 4:5-6. Those verses say that Elijah would return. He would prepare people because the *Lord was coming to them.

Jesus showed the *disciples that those verses were about John the *Baptist. People were cruel to John. And Herod killed John. Jesus explained that people would also be cruel to Jesus himself. The Bible says that these things must happen.

God can do all things

Verses 13-15

Jesus returned from the mountain. He had prayed to God his father there.

The *disciples were not ready for Jesus’ return. They were arguing with other people.

The people were surprised to see Jesus. And they were afraid of him.

Verses 16-27

This boy had a bad *spirit. The *spirit was very cruel. The boy could not hear or speak because of it. And the *spirit often tried to cause the boy’s death.

The boy’s father brought his son to the *disciples. They tried to help the boy, but they failed.

God helps people who believe him. But during Jesus’ life, most people did not believe God. This is still true today. People believe many things. But they do not often want to believe God.

The boy’s father thought that, perhaps, God was not able to help.

Jesus replied that God can do anything. But people must believe him. When Jesus explained this, the boy’s father replied immediately. He wanted to believe.

So Jesus told the *spirit that it must leave the boy. Even then, the *spirit was cruel to the boy. The people even thought that the boy was dead. But the boy was not dead, and the *spirit had left him.

Verses 28-29

The *disciples had told the *spirit that it must leave the boy. But it would not go. And the *disciples did not know why they had failed.

But Jesus had come from the mountain. There he was praying to God his father. He gave himself completely to God, so that he would do God’s work. And it was God’s work to help the boy.

The *disciples needed to give themselves completely to God, too. Then they too would do his work.

The *disciples’ wrong ideas

Verses 30-32

Jesus had to explain this often to his *disciples. But still, they could not understand. They did not want these things to happen to Jesus. So they did not believe that these things would happen.

But they should have learned the things that Jesus was teaching them. Then, when these events happened, they would not be so afraid. They would know that God wanted these things to happen. And they would know that God would make Jesus alive again in the end.

Verses 33-37

The 12 *disciples were not important men. But they still wanted other people to say that they were important. And each *disciple thought that he was more important than the other *disciples.

Jesus taught that those ideas were wrong. One Christian should not try to be more important than another Christian. Instead, each Christian should try to help other people.

A Christian should be like a servant. He should even be like a servant of a little child. When the Christian helps a little child, he is doing Jesus’ work. And it was God who sent Jesus to do that work.

That does not mean that Christians must obey everyone. They must always obey God. And because they obey God, they should help other people.

Verses 38-41

This man saw the things that Jesus was doing. And he decided to do the same things himself. He was not against Jesus. He believed Jesus. And he used Jesus’ authority to tell bad *spirits that they must leave people.

John tried to stop the man. John wanted the man to become a *disciple of Jesus. But Jesus told John that the man was doing God’s work. So the man was helping Jesus and the *disciples. God knew about the things that the man was doing. And God knew about the things that the *disciples were doing, too. He would be kind to everyone who does his work.

Bad things that people do

Verses 42-48

Sometimes a person says, ‘It does not matter if I do bad things.’ But that person is wrong. These things do matter. Jesus died because of them. He died so that God would *forgive people. So people must not continue to do bad things.

If a person’s hand, eye or foot becomes really bad, sometimes a doctor decides to cut it off. The doctor removes the bad part so that illness does not destroy the whole body.

The bad things that people do are worse than illness. This is because these bad things do not only cause pain and trouble. A person will also go to *hell because of those bad things. God does not want this to happen. He wants to *forgive people. But God will only help people who change their minds. They must want to change their lives. They must really want his help.

Jesus did not want his *disciples to cut their bodies. Instead, he wanted them to know how bad these things are. And it is even worse if someone causes another person to do bad things. We must learn never to do that.

The *disciples must love each other

Verses 49-50

A person tastes food to decide whether it needs more salt.

Fire destroys most things, but it does not destroy gold. A person can put metal into a fire to decide whether it is really gold.

God will be the *judge of everyone. He will decide whether a person should go to *heaven or *hell.

So the *disciples must not be like other people. The *disciples should not argue because they want to be important. Instead, they must be like salt. A cook knows quickly whether there is salt in the food. And people will know quickly that the *disciples are God’s people. They will know this if the *disciples love each other (John 13:35).

This book is in EasyEnglish Level A (1200 words).

Gospel ~ a book that tells about the things that Jesus did. And it includes some things that he taught. There are 4 Gospels in the Bible. They are the books by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
heaven ~ God’s home.
disciple ~ a student of a great teacher. Usually, the disciple travelled with his teacher and he worked for his teacher.
Lord ~ a name for God or for Jesus. The word means ‘master’. But it also translates God’s name from the language called Hebrew. And in that language, God’s name may mean ‘He is always God.’
Baptist ~ John was called John the Baptist because he baptised people.
baptise ~ to wash a person in a special way while people pray for that person. John baptised the people who came to him. The people were sorry for all the wrong things that they had done. And they wanted to obey God.
spirit ~ the part of a person that is alive, but which we cannot see. There are also bad spirits and good spirits. The Holy Spirit is God’s Spirit.
holy ~ special for God.'forgive, forgave ~ not to remember wrong things that a person has done. God forgives us for the wrong things that we have done. He chooses to do this, but we must change our minds. We must ask him to come into our lives.
hell ~ the place where God sends some people when they die. It is a place of punishment for those people who refuse to obey Jesus.
punishment ~ a person’s pain or trouble. It usually happens because that person has done wrong things.
judge ~ to say what is right or wrong, good or bad; A judge is a person with authority to say if another person is right or wrong.

Mark’s Good News

Mark’s Gospel

Hilda Bright

Chapter 9

Jesus makes a promise 9:1

v1 Jesus said to them, ‘I am telling you the truth. Some men who are standing here will see God’s *kingdom come with power. And they will not die before they see it.’

Verse 1 Jesus did not mean the time when he will come again. Some writers suggest that he did mean that. But that would mean that Jesus made a mistake. So it cannot be true. He did not return with power while his *disciples were alive. But Jesus is probably describing his *resurrection. Also, he is describing the time when the *Holy Spirit would come at *Pentecost and the spread of the *gospel. Thirty (30) years after Jesus’ death on the *cross, the message about the *kingdom had spread everywhere where the *Romans ruled. A small group of *disciples had become the beginning of a world wide church. The *kingdom did come with power in the lives of many people who were listening to Jesus. But perhaps Jesus was talking about what happens in verses 2-13. That is what some other Christians think.

Jesus’ face and clothes become very bright 9:2-13

Peter, James and John see the great honour and beauty of Jesus.

v2 After six days, Jesus took Peter, James and John with him. He took them up a high mountain all alone by themselves. He changed in front of them. v3 His clothes became so white that they shone. They were whiter than anyone on earth could wash them white. v4 Elijah and Moses appeared to Jesus and the *disciples. The two of them were talking with Jesus. v5 Peter said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.’ v6 Peter said this because he did not know what to say. That was because they were extremely frightened. v7 Then a cloud came and it covered them with its shadow. A voice came from the cloud. The voice said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him.’ v8 They looked round. At once, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.

v9 As they came down the mountain, Jesus gave them an order. He ordered them not to tell anybody what they had seen. He told them to wait until the Son of Man had risen from death. v10 So they kept the matter to themselves. But they asked each other what ‘risen from death’ meant. v11 They asked Jesus, ‘Why do the *scribes say that Elijah has to come first?’ v12 Jesus replied, ‘Elijah does come first. He makes everything new again. But the *Scriptures truly say that the Son of Man will suffer much. And they say that people will not accept him. v13 But I tell you that Elijah has come. They did to him everything that they wanted to do. It was exactly as the *Scriptures said about him.’

Verse 2 The mountain was probably *Mount Hermon. Mount Hermon is so high that there is snow on it. Tradition says that it was *Mount Tabor. But that is much further south in Galilee, and it is not so high.

Mark does not say how Jesus changed. Matthew says that his face shone like the sun (Matthew 17:2).

Verse 3 It was difficult for Mark to describe how white the clothes of Jesus were. They were very, very white. So he could only think that they shone like gold or the light of the sun. Nobody who washed clothes could make them as bright.

Verse 4 Elijah was a great *prophet. Moses had received the Law from God. Their appearance showed that Jesus made the promises of the *Old Testament come true. He is greater than the *prophets, and he explained the Law more completely. Mark does not say what they were talking about. Luke tells us that they were talking about Jesus’ death in Jerusalem (Luke 9:31).

Verses 5-6 Peter offered to build three shelters. That shows how confused and frightened he was. He had been asleep and he had just woken up. He was thinking of all three as if they were the same. But Jesus is different from Moses and Elijah. He is much more important. Perhaps Peter wanted to stay on the mountain, where there would not be any more work or pain. But it was a practical thought in their situation. It was dark and therefore cold. They might need shelter! Luke tells us that they did not come down from the mountain until the next morning.

Verse 7 A cloud was the sign that God was there. Moses went up *Mount Sinai in order to receive the Law. Then, the cloud covered the mountain for six days. Then the *Lord called to Moses from out of the cloud (Exodus 24:15-16). God spoke out of the cloud to the three *disciples. He spoke in words like those at Jesus’ *baptism (1:11). Moses told the people to ‘listen’ to the *prophet like himself whom God would send (Deuteronomy 18:15). God told the *disciples to ‘listen’ to Jesus. The *disciples learned something. They were right to believe that Jesus was the *Messiah. What he told them was true.

Verses 9-10 The three men obeyed Jesus’ instructions not to tell anyone about their experience until after the *resurrection. Peter later wrote about it in his letter (2 Peter 1:16-18). But they did not understand it when Jesus talked about death and *resurrection.

Verse 11 The *scribes taught that Elijah would return. And he would prepare people for the *Messiah (Malachi 4:5). The *disciples wanted to ask Jesus this question: ‘Why has Elijah not arrived, if you are the *Messiah?’

Verses 12-13 Jesus explained that Elijah had come already. He did not mean that Elijah himself had come into the world again in John the *Baptist. He meant that John the *Baptist was a *prophet like Elijah. He had the same bold courage as Elijah and he was as loyal to God. Queen Jezebel wanted to kill Elijah (1 Kings 19:1-2). Herodias wanted the death of John the *Baptist (Mark 6:19). The man who had prepared the way for the *Messiah had suffered. And he had died. Jesus was therefore telling them that the *Messiah himself would suffer too. And he would die.

Jesus cures a boy with an evil *spirit 9:14-29

There is a reason why Mark describes this incident in detail. It is not first of all to show the authority and power of Jesus. It is to show the importance of *faith and the lesson that the *disciples had to learn about prayer.

v14 When Jesus and the three *disciples returned to the other *disciples, they saw a great crowd round them. The *scribes were arguing with the *disciples. v15 As soon as the crowd saw Jesus, they were astonished. They ran up to him and they greeted him. v16 Jesus asked, ‘What are you arguing about?’ v17 A man in the crowd answered him, ‘Teacher, I brought my son to you because he has a *spirit. The *spirit makes him unable to speak. v18 Wherever he is, it gets hold of him. It throws him down on the ground. Bubbles come from his mouth and he bites his teeth together. He becomes stiff. I asked your *disciples to send it out, but they could not do it.’ v19 Jesus answered them, ‘You people without *faith! It is hard for me to stay with you. It is hard for me to be with you. Bring him to me.’ v20 So they brought the boy to Jesus. As soon as the *spirit saw Jesus, it shook the boy hard. He fell on the ground. He rolled about and bubbles came from his mouth. v21 Jesus asked the boy’s father, ‘How long has he been like this?’ He answered, ‘Since he was a child. v22 The *spirit has often thrown him into the fire or into water to kill him. But if you can do anything, pity us. Please help us.’ v23 Jesus said to him, ‘If you can! Everything is possible to him who believes.’ v24 At once the boy’s father cried out, ‘I do believe! Help me to overcome my doubts!’

v25 Jesus saw that a crowd was running towards them. They were running to see what was happening. Then he ordered the evil *spirit to leave the boy. ‘You, *spirit that makes him unable to hear or speak! I order you, come out of him. And never enter him again.’ v26 The *spirit screamed and it shook the boy in a terrible way. Then it came out of him. The boy looked so still and pale, like a dead person, that many people said, ‘He is dead.’ v27 But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up. And the boy stood up. v28 When Jesus had gone into the house, his *disciples asked him in private, ‘Why could we not send out the evil *spirit?’ v29 Jesus replied, ‘This kind can come out only by prayer.’

Verse 14 The *scribes were probably taking the opportunity to laugh at Jesus because they were laughing at his *disciples. Because the *disciples had failed, they were perhaps trying to defend themselves against the *scribes’ remarks.

Verse 15 Jesus’ sudden arrival may have surprised the crowd. But Mark writes that they were ‘astonished’. This was a word that he usually put at the end of an incident. When Moses went down from *Mount Sinai, his face shone (Exodus 34:30). The *disciples had seen the great honour and beauty of Jesus on the mountain. It is possible that there was still evidence of that on Jesus. He had ordered his three *disciples not to say anything. But there may have been some sign in his face of what had happened to him on the mountain.

Verse 16 Jesus sometimes asked for information. He may have known the answer to his question. If so, he wanted to give them a chance to be honest. See Mark 9:33-34, too.

Verses 17-18 The boy’s father described what happened to his child. Doctors today might say that he suffered from an illness called ‘epilepsy’.

Verse 19 Jesus spoke to all the people, not to the *disciples only. He felt despair at the lack of *faith of people at this time. But he ordered them to bring the boy to him.

Verse 20 As soon as the boy came near Jesus, the evil *spirit tried to control the boy again.

Verses 21-22 The father replied to Jesus’ question. He said that the boy had been like this since he was a child. He had often fallen into a fire or into water because the evil *spirit had tried to kill him. The father asked Jesus for his help, ‘if’ Jesus had the power to cure his son.

Verse 23 Jesus repeated the father’s words. He meant, ‘You should not say "if" I can. That shows that you do not believe in me. You do not believe that I have the power.’ He was suggesting that the father needed *faith. With *faith, everything becomes possible.

Verse 24 The father’s cry, ‘I do believe! Help me to overcome my doubts!’ describes what many Christians feel. They trust Jesus. But they are not sure that they trust him completely.

Verses 25-26 People are always curious when something unusual is happening. Some of the crowd rushed to see what Jesus was doing. Jesus gave an order that the evil *spirit should leave the boy for always. There was a struggle. It left the boy very weak. So people thought that he was dead.

Verse 27 Jesus helped him to stand up. There is no record by Mark of the father’s joy or the crowd’s reaction. The important matter in the incident was what Jesus taught about *faith.

Verses 28-29 The *disciples wanted to know why they could not throw out the evil *spirit. Jesus had given them authority to throw out evil *spirits when he had sent them out in pairs (Mark 6:7). They may have forgotten that their success then was not because of their own power. The *disciples should have prayed. But they had argued with each other instead. Jesus emphasised the need for prayer. The prayer of *faith is necessary before anyone can defeat the power of evil things. When they are fighting evil things, Christians need *spiritual resources (2 Corinthians 10:4).

Jesus speaks about his death for the second time 9:30-32

v30 They went on from there through Galilee. Jesus did not want anyone to know where they were. v31 This was because he was teaching his *disciples. He told them, ‘They will hand the Son of Man over to men. They will kill him. After three days he will rise from death.’ v32 But they did not understand what he meant. And they were afraid to ask him.

Verses 30-31 The period when Jesus was teaching publicly in Galilee was over. He wanted to avoid crowds so that he could train his *disciples. ‘Hand over’ means that someone would make it possible for the authorities to arrest Jesus. The words ‘hand over’ might also mean that God would allow Jesus to die. That was the only means by which God could *save people.

Verse 32 The *disciples were too frightened to ask Jesus to explain. On a previous occasion, Jesus had told them that he would suffer. They had opposed the idea then and Jesus had blamed them. Perhaps they did not want to risk such a severe reply again (8:32-33). They might also have learned something worse, and perhaps they preferred not to know.

Real greatness 9:33-37

v33 They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, Jesus asked his *disciples, ‘What were you talking about on the way?’ v34 But they kept quiet because, on the way, they had argued. They had argued about which *disciple was the most important. v35 Jesus sat down and he called the 12 men to come to him. Then he said, ‘If you want to be first, you must be last of all. You must be everyone’s servant.’ v36 Jesus took a child and he made the child stand among them. Then he took the child in his arms. He said to them, v37 ‘Anyone who welcomes (gives a welcome to) one of these little children in my name welcomes me. And anyone who welcomes me does not welcome me only. He welcomes the Person who sent me.’

Verses 33-34 Perhaps some of the *disciples were jealous of the three men who had been alone on the mountain with Jesus. But they were all still thinking about a political *kingdom in which Jesus would give them important places. Jesus had taught them that he would suffer. And he would die. But that had not changed their wrong idea about the *Messiah’s purpose. The *disciples kept quiet because they were ashamed to tell Jesus.

Verse 35 *Jewish teachers sat to teach their pupils. The fact that Jesus sat down showed that he was going to teach his *disciples. If they wanted greatness in his *kingdom, they must not try to take the most important place. They must not be proud and expect to be the masters. They must be willing to serve everyone.

Verse 36 In order to emphasise this need for service, Jesus acted a *parable. He used a little child as an example. The *Aramaic word ‘talya’ can mean both ‘child’ and ‘servant’. Children have no power and they have to depend on the help of adults. The *disciples must serve even little children. But ‘children’ includes all people who are weak and in need of help. Paul said, ‘As for the man who is weak in *faith, give him a welcome’ (Romans 14:1).

Verse 37 ‘In my name’ means ‘with my authority and for me’. Humble service is service to Jesus himself. ‘As you did it to one of the least.... you did it to me’ (Matthew 25:40). Jesus was working for God, who had sent him. Therefore, whenever people serve him, they are serving God.

There were already arguments in the early church about leadership when Mark was writing his book. Mark probably recorded this incident for that reason.

When to accept other people 9:38-41

This passage has a link with the previous one because it also contains the phrase ‘in my name’.

v38 John said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, we saw a man who was sending out evil *spirits in your name. We told him to stop because he was not a member of our group.’ v39 But Jesus said, ‘Do not stop him. Nobody who does such a powerful work in my name will soon after be able to speak against me. v40 Anyone who is not against us is on our side. v41 I tell you the truth. Perhaps someone will give you even a cup of water to drink because you are *disciples of Christ. That person will certainly receive a reward.’

Verses 38-39 John spoke for himself and the other *disciples. The man was not in their group. So, they told him to stop sending evil *spirits out of people ‘in the name’ of Jesus. Some *Jews in Ephesus tried to use ‘the name of Jesus whom Paul *preaches’. They failed. They thought that Jesus’ name might be a magic way to send an evil *spirit out of a person (Acts 19:13-16). But Jesus told the *disciples not to stop a man with *faith who was working for him.

Christians should be glad when other people are successful. They should not be jealous of those who *worship and serve God in a different way.

Verse 40 A man is either on Christ’s side or against him. When he is doing good deeds, he is on God’s side.

Verse 41 A person may give help to a *disciple of Christ. God will reward that person. ‘A cup of water’ shows that the help need not be in an important matter. It can be a small act of kindness.

Jesus warns against *temptation 9:42-50

Jesus warns us about two things:

1 We must not cause other people to *sin verse 42.

2 We must be strict with ourselves verses 43-50.

v42 ‘It will be terrible for anyone who causes one of these young believers to *sin. It would be better for him if someone put a large mill-stone round his neck. People would then throw him into the sea.

v43-44 If your hand causes you to *sin, cut it off. It would be better for you to enter life with only one hand than to go to *Gehenna with two hands. That is where the fire never goes out.

v45-46 If your foot causes you to *sin, cut it off. You do not want God to throw you into *Gehenna with both your feet. To enter into life on one foot is better than that.

v47 If your eye causes you to do wrong things, pull it out. You do not want God to throw you into *Gehenna with your two eyes. To enter the *kingdom of God with one eye is better than that. v48 There the worm (small long thin animal) does not die and the fire never goes out. v49 Fire will salt everyone. v50 Salt is good. But if it loses its true salt taste, you can never make its flavour come back. Have salt in yourselves and live at peace with each other.’

Verse 42 The *disciples are responsible for those who are young *spiritually as well as for children. It is better to drown than to make a child or a young or weak Christian *sin. A *disciple must be careful about what he teaches. A *disciple’s bad or careless behaviour may make a young believer imitate him. *Disciples must not cause young believers to lose their *faith. They must not do it by what they teach. And they must not do it by their example.

To drown someone with a large weight round his neck was a way to punish people in those days. A mill-stone turned wheat into flour. A large mill-stone was a big round stone with a hole in the middle. A *donkey pulled the stone round over the wheat by a bar of wood through the hole. If someone put a person’s head through the hole of this heavy stone, he would certainly drown.

Verses 43-48 The hand, the foot and the eye can cause a *disciple to do wrong things. The fruit that *tempted Eve was ‘a delight to the eyes’ (Genesis 3:6). It is possible to do something or to go somewhere which may cause you to *sin. Jesus did not mean that a *disciple must remove parts of his *physical body. He was using picture language. *Disciples must be willing to *sacrifice anything that stops their *spiritual life from growing. The *sacrifice may be as painful as it would be to lose a limb. Christians do not only have to give up bad things. Often, they have to give up good things as well. It may be a job, a pleasure or a friendship. It will not be the same for each *disciple. Each *disciple must decide for himself what may be preventing him from obeying God completely.

To enter ‘life’ and to enter the ‘*kingdom’ mean the same. ‘Life’ is to enjoy a friendship with God by giving him honour as king. ‘*Gehenna’ was the name of a valley outside Jerusalem that had become the city’s rubbish heap. Worms (small long thin animals) lived on the rubbish, and a fire was always burning there. These words about worms and fire come from Isaiah 66:24. *Gehenna was such a terrible place that the *Jews started to use the name for a place of punishment. It was a place where God would destroy wicked people. People usually translate the word ‘*Gehenna’ as ‘hell’.

Verses 49-50 contain three separate things that Jesus said about ‘salt’. Jesus may have given them on separate occasions. But together they remind his *disciples of the necessity of pure lives that will help themselves and other people.

1 The *Jews put salt on a gift to God (Leviticus 2:13). It was a sign of the agreement between God and his people. *Disciples should remember to be loyal to God. Also, fire makes things clean and pure. It might therefore mean any experience that makes a Christian pure. We should obey God and we should accept pain and trouble. That is like the ‘fire’ that makes a Christian life a pure gift to God.

2 Salt gives food flavour. It also prevents things going off. The *disciples of Jesus should make a difference to the world. It should be a better place to live in, as salt gives food a better taste. They should also stop wrong things that are making society bad. Salt that came from the Dead Sea sometimes had other substances in it. Although it looked like salt, it had lost its proper salt taste. Some *disciples may lose their desire to give God’s message. Then they are of no use as the ‘salt of the earth’ (Matthew 5:13).

3 People who were together sometimes put salt on their food as a sign. It was a sign that they trusted each other. Jesus said that the *disciples must have the ‘salt’ of friendship. He may have said it when they were arguing with each other.

kingdom ~ people or place that a king rules; or people that God rules.
disciples ~ people who follow someone in order to learn from him.
resurrection ~ when a dead person becomes alive again.'Holy Spirit ~ God’s Spirit. We cannot see him but he is there.
Pentecost ~ the time each year when Jews thank God for their food; also the time when God gave the Holy Spirit to the church.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe.

Holy Spirit ~ God’s Spirit. We cannot see him but he is there.
gospel ~ good news that God saves people from sin by Jesus Christ.
Gospel ~ one of the first four books in the New Testament.
save ~ rescue from the results of sin.
sin ~ when people do not obey God’s commands.

New Testament ~ the last part of the Bible, which the writers wrote after the life of Jesus. It is about Jesus’ works and the things that he taught and about the first Christians.
cross ~ two pieces of wood that someone has fixed together in the shape of a cross. People put Jesus on a cross in order to kill him.
Roman ~ Rome was the capital city of the rulers at that time. That which belonged to Rome was Roman.
scribes ~ writers, especially the Jewish lawyers.
Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew or anything about Jews.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe.
scriptures ~ the books in the Old Testament or in the Bible.

Old Testament ~ the first part of the Bible, which the writers wrote before the life of Jesus.
mount ~ a short word for mountain; small mountain.
prophet ~ a person who told people what God wanted.'Old Testament ~ the first part of the Bible, which the writers wrote before the life of Jesus.
Lord ~ master; a name that we call God or Jesus; we call God or Jesus Lord when we obey them.'baptise/baptism ~ to put a person in water, or to put water on a person. It is to show that they want to follow Christ.
Messiah ~ the Jews' word for the king who would come and rescue them.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe.
Baptist ~ a person who baptises people (like John the Baptist).

baptise/baptism ~ to put a person in water, or to put water on a person. It is to show that they want to follow Christ.
spirit ~ the part of a person who is alive that we cannot see. There are good spirits, like God’s Spirit and his angels. And there are bad spirits, like Satan and his angels.
angel ~ God’s special messenger.
Satan ~ the chief evil spirit.
messenger ~ a person who gives a message.
faith ~ belief in someone or something, or things that Christians believe about Jesus.'spiritual, spiritually ~ about the part of us that never dies.
save ~ rescue from the results of sin.
sin ~ when people do not obey God’s commands.
Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew or anything about Jews.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe.
parable ~ a story with a hidden meaning.
Aramaic ~ the language that the Jews spoke when Jesus was on earth.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe.
preach ~ to tell and explain the good news about Jesus to someone or to a group of people.
worship ~ show honour to God, usually with other people.
temptation ~ something that tries to make us do wrong things.
sin ~ when people do not obey God’s commands.
Gehenna ~ a place where they burned rubbish. Also see the note on chapter 9 verses 43-48.'spiritual, spiritually ~ about the part of us that never dies.
disciples ~ people who follow someone in order to learn from him.
donkey ~ an animal that carries people or goods.
tempt ~ to try to make someone do wrong things.
physical ~ about the body.
sacrifice ~ a gift to God to ask him to forgive sins; or to thank him for something. A gift to God, often an animal or bird, by the Jews to ask God to forgive their sins. Jesus gave himself to die as a sacrifice for our sins.
sin ~ when people do not obey God’s commands.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe.