Mark 14 Devotions by Stephen Taylor

Mark 14:1

Now the Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread were only two days away, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were scheming to arrest Jesus secretly and kill Him.

What should have been a time of preparation to celebrate God was perverted and turned into a time of plotting how to murder Him! This was supposed to be a time of great celebration and remembrance of the freedom and victory the Lord gave them over Egypt. But instead of worshipping Him, they were looking for a way to rid themselves of Him. We must be careful that we don’t fall into the same trap.

I’m not saying that we would murder Christ but that we would miss the Truth standing in front of us because of the agendas, perversions, and sins inside of us. The Pharisees did, and we’re no different. How sad it is that they were in the Presence of Christ and yet didn’t realize it. They had hardened their hearts and exalted themselves in such a way as to totally miss the King right in front of them. We must be careful not to get too focused on anything but the Lord. If we focus completely on Him and Who He is, the rest will work itself out and the Truth will expose every lie.

Today, let’s humble ourselves before the Lord and worship Him for Who He is and the many victories He has given us. The big ones and the small ones alike. Lord, cleanse and deliver us from everything that is in us that is not of you and let our lives be set apart from this world to You!

2 Corinthians 6:15-17- What harmony can there be between Christ and the devil? How can a believer be a partner with an unbeliever? And what union can there be between God’s temple and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God said: “I will live in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people. Therefore, come out from among unbelievers, and separate yourselves from them, says the LORD. Don’t touch their filthy things, and I will welcome you.”

1 Peter 2:9-But you are A CHOSEN PEOPLE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR GOD’S OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

God bless! I love you all, but His love calls us out of darkness into His marvelous light! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!

 

Mark 14:3

While He was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on His head.

Is Jesus worth our very best? Of course, He is, but do we give it to Him? He is more worthy than we can even imagine or truly understand. So why do we have a problem with giving Him our best? Oftentimes, Jesus gets what is left over in our lives, and my friends, it just shouldn’t be that way. Instead of only giving Jesus the leftover time in our day, let us carve out specific times in our day to meet with Him. Instead of giving what’s left over in our paychecks, let’s give to Him first. Instead of serving Him when we have the energy, let’s get out there and serve while we are fresh.

It comes down to our hearts and who they belong to. A heart that belongs to Christ longs to be with Him, but a heart that belongs to self, sin, or Satan longs to feed its greedy desires. We must each make it a point every day to give Jesus our best. To wake up with the heart-posture of full surrender and filled with the intentions of glorifying our God.

Spoiler alert: we will fail at this, but we must make it a priority to persevere even when it’s tough. How much we have been forgiven, how great His mercy and love, how vast His blessings for us, and we should respond to these truths accordingly, reverently, and continually throughout our lives. So, today is a day the Lord has made. Will we rejoice and be glad in it, giving Him our best in each situation, or will we hold back the best of us for something or someone far less deserving than the King who set us free through His victory on the cross?

Colossians 3:17- And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

1 Corinthians 9:24,25- Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.

1 Corinthians 10:31- So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.

God bless! I love you all, but His love is worthy of all we can give! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!  

 

Mark 14:8

“She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial.”

This is part of Christ’s response to His disciples regarding the woman who anointed Him with expensive perfume, and it’s beautiful. She did what she could; do we? What she could do was bring herself and her treasure to the feet of Christ in full surrender, humbling herself and exalting Him. We can and must do that each day, finding ourselves bowed before Him, pouring out what we value most as an act of faith and worship.

Chances are this was everything this lady had to live on, the crown jewel, if you will, of her life before Christ. Yet she comes boldly yet humbly to the King and pours it out freely over Him. Would we do the same? Will we do the same? Like this lady, we each must make the choice whether to honor God or ourselves. He doesn’t expect us to do it all, but He does call us to do what we can, and something we can do is humble ourselves and surrender to Him.

This life and the evils of it desire to destroy you both now and for all eternity. But Christ came to give you life and life abundantly, both now and forever. This doesn’t mean we are free from hardship or pain, and it doesn’t mean our bank accounts have a lot of digits, but it does mean we are free from our sins to live freely in Him today! It means that though we may have little worldly wealth, we have true riches in the Kingdom, which will never fade, spoil, or depreciate.

So today, will we do what we can, or will we keep what we have and miss out on this beautiful time with Jesus? This lady is forever linked to Christ; will we be able to say the same?

Mark 14:9- “Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”

God bless! I love you all, but His love is worthy of all we can give! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!

 

Mark 14:60-62

Then the high priest stood up before them and asked Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” But Jesus remained silent and gave no answer. Again the high priest asked Him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?” “I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

Jesus’s response was more for them and us than for Himself. He did not answer or rebuke the people who accused Him falsely. He did not waste His breath or time to defend Himself, for He knew they had already made up their minds. Instead of defending Himself, He entrusted Himself to His Father and spoke on things that truly matter. He does not offer a defense to them, but He offers them the truth, that He is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by being the Holy One of God, only He can save.

He is, in essence, telling them and us that at this moment, what matters most is that we know who He is. He is not bragging or boasting about who He is but rather humbly and obediently pointing us to the Truth and our only hope of salvation.

How beautiful is our God that at His trial, He offers not a defense for Himself but for us! Time and time again, Jesus warns people not to tell who He is or what He has done, yet here when the spotlight would have been the brightest and the most eyes on Him, He says yes, I am the Savior! He uses this platform not to plead His innocence but to prepare us for how He was going to pay for ours!

Thank You, Jesus, for everything you have done, everything you are doing, and everything that you will do! One day, all the peoples of the earth will see You come back in all Your glory, and my prayers are that we will be ready. For it was Your heart's desire to tell us plainly and warn us thoroughly that we may be found to be Yours on that day!

John 14:1-3- “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.”

God bless! I love you all, but His love prepares a place for us! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!