Lesson Six
THAT WHICH OUR
FATHERS BELIEVED1. Read chapter 7 and chapter 8 up through verse 26 of the Gospel of Mark.
2. Read this lesson and do exam number six.The Lord fed 5,000 people, healed the sick, and taught the Word of God.
Why did the Jewish leaders hate Him? They said that they were servants of
God, but would not accept His teachings. They preferred the teaching of their
ancestors. The Lord teaches us to honor our fathers (verse 10), but it is more
important to obey God.
In chapter seven the Jews criticize Christ because His disciples do not wash
their hands. It is good to be clean, but the Pharisees went to extremes and
justified it by the Law of God. God does not save us by keeping the Law. We
can be saved only because Christ died for our sins on the cross. The Lord also
said food does not contaminate a person - it is that which comes from the heart
- words and bad actions (verses 14-23).
The Lord then made a long journey to heal the daughter of a foreigner (verses
24-30). She was not a Jew and compared herself to the dogs that eat the
crumbs that fall from the children's table. Christ gave her what she asked for
- again showing His love for all people. Afterward He healed a man who
could not hear or speak (verses 31-37). The people were right to exclaim, "He
hath done all things well."
In chapter eight again Christ feeds 4,000 people with a little food. This
time seven baskets were left over (verses 1-9). Even though He did these good
works, the Pharisees again looked for ways to tempt or try Him. They asked
for a sign, but many had already been given! No sign or miracle can convince
a person when he does not want to believe. The Lord counseled His disciples
not to be like the Pharisees. The Pharisees kept the traditions of men instead
of looking for ways to please God. Only in the Bible can we find the will of
God.
God sent many prophets. Some wrote their messages and these messages
are in the Bible. Some books are written by men to give the truth while others
contradict the Bible. We can be sure that the Bible teaches truth. The Bible
contains the history of Christ and tells us that if we repent and believe in Christ
we have eternal life.8