Reading Plan for Feb. 15 - 21

February 15, 2026 | Mark 8:11-13
Reflection:
We hear in this passage of Jesus’ deepening disappointment that those around him just don’t seem to get it. I learned in seminary not to over-demonize the Pharisees. They were seeking to be faithful, and any one of us might just act like a stereotypical Pharisee at any point in our journey of faith. We might just as easily beg Jesus or God or the angels for a sign from heaven. What’s our motivation? These Pharisees appear to be so mistrustful of Jesus that they want him to do something irrefutably God engineered that they would have to give up all their doubts, that God could be working through this Galilean. What is our motivation for asking for a sign? Most likely, we’re feeling a bit lost. Ask for such a sign so as not to drive Jesus away and “across to the other side.”

February 16, 2026 | Mark 8:14-21
Reflection:
Do you hear Jesus’ agitation in this passage? It begins with Jesus’ warning the disciples away from the fomenting power of the politically corrupt (Herod). Yeast seems like an inconsequential thing when you look at it dry. But with moisture and warmth, it explodes! Jesus appears to be growing more and more dissatisfied with the ways of this world. Political fomenting is poisoning the people. His mind is on these big things, and the disciples seem concerned about small matters that Jesus has already shown them should not concern them. In the midst of it all, Jesus calls them to a deeper understanding, an understanding that cannot come when one is caught up in the power of the world’s yeast. Spend more time with Jesus for the knowing he longs for us to have.

February 17, 2026 | Mark 8:22-26
Reflection:
Have you read this story before? If you have, read it again and check for unusual details. Why does Jesus lead the man outside the village of Bethsaida? Why does it take two attempts to restore the man’s sight? Why does Jesus tell the man not to return to the village? Does the man not live there? If Jesus was intending to heal this man without the crowds gawking, clearly, there are others there, because the man says, “I see people walking around, but they’re a bit wonky.” Sit with the oddities of this story…but don’t stray too far from the compassionate one who longs to restore wholeness in body, mind, and spirit…and does not seek to draw attention to himself as he does so.

February 18, 2026 | Mark 8:27-30
Reflection:
One thing to know about this passage is the translation of the Greek word Christos as Messiah. Why is that the case and not Christ, as in earlier English translations? Long before the time of Jesus, the Hebrew sacred writings were translated into a common form of Greek, so that Jews who could no longer read Hebrew could read their scriptures in a language they knew. Messiah comes from a Hebrew word that means “anointed.” The Greek equivalent for anointed is christos. If in our modern translations we choose the word Messiah in the Gospels to signify the title by which Jesus of Nazareth comes to be known, we connect Jesus with his Jewishness and a whole web of meaning for the Jewish peoples that “Messiah” was coming to mean in Jesus’ time. That Jesus is the Messiah is sometimes referred to as Mark’s messianic secret. Only halfway through the book now are even the disciples beginning to get it. Not until his death and resurrection do more and more folks begin to see Jesus as God’s “Anointed”, the one sent to be deliverer, rescuer, emancipator, savior, and the one who restores righteousness and wholeness. We may have to read the rest of the story to get the secret too.

February 19, 2026 | Mark 8:31-33
Reflection:
Only after Peter’s declaration that Jesus is the Messiah does Jesus begin to change everything they thought of as the telos (end goal) of the Messiah: death and resurrection. And, clearly, the disciples don’t like such talk. We do not know for sure what exactly the disciples thought the Messiah was going to do, but “die” wasn’t one of them. Jesus, as always, appears to have a greater vantage point from which to view all that’s happening. In what ways does this passage help us set our sights on “divine things”?

February 20, 2026 | Mark 8:34-9:1
Reflection:
Notice how the tenor of the conversation has changed. We are halfway through Mark’s storytelling, and Jesus has really begun to get serious. Mark’s Gospel compels us toward the crucifixion. It’s like if you put a bowling ball on a waterbed…anything else on that bed will be drawn toward the depression created. The crucifixion is weighty. It affects everything that leads up to it. Jesus knows that the cross reorients everything. He calls his disciples and anyone else who will listen, toward a life that cannot be gained by a desperate attempt to hoard earthly treasures. Seek to live a life that prospers under the “good news”: the kingdom of God has drawn near. We are to reorient ourselves by the weightiness of the cross, and turn from what no longer serves kingdom living.

February 21, 2026 | Mark 9:2-8
Reflection:
We’re now more than halfway through the story. The scales are tipped toward the cross. It’s becoming clearer to us reading that this Jesus is more than a wandering miracle worker and teacher. This story, called “The Transfiguration,” is one such account that helps us to see the bigger picture. Jesus appears, in shining garb, along with two others, who represent the Law and the Prophets. Jesus is the one who knits together all that has come before. Jesus, who is the very “radiance of God,” [Heb. 1:3] is also the Beloved.” Love is the mediator between the Law and the Prophets. Our ears should prick up whenever Love speaks.