In this episode, J. Mark continues our study by looking at Mark 9:9-13. Jesus and His disciples descend from the mountain after the Transfiguration, but what began as a glorious mountaintop experience gives way to the reality of suffering, rejection, and the shadow of the cross. In “Shadows of Suffering,” we explore Jesus’ mysterious command to remain silent, and the disciples’ confusion about His coming death and resurrection. J. Mark explores the significance of Elijah and John the Baptist in this account and reminds us that soon the shadows of this life will dispel with Jesus’ return.
Transcript
Thanks for joining us for another lesson in our Mark series. I am sure you have noticed that Mark is a fast-moving book. His accounts are short and to the point, and he doesn’t use many words to move into the next event. He keeps moving, quickly and smoothly.
In the last lesson, we looked at a mountaintop experience for the disciples. They were on the mountain with Jesus and saw His glory. This was a good, encouraging time for them, a mountaintop experience in several ways. In today’s lesson, they come down from the mountain. Again, this is true in more ways than one. Our title is ” Shadows of Suffering, ” and Jesus alludes to His coming death. Can you imagine how shocking this must have been for His disciples to hear? After seeing His glory and power, Jesus now references His death.
Turn to Mark 9 if possible, and let’s listen to Pastor J Mark teach from this passage.
In the biblical account of Elijah confronting the Israelites on Mount Carmel, he asked them, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.” One true prophet of God faced off with 450 prophets of Baal.
Elijah proposed a test. The prophets of Baal would prepare a sacrifice for their God, and Elijah would prepare a sacrifice for Jehovah. Neither one was permitted to put fire under the sacrifice. The god who answered by fire would be the true God. God answered Elijah’s prayer by sending fire on his altar and sacrifice. Then, the people killed all the prophets of Baal.
However, when Queen Jezebel heard what had happened, she threatened to take revenge, and Elijah fled for his life. He was so discouraged that he wanted to die. Many of us know from our experiences that the aftermath of a “mountaintop experience” is often a journey into the valley, filled with questions and uncertainty.
In the previous episode, we encountered the unveiled Christ in the Transfiguration. What a mountaintop experience! It was something those who viewed it could never forget. However, that incredible experience cast some lengthening shadows.
Our text for this episode tells us about Jesus and His disciples descending to the valley below, which was both literal and figurative. I’ve titled our study “Shadows of Suffering.” Listen carefully as I read our text, Mark 9:9-13.
9 Now as they came down from the mountain, He commanded them that they should tell no one the things they had seen, till the Son of Man had risen from the dead.
10 So they kept this word to themselves, questioning what the rising from the dead meant.
11 And they asked Him, saying, “Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?”
12 Then He answered and told them, “Indeed, Elijah is coming first and restores all things. And how is it written concerning the Son of Man, that He must suffer many things and be treated with contempt?
13 But I say to you that Elijah has also come, and they did to him whatever they wished, as it is written of him.”
In this text, Jesus addresses SHADOWS falling across the glorious scenes the disciples had just witnessed. These shadows reveal how glory and suffering are closely related.
The First SHADOW is,
The Prohibition
The text opens with Jesus and the disciples descending from the mountain. I imagine they were bursting with excitement and couldn’t wait to tell the other nine disciples what they had seen and heard. But Jesus said, “No. You’re not allowed to tell anyone what you saw – until the Son of Man has risen from the dead.”
What was the reason behind the prohibition? Could it be, at least in part, Jesus’ response to the Pharisees in Mark 8:11-12? “Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking a sign from heaven, testing Him. But He sighed deeply in His spirit and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation.”
What Peter, James, and John had just witnessed indeed qualifies as a sign from heaven. Jesus had performed many signs that proved the nearness of the kingdom. The Pharisees refused to believe those signs, and Jesus knew one more wouldn’t make a difference. So, He said, “You can’t talk about this until after the Son of Man is risen from the dead.”
Why was it important that the disciples wait until after the resurrection to share their experience on the mountain? In Romans 1:1-4, Paul tells us that the resurrection declares Jesus as the Son of God. The resurrection banishes any shadow of doubt about who Jesus was.
Peter, James, and John obeyed Jesus’ command. Verse 10 says, “So, they kept this word to themselves.” However, they did discuss what He meant by “rising from the dead.” In Mark 8:31, Jesus had told them, “that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.”
At any rate, their submission to Jesus’ command was so complete that they dared not ask Him about the mystery. Rising from the dead meant that a death had occurred. Here is a shadow cast across their messianic expectations. How could death be associated with the glory they had just witnessed and the glorious kingdom they expected? It didn’t make sense.
The disciples had a blind spot. They couldn’t see a connection between the glory they had seen and the suffering Jesus predicted. The Pharisees were blind, too, but theirs was intentional; they refused to believe despite the facts. In both cases, the kingdom’s nearness escaped their minds. For the disciples, it was temporary. For many of the Pharisees, it would be permanent.
Today, Jesus has risen from the dead, and we proclaim Him for who He truly is without apology.
The shadow of the cross still reminds us that suffering precedes glory.
The Next SHADOW is,
The Question
To say that the three disciples suffered from emotional overload is probably an understatement. After what they had seen and heard, they were naturally confused. They still hadn’t accepted the necessity of Christ’s suffering and death. However, I believe their experience on the mountain led to the firm conviction that Jesus was the Messiah.
They asked Jesus, “Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?” Their thoughts turned in that direction since they had just seen Elijah on the mountain with Jesus and Moses. If Elijah was coming first, who was to follow him?
The disciples were familiar with Malachi 3:1. “Behold, I send My messenger, and he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He is coming, says the Lord of hosts.” So, if Jesus was the Messiah, Elijah had already come, and they must have missed him. There was a shadow for which they had no answer.
When Elijah came, the Jewish religious leaders expected and taught three things. First, his appearance would predict the kingdom’s nearness. Second, he would lead the people in a spirit of repentance. Finally, he would personally anoint the Messiah.
The Final SHADOW is,
The Explanation
Jesus tells the disciples, “You are correct. Elijah does come first and restores all things to their former state.” Malachi 4:5 and 6 read, “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.” This coming great and dreadful day is associated with the second coming of Christ, not His first coming.
Jesus continued, “And how is it written concerning the Son of Man, that He must suffer many things and be treated with contempt?” To be treated with contempt means to be despised as nothing! Jesus continued, “Elijah has also come, and they did to him whatever they wished, as it is written of him.” That statement must have left them more confused than ever. When the religious leaders asked John if he was Elijah, he said, “No” John 1:21. More shadows. Elijah had not come, but according to Luke 1:17, John the Baptist came “in the spirit and power of Elijah.”
Matthew writes, “Jesus answered and said to them, Elijah has already come, and they did not know him, but did to him whatever they wished. Likewise, the Son of Man is also about to suffer at their hands. Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist.”
The three expectations the Jews had of Elijah were fulfilled in John the Baptist. His appearance signaled that the kingdom was imminent. John said, “There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose.”
Further, John’s message was, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” He insisted that genuine repentance would be evident in changed behavior. Finally, he would anoint the Messiah. Symbolically, that’s what John did at Jesus’ baptism, and all Heaven approved.
All this happened according to the Scriptures. But there was, and is a caveat. Let’s look again at the closing verses of Malachi’s prophecy. “Behold, I will send you Elijah, the prophet,
before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.” Another dark shadow falls.
If Elijah were rejected, severe consequences would result. Jesus’ words tell us that John was not accepted by the religious establishment, even though he came in the spirit and power of Elijah. Consequently, Jesus was also rejected, and the land and people of Israel were smitten with a curse. This is the same word used for Aachen’s sin in Joshua chapter seven when he took some of Jericho’s “accursed” goods. Those goods were things God had devoted to destruction.
Less than 40 years passed from the crucifixion of Jesus until the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. From that awful time when the Son of Man was despised and treated as less than nothing, the Jewish people have suffered from that curse. They were driven out of their own country and scattered, as it were, to the four corners of the earth.
However, as I understand the Scripture, the ultimate fulfillment of Malachi’s prophecy is still in the future. Perhaps the final Elijah is one of the two witnesses in Revelation chapter eleven.
The disciples were waiting for the glorious kingdom of the Messiah to come. Jesus told them it was very near, and it had already come. But because the king and kingdom were rejected, they did not come in their fullness. Today, the shadows are lengthening; the kingdom’s fullness is closer than ever. Don’t make the same mistake the Jewish leaders made.
Are you ready for the shadows to be dispelled and the kingdom of God and Christ to come in fullness? If not, today is the day of salvation. Please don’t put it off!
Thanks, J Mark, I like this ending spot for this teaching. Now is the day of salvation; today is the day. Focus on His work. The longer the Lord tarries, the more chance we have to share and bring others into His Kingdom. We anticipate His Kingdom coming in its fullness, yet it is similar to Jesus’ sober words in the lesson. A difficult time is coming for those who haven’t trusted Jesus as their Savior, and we want as many of them as possible to know Him. God help us share the Gospel as long as He tarries.
If you have any questions or want to contact us, please do. You can contact us by email or online. Our email address is hope@heraldsofhope.org, and our website is heraldsofhope.org. Go to the partner tab on the top right. Under this tab is the “contact us”. From there, you can message us directly. We look forward to hearing from you soon.
Thank you so much for being with us for today’s teaching. Suffering is not easy to endure, but Jesus has given us a good example. As Peter tells us, “Since Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking.” As followers of Him, we strive to be like Him, and this includes our understanding of suffering.
