“Truly I say to you, all sins shall be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter; but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin” – because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit” (Mark 3:28-30).

The Holy Spirit must be the One who leads from the inside out.  Whoever will not listen to the Holy Spirit will be doomed to be guided by the rebellious spirits of this age.  Our sins will be forgiven if we walk the path of salvation made possible through Christ.  Do not be led by the spirit of this age, but by The Holy Spirit of the Triune God.  Only through the Holy Spirit’s leading will you find true life.

Lord, never let me deny Your Holy Spirit.  Though I may sin too many times, help me understand that I must be under Your guidance.  Humble me to see the wickedness of this age and instead abide in You knowing that You will abide in me.  I do not need to know the mysteries of the ages, but I do need You to be the One who leads me each day of my life.  You are the Creator of life and apart from You there is no life.  Help me to live in You.

Lord Jesus, the path has been made level and You have come to lead me in the way of everlasting life.  Help me to see the obstacles of this age.  Help me to not fall into the pits and traps of the wicked one.  Lead me not into temptation.  Keep me from ever blaspheming against Your Holy Spirit.  I may not know where that line is, but You do.  Keep me far from that place so that I may humbly learn how to follow You in all of my ways.  Amen.

“But no one can enter the strong man’s house and plunder his property unless he first binds the strong man, and then he will plunder his house” (Mark 3:27).

Satan has been bound by the Lord.  He is unable to do anything without permission.  Who is in charge?  The Lord is.  In this age, He has allowed free will for His sake and we see what has come of it.  More important to us is one: the Lord is Lord of all, and two: this world is a mess; and the Lord has come to rescue those who will follow Him and be lifted out of the division and lies of this age.

Lord, I have caused my share of division.  There are things that need to be divided like sin from righteousness, but I cannot discern this.  Only You can discern what is true.  Lead me to be shrewd as a serpent, yet remain innocent in Your goodness.  Guide me in the power of Your Holy Spirit to humbly walk the life of faith which You have set before me.  Teach me so that I may understand with more clarity the reality of this age.

Lord Jesus, You have come to take me from sinfully exercising my free will for my sake, to learn to be obedient to all that You have commanded.  Guide me, Lord Jesus, in the way I need to go and help me this day to be discerning, seeking out where I am able to bring unity to Your bride, the church.  Through all things, be the One who guides me, for I cannot see clearly, but You can.  Lead me in the way of righteousness.  Amen.

“If a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.  If Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but he is finished!” (Mark 3:25-26)

Meditate upon division and how the world uses it to gain control.  The Lord does not seek to gain, for it is all His.  God does not manipulate to control.  Those opposed to God do, and being opposed to God is what the word Satan means.  Yes, it is the devil, but it also the whole rebellion of this age.  This age cannot stand, and it is finished.  The Lord is One and He will make His bride, the church, one.

Lord God, You are the God of unity.  The rebellion of this age is disunity.  Help me to see how division is used to manipulate and how You seek to unite us so that together we may see the harmony in the diversity of Your creation.  You implanted Your image in us and created us to be Yours.  Open our eyes to see the truth of these things so that we may live out life as You created it to be lived.

Lord Jesus, You say it plainly, but I often do not hear.  Satan has been seeking to divide Your house throughout this age of rebellion.  Bless me as a peacemaker that I would seek unity and not disunity through the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  Keep me from the tricks of the wicked one and lead me in the light of the Gospel to humbly walk in the way that You have set before me.  Amen.

“And He called them to Himself and began speaking to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan?  If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand” (Mark 3:23-24).

No, this was not Abraham Lincoln who said this first, but Jesus.  This is a simple piece of logic, reasoning, and thinking which tells us a simple truth.  It also tells us that Jesus is fully in control and does not need to use trickery to convince anyone of anything.  He says. “Come to me and I will make of you what the Father has always intended.”  The real miracle is that although the church has been divided, yet it still stands because the real church, of the truly faithful, is one with the Lord.

Lord, You prayed that we would be one even as You and the Father are One.  Help me to live in harmony with those around me.  Help me to confront those who are divisive, for You have stated clearly that division is not from the Father.  Help me learn what it means to be a peacemaker and follow as You lead.  Teach me to hold fast to what is right and true.  Keep me from being divisive.

Lord Jesus, I do not know how to do these things.  You must teach me.  Bring me to the state of being humble, like a child, so that I willingly accept Your teaching.  There is so much I do not know and You, who know all things, are the One who must lead me.  Help me to be one who seeks to unite Your fellowship and keep divisiveness far away.  Lead as You will Jesus, and help me learn how to faithfully follow You.  Amen

The scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons” (Mark 3:22).

I suppose if someone wanted to put on a show, this might be something they would think of without really thinking.  You cannot do evil and hope it will come to good.  Evil always perverts the good.  It cannot be the other way round.  The wicked rules by absolute conformity.  The demons know their place.  An army does not take out its front lines to impress the enemy.  This statement shows the absurdity of the hatred against the Lord.

Lord, teach me to think so that I can see through the absurd remarks that are spoken by those who reject You.  Guide me so that I do not listen to those who would lead me astray.  Help me to be led by You, who speaks the words of everlasting life.  Let the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my mind be pleasing to You, the One who saves.  Teach me how to think and then help me have good words to say.

Lord Jesus, You are the One who rescues.  You did this at the cost of Your own body given on the cross.  You did not use parlor tricks or cleaver speech, but came openly proclaiming the truth of the Father’s love.  Lead me the way You know I need to be led, and help me to see through the stumbling blocks of this age so that I may grow to be more like You each and every day.  Abide in me and teach me to abide in You.  Amen.

“And He came home, and the crowd gathered again, to such an extent that they could not even eat a meal.  When His own people heard of this, they went out to take custody of Him; for they were saying, “He has lost His senses” (Mark 3:20-21).

God has lost His senses?  That’s straight from the pits of hell.  Yet, how many times do each of us argue with the Lord?  Perhaps disagree is a softer word, but it’s the same.  The Lord is Lord of all and He has promised to work all things together for good to those who love Him.  The pride of this age makes it difficult to do the one thing that is needed for our journey of salvation and that is to completely submit to the Lord.

Lord God, take me far from the pride that is in my heart.  Kill the pride.  I have my opinions, which I deem facts, which color my thoughts.  Let Your thoughts become my thoughts, and in the pattern set by You, Lord, teach me to look to You for all things.  Be the One who guides me all the days of my life.  Lead me to become like You, no matter what those around me say.  Help me to hold fast to the hope I have in You.

Lord Jesus, for our sake You endured the derision of those who thought they knew better.  You have called for us to stop keeping up appearances and instead live authentically with You leading us in the way of salvation.  Lead me, Lord, and confront me when pride raises the old Adam.  Create in me a new life that submits to You in all things.  You must lead the way from sinfulness to holiness.  Lead me, Lord Jesus.  Amen.

“And He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom He gave the name Peter), and James, the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James (to them He gave the name Boanerges, which means, “Sons of Thunder”); and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot; and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Him” (Mark 3:16-19).

The meaning in Hebrew of each of the names in their order: Hearing stone, contentious, graced by God, supplanter, loudness, vows love, rich in land, gift of God, twin, contentious, zealous, stone, and God is thanked.  Everything has a meaning and the names put together tell us the story of salvation.  Those who relinquish their life gain it.  Those who keep their life and their own ideas lose what is offered.  The Lord will take you on your own journey.

Lord, You have called for each one of us to follow You.  You will build the verbs that act upon our lives to hold us fast to You if we do not cling to the stones of this age which need to be rejected.  You are the cornerstone of my life.  Help me to submit to You so that my life may be built according to the Father’s will.  Guide me in Your goodness and mercy to humbly walk with You as the One who leads.

Lord Jesus, I know that You have called me.  I know that You have guided me.  Lead me so that I may humbly follow.  Forgive me where I have betrayed You and by Your grace, guide me on the upward path of the calling You have given me.  Teach me to humbly submit to all things You place before me and remove the demons and self-will that would get in the way.  Amen.

“And He appointed twelve, so that they would be with Him and that He could send them out to preach, and to have authority to cast out the demons” (Mark 3:14-15).

There are twelve tribes of Israel and twelve disciples.  From every tribe, tongue, folk, and nation, the Lord calls us all to come unto Him.  The world is diverse, yet we all have been made in the image of Christ.  All are different and all are the same.  Our Lord has come, called us, bidding us to have Him be the One who leads us.  We cannot lead our selves.  He equips us to go out and share the Good News.

Lord, I find that I want to add You into my life rather than giving up my life to be led into Yours.  I want salvation on my terms, but then I realize that this is the reason I need to be saved.  I am not the One who created anything, including myself.  I want to be Your disciple, but then, not really because I do not want to pay the price.  Lord, save me and call me into You so that I may become whom You are making me to be.

Lord Jesus, You call us and then You send us.  You show that it is through what comes along in life that You will teach us how to live the new life You give.  Guide me in the way of everlasting life and help me to follow as You lead.  By Your authority, grant that I would do what You ask me to do, beginning with kicking the demons out of my own life which hinder my walking with You.  Amen.

“And He went up on the mountain and summoned those whom He Himself wanted, and they came to Him” (Mark 3:13).

The pattern remains the same.  There are the crowds, and Jesus calls for us to follow Him.  Some stay behind and others come.  Jesus has summoned you.  Will you come to Him?  Our Lord has done all of these things in daylight for all to see and had made them known to whomever would listen.  The world is capricious but our Lord is gracious.  He wants you and has bid you to come and be with Him.

Lord, I get so used to the patterns I live that I have a hard time seeing it any other way.  You have bid me come with you and follow You wherever You lead.  Open my eyes to see and my mind to understand that You are the One for whom and by whom all things were made, and therefore the author of life and the finisher of my faith.  Lead me out of habits and into learning how life is meant to be lived.

Lord Jesus, You have bidden me through the water of my baptism, to come and follow You.  Help me so that when trials and tribulations come, I do not fall away nor leave the path You have set before me.  Help me, Lord, so that I may follow You always, no matter the cost, as You create in me a new and clean heart.  Help me to become Your disciple, walking in the way of everlasting life.  Amen.

“Whenever the unclean spirits saw Him, they would fall down before Him and shout, “You are the Son of God!”  And He earnestly warned them not to tell who He was” (Mark 3:11-12).

The wicked ones know who Jesus is.  They will do whatever they can to thwart the Father’s will.  Be aware of that.  We are not fighting against flesh and blood, but against forces and principalities of darkness.  Be led by the Lord and not by the voices of this age who are hostile to the Lord.  In discovering who Jesus is ourselves, we find the great love the Father has for all of us.

Lord God, You have revealed the truth in the Son.  Help all who call upon Your name to simply and humbly understand that You alone are God.  Lead Your faithful ones in the way You know we need to go and help us hear Your voice above all, shutting out those voices which are hostile to You.  Guide us ever deeper into the mystery of faith.  You are our leader.  Help Your church to stand firm and serve all others as You have served us.

Teach me, Lord Jesus, and make me a disciple who willingly learns from You.  Amidst all the noise of this age, guide me to humbly follow where You lead and do what You give me to do.  You are my Lord and Master, and I need to listen and  learn how to follow Your commands.  Thank You for the abundance of grace and mercy which You provide, which I need.  Thank You for leading the way through this noisy and rebellious world.  Amen.