A Tale of Two Banquets – Mark Chapter 6

Jesus is not like other human rulers; he often does not do what we expect. Is that a problem with Jesus or with our expectations? We “know” that the best thing for us is always to “follow Jesus and do as he says,” but we don’t always do that. We have a tendency to trust and follow others instead; we easily follow lesser leaders who are closer to us—following the familiar instead of the better. Mark 6 uses contrasting events to show that Jesus is the one we should follow, even when our instincts or desires urge us to do otherwise. In a day when multiple nearby voices demand we follow them, we need this reminder of why we follow Jesus.