"Battle Lines" July 11 Readings: Mark 2:13-28, Luke 5:27-39
Reading the Bible Chronologically in 2026
This year, we will read the Bible chronologically, as it happened, instead of simply reading from Genesis to Revelation. The Old Testament is approximately 3/4 of the Bible, but we will give more emphasis to the New Testament, spending half the year in the Old Testament and half in the New.
Bible Readings: Mark 2:13-28, Luke 5:27-39
In Bible Gateway, we will link to the NIV this year, though you can choose any version you prefer.
Because we are devoting half the year to the New Testament, which is only about 1/4 of the Bible by content, we will have some days when our readings are not as long. This gives you time to be thoughtful and prayerful about these wonderful truths.
Background:
As I was driving on a Christmas vacation a while back, I noticed a marker on the side of the road. It read, "38th Parallel." It was a memorial to Korean War veterans (my father included) who served and died because of the battle line drawn between North and South Korea.
In this reading today, especially the Mark passage, we see the battle lines being more clearly drawn between Jesus and the religious leaders. Jesus calls a tax collector named Levi (we know him as Matthew, the writer of the first Gospel) to be part of his core group. As if that were not bad enough, he started hanging out with the wrong kind of people. Pharisees were careful to separate themselves from such lowlifes, but Jesus went and feasted with them. How offensive!
Jesus had another problem. He wasn't kowtowing to their religious rituals. Jesus didn't flaunt the law of God, but he did not follow the traditions of men either. He simply would not live by their human rules, which drove them crazy. When they confronted him, he told them about new wine and old wineskins. Perhaps they got the point. "You guys are on your way out. God is building something new, the church, and the empty religion you rely on won't be able to handle it."
Then, Jesus gave a key teaching on the Sabbath. Sabbath rules had reached a ludicrous point. God intended the Sabbath for rest and worship, not for ritualistic hoop-jumping. On the Sabbath, the disciples did something horrible: they pulled a few heads of grain as they walked. A little snack. The religionists pounced. "Rule-breakers!" Jesus told them he was there to be Lord, even of the Sabbath!
No wonder they were upset, right?
In this reading today, especially the Mark passage, we see the battle lines being more clearly drawn between Jesus and the religious leaders. Jesus calls a tax collector named Levi (we know him as Matthew, the writer of the first Gospel) to be part of his core group. As if that were not bad enough, he started hanging out with the wrong kind of people. Pharisees were careful to separate themselves from such lowlifes, but Jesus went and feasted with them. How offensive!
Jesus had another problem. He wasn't kowtowing to their religious rituals. Jesus didn't flaunt the law of God, but he did not follow the traditions of men either. He simply would not live by their human rules, which drove them crazy. When they confronted him, he told them about new wine and old wineskins. Perhaps they got the point. "You guys are on your way out. God is building something new, the church, and the empty religion you rely on won't be able to handle it."
Then, Jesus gave a key teaching on the Sabbath. Sabbath rules had reached a ludicrous point. God intended the Sabbath for rest and worship, not for ritualistic hoop-jumping. On the Sabbath, the disciples did something horrible: they pulled a few heads of grain as they walked. A little snack. The religionists pounced. "Rule-breakers!" Jesus told them he was there to be Lord, even of the Sabbath!
No wonder they were upset, right?
Daily Devotional: Battle Lines
I love the story of Joshua meeting the Angel of the Lord just after the crossing of the Jordan. He asks the question, "Are you with us or with them?" Whose side are you on, warrior? (Inside you could hear him pleading - please say ours, please say ours!) The warrior essentially said, "I haven't come to take sides; I've come to take charge.
The religionists of Israel were bothered that Jesus wouldn't play their game. Follow our rules, Jesus. Just throw us a bone. Observe the human rules we have set, let everyone know we are still in charge, and we won't bother you! But Jesus let them know in no uncertain terms that it was not going to happen that way.
Are you seeing a theme here? Herod held on to the throne and hated Jesus because he was "born king" of the Jews. The religionists loved their position and control and hated Jesus because he asserted his own authority above theirs.
Jesus draws the battle lines at the most painful place in your heart. Jesus, I will love you and serve you as long as you let me love whomever I want to love, go where I want to go, do what I want to do, and live how I want to live. He says, "I will be Lord of all." Lord of your time, of your ambitions, of your relationships, of your money, of your future. Lord of everything.
Whatever it is that is most dear, most precious - that secret idol in your heart - Jesus comes and says, THAT! That is what I want. I must be Lord of that.
The religionists of Israel were bothered that Jesus wouldn't play their game. Follow our rules, Jesus. Just throw us a bone. Observe the human rules we have set, let everyone know we are still in charge, and we won't bother you! But Jesus let them know in no uncertain terms that it was not going to happen that way.
"The Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath."You have to understand how those words cut the religionists' hearts. The Sabbath was sacred to them, not for divine purposes, but for their own control over the people. They loved to lord it over them and used Sabbath rules as a tool. Here was a man who laid claim to being Lord even over that which they held sacred.
Are you seeing a theme here? Herod held on to the throne and hated Jesus because he was "born king" of the Jews. The religionists loved their position and control and hated Jesus because he asserted his own authority above theirs.
Jesus draws the battle lines at the most painful place in your heart. Jesus, I will love you and serve you as long as you let me love whomever I want to love, go where I want to go, do what I want to do, and live how I want to live. He says, "I will be Lord of all." Lord of your time, of your ambitions, of your relationships, of your money, of your future. Lord of everything.
Whatever it is that is most dear, most precious - that secret idol in your heart - Jesus comes and says, THAT! That is what I want. I must be Lord of that.
Father, your Son earned the right to be my Lord. May he be Lord of all. My time. My writing. My future. Whatever.
Consider God's Word:
Where are the battle lines in your heart, in your life right now? If Jesus Christ is going to be Lord of ALL, what is it that he must take full authority over? Your viewing, reading, and watching habits? Your computer clicks? Your relationships? Your ambitions?
What battle is Jesus waging for full Lordship in your life today?
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