We must open our eyes

Mark is the shortest of the four gospels. He wrote the newspaper edition of the gospel. Mark failed on the first missionary journey. He went home in disgrace. Peter knew about failure. Peter took him under his wing. The Gospel of Mark is the Memoirs of Peter. Mark’s gospel is the life of Jesus through the eyes of Peter.

In Mark 4:21-22 Jesus gave a very short parable. Mark says, “This parable is very important. We need to listen to it.” Jesus said, “A lamp is not brought to be put under a basket, is it, or under a bed? Is it not brought to be put on the lampstand?” (verse 21) Jesus said, “You need to open your eyes!”

Jesus asked two rhetorical questions. First, “Is a lamp lit to be put under a basket or under a bed?” No. We don’t turn on a light and then put it under a basket or under a bed! Second, “Is it not brought to be put on the lampstand?”

Jesus used four very basic items from every Jewish first century home. A lamp was a small bowl filled with olive oil. Olive oil was poured in through a hole in the top. The wick was lit to produce light. A small handle was on the side of the bowl. A small lamp illuminated the typical first century home.

A lampstand for most people was a small shelf in the wall. They dug into the mud or clay or stone to produce a shelf. The lamp was placed upon it.

The basket was probably a two gallon container. It was used for measuring wheat or barley. The bed was either a cloth mat rolled up each night or a couch. Wealthy people had a couch on which they slept.

Jesus said, “No person lights a lamp and puts it under a basket or a under a bed. No. It is put on a lampstand to illuminate the entire home.” We hang our lights from the ceiling. Or we place them on a night stand or they are long and tall to illuminate the entire room. The lights on the Glenn Highway are very tall. They provide light in every direction.

The light represents Jesus. The lampstand represents His ministry. John 1:5 says, “The Light (Jesus) shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” In John 8:12 Jesus said, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”

In Mark 4:22 Jesus finished the parable by saying, “For nothing is hidden, except to be revealed; nor has anything been secret, but that it would come to light.” God the Father has made His Son known. What Jesus taught His disciples in secret they made known in the New Testament. God has made the Light of His Son known!

One person said, “Jesus is not a Person we could invent. Neither is Jesus a Person we would invent if we could.” At the beginning of His public ministry Jesus cleansed the temple. He drove out the money changers and those selling animals. They asked Jesus, “By what authority do You do these things?”

Jesus said, “Destroy this temple (His body), and in three days I will raise it up” (John 2:18-19). Jesus said, “If I am not resurrected from the dead, do not believe anything I say.” Jesus based His entire ministry on His resurrection.

The point of this parable is simple. We need to open our eyes and see Jesus. This parable took place in the context of the unpardonable sin. The nation rejected their Messiah. They should have opened their eyes.

Jesus raised people from the dead. Lazarus was dead for four days and Jesus raised Him from the dead! Jesus rescued the woman caught in adultery from stoning. Jesus fed five thousand men plus women and children from a little boy’s lunch. Jesus lived a perfect life. He died on the cross for our sins. His body did not decay. He rose from the dead. He ascended to the Father. He is coming again. We need to open our eyes and see Jesus!

What more could God have done to make the truth known? Let’s be people who open our eyes, see Jesus and come to saving faith.

Ethan Hansen is a pastor at Faith Bible Fellowship in Big Lake.