Such Cool Stuff

I think God is pretty awesome, don't you?

I have started meeting regularly with a girl I know, who is a brand new Christian and trying to figure out just how to go about embarking on her new life. It's awesome. We have started reading through Mark, just to give her some foundation and idea of who Jesus is, and what He did during His three years of ministry. I have read Mark several times, but reading it through the eyes of a new believer is making me see things I had never noticed. It is also making me do a lot more homework so I can be prepared to answer her questions. Who exactly was Mark? How did his story end up in the Bible? Why are there four gospels instead of one? Why did John have to baptize Jesus? Why were so many people wanting to kill John? Who exactly were the Pharisees? Who is Elijah, and why do poeple think Jesus is Elijah? The questions go on.

Wow. Some of those things I feel like I know pretty well, but I also know my answers are mostly composites of stories I've read and countless sermons I've heard. How do I boil that down? And do I really understand the significance of each answer?

This week she and I are reading Mark 6-9. Doesn't seem like a lot, but it took me an hour just to get through Mark 6 last night. I was reading the commentaries, and looking up all the reference verses, then reading passages again and comparing them to other gospels. It was intense, and I don't know that I've studied quite like that before. But I feel like I absorbed a lot of new insights and appreciation for how the whole Bible fits together.

She told me last week how much she appreciates doing this study with me, but almost like it might be an inconvenience because I have already read the book of Mark. I assured her, I am being challenged and learning as much as she is. And when it comes to studying the Bible, it's not the same as re-reading a regular novel, where you might get bored with the story since you know it so well. This is nothing like that, and I can find new things each time I read it.