Marcos 4

Marcos 4

Vernon McGee - What we have here is a parable of the candle and its action. Light creates responsibility. A man who receives the truth must act. We are held responsible to the degree to which we have had light given us. The light is shining, and your response to the light is all important. The point is, you and I were in darkness until the light of the gospel got through to us. We get the impression that man is a sinner because of his weakness or because of his ignorance. But Paul says very candidly (in Rom. 1) that men, when they knew God, glorified Him not as God. Man is a willful sinner. That’s the kind of sinners all of us are, and the light that comes in will create a responsibility. We are lost, and if we do not accept the Light, if we do not accept Him, we remain lost. J D Jones - Now let us look a little more closely at the figure our Lord uses to enforce this truth. "Is the lamp brought to be put under the bushel, or under the bed, and not to be put on the stand"? Now it is not by accident that our Lord used that figure. It is not a case simply of a pretty illustration. He uses it because the lamp sets forth certain qualities of the Word. The analogy is justified by a kinship. Just as the Word is like the seed, in that it contains within itself potentialities of life, so is it like the lamp, in that it is a source of knowledge and enlightenment. "Thy Word," says the psalmist, "is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path" ( Psalm 119:105). A lamp! and a lamp is only used when night falls. The lighted lamp implies the presence of darkness, and when the psalmist says, "Thy Word is a lamp," he implies a darkened world. A world in the dark about God, in the dark about duty, in the dark about the beyond. But "Thy Word is a lamp!" "The entrance of thy Word giveth light!" With the lamp of the Word in his hand, no man need stumble. He may walk safely and surely to his journey"s end. Chris Benfield comments "While some may have only considered Jesus’ questions from a physical perspective, He was in fact proclaiming great spiritual truth. He had come as the Light of the world. He came to reveal God to humanity. He came as God in flesh, to reveal the truth of God to those who walked in darkness, apart from truth." As believers, we too need to consider these beneficial questions. Once we were saved by His grace, we were filled with the Holy Spirit. We now bear the Light of Christ within. We have been called to share the Light we have received with those who walk in darkness. If the world isn’t exposed to the Light through believers, many will never encounter the truth of Christ. Granted, some will read the Scriptures and encounter truth of their own volition, but most are exposed to truth through the witness of believers! Hiebert - The definite articles with each item (lamp...basket...bed...lampstand mentioned denotes that they were all well known as essential furnishings in every Galilean household. The lamp was a small terracotta vessel with a lighted wick. In Jesus’ day, it was generally a closed bowl with a hole on top to pour in the oil, a spout for the wick, and usually a handle for carrying. It generally held only a spoonful or two of oil. Mark’s expression that the lighted lamp “comes” is a colloquial personification, just as we speak about a message coming, or the mail coming....The “light” which Jesus entrusted to His followers by giving them the explanation of the parables was not intended to be kept hidden from those outside. His teaching was not intended to be esoteric, restricted to an inner circle of enlightened followers. Just as it is the function of light to shine, so it is the duty of His disciples to let their light shine that others too may come to know the truth. NET on lamp - Jesus is comparing revelation to light, particularly the revelation of His ministry. Ancient Lampstand Is it not brought to be put on the lampstand? - This expects a "Yes." Jesus is saying light was to placed where all in the dark room could benefit from the light. In the deeper spiritual sense, the light of Jesus comes into the world to reveal. Application of Mark 4:21-25 - The Good News that Jesus brought us is not to be kept to ourselves, but to be shared with others. Two Seas - One Alive, One Dead Brian Bell illustrates this by noting that "The River Jordan supplies two large lakes. Sea of Galilee (full of fish/plant life) & the Dead Sea (nothing living in it at all - It’s stagnant & lifeless). Both lakes have the same source, but only the Sea of Galilee has an outlet. In other words, it passes on what it has received...the Dead Sea does not! That is the challenge of this passage, the message that Jesus has brought is not to be kept to ourselves but it is to be passed on to others." Spurgeon Exposition - So this wheat, then, is meant to be sown; the Word of God is intended to be spread. “Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed?” If it were put under a bed, it would set the bed on fire; and so, if you have true grace in your heart, there is nothing that can smother its light; the fire and the light together will force their way out. Henry