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Mark: Trusting King Jesus as the One Who Sees You, Saves You, and Never Lets Go
A FREE study of the book of Mark in the First 5 mobile app, starting May 18.
You don’t have to hold everything together — because the King holds you.
Some days, life feels like too much. You’re doing your best to keep moving forward, but underneath it all, you may feel tired, uncertain, or quietly overwhelmed. You believe in Jesus — yet you still wonder how to experience His strength and presence when things feel unstable or faith feels fragile.
The Gospel of Mark meets you right there. It shows us Jesus in real moments with real people — stepping into pain, chaos, doubt, and need. Not from a distance. Not with quick fixes. But with compassion, power, and purpose. This study isn’t about having it all together. It’s about discovering who Jesus is when you don’t.
As you walk through Mark, you’ll be reminded that imperfect faith is still faith — and that even when you feel like you can’t hold on, Jesus never lets go.
Today’s Teaching
The Heart of the Matter
Trisha Hawk
Day: 15 | Plan: Mark
Start Here: Mark 7:1-23
Key Verse: Mark 7:8 (ESV) "You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men."
Major Moment: Jesus confronted the Pharisees about their traditions and taught that defilement comes from within.
I don't know much about vehicle maintenance. Recently, however, I learned the importance of wheel alignment. After months of struggling to keep my car in my lane while driving, it was time for my yearly vehicle inspection. The mechanic determined the reason for my problem: The wheels of my SUV were out of alignment. Now that all four wheels are correctly positioned, I stay in my lane with ease.
In today's passage, Jesus rebuked the Pharisees because they were spiritually misaligned, "leav[ing] the commandment of God and hold[ing] to the tradition of men" (Mark 7:8). As we've seen throughout our study of Mark, the Pharisees were influential leaders of the Jewish people, viewed as examples of piety. However, they abused their power by adding their own traditions and laws to God's commandments, which became burdensome and led people to focus more on the Pharisees than on God. Jesus even said these additional laws were "making void the word of God." This was an ongoing pattern of behavior, deeply entrenched in society and affecting not just one area but "many such things" (Mark 7:13).
Jesus called out that the Pharisees' self-proclaimed righteousness was actually sin: "This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me" (Mark 7:6). He directed the focus away from external behaviors and onto their internal, moral condition.
By saying this, Jesus didn't negate the Old Testament law, which taught that certain foods or physical impurities could make a person unclean before God (Leviticus 5:2-6). However, Jesus explained that God's concern with external purity always ultimately symbolized the deeper issue of sin: "Whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him ... What comes out of a person is what defiles him" (Mark 7:18-20).
In Mark 7:6, Jesus also referred to the Pharisees as "hypocrites." In Greek, this word means "to pretend" like an actor on stage. The Pharisees deceived others, but Jesus saw through their actions into their hearts, where there was arrogance, deceit, and disrespect of God's authority. They constantly cleaned their hands, dishes, and homes (Mark 7:4), but it was all an act. It was like washing a car with misaligned wheels. Though they looked clean, they couldn't steer straight. They needed to align their hearts with God's Truth.
Our hearts also reveal whether we're aligned with God today. While only Jesus has a perfectly pure heart, we can begin aligning our hearts with His through faith and the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:1-4). Scripture teaches us that the Holy Spirit "has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness" (2 Peter 1:3), including power to resist our fleshly desires (Galatians 5:16). As we follow Jesus, it's wise for us to examine both our behaviors and beliefs closely, measuring them against God's Word and seeking purity by His grace rather than our own habits or traditions.
Friend, time spent aligning ourselves with God's Truth is always time well spent.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, reveal to me the places in my heart that do not align with Your Truth. Give me strength and courage to live in obedience to Your Word. I desire to have a pure heart that honors You. In Jesus' name, amen.
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