Advertise on podcast: Follow the King

The women came to the tomb expecting a dead Jesus. Peter had failed the Jesus he promised to follow. The women were wrong about Jesus—but right to keep pursuing Jesus. The disciples had failed Jesus—but Jesus hadn’t given up pursuing them. When our faith is incomplete, keep moving toward Jesus. And when our faith fails, remember—Jesus is still moving toward us. #openbibles #pccfaithfamily

The women simply stayed. Joseph offered his tomb. Nicodemus brought what he had. Each faithfully did what Jesus put in front of them. We often think following Jesus requires doing something great. But discipleship usually looks far more ordinary: showing up, being faithful, and boldly obeying—even when no one else notices. Because in the Kingdom, there is no insignificant discipleship.

Everyone wants to defeat Goliath. Few people want the years in the field that prepared David to face him. Before David ever stepped onto a battlefield, God had been forming him—in obscurity, through obedience, and in the small things no one else noticed. David didn’t suddenly become faithful when he faced Goliath. The battlefield revealed what God had already been forming in him. And the same is true for us. We may be waiting for God to do something big, while He is using the ordinary moments of today to form us into the people He desires us to become. Don’t despise the field while you’re waiting for the battlefield. God does some of His deepest work where no one else is watching.

“Surely this man was the Son of God.” Those words were spoken by a Roman soldier at the foot of the Cross after Jesus laid down His life as the ransom price to set the guilty free. “Save Yourself.” Those words were shouted in mockery by the religious leaders—missing the irony that Jesus could not save Himself and save us. “ Jesus is King.” That is the message Mark reveals through the Cross. What looked like a Roman execution was actually a divine coronation—declaring that Caesar is not King. Jesus is. And we still need that reminder today: Jesus is King—and as our King, our lives belong to Him.

Today was a special day in the life of our faith family as we ordained three new elders—recognizing those Jesus has already been shaping to help shepherd His people. After months of prayer, discernment, and preparation, we laid hands on Tim Jackson, Nate Judd, and Josh Stone and commissioned them to serve beneath the Chief Shepherd, Jesus. This isn’t about status—but responsibility. And ultimately, it’s all about following King Jesus and making disciples.

Our failures do not get the final word. Jesus does. Jesus knows our weakness before we ever fail—and our worst moments don’t catch Him by surprise. What we think we’ve destroyed, Jesus is able to restore.

The lamb. The bread. The bitter herbs. The cups. For generations, the Passover table told Israel’s story of rescue. Then Jesus sat at that table—and everything changed. A new covenant. A greater rescue. And Jesus Himself, the Lamb of God who gave His life to set us free.

Gethsemane gives us a breathtaking glimpse of Jesus in His humanity. He knew what the cup would cost, asked the Father to take it away—and then faithfully chose to take it for us. Hallel-Yah! Our hope isn’t found in the strength of our promises, but in the strength of the One who rescued us.

We can know we’ve been saved while slowly forgetting what we were saved from—and what it cost to set us free. The bread and cup call us to remember the life Jesus, our Rescuer, gave for us. And when we stand face-to-face with what He gave for our freedom, it changes what we’re willing to give to Him.

Have you ever looked at what was happening in your life and asked, “Jesus, what are You doing?”   The disciples did too. But what looked confusing in the moment was often Jesus preparing them for what they could not yet see. Faith isn’t believing Jesus will always make sense—it’s learning to trust Him when He doesn’t.

Jesus called Mary's anointing "beautiful"—but the invitation of the text is not to be like Mary. It's to sit where Mary sat: at the feet of Jesus. Mary treasured Jesus because she knew Jesus. How many of us know about Jesus—but don’t truly know Him? Seeing the beauty of Jesus changes everything. We come to treasure Jesus deeply as we come to know Him fully.

This generation. Jesus says, "All these things"—including the Son of Man coming on the clouds—"will take place in this generation." What if Jesus wasn't delivering a timeline for the future—but preparing His followers to remain faithful no matter what the future held? And that's helpful to know—because Christians spend an awful lot of time asking, "When is Jesus coming back?" While Jesus spends an awful lot of time asking, "What will I find you doing when I do?"

The disciples thought Jesus was preparing them for the end of the temple. He was—but not in the way they expected. What looked like the destruction of the temple was actually the beginning of something far greater: God's presence would no longer be confined to a building, but would dwell in His people through the Holy Spirit.

When a widow with only two small coins emptied all she had into the treasury, Jesus turned everyone's attention to her—not because of her giving, but because of her living. A widow who gives her last two coins is either completely foolish or absolutely convinced that her God will provide. Her total surrender and trust reflected the total surrender and trust Jesus would display later that week when He emptied Himself for His people. This poor widow was far more than an example of generosity—she was a reflection of the King.

A man approached Jesus who understood how the kingdom of God worked: love God and love your neighbor. So Jesus told him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” But near is not the same as in. One must do more than understand the kingdom of God. One must acknowledge the King of God. Because Jesus is more than one of David’s descendants—Jesus is David’s Lord. More than a human Son of David—Jesus is the divine Son of God.