I was reading Mark 9:30-50 this morning while eating some cereal.
I’ve read Mark 9 before. I’ve read the Bible through a handful of times, as many of us have, and yet, another new thing caught my eye.
“And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched-” (Mark 9:43)
This same wording enter life appears in Mark 9:45 and the parallel is drawn with 9:47.
“And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire-”
Jesus is saying that entering the Kingdom of God is entering life. He doesn’t say anything about “the next life” or “afterlife,” he says that the Kingdom of God is life. Outside of the kingdom, life hasn’t yet started.
This started the process. This perspective is what prompted me to start this blog. May you find a dash of truth or a pinch of wisdom here from time to time.
-The Salty Jeff
