Mark 9:30-37

Laughing at the Disciples?

This is one of those texts where it’s pretty easy to laugh at the disciples. This is the second time Jesus told them he was going to die and then rise again after three days. And yet they were still so confused that they didn’t even want to ask him questions! Why can’t they figure it out?!?

When I was in seminary, we spent a whole semester on the Gospel of Mark. One day, my professor asked us an interesting question: What if the disciples didn’t know that the “Son of Man” was Jesus? What if they didn’t know Jesus was referring to himself when he made this prediction that the Son of Man would die and then rise again after three days? It’s an interesting thought experiment.

Another way to give the disciples a…