Mark 7, Isa. 29:13, Exod. 20:12, Mark 8:11-21.

 “‘There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man’ ” (Mark 7:15, NKJV).

 This week’s study is Mark 7 and the first half of Mark 8. At the beginning of Mark 7, Jesus stirs up controversy by His rejection of religious tradition. However, He does it in a way that is strikingly supportive of something deeply relevant to Christian life today.

 Jesus then presents a riddle that opens the door to a true understanding of what faith is really about.

 After this He goes to Tyre and Sidon and has an encounter with a woman who was the only person in the Gospels to win an argument with Jesus. His encounter with her is unusual, and underneath it there are a few secret communications the woman picked up on. And because of her faith, Jesus granted her request.

 Mark 7, with another healing, reveals the important truth that, however impressive miracles can be, they alone are often not enough to open hearts to truth. After all, what good did the miracles do for the religious leaders who were bent on rejecting Jesus?

 In Mark 8 the study looks at the significance of bread as a symbol of teachings and traditions. These stories contain great lessons about the meaning and practice of religious life.

 *Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, August 10.