Deep Dive 1.

A Commentary on the Bible Books of Mark and Luke.

Feb 21, 2026

In the last days of 2025, I studied the Bible books of Mark and Luke for twenty days, and I shared my thoughts on each chapter in the notes section of Substack. Here’s a compiled version of each day. I decided to split it into five days each to reduce its length. So, you’d get to read about four newsletters on my commentary. I genuinely hope that everything shared here points you back to God, encourages you to study the Bible, and that you understand the gospel of Christ better.

If you choose to read this while studying these bible books, I’d really love to read what resonated the most with you.

Day 1- Mark Chapters 1 and 2.

Mark gives a fast-paced account of John the Baptist’s ministry, talks about Jesus’s baptism, glosses through his wilderness experience, and describes the miracles he performed. Chapter 2 discusses the healing of the paralyzed man, Jesus in Matthew’s home with his friends, and the Sabbath.

While studying, I wondered why John the Baptist had to preach repentance before Christ came, and I figured John’s preaching and baptism signified a preparatory action for the coming of Christ. It was for them to purify their hearts so they could receive Christ. As I write this, I think of the new wine and old wine skin scenario in Mark 2:22. If new wine is kept in old wine skin, it’d burst. The people’s hearts had to be purified and ready to receive the messiah before he came. Their hearts needed to be transformed. New wine skins represent the renewed hearts and minds of believers who are receptive to the transformative power of the gospel.

I also learned about a common theme in the Bible called “The Messianic Secret”.

It refers to periods when Jesus instructed those he healed to remain silent about their healing. We see this theme in Mark 1:44. I’ve always wondered why he told them to be quiet, and I realized it was for many reasons. For one, it wasn’t time yet; the time for his ultimate purpose to be revealed hadn’t come. It was also to avoid drawing premature attention to himself, and so they could see him for who he is and not just the miracles he could perform.

Mark 1:40 was very touching for me. It seemed the leper had reached the end of himself and was desperately in need of healing. His statement, “If you are willing, you can make me clean,” shows how he truly hoped Christ could cleanse him. Jesus’s response “I’m willing, Be healed!” made things better, I’m sure it made the leper feel so seen, I imagine the times I’ve cried out to God for help, the times I’ve said “If you could please just help me out with this” and I remember how much God showed up, the times he comforted me and how he appeared in such situations as “El-Roi; The God who sees me.” This verse also shows how compassionate Christ is; we really do have a God who sympathizes and understands our weaknesses.

I also learned about Christ’s authority in Chapter 1:34, where we see him silencing the demons and preventing them from speaking. It emphasizes his authority over all principalities and powers. And it goes to show that even demons recognize him as God.

Day 2- Mark Chapters 3 and 4

Yesterday, I wrote a bit about the messianic secret. We see it again in Mark 3:12. Even the demons were told to keep shut. Towards the end of Chapter 2, Christ said to the Pharisees, “The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the sabbath.”

In Chapter 3, another event happened during the sabbath. A man’s hand was withered, and Christ healed him, but the Pharisees weren’t in support because it was the sabbath. Let’s take a quick dive into Exodus 20:8-11. If I’m not mistaken, this was the first time the sabbath was mentioned as it was part of the Ten Commandments. Exodus 20:8 AMP says, “Remember the Sabbath (seventh) day to keep it holy (set apart, dedicated to God).”

Now, let’s highlight the statement “set apart and dedicated to God.” If something is dedicated to God, that means it is separated for God’s purposes. So Christ healing the sick on a sabbath wasn’t wrong after all because that healing miracle was unto God.

Chapter 4 was about the parables Christ shared with his followers. While studying, I had a question. Why is it that he didn’t explain the parables to the crowd and only did an in-depth explanation to his disciples?

I realize parables called for deep spiritual reflection. In Verse 11, he said that the mystery of the kingdom of God has been given to those with teachable hearts. To an outsider, the parables just seemed like some confusing story, but to those in his inner circle, they knew those parables revealed deeper insight into the kingdom of God.

I think that’s why Christ took his time to explain it to them, because they would later become teachers of the gospel, and they had to be equipped to equip others.

Now let’s dive into the parable of the Sower and soils. It talks about different individuals when they hear God’s words. I think that those planted in good soil must have had experiences of being rooted in bad soil. Now, let me explain, before finding my place in Christ, I was like the second group, who only accepted the word superficially. I found my way back up, and then I was like the third group who got distracted by worldly pleasures before I accepted the word of God and started bearing fruit. I thank God for his mercies.

It’s my prayer that Christ is our firm foundation, that we’d be like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Trees that are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought, their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit. Amen.

Day 3- Mark Chapters 5 and 6.

Mark 5 talks about the demon-possessed man and Jesus’s healing in response to Faith.

I wondered what made the demon-possessed man run to Jesus. Was it of his own accord, or could it be that the demons pushed him to run to Christ? While reading a commentary, Gill’s exposition of the entire Bible says that “as the man drew nearer, and perceived who Christ was, such was the power of Christ over the devils in him, that though sore against their wills, they obliged him to move on speedily towards him; so that he ran and worshipped him.”

I think all of this once again proves the superiority of Christ over the devils, who, knowing who he is, are filled with horror at him.

Jesus’s encouraging the demon-possessed man to go home to his family and share his testimony emphasizes the role of personal testimony in evangelism.

I found the story of the woman with the issue of blood quite interesting. What manner of faith would make you believe that by touching someone’s garment, you’d get saved? It takes crazy faith for such to happen, crazy faith being that you don’t know how something is going to happen, but you know without an ounce of doubt that God can do it.

Chapter 6 talks about Christ’s rejection at Nazareth, the death of John the Baptist, and Jesus feeding the five thousand.

Jesus’ experiment with his hometown folks reminded me of the downsides of overfamiliarity and how it can make you dishonor the position and grace bestowed on a person. For example, I have friends in leadership positions in church, and I’ve learned to respect them and their position. When they speak in such settings, I do not see them as someone that I’m overly familiar with, rather I look at them as someone graced for such a position, whose words can bless me.

Mark 6:46 talks about Christ leaving the disciples so he could go and pray on his own. This verse emphasizes the need for personal prayer times, away from the noise, just you and God.

Chapter 6 talks about Christ’s rejection at Nazareth, the death of John the Baptist, and Jesus feeding the five thousand.

Jesus’ experiment with his hometown folks reminded me of the downsides of overfamiliarity and how it can make you dishonor the position and grace bestowed on a person. For example, I have friends in leadership positions in church, and I’ve learned to respect them and their position. When they speak in such settings, I do not see them as someone that I’ve seen finish, rather I look at them as someone engraved for such a position, whose words can bless me.

Mark 6:46 talks about Christ leaving the disciples so he could go and pray on his own. This verse emphasizes the need for personal prayer times, away from the noise, just you and God.

Day 4- Mark Chapters 7 and 8.

Mark 7 was Jesus talking about inner purity, the faith of a gentile woman, and Jesus healing the sick.

It’s clear the Pharisees were a bunch of hypocrites; they don’t practice what they preach, and Jesus called them out on their bluff. By the way, I couldn’t help but wonder why the disciples ate without washing their hands. I get it’s the heart that matters, but the medic in me can’t get why. I won’t lie, I sort of agree with the Pharisees that they should’ve washed their hands, although I understand that the Pharisees were being religious, and they failed to realize that it wasn’t what you eat that made you defiled, but it’s what comes out from your heart.

Mark 7:24- 30 was about the gentile woman whose daughter was possessed by an evil spirit as she sought Jesus’s help in casting out the demon. Christ used an analogy saying that it was unfair to give food that belongs to the children (Jews) to the dogs (Gentiles), and the woman responded that the dogs were still allowed to eat the children’s crumbs. I think her response goes a long way to show her faith. That analogy was to signify the grace of God and blessings that were initially intended for the jews now extended to the Gentiles. The gospel is for everyone who believes.

In Mark 8:11, the Pharisees were demanding a miraculous sign from Christ to prove his authority, as if he hadn’t done enough miracles. When he heard their request, he sighed in his spirit; it was glaring that the state of their hearts saddened him. No matter the miracles he performed, their hearts were hardened, and they wouldn’t believe.

I was very glad that I finally understood Mark 8:14-21. It was about Christ’s warning them to beware of the leavened bread of the Pharisees and Herod. You see, unleavened bread signifies purity, and leavened bread was used metaphorically to signify corruption and sin. The disciples were complaining earlier because they didn’t bring enough bread, then Jesus gave them a warning about the leavened bread. They were confused because they didn’t understand him. He tried to explain to them that he was not talking about actual bread here, what is a loaf of bread that he can’t multiply? He was telling them to beware of the corruption in both secular and religious(Pharisees) sects.

In Mark 8:25, Peter reprimanded Christ because Christ spoke about his death and resurrection. I think Peter is very bold. He literally called Christ the Messiah a few verses back, and he dares to reprimand the Messiah. I found his audacity very funny, but I understand that it was because he didn’t fully understand God’s plan and was responding to that situation because he perceived the situation from a human point of view.

I love that Jesus called everyone to speak about carrying their cross because from Peter’s reaction, it was clear they didn’t understand that Christ was already carrying his cross, and we as believers are called to a life of self-denial and self-death, a life where God’s will is embraced.

It’s my prayer that our foundation remains firm in Christ even as we carry out the cross daily, that the contents of our hearts do not defile us, and that we learn to embrace God’s will in every situation.

Day 5- Mark Chapters 9 and 10.

Chapter 9 was about the Transfiguration, healing a demon-possessed boy, and Jesus predicting his death.

In verse 10, the disciples asked Christ, “Why do the teachers of religious law insist that Elijah must return before the Messiah comes?” because they failed to realize that Elijah had already come as prophesied, and it was John the Baptist. The teachers of the religious law failed to see prophecy being fulfilled before their very eyes.

While Jesus was casting out a demon from a possessed boy, the boy’s father pleaded for Christ to heal him if he could. And Christ asked, “What do you mean by If I can?” The father’s request shows that there was an ounce of doubt on his end. It’s something that I think every Christian has experienced. Yes, you believe that God can do it, but there’s still a bit of doubt somewhere in your heart. I like that the father cried out to Christ, saying, “I believe, help my unbelief.” His prayer is a prayer to trust fully. It’s something I’ve prayed for in recent times, to trust fully, wholeheartedly, without any ounce of doubt in my heart.

Mark 9:43-45 talks about subduing whatever causes you to sin.

In Chapter 10, I learned that Divorce isn’t in God’s will. Moses only put it in the law because of the hardness of their hearts. They wanted to have it their way, and their hearts were cruel.

Jay’s Substack

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