Mark 2 | Devotional - Bible Reading and Prayer - One Chapter a Day 

Dear brothers and sisters, peace in Christ. Welcome to our One Chapter per day Bible reading time.

By God’s grace, today we will read Mark chapter 2.
This chapter shows us not only the power of Jesus, but the heart of His mission. We see Jesus forgive and heal a paralyzed man, revealing His authority to forgive sins. We watch Him call Levi, a tax collector, and share meals with sinners. Through questions about fasting and the Sabbath, Jesus teaches that He has come to bring new life, not empty religion. In every scene, we are reminded that Jesus looks beyond outward rules and sees the deeper needs of the human heart.

Let us come with open hearts and a willing spirit as we listen to God’s Word together.

Mark Chapter 2 Introduction:

Mark chapter 2 continues to reveal the authority of Jesus Christ, focusing especially on His power to forgive sins and His radical understanding of God’s grace. Through a series of encounters with religious leaders and ordinary people, this chapter shows that Jesus did not come merely to reform religious behavior, but to bring healing, forgiveness, and new life. Mark 2 highlights growing tension between Jesus and the religious authorities while clearly revealing His divine identity and mission.

Main Content of Mark Chapter 2:

The Healing of a Paralyzed Man (verses 1–12)
Jesus returns to Capernaum, where a large crowd gathers to hear Him teach. Four men bring a paralyzed man to Jesus, lowering him through the roof because of the crowd. Seeing their faith, Jesus first declares that the man’s sins are forgiven. This shocks the scribes, who question His authority. Jesus then heals the man physically to demonstrate that He has authority on earth to forgive sins, revealing that spiritual restoration is even more central than physical healing.

The Calling of Levi and Table Fellowship with Sinners (verses 13–17)
Jesus calls Levi, a tax collector, to follow Him. Levi immediately leaves his post and hosts a meal where many tax collectors and sinners gather with Jesus. The religious leaders criticize Jesus for associating with such people, but Jesus responds that He came not to call the righteous, but sinners. This section powerfully shows the inclusive nature of God’s grace and Jesus’ mission to seek and save the lost.

Questions about Fasting (verses 18–22)
The religious leaders question why Jesus’ disciples do not fast like others. Jesus answers with the illustration of a wedding feast, explaining that fasting is not appropriate while the bridegroom is present. He then uses the images of new cloth and new wine to teach that His message cannot be contained within old religious structures. This reveals that Jesus brings something entirely new—new life, new covenant, and new relationship with God.

The Lord of the Sabbath (verses 23–28)
Jesus and His disciples are criticized for picking grain on the Sabbath. Jesus responds by pointing to David’s actions and declaring that the Sabbath was made for humanity, not humanity for the Sabbath. He concludes by stating that the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath. This bold declaration emphasizes Jesus’ authority over religious law and His purpose to bring rest, mercy, and life rather than legalism.

Spiritual Significance of Mark Chapter 2:

Mark chapter 2 reveals a Jesus who challenges religious assumptions and reveals the heart of God’s grace. His authority to forgive sins, His willingness to dine with sinners, and His teaching on the Sabbath all point to a deeper truth—God desires mercy, restoration, and relationship more than outward religious performance.

This chapter invites us to examine whether we are open to the new work God wants to do in our lives. Are we willing to trust Jesus for forgiveness, follow Him wholeheartedly, and allow His grace to reshape our understanding of faith? As we continue through Mark, chapter 2 reminds us that Jesus offers not only healing for our bodies, but renewal for our hearts and freedom for our souls.

Mark Chapter 2 YouTube Bible Reading and Prayer Video:

Jesus Forgives and Heals a Paralyzed Man

2 A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2 They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3 Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. 4 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. 5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

6 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

8 Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? 9 Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? 10 But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the man, 11 “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” 12 He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”

Jesus Calls Levi and Eats With Sinners

13 Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. 14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.

15 While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Jesus Questioned About Fasting

18 Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?”

19 Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. 20 But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast.

21 “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. 22 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.”

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath

23 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”

25 He answered, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? 26 In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.”

27 Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”