Reading Through the New Testament - Mark 6

Picking up again in my journaling through the New testament.

- 5 And because of their unbelief, he couldn’t do any mighty miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them.6 And he was amazed at their unbelief
Mark 6:5-6 (NLT)
- Well, two things here "he couldn't because..." and "he was amazed..." So what happened here to limit God's work and amaze the Lord of the Universe?
- Is unbelief "kryptonite" to God's work? And again - to "amaze" God's Son? makes me wonder if the people there were so sold out to their own beliefs of what God could do that they acted as if they had never considered the possibility that God cared or could care about them.

Then the disciples (including Judas) were sent out...
- sent out - with the bare minimum and forced to contact and persuade the people they met to support their mission, even if only by simple hospitality.
- what must it have felt like to those disciples to have the power of God flow through them and do what they knew they could not have done?
- is there actually a "dust off your feet" action today?
Herod respected John; and knowing that he was a good and holy man, he protected him. Herod was greatly disturbed whenever he talked with John, but even so, he liked to listen to him.
Mark 6:20 (NLT)
- wonder how many of my friends who are preachers know the feeling that some of the people looking back at you on Sunday have some of the same traits - appreciate you for what you are - but are disturbed by what they hear and still keep coming back.

37 But Jesus said, “You feed them.” Mark 6:37 (NLT)

-I keep reading the account of the feeding of the 5,000 and always stop right here. Jesus was a miracle worker for sure, but there's usually a human connection and in this case it is especially strong. He has the disciples do everything THEY can and then He does what only HE can. Following Jesus has always been that way.
They were totally amazed,52 for they still didn’t understand the significance of the miracle of the loaves. Their hearts were too hard to take it in. Mark 6:51-52 (NLT)

- "They" and "their" here are the disciples. If they still don't get it after all they have seen and heard by this point, I wonder what the average person today needs to cross the line to faith in Jesus. Are we artificially compressing the timeline when it actually might take years.