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Mark 1

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Mark 1
 
Mark began his Gospel by introducing, “Jesus Christ, the Son of God” (1.1), in light of both the Old Testament prophecies concerning John the Baptist, and John’s early sermons. The author understood John the Baptist as the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy concerning one who would cry out “Prepare the way for the Lord; make His paths straight!” (v. 3; cf. Is 40.3; Mt 3.3; Lk 3.4-6; Jn 1.23), and Malachi’s announcement that the LORD would send His messenger to clear the way before His coming (cf. Mal 3.1). Mark noted John’s message of “repentance for the forgiveness of sins” (v. 4), and that the Baptist spoke of one “more powerful” (v. 7) who would come after him—one who would baptize the people “with the Holy Spirit” (v. 8). While Mark recorded nothing of Jesus’ birth and early years, he stated that Jesus “came from Nazareth in Galilee” (v. 9; cf. Mt 2.22-23; Lk 2.39-40). The significance of this statement is seen in the flow of the chapter, as Jesus later returned to the north, the primary local of His early ministry. 
 
Mark recorded two key features of Jesus’ visit to Judea:
  1. He was baptized by John in the Jordan (v. 9). Mark, in what sets the tone for his uniquely succinct and active style, recorded the bare facts of the event: when Jesus emerged from the water, the Spirit descended upon Him, and a voice from Heaven said, “You are My beloved Son; I take delight in You!” (v. 11)
  2. “Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness” (v. 12). Again, Mark wasted no ink in describing the action of Satan tempting Jesus 40 days—at the conclusion of which, “angels began to serve Him” (v. 13)
 
When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, He withdrew to Galilee (v. 14)—the place of His hometown and the field of His early mission. His initial work there would characterize His early ministry:
  1. Preaching the good news (vv. 14-15). Mark noted the thesis statement for Jesus’ preaching: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe in the good news!” (v. 15)
  2. Calling disciples to follow Him (vv. 16-20). One of Mark’s favorite words is the adverb “immediately” (cf v. 12) The evangelist used “immediately” to describe the instant reaction of Peter and Andrew, James and John; in Mark’s Gospel, everyone is on a mission!
  3. Driving out an unclean spirit (vv. 21-28). Two features are noteworthy in Jesus’ initial preaching at Capernaum, which taken together prove to be a template for Gospel studies. First, an unclean spirit recognized Jesus and confessed Him as “the Holy One of God!” (v. 24). Throughout the Gospels one notices time and again that—while the disciples sometimes ignore the Reality that is before their eyes—the demons never fail to recognize Jesus accurately! Second, Jesus’ authority over the demons served to substantiate His sermons; unlike the scribes, He taught with authority, and had authority over the demonic (v. 22)
  4. Healing the ill and tormented (vv. 29-34). When news got out that Jesus had healed Peter’s mother-in-law of a fever, “the whole town assembled” (v. 33) to Capernaum, bringing their diseased and demonized for healing
  5. Preaching in synagogues (vv. 35-39). While Jesus had worked into the night (v. 32), He was nonetheless early to prayer the next morning.  Mark presented the Messiah as a man of mission, in this case a mission of preaching broadly in the villages of Galilee; He said, “This is why I have come” (v. 38)
  6. Cleansing a leprous man (vv. 40-45). Jesus’ first interaction with a leper sets the stage for future encounters of the same kind. In fulfillment of the law of Moses, Jesus—being emotionally moved—touched one who was unclean (cf. Lev 13), and commanded him to quietly fulfill the law by giving the priest the offering for cleansing “as a testimony to them” (v. 44; cf Lev 14). Yet, as one observes throughout the Gospels, the healed make such a commotion about their new state of health that all come looking for Jesus.
 
The Gospel of Mark is a challenge to those who wish to validate Jesus’ every move in light of Old Testament texts and imagery. While the author employed the prophecies of Isaiah and Malachi to validate his understanding of John the Baptist (vv. 2-3; cf Is 40.3; Mal 3.1), Mark does not again record phrases from the Old Testament until Jesus’ quotation of it in 4.12, and then not again until 7.6 (contra the regular ‘fulfillment’ formula in Matthew, e.g., 1.23; 2.15, 18; 4.15-16). Further, on many occasions Mark went so far as to provide elementary insight into Jewish customs (e.g. concerning the Pharisaic traditions, cf. 7.2-4, and the festival of Unleavened Bread, cf. 14.12). From these facts many have surmised that his readers were mainly Roman Gentiles. For Mark then, Jesus’ place in the storyline of Scripture is self-authenticating; to some degree at least His miracles and messages, suffering and service, set forth the Gospel in and of themselves. Jesus regularly taught from the Old Testament scriptures—as on the road to Emmaues (cf. Lk 24.13-35), but He was not dependent upon them. When Jesus’ earthly ministry was complete, His followers understood that a right understanding of them was dependent upon knowledge of Him.
 
 
 
*For a complete list of references, please see scripturestoryline.com