Monday, April 30, 2012


Mark 1:1-15

New International Version (NIV)
1 The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God, 2 as it is written in Isaiah the prophet:
“I will send my messenger ahead of you,
    who will prepare your way”—
3 “a voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
    make straight paths for him.’”
4 And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance(F) for the forgiveness of sins. 5 The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. 6 John wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7 And this was his message: “After me comes the one more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. 8 I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”


9 At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
12 At once the Spirit sent him out into the wilderness, 13 and he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.


14 After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. 15 “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”

Mark would be a lousy mystery writer. No subtlety at all.  He is like the old school preacher who tells you what they are going to tell you, tells you and then tells you what they told you.

Who is Jesus?  There is no slow development or revelation.  Sentence one he lets the cat out of the bag.  He's the Messiah, the Son of God.  So every time you see that name for the next sixteen chapters you know who he is.  Messiah, Son of God.

But Mark does leave us with some questions as well.  The beginning of the good news--and no story of a manger, angels or shepherds?  The beginning of the good news--and it is not Jesus at all, but John?  The beginning of the good news--what will be its end?

John the Baptist and Jesus both just sort of appear.  We aren't told much of anything about their lineage or why anyone would pay particular attention to them.  They just come full formed into the narrative like angels (messengers).  It seems similar to the way that God and God's leaders just kind of show up in the Hebrew Bible.  I'm thinking particularly of Abraham's visitors at the oaks of Mamre.  The men just appear out of nowhere and before Abraham can figure out exactly what is happening it turns out he is talking to angels or maybe even directly with God.

I think as we study Mark, we are going to be reminded again and again that while the modern person seeks out God as a solution to their problems, in the gospel it is God who seeks us out and shows us our problems (maybe even ones we didn't know we had).  And it has been true often in my own life, when I least expected it, God just showed up looking for me.

The people respond to John's message of repentance and forgiveness.  I don't know whether people would flock to this strange man in the wilderness anymore.  Not because of his clothing or rough style, but because he puts repentance before forgiveness.  Many people I know aren't sure that they really need to be forgiven and they certainly see no need to repent as a precursor.

But the people came to John and among them was Jesus.  After some uncertainty about his worthiness to baptize Jesus, John relents.  And a voice from heaven says "You are my son", did I mention that Mark isn't subtle?  That's twice in eleven verses--once from the omniscient narrator the other from a heavenly voice.  We'd do well to pay attention to who does and does not refer to Jesus as the son of God.

Mark is a rough, unpolished gospel.  No effort is made to smooth things over, so when Jesus goes into the wilderness, he is not "sent" as the NIV has it but driven by the spirit.  There he meets Satan, wild beasts and angels--much like the spiritual wildernesses that sometimes we find ourselves in, those places where we will either grow in trust or be devoured by fear.  The ministry of Jesus does not begin until after he survives the wilderness.

So what did being the beginning of the gospel get John?  It lands him in prison.  What sort of good news is that?  Probably the same sort of good news that will leave Jesus on the cross.  And so we need to be prepared, this good news may lead us places we (or any sane, reasonable person) would not have chosen on our own.

But Jesus seems to ignore the consequences to John and picks up the Baptizer's preaching where he left off before they threw away the key.  First words are always important and we know Mark isn't subtle, so when Jesus speaks for the first time and says "The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news", we would do well to pay attention.

Who is Jesus?  The son of God.  What would Jesus have us do?  Repent and believe.

What do you see in this passage?


Posted by at

6 comments:

  1. J Sands WiseApril 30, 2012 at 11:30 AM

    Some great comments, Bob, and I appreciate the chance to be part of the process here in thinking through the text for the week. I am sure that I and others will be able to get much more out of the sermon having worked through it beforehand as well.
    One thing that strikes me is the humility, or at least the "coming down," that we see everyone doing in this passage. For example, John dresses poorly in free clothes and eats free food and claims that he is unworthy to even do a slave's job for the guy coming next, but when that guy comes he gets baptized by John, choosing to go under the water, then the Spirit descends like a dove and drives him into the wilderness. Every time someone seems to be getting praised (e.g. Jesus by John, then by the voice of God), he is put down (by choosing to be baptized, then by being driven by the Spirit). It is a very rough gospel, as you say, but it also seems to be a gospel that is emphasizing humility, poverty, and the lowly from the very beginning, even though it starts out with a claim about the Messiah. Is Mark trying to be paradoxical?

    ReplyDelete
  2. bobfoxApril 30, 2012 at 11:53 AM

    This is a great observation. I am thinking about starting out Sunday by asking people to consider how they would describe God. I do believe Mark is trying to redraw our picture from out there to down here, and you put words to something that I hadn't seen yet (and might not have seen) that Jesus is willing to be put down--is that they way that is being prepared for him? Is it a highway straight down into the brokenness of humanity? I suspect that our initial gut reaction having been to church most of our lives is not to connect God and the word humble.

    ReplyDelete
  3. bobfoxMay 1, 2012 at 11:22 PM

    From Jawanna Herd:

    Speaking of not doing what is expected, the artist He Qi (The Baptism of Christ,) a son of a math professor in China, expected to follow in his father's footsteps, had never heard the gospel until called to art by a Madonna painting of Raphael's, ends up a contemporary Christian artist in Minnesota. The Spirit is full of surprises. Like Mark, his work is also deceptively simple in appearance, yet challenges our preconceptions. Jawanna=

    ReplyDelete
  4. Steve McClainMay 2, 2012 at 12:51 PM

    I feel like I'm coming into the middle of a movie or a story...Boom! Here's the main characters on a mission and you'd better run to keep up with the story. The abruptness tends to lead to hard, violent, action verbs - The heavens TORN (not opened) and the Spirit DROVE Jesus. Again, it's a whirlwind tour and you'd better be in shape.
    Your thoughts on whether we'd listen to John the Baptist today or not makes me wonder. Are Christians so quick to pronounce judgment that we've forgotten the Forgiveness part as well? Are we as Christians so quick to deliver judgment that people aren't hearing the forgiveness part, and if they can't be forgiven, why bother repenting?

    ReplyDelete
  5. elizabethMay 2, 2012 at 3:07 PM

    Whenever I think of John the Baptist, and especially when this passage from Isaiah is quoted, I think of the Benedictus (the song Zechariah sings when his muteness is taken away): "And you child shall be called a prophet of the most high, for you have come to prepare a pathway for the Lord…"
    Though that’s a passage from Luke, not Mark, I’m using it as a starting point here because it's citing the same Isaiah passage.
    I think it was the writer Kathleen Norris who first pointed me to the idea of this passage being something that is also written about each of us.
    You child, shall be called...
    That is, me child...
    I, too, am a prophet of the most high.
    I, too, am to prepare a pathway for the Lord.
    The work that I do brings Christ into the world in both concrete and intangible ways.
    And as crazy as John seems—especially here in Mark—I can’t help but wonder if we all need a little bit more of that crazy as we become conduits of God’s mercy, as we become preparers of Christ in the world.

    ReplyDelete
  6. bobfoxMay 2, 2012 at 5:38 PM

    What insightful comments! Thanks everyone. Keep them coming!

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)