Imagine that it’s 65 A.D. You are a Christ follower. You believe in Jesus, that he is the only path to righteousness with God and eternal life. You follow him. You love him. And so do the other Christians around you in the church. But you live in the City of Rome. It’s a rough time…very rough time to be a Christian. The Roman Emperor Nero is as evil as they come.
One year earlier in 64 A.D., 70% of the city burned to the ground, and Nero was blamed by many for having the fire started. So in order to take the blame off himself, he blamed you and the other Christians in the city.
From that moment on, life for you and the church has become even more difficult. Persecution has become much more intense. Nero is a monster, and he has had many of your fellow Christians, your friends and some of your family, fed to the lions. Other Christians are being used as human torches, horrifically lit on fire to light up Nero’s parties.
Because of all this, you understandably wonder if following Jesus is worth it. You wonder if it’s true. The original Twelve Apostles are being killed. The Apostle Peter is martyred during this timeframe.
Then in the middle of all this chaos, you and the church in Rome receive a lengthy document.
It is written by a well-known church leader named Mark. Mark was a disciple of Peter, and he had also traveled earlier extensively with Apostles Paul and Barnabas. All that you have been taught about Jesus has now been written down, and you now hear it read aloud in Sunday’s church service.
The first sentence in the writing is simple but powerful:
“The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”
You and your fellow Christians hear and read that…and much more, and your souls are strengthened as you hear Mark’s words—words inspired by heaven—And you strengthen your resolve to keep clinging to Jesus. This gospel of Jesus Christ is true. You now have a written, eye-witness account of the Person and work of Jesus.
This morning, we are embarking on a sermon series going through that very document that we call simply, “Mark.” More precisely, it is, “The Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Mark.”
The word “gospel” simply means, “good news.” So this document is the Good News about Jesus.
We don’t have that original, 2000-year old document with the actual ink used by Mark. But we have a faithful and true copy of it in English. It is in our hands this morning. The Scripture Journals we handed out to you reflect that.
I am excited to begin this new sermon series going through this story of Jesus.
What we are about to read in the coming months is the most radical, true, hard-hitting, compassionate, remarkable, life-changing story you will ever read. Without exaggeration.
This morning we will focus up to vs. 13, but let’s read through vs. 20 to give us a bigger picture of the events.
Mark 1:1–20 (CSB)
1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you; he will prepare your way.
3 A voice of one crying out in the wilderness: Prepare the way for the Lord; make his paths straight!
4 John came baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
5 The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.
6 John wore a camel-hair garment with a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey.
7 He proclaimed, “One who is more powerful than I am is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the strap of his sandals.
8 I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized in the Jordan by John.
10 As soon as he came up out of the water, he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.
11 And a voice came from heaven: “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well-pleased.”
12 Immediately the Spirit drove him into the wilderness.
13 He was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and the angels were serving him.
14 After John was arrested, Jesus went to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God:
15 “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”
16 As he passed alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew, Simon’s brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen.
17 “Follow me,” Jesus told them, “and I will make you fish for people.”
18 Immediately they left their nets and followed him.
19 Going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat putting their nets in order.
20 Immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.
So again, we will focus on vs. 1-13, which is like a prologue to Mark’s Gospel.
Vs. 1
Verse 1 is like a heading or an introduction, but it’s more than that, and we learn a great deal.
1The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
This simple, 12-word, verbless sentence is powerful.
First, this is the “beginning.” It seems Mark is saying, “The good news has now begun. This is the beginning of something new. Something long-awaited. Seven centuries earlier, Isaiah the prophet said this:
Isaiah 61:1 CSBThe Spirit of the Lord God is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners;
Good news. Who doesn’t want good news.
He came for……..
- the poor. Certainly the financially poor need good news. But also the spiritually poor, those who are impoverished in their souls… which truly is every one of us.
- the brokenhearted. Those who are beat down by life, and losing heart to keep going.
- the captives and prisoners. Certainly those in physical prisons. But also those imprisoned to their own desires and sinful actions, enslaved to sin and its destruction, and can’t find a way to break out of their prison cells…. cells of guilt and shame and a soul darkness.
Jesus came for people trapped in all these ways. The people of Israel were longing for this day….longing for centuries. That day has come. As vs. 1 says, “the beginning of the good news.” Jesus Christ, the long-awaited Son of God, entered into this world, and nothing will ever be the same. The poor are lifted up. The brokenhearted are healed. The enslaved are set free.
This 12-word sentence is packed with more profoundness.
The name “Jesus” is the equivalent to the Hebrew name, “Joshua” or “Yeshua,” which means, “the Lord is salvation,” or “the Lord saves.” So the very name of Jesus tells us his mission: the salvation of souls. Jesus came to “seek and save lost souls.”
Then the title “Christ.” It is not Jesus’ last name. It is his title. The word “Christ” is the Greek equivalent to the Hebrew word, “Messiah” or “Anointed One.” God’s Anointed. God’s special, chosen, holy one.
The people had been waiting for the Messiah for centuries. The Anointed One who would rule over them, help them, and protect them. The great irony—and we will see this throughout Mark’s Gospel— is that when the Messiah finally did come, the vast majority of the people rejected him in the end.
Spoiler alert: If we peek ahead to the last two chapters of Mark, we discover that Jesus didn’t meet their expectations. So they killed him.
But another spoiler alert: Murdering Jesus didn’t stop him. It’s called the resurrection.
Back to vs. 1: One more title for Jesus: the Son of God. The name implies that Jesus is deity. That he is the perfect revelation of God the Father.
In what could be the most succinct and remarkable passage about Jesus, Hebrews 1 tells us this:
Hebrews 1:1–3 CSBLong ago God spoke to our ancestors by the prophets at different times and in different ways. In these last days, he has spoken to us by his Son. God has appointed him heir of all things and made the universe through him. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact expression of his nature, sustaining all things by his powerful word…
Jesus the Son is God the Father’s spokesman. He is the Creator. He is the radiance of the glory of God. He is the exact expression of the Father and his nature.
The title “Son of God” is a powerful statement about Jesus and this good news. How could anyone except the holy, divine Son be the perfect, sinless Savior of the world?
There is no one like Jesus. He is the One. He is unparalleled. Let us trust…and marvel….and sing….and obey.
Even the demons understood who he was. In the weeks to come, we will read this:
Mark 3:11 CSBWhenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God!”
More irony. The demons knew who he was, while the people at large and especially the religious leaders denied Jesus’ Sonship.
Vs. 2-8 Prophecy
Now let’s continue in our passage.
Vs. 1-13 as a whole serves as a Prologue to this Gospel. So after this profound purpose statement to the whole Gospel in vs. 1, vs. 2-13 we find three statements or proofs that Jesus really is the Christ, the Son of God.
- Prophecy
- Baptism
- Temptation
First, we see the prophetic word from centuries past as well as from this first century. Prophecies predicting and announcing this Messiah and Savior.
Vs. 2-4
John the Baptist was a prophet sent by God to announce the coming Messiah, Jesus.
Mark actually quotes in vs. 2-3 from both Malachi 3 and Isaiah 40, although Isaiah’s words are more prominent. As Isaiah promised, this messenger John has come. John’s job—his entire prophetic ministry focus—was to announce the coming kingdom of God and to prepare hearts to receive the Messiah and not reject him when he came.
Noteworthy at this point that Mark’s Gospel account skips entirely the birth and childhood of Jesus. Both Matthew’s and Luke’s Gospels address those early years of Jesus, but Mark does not. One thing we’ll discover in Mark that he is a bit faster moving than the other two Gospels. And more brief. Mark is about 2/3 the length of Matthew and Luke as he focuses less on Jesus’ teaching and more on Jesus’ actions.
Vs. 5
John as God’s prophet was having a powerful impact on the whole region, even though he’s out in the middle of the wilderness. If electronic news were a thing back then, John would have been the headline news every day.
This baptism—being immersed in water as an identification with someone or something—this baptism was to announce the people’s repentance. Repentance is a humble acknowledgement that God is the Lord, he is right, and that we are personally not right with God…. But we want to be. And vs. 5 says they came “confessing their sins.” In their hearts and consciences, the people wanted to be made right with God.
Vs. 7-8
So John was declaring this message of repentance and preparing the ground for someone greater. Someone more powerful.
Though the large crowds were gathering, and John could have become proud and full of himself, he was wonderfully humble, pointing the way to the Messiah. The day that Israel had longed for for centuries was finally upon them.
So in vs. 2-8, Mark proclaims the prophetic word about the Messiah, evidence that God is doing something new and powerful.
Vs. 9-11 Baptism
Now in vs. 9-11, Mark proclaims the baptism of Jesus. And the Sonship—the Deity—of Jesus is powerfully proclaimed.
Here we get a clear glimpse of the Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The Trinity is a remarkable and essential doctrine of the Scriptures. God is Three Persons yet one God, a doctrine that has been declared in the centuries since then, too.
The Spirit testifies of Jesus by descending upon him. The people could even see the Spirit with an image like a dove. (The Spirit was like a dove, but was not a dove.) A remarkable, one-time, supernatural occurrence.
This moment fulfilled another prophecy about the Messiah.
Isaiah 11:1–2 CSBThen a shoot will grow from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— a Spirit of wisdom and understanding, a Spirit of counsel and strength, a Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.
This prophecy was fulfilled at the moment of baptism.
And then in what was another stunning moment, the people heard a voice from heaven stating, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well-pleased.”
Could there be a clearer and better testimony about Jesus than this? Both the Father and the Spirit testify to the Person and work of this man, Jesus, who was just baptized. This was a watershed moment, and it was the beginning of Jesus’ official ministry.
Vs. 12-13 (Temptation)
In vs. 12, Mark uses one of his favorite words: Immediately. About 40 times Mark uses this word in his gospel, and it indicates action and movement.
Mark’s account here of Jesus’ temptation by Satan is very succinct. Much, much shorter than Matthew’s or Luke’s account. While Jesus’ Baptism declares his Deity, his Temptation declares his humanity.
Jesus in his real humanity was actually tempted to sin. We know from elsewhere in the New Testament that he never succumbed to temptation—he never sinned. But that he could be and was tempted reveals this great mystery: that the divine and the mortal were united. The Creator became a creature.
This is often called the Incarnation of Christ. How the divine took on the human without lessening his deity in any way.
Just like Jesus’ DEITY is an essential part of the Christian faith, so is his HUMANITY. Only with the merging of the divine and the mortal could Christ be our all-sufficient Savior.
Hebrews 2:14–17 CSBNow since the children have flesh and blood in common, Jesus also shared in these, so that through his death he might destroy the one holding the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who were held in slavery all their lives by the fear of death…Therefore, he had to be like his brothers and sisters in every way, so that he could become a merciful and faithful high priest in matters pertaining to God, to make atonement for the sins of the people.
In order to be the substitute for us, to take our place in punishment for our sins, Jesus had to become one of us. He became a man, forever uniting the human and the divine. I taught about this last February in our series on Hebrews, so check that out if you want more.
Summary of vs. 1-13
So let’s do a flyover of what we have just read in our passage.
In this brief Prologue, Mark introduces us to this remarkable, unparalleled person named Jesus.
- He was prophesied about. Clearly this has been God’s plan for mankind, even before the world was created.
- He is deity. The glorious, holy Son of God. God the Father testified of him. The Holy Spirit testified. (And even the demons knew it.).
- He is human. In this wonderful mystery, God became a man. What sounds blasphemous to some is glorious to us when we understand what God has accomplished.
It is this Jesus that we will read about this Fall and next Spring on Sunday mornings. This is the gospel. The good news. The best news.
Application
So what does this mean for us today?
Some of us are new to Christianity. We have heard some things, but we’ve never read or barely read one of these Gospel accounts like Mark.
Others of us have known these truths for years. And we might be tempted to say, “Yeah, yeah, I already know all that. Tell me something new.”
No matter our background, one thing this document penned by the disciple Mark tells us is that we should pay attention to Jesus. He is like no other. His words, deeds, authority, power, death, and resurrection, all tell us he is extraordinary. Heavenly. Glorious.
And if this Gospel seems at a glance to be just a history book or a biography, we will discover it is much, much more than that.
Why? Because Jesus himself doesn’t allow it to be just the plain facts of a biography or history book. Jesus’ extraordinary origin, life, words, deeds, and purpose compel us to do something about him, either believing in him or rejecting him. Jesus himself doesn’t let us stay neutral.
For example, next week we will read this:
Mark 1:17 CSB“Follow me,” Jesus told them, “and I will make you fish for people.”
We are not to follow a religious system. We are to follow a person. The most remarkable person who has ever walked on the planet. And any purpose in our lives that separates itself from what Jesus calls us to is simply too small of a purpose, and it may even lead us into darkness.
And in another strong word to the people, which we will read later, Jesus calls us to himself and with a whole heart.
Mark 8:34–36 CSBCalling the crowd along with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me and the gospel will save it. For what does it benefit someone to gain the whole world and yet lose his life?
As thrilling as it would be to win an Olympic medal or have a great family or an impactful career, all such things are subservient to Jesus. To trusting him. Loving him. Obeying him. Nothing else in life can surpass giving our all to Jesus who wants to give us real life.
Passages like these are simply responses to this Prologue from Chapter 1. The prophecies, the baptism, and the temptation and so much more all point us to the most remarkable Person who has ever lived. A Person who is Creator and Lord and Savior. The One who came from heaven for us, who died and rose from the dead for us, and who now dwells back in heaven waiting to return again to establish his eternal kingdom on earth.
So when we pick up a gospel, before reading we should be people of prayer in a humble dependence on God to open our eyes and soften our hearts to receive Jesus as he is and to become what he calls us to be.
So what can we do?
- Pray before every Sunday.
Pray on Friday. On Saturday. On the drive to this building. Pray simply something like this:
“Lord, open my heart. Help me to know you better. To love you more. To obey you fully. Help my family members and friends. Help everyone who is serving in a specific role during the services. Reveal your Son to us.” So pray much before you come.
- Be prepared to learn and apply
It’s easy to just show up without being prepared. I know because I’ve done that before. But let’s come expecting the Lord to answer what we just prayed.
- Participate in a discussion about this book in our Community Groups or Bible studies, or even at your dinner table.
Many of our Groups will be discussing questions based on that week’s passage. And those questions are available every week on our website under “Resources.” You and your family or roommates can discuss them at a meal.
Conclusion
Let me conclude with this.
As vs. 1 tells us, this book called “Mark” is “the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” What a book we have.What a Savior we have.
Our last words are from church historian, Philip Schaff, in the 19th century. He says with eloquence:
“The first century is the life and light of history and the turning point of the ages. If ever God revealed himself to man, if ever heaven appeared on earth, it was in the person and work of Jesus of Nazareth.
He is, beyond any shadow of doubt, and by the reluctant consent of skeptics and infidels, the wisest of the wise, the purest of the pure, and the mightiest of the mighty.
His Cross has become the tree of life to all nations; his teaching is still the highest standard of religious truth; his example the unsurpassed ideal of holiness; the Gospels and Epistles of his Galilean disciples are still the book of books, more powerful than all the classics of human wisdom and genius.”
From Philip Schaff’s “The History of the Christian Church,” Volume I, Section 102
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