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The Good News of King jesus Daniel Patz, Lead Pastor Grace Church, Sunday Worship Mark 1:1 September 25th, 2011
Mark 1:1 ESV The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. INTRODUCTION – A Book That Will Change Your Life I remember my freshman year of college. It was exciting to go to classes. It was the fall of 1994 and I was in a class called Intro to Counseling. The teacher, Marty Herron, held up a book that was required reading (I have it right here) and said these words – “This is a book that can change your life.” This line became a chant that he would regularly return to through the first class and throughout the semester. We would chuckle because the way he said it and the frequency in which he said it made it humorous –this was intention (“by the way, have I mentioned, this book can change your life?”). Why did he say this? He believed that this book spoke to one of our greatest needs. He believed that this book would touch an essential aspect of our life that would change everything. He also knew and reemphasized that it had to be read and understood to make a difference. Today we begin a new book. I can honestly say that this book—MARK—will change your life, if you take it in to your mind and heart. Unlike How to Say No, to a Stubborn Habit, this book is inspired by God. The Holy Spirit moved men to write this book for our transformation. Keys to Understanding This Book If I were to pick up this (Screwtape Letters) book and start reading without giving you any clue to what I was reading, who wrote it and why he wrote it – you would be baffled. Reading Screwtape requires knowledge about the book – the author, what nationality (British), the form – they are letters; the point – a demon to another demon. The same is true with the Gospel of Mark. Seven Introductory Points
Peter was the eyewitness to the events in Jesus life and he gave them to Mark to write down. This is an instance at the arrest of Jesus that most people think is Mark’s humble insertion of himself in the story – like Alfred Hitchcock use to do of himself. Mark 14:51-52 ESV And a young man followed him, with nothing but a linen cloth about his body. And they seized him, (52) but he left the linen cloth and ran away naked.
Mark uses irony – which depends on the audience knowing something that the characters don’t know. He uses sandwich stories – he begins with a story, interrupts it, then comes back – but his use of the interruption is important to the conclusion. He frames the book with a form called inclusio. Bookmarks that tell us that a point is very important – the word or phrase that he uses throughout is “son of God.
You begin reading Mark and you are off and running. This is unlike the Gospels of Matthew and John. One way he does this is by using a word over and over again – “immediately.” It occurs 7 times in the Gospel of Matthew, once in Luke, and three times in John. We find it 42 times in Mark! (Rayburn) I like what Peter Leithart says about Mark in relationship to Matthew: “Matthew is like a slow-moving, talky art film; Mark is an action movie. For Matthew, Jesus is what He teaches; for Mark, Jesus is what He does.”
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are unique pieces of literature. They are like a biography, but with a theological point. Mark (and the other four gospels) is not just trying to write the most accurate story of what happened or what Peter remembers – He is writing what happened while crafting the order and how it is put down to make an important point or to bring home an important truth. This is all under the inspiration. This relates to the point I made about this being brief but not simple. Matthew presents Jesus as a Moses – a law giver and teacher. Mark presents Jesus as a man of action – a warrior – a new David.
The book is divided equally in half – at the end of chapter 8. The first half of the book we see who Jesus is. The second half of the book shows us what Jesus’ purpose is. (Keller) The first half shows us Jesus and man and God – the King. The second half shows us Jesus who will go to the cross in His kingship. The first half reveals Christ and the second half reveals what true discipleship is about.
The purpose of Mark is to reveal to us Christ – who is and what it means for the history of the world. It also reveals to us what it means to be a disciples of Jesus. Jesus calls us to follow the king. We see this played out in the two divisions of the book. (see above) Jesus’ identity as the son of God is crucial.
When we read Mark we need to remember that it is a book within a book. We would never pick up a novel and think we can understand chapter 11 of 20 without some knowledge of the first ten chapters. Jesus is a Jew and He ministers primarily to Jews. Everything must be seen through these set of lenses. The Old Testament is not quotes as often as the other Gospels but it is there throughout the book of Mark. We will see that right away. The Beginning – Three Important Descriptors of Jesus 1. THE GOSPEL “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” Jesus is directly linked with the unique term – “the gospel” or “glad tidings” or “good news.” Old Testament Meaning Isaiah 40:9-10 ESV Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, "Behold your God!" (10) Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might, and his arm rules for him; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. Isaiah 52:7 ESV How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, "Your God reigns." The people in Israel new what this term meant. It was a special word – GOSPEL meant the news that God is rescuing His people from their captivity or exile. Why were they in captivity and exile? Because of their sin and rebellion. God promised that He would come personally, role up His sleeves and bring victory. He would set Himself up as King over all – “Your God reigns.” Roman/Pagan Meaning The word Gospel, however, was not exclusively a word with Jewish implications. In the Greek and Roman world it was a technical term referring to the birth, accession, or victory of the emperor, Caesar. This was proclaimed as “good news.” The new reign or victory of the emperor meant peace and harmony. When Caesar would conquer a city, heralds would march through the city declaring “good news” to all the residents. Peace, harmony, and goodwill were proclaimed to all who submitted to the sovereign emperor. But to those who dissented, it meant conflict and usually death. Given the case, as Wright puts it: “Paul’s message could not escape being confrontative: Jesus, not Caesar, is Lord, and at his name, not that of the Emperor, every knee shall bow.” To say that the Gospel is of Jesus is to say that Jesus is the fulfillment of the most significant promise in the Old Testament for the people of God and the world. It also could be described as the royal summons of a new Kingdom! 2. THE CHRIST “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” Christ is not Jesus’ last name, it is a title of royal significance. “Anointed One”; “Messiah”; King To Mark’s audience it would read – “The beginning of the good news of King Jesus.” To call Jesus Christ is to say that He is the chosen One, anointed by God to be deliverer and King. So it was a big deal when Jesus asked Peter who He was and Peter replied: Mark 8:29 ESV And he asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Christ." Mark 12:35 ESV And as Jesus taught in the temple, he said, "How can the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David? 3. THE SON OF GOD “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” The term “son of God” is an important description of Jesus that is brought up strategically throughout Mark’s Gospel. In the OT the term was used to refer to angels, Israel, and a Davidic King. This is an important reference of the line of David as King. 2 Samuel 7:13-14 ESV He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. (14) I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, This Gospel takes this term even further and speaks of His intimacy with the Father, power from the Father, and uniqueness. We read in this first verse that He is the Son of God. The Father after Jesus’ baptism says – “You are my beloved Son, with you I am well pleased.” The unclean spirits (demons) say that He is the Son of God in Mark 3:11 (another demon in Mark 5:7). When Jesus is transfigured (Mark 9) with Elijah and Moses, God speaks from heaven – “This is my beloved Son. Listen to Him.” The high priests at His trial ask Him – are you the Son of the Blessed, the Christ. (Mark 14:61ff). The centurion (a Gentile) ironically makes this declaration while Jesus is on the cross: Mar_15:39 And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, "Truly this man was the Son of God!" CONCLUSION How does the “gospel of Jesus Christ” relate to us today? He has come. He is King. We must bow the knee in submission to Him. The call to be saved is not to accept into our heart a personal savior. It is a call to accept a royal summons. What is the “good news king Jesus” and how are we to respond? Humble faith in Him. Mark’s Gospel gives us a portrait of Jesus. Why do you think it is important for us to see and understand the person of Jesus rightly? 2 Corinthians 3:18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. As we see Jesus, and see Him rightly, the Spirit of God will do a work of transforming us into His likeness. So, will this book change our lives? Will we take this book and bow before the One who has given it to us? He has not left us to our selves. First He has given us His Spirit. Second He has given us others who have been given the Spirit. One final point: faith-filled devotion is the key to true understanding. Let us go in with the humble devotion that we will obey this Word. |
