NL 219: Beginning of Good News

Image: The Apostle Mark

Mark 1:1-20

Initial Thoughts

  • Mark- remind folks you are now in the New Testament focusing on Mark!

    • Oldest Gospel written around 70 CE (just before or just after the destruction of the Temple)

    • shortest Gospel

    • The immediate‚ Gospel: “immediately” appears 41 times in Mark and only 10 times in the rest of the NT. Communicates the revelatory, imminent breaking in the God’s incarnate presence and grace into the world. “In the Gospel of Mark the teaching, deeds, and life of Jesus reveal the intrusion of the good news into human experience.” (Paul S Berge, Enter the Bible)

  • How the story begins according to Mark - we have just heard from Matthew, Luke and John

    • Overlap with Advent 2B - Mark 1:1-8, but a different focus

    • Advent the anticipation of Jesus

  • Epiphany/Baptism of Jesus - Jesus’s ministry among us

    • The First Noel! - the word, Noel‚ may derive from the french word Nael which in turn comes from the Latin natalis meaning birth OR it may come from the French word nouvelles which means news. Taking this second etymology this is the story of the first Good News!

    • Epiphany was the second of the traditional days of baptism (leading to the development of Advent as‚ St. Martin’s Lent, to allow catechumens to prepare for their baptism on Epiphany).

Bible Study

  • The beginning of the Good News of Jesus Messiah

    • Calls back to Genesis

    • Both a beginning of the Gospel and, due to the cyclical nature of Mark, a new beginning for believers who are returning to Galilee to see Jesus (cf. Mark 16:7)

    • Gospel - euangelion, was used at the time to indicate ,”news of victory”

      • Used by the Roman Empire to share political propaganda, the “imperial gospel”

      • Caesar was seen as both divine and the one from whom euangelion flowed: “[Caesar] proclaims euanglia through his appearance...the first euangelion is the news of his birth.”

    • Jesus is declared the Messiah - which is out of place in the Gospel of Mark in which Jesus is more often referred to as the Son of Man or Human One.

    • Messiah is a political term given to popular kings of both Jewish (David) and foreign (Cyrus) lineage

  • Opening passage of Mark points both backward and forward.

    • Starts with words from Isaiah, moves through John the Baptist, who concludes looking forward to the one who will baptize with fire and the Holy Spirit.

    • Jesus baptism, like Advent, is rooted in both the past (Isaiah- see verses 2-3) passage of Mark Advent, which points both backward and forward and the future (new life and promise)

    • The beginning of the Good News begins with the prophets.  The beginning is not a beginning at all, but a part of God’s greater story.  Just like the ending of the gospel is not an ending at all, but the transition to the church.

    • Baptism to is not a beginning or and end, but a pivotal moment of grace on the journey- a sacramental rite of passage that marks an individual's choice to turn toward God

  • Parallels between John and Jesus

    • Both begin in the wilderness

    • Have disciples who are to follow them (not just ‘believe in them’)

    • Proclamation of the gospel

      • Repentance, baptism, Kingdom of God

    • Betrayal and executed.

    • “What Mark creates then, is not a simple identification, in which disciples become John or Jesus or their equivalent. Instead, disciples follow in the way of John and Jesus.” (Charles Cousar, Texts for Preaching, Year B, p. 20)

    • But they are NOT the same - see verse 7. What John begins (or continues in the tradition of the Prophets- Jesus culminates into a more holistic invitation to grace for all people)

  • Verse 4 and 5 - How are baptism, repentance, and forgiveness related?

    • NRSV: John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

    • CEB: John was in the wilderness calling for people to be baptized to show that they were changing their hearts and lives and wanted God to forgive their sins

    • John Wesley: “That is, preaching repentance, and baptizing as a sign and means of it” (Wesley’s Notes on the Bible)

    • John Calvin: “Repentance is not placed first, as some ignorantly suppose, as if it were the ground of the forgiveness of sins, or as if it induced God to begin to be gracious to us; but men are commanded to repent, that they may receive the reconciliation which is offered to them.” (as quoted from Harmony, I, 179, in Interpretation: Mark, p. 32)

    • “The text makes it clear that repentance, baptism, and forgiveness of sins belong together,” (Williamson, p. 32)

    • In short - to come forward to baptism includes an acknowledgement of sin, an inability to overcome sin on our own (the need for grace), and a commitment to change our hearts and minds to God as revealed in Jesus’ birth, life, death and resurrection.

  • Baptism of Jesus (sinner or not?)

    • The sinless paradox - John proclaims ‚a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins‚ (v.4). If Jesus was sinless (as he is traditionally thought to be) then why would he come to be baptized?

    • Only Gospel that has Jesus directly baptized by John, later Gospels omit the baptism by John (Luke and John) or explain it away (Matthew)

    • Heaven torn open - foreshadows the tearing of the temple in Mark 15

  • Alludes to the whole story- this sets up the life, death and resurrection of Jesus:

    • Chapter 1: God proclaims Jesus is God’s son, in chapter 15 the centurion will proclaim Jesus is God’s son.

    • Spirit descends on Jesus - Suffering Servant of Isaiah 42 and Savior of Israel (Isaiah 64:1 - “If only you would tear open the heavens and come down…”)

    • Son of God - Davidic Kingship (Psalm 2:7)

    • Proclamation directly connects with Transfiguration (Coming up on Feb 15)

      • Also connects with Isaiah 42:1-”But here is my servant, the one I uphold; my chosen, who brings me delight. I've put my spirit upon him; he will bring justice to the nations.“

  • Does anyone else hear this proclamation? It seems this is just for Jesus (and us)‚ You are my son not ‚This is my son (Matthew 3:17) What will it take for us to make a similar proclamation (You are my savior)?

v. 14-20 - Calling the Disciples

  • Jesus’ “Good News”:

    • Fulfilled/ Kingdom of God is near: the “Now, but not yet” culminating Kingdom of God

      • Blessed are the poor, mourning, meek, etc. 

      • Yet we are still trampling the poor, mourning, meek- so it isn’t here yet

    • Kingdom of God appear 66 times in the NT (Kingdom of Heaven 32 times), but Kingdom of YHWH only appears twice in the OT (Kingdom of God never appears)

    • “God's kingdom is manifest in the human embrace of God's rule through repentance and faith. Jesus' mission was to call people to repentance, that is, a total reorientation of their lives so that they will be in a position to accept God's sovereign rule authentically. The Gospel of Mark recounts the resistance that Jesus experienced to his mission.” ~ Leslie Hoppe (Feasting on the Word – Year B, Volume 1: Advent through Transfiguration.)

    • Repent and believe in the good news are responses to the in breaking Kingdom of God

    • Repentance calls for change - are we willing to change for the Kingdom of God?

    • If we cannot see the in breaking kingdom- can we repent and believe that it is good news

  • Calling the disciples

    • No requirements - compare what the disciples go through with your new member class…

    • Jesus calls them simply as they are and where they are (geographically, spiritually, emotionally, intellectually)

  • Response

    • Jesus may call, but it is up to the disciples (and us) to answer

    • Responding to Jesus requires change- leaving their nets - what have you left to follow Jesus?

    • James and John leave their father - security, cultural connection to become less than the hired hands (in the social and cultural standing) - are we willing to sacrifice our social and cultural standing to follow where and when Jesus calls?

  • Fish or Fishers

    • Actual translation is I will make you fishers for people. Fishers of people is not an action but a descriptive noun. 

    • Jesus will change who you are, not simply give you a different job

    • “You will become fishers of people”

  • To be a fisher/disciple

    • Does not mean perfection- just means taking the first step in the journey

      • “Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase.” MLK Jr.

    • Disciples will continue to disappoint and misunderstand, but they keep on the journey with Jesus (even after he is killed, raised and ascends)

    • Peter - follows Jesus”immediately”

      • Proclaims Jesus as Messiah (Mk 8)

      • Reject Jesus as suffering Messiah (Mk 8)

      • Witnesses to Jesus on the Mountaintop, but doesn’t want to leave (Mk 9)

      • Denies Jesus (Mk 14)

      • Is absent for Jesus’ death and resurrection (Mk 15)

Thoughts and Questions

  • Both Rick Morley and the Rethink Church material point to the beginning scene of Godspell.  In the movie, the John the Baptist character calls people out of their everyday lives to splash and celebrate in the fountain.  Rick Morley describes the Broadway revival of the show starting with a small drip from the ceiling turning into a frollicking, splashing waterfall.

  • This is a great opportunity to talk about Baptism- what is it? Why do we do it? Why do we (or don’t we baptize infants)? What does our baptism mean? Is Baptism an act of the individual turning to God or of God claiming an individual or both?

  • Baptism is central to many of our Christian traditions- yet for many it has devolved into a cultural thing you do to make Grandma and Grandpa happy- it is time to reclaim baptism.

    • Baptism calls us into ministry within the world, not away from the world. To be baptized is to be last, to serve or even to be crucified for the sake of love of God, neighbor or even enemy.

  • Repentance and confession can often be met with resistance. Can we reclaim the language of repentance and confession not as an acknowledgment of how lowly and worthless we are, but as an unburdening. New Year’s is a time when people begin cleaning out, making resolutions to simplify. Confession and repentance is a simplification- remove the clutter of sin from your life and focus on God in Christ. How can we invite people to unburden themselves and simply their lives for ministry?

  • Pheme Perkins states, “From the Christian perspective, John the Baptist did not awaken a repentance that heralded God’s judgment. Rather, repentance and anticipation evoked by John’s preaching provided a receptive audience for Jesus’ ministry.” Do you agree with this? Does repentance and the anticipation/hope for/acceptance of God’s grace prepare us to hear Jesus’ message or is this Jesus’ message?

  • Perhaps we need to repent (message of John) before we can hear the good news. Can we “be saved” if we do not believe we need to be saved?

  • What is the good news? If you were to poll your congregation with this question- what would the responses be? What would your response be?

  • Remember that the news is GOOD! We might wrestle with it and the news may challenge as much as it comforts- but it is good. How do we lift us the goodness of the news of God’s kingdom?

  • Change sucks- the Kingdom must be amazing to make me want to change (repent) how can preachers make the Kingdom a reality of good news that inspires joyful repentance?

  • “Congregations and preachers might reason together about the difference between discipleship as a task and discipleship as an identity. And they might try to imagine what it means to be made "fishers for people." If that is a statement about identity, then it must involve something other than participation in church growth programs in the narrow sense.” Ted Smith (Feasting on the Word – Year B, Volume 1: Advent through Transfiguration.) - if you are preaching on this you should read more about that Ted has to say in Feasting on the Word

Year 2Eric FistlerMarkComment