Admittedly so its been years since I have really sat down to once again study the gospel of Mark. Those that know me, know that I'm an Old Testament geek. I love the history, I love the foretelling of what would come to fruition then watching it unfold in the New Testament. But I've committed to myself that I am going to work my way through Mark to once again live the life of Jesus as his ministry began.
Mark is believed to be the very first of the disciples to put pen to paper on the beginning of Jesus ministry. Mark opens with "the beginning of the gospel" how else do you begin to even open a narrative to what you had walked beside, what you had lived with and what you had seen. I wonder how many pieces of parchment he tore up before he finally settled with "the beginning of the gospel".
Mark begins by quoting Isaiah 40:3
"I will send MY messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way, a voice of one calling in the desert, prepare the way of the Lord, make straight paths for Him"
Enter.....John the Baptist! Out of nowhere, no introduction by Mark, no history, no preparation to the reader (we take for granted that we know the history of John the Baptist) but Mark gives no narrative about this man. Just some crazy man dressed in scratchy camel skin and eating locusts. Sounds just like the person I would pick to send!? Yet people gathered around asking to be baptized by John at the river.
Jesus appears at the rivers edge and asks John to baptize him. In other gospels we know that they mention that John says "I'm not worthy to baptize you.....but it should be you baptizing me" WHY did Mark not make mention of this? And what was it about Jesus that people just KNEW it was Him?
Just as Jesus was coming up from the water the Holy Spirit descended on him like a dove, the heavens parted and a voice spoke from the clouds. "you are my son of whom I am well pleased" BUT in the very next minute!! Scripture says "AT ONCE", the spirit sent him out into the desert." I don't know about you but I've had those desert moments, in those moments Satan's voice seems so much louder than God's, in those moments darkness seemed so much more tangible than the light, in those moments I had never felt more alone. Jesus was left in the desert for 40 days......weeks seemed like an eternity to me to not hear the soothing voice of God, 40 days seems like an eternity. But yet scripture says "angels attended him" it doesn't say that he felt their presence it just says they attended him. I think back to Daniel where Daniel had cried out for God......God had sent an angel to fight for Daniel but it took 21 days for the angel to get there....as he battled with the enemy to get to Daniel. So the angels where with him....but the temptations still came. Scripture says wild animals were all around. Fear is real.......what we see becomes reality. I'm standing in a desert surrounded by wild animals only moments after I surrender my life to God, I wonder what thoughts went through his mind? Did he cry out in his fear? Scripture doesn't say.....it only says in the other gospels that he took authority over his fear and spoke truth into the darkness.
All we know next is John goes to prison and Jesus sets out to teach. Along the way he picks up the first of his followers....his disciples. I wonder what it was about this man that had such a magnetism that men would drop their careers, their families, their very lives to stop and simply follow him. They didn't stop and think about it....scripture says they IMMEDIATELY.....followed!
I wonder if he showed up today....how many of us would drop the busy-ness of our lives, drop the things that we found so important and IMMEDIATELY follow him. We have gotten so hung up in what we can do for ourselves that we have forgotten to whom we are called. Whether it be my desert days or my mountain top days. On my last day I want to be known for choosing to follow him. Through it all......I want to be known not by "Chrisitan" but as a "Christ-follower".
Where will you be?
Mark is believed to be the very first of the disciples to put pen to paper on the beginning of Jesus ministry. Mark opens with "the beginning of the gospel" how else do you begin to even open a narrative to what you had walked beside, what you had lived with and what you had seen. I wonder how many pieces of parchment he tore up before he finally settled with "the beginning of the gospel".
Mark begins by quoting Isaiah 40:3
"I will send MY messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way, a voice of one calling in the desert, prepare the way of the Lord, make straight paths for Him"
Enter.....John the Baptist! Out of nowhere, no introduction by Mark, no history, no preparation to the reader (we take for granted that we know the history of John the Baptist) but Mark gives no narrative about this man. Just some crazy man dressed in scratchy camel skin and eating locusts. Sounds just like the person I would pick to send!? Yet people gathered around asking to be baptized by John at the river.
Jesus appears at the rivers edge and asks John to baptize him. In other gospels we know that they mention that John says "I'm not worthy to baptize you.....but it should be you baptizing me" WHY did Mark not make mention of this? And what was it about Jesus that people just KNEW it was Him?
Just as Jesus was coming up from the water the Holy Spirit descended on him like a dove, the heavens parted and a voice spoke from the clouds. "you are my son of whom I am well pleased" BUT in the very next minute!! Scripture says "AT ONCE", the spirit sent him out into the desert." I don't know about you but I've had those desert moments, in those moments Satan's voice seems so much louder than God's, in those moments darkness seemed so much more tangible than the light, in those moments I had never felt more alone. Jesus was left in the desert for 40 days......weeks seemed like an eternity to me to not hear the soothing voice of God, 40 days seems like an eternity. But yet scripture says "angels attended him" it doesn't say that he felt their presence it just says they attended him. I think back to Daniel where Daniel had cried out for God......God had sent an angel to fight for Daniel but it took 21 days for the angel to get there....as he battled with the enemy to get to Daniel. So the angels where with him....but the temptations still came. Scripture says wild animals were all around. Fear is real.......what we see becomes reality. I'm standing in a desert surrounded by wild animals only moments after I surrender my life to God, I wonder what thoughts went through his mind? Did he cry out in his fear? Scripture doesn't say.....it only says in the other gospels that he took authority over his fear and spoke truth into the darkness.
All we know next is John goes to prison and Jesus sets out to teach. Along the way he picks up the first of his followers....his disciples. I wonder what it was about this man that had such a magnetism that men would drop their careers, their families, their very lives to stop and simply follow him. They didn't stop and think about it....scripture says they IMMEDIATELY.....followed!
I wonder if he showed up today....how many of us would drop the busy-ness of our lives, drop the things that we found so important and IMMEDIATELY follow him. We have gotten so hung up in what we can do for ourselves that we have forgotten to whom we are called. Whether it be my desert days or my mountain top days. On my last day I want to be known for choosing to follow him. Through it all......I want to be known not by "Chrisitan" but as a "Christ-follower".
Where will you be?
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