Welcome to a study of the Gospel according to Mark. If you followed our study of the Book of Matthew, you will be excited about this next cooperative effort of Mary Barmore and Alice C. Linsley. In this study, observations about each chapter of Mark are followed by 10 questions. The answers may be found by scrolling to the bottom of the post.
Prepare for this lesson by reading Mark Chapter 1.
Let's begin with prayer.
INTRODUCTIONThe Gospel of Mark is believed to be the work of John Mark who traveled with Paul and Barnabas and later assisted Peter (1 Pt. 5:13). The book does not mention the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, so most scholars believe it was written before that catastrophic event. According to Church tradition, Mark's account is the earliest of the
Synoptic Gospels and was composed while the author was in Rome.
Mark's main message is about Jesus Christ, God's Son, whose Messianic ministry was characterized by mighty works of God and whose sacrifice on the Cross was for the redemption of the world. In Mark's account, Jesus seems to keep his identity as the eternal Son of God a secret. However, his power and authority are evident throughout his ministry as the "Son of Man" and fully revealed after His death and resurrection.
Mark's Gospel is a fast-paced book. Jesus is always on the move, making his way over time to his destiny in Jerusalem, where prophets are killed (Matt. 23:27; Lk. 13:34). The connective tissue is the word immediately which appears more than 40 times in the book. An example is Mark 1:21 which states that Jesus and some of his disciples went to Capernaum "and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught."
Compared to Matthew's Gospel, Mark records fewer words from Jesus. Instead, Jesus is seen as a man of action.
CHAPTER ONE
The first chapter of Mark's Gospel opens with the ministry of John the Baptist (1:1–11). John was the son of the Jewish priest Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth. John was preaching repentance in the wilderness, thus preparing the way for Jesus the Messiah. The people came out of the towns and cities to be baptized by John in the Jordan River.
Jesus traveled from Nazareth to be baptized by John. As Jesus came up out of the water the heavens opened, the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in the form of a dove, and a voice from heaven declared Jesus as God's beloved Son. At Jesus' Baptism the reality of the Holy Trinity was perfectly manifested.
The Spirit then directed Jesus into the wilderness for 40 days where He was tempted by Satan and where angels ministered to Him.
After
John the Forerunner was arrested, Jesus began his public ministry in Galilee where He proclaimed that the kingdom of God is near and called people to repent and believe. At the Sea of Galilee, Jesus called two sets of brothers to be his first disciples. All were fishermen. Simon (Peter) and his brother Andrew, and James and his brother John left their fishing nets and followed Him.
The chapter closes with accounts of Jesus teaching in the synagogues, delivering a man from the oppression of an evil spirit, and cleansing a leper. By this time, Jesus was not able to move about as freely as before because news of his miracles brought out large crowds.
QUESTIONS
1. According to Mark's account Jesus began His public ministry in Galilee. How does this differ from the account in John's Gospel?
2. What activities characterize Jesus' early ministry in Galilee?
3. What was Jesus' relationship to John the Baptist?
4. What was John's message?
5. What central dogma of Christianity was made evident at Jesus' Baptism and why is this dogma to be preserved?
6. What was Jesus' main message after His temptation in the wilderness?
7. Who were the first disciples called by Jesus and what is known about them?
8. How did people respond to Jesus' teaching in the synagogues?
9. Mark's Gospel identifies Jesus as the "Son of God" (verse 1). What prophesies about the Son of God, or the Messiah, were fulfilled by Jesus' actions in this first chapter of Mark?
10. Why did Jesus command the evil spirits to be silent and why did he tell people not to broadcast how He healed them?
ANSWERS
1. According to Mark, Jesus began his public ministry in Galilee after John was arrested. In the Gospel of John, Jesus' public ministry began at a wedding in Cana of Galilee.
2. Jesus' early ministry in Galilee was characterized by healing, teaching in the synagogues, and driving out evil spirits.
4. John's message was to prepare the people to receive Jesus the Messiah by repenting of their sins and receiving the baptism of repentance by ritual purification in the Jordan River.
5. At Jesus' baptism, the central dogma of the Holy Trinity was made evident. The Son of God came up from the water. The Holy Spirit descended upon Him, and the voice of God declared that Jesus is the Father's beloved son. This is divine revelation to be preserved by all Christians. The term "dogma" refers to a teaching or belief that cannot be changed or eliminated because doing so would completely change the substance of the Christian Faith.
6. Jesus' main message was a call to repentance because the time of the Kingdom of God is at hand.
7. The first disciples called by Jesus were Simon and his brother Andrew, and James and his brother John. All 3 were Galilean fishermen. Simon was married. Jesus healed his mother-in-law of a fever (Mk. 1:30). James and John were the sons of a Jewish man named Zebedee. Jesus called James and John Boanerges which means "Sons of Thunder" (Mk. 3:17).
8. When Jesus taught in the synagogues, the people were astonished because he taught them as one having real authority and not as the scribes (Mk.1:22). According to Mark 1:38, Jesus did not stay long in any one town. He believed his work was to preach throughout Galilee.
9. Many prophesies about the long-awaited Messiah were fulfilled in the first chapter of Mark. In Isaiah 40:3 John the Baptist's preparation for Jesus' servant ministry is declared: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God." Jesus casting out demons and healing various diseases fulfilled the prophecies associated with the Messianic dawning of the Kingdom of God.
10. Jesus commanded the evil spirits to be silent because He wanted freedom to preach and teach in as many places as possible without being hindered by large crowds. He told people he healed not to broadcast their experiences because the circulation of rumors would bring out crowds making it difficult for him to go about freely. Even with these precautions, Jesus spent much of his time in the countryside. Mark 1:45 explains that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town. Instead, He stayed out in the country. Even then, people found him, coming to him from every quarter.
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