Mark: The ‘Right Now’ Gospel
Part 1
“Let’s Meet Mark”
During my first few years as a Christian, I quickly learned the order of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, but didn’t really think twice about the authors or question who they were. So who are they?
Well, we know that Matthew is the man that left his tax collector’s booth to follow Jesus at the simple command from the Lord to “Follow me.” Then John reminds us throughout his gospel he was one of Jesus’s favorites. We also know Luke served alongside Paul as his companion and physician, and also wrote the book of Acts. He was also the only Gentile writer of the NT.
But what about Mark? According to the Blue Letter Bible website, the earliest Bible manuscripts we have include “KATA MARKON,” meaning “According to Mark.” So most scholars believe Mark to be the first of the 4 gospels written, between AD 55 and 60. It is also the shortest of the 4.
The four gospels have varying emphases and target audiences. The first 3 are called the synoptic gospels, which means they “see together with a common view” (the word synoptic literally means “together sight”). Matthew, Mark, and Luke cover many of the same events in Jesus’ life in much the same order, most of them from Jesus’ ministry in Galilee.
In fact, nearly 90 percent of Mark’s content is found in Matthew, and about 50 percent of Mark appears in Luke. All of the parables of Christ are found in the 3 Synoptics (the Gospel of John contains no parables).
Matthew is addressed to a Jewish-Christian audience, and emphasizes Jesus as the fulfillment of OT prophecies and the ‘new Moses’ bringing a new law.
Mark was written for a Gentile audience, likely in Rome, focusing on Jesus as the suffering Servant and Son of God. The narrative is fast-paced emphasizing his actions.
Luke is also aimed at a Gentile audience, and contains many parables and highlights Jesus’s concern for the marginalized, such as women, the poor, and sinners.
The gospel of John emphasizes the deity of Christ and His heavenly origin, with a focus on theological content and the “I Am” statements.
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We also learn from Scripture regarding Mark that ‘Mark’ was his surname while John was his first name.
We first meet Mark in the twelfth chapter of Acts after Peter’s miraculous escape from prison. After he escaped, Peter went to John Mark’s mother’s house.
Acts 12:12 “When this had dawned on him (Peter), he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying.”
So immediately after his miraculous deliverance from prison, Peter made a beeline for the house of Mark’s mother, Mary, where a round the clock prayer meeting for Peter was being held.
We’re going to see that Mark’s testimony is one of redemption and acceptance despite his young age and early failures.
Scripture tells us that Mark had a relationship with Peter, Paul, and Barnabas. Barnabas was his cousin. Paul offers this information in his letter to the church in Colossae as he instructs the church to welcome Mark if he comes to see them.
Col 4:10 “My fellow prisoner Aristarchus sends you his greetings, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. (You have received instructions about him; if he comes to you, welcome him.)”
But Mark’s relationship with Paul had experienced a period of conflict and testing. In Acts 12:25 and 13:5, John Mark tagged along with his cousin Barnabas and Paul on their missionary journey from Jerusalem to Cypress.
He was their “helper,” but in Acts 13:13, Luke details John Mark’s return to Jerusalem. The nature of his return is revealed a few chapters later in Acts 15 where Barnabas and Paul disagree about including John Mark in another journey.
Acts 15:37-40 “Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, 38 but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. 39 They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord.”
So John Mark had abandoned his ministry, which rubbed Paul very much the wrong way. We don’t know why he left so we can only guess. In Acts 13, a sorcerer who opposed Paul and Barnabas was struck blind after Paul, full of the Holy Spirit, told him the Lord would make him blind. Maybe it was too much for John Mark to handle. He was afraid. Again, we can only guess.
It is believed he also ran away another time. That story is found in his own gospel. He writes about a young man hiding in the Garden of Gethsemane. We aren’t given his name, but many believe it was John Mark:
Mark 14:51-52 “A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, 52 he fled naked, leaving his garment behind.”
So in summary: Though Mark was an eyewitness of Jesus, he was not one of the twelve disciples. Paul didn’t trust him, and we know he ran from tough circumstances, so why would his gospel be included in the Bible? How would he know so much about Jesus? It’s a great question, and there is a great answer!
It so happens that John Mark was like a son to another disciple who also knew what running was like. His name was Peter. Peter affectionately refers to Mark as his son in 1 Peter 5:13. Church fathers believed that John Mark was Peter’s interpreter in Rome and wrote his gospel with the guidance of Peter to encourage those under persecution there.
It’s believed by many Bible scholars that Mark’s gospel is really Peter’s story—his memoir, and that it had been dictated by Peter.
It’s important to note that Paul eventually re-embraced Mark. After Barnabas orchestrated giving him a second chance, Paul later called him a coworker (Philemon 24; Col 4:10; 2 Tim 4:11).
Mark’s action-packed gospel pens story after story of the miracles and authority of Jesus. His favorite word, euthus, translated ‘immediately’, is found 41 times in his gospel, propelling events forward. The stories of healing, raising the dead, casting out demons, feeding thousands, and walking on water, rush by in fast paced action. Hence, this study in mark is called the ‘RIGHT NOW’ gospel!
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Some Bible scholars see Mark’s gospel as divided into two parts.
The first section focuses on Jesus’s authority over evil as the Son of God. The second concentrates on Jesus’ mission to die for the world’s sins.
It’s interesting to note this clear shift right in the book’s center. Mark contains 16 chapters and we see this shift in focus in chapter eight:
“He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again” (Mark 8:31).
Like many of the first-century disciples of Christ, the Bible does not tell us how Mark’s life ended. Church tradition says he was martyred. According to one commentator, Peter sent Mark to Egypt to spread the gospel. His ministry was very successful, and he planted a large church in Alexandria, but despite his success there, it was in Alexandria where Mark was martyred.
According to tradition, his feet were bound by ropes, and he was drug through the streets of Alexandria for two days. After his death, his body was burned.
It’s believed his death was on April 25, but the year is unknown. His remains were later removed from Alexandria and placed in St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice.
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So with that introduction, let’s begin with the opening verse of chapter 1. The introduction declares:
Mark 1:1 “The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”
Mark opens his gospel with the proclamation of Jesus as Christ. “Christ” comes from the Greek word Christos, meaning “anointed one.” This is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word Mashiach, or “Messiah.”
Perhaps it was Peter that influenced Mark’s focus on Jesus as Messiah. It was after all Peter that first proclaimed his faith in Jesus as Christ (Mark 8:27-30).
Then immediately, Mark’s focus turns to John the Baptist:
1:2-3 “As it is written in the Prophets: ‘Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your way before You. 3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight.’ ”
The prophets Mark refers to here are Malachi and Isaiah:
Malachi 3:1 “Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts.”
Isaiah 3 “The voice of one crying in the wilderness:“Prepare the way of the Lord; Make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be exalted and every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight and the rough places smooth; 5 The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
The two prophecies are very similar.
And John the Baptist himself laid claim to being the fulfillment of them:
John 1:22-23 “Then they (the Pharisees) said to him, “Who are you, that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?” 23 He said: “I am ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Make straight the way of the Lord,” as the prophet Isaiah said.”
So John knew who he wasn’t (he wasn’t the Christ) and he knew who he was!
John the Baptist’s self-description as “the voice of one calling in the wilderness” was profoundly fitting. Not only did John minister in the wilderness of Judea, but God also chose him to introduce the nation of Israel to Jesus Christ and prepare the people’s hearts to receive their Savior and Redeemer (see Matthew 3:1–6).
John preached boldly, calling people to “repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near”–Matt 3:2
After the people confessed their sins, they demonstrated repentance by being baptized and then living transformed lives.
John humbly acknowledged his inferior position as only “a voice.” John’s speaking part was insignificant compared to Christ’s work.
Even though he drew huge crowds, he never lost sight of his supporting role: “I baptize with water those who repent of their sins and turn to God. But someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not worthy even to be his slave and carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire” (Matthew 3:11, NLT; see also John 1:15, 27).
John was sent not to gain a name and reputation for himself but to preach Jesus. When Jesus stepped into the limelight, John said, “I am not the Messiah. I am only here to prepare the way for him” (John 3:28, NLT).
“He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less” (John 3:30).
As Christians, we have much to learn from John’s humility as “the voice of one calling in the wilderness.” John understood that he was not the focal point of his ministry.
The apostle Paul grasped this, too, saying, “It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow” (1 Corinthians 3:7, NLT).
As the Lord’s servants, we are privileged to play a part in God’s work, but we are not the focus or the light. Jesus Christ is the light of the world (John 8:12). We’re merely reflectors of that light in order to point people to Him (Matthew 5:14–16).
So while the nation of Israel was trapped in a spiritual wasteland, John the Baptist’s “voice of one calling in the wilderness” began crying out. And as people opened their hearts to Jesus Christ—“the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6)—they were set free from their spiritual bondage!
SUMMARY:
Mark opens with Jesus as the Christ
John the Baptist models servanthood and a healthy spiritual perspective