Think Wink.

I want to begin a brief series of posts on Mark 1:14-15 and Mark’s first recorded words of Jesus,

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

I have really been fascinated by Mark’s work on the ministry of Jesus. My fascination of Mark’s writing has dramatically increased this past fall, having studied the gospels. So I want to just examine this text and make some observations from this text about Mark’s view of Jesus’ ministry here on earth and how he wanted his readers to view Jesus and his work on earth.

The first observation that I want to make a connection from Mark 1:1 and Mark 1:14-15. Mark’s opening statement is, “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God” (More could be said here as Mark continues this thought into the OT quote of Malachi 3:1 and Isaiah 40:3 with the conjunction καθὼς that most translations except the NLT fail to show). Mark 1:1 in the Greek begins with this series of genitives, ἀρχὴ τοῦ εὐαγγελίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ υἱοῦ θεοῦ. The question is, do the genitives Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ function as the subject/definition of τοῦ εὐαγγελίου or as the object? If it is subject or definition, then τοῦ εὐαγγελίου is what Jesus preached or brought to the world. If it is object, then Jesus is the τοῦ εὐαγγελίου. I think that Mark 1:14-15 sheds some light to this question as Mark says “Jesus…proclaim[ed] the gospel of God.” I think that what Mark is showing here is that the gospel in Mark 1:1 is subject (some may argue for a plenary use of the genitive here and that would work). I think that this allows Mark’s use of ἀρχὴ to make better sense. Mark is recording the beginning of Jesus preaching of the gospel of God by taking us to John the Baptizer and the baptism of Jesus.

Hence, I think that Mark is trying to not give his readers in Rome, being persecuted by the state, a complete biography of Jesus’ life. Rather he is trying to construct a view of Jesus’ ministry. This also would make sense of the lack of a true ending to Mark’s work and it ending at Mark 16:8. He wants his readers to examine the ministry of Jesus and to glean from it all that they can so that from the life of Jesus, they can see how he dealt with his own struggles and what Jesus taught his own disciples, they can themselves face their own situation.

I think that is how Mark wants us to read his writing today. We are not facing the wrath of Nero Caesar after the city of Rome burned to the ground. But we face our own struggles in our 21st century world and the life and teachings of Jesus can be of great value to us. So the next time you want to study a gospel, look at Mark. He does not have the long discourses of Matthew, he does not have the parables of Luke, he does not have the signs and “I am” statements of John. Mark shows us the ministry of Jesus and the life that Christ lived. Christ came and proclaimed good news. Mark wanted his Roman readers to see that news that Jesus brought. It began with John’s arrival and it ended with the empty tomb. Take some time to read Mark and let Jesus simply impress himself upon you like he did Peter after Jesus concluded his Galilean Ministry or the Roman centurion while Jesus hung on the cross. Jesus asked his disciples point-blank in Mark 8:29, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered Jesus, “You are the Christ.” The Roman centurion upon seeing Jesus on the cross confessed in Mark 15:39, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”

Matthew vs Mark

Testifying without Testifying Part 2 of 3

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