The Servant's Arrival
Book of Mark Chapter 1
If we are familiar with the New Testament, we know this disciple Mark, is called John Mark in many places.
Mark was not one of the twelve disciples who became the Apostles.
John was his Hebrew name and Mark was his Roman name.
Mark was led to the Lord by the Apostle Peter and is said to have spent a lot of time with Peter and this is where he learned most of his doctrine and where he learned about the Lord because of Peter's close relationship with the Lord.
We can see the struggles of the Apostle Peter in the New Testament but we can also see that when Peter finally understood the Lord Jesus Christ, Peter became steadfast and dependable and a true Saint of God.
The Apostle reminds us our own struggles in the life of becoming a Christian.
We know that Mark also spent some time with the Apostle Paul and Barnabas and was kin to Barnabas.
The Book of Mark was written before the destruction of the Jewish Temple as we can tell because of what was written.
It may have been written around 50 AD.
Some say it was written to the Roman world which means it was written to the Gentile world.
The purpose of the Book of Mark is to show that Jesus is unquestionably the Son of God!
Mar 1:1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God;
Mar 1:2 As it is written in the prophets, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.
In the Book of Mark, our Lord Jesus is declared to be the Son of God at His baptism.
In the Book of Mark, our Lord Jesus is declared to be the Son of God at His transfiguration both times by the Heavenly voice of His father.
Our lessons in this quarter will teach us of the Lord Jesus Christ as God's Heavenly Servant come to this earth to save all those who believe the truth of the Messiah.
Mark wrote that even the demons said that Jesus was the Son of God.
Mark wrote that even at the end of the life of Jesus, even a Roman Centurion said that Our Lord Jesus was the Son of God.
Mark wrote that Jesus Himself said that He was the Son of God!
I do not know about you, but I believe the Lord Jesus Christ is the Son of God, a third part of the Holy Trinity!
Still one God, but in three persons.
These lessons from the Book of Mark are intended to help our learning more about our Savior who came as a Servant.
The Bible begins by teaching us that God created us in His image and this was true until sin entered into the world.
The Lord Jesus spent His life teaching us, that He will remove the curse of sin and we can once again be created in the image of God our Savior!
The Lord Jesus is our example in all things and Mark begins with the baptism of the Messiah!
There is no salvation that comes from baptism, but it seems that baptism is still essential if we are to walk in the ways of our Lord Jesus Christ!
The Apostle Peter wrote:
Act 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Act 2:39 For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.
The Apostle Paul:
Rom 6:3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
Rom 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Rom 6:5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:
Rom 6:6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
Again, we are not saved by baptism, but it is included in our walk with the Lord Jesus.
If we pay attention, we will see that our baptism should be a full immersion if we are to be like Christ.
Buried and then raised to a new life.
In the baptism of our Lord Jesus we get a picture of what happens when we decide to totally submit to the Lord.
Joh 13:17 If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.
*****Mar 1:9 And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan.
Nazareth was a small town where Joseph and Mary came to raise Jesus.
The word Nazareth means separated.
Joseph and Mary wanted a place where the Lord Jesus would be safe, as Herod had already tried to murder the Lord.
The Lord Jesus had grown up in peaceful seclusion, but in this time nearly thirty years, He had grown in favor with God and man.
Luk 2:52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.
The town of Nazareth was not mentioned in the Old Testament.
Our Lord Jesus left the city of Nazareth to be baptized and then He began His ministry of salvation.
The Lord Jesus was immediately recognized by His forerunner John the Baptist.
Mat 3:13 Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.
This is the first place that our Heavenly Father made the world to know that the Lord Jesus was His Son.
Luk 3:21 Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened,
Luk 3:22 And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.
The Lord Jesus left all behind to begin the ministry He had come from Heaven to perform.
He left a cheerful home.
He left a close nit family.
He left behind a good profession; He was a carpenter.
He left his childhood friends.
Many a missionary will do these same things.
Many servants of God have to do these same things.
Many believers have to do these same things today.
He began His ministry to save this wicked world.
He had only thirty-six months to complete His mission.
1Pe 2:21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:
1Pe 2:22 Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth:
1Pe 2:23 Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously:
1Pe 2:24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
We should understand that the decision we make to follow the Lord Jesus, is an important decision probably the greatest decision we will make all our lifetime.
It involves surrendering our all and sacrificing ourselves completely to the Lord, but a decision not to follow the Lord will lead to a tragic life that is wasted on sin.
Mark describes to us what happened on the day of His baptism.
*****Mar 1:10 And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him:
Mar 1:11 And there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
We can only imagine what it means to say that the heavens opened up.
The Lord Jesus was being commissioned and set apart by Heaven itself.
The Spirit of God came down from Heaven in the actions of a dove not looking like a dove.
Watch how a dove lands as it ends its flight to see this.
It is different from all other birds.
This event identified the Lord Jesus as the promised Messiah.
This event declared that the Holy Spirit of our Heavenly Father brought His power down from Heaven to do the work God had promised written in the Scriptures.
Notice the Holy Spirit descended upon our Lord not inside of Him.
**We should know that when we are called to the work of God and we accept that calling, we are also empowered by our Heavenly Father to do the work given to us by God Himself.
The only difference being that the Holy Spirit will move into us and abide in us forever, if we show faith in the work that the Lord Jesus has done to save us.
Before the Lord Jesus we had an evil spirit. After accepting the Lord Jesus Christ, that evil spirit is replaced with the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit will not share His existence with an evil spirit inside us!
First, we must decide to submit to the Lord Jesus Christ and the work He has done for our salvation. This is where our faith becomes so important. We must be willing to surrender all we have, even our own life.
Mar_8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
**Second, as we begin that work, He has given to us, we must identify with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Luk 10:16 He that heareth you heareth me; and he that despiseth you despiseth me; and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me.
Most of us lack the commitment to serve the Lord!
We just do not identify ourselves with the Lord and the world never sees us as a follower of Christ Jesus.
That word "opened" means that God ripped the heavens apart to give His Son this message.
The baptism of Jesus involved God's approval and also God's encouragement!
Remember the Lord Jesus was one hundred percent God, but He was also one hundred percent human.
The Lord Jesus Christ had to pay an enormous price to serve His Heavenly Father!
As a human He needed the perfect assurance of God just as we do.
Psa 2:7 I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.
Isa 42:5 Thus saith God the LORD, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein:
Isa 42:6 I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles;
Again this is where our faith comes in.
God will see to it that we know His will for us, but we can also have the assurance that we are in His will for us!
God will speak to our hearts and give us signs of His approval.
Once the Holy Spirit was upon the Lord Jesus, He drove Him straight into the wilderness.
He had to be tested. We should understand that without a test we will never have a testimony!
*****Mar 1:12 And immediately the Spirit driveth him into the wilderness.
Mar 1:13 And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him.
Without a doubt, we are going to face temptation all the days of our lives!
We must have a good understanding of just what temptation is!
We should study this time of temptation of our Lord Jesus to learn all we can.
Why had the Lord Jesus been sent to earth?
1Jn 3:8 He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
1Jn 3:9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.
Because the Lord Jesus had come to destroy the works of the Devil then, the first thing that Jesus did was to enter into the conflict with the Devil.
This means we are wrong if we do not inform Satan that we are the "born again" children of God!
We cannot be ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
We do not have to challenge Satan, but we do have to stand our ground against him!
Satan is our true enemy, but we should have no fear of him!
We see that the Lord Jesus allows Satan to tempt Him for forty days and nights.
The Devil could not have victory over the Lord Jesus and therefore he left, but he had plans to continue to tempt the Lord Jesus all the days He remained upon this earth.
Luk 4:13 And when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from him for a season.
We should understand that the temptations we go through are steppingstones and not stumbling stones.
They are simply opportunities for the Holy Spirit to make us stronger and earn rewards.
When we are stronger, we are more able to do the things that God requires of us.
When we face temptation, we need to sit down with God and seek His power to overcome that temptation.
Remember, the battle with Satan is the Lord's battle, we must not allow ourselves to be drawn into the middle of it!
Satan will do everything he can to arouse our flesh to sin, and we must use the strength of the Holy Spirit block him.
John the Baptist had completed his job as forerunner and it was time for him get out of the way, so the Lord Jesus could begin His own ministry which was far more important.
John had told his own disciples it was time he got out of the way of the Lord Jesus the Messiah.
Joh 3:28 Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him.
Joh 3:29 He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled.
Joh 3:30 He must increase, but I must decrease.
It may not seem fare for John to be put in prison, but we must cling to our faith that God always does the right thing.
It was not God who caused the arrest of John the Baptist, but He did allow it to take place.
*****Mar 1:14 Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,
Mar 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
In the process of time, at least a complete year had passed between verse 13 and verse 14.
John the Apostle gives us most of the information that Mark leaves out during this period of time.
The Lord Jesus had selected His disciples during this time.
The Lord Jesus had moved His headquarters to Capernaum during this time period.
The Lord Jesus had gone to Jerusalem to observe the Passover Feast.
The Lord had met Nicodemus.
The ministry of the Lord Jesus was moving along at a fast pace for the kingdom of God was truly at hand!
Our own ministries to our friends and family need to move on at a faster pace today, because the kingdom of God is surely at hand today and the return of the Lord.
God saves us for two purposes:
1) To obey Him and He gives us the Bible to know what to obey.
2) To lead others to obey Him and this means people of all nations and all cultures.
God's goal is for all mankind to become His family.
This means those who freely choose to join the family of God!
God calls us children to put us in the right frame of mind so we can learn to obey just as we instill this in our own children.
The Gospel declares that time is fulfilled.
All the things of the Old Testament had brought the people to the time of the Church.
Gal 4:3 Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:
Jesus the Messiah came to bring salvation to all mankind.
Gal 4:4 But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
Gal 4:5 To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.
Gal 4:6 And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
The law had been in place and had done its educational work.
Rom 3:20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
Gal_3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
Gal_3:25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.
It was now time for "faith" to take the center stage of our salvation.
Repentance came to the forefront.
Just to repent is not enough!
Payment must be made for the laws that were broken.
This is why we must believe and place our faith in the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Lord Jesus lived a sinless life as our example of what it takes to please God.
We have to become sin free to please God.
This is where the Gospel and Grace comes in.
Rom 3:25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
Rom 3:26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.
The world was an open door for the spread of the Gospel.
Elijah had come in the person of John the Baptist.
John had moved out of the way so the Gospel could be preached around the world, beginning with the Lord Jesus to the Jews and then the Gentiles and the Apostles to the uttermost parts of the world, which remains our job today.
The Church is now in its last days and the return of Jesus Christ is very near.
And the Lord Jesus shows us how we are to minister.
*****Mar 1:21 And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day he entered into the synagogue, and taught.
We see that the Lord Jesus began His ministry with worship, immediately.
That word “straightway” means immediately.
The Jews worshipped on the Sabbath (Saturday) and Jesus chose the synagogue at Capernaum.
To the Jew, the synagogue was the most important institution and it was the center of their worship.
Most of them only went to the Temple three times a year, but to the synagogue they went every Saturday.
The synagogue was also the place of learning and education.
It is like Sunday School of today, where the Scriptures are to be studied by all ages.
The Lord Jesus seized on this opportunity to teach in this synagogue.
See, Jesus was the only One who knew how much time He had left and we know He had only about three years before that cross.
Joh 9:4 I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.
Joh 9:5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.
We are in those dark days now awaiting the return of the Lord Jesus.
In fact, our nation is becoming darker and we might not have much longer to freely teach the Bible.
What do we do?
We lose time and just allow it to pass by.
We ignore time and just let it pass.
We neglect time with a non-caring attitude.
We abuse time, and do the opposite of what we should be doing.
This sounds harsh, but we have very little time to reach our children and grandchildren and even friends that we know who are lost.
I’m just as guilty as anyone else.
The Lord Jesus seized upon the little time He had left and this is the story behind the Gospels.
The Lord Jesus did not waste time!
None of the average people had a copy of the Scriptures, but there was one in the Synagogue.
In fact, services and discussions were conducted daily in most synagogues.
Even when the Jews were scattered around the world, no matter how small a group of them were, they would build them a synagogue.
In some cities there were more than one synagogue.
It is said that there were more than one hundred synagogues in Jerusalem even in the time of Jesus.
A service in a synagogue would have prayers, Scripture reading, and then discussion.
Distinguished persons, local or strangers, were invited to take part in the service and we see that our Lord Jesus joined in and began to read from the Scriptures.
The Apostle Paul used this same strategy.
*****Mar 1:22 And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes.
These Jews were aroused by the teaching of Jesus Christ because He preached the truth, with authority.
The Scribes taught using tradition of the elders, the oral law with enough Scripture as the source of their authority.
Their teaching was second handed, because they only repeated what the Rabbis taught.
The scribes use the words "it has been said".
Jesus taught with personal authority because He is the Author!
The Lord Jesus used the phrase, "I say unto you".
What is the best time to teach people? When they gather on their day of worship.
The sabbath for the Jews.
What is the best method of teaching on the day of worship? Preaching.
1Pe 1:12 Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.
1Co 2:4 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:
1Co 2:5 That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.
1Th 1:5 For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake.
1Co 1:17 For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.
1Co 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
1Co 1:23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;
1Co 1:24 But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.
The Lord Jesus was certain and He was positive.
The Lord Jesus stressed our need for the truth in this world full of Satan's lies.
The Lord Jesus preached on matters of the heart and life. The world only teaches thoughts and rationalism.
The Lord Jesus preached life and life eternal, while all others preached religion, philosophy.
The Lord Jesus practiced and lived what He preached, while others twist and interprets the laws of God to their own liking and live by their own thoughts.
2Jn 1:9 Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.
2Jn 1:10 If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:
2Jn 1:11 For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.
The Lord preached to make everyone part of His family and all others preached division of family and groups as it is today.
Amen
