Sermon Tone Analysis

Recap of Last Week

Last week we began in Mark 13, with Christ’s second advent, His tribulation and second coming.

We talked about the true Hope that comes through the final consummation of the Church when all things will be made new.

We asked the question whether we are living our lives actively watching for His return, or are we living our lives passively focused on ourselves and what is going on in our own lives.

Today we are going to shift to the beginning of Mark with the beginning of Christ’s ministry as John the Baptist establishes a path of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

We must remember that John is a part of Jesus earthly family as His cousin.

They both grew up together, so, even thought John comes out of the wilderness crying out to prepare the way of the Lord, he is declaring one of his own relatives as the Messiah of the world, the God man in flesh.

Mark Begins by establishing that God is making a new start.

At the end of Malachi 4:5-6 he declares that will come before the great and awesome day of the Lord’s coming, and he will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and children to their fathers.

Part of the ‘curse’ that sin brought was not only the broken relationship with God but, also broken relationships among his creation.

Now Jesus Christ the Son of God has come to restore the peace or consolation of Israel, but, not only Israel but all of creation.

The Gospel of Matthew is written to Jews telling them that Jesus is the Messiah King who fulfills the Old Testament prophecy where as Mark is written to Romans telling them that Jesus is the suffering Servant who actively ministers on our behalf and gives His life as a ransom for many.

Mark 1:1–8 (ESV)

1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet,

“Behold, I send my messenger before your face,

who will prepare your way,

3 the voice of one crying in the wilderness:

‘Prepare the way of the Lord,

make his paths straight,’ ”

4 John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

5 And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

6 Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey.

7 And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.

8 I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

I. THE BEGINNING

a.

The Beginning ...

‘The beginnings’: as in Genesis 1:1, God is about to begin a new creative work.

Mark now identifies who this work is going to be done through which is Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

You will remember that at the very beginning of John’s gospel he starts with the pre-incarnate Christ by declaring that “In the beginning was the word.”

b.

Of The Gospel ...

What makes this News so Good?

It means the in-breaking of God’s kingly rule, the advent of his salvation, vengeance, and vindication.

The Gospels, (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) are historical theological accounts of Jesus life.

What they record really did happened.

The word Gospel comes from the old English word “godspel” (good news) and translated correctly into the greed is the word euangelion.

In the NT the Good News is that God has provided salvation for all men through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

At the very beginning of Marks book he wants to establish a new literary genre - “gospel.”

The word Gospel has several meanings for its readers.

It suggests a message that is proclaimed (as did he proclaim the gospel), or a book of the Bible (we are studying the gospel according to Mark).

It is most often referred to in the form of a verb in Hebrew (to announce good news).

The focus is on God’s chosen people, but the implications range even wider, especially when, as at the coming of Jesus, they are under foreign rule.

God’s in-breaking has world significance.

1.

We can trust God to Keep His Promises

There has never been a promise that God has not followed through on in the course of History

Have you ever made a promise that you have not kept?

Implications of Mark’s Opening

The word Gospel comes from the old English word “godspel” (good news) and translated correctly into the greed is the word euangelion.

In the NT the Good News is that God has provided salvation for all men through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

At the very beginning of Marks book he wants to establish a new literary genre - “gospel.”

Note: Notice that Mark does not begin with the baby in a manger in Bethlehem.

He starts with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

What is significant about this revelation?

i) The Good News is Historical: In the fullness of time and History God sent His good news in Jesus Christ.

You cannot erase historical evidence.

Even though our current culture has attempted to do so.

There is not a scholar or scientist worth his salt today that would refute that there was a man named Jesus of Nazareth who lived and died on a cross at the hands of Pontius Pilot over 2,000 years ago.

This is all a part of History.

ii) The Good News is Earthy: It is about God being committed to lay aside for a time his kingly glory to come and insert himself in the messiness of human affairs, being found alongside us.

It is in the middle of human history that God has made himself real, and continues to do so.

iii) The Good news is Basic: It appears that Mark did not believe that Jesus could be ‘proved’ to be of divine origin - it had to be perceived by faith.

He does not rely on long genealogies of Jesus he builds up steadily to awesome claims about jesus.

He simply states them on a take it or leave it basis.

The secret that is laid out only seems to be that as you are willing to respond to Jesus do you perceive by faith the truth about him.

iv) The Good News is challenging: Mark is not writing to inform us but to also challenge our faith.

In the gospel message life and death hang in the balance.

“The time has come, the kingdom of God is near.

Repent and believe the good news!”

Mark does not only testify to this urgent challenge to believe: he exemplifies it with his life.

Note: Notice that Mark begins his gospel by identifying the consolation of our Hope the promised Messiah!

This Messiah is “Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” “Jesus” is the Greek name for the Hebrew Joshua: “Yahweh is salvation.”

“Christ” is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew for Messiah: “the anointed one.”

He not only identifies the coming one as Jesus Christ but as the “only Son of God”

Of all of the titles, the title “Son of God” in particular appears at significant points in the Gospel and sometimes in the mouths of some interesting personalities!

Perhaps the most striking is that the disciples never recognize Jesus as the Son of God in the Gospel of Mark.

The demons get it right.

Even a Roman centurion understands it.

Yet, not until after the resurrection did the disciples get it.

If Jesus’ disciples failed to see it, there is hope for those who seem the furthest away from seeing it today.

We must remember and take into consideration that most who met him during his lifetime did not recognized jesus for who he really was, but mark wishes his readers to be clear about what the church now perceived and proclaimed about him.

STANDING ON THE PROMISES OF GOD

No matter how many promises that God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ.

And so through him the ‘Amen’ is spoken by us to the glory of God.

How are God’s promises “yes” even when He sometimes tells us “no” sometimes in response to our prayers?

We need to make a clear distinction between God keep His promises and God agreeing to our personal desires.

*We trust God’s promises based on what we know to be true.

Years ago when the Journey was young in it’s inception we went through several challenging tragedy after another, that led to the Church instituting several measures of Church discipline.

Now, if you have ever been a part of a Church where something of this magnitude has taken place it is as if you had several funerals of beloved family members happening back to back.

I remember coming in that Sunday feeling the pressure to preach a sermon that would help the healing and encourage the congregation.

After I finished my sermon that Sunday, I think it was one of the worst sermons I have ever preached.

In fact I could not get through the Lords Supper fast enough to duck out of the Church.

Before I made it to the first row of the Church I had people come to shake my hand and share with me how God has used that lame duck sermon to speak to their lives.

I went home that day and told Diana that I am never again going to trust in the presence of God based on what I feel, but o what He promises.

He promises to be there.

He promises to attend to the preaching of the word by His anointed ones.

*We trust God’s promises based on reliable witnesses.

a.

It is written … (1:2a.)