The Gospel You Weren't Ready For

Synoptic Gospels: Matthew, Mark, and Luke - writing from a similar or common viewpoint

This section in Mark presents the third recorded act of Jesus’ public ministry

Mark 1:14-15 “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.”

The Gospel (Good News): The Message of our full and free acceptance by God, purchased by Jesus at an extravagant price, because of His immeasurable love for you

You can’t negotiate Him into loving you any less

Mark 1:17 “And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.”

In the second recorded act of Jesus’ public ministry, He calls some to be His partners and friends in announcing this unbelievably good news to the world.

These first “disciples” are two sets of brothers who later in the synoptics, we will find to be petty, selfish, immature, cowardly, and self-righteous.

The gospel isn’t for those who are good! It is about the only One who is good and what He has done for the world.

Mark 1:25 “But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!”

The gospel is real!

I don’t mean to trivialize this, but if you’ve ever witnessed demonic torment in real life it immediately hits you in the chest with the reality that there is a world beyond the one that you see and touch around you right now!

What is awesome about this section though (verses 21-34) is that it shows us that this gospel is a message that is actively at work in the world around us it is not in “word only.”

This section is the same section that Matthew (in his record) arranges immediately before the Sermon on the Mount

Read the Sermon on the Mount every month for the next year! Feed your spirit on it, digest it, let it do battle with the vices in your soul, - you’ll live a very different life from your peers at a young age; you’ll live your life with a radically different meaning and purpose