The Gospel Of Mark Chapter 1

Introduction to the New Testament

The name given to the second half of the English Bible is “The New Testament” which literally means “The New Covenant”

Luke 22:20 (NASB95)

20 And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.

2. This word covenant is more than just a promise. It is an arrangement, a contract. It is a contract made by one party (God), which the other party (sinners) involved could accept or reject but could not alter.

3. The Old Testament primarily records God’s dealings with Israel on the basis of the covenant given through Moses.

4. The New Testament describes the new arrangement/contract with men through Christ on the basis of the covenant.

5. The old Covenant revealed God’s holiness in the righteous standard of the law and promised a new Redeemer.

6. The new covenant shows the holiness of God in His righteous Son. The New Testament, then , contains those writings that reveal the contents of this new covenant.

7. The message of the New Testament centers on the following:

The person who gave Himself for the remissions of sin.

The people (the church) who have received His salvation.

Thus the central theme of the New Testament is salvation. It is not love as many people believe, especially those that wish to twist the word of God . That use Love to condone any number of sinful acts.

What does the word “Gospel” mean?

The word gospel comes from the Old English word godspel, which means “god-story.” [2] The English translators of the King James Bible used the word godspel as the translation for two Greek words found in the New Testament—euangelion, which means “good news,” and euangelizomai, which means “to proclaim the good news.”

How may Gospels are there and who wrote them?

There are four Gospel books.

Matthew, Mark, John and Luke.

Matthew, Mark and Luke are called “Synoptic Gospels” What does this mean you may be asking yourselves?

Synoptic is a Greek word. Lets break it down: Syn, “together with”; optic “seeing”. When we put it together synoptic means “seeing together”.

Matthew, Mark and Luke are noticeably similar. They agree extensively in language, in the material they include, and in the order in which events and sayings from the life of Christ are recorded. Chronological order does not appear to be rigidly followed in any of the Gospels, however.

A mathematical comparison shows that 91% of Mark’s gospel is contained in Matthew, while 53% of Mark is found in Luke

The Book of Mark was written by Mark or John Mark which is his full name. It is generally agreed that this is the first Gospel to have been written.

It is generally agreed that Mark recieved much of the information in this Gospel from Peter.

Distinctive Approach of Mark

Mark wrote this book for Gentile readers in general and Roman readers in particular.

This is why the genealogy of of Christ is not included. It would have meant little to the Gentiles).

Because of this Mark felt it necessary to interpret Aramaic words and he used Latin words not found in the other Gospels.

There are only about 63 quotations or allusions from the O.T. in Mark as compared with about 128 in Matthew and between 90 and 100 in Luke.

This Gospel emphasizes what Jesus did rather than what He said. It shows Jesus as a Servant.

It is a book of action. The word euthus, “at once” or “immediately” occurs more than 40 times.

I intend to cover each section of each chapter by its pericope. A pericope is the header/heading/title at the top of each section.

What is a pericope? It comes from the Greek word perikopē. It is a compound word from the Greek words peri (around) and kopē (cutting). The Greek essentially means to cut around. From this we get the idea of a pericope being a “section” or portion of something larger.

THE SERVICE OF THE SERVANT

Mark 1:1–16 (NASB95)

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 ahead of You,

Who will prepare Your way;

3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness,

‘Make ready the way of the Lord,

Make His paths straight.’ ”

4 John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

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

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

7 And he was preaching, and saying, “After me One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to stoop down and untie the thong of His sandals.

8 “I baptized you with water; but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.

10 Immediately coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens opening, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon Him;

11 and a voice came out of the heavens: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”

12 Immediately the Spirit impelled Him to go out into the wilderness.

13 And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him.

14 Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God,

15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

16 As He was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen.

Mark 1:1 (NASB95)

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

Mark does not waste any time. He immediately proclaims the good news, that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. In other words that Jesus is the Savior, the anointed one, the Greek word “Chrīstós”

Mark 1:2–3 (NASB95)

2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “Behold, I send My messenger ahead of You, Who will prepare Your way; 3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make ready the way of the Lord, Make His paths straight.’ ”

Mark is quoting Malachi 3:1 and Isaiah 40:3.

Malachi 3:1 (NASB95)

1 “Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear 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 40:3 (NASB95)

3 A voice is calling, “Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness; Make smooth in the desert a highway for our God.

Both of these passages speak of the work that was needed to be done before the Savior would start his work. In ancient days before a king would travel a road, workers would go out and clear out the obstacles, to make the road less harsh to travel on in wheeled vehicles.

Mark 1:4–8 (NASB95)

4 John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 And all the country of Judea was going out to him, and all the people of Jerusalem; and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins. 6 John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore a leather belt around his waist, and his diet was locusts and wild honey. 7 And he was preaching, and saying, “After me One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to stoop down and untie the thong of His sandals. 8 “I baptized you with water; but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

Mark then tells the reader about John the Baptist, he is showing that prophecy has been fulfilled. That John the Baptist is the messenger that he is announcing the arrival of the “Christ” and that he is preparing the way for the “Christ”.

Baptism was not unfamiliar to the Jewish people: In ancient Israel, water was often used as an instrument for purification (e.g., Lev 17:15; 22:4–6; Num 19:11–12). As a result, baptism in Judaism often was about ritual cleansing and may have involved multiple and regular baptisms. By contrast, John’s baptism stressed transformation—a turning from sin—and thus marked a turning point in a person’s life.

Did you notice that it was for the “forgiveness of sins” there is no mention of offering a sacrifice?

An explanation for “Bible Answers”

“Therefore, those who came to John in the wilderness for baptism were receiving forgiveness of sins because they were trusting in God's promise of a Messiah. They received water baptism as a sign of their repentance and their faith in God's promised Anointed One. Their faith saved them, not their baptism.”

Side note, think about this: John states he is not fit to stoop down and untie the thong of His sandals. This act was usually performed by a slave when a guest entered a house.

John Baptizes the outside of the body with water. John states the Messiah, the anointed one will Baptize the whole body from the inside, out with the Holy Spirit. We know that Jesus will ask God to send a helper, one that will indwell in Christ followers forever.

John 14:16–17 (NASB95)

16 “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; 17 that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.

Mark 1:9–13 (NASB95)

9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 Immediately coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens opening, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon Him; 11 and a voice came out of the heavens: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.” 12 Immediately the Spirit impelled Him to go out into the wilderness. 13 And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him.

Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee. Matthew tells us this as well in Matthew 2:23

Matthew 2:23 (NASB95)

23 and came and lived in a city called Nazareth. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets: “He shall be called a Nazarene.”

Mark 1:10–11 (NASB95)

10 Immediately coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens opening, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon Him; 11 and a voice came out of the heavens: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”

This is the first clear expression of the concept of the Trinity. And the Spirit like a dove, does not state it was a dove, this symbolism of a dove. What do you think it means?

When, I picture a dove, I see gentleness, a sense of being calm and at peace. One of the first times a dove is mentioned in the Bible is when Noah sends out three doves at different times, the first two do not come back. The third comes back with an olive branch. This picture a dove with an olive branch has been used to depict peace throughout time. And did you notice Mark uses Immediately again?

Jesus mentions doves in Matthew 10:16

Matthew 10:16 (NASB95)

16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves.

I also would like to mention, Jesus did not need to be baptized for the repentance of sins, because he was without sin.

2 Corinthians 5:21 (NASB95)

21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

1 Peter 2:22 (NASB95)

22 who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth;

1 John 3:5 (NASB95)

5 You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin.

Commentary from Enduring word: Jesus didn’t have to be baptized. He also didn’t have to die on a cross in our place. He did both things to express His solidarity with fallen man.

Think about this:

This strange scene displayed a humble beginning:

· Jesus: A common, unremarkable name.

· From Nazareth: An unremarkable, despised village.

· Of Galilee: The unspiritual region, not the “Bible belt” of the area at that time.

· Was baptized: Identified with sinful man.

· In the Jordan: An unremarkable – often even unpleasant – river. “Early rabbinic tradition explicitly disqualifies the River Jordan for purification, [according to] The Mishnah, Parah VIII. 10.” (Lane)

ii. The scene also displayed great glory:

· The heavens parting: Heaven opened wide for this. The ancient Greek for this phrase is strong. It has the idea that sky was torn in two, “being rent asunder, a sudden event.” (Bruce)

· The Spirit descending: The Spirit of God was present, and in some way His presence was discernible.

· Like a dove: Luke 3:22 puts it like this: And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him. In some way the Spirit was present and “flew down” on Jesus like a dove.

· A voice came from heaven: It’s rare in the Bible when we read that God speaks audibly from heaven, but this is one of those glorious occasions.

· You are My beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased: What could be more glorious than to have God the Father praise and affirm you publicly?

d. And the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove: This wasn’t just a fluttering cloud hovering above Jesus; it had the actual appearance of a dove. Luke 3:22 says, the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him.

The Holy Spirit was for special power for Jesus was beginning His public ministry.

Mark 1:12–13 (NASB95)

12 Immediately the Spirit impelled Him to go out into the wilderness. 13 And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him.

Mark uses the word immediately again. The sense of urgency is felt here, the quicker Jesus gets started on heading into the wilderness the quicker he can start His service as a servant.

Jesus was identified with sinners in His baptism. Here He was also identified with sinners in their temptations.

Hebrews 4:15 reminds us, For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.

Forty – as in the forty days of Jesus in the wilderness – is a number that often shows a time of testing or judgment. In Noah’s flood, it rained for 40 days and 40 nights. Israel was in the wilderness 40 years. Moses kept sheep in the wilderness for 40 years. This is Jesus’ time of testing.

His Preaching

Mark 1:14–20 (NASB95)

14 Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” 16 As He was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen. 17 And Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” 18 Immediately they left their nets and followed Him. 19 Going on a little farther, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets. 20 Immediately He called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went away to follow Him.

Mark 1:15 (NASB95)

15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

The Jewish people had been waiting on the Messiah for years, for decades, for centuries. Yet, once He arrived, once He announced, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand” he was rejected, they were looking, but not seeing, they were seeing but not believing. They rejected the Messiah that they had been praying for. Probably because they were praying for the wrong thing, their hearts had not been circumcised.

Romans 2:28–29 (NASB95)

28 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. 29 But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God.

Paul is discussing the role of the Old Testament Law as it relates to Christianity. He argues that Jewish circumcision is only an outward sign of being set apart to God. However, if the heart is sinful, then physical circumcision is of no avail. A circumcised body and a sinful heart are at odds with each other.

Most of the Jewish people wanted a political kingdom that would replace the oppressive occupation of the Romans.

Contrary to the expectations of most people in His day, Jesus brought a kingdom of love, not subjugation; of grace, not law; of humility, not pride; for all men, not only the Jews; to be received voluntarily by man, not imposed by force.

This is not what they expected or wanted!

Jesus preached repentance Metanoia: Change your minds, turn to God! Believe what I am telling you as it is confirmed in the O.T. by prophecy.

His Power-Over a demon

Mark 1:21–28 (NASB95)

21 They went into Capernaum; and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and began to teach. 22 They were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. 23 Just then there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, 24 saying, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” 25 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!” 26 Throwing him into convulsions, the unclean spirit cried out with a loud voice and came out of him. 27 They were all amazed, so that they debated among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him.” 28 Immediately the news about Him spread everywhere into all the surrounding district of Galilee.

Mark 1:21 (NASB95)

21 They went into Capernaum; and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and began to teach.

Capernaum was an important town, it is situated on the NW shore of the sea of Galilee and a trade route going to Damascus went by or through the town. There was a customs station located there, a Roman Garrison (Military Fort/Base) was located there and this was the home town of Peter.

He entered the synagogue and began to teach: Typically, the synagogue had no set teachers. Instead they had the custom of “the freedom of the synagogue,” where learned guests were invited to speak on the Scripture reading for that day. This custom gave Jesus the opportunity to preach.

He spoke with authority, he spoke from personal knowledge, he did not quote other Rabbi’s as was normally done by the scribes.

Mark 1:24–25 (NASB95)

24 saying, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” 25 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!”

The demon asks “What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth? This is not a polite question. To put it another way “Why are you interfering with us, Jesus the Nazarene”? People from Nazareth were not thought very highly of, they were despised. They would be like what people in the 80’s and 90’s considered people who lived in trailer parks. We were called trailer park trash (some of my childhood was spent in trailer parks and I grew up in a trailer. We called them mobile homes).

Remember what Nathaniel stated?

John 1:46 (NASB95)

46 Nathanael said to him, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”

Also, notice the demon said “us”. John MacArthur writes. The use of “us” indicates that this demon spoke for all demons.

And yet the demon further states:

“I know who You are-the Holy One of God”

In one sentence he despises Jesus and then in the next statement he acknowledges who Jesus is. That Jesus is the son of God, the demon affirmed the sinlessness and deity of Jesus. Truths that many Jews and gentiles deny to this very day.

Mark 1:25 (NASB95)

25 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!”

Rebuke here is to be sternly told. Jesus was not being polite. In one sentence “Be quiet, and come out of him!”

The demon obeyed, Jesus did not use lengthy words or lengthy incantations as people were used to seeing. This showed, this proved His authority!

His Power-Over disease

Mark 1:29–39 (NASB95)

29 And immediately after they came out of the synagogue, they came into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. 30 Now Simon’s mother-in-law was lying sick with a fever; and immediately they spoke to Jesus about her. 31 And He came to her and raised her up, taking her by the hand, and the fever left her, and she waited on them. 32 When evening came, after the sun had set, they began bringing to Him all who were ill and those who were demon-possessed. 33 And the whole city had gathered at the door. 34 And He healed many who were ill with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He was not permitting the demons to speak, because they knew who He was. 35 In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there. 36 Simon and his companions searched for Him; 37 they found Him, and said to Him, “Everyone is looking for You.” 38 He said to them, “Let us go somewhere else to the towns nearby, so that I may preach there also; for that is what I came for.” 39 And He went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee, preaching and casting out the demons.

Mark 1:35 (NASB95)

35 In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.

After a long previous day and possible evening Jesus gets up early to pray and he goes off to a secluded place, a place where there would be no distractions.

I like how a commentator puts this.

Jesus did not need to pray because He was weak but because He was strong, and the source of His strength was His relationship with God His Father. Jesus knew that pressure and busyness should drive us towards prayer, not from prayer.

Mark 1:38 (NASB95)

38 He said to them, “Let us go somewhere else to the towns nearby, so that I may preach there also; for that is what I came for.”

Some people would have stayed in Capernaum to ride the wave of success. As a matter of when Simon (his name has not been changed yet) and the others find Jesus they stated “Everyone is looking for you”

Jesus states “let us go somewhere else, to the towns that are nearby, so that I may preach there also; for that is what I came for.”

Jesus came to preach or in other words kerusso which is Greek for :to proclaim, to declare, to announce, or to herald a message.

The main focus, the main reason was not to heal and provide miracles. These were a byproduct of the love and compassion that Jesus had for others and in most cases because of the faith of those people people as well.

So Jesus with Simon, Andrew, James and John went on an evangelistic tour of the surrounding area of Galilee.

His Power-Over Leprosy

Mark 1:40–45 (NASB95)

40 And a leper came to Jesus, beseeching Him and falling on his knees before Him, and saying, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.” 41 Moved with compassion, Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, “I am willing; be cleansed.” 42 Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed. 43 And He sternly warned him and immediately sent him away, 44 and He said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.” 45 But he went out and began to proclaim it freely and to spread the news around, to such an extent that Jesus could no longer publicly enter a city, but stayed out in unpopulated areas; and they were coming to Him from everywhere.

Mark 1:40 (NASB95)

40 And a leper came to Jesus, beseeching Him and falling on his knees before Him, and saying, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.”

What faith this leper must have had, some may call it desperation, but I call it faith. This man at great risk to himself approached Jesus in a public place, lepers were forbidden to be in public places due to the possibility of spreading the disease.

His statement “If you are willing, you can make me clean”, now I am not saying there was no desperation, I just think he had more faith.

Up to this point the only record of an Israelite being cured of leprosy was Miriam, the sister of Moses.

Take notice that Jesus reached out and touched the man. No telling when the last time was that this leper had felt the touch of a human. Jews were forbidden to touch lepers as that would have made them unclean.

This also shows that Jesus did not come to abolish the law as of yet, because he commanded the man to follow the O.T. Law go show yourself to the priest and offer for cleansing what Moses commanded which can be found in Leviticus 14:1-32 this is a lengthy process.

Mark 1:44 (NASB95)

44 and He said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”

Sadly, this man disobeyed Jesus.

Mark 1:45 (NASB95)

45 But he went out and began to proclaim it freely and to spread the news around, to such an extent that Jesus could no longer publicly enter a city, but stayed out in unpopulated areas; and they were coming to Him from everywhere.

Because Jesus was limited to where he could go. If he entered a city he would be mobbed, we see how people behave today with celebrities or if the newest product comes out, people fight, they argue, they riot if they do not get their way, etc. People would have been more interested in the act of healing vs the message of salvation.