Mark 1:14-20 The Kingdom Is At Hand

Introduction

There are certain moments in history that divide everything into “before” and “after.” Moments so significant that once they happen, nothing is ever the same again. A nation goes to war. A wall falls. A person dies. A child is born. History turns on decisive moments. And when we come to our passage this morning, Mark wants us to understand that Jesus has stepped onto the scene announcing the most decisive moment in history.

For centuries, God’s people had waited. They waited through slavery, exile, suffering, and silence. They waited for the promised seed who would crush the serpent. They waited for the true King from David’s line. They waited for the Savior who would finally deal with sin and bring God’s kingdom.

And now Jesus comes into Galilee preaching: “The time is fulfilled.” The waiting is over. The promises are being fulfilled. The Messiah has come. And because of that, nobody can remain neutral. The gospel must be believed. Sin must be repented of. And Christ must be followed

Mark 1:14–20 “After John was arrested, Jesus went to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!” As he passed alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew, Simon’s brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. “Follow me,” Jesus told them, “and I will make you fish for people.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him. Going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat putting their nets in order. Immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.”

May God Bless the reading of His Word

Lets pray

Father, as we come now to Your Word, we ask that You would give us ears to hear and hearts that are ready to respond. Thank You for sending Your Son into the world at the fullness of time. Thank You that in Christ the kingdom has drawn near and the gospel has been proclaimed to sinners like us. Lord, guard us from hearing these truths casually this morning. Do not let us simply admire Jesus from a distance. Help us to see Him rightly as the promised King who calls all people everywhere to repent, believe the gospel, and follow Him.

For those here who do not know Christ, would You open blind eyes and soften hard hearts. Draw sinners to Yourself by Your Spirit. And for those who do belong to You, strengthen us to follow Christ more faithfully. Make us bold in evangelism, steadfast in obedience, and joyful in service. Use Your Word this morning to shape us into a people who love Your kingdom, proclaim Your gospel, and treasure Your Son above all things. We ask all of this in Jesus’ name, Amen

The Time Is Fulfilled (v 14-15 a.)

Mark 1:14–15 “After John was arrested, Jesus went to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!””

A. Transition from John to Jesus

The opening chapters of the New Testament take place during a remarkable transition in redemptive history. It was an “in-between” period. The old covenant age had not yet fully passed away, and yet the new covenant age was beginning to break into the world through Christ.

People were still going to the temple, still offering sacrifices, still looking for the promises of God to be fulfilled—while the promised Messiah Himself was walking among them.

And Mark intentionally shows us this transition. Jesus does not begin His public ministry until John’s ministry comes to an end.

John stands as the final prophet of the old covenant era, preparing the way. But with the arrival of Jesus, a new age begins.

And Jesus begins by going to Galilee to preach the good news, thats our word Gospel again. This is one spot where your Bible might read slightly different than your neighbor. Some translations say that this is the Gospel of the kingdom. Some say it is the Gospel of God. So I pulled out my Greek New Testament. And there was a footnote saying that the manuscripts are almost evenly split. Some say the Gospel of God. Some say the Gospel of the Kingdom. Now this is not a contradiction. Because both senses are present here. For this is most certainly the Good News of God. For Jesus is not just speaking about God. Rather the grammar is possessive. The Gospel belongs to God. He owns it. He is the author of it. It is not John’s Gospel. Or even in a sense Jesus’ Gospel. It was the Father’s Gospel that the Son declares. Next, consider the Gospel of the Kingdom. You See the content of this early preaching is the coming kingdom of God. The Old Testament looks forward to the Kingdom that is perfectly fufilled in Christ. The heart beat of the prophets of old can be wrapped up in Micah 7:7 “But I will look to the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me.” They were watching and waiting for their savior. And He was there.

In His preaching, Jesus gives us two declarations. The first has to do with time.

The text goes on to say “The Time is fulfilled”

Jesus is not refering to a specific time in chronololgy such as 2:30 on tuesday afternoon. Rather the word here talks about a significant moment. So momentous that it shapes history. And this special time is not just here. But it is completely fufilled. When you get a cup of water you ussually dont fill it up all that way to the brim. That way it doesnt spill. But the greek word is pleroma, meaning super full. Its when you forget a cup in the sink with the faucet going and the cup overflows. Jesus is saying that the time for the arrival of the kingdom of God was “super full”

Time and all of history up until this moment have been prepared by God omnipetent, ruler of all time and matter, has orchestrated all things for this very moment. The time of waiting was over. Why? Our second declaration

“ and the kingdom of God has come near.”

Now what exactly is meant by the kingdom of God? this has been a stumbling block that has divided Christians today. Its also something that seemed to be a stumbling block for first century Jews. For they were expecting a physical kingdom to be established by the messiah. Someone who would overthrow Rome and rule the nations how the Jewish people thought they should be ruled.

 With the possible exceptions of 14:25 and 15:43, however, in Mark it refers to a present, spiritual kingdom rather than a future, earthly one. Therefore the expression refers to the kingly rule, the reign, the dominion, the sovereignty of God in the hearts of people. 

Jesus is saying that the kingdom of God is among them. It was present physically with them. The people could reach out and touch their long awaited messiah.

Bruce Barton puts it this way, “What is the good news of God? These first words spoken by Jesus in Mark give the core of his teaching: the long-awaited Messiah had come to break the power of sin and begin God’s personal reign on earth. This was indeed good news from God because most of the people who heard this message were oppressed, poor, and without hope. Jesus’ words were good news because they offered freedom, justice, and hope. Though at first the listeners thought he referred to political freedom and civil justice, true disciples would learn after his crucifixion that the freedom was from sin, the mercy was from God and not people, and the hope was for new life with him.”

Yes there is a sense in which we are waiting for the kingdom of God to be fully realized on that great and terrible day when evil is finally and totally vanquisehed. But dont miss it. The kingdom of God cas come near and our king has walked amongst us.

Galatians 4:4–5 “When the time came to completion, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.”

The time for the kingdom of God is now. The time for the Gospel is now. The time to respond is now. For the Gospel demands a response

The Gospel Demands A Response (v 15)

Mark 1:15 ““The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!””

Repent. Jesus is not preaching a new message. Rather he starts with the very same message of John the Baptist. And truly the message of the so many before him. In the first part of the verse, these declarations tell us what God has done. God has worked all things together for this moment. God has brought the kingdom near. But now He gives a twofold command. Repent and believe.

Repentance is a topic that makes people a little uncomfortable. Good. Its supposed to. Becaus eyou and I have a problem called sin. We are not perfect just the way we are. We think say and do things that are wretched. We never perfectly ;ove our neibors. We have never loved the Lord our God with ALLLL our mind, with ALLLL our soul, and with all our Strengh. This is the path that leads to destruction. As Romans 6:23 tells us, our sins earn us death. We are headed down this path and Christ commands us to repent. Repentance means we are walking one way and decide to turn around and walk the other. As ephesians 4 puts it, if you used to be a theif, now you must earn a wage and give to others. If you used to use foul language, build each other up. If you were unfaithful now be faithful. Stop living your old life. Cling to Jesus. Look at the cross and repent.

But repentance is not enough. For not one of us is able to keep the whole law of God. The Gospel message is not “work harder and do better” For we are dead in our sins and dead men do not obey. No we must live by faith. Repent and believe. The Gospel is so simple that Christ urges us to have the faith of a little child. But it is also so profound, so grand that we can spend a lifetime and just begin to scratch the surface of His grace.

Acts 16:31 “They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”” Thats it.

I first heard this illustration from Alistair Begg but my mind goes to the theif on the cross. Imagine he gets to heaven and is stopped by angel that asks how did you get here?

The theif started by jeering at Jesus on the cross. But then he said we belong on the cross but Jesus did not. Thats repentence. He said Lord remember me in your kingdom. Thats belief.

Now this is not just an intellectual akwnolledgement that God exsists. Demons believe that God exsists and they trmble at the thought. Romans 10:9 “If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

This is not just believing in God, it is believing God. It is submitting yourself to him. It is trusting in Him alone for your salvation. So I ask you, have you repented and believed the good news? I am not asking if you said the sinners prayer or went up during an altar call. Have you repented and believed the good news?

Romans 2:4–6 “Or do you despise the riches of his kindness, restraint, and patience, not recognizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance? Because of your hardened and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgment is revealed. He will repay each one according to his works:”

Thats Romans 2:4-6. There are a lot of people who claim to be a Christian and have never repented and believed. At judgement day they will say but God, we did such great things in your name. God will respond, depart from me, I never knew you. Do you know God? Does He know you? Do you have a relationship with Him. So often we live our lives unwilling to wrestle with our sin, to put it to death, we take God’s grace for granted. Or perhaps we dont think God’s judgement will be that bad if it exsists at all. And yet we see Jesus talk about hell far more than He does about heaven in the Gospels. It is real and it is severe. Why would a good God send anyone to hell is the wrong question. The better question is why would a good God allow anyone into heaven when we all fall short of His glory.

This world seeks to grab our attention with many things. But it all falls short.

Have we felt our sins, and forsaken them? Have we taken hold of Christ, and believed? We may reach heaven without learning or riches or health or worldly greatness. But we will never reach heaven if we die unrepentant and unbelieving.

      J. C. Ryle

My friend we must feel the weight of our sin. It is what held Jesus on that cross. And then we must repent and believe the Gospel. So we see the time has been fufilled. The Gospel must be responded to. And lastly we will see that The Gospel creates followers.

The Gospel Creates Followers ( v16-20)

Mark 1:16–20 “As he passed alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew, Simon’s brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. “Follow me,” Jesus told them, “and I will make you fish for people.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him. Going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat putting their nets in order. Immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.”

Jesus began His early ministry near the sea of Gallilee. This sea, was 13 by 7 miles. Not a small pond. And it was a beautiful area. The Jewish Historian Josephus called it the “pride of nature” with some of the most fertile lands in the nation. It was not uncommon to see several hundred fishing boats on the water. There were several species of fish not available anywhere else that were exported to many surrounding nations. In our modern context we may think of fishing to survive as a lower income profession. But to be a fisherman on the sea of Galille, you certainly had some money to your name.

And as Jesus is walking along the sea, he is calling disciples. Notice Jesus is not going to the universities, the synagogues, the high places when he is searching for his disciples. No he is recruiting ordinry peaople. And that seems to be God’s memo throughout the Bible. In fact it seems as if the Bible makes it its mission to show that everone, except Christ, had some flaw or sin.

Noah got drunk, Jonah ran away, Moses stuttered, Gideon was a coward, Abraham was too old, Timothy was too young. Peter had a temper, David the man after God’s own heart failed morally, Elijah was depressed, Naomi was a widow, Paul sought to destroy the church,  Thomas doubted

And Lazarus was dead. 

So I ask you, what its your excuse for not getting your hands dirty with the work of ministry?

2 Corinthians 4:6–7 “For God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of God’s glory in the face of Jesus Christ. Now we have this treasure in clay jars, so that this extraordinary power may be from God and not from us.”

God does amazing things through ordinary people. Simon (peter), Andrew, James and John were not anyone special in the worlds eyes. But God would use them in amazing ways. The power of the gospel is not seen in the greatness of the people Jesus calls, but in the greatness of the Savior who calls them.

Whats most interesting is the manner in which Jesus gathers His disciples. Because he does so personally. In Jesus’ day, a Rabbi, which is a Jewish religous teacher, would never go out and get their own disciples. Students would have to apply to be a disciple. Near the end of their schooling they would be tested on their knowledge. Jewish students with no aspirations to be a disciple would memorize entire books of the Torah. But to study under a Rabbi required so much more. But Jesus was different, he went out and handpicked his students, who had all been passed over by others.

Notice Jesus’ call, its so simple. “Follow me.” And that was a literal call. Some Rabbis would teach at one place, but many would travel town to town teaching. And a disciple would follow these teachers closely. And they would hang on every word the teacher said. They would memorize every teaching and parable, the timing, the delivery. All of it. A disciple was also a servant. They would carry the Rabbi’s belongings, cook their meals, take care of every need. Teaching was considered a very high, weighty, and challenging profession. So much so that the teacher would often be the one sitting while they taught and everyone else was expected to stand while they taught. Following a Rabbi was a rigorous task.

So Jesus goes to Simon and Andrew and invites them to be His students and servants.

Note that Christianity does not begin with man pursuing Christ, but with Christ calling sinners to Himself.

This call to go be Jesus’ disciples was not an easy one. It had some cost to it. They left behind their lives. They had bussinesses with a steady income. James and John had hired help, their business was lucrative. I can promise you from persoal experience that faithful ministry is not a get rich quick program. Imagine if youre their father, Zebedee. Your two sons who were going to inherit this business from you hop out of the boat and begin to follow this young strange Rabbi off to who knows where. Its ludicrous by this world’s standards. Some of these men were married. They had homes, lives, jobs, security. And they left it all to follow Jesus.

Make sure you count the cost before following Jesus Because it is a promise that the Christian life will be full of hardship

Matthew 16:24 “Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.”

We like to think of the cross as a nice peice of jewelry. Or perhaps we use it to mean someone is carrying a burden, thats just their cross to bear. But for the Audience of Jesus’ day there was one understood meaning of the cross, bloody Roman cruxifiction. The Romans would force criminals, usually those who committed crimes against the state, to carry these great wooden beams to the place of their death. Cruxifiction was one of the most painful and humiliating ways to die. Jesus is calling his followers to die, with the promise of ridicule and disgrace along the way. Sounds like fun right? Jesus calls all his followers to a life of surrender and self abandonment. On more than one occasion Jesus presses those who want to follow him. Are you really prepared for the cost? And some turned away.

We have largely been protected from real hardship because of our faith here in the west. Our brothers and sisters face much steeper costs. However, the faithful Christian should still expect their faith to cost them something. To be a Christian means telling the truth when a lie could have made you a better bussiness move. It means standing on unpopular biblical principles when it comes to sex, gender, and marriage. It means remembering that how you spend your time and money reflects the one you serve. Being a follower of Jesus can cost you freinds, family, money, or even your own life. If your Christianity has never cost you anythiung you need to ask yourself, am I being faithful?

Not everyone is called to full time vocational ministry, but I have to ask, have you considered it? Have you earnestly prayed and asked God if He would direct your life down that path?

To everyone else, you don’t get a free pass either. 1 Peter 4:10 “Just as each one has received a gift, use it to serve others, as good stewards of the varied grace of God.”

Everyone is called to some ministry. You have a ministry to your family. Parents we have a responsibility and the pleasure to raise our children up in the way and fear of the Lord. You have a ministry to the community. I spent a little bit of time at the food pantry last week. And what an amazing way to be a light in the darkness around us. Get involved. And if you are in Christ, we have a ministry to one another. We are called to be a shoulder to lean on, to pick each other up, to walk this difficult path together. And I am so thankful to those who minister in this church. I could never name them all, and many of them go unseen and unrecognized. But thank you to,

I want to encourage all of us to get involved. In our community and in the church. If you see a need, fill it. Back in Michigan, there was a pastor I knew. Pastor Steve Decker. The church body was about the same size as here, maybe a little smaller. And one Sunday morning a church member stormed up to him absolutely indignant. Pastor I need to talk to you. I’m so upset. Communion was two weeks ago and the cups are still left in the pews. Its completely unacceptable. Who’s job is this? Calmly Pastor Steve replied. Oh my goodness. Thank you so much for seeing this need. Can you make sure that gets taken care of next time? Two things came out of that. 1. the man stopped complaining about everything. 2. the communion cups were taken care of.

We are not perfect around here. Sometimes things fall through the cracks. How sweet it is when God’s people serve each other without grumbling.

Alright, where were we. Back to the passage. Jesus calls His disiples personally, following him has a cost, and he expects immediate obedience. Something that we might gloss over here if we arent careful is what Jesus says in Mark 1:17 ““Follow me,” Jesus told them, “and I will make you fish for people.””

Now obviously Jesus here is not being literal. We are not to leave church today, go buy a new fishing pole, and go try to hook people walking down the sidewalk. Instead Jesus is saying that Christians are to seek to rescue people out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God. And the manner in which we do this matters. You and I go fishing with a hook, bait, maybe a fancy lure, trying to outsmart a fish. Trying to entice the fish to take the hook so we can reel them in. Some treat evangelism the same way. You know if we just a smoke machine and lasers during worship, we could probably convince someone to stumble their way on in here. If I can trick someone into getting baptized I know theyre good.

The come and see method is not the primary method found in the Bible. Rather the disciples are sent out into the world. Jesus goes and eats with sinners. These people fish with big nets tied to heavy stones. They would throw it into the water where they thought the fish might be. Let it sink, and then pull up the net, seing what fish have been provided for them. Over and over they would cast their nets. You and I have the power to save no one. That power rests only in God and His Gospel. However you and I are commanded to cast our nets and share the Gospel. These were Jesus’ last marching orders to His disciples, Matthew 28:18–20 “Jesus came near and said to them, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.””

You and I are called to cast our nets. If you are expecting your pastor to be the only person who evangelizes, the only person to share the Gospel, you are sorely mistaken. It is a command for all believers. But dont worry, i am not going to just throw you to the wolves. I want to teach you how to do so. Because its a little akward right? What if I forget what to say?

Now this accrostic is not original to me. It comes from Dare 2 Share ministries, a ministry focused on teaching teenagers how to share their faith. I learned it as a 7th grader and its still how I remember what to say. How do I share the Gospel? Well simply remember the Accrostic, GOSPEL

G — God created us to be with Him

Genesis 1:26–27 “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, the whole earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.” So God created man in his own image; he created him in the image of God; he created them male and female.”

O — Our sins separate us from God

Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God;”

S — Sins cannot be removed by good deeds

Ephesians 2:8–9 “For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—not from works, so that no one can boast.”

P — Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again

1 Corinthians 15:3–4 “For I passed on to you as most important what I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,”

E — Everyone who trusts in Him alone has eternal life

John 3:16 “For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”

L — Life with Jesus starts now and lasts forever

John 10:10 “A thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance.”

Now Im not expecting you to carry your church handout everywhere you go for the next 20 years. They also have an app called Life in 6 Words. Thats Life in 6 Words. This app has slides with everything we just covered. So if you cant remember what to say, its right there. If you get too scared to speak they also have videos you can show. I highly highly encourage you to take a look at this app. Cause I still use it too.

Church, this is the pattern we see all throughout this passage. Jesus calls ordinary people to follow Him, and then He uses them to reach others with the gospel. Simon, Andrew, James, and John were not impressive in the eyes of the world. They were fishermen. Ordinary working men. Yet Christ would use them to turn the world upside down.

And that should encourage every single one of us in this room. The power of the gospel is not found in the greatness of the people Jesus calls, but in the greatness of the Savior who calls them. Jesus does not wait for people to become impressive before He uses them. He calls sinners, transforms them, and sends them out.

And notice His promise: “I will make you become fishers of men.” Christ Himself is the one who shapes and forms His disciples. The burden is not on you to save people. Only God can do that. But we are called to faithfully cast the net of the gospel.

Some plant. Some water. But God gives the growth. So let me encourage you: stop making excuses for why God cannot use you.

Moses stuttered. Jonah ran. Thomas doubted. Paul persecuted the church. And these men were fishermen.

Yet God delights in using weak and ordinary people so that the glory belongs to Him alone. Church, if you are in Christ, then you are called to ministry in some capacity. You are called to serve. You are called to disciple. You are called to encourage the saints. And you are called to proclaim the gospel. Because followers of Jesus are meant to make Jesus known.

Closing

As we come to the end of this passage, Mark leaves us with a question that cannot be ignored:

What will you do with Jesus Christ? Jesus steps into Galilee announcing: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near.” The waiting is over. The King has come. God’s rule is breaking into the world through His Son. And because the kingdom is near, neutrality is no longer possible. Jesus gives a command: Repent. Believe the gospel. Follow Me.

Some of you this morning need to stop playing around with Christianity. You know the truth. You know the gospel. You have heard sermon after sermon. But you have never truly bowed the knee to Christ. Friend, the kingdom of God is not entered through church attendance, good morals, or religious knowledge. The King calls sinners to repent and believe. Turn from your sin. Trust in Christ. Come to Him today. And church, for those of us who do belong to Christ, this passage presses on us too. The disciples did not merely admire Jesus. They left their nets and followed Him.

Following Jesus cost them something. And it still does. The kingdom of God cannot remain a small side hobby added onto an otherwise worldly life. Christ calls for surrender. He calls us to:holiness, obedience, faithfulness, sacrifice, and boldness. And He calls us to make Him known. “Follow Me, and I will make you fish for people.”

Church, there are people all around us living in darkness while the kingdom of God has drawn near in Christ. Your neighbors. Your coworkers. Your friends. Your family.

We have been entrusted with the greatest news in the world: The King has come. Sin can be forgiven. Christ saves sinners. So let us not sit quietly on the sidelines. Let us follow Christ seriously. Let us serve faithfully. Let us proclaim the gospel boldly. Let us cast the net while there is still time. Because the time is fulfilled. The kingdom of God is at hand. And the King still calls sinners today: “Follow Me.”

Lats Pray

Father, we thank You for Your Word.

Thank You that the time has been fulfilled and that the kingdom of God has drawn near through Jesus Christ. Thank You that You did not leave us in our sin, but sent Your Son to seek and save sinners. Lord, help us not to walk away unchanged.

Teach us to repent quickly, to believe deeply, and to follow Christ wholeheartedly. Where we have grown passive, awaken us. Where we have grown fearful, strengthen us. Where we have grown distracted by the things of this world, fix our eyes again upon Christ and His kingdom.

Make us a people who take the gospel seriously. Give us compassion for the lost around us and boldness to speak of Christ. Help us to faithfully cast the net of the gospel while there is still time. And Lord, remind us that You delight in using weak and ordinary people for Your glory. Keep us humble, dependent, and faithful. May our lives proclaim that the King has come and that His kingdom is near.

We ask all these things in the name of our great King and Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.

Closing