Gospel of Mark

1. describes the cherubim around God’s throne as beings with four faces: a lion, a calf, a man, and an eagle. By long tradition, the church has attributed one of these “faces” to each of the Gospels, according to the character and message of the particular Gospel. In the cathedrals of Europe this motif is repeated again and again by carvings or paintings of each one of these creatures, typically with a book. By tradition, the creature that represents the Gospel of Mark is the calf or the ox – a creature of work and service. The Gospel of Mark shows Jesus as the Servant of God, as a Workman of God.

The first three gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke, are always known as the synoptic gospels. The word synoptic comes from two Greek words which mean to see together; and these three are called the synoptic gospels because they can be set down in parallel columns and their common matter looked at together.

about ad 65.

The Gospel of Mark

He was the son of a lady of Jerusalem whose name was Mary, and whose house was a rallying point and meeting place of the early Church ().

The New King James Version Chapter 12

12 So, when he had considered this, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together praying. 13 And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a girl named Rhoda came to answer. 14 When she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her gladness she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter stood before the gate. 15 But they said to her, “You are beside yourself!” Yet she kept insisting that it was so. So they said, “It is his angel.”

16 Now Peter continued knocking; and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished.

From the very beginning Mark was brought up in the very centre of the Christian fellowship.

Mark was also the nephew of Barnabas, and when Paul and Barnabas set out on their first missionary journey they took Mark with them

for some reason Mark left the mission trip and went home ().

He may have gone home because he was scared to face the dangers of what was one of the most difficult and dangerous roads in the world, a road hard to travel and covered with robbers. He may have gone home because the mission trip was being lead by Paul, and Mark might have had disapproval that his uncle Barnabas was not in charge. He may have gone home because he did not agree with the way Paul was doing things.

We don’t know

Usually when this section of scripture those that identify with Barnabas think he was right to encourage Mark and offer him another chance. Those that identify with Paul say things like Mark was a wuss.

We do not know exactly what happened and I would not be willing to judge neither Paul or Barnabas as being in the wrong.

Paul and Barnabas completed their first missionary journey and then getting ready to set out upon their second. Barnabas was excited to take Mark with them again. But Paul refused to have anything to do with Mark for bailing on them in Pamphylia’ ().

The outcome ended up good in the end. The mission continued and Mark was restored and became an asset o Paul in his dying days.

Mark returns with Paul

It is in Mark’s gospel, above all,

The Book

There can be little doubt that all these details are due to the fact that Peter was an eyewitness and was seeing these things again with the eye of memory

His style is not carefully developed and polished.

It is the way in which an eager child would tell the story.

Gospel of Mark

Mark chapter 1