Mark 1:1-13

How long does it take Mark to get to the central message of his gospel?

Mark 1:1 ESV

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

Mark 1:2–3 ESV

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,’ ”

[Rephrase if necessary: What monumental truth does Mark reveal in the first sentence of his book?] (The deity of Christ. Mark pulls no punches!)

Mark slightly changed the wording of the prophecy to make his point; “prepare the way” in became prepare your way. The speaker (I) is God; the messenger is John the Baptist; your way refers to Jesus’ entrance into public ministry. This messenger was an envoy carrying a message. He came before Jesus—in birth by a few months, but in ministry by several years. His job was to make the way ready for Jesus. John the Baptist proclaimed the news of the impending arrival of the Messiah and called people to prepare themselves through repentance and make a public declaration of their repentance by being baptized.

Reread verse 2.

In the Isaiah quote:

Who is "I"?

(God the Father)

Who is "my messenger"?

(John the Baptist)

And who is "you"?

(Jesus)

Someone rephrase it for us with names instead of pronouns.

(The Father will send John ahead of Jesus.)

For clues to John the Baptist's role, let's look at his wardrobe. What was the brother wearing?

(A camel's hair coat and a leather belt.) What do his clothes reveal beyond his lack of fashion sense?

(That's exactly what Elijah the prophet wore. John also ministered in the same area as Elijah had – in the desert near the Jordan River! He was obviously making a statement since he and everyone else was familiar with the Old Testament prophesy that Elijah would return before the Messiah came. Read and ,. Other parallels to mention if there is time and interest: Elijah passed on authority to his successor, Elisha, who received a double portion of his spirit. Christ's ministry obviously eclipsed his predecessor's as well. And Elisha's ministry didn't begin in fullness until after Elijah passed from the scene. The same was true of Christ and John.)

According to verses 4-5, what was John's ministry all about?

(Repentance and forgiveness of sin.)

Since baptism is associated with cleansing from sin, why in the world did the sinless Jesus get baptized?

(To identify himself with sinners, to be involved with God's work through John, and to be revealed by John as "the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.")

Name the persons involved in verses 10-11.

(Father, Son, Spirit. Once again, Mark is hard-hitting as he reveals the Trinity in his opening lines.)

What does the presence of all three persons of the Trinity at the baptism reveal about this event?

(The involvement of the Godhead accentuates its importance.) What was so important about it? (It's at this point that He received the Spirit's empowerment for the public ministry He was about to begin.)

Skim the passage and list every action which shows the power and authority of Jesus.