Reflections on Mark 1

Mark 01 (Contemporary English Version)


1. This is the good news about Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
   
2. It began just as God had said in the book written by Isaiah the prophet, "I am sending my messenger to get the way ready for you.
   
3. In the desert someone is shouting, 'Get the road ready for the Lord! Make a straight path for him.' "
   
4. So John the Baptist showed up in the desert and told everyone, "Turn back to God and be baptized! Then your sins will be forgiven."
   
5. From all Judea and Jerusalem crowds of people went to John. They told how sorry they were for their sins, and he baptized them in the Jordan River.
   
6. John wore clothes made of camel's hair. He had a leather strap around his waist and ate grasshoppers and wild honey.
   
7. John also told the people, "Someone more powerful is going to come. And I am not good enough even to stoop down and untie his sandals.
   
8. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit!"
   
9. About that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee, and John baptized him in the Jordan River.
   
10. As soon as Jesus came out of the water, he saw the sky open and the Holy Spirit coming down to him like a dove.
    
11. A voice from heaven said, "You are my own dear Son, and I am pleased with you."
    
12. Right away God's Spirit made Jesus go into the desert.
    
13. He stayed there for forty days while Satan tested him. Jesus was with the wild animals, but angels took care of him.
    
14. After John was arrested, Jesus went to Galilee and told the good news that comes from God.
    
15. He said, "The time has come! God's kingdom will soon be here. Turn back to God and believe the good news!"
    
16. As Jesus was walking along the shore of Lake Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew. They were fishermen and were casting their nets into the lake.
    
17. Jesus said to them, "Come with me! I will teach you how to bring in people instead of fish."
    
18. Right then the two brothers dropped their nets and went with him.
    
19. Jesus walked on and soon saw James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They were in a boat, mending their nets.
    
20. At once Jesus asked them to come with him. They left their father in the boat with the hired workers and went with him.
    
21. Jesus and his disciples went to the town of Capernaum. Then on the next Sabbath he went into the Jewish meeting place and started teaching.
    
22. Everyone was amazed at his teaching. He taught with authority, and not like the teachers of the Law of Moses.
    
23. Suddenly a man with an evil spirit in him entered the meeting place and yelled,
    
24. "Jesus from Nazareth, what do you want with us? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are! You are God's Holy One."
    
25. Jesus told the evil spirit, "Be quiet and come out of the man!"
    
26. The spirit shook him. Then it gave a loud shout and left.
    
27. Everyone was completely surprised and kept saying to each other, "What is this? It must be some new kind of powerful teaching! Even the evil spirits obey him."
    
28. News about Jesus quickly spread all over Galilee.
    
29. As soon as Jesus left the meeting place with James and John, they went home with Simon and Andrew.
    
30. When they got there, Jesus was told that Simon's mother-in-law was sick in bed with fever.
    
31. Jesus went to her. He took hold of her hand and helped her up. The fever left her, and she served them a meal.
    
32. That evening after sunset, all who were sick or had demons in them were brought to Jesus.
    
33. In fact, the whole town gathered around the door of the house.
    
34. Jesus healed all kinds of terrible diseases and forced out a lot of demons. But the demons knew who he was, and he did not let them speak.
    
35. Very early the next morning, Jesus got up and went to a place where he could be alone and pray.
    
36. Simon and the others started looking for him.
    
37. And when they found him, they said, "Everyone is looking for you!"
    
38. Jesus replied, "We must go to the nearby towns, so that I can tell the good news to those people. This is why I have come."
    
39. Then Jesus went to Jewish meeting places everywhere in Galilee, where he preached and forced out demons.
    
40. A man with leprosy came to Jesus and knelt down. He begged, "You have the power to make me well, if only you wanted to."
    
41. Jesus felt sorry for the man. So he put his hand on him and said, "I want to! Now you are well."
    
42. At once the man's leprosy disappeared, and he was well.
    
43. After Jesus strictly warned the man, he sent him on his way.
    
44. He said, "Don't tell anyone about this. Just go and show the priest that you are well. Then take a gift to the temple as Moses commanded, and everyone will know that you have been healed."
    
45. The man talked about it so much and told so many people, that Jesus could no longer go openly into a town. He had to stay away from the towns, but people still came to him from everywhere.

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Mark, the writer of this gospel, seems to be guided in his writing to give general themes and purposes rather than a great amount of detail. He begins with John the Baptist, connecting Jesus to the old testament prophecy of Isaiah. Though Jesus had not yet come on the scene, John was preparing the way for His entrance. This one, Jesus, would be more powerful than John and would baptize with the Holy Spirit, whereas John used water. Then Jesus appeared and submitted Himself to John's baptism, identifying Himself as the One to whom John referred, receiving the blessing of His heavenly Father. Following the baptism, scripture says Jesus was driven into the wilderness by the Spirit. The Spirit had come on Him following His baptism, and this same Spirit led Him to His temptation experience in the wilderness. Was Jesus up to the task He had been given? Was He able to choose the difficult path to accomplish His purpose or would He try to take an easier course that ultimately would not accomplish that purpose? This was His test at the hands of Satan. He proved Himself capable of the task before Him.

The beginning of Jesus' ministry marked the end of John's ministry with his arrest by Herod. Jesus' initial message identified who He was and His purpose, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe in the good news!" But those who heard Him did not understand. Then Jesus began to call out His disciples, meeting them where they were and inviting them to "follow Me." Though He was addressing those who would become His apostles, I believe Jesus' invitation to any of us is much the same. We are called to leave where we are and go with Him. This does not refer to a change of geographical location so much as a break with our old way of life.

The first thing Jesus did with His disciples was to go to the synogogue to teach. There He encountered a man who was demon possessed. This encounter along with a number of other encounters with those possessed with demons suggests this possession was rather prevalent. Does this also suggest the spiritual darkness present in Israel at that time? Though no one else understood who Jesus was, the demons did. They clearly identified Him as the "Holy One of God." Did this catch the attention of His disciples and the people along with the ruler of the synogogue? Whether it did or not, Jesus' casting out of the demon along with His authoritative teaching did catch their attention and "His fame then spread throughout the entire vicinity of Galilee."

From there Jesus and His disciples went to the home of Simon Peter and Andrew. It is there Jesus began to do various healings beginning with Peter's mother-in-law who had a fever. Then people began to come to Him in droves seeking to be healed of various diseases and to have demons cast out. At this point Jesus modeled for us the need to retreat from the world periodically and briefly to pray and be spiritually renewed. If Jesus had this need, ours is even greater. Moving on to Galilee, Jesus continued to drive out demons and there encountered the first healing of leprosy. Those with diseases of the skin were considered unclean and were not allowed to enter the temple. If they should be healed of their disease, the law prescribed a ritual of cleansing to again allow them entry into the temple and to worship. Jesus instructed this first leper He had healed to present himself to the priest for this ritual of cleansing. The purpose of this was not so much the need to fulfill the cleasning ritual as to give testimony to the priests. It is not clear exactly what Jesus had in mind here, but certainly this testimony gave them a message of who Jesus was. Would they accept who He was? Do we accept who He was and is?