Mark - Introduction (SS)

Powerhouse Church, June 1, 2008

Paul Cornelius

The Gospel of Mark is one of the “synoptic” Gospels. The word “synoptic” is made up of two Greek words – “syn” meaning “together” and “optanomai” meaning “to appear or to be seen” – giving it the fuller meaning of “being seen together.” This refers to the first three gospels, namely, Matthew, Mark and Luke, for these three have the greatest similarities. Each of these Gospels is an eyewitness account of the life, work and teachings of Jesus Christ, but from different a different perspective to the others. As we begin our study of Mark’s Gospel we must consider both his purpose and main themes.

Mark’s Purpose

The first 13 verses of the Gospel clarify, without a doubt, its purpose. Mark is concerned with introducing “the euangellion”- the gospel or “good news”. In common usage the “gospel” simply meant the announcing of some significant event that took place. Here Mark is announcing an event, after which history would never be the same again. Jesus is the centerpiece of this event as verses 1-13 demonstrate. Further, Mark poses two related questions in his material – “Who is Jesus?” and “What do you do with him?” In other words, Mark is concerned about revelation and response. It is well for us to remember that these two themes run through the whole book and form the basic material for the telling of the story of Jesus.

Revelation – Who Jesus Is

Mark portrays Jesus in several ways and uses various titles drawn from the Old Testament to describe him. One way of understanding Mark’s depiction of Jesus is to discern the movement from Jesus the powerful miracle worker and teacher (chps. 1-8) to Jesus the lowly, suffering, dying servant (chps. 9-16). Interestingly, who Jesus is, is never divorced from what he does – in other words being and doing go hand in hand.

Response – What to do with Jesus

Here to, as with the portrayal of Jesus, we find movement in people’s response to Jesus.

· The Pharisees - initially cool, but gradually become hostile and aggressive.

· The crowds – are amazed at Jesus, but later do nothing to save him

· The disciples – willing followers to confused followers

How are we to receive and read Mark’s gospel?

· Remember that there is a huge time, cultural and geographical distance between us and the original readers, and we need to work hard at understanding these

· Be conscious that we have our own traditions, thought forms and experiences that shape our perceptions as we read the Bible

· But we must also be convinced of the fact that the Spirit who teaches will challenge us in different ways.