Our story of humanity so far has been about rebellion and rescue. We’ve seen Adam and Eve sin and face both judgement and grace, we’ve observed this pattern repeated through Cain and Abel. We’ve then watched as evil has filled the earth leading to judgement through cataclysm. There was salvation in the midst of The… Continue reading Hostile to God
Category: Bible Study
Unexpected enemies
Through Mark we are going to keep running into the Scribes and the Pharisees, in fact, they show up quite a bit from the end of chapter 1 and through chapters 2 and 3. These are frequently mentioned as being in opposition to Jesus, seeking to catch him out, grumbling against him, accusing him of… Continue reading Unexpected enemies
Clean (Mark 1:21-45)
One of the big themes in the Gospels is that Jesus comes to make us “clean.” The idea of cleanness arises out of the Old Testament Law. The Law distinguishes between Blessing and curse Life and death Sin and righteousness Law keepers and law breakers Holy and profane Clean and Unclean There is a relationship… Continue reading Clean (Mark 1:21-45)
The call of the kingdom (Mark 1:14-20)
We now begin to see what it means for Jesus to preach about the Kingdom and call people to repentance with a series of examples. – It means calling people to follow him and leave behind other priorities (1:16-20 and 2:13-17) – It means calling evil spirits out of people. Captives are set free (1:21-28)… Continue reading The call of the kingdom (Mark 1:14-20)
Why did Jesus get baptised? (Mark 1:6-13)
Mark’s Gospel is shorter than the others with a greater sense of immediacy and urgency. The focus appears to be much mor eon the narrative and so we don’t tend to get the extended conversatinos and teaching we find in Matthew and John. So, when Mark takes a bit of time to flesh out a… Continue reading Why did Jesus get baptised? (Mark 1:6-13)
A voice crying in the wilderness (Mark 1:1-8)
Each of the Gospels start a little differently. Matthew and Luke both begin with Jesus’ birth and the nativity story but whilst Luke takes us to the specific day with shepherds and angels, Matthew focuses on the arrival of the wisemen. Luke talks about Gabriel’s appearance to Mary but Matthew focuses on Joseph. John begins… Continue reading A voice crying in the wilderness (Mark 1:1-8)
The Kingdom of God in Mark
Jesus begins his ministry by announcing the “good news” that the Kingdom of God is near.[1] Therefore, if we are to benefit from this good news, we need to understand what Jesus means by the phrase “The Kingdom of God.” Firstly, The Kingdom of God is the fulfilment of God’s promises to Israel. We see… Continue reading The Kingdom of God in Mark
How do we approach studying Mark’s Gospel?
It is possible to work through the Gospel in one of a few ways. This might include Picking up a number of themes and tracing them through the Gospel as a series of sermons on The Kingdom of God, The Son of Man, Suffering and the Cross etc. A longer and detailed series might have… Continue reading How do we approach studying Mark’s Gospel?
Some big themes in Mark’s Gospel
Kingdom The theme of God’s kingdom is significant to all of the Gospels but particularly stands out in Matthew and Mark. Matthew refers to it as The Kingdom of Heaven, this links to a Jewus reluctance to even speak out God’s name so that other words are used in place of “God” or “YHWH.” Heaven… Continue reading Some big themes in Mark’s Gospel
The nature and purpose of Mark’s Gospel
It is worth thinking a little bit more about the nature and purpose of the book by considering its style and structure as well as comparing it to other examples of literature both ancient and moder. This will help us consider how we should approach it in terms of preaching and teaching. One recent obsession… Continue reading The nature and purpose of Mark’s Gospel
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