Session 1: Class Notes Plus Q&O

Hi friends, last night we shared hopes, expectations, and a little bit of our story with one another.  In any group Bible study I think it's important to be attentive to the context of the scripture as well as the context of the lives and perspectives that we all bring.

After articulating some goals and hopes for our journey together we launched into the first chapter of the Gospel of Mark.  I really enjoyed our first session together.  I think this is going to be a great journey.

The winged lion is the ancient icon for the Gospel of Mark

Below are some notes from our time, notes that I meant to share and some of the questions and observations I heard from our time.

Notes

The Goal from the Get Go

From the first sentence the author of gospel sets for the objective with images and ideas packed with significance. "The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God"

Three key concepts are shared that will be important to understanding the rest of the book:

1. Good News = Gospel.  This term is meant to imply any pronouncement of great joy, yet the particular word used in Greek was more often than not applied to the announcement of a military victory.  This will be an important idea as Mark progresses.  First, it hints at that the good news of Jesus has societal implications as well as personal.
2. Christ = Messiah = Anointed One.  The anointed one is one that is set apart for a special function or task.  In this case, the concept was of one who would set things right.  This implies of course that things are currently wrong.  A readily available expression of the "wrongness" of life for a first century Jew was their subjugation to the Roman empire.  If the anointed one was to make things right, it would seem that a conflict with the ruling powers (Roman political authority and the Jewish establishment that was in collusion with Rome) would be inevitable.
3. Son of God.  This title was well known in the first century as it was a common designation of the Roman emperor.  From the outset Mark is claiming that a Jewish peasant from what would have been considered a backwater section of the empire rivaled or even was above the emperor.  It leads to the question if Jesus is truly in charge, what does his leadership look like?  How does his reign compare to the reign of emperor?  In Jesus' first homily he proclaims, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God (read: reign of God, or culture of God) has come near; repent, and believe in the good news."  Jesus, throughout the remainder of Mark's book, will be addressing the questions, "What does the reign of God look like?  What difference does  it actually make?  What makes the reign of God good news?"

A Tie to the Old Testament

Mark's Gospel opens with a quote from Isaiah that is meant to highlight John the Baptist as the fulfillment of prophecy.  Although the quote isn't exactly from the prophet Isaiah.  It's more of patchwork of ideas from the books of Isaiah, Exodus, and Malachi.  It's likely his non-Jewish audience would notice his prophetic quilt.

As the early Christian community (BTW, they likely did not call themselves "Christian") would have been a new, and somewhat uneasy mix of Jews and Gentiles, it was important to the early writers to demonstrate a rootedness in Jewish tradition and ideas while maintaining an openness to the new community of non-Jews.

The Significance of 40

There are several numbers in the Bible with special significance (eg 12, 10, 7, 4, 3, 120 and more).  The website, Ask a Rabbi, has a great and concise explanation of the significance of 40 in the Hebrew scriptures.  In Mark 1 (and in all the synoptic gospels) there is a specific point being made with this little easter egg.  Mark wants us to see that Jesus is more than an individual.  He is a symbol for the people of Israel.  A (perhaps "the") defining event for identity of the people of Israel is the Exodus.  Notice the parallels.

Exodus: Passing through the water, wandering wilderness for 40 years, coming into promised land as a new community

Jesus: Baptized in the river Jordan (which the people of Israel passed through), wandering the wilderness for 40 days, enters into ministry proclaiming a the reign of God (which as we will see, creates a new community).

I think Mark is hinting that in/through Jesus there is new defining moment for the people of God.

What is Mark's Urgency All About?

The word "immediately" is used at least 40 times in the gospel.  Clearly, Mark wants us as readers to get somewhere.  We are sprinting along the way with Jesus, but where are we going?  What is he in such a rush to get us to?  We'll find out.

What's Jesus Got to Hide?
Shhhh....!

"'What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.' But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!" 1:24-25

There are many theories as to why Jesus didn't want to be revealed:

• Didn't want to be mobbed by crowds who came to see the "wonder worker."
• Afraid that if the Roman's got wind of what he was doing that they come looking for him.
• Mark is trying to explain why those who knew Jesus never heard him say, "Hey everyone, I'm the Son of God!"
• Mark is building the tension to the great reveal (connected to the theme of urgency).
• It's not that Jesus doesn't want the word to get out, it's that he doesn't want the wrong or misunderstood word about him to get out.

Which reason makes sense to you?

Who is this Jesus?

The first chapter of Mark is packed with names and titles for Jesus that are stated or implied.

• Messiah/Christ...v1
• Son of God...v1
• The one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit...v8
• Beloved of God...v11
• Traveling Teacher (itinerant rabbi's were not uncommon in that time)...v14
• Jesus of Nazareth...v24
• Holy One of God...v24
• Healer...v32

From the very first steps we're confronted with the question, "Who is this Jesus person?"
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If there was something brought up that you don't see listed below or another thought has since occurred to you then please share it in the comment section below.