Session 4: In abstencia

Hi friends, it felt like my week was missing something!  We'll be back on the 13th with Mark 7.

For now, let's touch on Mark 6.  There is a lot packed into this chapter and I won't get to it all here so please bring your ideas and questions about Mark 6 to our next class.

Mark 6:6b - 13

Jesus sends the 12 - Duccio

Jesus sends the 12 to continue a work that sounds very much in line with what he and John the Baptizer had been about (ie calling people to practice another way of life, offering a ministry of healing, and demonstrating power over spirits of fear, shame, and evil).  What I find striking about this story is the shift in identify it implies.

The 12 move from being disciples (ie learners, students) to being apostles (ie sent ones, ambassadors for the reign of God).  Rather than recreate my notes from this story, allow me to share a sermon I preached on this passage.  It's entitled, "How We Roll" and you can hear  it by clicking here.

Dueling Dinners

In Mark 6 the unsettling and the uplifting are seated next to one another like a poorly orchestrated dinner party.  Or perhaps their pairing is part of Mark's master plan.

The Unsettling - Mark 6:14-29
The story of Herod's deadly dinner party is unsavory.  It is stuffed with hubris and fear, lust and violence.  It is the story about the powerful meant to reveal how truly empty their power is.  Let's look at a few of the details.

• The Mighty Tremble - Herod was haunted.  Haunted by the memory of what he had done to John the Baptizer.  The story opens with his fear that this Jesus was actually John returned from the dead. 
• "King" Herod - Mark calls him King Herod but Herod was no king.  When his father, Herod the Great, died Rome divided up his territory among the four sons.  This supposed king was an appointed Roman puppet who oversaw a fraction of his father's territory (and a backwater, insignificant area at that).  Herod wanted to be called a king and repeatedly asked his superiors to be granted that title.  Rome refused.
• Family Drama - Herod married his niece Herodias but she was still technically married to Herod's brother Philip (whose name was actually Herod as well but lets not worry about that).  John the Baptizer publicly denounced this arrangement.  Herod had John arrested, perhaps in an effort to silence him, but left it at that.  It seems as though Herod had a respect or fascination or fear of John and all that he represented.  Herodias did not.  Herodias was in a difficult spot.  If John shamed Herod into divorcing Herodias she would be stuck.  She could not go back to Philip and she likely could not have returned to her family.
• Dance of Death - It is into this context that we come to the dinner party.  Herod calls for Salome (Herodia's daughter from her marriage to Philip) to come entertain the guests with a dance.  Mark's language implies that she would have been around 12 years old.  Did she do the chicken dance, the salsa, or something else, we don't know.  We do know that inviting an adolescent girl to dance before an exclusively male audience while they ate was very abnormal.  Herod is so pleased by her performance that he makes a promise to showcase his power before his dinner guests, he will grant her anything she wants.  Her request for John's head (at the behest of her mother) reveals how weak Herod is.  Herod does not want to kill John but he is now bound by pride.  The fear of appearing weak reveals the emptiness of his power.  John Chrysostom, the famous preacher of the early church, highlights the irony, "Note well the weakness of the tyrant compared to the power of the one in prison."

The Uplifting, Mark 6:30-44
Far away from the "royal" supper, in a deserted place with no supplies, Jesus orchestrates a meal where life abounds.  Let's touch on some of the details keeping in mind the meal that came before.

• Every Man for Himself - As the day grows long the disciples want to send the crowds away so that they can "go into the surrounding country and villages and buy something for themselves to eat."  You can hear a sentiment of, "The teachings about the reign of God are nice, but let's get back to reality" in their advice.  The marketplace will meet our needs.  Jesus' seemingly incongruous response highlights the dichotomy of their thinking.  Jesus' teachings refuse to remain in the abstract, they have implications for the here and now.  Rather than scattering the crowd, he instructs the disciples to gather them, to bring them closer together.
• Full - The reversal is clear.  Those who were empty, went away full.  The term used here conveys being completely satisfied.  We need to remember that being full with an abundance overflowing was not common experience for the common people of Jesus' day.
• Past Meet Future - The prophetic tradition that Jesus clearly aligns with repeatedly tells stories of God feeding people.  In Exodus 16 Moses instructs the people about God's provision of manna and quail.  In 2 Kings 4 Elisha feeds a hundred men with two loaves of barley.  In this story of provision, we are reminded of what God has done and we hear hints of future feasts.  The story employs the four-fold structure of, "Taken, Blessed, Broken, Given" which is core to the Last Supper (and I'd contend core to the way of Christ).  Repeatedly the scriptures from across the Bible imagine the Kingdom of God as a feast where there is enough for all.  One of my favorite such images comes from Isaiah 25.

"On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines,
of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear.
And he will destroy on this mountain the shroud that is cast over all peoples,
the sheet that is spread over all nations;
he will swallow up death forever.
Then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces,
and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth,
for the Lord has spoken.
It will be said on that day,
Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us."

Remember Mark's purpose, to tell the good news of Jesus the Christ the Son of God (see session 1 notes).  How does juxtaposing these two dinners further Mark's purpose?


The "So What"
While I think that each of the stories above have questions and ideas about purpose, power, and promise that can inspire us, for me, I find my "so what" in Mark 6:45-52.

Just before Jesus steps off of the wave and into the boat he says, "It is I.  Do not be afraid."  The "It is I" could be understood as a simple, "Hey guys, it's just me."  Yet it could also be a means to hearken the divine name shared with Moses on the mountain, "I am."  Either way, my heart is moved by what comes next, "Do not be afraid."  This is the most repeated commandment in the Bible.  "Do no be afraid."  It is spoken before a new journey or calling is undertaken, it is spoken often when creation senses the nearness of the creator.  "Do not be afraid."  Generally speaking, I think fear, not doubt, is the antithesis of faith.  For me, "Do not be afraid" is always a welcome word for what is says silently, "Do not be afraid, for Love is near."

Derek Webb's song, "A New Law" is a favorite of mine.  I think the lyrics are poignant but perhaps my favorite element is the way the repeated refrain at the end finds a way into my heart.

Session 3: Class Notes (Mark 5)

Day Trip
The story of Jesus healing the possessed man in chapter 5 is the longest healing story in Mark.  This story marks the first time that Jesus leaves the area of Galilee and moves beyond the Jordan river.  Refresh your memory and check out the story by clicking here.

Let's look at this story through two lenses.  First, we'll look at the major players (Jesus and the Possessed Man) as individuals and the significance of their individual situation and actions.  Second, we'll look at the story and it's characters as by what they symbolize, a broader communal view.

Individually

It's important to understand the Jewish concept of cleanliness.  Cleanliness and dirtiness had less to do with mud or grime and more to do with social order, boundaries, and expectations.  One helpful way to think about it is to think of your yard and your home.  You may not think of your front yard or your back yard as dirty.  However, if some of the dirt from outside got onto your kitchen floor it would make the floor dirty.  Dirtiness was more about something not being where it was supposed to be, something not fitting into an established category.

For an individual to be deemed unclean had dire consequences in Jewish society.  Ritual impurity isolated one from relationships (others did not want to be made unclean by association), from commerce, from religious life, etc.  One needed to pass through a religious protocol to once again be made clean and restored to community.  This often involved an offering and time spent in a quarantine of sorts.  Being unclean disconnected the individual from the community and made them vulnerable.

With this in mind it becomes clear that the man possessed by the demon was in desperate situation.

• He lived in a cemetery - Unclean! (Leviticus 21:11; Numbers 19:11)
• He lived among pigs - Unclean! (Leviticus 11:7; Deuteronomy 14:8)
• He lived in a city of Gentiles - Unclean! (Acts 10:28)
• In him lived an unclean spirit - Unclean! (Mark 5:2)

This man was completely isolated.  He is so separated from his community and from himself that he has lost his identity and is not even named in the story.

Jesus, as a rabbi, would have been expected to uphold the social mores of ritual purity.  His entering into an unclean situation (eg gentile land, cemetery, etc.) would have been scandalous.  He is willfully disregarding societal norms that guided how people interacted how people with others and with God.  Without offering justification or rationale Jesus breaks through the barriers that isolated this man and reunites him to community by healing him of the unclean spirits.  An amazing reversal in this story (and in the next story in chapter 5) is that rather than the man making Christ unclean through their interaction it is Christ who heals the man and restores him to community (again, note that this is circumventing the temple and its process for ritual purification).

The story speaks powerfully of the love of God which overcomes every created barrier.  It is reminiscent of Romans 8:38-39.

"For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Through the individual interplay between Jesus and the Possessed man we hear a beautiful testimony that none are beyond healing; none are so far isolated that they are forgotten.  To all Christ comes, and to all Christ beckons.

--

Now let's look at the story through the lens of what Jesus and the Possessed Man represent.  How might this story have been heard by Mark's original audience.

Communally or Symbolically

When we take a moment to pick at the details of the story we uncover clues that may have triggered another theme.  It begins by taking note of the names.

• The story begins across the Sea of Galilee in an area called the Gerasenes.  The area that the story is very likely referring to is known as Gerasa (modern day Jerash in Jordan).  A couple of things to note about Gerasa: (1) while Gerasa is located on the other side of the Sea of Galilee from Capernaum (Jesus' homebase) it is not located on the seashore.  It is actually nearly 30 miles to the south east.  And (2), sometime in the mid 60s AD (this is about the time that Mark was written), a rebellion flared up in Gerasa.  Rome violently squelched it intent on sending a message to other would be revolts.  Much of the town was burnt down and over 1,000 people were murdered (this would have been a large percentage of the population).
• The demon says its name is Legion.  A Legion was a regiment of 1,000+ Roman soldiers.
• Legion asks not to be sent out of the country but instead to be sent into the pigs.  It says that Jesus gives them permission.  Yet the actually Greek term translated as giving "permission" is more akin to dismissing a group of soldiers.
• The term "herd" in the text is a term that was not usually applied to pigs but rather applied to a disorganized group of soldiers.
• The text says the pigs rushed into the sea.  Yet the word for "rushed" was more often used to describe a military charge.

Perhaps the possessed man is more of a symbol (thus no name) for the people of that area who were tormented by the unclean Roman army.  His wounds caused by the Legion that possessed him spoke of the physical and psychological wounds caused by the Roman military.  To the survivors of Rome's attack Jesus brings a word of healing.

The idea is that Jesus (the embodiment of the reign of God) overcomes and banishes Rome (the reign of "might makes right").  To those early followers of Jesus, that original audience of Mark, those who were haunted by the wounds of the past or who feared the possible (and likely) Roman persecution to come, the story offers a powerful, healing and hopeful word about the Prince of Peace who overcomes every power and principality.

It is this story that  healed man is charged to go tell.

Session 3: Class Notes (Mark 4)

Hi friends, we've done it!  We're caught up with the daily devotionals!  From here on out we'll be taking one chapter a week.

Here are the notes from our time on 10/20.

Opening
As part of our introductions we shared about bible stories and/or verses that have been special to us, as well as bible stories and/or verses that we find difficult or have questions about.  I was so appreciative of the trust demonstrated through the personal story telling.  I found it to be a moving and sacred time.  Thank you all.

Mark 4: Secrets Inside Seeds
Mark 4 contains three parables with seeds and sowers as central images.  Interspersed among these parables, Jesus explains why he uses parables.  However, his explanation only seems to raise more questions.

"When Jesus was alone, those who were around him along with the twelve asked him about the parables. And he said to them, ‘To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside, everything comes in parables; in order that:
'they may indeed look, but not perceive,
and may indeed listen, but not understand;
so that they may not turn again and be forgiven.'" - Mark 4:10-12

Uhhhh, what?  It looks like Jesus is intentionally using parables to obfuscate his message.  Well, to a certain extent, this is what parables are meant to do.

Parables:

• In Hebrew parables are called Mashal which means riddle or dark saying.  The idea is that they bring both clarity and confusion.
• Parables tell a story that is easy to relate to and seemingly ordinary.  The story often includes details or a twist which is out of place or discordant.  The goal is to create cognitive dissonance in the hearers for the purpose of opening them to seeing a different worldview.
• Parables are not given to easy allegorical interpretation or simplistic moralizing.  The idea is to invite the hearer to listen again, to reflect, to enter into conversation with others, and to seek the wisdom of the Holy Spirit.  The goal is not the accumulation of information but relational transformation.
• Biblical scholar John Dominic Crossan describes parables this way, "You have built a lovely home, myth assures us, but, whispers parable, you are right above an earthquake fault”

Yet the question remains, did Jesus really want some to not understand his message?  And if so, then why not?  I'm not sure I have an answer that truly satisfies.  Here are some possibilities:

• This lack of understanding or intentional mystery fits with the Markan theme of the "Messianic Secret" (see Session 1 Notes).  Perhaps the reasons for the intentional murkiness are the same as the reasons for the Messianic Secret?  (e.g. did not want to be on the authorities radar just yet)
• Perhaps this statement is a way for Mark to explain to his contemporary audience why some in their community did not join the Jesus movement.  They were not meant to understand.  This could have been the answer to why some the Jews of that day (who knew the law, who knew the prophets, and who were waiting for the Messiah) chose not follow Jesus?
• Verses such as this have been used to proof text the theology of election (e.g. that God chooses some to be saved and not others). 
• This is another example of Jesus following in the prophetic tradition.  Prophets such as Isaiah (quoted in Mark 4) and Ezekiel (another commonly reference prophet in Mark) were told by God that some people who not hear or understand what they were saying.

With the difficult question still lingering, we dove into one of the parables.

Illustration by Ryan Sharp

 "Jesus also said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it  It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade." - Mark 4:30-32

A simple, beautiful, and subversive parable.  Let's take a look.

In the Hebrew scriptures the mighty cedar was often the plant image used to convey a mighty kingdom (see Ezekiel 17).  The Jewish people of the time were hoping for the Kingdom of God to come in power and crush the Roman empire.  What image does Jesus give them?  A mustard seed.

• The mustard seed is small (much like the fledgling early Christian movement).
• It's interesting that the parable points to the intentionality of sowing the mustard seed.  The mustard plant was not often sown.  In fact, it was more often see as invasive, disruptive, and not easily removed.  In could vigorously overtake a garden or road.
• The mustard plant grows only a couple of feet high.  It does not convey a sense of might, awe, or greatness in our cultural understanding of those terms.
• The mustard plant is most useful when it is crushed.  Once broken open it was used for a healing ointment and/or for respiratory issues.

Knowing this, what does a mustard seed/plant reveal about the nature of reign of God?

Roman Standard

I think my favorite discordant detail in this parable is the birds that make a nest in its shade.  Remember, the plant isn't that tall and the branches are not that impressive.  Why make the point that birds can find a home in it?  Here's what I think.

The mustard plant symbolizes the Kingdom of God (read "Reign of God").  Now, check out the Roman Standard, notice anything?  Perhaps the birds are a reference to the Roman empire.  During Jesus lifetime Pontius Pilate seemed to intentionally rile up the Jews by bringing the Roman Standard into the temple area (where no graven images of people or animals is allowed). 

I like to think that the inclusion of the birds in the mustard plant is saying that even the oppressors, even those we name as enemy, those who wish us harm, all are invited to be healed and to find their home in the Reign of God.

Session 3: Readings

One more week of catch up!  We'll be flying through chapters 4 and 5.  Here is a breakdown of the readings

Mark 4
1-20 Scattered Seeds and Secrets
21-29 No More Secrets and a Sower
30- 34 Invasive Seeds and Secrets for Some
35-41 Shushing the Wind for Some Shut Eye

Mark 5
1-20 The First Missionary
21-43 Two Twelves

Session 2: Q&O

Hey friends!

A lot of great questions and observations from the other night.  Here's what I have:

Is pain the punishment for sin?

This idea has run throughout Christianity and Judaism.  We see it reflected most poignantly in the book of Job.  For several chapters Job's so-called-friends accuse him of a moral failing.  Job was suffering so of course he did something wrong, right?  It is acutely heard in the accusation found in Job 22:5-11.  Doesn't God espouse such logic as well?  Stories throughout the Hebrew scriptures seem to indicate suffering because of sin (see Exodus 32, Numbers 21, etc.).  Yet Jesus seems to directly confront this idea with an emphatic, "No!" (Luke 13, John 9).  The story of Jonah also underscores that this correlation is not true.  Poets and Prophets cry out that such a simple equation is bankrupt (Psalm 73, Jeremiah 12).  So...what's the answer?  The scriptures resist a definitive, all-encompassing answer to the question of why we suffer.  They do seem to draw connections between sin and separation (ie separation from community, from oneself, from an abiding peace and joy, etc) yet this does not fully answer the question.  The only question the scriptures do seem to answer emphatically in regards to suffering is how.  How do we suffer?  With God.  We do not suffer alone.  Regardless of the cause, we are not abandoned in our pain.  In Hebrew scriptures, on the cross, in the epistles, we are told again, and again that God suffers with us.

When did Christianity become a separate religion?

Tough to say because it's tough to define when it becomes a religion.  There are markers along the way that we can point to but no clear exact date.

• Early 4th Century  The Council of Nicea creates the first uniformly accepted (mostly) statement of Christian doctrine and sets the date for the celebration of Easter, the highest of holy days in the church.  Articulated Doctrine
• 90 - 100 AD  The Gospel of John is written.  John 16:1-2 seems to clearly point to antagonism between Jews and Christians.  Differentiation from Judaism
• 80 - 90 AD  The Gospel of Matthew is written.  Matthew 28:16-20 (the Great Commission), sounds like a calling to a uniquely Christian mission.  Articulated Mission
• 64 AD  The Roman historian, Tacitus, says the Nero singled out Christians for persecution in response to a fire in Rome.  Recognition by Government
• Mid-50s AD  The first letter to the Corinthian church is written.  1 Corinthians 15:3-6 expresses a succinct Christology that includes a strong element foreign to Jewish beliefs about the Messiah.  Differentiation from Judaism (kind of)
• 50 AD(-ish)  The Council of Jerusalem decides that gentiles looking to follow Jesus don't have to follow (most) of the law of Moses.  Sighs of relief heard universally from gentile men.  Differentiation from Judaism (kind of)

When would you call it separate?

What's the deal with Jesus at the end of chapter 3?  He seems off his game.

Yeah, he's definitely acting counter culturally in regards to his family.  Throughout the gospel Jesus is looking to disorient and reorient the people of God.  He is calling into question identity derived from the established institutions and constructs (eg religious, ethnic, familial, etc) and looking to create something new.  I think Paul sums it up when he says,

"There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus." - Galatians 3:28

Session 2: Class Notes

I had a great time on Tuesday night.  You all ask great questions.  I love the ideas and insights you share.  Here are my notes from Tuesday night.

Opening

We began with the question, "Why study the Bible?  Why bother with this ancient book?"  It's easy to assume answers to foundational questions, or to answer such a question and never revisit it.  For me, it's important to study the Bible for three reasons:

1. Discovery!  The books of the Bible were written by a particular people in a particular time, yet the ideas, questions, and stories contain truths for all people of all times.  In the pages of the Bible I discover insights about the divine, about myself, about creation and about the relationships that bind us.
2. Making Meaning  The stories of the Bible give me a way to talk about the stories of my life.  So much of life is trying to make sense of it all.  The ideas and questions of the Bible provide me a way to help me connect with others past and present.
3. Comfort the Afflicted and Afflict the Comfortable  At times the Bible offers words of comfort when I am troubled and hurting.  And sometimes the Bible wakes in me a compassion for the troubles and hurts of others.

Before jumping back into Mark we paused to acknowledge our surroundings.  C.I.E.  My professor of Biblical Greek made us repeat the mantra, "Context is Everything".  So we outlined the contexts we'd be playing in as we explored the stories.

• The context of Jesus' day, approximately 30 AD around 70 miles east of Jerusalem
• The context of Mark's day, approximately 60-70 AD, perhaps in a similar area to Jesus or perhaps in Rome.  (Note: This was around the time of the Jewish rebellion and the Roman destruction of the temple. This was also around the time when the community of the followers of Jesus were very much trying to understand their identity)
• The context of historical interpretation of the text which influences the assumptions and questions of modern scholarship.
• Our context as 21st century westerners.

At any given time, one or more of these contextual lenses are influencing our understanding of the story.

In our effort to catch up with the Mark devotion we ran through two chapters in Mark.  We focused on one story in each chapter.

Drop-In Clinic / Mark 2:1-12

This story includes several repeated elements in Mark's story telling.  Each of these elements serve multiple purposes:
--Healing: Gives validity to Jesus teaching; reveals a glimpse of what Jesus means when he says, "The reign of God is at hand" (1:15); confronts/challenges a way of life or a way of viewing God.
--Teaching: Redefines communal identity; redefines image of God and the relationship between God and creation; illutrates the reign of God.
--Opposition: Foreshadows coming conflict; provides foil for Jesus' teaching; provides opportunity for Jesus reveal more of himself.

Staying with the story for a bit, a few details emerge:

The story hints at a connection between faith and healing (and a darker connection between suffering and sin, see Q&O for more on this).

• The paralytic man is healed not because of his own faith but because of the faith of his friends.
• Cyril of Jerusalem, a notable 4th century theologian and pastor, said ,"some have saved others by believing".  This idea is reflected in other places in scripture as well (Genesis 18:16-33)
• This is powerful for me as it speaks of why I like to remain connected to faith communities.  There are times when I am passing through the valley of the shadow of death, or when cynicism assails me, or when despair threatens to overtake me, and it is seeing/feeling the faith of others that heals me, that uplifts me.  Sometimes I get carried (lowered) by my friends, and sometimes I need to the one carrying others to the one who heals.

This story introduces the title, "Son of Man" for Jesus.  Jesus self applies this title more than any other in Mark.  So what does it mean that he calls himself, the Son of Man?  I'm not sure, but here are some possibilities:

• The title can be translated roughly as, human being, or guy.  It could be a way of Jesus referring to himself as a sort of average Joe, just another first century Jewish peasant.  Could Jesus be grounding his humanity?  Or perhaps he is using the term symbolically, as a way of saying that he represents all of humanity?
• This title could be a reference to prophets past.  In the gospels, Jesus often alluded to the prophetic tradition (typically Isaiah).  "Son of Man" is what God calls Ezekiel.  In Ezekiel chapter 2, God calls the "Son of Man" to bring the word of God to the rebellious people of Israel.  Is Jesus identifying his work with Ezekiel's?
• Ezekiel isn't the only prophet to employ this title.  In Daniel 7:13-14, the prophet speaks of a vision wherein the "Son of Man" comes down from heaven from the Ancient One and to him is given dominion over the earth.  Does Jesus see himself as a sort of fulfillment of this vision.

Or perhaps all three, or something else entirely.  What do you think?

The Man with the Withered Hand / Mark 3:1-6

The tension between Jesus and some in the religious establishment was already high by the third chapter of Mark.  This story is the fourth confrontation about Sabbath observance.  Keeping the Sabbath is one of the Big 10. Sabbath observance, like all of the Big 10 had a number of rules built around it to ensure that the people of Israel would not break a commandment.  Jesus, busted through these barriers with grace and life.  By this point the religious establishment had enough.  A couple of interesting details:

• Jesus didn't actually break the Sabbath in this story.  He actually did nothing against the law.
• Irony of ironies, it was those who accused him of breaking the Sabbath that actually transgress the spirit of the Sabbath by moving to plot his destruction.
• This marks a turning point in the story.  From here on out, Jesus is not just a curiosity, a religious fad, or even a nuisance.  Jesus now becomes a credible threat that must be eliminated.  But a threat to what?

At this point, it'd be good to look a bit more at the Pharisees.  So let's put them in context.  We can speak broadly of 4 Jewish religious groups/movements/ideologies in Jesus' time.  I relate all of these groups to the desired kingdom come.  The Jews of the first century were waiting for the promises of God's deliverance to be fulfilled.  They were waiting for God to show up and make things right (ie, free them from their oppresses, turn their mourning into dancing, good news for the poor, etc).  I usually refer to this as "the party" (I use the image of the party because Jesus often refers to images of a banquet or a feast or a celebration when he refers to the reign of God).  I relate all of these groups to the promised party of God.

• Zealots: Simply stated, they were tired of waiting for God to start the party and they wanted to get it going themselves.  Specifically they wanted Rome out.  They employed insurgent tactics and guerrilla warfare to frustrate the occupying Roman forces.
• Essenes: They wanted to start the party for themselves.  They would go "off the grid" in an effort to reclaim the heart of the Jewish faith.  Through aestheticism, ritual cleansing, a mystical practice of the faith, and an emphasis on peace and charity they created the party within.
• Sadducees: They were living the party.  The Sadducees were the Jewish religious elite who were politically and economically wedded to the Romans and to the status quo.  They benefited from the socio-economic system as it stood.  They rule the temple structure and comprised the upper echelon of religious leadership.  From where they stood, they were living like it was 1999.
• Pharisees: By far the largest religious group of the day.  The Pharisees were a fairly popular sect because they often sought to help people connect to the Jewish faith and live according to the law (however, those firmly entrenched in the margins: tax collectors, gentiles, prostitutes, etc were out of reach).  The Pharisees believed that God was waiting for the Jewish people to get their act together before he would show up.  Once they had all their ducks in a row, once everything was perfect, once everything was prepped for the party, then God would show up.  Given this context, it's easy to see that Jesus was becoming a problem.

The Pharisees remind me that sometimes, in my desire for something good, I can push too hard and miss the good right in front of me.  In this story, this select group of Pharisees are the height of irony.  In their ardent desire to see the reign of God come they completely miss (and seek to destroy) the embodiment of the reign of God right before them.  How often has my desire to control an outcome destroyed the very thing I was seeking to achieve?

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.

Marking the Way Group Covenant

Last night I suggested that we begin our sessions with a simple pledge to one another about how we would move through our time together.

This covenant is based upon the conviction that the spirit of God stirs within each participant in the group.  It is this conviction that inspires us to give all an opportunity to speak, to listen deeply to what is said and to be at peace in the silence.

Here is the covenant we shared:

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One: We know from experience that through Scripture, our words, and moments of silence God’s Spirit works to transform the words of the Bible into the Living Word of God for our lives.

Therefore…

All: We covenant with one another to:

• Listen attentively to the specific words of Scripture,
• Listen respectfully to each person’s comments allowing each the opportunity to contribute,
• Give space for silence,
• Speak so that all can hear and,
• Empower the designated leader to guide the group through this process.

Additional Resources

Hey friends, for those of you who want to take the journey through the Gospel of Mark to the next level, here are a few books you should check out.

Ched Myers

Ched Myers, Binding the Strong Man
This work on Mark is a game changer.  Be advised though, it's a dense read.

William  Placher, Mark (Belief: A Theological Commentary on the Bible)

This is one of Pastor David's preferred commentaries on Mark

Ched Myers, Marie Dennis, Joseph Nangle, Cynthia Moe-Lobeda, and Stuart Taylor, "Say This to the Mountain" Mark's Story of Discipleship

Tom Wright, Mark for Everyone
Very accessible with some really good elements

Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan, The Last Week
Only focuses on the last third of the gospel but a very good read.

If you have another suggested read for Mark then let us know in the comment section below.