Gospel of Mark Study #4

“The Man Is the Message”

Mark 1:21-34

Study #4 in Mark Series

INTRODUCTION:

At the end of John’s Gospel, he tells us why he wrote all the things he did. In 20:30-31 he says, “Many other signs [i.e., miracles] therefore Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and the believing you may have life in His name.” In other words, John is saying that the miracles that Jesus performed were like His professional business card, identifying who He was, what He came to do, and what He had to offer.

TRANSITION:

Everyone understands that in the sales business the salesman must sell himself before he will be able to sell his product. His first and biggest job is to convince people about himself and make them believe in him and his ability to provide them with a valuable service. We might say, “The man is the message.”

This was true of Jesus as well. He came to earth to accomplish a mission—to save people from their sins and to establish His Church. But to do that He had to sell Himself to a world filled with skeptical sinners.

In today’s passage we see Him beginning to do just that, to present Himself, and to give a little glimpse of His infinite power to heal and to save.

NOTES on the Text:

Verse 21: They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach.

• “Kapharnaum” (or Capernaum) means “village of Naum” (not the prophet). It was a bustling little fishing village on the north end of the Sea of Galilee with about 1,500 inhabitants. It was an important town on the main road to Damascus in Syria.

·         “The synagogue” – There is a synagogue there that you can visit today but it was not built until 300 years after Jesus’ time. Synagogues were primarily teaching institutions. The synagogue service consisted of only three things: prayer, the reading of God’s Word, and the exposition of it. There was no music, no singing, and no sacrifice. Those things only went on in the Temple in Jerusalem. Jesus was regarded as a rabbi (i.e., teacher) and therefore was granted the honor of reading the scripture portion assigned for that day and commenting on it. That was the custom. In the absence of a rabbi the ruler of the synagogue would fulfill this role, or else call on someone to do it.

·         “When Sabbath came” – Apparently this was just the regular Sabbath, which had begun at sundown on Friday evening and went for 24-hours until sundown on Saturday. This meeting apparently occurred sometime on Saturday morning.

·         “Began to teach” – We have no idea what He said, nor do we know the passage from which He was teaching, but we can see the effect that it had upon His hearers.

Verse 22: The people were amazed at His teaching, because He taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law.

·         There were four (4) primary groups of religious people in Jesus’ day.

o   Pharisees—They were the fundamentalists of their time, sticklers for the Law and mostly rich men. They highly valued the oral traditions that had been passed down to them.

o   Sadducees—They were the theological liberals of that era. They did not believe in angels, resurrection from the dead, or an afterlife. They had little use for the oral traditions and only considered the Torah to be authoritative.

o   Essenes—They were hermits and mystics, living in the desert and having little to do with anyone.

o   Scribes—They were professional copyists of the sacred scrolls. They hand-copied the Scriptures and thus knew the text better than anyone else. For that reason, they were valued as teachers of the Law. Because the Pharisees were in power, they and the scribes formed a united religious front against the Sadducees.

·         Jesus amazed them because He taught in a way that was so different from anything they had ever heard before. His words rang with truth and authority. They were used to hearing, “Rabbi So-and-so says this, and Rabbi What’s-his-nose says that.” But Jesus spoke, “Thus saith the Lord!” John 7:15 gives this same thought in the minds of the people. – The Jews then were astonished, saying, “How has this man become learned, having never been educated?”

·         Let me give you an idea of the kinds of things the Jewish people had become accustomed to hearing from their teachers. Here is a portion I picked at random from the Talmud discussing regulations concerning what garments (serving as ornaments) women may go out with on the Sabbath.

o   MISHNA I.: In what ornamental apparel may a woman go out, and in what may she not go out? A woman is not allowed to go out even in private ground either with woolen or linen bands or with straps on her head to keep her hair in tresses as a precaution lest she enter public ground and take off the bands to show to her friends, thereby becoming guilty of carrying movable property for a distance of four ells or more. Nor is she to bathe herself with the bands on unless loosened. Nor is she to go out with either Totaphoth or Sarbitin on, unless they are fastened; nor with a hood in public ground, nor with gold ornaments, nor with nose-rings, nor with finger-rings that have no seal, nor with pins. But if she did go out with these things, she is not bound to bring a sin-offering as they are ornaments and not burdens.

o   GEMARA: “Bathing.” Where is bathing referred to and what has it to do with the Sabbath? Said Rabbi Na’hman ben Itz’hak in the name of Rabbi ben Abuhu: The Mishna means to say: What is the reason that a woman is not allowed to go out with either woolen or linen bands? Because the sages have decided that she is not to bathe herself with them on, even on week days, unless loosened; therefore she shall not go out with them on the Sabbath at all, lest it happen that she become in duty bound to bathe herself, and, while untying her hair, be forced to carry the bands in public ground for a distance of four ells or more.

 

Verse 23-24: Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit cried out, ²⁴ “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”

·         Try to picture this… “a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit.” It is certain this guy was well-known in the community and in the synagogue. Remember, they did not get a lot of drop-in visitors to their meetings. And I am sure that no one in that meeting except Jesus knew that the guy was demon possessed.

·         Can demons get into people and even have them sit through church services with no one knowing? YES! But in the presence of the Son of God the demon could not keep up his disguise and his charade. The evil spirit was subject to Jesus and obviously frightened of Him, knowing who He was and what power and authority He possessed.

·         “What do you want with us? Have you come to destroy us?” The demon speaks using the man’s voice. Notice that he speaks first using the plural, “us.” But then the demon switches to the singular: “I know who you are—the Holy One of God.” Perhaps the demon was referring at first to the fact that Scripture says that someday Christ will utterly destroy Satan and all his demons. Perhaps he was thinking that day had come. It is obvious that he was aware of Christ’s identity. All the supernatural forces of Hell know who Jesus is and they fear Him.

Verse 25-26: “Be quiet!” said Jesus sternly. “Come out of him!”  ²⁶ The evil spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek.

·         Literally Jesus told the demon to “muzzle himself.” Jesus addressed the demon the way I used to address my dog, Bubba, when he barked at the cats or at some sound he heard. I would yell at him to “Be quiet! Shut up!” Jesus showed no fear whatsoever. He ordered the demon to come out of the man immediately. Having no choice, the demon did as he was told, although not without complaint. Petulantly he shook the man and let out a shriek. What happened to the man and the demon after that we are left to guess. Mark does not tell us any more details about what happened.

Verse 27: The people were all so amazed that they asked each other [or “debated among themselves” NASV], “What is this?  A new teaching—and with authority! He even gives orders to evil spirits, and they obey him.”

·         “The people were amazed” – this is the second time in this text that we read that the people were amazed at Jesus. They were amazed at His teaching, and now they are amazed at His power to perform miracles.

·         The Scribes could not teach like Jesus did. The Pharisees could not cast out demons the way Jesus did. No one could do the things He did, and the people were amazed at what they had heard and witnessed.

·         “He even gives orders to evil spirits, and they obey him.” – This observation reminds me of Luke 8:25. Jesus and his disciples were in a boat crossing the lake and Jesus fell asleep in the back of the boat. When a terrible storm arose, the disciples were afraid they were all going to drown so they awakened Jesus and begged Him to do something. He spoke to the storm and immediately the winds and waves ceased. Jesus spoke to His disciples saying: “Where is your faith?” They were fearful and amazed, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?”

Verses 28: News about Him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee.

·         This verse is sort of an aside. It should have a parenthesis around it because it is a general observation about what effect this miracle had.

·         They say, “bad news travels fast,” but so does Good News. There was no TV, Internet, radio, or newspaper back then but information about Jesus quickly spread by word of mouth.

·         As soon as they heard what had happened people began saying to themselves and to those around them, “I wonder if this rabbi from Nazareth might be able to help So-and-so. Let’s take him to Capernaum and find out.”

Verse 29: As soon as they left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew.

·         I take this to refer to the five: namely, Jesus, James, John, Simon, and Andrew, probably followed by a bunch of people who had been in the synagogue meeting. Apparently, this was Simon’s house, but it appears that Simon was the patriarch and head of the extended family. Andrew must have lived there too. 

Verse 30: Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told Jesus about her.

·         This verse is one of the Roman Catholics’ worst nightmares. They insist that Peter was the first Pope. But popes are not allowed to marry. However, the only way to get a mother-in-law is to be married so it is a big mystery. The Bible tells us nothing about Peter’s wife, or about any children he might have had. But that’s not a surprise because it doesn’t give any information about any of the other apostles’ families either. Yet according to 1 Cor. 9:5 many of them were married, including Simon Peter.

·         Anyway, Peter’s mother-in-law was extremely sick, in bed with a high fever. That would have been a big concern to Peter’s whole family. People often died from fever in those days. Someone shared the problem with Jesus. 

Verse 31: So, He went to her, took her hand, and helped her up. The fever left her, and she began to wait on them.

·         She was probably lying down in a back room. Jesus went in to where she was and simply took her by the hand. No details are given about how He did it but apparently the miracle occurred the moment He touched her. Luke’s Gospel records that Jesus “rebuked” the fever and it “left her immediately.”

·         Her healing was immediate. Minutes later she was back on her feet waiting on Jesus and the other houseguests.

Verse 32: That evening after sunset the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon possessed.

·         Why did the people wait until after sunset? Remember the rules of the Sabbath. People could only travel a short distance on the Sabbath, so they waited until the Sabbath closed at sundown. Can you imagine that scene? The street in front of Simon’s house was jam-packed with sick people. They came limping, crawling, and hobbling. Some had to be carried on pallets by their friends or family members. It was getting dark, and the breeze coming off the lake was getting cold. The people were calling out Jesus’ name, asking Him to come out and help them.

Verse 33-34: The whole town gathered at the door, ³⁴ and Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out many demons, but He would not let the demons speak because they knew who He was.

·         Here Mark uses hyperbole to tell us that a whole bunch of people showed up at Simon’s door wanting Jesus to come out and heal all their diseases and cast out all their evil spirits.

·         But why did Jesus not allow the evil spirits to speak? According to Luke 4:41 the demons were identifying Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, but He repeatedly refused to let them speak. Mark’s use of the Greek imperfect tense here indicates repeated action. This knowledge of His person is further evidence that these were not merely cases of mental illness, as many sceptics contend, but of genuine demonic oppression.

·         We see that the Lord steadfastly refused to accept demoniac testimony to His Godhood. All such testimony is non-voluntary, an unwilling recognition of an observed fact, and thus corresponds to no moral or spiritual transforming discovery. Besides, everyone knows that a testimony is only as valid as the character of the witness. That is why we give so little credence to the testimony of a jailhouse snitch. Character counts. Jesus did not need character references about His holiness and Godhood from demons from Hell. It makes sense when you think about it. 

CONCLUSION:

In this story, covering only one day in Jesus’ life, we see Him healing people three times. First, He healed in the synagogue; second, He healed in the house of His friends; and now, third, He healed in the street. Wherever there was trouble Jesus was ready to use His power to help and to heal.

The people flocked to Jesus because they recognized in Him a man who could do things. There were plenty who could talk and expound and lecture and teach; but here was someone who dealt not merely in words but also in actions.

But I see something sad here as well. The crowds came because they wanted something from Jesus. They did not come because they loved Him or really believed in Him as the Messiah sent from God. In the last analysis they just wanted to use Him. Still today, that is what most people want to do with God and with His Son, Jesus.

Gospel of Mark Study #3

“Repent and Believe”

Mark 1:14-20

Study #3 in Mark Series

INTRODUCTION:

I really like old-time radio programs. I grew up in the era when the old radio programs were on their way out and television was coming in, but I can still remember sitting in the living room at night with my sister and listening to “Inner Sanctum” and “Lights Out,” not to mention “The Shadow” and “Gunsmoke.” Years later I worked at a radio station in Portland, OR during my second and third years of college, and while working there I became acquainted with a lot of the old radio comedies like, “Our Miss Brooks,” “The Great Gildersleeve,” “Amos and Andy,” and “The Bickersons.”

But one of my favorite programs was always, “Dragnet.” The theme music from that show is deeply etched into my memory. Jack Webb, who played the part of Sgt. Joe Friday, had a phrase he often used while interviewing witnesses. He would say, “Just the facts, ma’am. We just need the facts.” By that he meant that he just wanted the pertinent facts, not the opinions and wild-haired suggestions of the person he was interviewing. 

There are lots of situations in life in which it is important to get right to the bottom of the subject. For example, when you talk to your doctor you want him to level with you and not try to sugar-coat the news or to snow you with complicated explanations. “How long do I have to live? Just tell me straight out, Doc.” And when you visit your car mechanic you want to know the bottom line. “Bill, just tell me how much this is going to cost me?” 

In the same way, many of us want to know the bottom line of what we must do to be right with God, and to know that we will go to Heaven when we die. We want the facts, just the facts. 

In our text for today Jesus makes a statement that is hard to miss. He boils it all down to six words that anyone can understand: “Repent and believe in the Gospel.” But we need to unpack these six simple words to see what they mean.

TRANSITION:

We are engaged in a study of the Gospel According to Mark. For those of you with short memories or who were not with us when I gave the introduction to this little book a couple of sessions back let me try to quickly bring you up to speed. 

Mark is the shortest of the four Gospel accounts, with just 16 chapters. Although he was a Jew, born and raised in Jerusalem, he was living in Rome when he wrote his account of the life and ministry of Jesus. Moreover, he wrote with Romans in mind. He wrote to explain the actions and teachings of Jesus to people with no Jewish background or understanding of the Old Testament. His primary mentor was the apostle Peter, who was a first-hand witness to all these events that Mark recorded for us. 

In his Gospel account Mark focuses more on the miracles of Jesus than on His teachings. He goes into detail about what Jesus did and leaves us to draw the logical conclusion about who Jesus was. 

In this first chapter Mark quickly moves us through the early events in Jesus’ ministry: i.e., His announcement by John, His baptism, and His 40-days in the wilderness being harassed by Satan himself. After His time in the Judean desert Jesus made his way 80 miles back up north to His home area in Galilee where He began His 3½ year public ministry leading up to the cross. 

NOTES on the Text:

Verse 14-15: Now after John [the Baptist] had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the Gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Gospel.”

·         Mark does not give us any details here about what happened to John the Baptist. We must wait until chapter 6 to get the rest of the story. But apparently John’s arrest by Herod occurred shortly after Jesus’ baptism, sometime during the 40-days while He was in the wilderness. After hearing that John had been arrested, Jesus left Judea and headed back up to the Galilee region.

·         But by that time John had completed his task. He had paved the way for the Messiah, announcing His arrival to all who would listen. Even sitting in jail, he could say with the apostle Paul, “I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing” (2 Timothy 4:6-8). John fully accomplished what he had been put on earth by God to do. How many of us can truthfully say that?

·         “Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the Gospel of God.” This word “preaching” means declaring, heralding, proclaiming. So, what was Jesus proclaiming? – the Good News from and about God. That is what the word Gospel means... Good News. Up in verse one Mark started out his book this way: “The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” Now he says that Jesus was preaching the Good News.

·         What was the content of Jesus’ message? Three points:

o   “The time is fulfilled” = The Old Testament time of waiting is over. Paul put it this way in Galatians 4:4 – “But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law.” The centuries of waiting for the appearance of the promised Messiah has now come to an end. He is now among you. His name is Jesus, the Christ.

o   “The Kingdom of God is at hand” = The appearance of the Son of God marks the end of Satan’s kingdom of darkness. The time has come when God will begin to take back what man gave over to the enemy in the Fall. Phase One of the hostile takeover involved the arrival on the scene of the Owner’s Beloved Son.

o   “Repent and believe in the Gospel” = Here is that simple Gospel message that I mentioned in the beginning. It is not complicated or difficult to understand but it involves both Good News and Bad News. The Bad News is that we are all lost and headed for Hell. We are all sinners both by nature and by choice and the Bible says that the “wages of sin is death.” The Bible says that we are all in the same boat and that none of us has what it takes to get us to Heaven under our own steam. Remember all those ugly shouting matches Jesus had with the Pharisees? They thought that they were so righteous and pure that God would have to let them into Heaven. Jesus called them all “hypocrites” because they knew full well that they were rotten to the core, although none of them would admit it. To “repent” means to have a complete change of mind. It is a mental “about-face.” In this context it means that you must give up all ideas of your own intrinsic self-worth and realize that before God you are a spiritually bankrupt sinner who cannot save yourself. It means to turn away from the path of self-righteousness and throw yourself on the mercy of God. It means to finally believe that Jesus is exactly who He claimed to be and that He came to earth to save you. To “believe” means to deposit your faith and trust in something or someone. In this case, Jesus was calling men and women to believe in Him, as their Messiah, Savior, Redeemer, and King. “Repent and believe in the Gospel.” The Gospel, the Good News, is all about Jesus. Without Him there would be no Good News, only Bad News. All of mankind was headed for Hell and then Jesus, “the Way, the Truth, and the Life” showed up to give us a future and a hope. Praise God! 

Verse 16: As He was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen.

·         Some background information: The Sea of Galilee is not really a sea at all, but a big fresh-water lake, 13 miles long and 8.1 miles wide. It has an average depth of 84 feet, with a maximum depth of 157 feet. At 686 feet below sea level, it is the lowest freshwater lake on Earth and the second-lowest lake in the world (after the Dead Sea, which is a saltwater lake). The Jordan River runs into it at the north end and runs out of it at the south end. Because of its shape, its traditional Hebrew name was Yam Kinneret (Harp Lake), from the Hebrew word, kinnar, meaning, “harp, or lyre,” the kind David played. The Romans renamed it the Sea of Tiberius, after their emperor, Tiberius Caesar.

·         Mark does not say exactly where on the lake Jesus ran across Simon and Andrew. We know that they lived in the village of Capernaum, but they undoubtedly knew every inch of that lake. The point is that Jesus knew exactly where to find them! I believe that He went looking for them. This was a divine appointment, not a chance meeting. And this was also not the first time they had met Him. Check that story out in John 1:40 42. It is also probable that John, who we meet in verse 19, was one of those referred to in John 1:35-39 as following Jesus.

·         They were real fishermen—not the hook and line kind of anglers like most of us. They did not do it just for fun and relaxation. Their family had been fishing for a living for many generations. It was who they were, what they did. It was their life, their livelihood. If they did not catch fish their families did not have food and clothing.

·         To do their fishing they used two basic methods. Sometimes they would use large round throwing nets, with weights tied around the edges. They could either throw them from the shore or from a boat. However, they also used large purse-nets, which could be pulled behind a boat and closed-up like a purse, trapping the fish inside for a larger catch. Simon and Andrew were experts in all kinds of fishing. They certainly did not need anyone to teach them how to do it.

Verse 17: And Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.”

·         Did Jesus yell at them out in their boat or did He just talk to them on the shore—we do not know. But we can imagine what might have gone through their minds: “What does this carpenter think he can teach us about fishing? And what does he mean by ‘fishers of men’?”

·         The occupation of fisherman like Simon and Andrew was rather labor intensive. Remember, the imagery of using a lure and a fishing pole and waiting for the fish to strike is totally foreign to this text. Jesus is not speaking about finesse as in fly fishing or using the right kind of bait. The imagery here has nothing to do with “hooking” unbelievers with the Gospel. Furthermore, the picture is not individualistic—He is talking about work that required a team effort. The point is not one person being reeled in at a time, but a whole net full of “fish.” All these notions have to do with line fishing, but this is not the picture seen in this text. Rather, the imagery of a fisherman involved much strain, long hours, and often little results. Notice too, that Jesus did not say, “Come follow me for a week or two and see how you like it.” He was calling them, not to an interesting weekend, but to an amazing lifetime. And notice the order of events. First comes the call, the invitation: “Come and follow Me.” That is the first big hurdle for people. After that comes the promise: “…and I will make you to become fishers of men.” If we really follow Him, how can we not become fishers of men? If we love Him and seek to imitate Him, we will also naturally tell others about Him. That is the primary work of a fisher of men.

·         One more thing... Jesus says, “...and I will make you become fishers of men.” No one is born knowing how to be a fisher of men. To learn it is a process (“to become”), and Jesus is the teacher (“I will make you become...”). If you and I want to learn how to be fishers of men, we must submit ourselves to the teaching process and to the Master Fisherman.

Verse 18: Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.

·         Notice those 3 key words: “immediately,” “left,” and “followed.” What was it about Jesus that got to them? Was it Jesus' melodious, hypnotic voice? Was it His snappy looking outfit? Was it His promise of wealth and material gain? Did He threaten them? Why did they immediately leave all their gear, in which most of their money was wrapped up, and follow Jesus? AMAZING!

Verse 19: Going on a little farther, He saw James, the son of Zebedee, and John, his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets.

·         “Going a little farther.” I assume this means that He walked on down the shoreline to where James and John were working. We know that these four guys often worked together. Although they were from different families, they were from the same small fishing village and had undoubtedly known one another all their lives. They were friends and colleagues.

·         Get the picture in your mind. Jesus called Andrew and Simon to follow Him. They left everything and trailed after Jesus on up the beach to where James and John were sitting in their boat at the water’s edge, repairing their nets. James and John had probably been watching Jesus and their friends approaching but they did not know what was going on. 

Verse 20: Immediately He called them; and they left their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired servants, and went away to follow Him.

·         Look at this. It is amazing! Jesus “called them” and they left everything behind to follow Jesus. What do you think their father thought of their idea? What did the servants think about it? We do not know, but it appears that the only thing that mattered to those four men in that moment was to follow Jesus, even though they had no idea where that path would lead them. Notice too that Mark uses the same 3 key words in verse 20 that he used in verse 18.

·         But really, does anybody know where we will end up if we choose to follow Christ? Did you have any idea where He might take you? I certainly did not. After hearing about Him and learning about my own sinfulness and my need for a Savior, and after learning how much He loved me, I just knew that I wanted to be with Him. That is all that mattered to me at the time. I think that is how these four guys felt as well.

·         Of these four men, only one of them died from natural causes. The other three were all martyrs for Christ and the Gospel. If they had known what the future held for them would they still have followed Jesus? We do not know, but I think so.

CONCLUSION:

“Fishers of men.” When you hear those words, what picture comes to your mind? For Simon, Andrew, James, and John they knew exactly what being a fisherman meant. And it would not have been too difficult to extrapolate from there:

·         Fishing is arduous, back breaking work.

·         Fishing is often performed in solitary places with no one watching or cheering.

·         Fishing requires teamwork, which means getting along with co-laborers.

·         Fishing is often discouraging.

·         Fish stink, and some of them bite

·         Fishing can produce life-giving, nurturing sustenance for many people.