Mark 1:21-28

Last week, Jesus called his Disciples for the first time, this week they're going to see him in action, confronting a demoniac in the synogogue. Synogogues were not commanded in the Old Testament, they were initiated after the return from captivity from Babylon with a people group known as the Sophrim, or scribes, started by Ezra. Their point was to make certain that people wouldn't fall into the sin that lead to their exile. They started off correctly, but fell into the trap of creating things that God did not command. Through a process called PilPol, they took a majority vote on creating new laws, and even made these new laws equal, in their view, to the Word of God. They justified it by saying that Moses gave them a Written Law, but this was an Oral Law that was also passed down, which, of course, wasn't true.
 They are also in Capernaum, which will become Jesus' base of operations from this point forward. He will often return to Capernaum before setting out for another location. While in the synagogue at Capernaum Jesus encounters the demoniac who asks Jesus what business He has being here. The demoniac was upset because Jesus was teaching in the synagogue. Everyone was impressed with Jesus because He spoke with authroity, something not done by other Rabbis in that day. Rabbis had a common practice of quoting other Rabbis to make their points and arguements. Jesus, however, did not do this. He quoted only from God's Word and exposited according to only His own counsel. This, obviously, would have been unheard of .
The unclean spirit, however, proceeded to tell everyone who Jesus was! Jesus did not want this to happen. Rather, He chose to work within established religious means, that God had ordained. He also did not wish to accept the testimony of a demon for His ministry. They were not exactly the most reliable of witnesses and even though what demons spoke of Jesus was true, Jesus did not accept their testimony. Instead He bid it to be quiet and to leave the possessed man.
 Obviously this created quite a stir in the locals who saw this, but more importantly for the Disciples with Jesus. The common people went and told all of Galilee about Jesus, which will have ramifacations in Galilee from now on.
 The amazing thing about this passage is just how much authority Jesus has. He has entered God's house where He was most at home and taught about the Word. He did not teach as man did, but taught as someone who had more intimate knowledge. Let us consider what teachings we're relying on. Are we regarding teachers or men as higher than what God says? Do we add things to the Word of God that aren't in there so that we feel more Holy? This week, brethren, as we read God's Word let's take it at face value and not read into it anything else. Let's not judge others for things God does not Judge in His Word. Instead, let us become gracious and full of wisdom so that we might have an intimate knowledge of God and His Word, as Jesus did, and now allows us to do.




















 

Mark 1:14-20

​Today we get to see Jesus choosing some of His disciples! This is amazing as this is the first act we see since He was tested in the wilderness by Satan. Our passage will be Mark 1:14-20. Let us consider the implications of those He chooses and how we can become better disciples of Jesus based upon those implications. 

​First off Jesus comes to Galilee AFTER John had been arrested. We know that John was arrested by Herod the tetrarch for calling out Herod’s sin. We also know that Herod was the ruler over the region of Galilee, the very region that Jesus is returning to. It is very pertinent then that we see how Jesus is preaching the same message that John left off with (v. 15). Jesus is saying the kingdom of God is at hand. How is it at hand? Where is the kingdom? Why it is with Jesus, of course, as He is the rightful king! Yet aside from angels, His kingdom doesn’t appear to be full of many citizens… yet. 

​Jesus chooses His first four disciples, in Mark’s Gospel narrative, who are fisherman on the Sea of Galilee. We know from John’s Gospel account that this isn’t the first time that Jesus called Peter and Andrew, but here is where they really follow Jesus. Jesus calls them though, by saying He’ll make them fishers of men, and immediately they follow Jesus. I’ll talk more about this later, but it is interesting that Jesus promises them this if they follow Him, and it’s that promise that Mark records which causes them to follow Him. 

​A little further Jesus encounters James and John, sons of Zebedee, whom He also calls. They leave their father in the boat with their hired servants and follow Jesus. They literally leave their inheritance behind! Zebedee was a fisherman by trade also, and his livelihood was in that fishing boat, but James and John account it worth more to follow Jesus than to gain their worldly inheritance. What an example! What would it be like if we were to consider any of our inheritances as nothing to simply follow Jesus!

​We started by talking about the kingdom of God, as Jesus did in v. 15. Jesus is choosing, as the first disciples in His kingdom, four fishermen in Galilee. These aren’t priests, respected Pharisees or lawyers, these aren’t even culturally learned men used to debating in the Greek fashion. These are simple fishermen. Why then does Jesus choose these men? Simple: to make them fishers of men. There are a lot of similarities between fishing and evangelizing. You need the right bait. You need to go where the fish are and when they’re biting. You need to have patience when things aren’t going well, but you also need to be prepared with the nets when they are. You need to be prepared for good and bad weather, and you need to find a place for those fish immediately after they are caught. 

​So brothers and sisters, how would we measure up? If Jesus were just starting His kingdom anew, would we meet the criteria to help grow the kingdom? Are we growing the kingdom at all today? Are we willing to give up worldly inheritances for Jesus? Are we subject to ourselves, or to the King? May we keep in mind that the Bible isn’t our story, and evangelism isn’t about us. As we study the Bible and pray may our hearts always be set upon Jesus, and may we want, above all, His Will to be done. Amen.

Mark 1:9-13

​This week we’ll be making a comparison between Moses and Jesus. Our passage is Mark 1:9-13 and I hope we’ll be able to see they have many things in common. While I can’t say for certain that this comparison is what Mark was intending in these verses or in his Gospel account, I can say for certain that Jesus is supposed to be compared to Moses (Deut 18). 

​First of all we see in those days, meaning that in the days in which John the Baptist was preaching and baptizing people from all over Judea, Jesus came down from Nazareth in Galilee to be baptized. Now Galilee is in the northern portions of what we know as Israel. Galilee would not be under the same jurisdiction as Pilate, but rather under the jurisdiction of Herod the tetrarch. Jesus is leaving that region to come visit His cousin, John. Jesus was there baptized in the Jordan River. 

​Immediately the Holy Spirit descended like a dove and came upon Jesus. This shows a parallel between the first baptism, by water, and the second baptism of the Holy Spirit. This should ring some bells as to what we covered last week (v. 8 John baptizes with water, Jesus with the Holy Spirit). This shows the two-fold baptism of Jesus, the first being into death, the second into life (Romans 6). Now a voice came out of Heaven and told Jesus that He was God’s beloved Son, in Whom God is well pleased. First off, this should be a key passage promoting the Tri-Unity of God, what with the Father speaking, the Holy Spirit descending, and Jesus receiving. Next it shows that God is pleased in Jesus. We don’t know that Jesus did anything in Mark’s Gospel other than being baptized at this point so it can only allude to things Jesus has done previously, things not recorded, things in Jesus’ character, or things to come. Either way God is well-pleased!

​Immediately the Spirit impels (from the root to throw) Him into the wilderness where He is tested for forty days by Satan and being ministered to by angels. Wow! What a turnaround! This is the first act we see Jesus doing after His baptism and it is something the Spirit impels Him to do. Forty is often times a prescribed time of testing for God. This is especially true for Moses. Moses was on Mount Sinai for forty days receiving the commands of God. He spent forty years wandering in the wilderness with the lost sheep of Israel so the new generation could be ready to enter the Promised Land. Well here too, Jesus is being tested for forty days, and His testing is so severe that Satan himself was doing the tempting. Now we know from other Gospel accounts (Matthew and Luke) that Jesus resisted Satan’s misuse of scripture. Jesus passes His test, just as Moses passed his test. 

​There are many other parallels between Moses and Jesus, they both cut a covenant between God and men, they both intercede on Israel’s behalf, they both are aptly named, they both lead their people out of Egypt (literal and figurative), they both speak face-to-face with God, they both are lead by the Holy Spirit, they both are prophets, and they both are chosen by God to lead His people. 

Jesus is a prophet like Moses. This is an amazing thing to realize, because it is our goal to be more like Jesus every day and become sanctified by His Word and Spirit. However, Moses isn’t compared to Jesus in the sense we don’t say ‘Moses was a prophet like Jesus’, nay, but rather ‘Jesus was a prophet like Moses’! That’s amazing! What a compliment to have the very Son of God compared to you! Dear brothers and sisters let us strive every day to be more like Jesus, not in the hopes that He would be compared to us, no, that is not something we should hope for, but as believers and followers of Him, let us strive through our testing to be compared to Him. That is the highest compliment we could ever hope to receive. 

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