The lutheransermons's Podcast

Bible Study on Mark - Part 5, Mark 2:1-17

As Mark, Chapter 2 begins, we hear of the first of five conflicts Jesus has with Jewish religious leaders in Galilee. These stories of conflict go on through Mark 3:6, and they involve Pharisees and scribes, who were around and watching Jesus closely.

There were three main religious and political groups during the time that Jesus was among the Jews. One of those groups was the Pharisees. (We will talk about the other groups as we meet them, a little later in Mark.) The word “Pharisee” means “separated." The Pharisees believed that by keeping the Law, people could of themselves earn God’s favor. They stressed not only keeping God’s Law from the Old Testament, but also the “oral law” handed down by some Jews from generation to generation. These laws especially involved ritual washings, tithing, fasting, and rules about properly keeping the Sabbath day, etc. Many of these rules cannot be found in the Scriptures, but only in Jewish traditions. Pharisees also tried hard to avoid contact with non-Pharisees.

Some of the Pharisees were also scribes. Scribes were people who copied records and book by hand before there were printing presses and copiers. After the Babylonian exile, which we heard about in Daniel, scribes especially made copies of the Old Testament Scriptures for future generations of Jews and, in the process, often became experts in the Law and interpretations of it and ideas of how it could be applied to the daily lives of people.

Jesus came “home” to Capernaum, probably to the house of Peter, where he had been in Chapter 1, “after some days” (which could mean weeks or even some months) after he had preached all over Galilee (Mark 1:45-2:1). People in Capernaum had not forgotten what Jesus had done in the synagogue there, speaking with great authority and casting an unclean spirit out of a man (Mark 1:21-28). The home was soon packed with people, so that no one else could get inside; and again Jesus was preaching the Word of God to them, His primary task at this time (v. 2).

Then four men showed up carrying a paralyzed man on a mat of some kind. They seemed sure that Jesus could cure the man, but they couldn’t get close to Jesus. They didn’t give up. They were determined to get this man to Jesus, no matter what. They even took a part of the roof apart and lowered the man into the room where Jesus was (v.3-4). (If only more of us had such determination to get people to Jesus!)

“Jesus saw their faith” (their confidence in Jesus, that He would help), and He intended to teach them (and us) what was the most important help He could give. They were hoping for a physical healing, but Jesus first said to the the paralyzed man, “Son, (literally, child) your sins are forgiven” (v.5). The word “child” suggested that this gift was to be received by simple, child-like faith and trust in Jesus.

Jesus knew that the biggest problem this man had (and that we all have) is sin and evil in our hearts which separates us from God and which we cannot overcome on our own. That man needed God’s forgiveness and help (and so do we). First and foremost, Jesus offered that forgiveness to that man. Think about it. If this man had only been healed physically, he would have been better off for this life, but that wouldn’t solve his broken relationship with God, and his eternal future would still have been in danger. But if the man had been only healed spiritually, with the love and forgiveness of Jesus, he still would have had his physical problem for some years, but he would have strength and help from God and His love to deal with his problems, and he would have certainty of an eternal future of peace and joy and perfect healing in heaven.

So, Jesus said to the man first, “Child, your sins are forgiven.” That is the best news we can hear in this life, too. We all have sin and weaknesses and failures in our own lives - some from the past that still trouble and come back to haunt us - and current problems and weaknesses and temptations to sin that we struggle with still. Even believers have these struggles. How good it is to know that we do not have to carry these sins and problems by ourselves. Jesus came to forgive all our sins and give us new life and hope as we trust Him and His Word of promise with child-like faith.

We hear, though, in Mark 2:6-7 that some of the scribes, Jewish religious leaders, were also sitting in that house, probably to keep an eye on Jesus, and they were really upset with Him, questioning in their hearts. “Why is this man speaking like this?”

Remember, the view of most Jewish religious leaders of that time was that God only accepts people who are really good and especially those who keep the laws the Jewish leaders required, whether those laws were in the Old Testament Jewish Scriptures or not. They must have wondered, "How does this man Jesus know if this paralyzed man was good or not?" Besides that, many Jews thought that if someone had a serious physical problem like paralysis, that person probably had done something really wrong and was being punished for it - and certainly shouldn’t be offered forgiveness.

Finally, these scribes were thinking in their hearts, “This Jesus is actually blaspheming (speaking against God), because only God can forgive sins.” That was the Old Testament message. See words of David and another psalmist in Psalm 25:18, Psalm 32:5, and Psalm 130:3-4, and what God Himself says in Isaiah 43:25: “I, I am He, Who blots out your transgressions for My own sake, and I will not remember your sins.” Was Jesus, in offering forgiveness, claiming to be God, also? If so, that would be blasphemy in their view.

(From what I have read, most Jews did not think that even the promised Messiah, the Christ, would be able to forgive sins. He would be only a great man, who had more of a political job, in their view. To put it into contemporary terms, the Messiah’s job was to make the nation of Israel great again - like it was in the days of David and Solomon - and to overthrow the hated Roman oppressors.)

Mark 2:8 tells us, though, that Jesus knew exactly what the scribes were thinking, because He was God - God the Son Who became man to forgive sins and make people right with God. Because He was the Son of God, He knew what was in peoples’ hearts. (See also John 2:23-25 and related passages like Jeremiah 17:7-10.)

And so, Jesus asks the scribes a question in Mark 2:9. “Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Rise, take up your bed and walk?'" In a certain sense, it would be easier to say the words, “Your sins are forgiven” - because how could you really tell if the man was forgiven or not? On the other hand, if one said, “Get up and walk,” the paralyzed man would either do it or not. The evidence would be there.

Jesus did not even wait for an answer. As the Son of Man (an Old Testament term for the Son of God, as we have heard earlier), He could both forgive sins and heal the man. So, Jesus said, (v. 10-12), “But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins... I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.”  We then hear that in response, the man "rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all.”

It was a miracle, as clear as could be. Jesus simply said, “I say to you” and it happened immediately. People crowded all around the man had to move so that the man, now healed, could get up and leave the house, carrying the mat he had been carried in on not long before. Jesus healed the paralyzed man because He cared about people and helped them, including this man; but he also healed the man to prove by this miracle that He really could give the greatest of gifts, the forgiveness of sins, to this man, to us, and to the whole world. He said, “The Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins” and He clearly had that authority, too.

As verse 12 concludes, the people clearly see that this is a miracle of God and they praise God. They aren’t yet necessarily admitting that Jesus was God, but they are amazed at Him. They did know, “We never saw anything like this.”

In verse 13 of Mark 2, though, we hear that Jesus did not bask in the glory of this miracle. He left the house and went out to the Sea of Galilee, and the whole crowd of people followed Him. Then we simply hear: “He was teaching them.” He never stopped, He never gave up His primary work, sharing the Word of God with people. He was also gathering more people to be His disciples and in Mark 2:14, a rather surprising person, Levi, a tax collector.

The land of Israel, often called Palestine at that time, had become a province of the Roman Empire in 67 BC. The Romans were good at many things, including gathering taxes to support their growing empire. An important trade route from east to west ran from Damascus, Syria, south to Capernaum and around the Sea of Galilee and on to the Mediterranean Sea and south to Egypt and beyond. As we have toll roads, where people have to stop and pay a toll every so often, the Romans had set up tax booths along this road, since many caravans of traders passed this way. They had to stop and pay a tax for every animal they brought along the road; and the tax collectors could look through their goods and charge them an extra tax, too.

People hated this process and hated the tax collectors who worked for and cooperated with the Roman oppressors to collect these taxes. Tax collectors (in some translations of the Bible they are called “publicans”) also had a reputation of being dishonest and cheats, charging more than they should have and keeping some of the money for themselves. For this reason, many text collectors were banned from being part of Jewish synagogues. They were considered notorious sinners.

Jesus had now called one of these tax collectors to be one of His disciples. Levi (or as he was called later, Matthew) may have met Jesus and heard Him preach before. Or maybe, just by the powerful Word and authority of Jesus saying “Follow Me,” Matthew just got up and left his work and followed Jesus. (The name “Matthew” means “gift of God, gift of Yahweh” and Mathew certainly became that, in his work and as the author of the Gospel of Matthew later on.)

In verse 15, Matthew invited Jesus and His other disciples to his home, along with some of his friends. Since the tax collectors were “outcasts” of their society, their friends were also likely “outcasts,” despised and rejected by the “better” people of the society. They were called “sinners” -  people of bad reputation. But, Jesus still went and talked and even ate with them. (People did literally recline as they ate at more formal dinners in those days. To eat with someone also suggested a close connection with and caring for the people they were having a fellowship meal with.) Still today, there are saying like: “You are known by the company you keep”- who your friends are - and this was a bad group, in the eyes of most respectable Jewish people.

We hear the reaction, then, of the scribes, who were also often Pharisees (separatists) when they saw what Jesus had done. They do not ask Jesus, but ask His disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” (v.16) Remember again that scribes and Pharisees thought they were better than others and separated themselves from bad people. They even had the idea that if they just bumped into one of these people, they would be spiritually unclean and would have to go through a cleansing ritual. Remember also that many of these practices of the scribes and Pharisees were not clear Biblical ideas, but their own humanly made rules to make themselves seem better than others. All this, they thought, made them more acceptable and favorable to God. What they did was what everyone, including Jesus, ought to be doing, in their view.

The answer of Jesus was simple. He was not approving of sin and of behavior that was actually wrong. But Jesus was like a physician - a doctor. There would be something wrong with a doctor who refused to see anyone who was sick. Doctors are certainly to do what we call today “wellness visits” - to help people stay healthy; but most of what doctors do is to help sick people deal with their illnesses and problems and help them get better, if possible. We really need a doctor when we are sick in some way.

In a spiritual sense, then, Jesus said, “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” If people were truly righteous (without sin and always did the right things), they would need no forgiveness and no Savior. They would have no need for what Jesus especially came to bring. In reality, though, everyone is a sinner and needs Jesus and His forgiving love, as we will see, again and again, as we read on in Mark’s Gospel.

That is why Jesus calls a person like Levi (Matthew) to be His disciple and associates with him and his friends, even with all their faults. He came for sinners.

That is why Jesus kept on talking with the scribes and Pharisees, who really thought they were so good and looked down on everyone else, and challenged and criticized Jesus. They too needed to recognize their own sins and their need for Jesus. He came for sinners.

That is also why Jesus kept going from town to town and kept sharing with everyone He could His primary message:

• REPENT: Realize that you, too, sin, and have spiritual needs.
• BELIEVE  IN THE GOOD NEWS: Believe in Jesus (Mark 1:1,15). He can help and forgive, for He came for every person, every sinner.

That is also why Mark’s Gospel was preserved and copied and is still available for us to read today. It is the same message for us, too. “None is righteous, no, not one.” (See Psalm 14:1-3, also quoted in Romans 3:9-12). But Jesus came to rescue us sinners and bring us to trust in Him. He came to call sinners.

Next week, we will see three more examples of conflict between Jesus and the religious leaders of His day and how He points to a new way of hope, as He brings in the New Testament, the “new covenant” with people.

Sermon for the 3rd Sunday in Lent - March 7, 2021

Sermon for the Third Sunday in Lent, based on:

Exodus 20:1-17

1 Corinthians 1:18-31

John 2:13-25

 

Sermon originally delivered March 11, 2012

Sermon for Midweek Lent III - March 3, 2021

Sermon for Midweek Lent III - "Lies of Satan vs. The Truth of Jesus"

 

Sermon originally delivered March 7, 2012

Bible Study on Mark - Part 4, Mark 1:21-45

After our opening prayer, we quickly reviewed Mark 1:21-22, where Jesus came on the Sabbath to the synagogue in Capernaum and was teaching in an amazing way, with authority. (See last week’s study for details about these verses and what a synagogue was.)

A man with an “unclean spirit” quickly interrupted Jesus, to disrupt what He was saying. An “unclean spirit” means an evil spirit, one who is opposed to God and His will. We know from Genesis, Chapters 1-3, that God had created a perfect universe, with everything good, including the first people (Genesis 1:26-27,31). Sadly, by Genesis 3, these people had sinned and rebelled against God, and humans have been infected with sin ever since.

Other Scriptures tell us that there had been another rebellion, too. God had created angels, also - spirit beings who were intended to serve God and be of help to human beings. See Hebrews 1:13-14. Sadly, at some point before the fall of human beings into sin, some of these angels had rebelled against God and had fallen into sin and evil and wanted only to create more evil (Revelation 12:7-9). Their leader is identified as “that ancient serpent” who tempted Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden and is also called “the devil and Satan.”

Though angels are “spirits” without bodies, they can appear in various forms to communicate with people, for good or evil. Satan wanted to be in control and “the deceiver of the world," and many angels followed him into evil and still want to create and spread more evil everywhere, in opposition to God. (See Deuteronomy 18:9-12 for a strong warning that we should not try to contact the dead or try to use any seemingly supernatural forces, other than praying to the one true Triune God, revealed in Scripture. Otherwise, we might actually be contacting some of these evil angels.)

These evil angels are the unclean spirits, the evil spirits, the demons spoken of in the Scriptures. They want to tempt everyone to do evil - even Jesus, as we heard  in a previous lesson - though they were not able to get Him to do evil. They are not equal to God, but are only fallen angels. Neither are evil spirits human beings, as some think, whose spirits come back after the people have died and cause trouble, unless we or their relatives honor them and keep them happy. Neither do human beings become angels when they die, as is popularly said by many. Even believing Christians only become like the angels in certain respects, as glorified beings in heaven, when they die, as Jesus says in Luke 20:34-36. There are also, of course, many good angels who remain faithful to God and serve Him and guard and help people, including Jesus, as we heard in Mark 1:13. (See also the good angel’s work in the Book of Daniel, in a previous study series.)

In Mark 1:23-25, though, we do not see ordinary temptation but a special work of Satan and his evil spirits. It is the possessing of people where an evil spirit or spirits get physical control of someone and can speak through him and cause the person to act in bizarre or unusual ways. Jesus deals with people who are possessed quite a number of times in the Gospel of Mark, as we will see. This kind of possession seems very rare today, though we don’t know why. It seems to happen more when people are very open to clear, direct evil, in certain periods and cultures. Some think that Satan knows that in our supposedly sophisticated, scientific society of today, he is more successful in convincing people that he does not even exist, by not showing himself so clearly and directly. He can then tempt people more easily and pull them away from what is good and true, when they are not so aware that real and genuine evil is all around them.

In Mark 1:23-25, the evil spirit spoke through the man he possessed and cried out and questioned Jesus and even identified who Jesus is: “I know who you are,  - the Holy One of God.” The evil spirit (or spirits, since the word “us” is used twice), is exactly right. Jesus is the Son of God, and the term, “Holy One of God” is used of God in Isaiah 12:6 and 41:16 and by Peter, in describing Jesus in John 6:66-69. An angel also predicted that the child to be born of Mary would be called holy - the Son of God - in Luke 1:35.

In fact, see what is said in James 2:19: “You believe that God is one; you do well” - for that is true. There is only one real true God who exists, the God of the Bible; but, James says, “Even the demons believe - and shudder.” The devil and the evil angels probably know more facts about God than we do; but that knowledge, that belief, makes them “shudder,” shake with fear, for they do not say “Yes” to God or trust Him, but oppose Him. He is their enemy, and the evil spirit cried out to Jesus in Mark 1:24, “Have you come to destroy us?” That also was true. Jesus had come to overpower and defeat Satan and His forces.

We have here a very important message about belief and faith. Most people in the US still say, “I believe in God” - but they simply mean they think He exists. Even the demons believe that, as we have just heard. God wants to bring us farther, to true knowledge of Him, so that we assent to Him, say “Yes” to Him, and trust in Him, with confidence in Jesus as our Lord and Savior and what He has done to rescue us sinful people, from sin and Satan and evil. That is the gift of faith God wants to give to us, as we shall see.

So, even though the unclean spirit was saying true things about Jesus, Jesus silenced him and cast him out of the man, in verses 25 and 26. Literally, Jesus “muzzled” him, closed, shut his mouth. Jesus did not want it to seem as if evil forces were connected to Him and supporting Him, even when they were saying true things about Him. They were saying the right words, but they did not believe them. Jesus had more power than the evil spirit, and though the spirit could shake and convulse the man, he had to leave him; and the man was free of demon possession. In verses 27 and 28, then, the people in the synagogue are even more amazed. Jesus had “a new teaching with authority” and “even the unclean spirits obey Him.” As a result, the fame of Jesus spread throughout that region of Galilee, because of the power and authority of what He said and did.

Jesus was still in the town of Capernaum when immediately, that same Sabbath day, Jesus went to the house of Simon and Andrew with the other disciples He had called (Mark 1:29-31). Simon’s mother-in-law was there, but ill with a fever. The fact that Peter has a mother-in-law indicates that he was married. Corinthians 9:5 affirms that Peter and most of the original disciples were married. This comes a surprise to some today, because the Roman Catholic church says that Simon, also called Peter, was the first Pope of the Catholic church. That is hard to prove, Biblically or historically, but clearly, the early Christian pastors and other leaders were allowed to be married. The idea that priests must be unmarried was not a Biblical command, but came much later in the history of the Roman Catholic church, from the church, not from the Bible.

Today, we have lots of jokes about mothers-in-law and in-laws. To Jesus, though, every person is important and every human life matters. When Jesus was told about the illness, He took the mother-in-law by the hand and lifted her up and healed her. The fever was a symptom of some illness, and it was now gone. Jesus was not afraid to touch the woman, even though sick people were often also considered to be spiritually unclean by the Jews and could make others unclean by any contact with them. In addition, when we have a fever, even with our modern medicines, it takes a while to feel better and stronger. The mother-in-law immediately started serving her guests. Her actions show her complete healing and her gratefulness to Jesus.

This was still the Sabbath, and Jewish law of the time said that no work was to be done by Jews on that day. Yet the mother-in-law was working and serving. Jewish leaders even said that there should be no healing or helping others on the Sabbath; but Jesus had healed the woman. We will soon see that Jesus gets in trouble for doing such acts of mercy on the Sabbath. He is already beginning to change the old ways and laws into new ways of love and service to others.

In Mark 1:32-34, it was now evening and the Sabbath day was over. (See how a day is counted and described in Genesis 1:5, and among the Jews still today.) After sundown, Jews were now free to do some work, and they brought many people to Jesus for His help and healing, including some others possessed by demons. “They” brought people. Who were “they”? Just ordinary people, like you or me, who cared for others and wanted to assist them. This is a reminder that we could, still today, help bring people to Jesus by our prayers and our words about our Savior and deeds that show that Christians care to others. The whole city was stirred up and Jesus healed many with various diseases and cast out some demons, too. Again, He did not allow the demons to speak, “because they knew Him.” His battle against Satan and evil continued.

Jesus was surely very tired after such a long, busy day. He was the Son of God, but also a real human being who could get just as tired as we do. Yet we read in Mark 1:35 that Jesus got up very early in the morning, before sunrise, and went out to a desolate place to pray. He sets the example for us. We need to take the time to talk with God in prayer and to listen to Him speaking in His Word. Some would say, “The busier your day, the more you need to spend some time with your Lord.” The time of day or the exact amount of time does not matter - just the pattern of prayer and some time with God and His Word, at some point. It will help us, too.

In verses 36-37, the disciples finally got up and went looking for Jesus to tell Him, “Everyone is looking for you.” They likely were thinking: “You are so popular here, Jesus. This would be a great place to stay and build up your fame even more. Come see the people and enjoy this time.” Jesus had another plan - His heavenly Father’s plan (Mark 1:38-39). He needed to go to the next towns to preach there also. “That is why I came out,” He said. We don’t have specifics of what He said and did; but He surely preached with authority, and His deeds of mercy in helping people supported His message. He battled and cast out more demons and kept preaching throughout Galilee, the message of Mark 1:14-15.

Mark 1:40-44 tells of another encounter Jesus had while He was traveling. A leper came to Him, which lepers were not to do. (They were to isolate themselves and warn people to stay away, because their disease was considered very contagious and dangerous and there was no cure for it. It sounds something like the Covid problems we have had in our own day.) The man knelt before Jesus to show his respect and honor for Jesus. He showed faith, too, for he said to Jesus, “If you will, you can make me clean.” Jesus had deep compassion for the man and reached out and touched the man and said just a few words: “I will; be clean.” The man was immediately healed. Even though lepers were also considered spiritually unclean people, Jesus was not afraid to touch and help them.

Jesus also spoke sternly to this man and told him to say nothing to anyone, but to go to a priest and show that he was healed and offer a proper sacrifice of thanksgiving to God. You could read more about what was expected in Leviticus 13-14, and what lepers were supposed to do. Do note that the term “leprosy” could also refer to other skin diseases, as well, that still could make a person “unclean.” See also the warning about touching unclean things in Leviticus 5:2. Jesus was beginning to change these rules, but He still upheld and supported the basic Jewish law, at this point, and called others to do the same.

The man in Mark 1:45, however, seemed so excited about being cured that he went and told everyone about Jesus and what has happened. That was good, in a sense, but it also contradicted what Jesus asked for at that time, and meant that Jesus could no longer go freely from town to town. He had to stay in more isolated places, and yet people kept searching for and finding him. Next week, we will hear another important message of Jesus, as he finally is able to go back to Capernaum. Spiritual healing is more important than physical healing.

Sermon for the 2nd Sunday in Lent - February 28, 2021

Sermon for the Second Sunday in Lent, based on:

Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16

Romans 5:1-11

Mark 8:27-38

 

Sermon originally delivered March 4, 2012

Bible Study on Mark - Part 3, Mark 1:14-22

After an opening prayer, we focused on Mark 1:14-15. The “voice of one crying in the wilderness," John the Baptist (Mark 1:3), was now silenced by his arrest and being handed over as a prisoner to King Herod. Jesus Himself now began His public ministry after His baptism and 40 days of temptation by Satan. He comes into Galilee, in the northern part of Israel, and becomes God’s voice, proclaiming (heralding, announcing aloud) “the Gospel of God." This is the Good News that “the time has been fulfilled and the Kingdom of God is at hand.” All the promises of God in the Old Testament are finally coming together in Jesus and the new Kingdom of God He brings, by His coming into the world and now drawing near to people by His preaching and teaching and saving action.

This is a decisive, opportune time predicted, for example, in Daniel 7:13-14 and 22-23. “The time came when the saints of God possessed the kingdom” - the everlasting kingdom of the 'Son of Man.'" This special word for a unique, decisive time occurs in a number of other places in the New Testament, too. See Matthew 26:18, when the time for Jesus’ last Passover with His disciples and His instituting the Lord’s Supper and His own arrest and suffering and death had come. It was the “right time” for Jesus to die for the ungodly (Romans 5:6). It was “the fullness of time” for Christ’s redeeming and uniting work (Galatians 4:4-5 and Ephesians 1:9-10).

“Repent and believe in the Gospel,” Jesus now said. Three times in Mark 1:1-15 the Gospel is proclaimed - in verse 1, as a theme for this book of Scripture, and again in verses 14 and 15. Believing in the Gospel really means believing in Jesus, above all. You could almost say, “Jesus = the Gospel.” Notice how He says of Himself, “for My sake and the Gospel’s” in both Mark 8:35 and Mark 10:29. Jesus is at the heart of the Gospel.

The timing of Jesus and His Good News and His plans is decisive for us, too, if we will only believe it. Too often, in difficult times, we worry and fuss and try to solve things on our own with our own expectations and timetable. See Psalm 31:12-16, which is also prophetic of Jesus. Both David and Jesus can say, “I trust in You, O Lord. I say, ‘You are my God.’ My times are in Your hand.... Make Your face shine on Your servant; save me in Your steadfast love.” See also Psalm 25:1-7. David says twice that he “waits” for the Lord and His ways, and trusts in Him and His steadfast and forgiving love. See also 1 Peter 5:6-7, where we are encouraged to be humble “under the mighty hand of God, casting all of our anxieties on Him, because He does care for us.” “He will exalt us, lift us up, in His own good, proper time.” He knows best.

The Gospel of Jesus is good news intended for everyone, and so, in Mark1:16-20, we hear of Jesus beginning to call others to be His disciples. Many voices were needed to get the Good News out to others. We hear that Jesus chose and called four fishermen, two sets of brothers, to be His followers. There is some indication from other Scriptures that Jesus had met two of them before, but when Jesus spoke, the power of Jesus and His Word were at work. Twice we hear that “immediately” all four men responded when Jesus said, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” “Follow Me,” Jesus said. He was the key to their lives and future, as he still is for us today. These four fishermen were now to become fishermen not for fish, but for people, calling them to follow and believe in the Good News of Jesus, as well.

Note also in Mark 1:20 that the father of James and John already has a good fishing business with “hired servants” in addition to his sons. If they left and followed Jesus, they would not leave their father in a desperate situation. He had other help. They were leaving behind a successful business and a pretty secure life, for an uncertain future for themselves, though.

Note as well that when Jesus called these disciples, He added one word that the other Gospel writers did not mention. He said, “I will make you become fishers of men.” The word “become” implies a growing and learning process. In fact, the disciples did not know it, but they had three years ahead of learning from Jesus and even more time later, as indicated in the Book of Acts, before they really went out regularly as “fishers of men." And even then, it was a continuing process of “becoming” what the Lord Jesus wished them to be.

Even in what He has already said, God is telling us through Mark that what we read in Mark is only the “beginning” of the Good News of Jesus (Mark 1:1). When Jesus says, “Repent and believe in the Gospel” (Mark 1:15) the Greek verbs indicate that it could best be translated: “Keep on repenting and keep on believing in the Gospel” - as God works in us to have us “become” what he wants us to be. It is, in a sense, a lifelong process.

As I prepared for this podcast, I remembered how impatient I was at times in preparing to be a pastor many years ago. It was eight years of classes and training after high school. Wouldn’t it be better to have us out doing ministry work sooner? As I look back, I know that I was not fully prepared, even as a called and ordained pastor, for what I would deal with. And even now, after 47 years in ministry, I still am learning and growing and “becoming” the person God wants me to be - and still need to “keep on repenting and keep on believing” in my Savior. I still need that strengthening of my own faith, through God’s Word; and there are so many people who still need to hear the Good News of Jesus and His love for them, too. That is what what makes preparing and teaching a study like this so exciting, as I learn and relearn and learn more, as I share God’s Word with you. We are already saved and have the gift of eternal life simply by the gift of faith God has worked in us. But God has more for us to “become” and do in this life, in gratitude for His love for us in Jesus.

We see the power of Jesus and His Word again in Mark 1:21-22. Jesus went to a small town along the Sea of Galilee, Capernaum, and very soon, immediately on the Sabbath Day, He entered a synagogue and was teaching. Jews began to have synagogues (places where people were led to gather with others for worship) while they were in captivity in Babylon. They could not go back to Israel, and the temple had been destroyed anyway. So, they did the best they could with these gatherings. Any group of 10 or more Jewish married men could organize a synagogue, and over time, a pattern for worship for the Sabbath was developed, much like our Christian liturgical services today. There was a reading from the 10 Commandments, prayer, a reading from the Law of Moses, a reading from the Prophets, singing the Word, some teaching by someone, and a benediction.

Jesus, as a Jew, followed the Sabbath (sundown Friday to Sundown Saturday) and came to the synagogue, where even visiting Jews like Jesus could be invited to teach. As Jesus taught, verse 22 tells us, the people “were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as One who had authority, and not as the scribes.” In those days, it is said that the scribes mainly compared the ideas of various famous rabbis with one another.
Rabbi so and so says this, but rabbi so and so says that. There were lots of opinions shared, but not always much clarity or certainty about what was taught or was really correct. How different the teaching of Jesus was. He taught the Word of God clearly and with certainty.

Jewish rabbis would also teach, and people would listen, and the people would gather around the rabbi they chose and picked and liked the best. Notice how different Jesus was. He did the choosing and calling of His own disciples, including Simon (later named Peter by Jesus) and Andrew and James and John, as we have already heard. He said, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit” (John 15:16).

Already Jesus was teaching a very important Biblical principle. We are made God’s people and saved, not by our will and efforts, but by the gift and grace (undeserved love and favor) of God. (See 1 Corinthians 1:26-31, for example.) If you are a Lutheran, I would encourage you to read in your catechism Martin’s Luther’s explanation of the Third Article of the Apostle’s Creed. He expresses this idea of Scripture so well. (If you are not a Lutheran or don’t have access to this, and want me to include these words in the next podcast, let me know.)

We will stop here, because the teaching of Jesus is interrupted in Mark 1:23-28 by a man with an unclean spirit. We will need to talk about what that means, as we continue our study and see even more clearly the authority of Jesus and His Word, as He casts out this evil spirit.

Sermon for the 1st Sunday in Lent - February 21, 2021

Sermon for the First Sunday in Lent, based on:

Genesis 22:1-18 

James 1:12-18

Mark 1:9-15

 

Sermon originally delivered February 26, 2012

Sermon for Ash Wednesday - February 17, 2021

Sermon for Ash Wednesday - "Lies of Satan vs. The Truth of Jesus"

 

Sermon originally delivered February 22, 2012

Bible Study on Mark - Part 2, Mark 1:4-13

We began with prayers and briefly reviewed the first three verses of the Gospel of Mark. Watch for these key themes of this Gospel, as described in verse 1. Verses 2 and 3 use Old Testament prophecies from Malachi 3:1 and Isaiah 40:3 to introduce a messenger sent by God to prepare the way for the coming of the Lord Himself to His people.

Very quickly, we hear in Mark 1:4-5, that “John appeared” in the wilderness, as the messenger “proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins” and baptizing many, many people who came out to him at the Jordan River, “confessing their sins.” (Even the non-Biblical Jewish historian Josephus reports of these events and the arrest of John by Herod later on because of what he was saying and doing.)

Note what Mark does not tell us. He tells us nothing about the early life of John or of Jesus the Lord, and how He came to his people. Matthew, Luke and John tell about these earlier events. Mark is much more straightforward and concise in what he writes. He speaks in a simple, direct way, and tells us of some of the authoritative words of Jesus, but focuses even more on His actions. His Gospel is shorter than the others, and Mark quickly moves us, by Chapter 8, into the final crucial last weeks of the life of Jesus here on earth.

You can learn more about John and Jesus and these events in the other Gospels if you choose. Since we are now studying Mark’s Gospel, as God uniquely inspired him to write it, we will not compare it much with the others, but I will try to point out some special things that Mark tells us.

In a way, John the Baptist was the last of the Old Testament prophets, preparing the way for the New Testament era and the New Covenant centered in Jesus. Mark 1:6 tells us that John wore rough clothes similar to those of Elijah and ate very simple food, including locusts, which were considered a “clean” food by the Jews of the Old Testament. See 2 Kings 1:8 for what Elijah wore, and how some false prophets also wore “hairy clothes” to pretend that they were true prophets, in Zechariah 13:4.

John the Baptist was a true prophet, though, coming “in the spirit and power of Elijah” to “turn hearts” and “make ready for the Lord a people prepared” (Luke 1:16-17) - a repentant people, who recognized their sins and knew their need for a Savior. To “repent” literally means to turn in a different direction, away from sin and to the Lord.

John also knew that he was nothing compared with Jesus, that coming Savior and Lord. He said in Mark 1:7 that he was not even worthy to untie the sandals of Jesus. This was a strong statement because Jewish rabbis taught that only slaves should untie sandals and that no Jew should ever do that for others. See what Paul says about John and Jesus in Acts 13:23-25, too, in one of his sermons.

John’s baptism was only preparatory, though it did offer forgiveness, and he baptized only with water, where Jesus would baptize also with the Holy Spirit. See Mark 1:8. The Jews had various ritual washing. We read about conflicts with Jesus over washing hands. This was not the kind of careful washing of hands that we do for health reasons in these days of Covid. This was applying water to hands in a ritual way, just in case one had touched something “unclean” in everyday life activities. (We will see more about this in Mark 7.)

The Jews did require a kind of baptism for proselytes - for non-Jews by nationality, who wanted to follow the Jewish religion - but the Jews had no baptism for themselves. John’s call for baptism was controversial to the Jewish leaders, who thought they were good people and had no need for repentance and baptism. See what Jesus says of John and of these leaders in Luke 7:26-30.

John was a great prophet; but those who come into the Kingdom of God through Jesus are greater yet. Jesus brings the greatest of blessings, and the religious leaders who refused John’s baptism (and later, Jesus’ baptism) “were rejecting the purpose of God for themselves.” The people who really appreciated John’s baptism were people like “the tax collectors," who knew their sins and rejoiced in God’s forgiveness for them.

John’s baptism was only preparatory, though. See Acts 19:1-5. The only people clearly re-baptized in the New Testament were some people baptized only by John. When they heard of Jesus and the Holy Spirit, they were baptized “in the name of the Lord Jesus.” This was Christian baptism. Peter calls people to receive this baptism on Pentecost in Acts 2:38-39. Paul also was baptized in the name of Jesus, the One Who called him to faith, in Acts 22:16. The full formula for Christian baptism is given, of course, by Jesus in Matthew 28:18-20, baptizing “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit," as we still do today.

As we go on to Mark 1:9-11, we begin to hear of Jesus. There is nothing about His past. As “John appeared” and did his work, so “in those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.” Nazareth was a small town to the southwest of the Sea of Galilee. It is never mentioned in the Old Testament. We only know about it because other Scriptures tell us it is where Jesus grew up and worked as a carpenter’s son and a carpenter, until His public ministry began at this point. Mark simply tells us that John baptized Jesus, as he had done with so many others. (Again, you can find more details in other Gospels.) Mark tells us nothing about where Nazareth or the Jordan were or just how Jesus was baptized (how much water was used, etc.) Those things are less important in what God leads Mark to communicate. He quickly moves on to what was revealed at the baptism of Jesus and uses the word “immediately” - a word he uses more than 40 times in his Gospel.

As Jesus came up out of the water of the Jordan, “immediately He saw the heavens being torn open.” (See how this is exactly what the prophet Isaiah wishes for and predicts in Isaiah 64:1, and how the heavens opened for people like Ezekiel (Ezekiel 1:1) and Peter (Acts 10:11), when God had something important to reveal.) Then the Spirit descended upon Jesus like a dove. (This is the image for the Spirit seen already in Genesis 1:2, as the Spirit “hovered over” the waters at the creation, like a bird.) And the voice of God  spoke from heaven, to Jesus and about Him: “You are My beloved Son; with You I am well pleased.” (It is the voice of God the Father speaking to His Son. It is the One true Triune God being revealed - the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.)

Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ - and both of those words mean “the Anointed One." Jesus is being anointed with and by water and the Holy Spirit for His saving work and ministry. (See the prophecy in Isaiah 42:1, as the Lord speaks about His coming Servant, His chosen One, in Whom He delights and on Whom He puts His Spirit. We will see, as we read on in Mark, how Jesus then also does the very things described in Isaiah 42:2-9. See also how the writer to the Hebrews quotes from Psalm 45:6-7 and applies those words to Jesus, as the Son of God, anointed by God, in Hebrews 1:8-9.)

The Father also says, from heaven, of Jesus: “You are My beloved Son; with You I am well pleased.” These words reflect Psalm 2, a messianic psalm, and especially 2:7. Jesus is the Son of God. Unlike all the sinners whom John baptized (and unlike all of us), Jesus was without sin and perfectly pleasing to His Father. (Contrast what God says about His Son, with what God says about everyone else on their own in this world, including us, in Psalm 14:1-3 and Romans 3:19,20,23 and so many other places.)

In three verses, Mark 1:9-11, God has already emphasized most of the key themes of Mark1:1. Jesus is “Jesus” (God Who saves). Jesus is ”the Christ” (the One anointed by God to do this saving work). Jesus is the Son of God, identified and sent by God the Father.

And again, “immediately” Mark shows us a crucial part of what Jesus’ saving work would be, in Mark 1:12-13.  The Spirit immediately after His baptism drove Jesus out into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan for 40 days. Literally, the Holy Spirit "threw out” Jesus into the wilderness, as if he were being forced to go there, to be tempted continually (the Greek verb shows an ongoing action) for 40 days. It had to happen this way.

We pray, “Lead us not into temptation” - that the Lord would help and protect us from times of temptation, because we are so weak and vulnerable. Jesus came to battle sin and evil and Satan himself and to confront it all directly and be victorious, in our place. See the words of 1 John 3:8. Other Gospels are more detailed and give us examples of the kind of temptations. Mark makes it clear that these were ongoing temptations throughout the 40 days, coming from Satan (the adversary, the accuser). Some commentators point out the contrast with the children of Israel, wandering in the wilderness for 40 years, because they sinned and failed so often, and Jesus doing His Father’s will all along during His 40 days in the wilderness. The battle against sin and Satan and evil spirits is another of the strong emphases of Mark’s Gospel. Of course, Jesus had already been tempted earlier in His life and the temptations continued through the cross and until His mighty resurrection victory.

There are two more things to note about what Mark tells us in Mark 1:13. Only Mark mentions that Jesus was “with the wild animals” in the wilderness. This can mean one of two things, or most likely, both. Satan is often pictured as a dangerous beast or wild animal in Scripture. He appears in the form of a serpent in Genesis 3, in tempting Adam and Eve. He is described by Peter as being like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour in 1 Peter 5:8-9. If you studied Daniel with us, you know that the empires that rose and fell and troubled God’s people and others were described as unusual beasts. The same imagery is used often in the Book of Revelations to describe those opposed to God and His will. Even Jesus makes a similar reference in Luke 7:18-19 and says, “I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy.” Satan and his forces, the wild animals, were all around Jesus in the wilderness; yet He was able to resist them all.

The fact that Jesus could also be out in the wilderness with literal wild animals and not be harmed is beginning to fulfill other prophecies of the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven. It will only be in the perfection of heaven, but Jesus is bringing peace and harmony and a return to the Garden of Eden, in the work He would do for us. In the Garden of Eden before the Fall, Adam could name the animals and have no fear and all was very good. In Isaiah 11, with promises of the One coming from the line of Jesse, is a picture of perfect harmony in v.6-10, even among the animals of all kinds. Also, Ezekiel 34:25-31 uses a very similar picture image of God’s covenant of peace to come. God says, “I will make with them a covenant of peace and banish wild beasts from the land so that they may dwell securely in the wilderness.” See also verses 28 and 31, and the image of sheep safe with their Shepherd, the Lord. How comforting to think of all the Good News in what Jesus came to bring, as our Savior, in the simple words, “He was with the wild animals” and yet was safe and well.  

This idea is also emphasized in the last words of Mark 1:13. Part of the protection Jesus had was that “the angels were ministering to Him.” Other Gospels mention the angels, but Mark emphasizes that they were with Jesus all along, continually of help to Him, not just at the end of this time of temptation. It was again like promises God gave His people in their wilderness wanderings. See mention of angels in Exodus 23:20,23, and 32:34.

We too have the promise of guardian angels to help us (Psalm 91:11-13 and Matthew 18:10, for example) and that God always provides a way of escape for us, too, when we are tempted (1 Corinthians 10:13). Our problem is that we cave in too easily and do not always trust or lean on the Lord. Thanks be to the Lord that Jesus fought off every temptation and lived perfectly for us, in our place; and as our Risen and Victorious Lord, He is always around to help us, with His angels, and forgive us still. What great hope we have in Him.

Sermon for the Transfiguration of our Lord - February 14, 2021

Sermon for the Transfiguration of our Lord, based on:

2 Kings 2:1-12  

2 Corinthians 3:12-18; 4:1-6

Mark 9:2-9

 

Sermon originally delivered February 19, 2012