Review of Mark 1

by Victor Fawole

Mark 1:1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God;

What a way to begin a historical account! Mark began his gospel account with two indispensable truths: “The Gospel” and “The Divinity of Jesus”. A third truth in this verse is that: “The good news (gospel) is about the Son of God.” Mark gives us no information about the birth and early life of Jesus, but writes expressly to declare his divinity (as Son of God) and humanity (as Servant of God).

Compared to the other three gospels (Matthew, Luke, and John), Mark’s account is the earliest and shortest record. He focused more on the works of Jesus (always serving and sorting problems) and less on His words. He zoomed in on emotions a lot, and he was very loud on Jesus’ quickness to meet the needs of people.

In this review, journey with me as we pay attention to the “Fantastic Four” that we must “know” in Mark 1.

1. KNOW YOUR PREACHER AND HIS MESSAGE
Mark introduces the ministry of two preachers. He started with the ministry of John the Baptist shortly before the ministry of Jesus. Here is the message declared by John:

Mark 1:4-5 John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins.

John’s preaching led to a lot of “confession of sins”. His message of “baptism of repentance for the remission of sins” made the people become sin-conscious.

Ten verses later, Mark gives us the message declared by Jesus:

Mark 1:14-15 Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

“Repent and believe the gospel!” BELIEVE. For John, it was “confess your sins”; for Jesus, it was “believe the gospel”. John’s message made people “sin-conscious”; Jesus’ message makes us “gospel-grounded”, “Christ-conscious”, and “faith-focused”. For a richer study on these different gospels, read this article by Pastor Damilola Akinyera.

John was a preacher in the Old Covenant, ordained to prepare the way. Jesus Himself brings the new covenant. The new covenant is all about Him. Jesus is your preacher (and Saviour). His message is to believe the gospel. Hear Him today! Amen.

2. KNOW YOUR BAPTISM AND ITS IMPORTANCE
Mark 1:6-8 And John was clothed with camel’s hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins; and he did eat locusts and wild honey; And preached, saying, There cometh one mightier than I after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose. I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.

Water baptism is a ceremonial washing that the Jews were familiar with. While John’s water baptism does not save anybody, Jesus’ Spirit baptism happened to us at salvation (1Cor. 12:13). John’s water baptism symbolized their outward confession of sins; but Jesus’ Spirit baptism is our inward regeneration of spirit. Celebrate your spirit baptism in Christ Jesus! Hallelujah!

For a further study of the doctrine of water baptism, listen to this teaching by Pastor Damilola Akinyera titled “What Grace Says About Water Baptism”

3. KNOW YOUR TEACHER AND HIS AUTHORITY
One of the quickest ways for a believer in Christ to lose the joy and freedom of salvation is having a teacher that relegates Jesus and His finished work. Jesus is God’s Beloved Son, whom we should always listen to! Jesus taught in the synagogue, and you can only wonder about the contents of His teaching.

Mark 1:21-22, 27 And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day he entered into the synagogue, and taught. And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes. And they were all amazed, insomuch that they questioned among themselves, saying, What thing is this? What new doctrine is this? for with authority commandeth he even the unclean spirits, and they do obey him.

Mark did not record Jesus’ notes, but he told us the impact the teaching had on the people. Jesus was not their regular scribe that taught a lot of law and traditions, and were void of authority. Jesus taught with authority because He had authority. He spoke into the hearts of the people. His teaching gave no breathing space for a demon! These same demons that were roaming freely in and out of the synagogues, possessed people unchecked, and lived large under the scribes.

Not only was Jesus superior to John the Baptist, not only was He superior to the scribes, He was far superior to demons. Under the teaching of the gospel of grace, the power of Jesus is made available for deliverance, healings, and solutions. Stay under grace and be a person of authority! Amen.

4. KNOW YOUR LORD AND HIS COMPASSION
Mark 1:40-42 And there came a leper to him, beseeching him, and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean. And as soon as he had spoken, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was cleansed.

In Matthew’s account of this leper and Jesus, the leper called Him “Lord” (Matt. 8:2). He recognized Jesus as the One who could save him. In the spiritual sense, he was a sinner who “drew near to the throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace to help in the time of need.” The Law had condemned and rejected a leper (sinner) like him, but Jesus was ever ready to receive, revive, redeem and restore him. I remember these words of Pastor Dammy…

Under Law: When the unclean touches the clean, the clean becomes unclean…
Under Grace: When the clean touches the unclean, the unclean becomes clean…

Our Lord is always moved with compassion towards us. He is willing to act in our favour. No matter what comes our way, the compassion of our Lord should draw us near the throne of grace. We must always keep the compassion of Jesus in view.

Say after me:
I enjoy the Salvation of Jesus!
I enjoy the Authority of Jesus!
I enjoy the Compassion of Jesus!

Grace to you. Amen.