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Lesson 1: Prologue to Jesus’ Public Ministry, Mark 1:1-13
Lesson 1: Prologue
to Jesus’ Public Ministry, Mark 1:1-13 by
Brad Anderson
Jesus’ Forerunner, John the Baptist
(1:1-8)
Unlike Matthew and Luke, Mark starts his gospel with the ministry
of John the Baptist. Mark includes no genealogy, no birth narrative,
and says nothing of Jesus' boyhood or adolescence. He starts right
out, after quoting from the OT, with Jesus as a full-grown man.
Mark states that his work is a “gospel” about Jesus.
The word “gospel” is literally “good news”
(euangelion). The Greek word originally meant the reward for bringing
good news but later came to mean the Good News itself. A gospel
account is not a standard historical biography. Instead, it is preaching
materials, designed to tell the story of God's saving action in
the life, ministry death and resurrection of Jesus. Mark was a close
companion of Peter. It’s most likely that much of the material
in Mark’s gospel came directly from Peter’s recollections.
What’s the significance of verses 2-3? Mark quotes from the
OT to show that any true understanding of the ministry of Jesus
must be firmly grounded in OT prophecy and expectation. Mark is
actually combining several texts here (Ex 23:20; Isa 40:3; Mal 3:1).
John the Baptist (or Baptizer) was the fulfillment of this prophecy
of a forerunner who would prepare the way (“make straight
paths”) for the Messiah.
According to vs. 4, what did John’s baptism signify? Forgiveness
through repentance. The baptism indicated that repentance had already
occurred or was being accompanied by it. The word "repentance"
(metanoia) literally means "a change of mind"; but in
the NT it is used in a deeper sense, indicating a deliberate turning.
The end result of repentance is the forgiveness of sins. God's direct
response to true repentance is forgiveness.
The Importance of Repentance in the
New Testament
From the very outset of the Gospel accounts, and throughout
the rest of the NT, repentance is a primary theme. John preached
repentance (Mark 1:4), Jesus taught repentance (Mark 1:15),
and so did the apostles (Acts 2:38, 20:21). Some suggest that
repentance is really synonymous with faith, i.e., it’s
simply redirecting one’s belief from some other object
to Christ. But the repentance that John, Jesus, and the apostles
taught clearly required acknowledging one’s sin, sorrow
for it, and a turning from it. That’s why John, Jesus,
and the apostles expected to see “works suitable for
repentance” in the lives of those who repented (Luke
3:8; Acts 26:20).
John was called “the Baptist” because he baptized, or
immersed, those who repented as a result of his ministry. Being
the distinctive mark of John’s ministry, his baptism differed
from the ritual Jewish washings in that it was a one-time act. The
Jews performed a similar one-time washing of Gentile converts, symbolizing
their embracing of the true faith. [John didn’t invent baptism.
The Jews and other religions baptized.] That Jews would participate
in such a rite was a startling admission that they, although members
of God’s covenant people, needed to come to God through repentance
and faith just like Gentiles. John’s baptism was similar in
method (immersion) but different in meaning than Christian baptism.
John's preaching aroused much interest and created a great stir.
Jerusalem is at least twenty miles from the Jordan River and about
four thousand feet above it. It was hard going down the rugged Judean
hills to the Jordan and even harder coming back up. Perhaps God
chose this wilderness setting because the desert symbolized Israel’s
spiritual condition—dry, empty, barren, and fruitless.
What did John preach (besides repentance)? (.7-8) He preached the
coming of the Messiah. It had been many generations (400 years)
since a prophetic voice had been heard in Israel. John’s message
raised popular excitement to a fever pitch, and “all the people
of Jerusalem went out to him” (v. 5). Although great numbers
came seeking baptism, John baptized no one who did not make an open
confession of sin.
What is the “baptism
of the Holy Spirit”?
Much confusion and disagreement exists regarding Holy Spirit
baptism. The church, the spiritual body of Christ, is formed
as believers are immersed by Christ with the Holy Spirit (1
Cor 12:13). Christ is the Baptizer who immerses each believer
with the Spirit into unity with all other believers. All believers
are placed into the body of Christ by means of the Holy Spirit
at the point of conversion. There cannot be any believer who
has not been Spirit-baptized, nor can there be more than one
Spirit baptism per believer. Believers have all been Spirit-baptized
and thus are all in one body. This is not an experience to
seek, but a reality to acknowledge. (MacArthur)
It is incorrect and inaccurate to call a special “power”
from the Holy Spirit the baptism, anointing, or unction of
the Holy Spirit. Spirit baptism occurs only once—at
conversion, and all believers are equally baptized and share
equally of the Spirit’s power. Spirit baptism is non-experiential
and positional.
Being baptized with the Spirit is not the same as being filled
with the Spirit (Eph 5:18). Spirit filling occurs as the believer
submits himself to the controlling influence of the Holy Spirit.
Spirit filling can and should be the daily experience of serious
believers. Special empowerment for ministry should rightly
be called filling, not baptism or anointing.
What’s going to be the difference between the ministry of
John and that of the One who follows him? (.7-8) The coming Mighty
One will baptize with the Holy Spirit. John's baptism is water baptism;
that of the Coming One is Holy Spirit baptism. In other words, God
Himself would come and purify and purge His people. This is what
happened in a dramatic way at Pentecost (Acts 2) in fulfillment
of Christ's promise (Acts 1:5).
John Baptizes Jesus (1:9-11)
The first thing the reader sees Jesus doing is being baptized by
John in the Jordan River. Why did Jesus submit himself to a baptism
of repentance for the forgiveness of sins? See Matt 3:14-15 Jesus
was no sinner and didn’t need to repent. In Matthew's account
John was reluctant to baptize Jesus: "I need to be baptized
by you, and do you come to me?" (Matt 3:14). Jesus replied,
"It is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness"
(v. 15). "All righteousness" is a reference to God's plan
and purpose for Jesus. Part of that plan was the complete identification
of Jesus at the very outset of his ministry with man and his sin.
This he did by submitting to baptism.
He had no sins of his own to confess. Rather he was
proclaiming his identity with human nature, weakness, and sin (cf.
2 Cor 5:21). Jesus' being baptized was an act of identification.
Jesus was associating himself with mankind.
Verse 10 says that the Spirit of God descended upon Jesus immediately
after his baptism. In OT times they anointed prophets, priests,
and kings by pouring oil upon their heads, committing them to the
function and office in which they were to serve. This is the picture
of what is now occurring in Jesus' life. God through the Spirit
is anointing him with power to meet the demands of the ministry
upon which he is about to launch.
The language of verses 10-11 echoes Isaiah 64:1: "Oh, that
you would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains would
tremble before you." The descent of the Spirit on Jesus clearly
indicated his anointing for ministry. Jesus himself claimed this
anointing in the synagogue at Nazareth when he said, "The Spirit
of the Lord is on me" (Luke 4:18). Note that all three Persons
of the Trinity are present at Jesus’ baptism.
What is the significance of the audible words, "Thou art my
beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased"? Obviously Jesus knew
that—it wasn’t for his benefit. It was a stamp of approval
from God for the benefit of those who heard it. It confirmed who
Jesus was and validated His public ministry from the outset.
The Doctrine of
the Trinity
The doctrine of the trinity asserts that
one God exists indivisibly and eternally as Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit. God is three persons in one essence. The divine
nature exists in three distinctions—Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit. All three Persons possess the divine attributes, yet
the essence of God is undivided. The Persons do not act independently
of one another. God is three Persons, yet one God.
Misinterpretations of the Trinity:
-Tri-theism: three separate gods rather than one
God in three persons
- Modalism: three roles or modes of existence.
The one God manifests Himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
- Arianism: the Son is created and subordinate
to the Father in nature or essence (Jehovah’s Witnesses
are Arians) [not Aryans—racial distinction]
Satan Tempts Jesus (1:12-13)
Note how briefly Mark handles this incident. Matthew takes eleven
verses to describe the event, and Luke takes thirteen. No specific
temptations are described and no victory over Satan is recorded.
By this Mark wants to emphasize that Jesus' entire ministry was
one continuous encounter with the Devil and not limited to a few
temptations in the desert during a period of forty days. Indeed,
in his Gospel he vividly describes this continuing conflict.Now
Mark has set the scene for the rest of the book. He’s introduced
John and Jesus, and shown that Jesus is the expected Messiah. John
has prepared the way, and Jesus has begun his public ministry.
Discussion:
1. How is a gospel account different from a standard biography?
The gospel writer includes only that material that suits his purpose—the
proclaiming of Jesus as the savior. It’s preaching material,
not a complete historical record.
2. What did Jesus’ baptism signify? Not repentance from sin.
Rather, complete identification of Jesus with man and his sin. He
was proclaiming his identity with human nature, weakness, and sin.
Jesus was associating himself with mankind.
3. What was the purpose of God’s statement, “Thou art
my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased”? It validated or
confirmed who Jesus was and his ministry.
4. You hear a friend say, “Pastor Clodhopper is an anointed
preacher.” Why is this an inaccurate use of the term “anointed”?
Because “anointed” is synonymous with the baptism of
the H.S. The baptism occurs at the point of conversion. All believers
are anointed. A special enablement should be called filling.
5. Define the concept of repentance. Repentance is the change of
mind away from sin and toward God. It’s acknowledging one’s
sin, sorrow for it, and a desire to turn from it.
6. The Bible never uses the word “Trinity” to describe
God. How do we know that God is a Trinitarian being? That’s
the conclusion we come to. The Father, the Son, and the H.S. are
all called God and have the attributes of God.
