최중현 교수(롬한인장로교회) 영어설교(마가복음 강해 #1)- The Beginning of the Gospel (Mark 1:1-11)

The Beginning of the Gospel 

(Mark 1:1-11)

1. In the meantime, the exposition of the four Gospels that started during the pandemic has already been completed with [John], [Matthew], and [Luke] last week.

(1) From today, I want us to hear the voice of the Lord through the Gospel of Mark. In fact, the proof that the Bible is real is found in the Four Gospels. That is, four people did not record the same event of the Lord in the same way. So, since the Lord’s ministry was recorded from each person’s perspective, it tells us that this is not really a script, and through it, we can accurately know the Lord’s ministry and background at the time. That is why the four Gospels are important. So this season, I want us to look at Jesus Christ in the Gospel written by [Mark].

(2) First, in order to understand the Gospel of Mark, it is important to know what kind of person the author Mark is. As you know, Mark is not an apostle of the Lord. Nevertheless, he accurately recorded the Lord’s work. And when look at Mark, it feels like he doesn’t belong to the group of faithful people. So, in Acts 15, he was not recognized even by the Apostle Paul, so the question is how he came to write such a gospel.

(3) Anyway, due to time constraints, we will learn the introduction to the Gospel of Mark during the senior class. Today, we would like to receive grace together under the title [The Beginning of the Gospel] using the words [The Beginning of the Gospel] that appear at the beginning of Chapter 1 of the text.

2. First, if you look at the text carefully, you will see the words that the author Mark emphasized.

(1) It is the word [beginning of the gospel] in 1:1 of the text. Everyone, the gospel is the original (Greek) word [Ivangelion], and this word is an important truth of Christianity. So what is the definition of the gospel, which is good news? That is [Jesus Christ] himself. That’s right. The very essence of the gospel is that Jesus Christ is the gospel. So why is Jesus Christ the gospel? That is because He is the Son of God and our Christ, or Savior. But what is important is that Mark himself is making this confession now. That is why he wrote the Gospel of Mark and emphasized this word at the beginning of the Gospel to make this known. So why is it important to be Christ? That is, until now, many Jews and disciples have viewed the Lord as a savior who only takes care of their own interests [Makarioi], that is, who allows them to eat well and live well in Deuteronomy 28. However, when the Savior was caught in vain, all the disciples ran away, and Mark himself ran away naked, throwing away his linen blanket. However, later, when they were filled with the Holy Spirit and met the resurrected Lord, they came to know who the true Savior is. That’s right. Jesus is the Son of God and our Savior. However, the Savior is not just Christ who makes a good living, but the Savior who became a ransom sacrifice for our sins. So, when we realized this, the true confession of Christ broke out. That is why the confession that [God’s Son Jesus Christ is the beginning of the gospel] is a truly important confession. So, mark who gave up the missionary journey in Pamphylia and ran away, but later went to Alexandria, founded a church, and became a martyr there. That’s right. The beginning of the gospel is the new beginning of life and the foundation of life. So, is the beginning of our lives really Jesus Christ? I pray that you, like Mark in the text, will confess that Jesus, the Son of God, is the true savior.

(2) So, looking at the text, there are several characteristics that the author Mark emphasized.

1) First, comparing the text with other gospels, there is no information about the genealogy or birth of Jesus Christ. Everyone, if you look at the Gospel of Matthew, it begins with [the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the descendant of Abraham and David]. However, if you look at the genealogies, you will see that they are all stories of kings. So why did Matthew emphasize the genealogy of kings so much? That is, I wanted to emphasize that Jesus Christ is the King of kings. So, Matthew intentionally began his Gospel by comparing himself to Herod, the king of the world. But what is Mark’s intention in the text? That is, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is the one who came in the form of a lowly servant to atone for our sins. So he portrayed the Lord as a weak human being. That’s right. So, because the author Mark focused on the servant, he did not record the servant’s genealogy or background of birth. That’s right. Jesus Christ is the representative of poor human. So, if we look at the entire Gospel of Mark, it emphasizes the agony and suffering of the human Jesus and records the appearance of a weak human being.

2) The second characteristic of the Gospel of Mark is that the author Mark often emphasized that only Jesus Christ is the foundation of our lives. So, at the beginning of the text, the word beginning was compared with [Arche], which means the beginning, and it was made clear that the origin is Jesus Christ. That’s right. Only Jesus is the beginning of the gospel and only Jesus is the foundation of life. So Jesus is everything in the life. However, it begins with repentance. So, in verse 4 of the text, Mark emphasized [John the Baptist’s] cry of repentance. Everyone, at that time, John the Baptist was Elijah who was to come. This is because [Elijah before the coming of the Messiah] had to come as prophesied in Malachi 4. So, in verse 6, John the Baptist looks like Elijah, reminiscent of [2 Kings 1:8], dressed in camel hair and with a leather belt around his waist, and eating locusts and wild honey while crying out for repentance in the wilderness. Then many people bowed their heads to John the Baptist and repented. However, the Pharisees and Sadducees at the time refused to baptize John the Baptist. Why is that so? Because they thought they had nothing to repent of. That’s right. Repentance is the only way for us to live. That’s why the Lord’s first sermon said, repent, heaven is at hand.

(3) So what is the lesson that author Mark requested in today’s text? That is the message in verse 8. Everyone, what is the difference between John the Baptist’s baptism and the Lord’s baptism? That is the difference between repentance and salvation. So, John the Baptist baptized with water to make people confess their sins, and the Lord blessed them with salvation through the baptism of the Holy Spirit. That is why the Lord was baptized by John himself. Everyone, think about it. At that time, repentance was a prerequisite for receiving John’s baptism. So what sins would he have had to repent of in order to receive the baptism of John the Baptist from the sinless Lord? That was our sin. That is why Mark emphasized this part in verse 9 of the text. Then the heavens split and the Holy Spirit came to the Lord like a dove and the voice of God was heard. That’s right. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit appeared in one place. That’s why he wrote that he rejoiced in the Lord’s redemption.

[Conclusion]

The background of the Gospel of Mark is that in 64 AD, there was a great deal of controversy in Rome. When Caesar placed all the blame on Christians and persecuted them, the question that Mark asked after seeing those who were not confident and collapse was [the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God]. And he wrote down the Gospel of Mark with his own hands. So what kind of person is Jesus to us now?