014-What’s More Important Than Proclamation?

If you’re evangelizing because you feel or think you have to,
you might be doing it wrong.

• Discussion Outline
• Discussion Audio (1 hour 6 minutes)
• Text: Mark 6:30-44

Sermons can form people into active disciples of Jesus who, by feeding the hungry and performing other acts of kindness, become the means by which his divine compassion is extended to the world and his commandments are kept.^[1]

A “Successful” Mission?

The disciples return from their first assignments in which Jesus does not accompany them. They have proclaimed the gospel, cast out demons, and healed the sick. They report back to Jesus. Though the results are not described, there is nothing to imply that we should not see their mission as having great success, so much so that the people are continuing to swamp them to the point that they are unable to take care of even their basic, personal needs such as eating meals.

From a “success” perspective then, the grade seems to be A+, both to them and for us moderns looking in. But is that what Jesus saw? The story of the feeding of the five-thousand may show us something more important than proclamation and acts of service, when it comes to true evangelism of the kingdom of God.

Prophecies Fulfilled

This entire story is full of echoes and allusions back to the Old Testament, particularly of shepherds as metaphors for leaders of the people. Among these allusions, Psalm 23 plays a important part in this story with its mention of green pastures, a banquet table among enemies, a cup overflowing, and goodness and mercy. In contrast to the “banquet of death” (Herod’s birthday banquet / John the Baptist’s execution) immediately preceding the feeding account, what we see in the feeding story is a different kind of king, kingdom, and principles.

Its position in the Marcan framework after the account of Herod's feast juxtaposes the sumptuous oriental aura of the Herodian court with the austere circumstances in which Jesus satisfied the multitude with the staples of a peasant's diet. In spite of the tetrarch's pretensions to royalty, the people are as leaderless as sheep who possess no shepherd. In contrast to the drunken debauchery of the Herodian feast, Mark exhibits the glory of God unveiled through the abundant provision of bread in the wilderness where Jesus is Israel's faithful shepherd.^[2]

Also strongly present in the feeding story is the allusion to Moses and manna.

The wilderness setting of the feeding miracle (6:34- 35) reminds the audience of the Isaian theme of the new exodus and of God's miraculous provision of manna during the original exodus (Exod 16).^[3]

What Motivates Jesus?

Jesus is tired and so are the disciples. But something prompts Jesus to take care of their needs: first their spiritual hungering, their desire for genuine leadership, and then their physical needs. It’s not Jesus’ desire to enlarge his kingdom, to provide more signs, to publicize himself or his deeds.

The miracle took place before the multitude, but there is no indication in the Marcan text that they had any realization of what was taking place. The simplicity of the meal Jesus provided is congruous with his general reluctance to perform miracles and give signs; there was nothing extraordinary in the peasants' fare which would call attention to itself. The messianic meal remained hidden from the thousands. The event is intended to be revelatory to the disciples alone.^[4]

So why does Jesus stop to minister in spite of their exhaustion and need for rest? It is compassion.

“Compassion” is a weak rendering of what was going on within Jesus. The Greek word (splanchnizomai) refers to a churning of the gut. Jesus was churning on his insides because those in the crowd “were like sheep without a shepherd.”^[5]

The disciples have, to this point, learned what and how ministry is done – through proclamation, through freeing people from their “demons,” and through actions that relieve their sufferings – but they haven’t yet learned the “why.” It’s quite possible they thought all of this was to eventually lead to an earthly kingdom to replace the Roman Empire. Dramatic acts, heroic acts, powerful acts – with good publicity – would attract greater and greater numbers.

Who Is Jesus and What Is the Kingdom?

Jesus wants them to understand that the kingdom of God is not like the kingdoms of the world. It is not about putting the leader on a pedestal. It is not about doing things for the leader. It is not about amassing power and influence. Rather, it is about letting all of that go so that each member of the kingdom will learn to have compassion and show it in ways that don’t necessarily bring attention to the evangelist or the kingdom.

By this radical turn of conventional wisdom regarding power and kingdom, the disciples and all who read Mark’s account, are forced to ask, “Who is Jesus?”

What we have noted about the feeding account here amounts to a clear indication that Mark intends his readers to see the event as disclosing not only Jesus' miraculous power but also the secret of his person and significance. That is, the feeding miracle is really more about Jesus than bread and, like everything else in Mark, it presses the reader to consider who Jesus, the Son of Man, really is.^[6]

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[1] Feasting: Mark, location 6679.

[2] NICNT: Mark, 6:35-44.

[3] Reading Mark, 6:31-56.

[4] NICNT: Mark, 6:42-44.

[5] Feasting: Mark, location 6540.

[6] UBC: Mark, 6:30-44.

013-Thorny Ground

Herod Antipas wasn’t necessarily evil – but he was weak…
And that could be just as problematic.

• Discussion Outline
• Discussion Audio (53 minutes)
• Text: Mark 6:14-29

The placement of this sordid story, which turns
Herod’s birthday party into a banquet of death,
is by no means accidental.^[1]

Mark once more employs “sandwich” rhetoric to emphasize the message he wants to communicate. This time a story of Herod and the circumstances of John the Baptist’s execution are placed in the middle of a story involving Jesus sending out his disciples as apostles for ministry work. The “bread” layers on the outside are very thin, and in fact the closing of the rhetoric involves just one verse (v.30). Between the sending out and their return is the story that will take our attention this time.

The story is told as a flashback, and when taken alone it seems a bit out of place. What is Mark attempting to communicate by this particular placement and extended treatment?

Who Is Jesus?

The story opens with speculations as to the identity of Jesus. Herod is quite certain that it is the resurrected John the Baptist, or at least someone working magical powers using the Baptist’s spirit. The others in his court speculate that it might be Elijah or one like the prophets of old. The irony is that while unclean spirits and demons have correctly recognized Jesus’ identity, no human so far has done so.

The Jews were anticipating a return of Elijah to usher in the Messianic Age. John himself had spoken of Jesus as one greater than himself, the one who was to come. But what John would never realize is that he was the Elijah who was to come. Mark, in his use of rhetoric and parallels to the Old Testament stories of Ahab, Jezebel, and Elijah, weave this present story to show his audience that John was, indeed, the Elijah to come.

So who then, is Jesus? This may be the most important question for everyone. Jesus will ask the disciples about himself in just a short while (8:27-30).

Who Is Herod?

Herod Antipas never held the title “King” though he coveted it. Mark uses the title, perhaps because it was common usage to refer to him, or perhaps more because of the irony.

The royal title had been denied to Antipas by Augustus. Goaded by the ambitious Herodias, it was Antipas' request for the title of ‘king’ which officially led to his dismissal and exile in A.D. 39. Mark's use of the royal title may reflect local custom, or it may be a point of irony. Herod had modeled his court after the imperial pattern, and it is possible that the irony of designating him by a title he coveted, but failed to secure, would be appreciated in Rome where his sentence had been sealed.^[2]

In any event Mark is weaving a story in which he presents a banquet with a “king” and then in the next story (6:30-44) he presents another “banquet” story with a different “king.”

What Mark shows his audience about Antipas is that, just like Ahab of old, he is weak and vacillating. The true source of power is Herodias who works behind the scenes to manipulate Antipas. Antipas covets power, prestige, influence, and approval. Herodias uses these to her advantage to get what she wants.

Antipas is not necessarily completely evil. There is still a place in his heart and mind where he is able to discern what is right, and is even attracted by it. This story is a battle between what is right and what is desired.

The First Passion Story

The Gospel of Mark contains two "passion narratives," the first of which reports the imprisonment and death of John the Baptist.^[3]

Mark chooses to include details that will parallel Jesus’ passion story. Pontius Pilate, too, is weak and vacillating. He, too, knows what is right but succumbs to his desire for approval and to maintain his power among the people. A message is dispatched from his wife to try to influence his choice. In this case it would have been better if Pilate had listened to his wife. By these specific choices, Mark foreshadows Jesus’ road to execution.

This story provides no example of “working together for good” (c.f., Romans 8:28) through John’s death. Sandwiched between the story of the apostles’ sending out and return, what it shows is that we should not be surprised when bad things happen to good people for no visible future purpose. The call for Christ’s followers is not success, but faithfulness, just as was seen in John’s life and ministry.

It is as though Mark wants his readers to realize that despite high hopes for the ministry of Jesus and his disciples (6:6b–13) and the exciting things happening all around (6:14a, 30–56), sometimes bad things do happen to good people. These setbacks to God’s best and brightest hopes for the world must not be allowed to derail faithfulness to God’s kingdom among Jesus’ disciples, whether in first-century Jerusalem or Rome or twenty-first-century America.^[4]

Thorny Ground

The parable of the soils (4:3-8, 14-20) describes a number of soils. It was noted earlier that this parable could be taken as the lens with which to interpret the entire Gospel According to Mark. When we do this we can see that the religious leaders and the friends and family in Nazareth are examples of the soil on the path. They are so fixated on the mundane nature of Jesus that the gospel fails to take any root.

Antipas can be seen as an example of thorny ground. The seed (sown by John) appears to sprout and even start to take root, “but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.” (4:19).

Because he failed to allow the gospel to grow, and by his deliberate rejection of the many warnings and admonitions sent to him, Antipas may also an example of one who commits the “sin against the Holy Spirit” (3:29) showing the logical end of continued refusal to acknowledge and accept the correct source of the gospel.

The next story will show the public high point of Jesus’ ministry, with thousands gathering to hear and experience him. But like the shallow soil, what is received with joy won’t last in many of them as the true nature of the kingdom of God becomes more clearly seen, until at the end many who praised Jesus turn against him.

Jesus, he argues, has been rejected from the beginning. That he should die for his message of transformation should come as no surprise; but along the way, his message has taken root in some, and his death will be like a seed that will become newness of life in the resurrection.^[5]

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[1] Feasting: Mark, location 6392.

[2] NICNT: Mark, 6:14-15.

[3] NICNT: Mark, 6:17-29.

[4] Feasting: Mark, location 6341.

[5] Feasting: Mark, location 6316.

008-The Main Parable

The Gospel is One Big Parable.

• Discussion Outline
• Discussion Audio (1 hour 24 minutes)
• Text: Mark 4:1-20

Up to this point in the Markan account, the audience has not seen the contents of Jesus’ teachings. In chapter 4 we are provided with a sample of Jesus’ teachings. Through these few examples Mark gives his readers a taste of the ways in which Jesus proclaimed the kingdom of God.

The material of 4:1-34 is arranged chiastically as shown here:

This session concerns A, B, C, and D. As such all conclusions remain tentative.

The following is the summary of the parables of 4:1-34.

The author of Mark uses the parables and sayings of Jesus to explain why the proclamation of God's reign is meeting with resistance and to assure the audience that despite the apparent lack of progress, God's reign will eventually burst forth in amazing fruitfulness.^[1]

The parable of the sower (or seeds or soils) is frequently interpreted parenetically; i.e., as exhortation or warning to believers. Some of these interpretations include:

• That we’re to cultivate and weed the soil (i.e., mission field)
• That we’re to strive to be fertile soil (i.e., work hard to produce fruit)
• And we’re to avoid being one of the unproductive soils (i.e., avoid the attractions of the world)

But the parable and its explanation are best understood to be descriptive.

… The allegorical interpretation is not parenetic in character… Neither seeds nor soil can change their nature, and the failure of the seeds to take root, or to flourish once they have taken root, is attributed to the influence of Satan, as we have seen. The Markan Jesus is not warning the disciples to be good soil; rather, he is warning them (and the overhearing audience) that even as the reign of God takes root and flourishes in some quarters, it will provoke opposition, persecution, and seduction from the forces of evil. It is the nature of the reign of God to provoke opposition; it cannot be otherwise.^[2]

The context in which this parable is to be read and interpreted is that of the immediate circumstances in which Christians were facing trials, persecutions, and possibly death. Perhaps some were being forced out of their homes and away from their families while some who once worshiped together were renouncing the faith they had once received with joy and eagerness. Through this parable the early Christians understood that the very same gospel that draws people to Christ can also elicit opposing responses.

There is nothing in the parables to exhort people to become better soil, to grow, or to bear fruit. Rather the only exhortation is to listen and understand the parable itself: that the gospel elicits different kinds of judgment from the people that come into contact with it, and that it is not the fault of the gospel nor the ones who sow, but rather it simply is.

The parable must also be understood in the context that the gospel is a hidden secret, a mystery, until the Passion and Resurrection. Even then, the gospel remains a mystery to those who refuse to exercise faith.

The parable of the sower is a description, not an exhortation.

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[1] Reading Mark, 4:1-34.

[2] Reading Mark, 4:1-34.

002-What’s So Great About Repentance?

Unlike Matthew, Mark seems to have no difficulty with Jesus undergoing John’s baptism of repentance even though Jesus had no need to repent.[1]

• Discussion Outline
• Discussion Audio (1h07 minutes)
• Text: Mark 1:9-15

As we read Mark, we can make assumptions about the traditions about Jesus that he knew. If he was recording Peter’s knowledge, Mark certainly knew that Jesus was personally sinless. Yet in these opening verses, Mark chooses to deliberately omit those parts of the tradition that object to Jesus being baptized. Jesus is baptized with a “baptism of repentance.” We, as the audience, are left to wrestle with Mark’s choices of inclusion and exclusion.

Repentance and repenting are not exactly popular concepts within modern Christianity. I’ve noticed one of two ways of dealing with it. One is for churches to not talk about it – to ignore it. It is too embarrassing, too uncomfortable, it evokes too much in the way of guilt and shame. Don’t talk too much about sin, and don’t talk too much about repentance – seems to be the first way of dealing with it.

The second way is to talk about it all the time. The world is lost in sin and the Christian has been commissioned to identify that problem and bring people to repentance. Sermons frequently identify different types of sin and exhort listeners to repent and be saved. The constant focus, conscious or not, is on the ongoing failure of humanity to measure up to God’s standards and thus our need of repentance. The question is always there: have we sufficiently repented of our sins? For many this constant reminder of sins and guilt and shame leads to fear and in some cases, abandoning Christianity.

Both approaches to repentance – ignoring it and dwelling on it – are based on the premise that “repent” is defined primarily in its relationship to sin and more specifically, personal sin. But is this what Mark (and Peter) had in mind when the gospel opens with both John the Baptist and Jesus calling on people to “repent”, and when Jesus himself undergoes a baptism of repentance?

Sin Infects the Entire Community

The biggest mistake Western Christians make about sin and repentance is to see it primarily through our individualistic culture. For decades and even a couple of centuries now, Christianity has spoken primarily of personal salvation and a personal relationship with Jesus and/or God. But such a notion would have been rather foreign to Mark and his audience.

Do not forget that Metanoeite! [Repent!] is a plural verb. Over the years, in English, we have downsized this powerful Greek verb into a singular, private affair. Of course, a person’s decision whether or not to follow Jesus is deeply personal, but Metanoeite! is a plural imperative that extends beyond one’s personal decision. Mark refuses to reduce Metanoeite! to a privatized response, as though the invitation of Jesus involved “just me and Jesus.” Mark will have none of that. “Believing the gospel” is a group effort. Christian life is lived in community, always in community, no matter how many blemishes or scars.[2]

Sin has infected the entire human community. It doesn’t matter if just one individual sins or all of them. All have sinned. When Jesus chooses to become incarnate as a human, he chooses to take upon himself sin. He does not have personal sin, but that is of little consequence. He has placed himself under the curse of sin, and to exit the curse, to defeat it, requires that he too, repent. Therefore, Jesus must undergo a public demonstration of his repentance.

But for Jesus (and Mark as he writes) turning away from sin is a very tiny part of repentance. For Jesus repentance is turning to God, committing himself to God’s will and purposes, and making the decisions all through his life in line with a journey toward God. Jesus rejects the temptation to sin of self-preservation. He rejects the basis of power and empire of this world and reveals a different kind of kingdom, one based not on self-preservation but on self-sacrifice.

To prepare for participation in the reign of God means a complete reversal of mindset (metanoeite is usually translated "Repent!" but this is much more all-encompassing than mere regret or admission of fault). This reversal of mindset amounts to putting unreserved trust in the good news from God and about God that will unfold in the course of the narrative. That is all the Markan Jesus asks- a complete reversal of humanity's values, priorities, and ground of security.[3]

Testing Continues Through This Life

Unlike the gospel accounts of Matthew and Luke, there is no “finish” to the period of testing/temptation of Jesus in the wilderness. There is no decisive victory. By this lack of a “finish” Mark tells his audience (Christians undergoing crisis and persecution) that like Jesus, the testing and suffering will continue through their entire lives, that they may well not experience any respite from it in this life. But the encouragement is that a “wilderness experience” is not a sign of God’s abandonment but quite to the contrary, God’s will can be accomplished through it. Not only that but heavenly ministers will minister to them during this trying period. Unlike Matthew and Luke, Mark writes that angels minister to Jesus throughout his testing period.

The Kingdom Is Here – Repent!

The Kingdom of God is vastly different from the kingdoms of the world. The two are based on diametrically opposed systems of power and governance. All human systems are based on hierarchy and power that leads to tyranny and corruption as those more powerful attempt to retain their positions and privileges through manipulation, deceit, and force.

Human history is a continued record of one kingdom conquering another, to be conquered by yet another. In many cases the conquering kingdom has noble vision and high ideals, but as it is established it falls to the same temptation that caused its predecessor to fall.

The same can be said not just of political powers but business and religious groups.

Therefore, repentance is the good news of the kingdom of God.

“The kingdom of God” here means the rule of God, and Jesus' message signifies that God has begun to establish his rule in a world viewed by many religious Jews as under the tyranny of Satan and evil.[4]

Jesus' action in confronting Satan, sin, disease and death, and subduing nature is the sign that the end stands as the next act of God in man's future. Provision has been made for men to repent, but there is no time for delay. Only through repentance can a man participate with joy in the kingdom when it does break forth… Either a man submits to the summons of God or he chooses this world and its riches and honor. The either/or character of this decision is of immense importance and permits of no postponement. That is what repentance is all about.[5]

We do not have to repeat the past. We can have a new beginning and enter into a new way of life. This is the meaning of Jesus’ opening announcement in Mark’s gospel account.

Without question, Metanoeite! carries with it the notion that we have some changing to do, some new directions to take; its primary orientation, though, is toward God’s future rather than our past. In Mark, Metanoeite! is an invitation to trust in a future made possible by the grace of God. The first word Jesus speaks in Mark’s Gospel is “Metanoeite!” Why? Because in Jesus, God makes it possible for God’s people to do more than rerun the past. That is the gospel, the good news, the glad tidings toward which Jesus invites us to stop, turn, or turn again, and hold on to for dear life. Metanoeite! says our Lord; things do not have to stay the way they are now! In fact, to follow Jesus means that things cannot stay the way they are…[6]

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[1] Exploring Mark, p.43.

[2] Feasting: Mark, location 1284.

[3] Reading Mark, 1:1-13.

[4] UBC: Mark, 1:14-20.

[5] NICNT: Mark, 1:14-15.

[6] Feasting: Mark, location 1260.