Mark - The First Gospel: unit 3

Showing posts with label unit 3. Show all posts

Thursday, March 26, 2015

019-Beginning to See

A correct declaration of faith is
not the same as having faith.

There is nothing random or haphazard about the placement of the stories and teachings in Mark. The two pericopes discussed here are no exception.

Leading up to these verses we’ve seen Jesus defying the cultural and religious traditions regarding the Messiah, of Jesus breaking down boundaries and traditions, and of the people wondering who Jesus is. We have seen how the individuals and groups in power and exercising authority – represented by Herod and the Pharisees – trying to force Jesus to fit into their schemes.

We have heard Jesus warn his disciples about the “leaven of Herod and of the Pharisees,” and we have heard Jesus call the disciples blind and deaf. It is in this context that the next verses are to be read and interpreted.
(From Discussion Outline, First Thoughts)

Mark 8:27-33 are seen by most scholars and commentators as the very center of the Markan gospel account. These verses provide a climax to the first half of the account and function as a hinge to tie the second half to the first. The text for this session includes a part of this critical, central passage. We leave the remainder for next time.

A bumbled healing

The first pericope is a narrative in which Jesus appears to have some difficulties in fully healing a blind man. It is the only such case in the entire corpus of all the gospel accounts. This story is itself appears to be an illustration of the entire Markan account. At the halfway point, the disciples have a vague understanding of who Jesus is, but they do not see clearly. More healing must take place. However, at least in Mark’s account, the disciples never see clearly.

Jesus is the Messiah that to these disciples looks like a tree walking around. Even more disturbing is the fact that they never achieve clear sight or understanding—not in Mark’s narrative. Commentators like to say that the resurrection was the moment that full sight came for the disciples—but not in Mark… This inability of the disciples in Mark to achieve sight is a source of tension. It is the same tension that Mark’s nonending creates. The rhetorical function of Mark’s ending forces the reader to exclaim in horror, “No! It cannot end that way! The good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, cannot, must not end in fleeing, fear, and silence!^[1]

There are other considerations for this story:

Relation to two other key healing episodes in 7:31-37 and 10:46-52, both in rhetoric and in theme.
Relation to Isaiah 35, particularly vv. 5-6 and the overall context of the chapter.
That perhaps Mark intentionally depicts Jesus as “weak” in contrast to the disciples’, Herod’s, the Pharisees’, and the crowd’s expectations.^[2]

A correct declaration

This next section (vv.27-30) is the first half of the critical centerpiece of the gospel account. This takes place “on the way” to Caesarea Philippi.

The geographic context for this story is significant. Jesus had just been in Bethsaida, the northeast fishing town on the Sea of Galilee that belonged to Philip’s tetrarchy. Caesarea Philippi was further north in this territory and was to be distinguished from the much larger coastal city of Caesarea Maritima. Herod the Great had named this inland Caesarea in honor of Augustus. He also had a temple of white marble built and dedicated to Augustus in the city (Josephus, Jewish Antiquities 15.10.3). The imperial overtones underlying the geographic location of the story are clear. Mark has Jesus identified as the Christ, the anointed one, the Messiah, indeed a royal figure, precisely here in a city dedicated to another king, and from Mark’s perspective a lesser, earthly king. The eventual irony of the charges against Jesus, that he was the “King of the Jews” (15:26), is already anticipated in 8:27-30.^[3]

The phrase “on the way” will eventually be revealed as “code” for “the way to Jerusalem and the cross.”

For the first time since 1:1, Mark uses the title, Christ. It is in the most politically charged setting that its second use appears. To declare Jesus as Christ is to disavow all other claims of power as less than Jesus. He makes the disciples declare this openly, yet commands them (as he did with the demons) to keep silent about it. It is all strange and bizarre.

A part of the interpretation of this text surely has to do with its original Roman audience. They too, were facing the question of who Jesus is, and what does it mean to declare him as Lord (against Caesar). This story is provided to give the audience comfort and encouragement that the first disciples had to decide who Jesus was and where Jesus fit in the hierarchy of powers, and that they confessed the dangerous declaration.

On the other hand is the command to keep silent. This will have to wait until next time. This is the reason why Mark’s second half exists. In the second half the disciples (and the audience) learn what “Christ” really means, as opposed to what they expected.

Peter’s “correct confession” is deceptive. It points out an important reality: we can have what appears to be everything in order—words, actions, and so on—and still have it very wrong.

Correct confession can be deceptive. It can mask false discipleship, idolatry, and even a perspective that Jesus attributes to Satan. A perfectly correct mission statement does not reveal the true discipleship of either the pastoral staff or the congregation that appears to follow it to a tee.^[4]

[1] Feasting: Mark, locations 8291, 8295.

[2] Feasting: Mark, location 8269. “In this episode of the healing of the blind man, Mark makes Jesus appear weak, in order to say something important about who Jesus is, who the disciples are, and what Jesus is doing to form them into the kind of followers and leaders they need to be… Jesus’ apparent weakness is a vehicle for Mark to convey something that is at the heart of true discipleship.”

[3] Feasting: Mark, location 8425.

[4] Feasting: Mark, location 8489.

Monday, March 16, 2015

018C-Bread and Boat, Again and Again

The greatest temptation for the Church:
Fitting Jesus into a box.

We finally complete study #18 which was supposed to be a single study, but ended up taking three sessions. This session takes up the puzzling statement Jesus makes about “beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod” (8:15 ESV).

It is not too difficult to see that the leaven (or yeast) has something to do with the corrupting influence of the Pharisees and Herod. But why are the disciples being warned about it, and what precisely are the corrupting influences? Finding the solutions to these questions requires taking in (once more) a much broader context – this time far back to at least chapter 3 and looking forward into the next chapters. This reveals something about the warning: Mark probably didn’t intend his audience to figure it out right when the statement was made, but rather to have something in the back of their minds to ponder as they read and hear the rest of the gospel text. For our purposes, because we are modern Westerns and we like answers, so I attempt to provide at least some closure to these questions.

For both Pharisees and Herod, the gospels have shown that their primary question is “Who is Jesus?” and they have some ideas about who he is. For the Pharisees, Jesus is a wonder-worker whose source of power is uncertain (thus the request for a “sign” in 8:11-13). The Pharisees had earlier attributed Jesus’ power to demons (3:22). Herod was certain that Jesus was John the Baptist, returned to torment him (6:16). Between these two were Jesus’ family who though he was mentally unstable (3:21) and the people who adored his words and acts, but really didn’t know much beyond that. In a little while the disciples will be asked the same question, “Who am I?” by Jesus.

The picture that is developing in the Markan account is that every person has an idea about who Jesus is. If Jesus doesn’t fit into their “box” of the description of the Messiah, they find ways to explain Jesus in some other way. Throughout this unit (chapters 6-8) Mark is describing how Jesus defies categorizations, boundaries, and expectations.

So why the warning? I think Mark includes it as something vital for the Church to understand. The Church, and the Christians who compose it, desperately want Jesus to fit into our expectations, boundaries, and categories. We form creeds, doctrines, and statements of faith to make concrete the mysteries of Christ and God. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but then we use those to define the boundaries of what is orthodox vs. what is not; and we use that to determine who is inside and who is outside (the boundaries of grace, even). We form committees, congregations, councils, and denominations to enforce the boundaries. We play into the human games of power and tradition.

Hence Mark’s inclusion of Jesus’ warning against the leaven of the Pharisees and of Herod. Jesus broke boundaries, he diminished the importance of traditions, he spoke against establishments of power, he went where no one expected him to go, he offered healing and salvation to those least likely seen as “deserving.” The Church is supposed to continue in Jesus’ footsteps. But instead, for much of history, the Church has been in pursuit of power and of establishing traditions to conserve what it has attained

Monday, March 9, 2015

018B–Bread and Boat, Again and Again

Miracles are ambiguous.

We continue our discussion in Mark chapter 8. This session we get through another quarter or so of the originally planned material. Specifically we discuss vv. 11-13. The remainder will be picked up next time.

This is a short passage that seems to be almost randomly placed, interrupting the main flow of the narrative in chapter 8; which consists of the feeding of the four-thousand followed by multiple boat trips across Lake Gennesaret (Sea of Galilee), and miracles on either side of the boat journeys. But we’ve been seeing that Mark’s crafting and placement of text is quite intentional. The two sections on either side of vv.11-13 deal with the nature of bread and feeding. Thus 8:1-21 might be yet another example of Mark’s “sandwich rhetoric” where vv.11-13 is the filling. If so, there is something here that is quite vital to the understanding of the entirety of the “sandwich.”

The key to interpretation and understanding is found in verse 11:

The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him. (ESV)

The New International Commentary: Mark explains the phrase “sign from heaven”:

The concept of a sign is intelligible from the OT and later Jewish literature. It signifies a token which guarantees the truthfulness of an utterance or the legitimacy of an action…
The recognition that a sign is primarily an evidence of trustworthiness, not of power, sheds light on this verse. It indicates that the demand for a sign is not a request for a miracle. Jesus' miracles are never designated as signs in Mark's Gospel, nor were they considered to be signs by the Pharisees. They regard Jesus' miracles as ambiguous actions whose meaning must be confirmed by a sign. They had witnessed his mighty works but had concluded they were of demonic agency (Ch. 3:22–30). That is why the Pharisees demand a sign in spite of Jesus' deeds. The request for a sign is a demand that he demonstrate the legitimacy of his actions.^[1]

One of the key allusions of a “sign from heaven” is likely to Elijah on Mt. Carmel calling down fire from heaven to vindicate YHWH over the powers of Baal and his prophets. Jesus could perform all the miracles he wanted, but in Jewish tradition even infinite miracles were insufficient to “prove” the agency of the power and motivation behind the miracles. Miraculous works and workers were a dime a dozen in those days (or at least the reports of miracles…). Healing the sick and multiplying food didn’t prove anything significant, or so they believed.

The opponents of Jesus wanted him to prove that his power came from God by something only God could do, at least according to their traditions. And this Jesus would not do. He refused. Why did he refuse? The answer is not as obvious as we may have been commonly led to believe. It hinges on the word “test” which is the same word used in the account of the wilderness temptation. It means “to tempt.”

The problem with the wilderness temptation was not entirely that if Jesus had succumbed, he would have sinned. A key element of the temptation account (the details which are in Matthew and Luke) is that by succumbing to the temptations, Jesus would have allowed himself to fit into the people’s expectations of the Messiah; he would have allowed himself to be defined by religious and cultural traditions and expectations. This he could not do, because God and his purposes cannot be defined by humans.

When the Pharisees come to “test” Jesus, the same dynamic is at work. They are there to approve or disapprove of Jesus’ claims and works. If he gives a sign, he falls into the very temptation that Satan had tempted Jesus with initially.

In Reading Mark its author writes,

If Jesus were to accede to their demand, he would be implicitly acknowledging their right as the religious establishment to define and categorize him according to their standards of legitimation (Waetjen 1989, 140). This, of course, he will not do.^[2]

The New International Commentary states a similar interpretation,

Jesus' refusal of a sign has important historical and theological significance. Historically, the demand for a sign expressed the desire to judge Jesus according to norms defined by scribal interpretation… He had already pronounced the scribal norms decayed and sterile (Ch. 7:1–23) and he now rejects their pretentiousness categorically. Theologically, the demand for unmistakable proof that God is at work in Jesus' ministry is an expression of unbelief. It represents the attempt to understand the person of Jesus within categories which were wholly inadequate to contain his reality.^[3]

The question for us is, how are we Christians like Pharisees today? In what ways are we demanding that Jesus and God fit into boxes of our making? Boxes of our doctrine and traditions? In what ways have God’s failure to meet our expectations and desires of him led us to doubt and unbelief? And perhaps more pointedly in the context of Mark chapter 8, how is God’s seeming over-inclusiveness been a source of stumbling to us? In what ways have we tried to demand that other people seeking Jesus first fit into particular boxes?

[1] NICNT: Mark, 8:11.

[2] Reading Mark, 8:10-26.

[3] NICNT: Mark, 8:12.

Monday, February 23, 2015

018A-Bread and Boat, Again and Again

Jesus came to meet people where they are.

First off, we only managed to get through the first third (feeding of the 4,000) of the study during this session. We will finish off the remainder next time.

When the story of the feeding of the 4,000 is read in its literary context, it reveals much more than simply another miraculous feeding by Jesus. There are some key differences and similarities between this feeding and the earlier one in chapter 6. These point to what Mark intended for his readers to understand.

The key message is that the gospel is not just for the Jews, but for the entire world. This story illustrates the “riddle” that the Syrophoenician woman brilliantly answered in 7:24-30. This feeding illustrates both Jews and Gentiles eating together (literally) in the kingdom of God, that all are fed simultaneously, and that all are fed until satisfied.

So the Syrophoenician woman turns out to be right after all. The Gentile "dogs" eat from the provisions of Abraham's descendants, and the disciples are not deprived in the least. They collect enough leftovers to fill seven baskets, each large enough to hold a man (spuris, 8:8b; Acts 9:25). At the eschatological banquet that this meal prefigures, everyone has a place at the table, everyone eats at the same time, and everyone has enough (echortasthesan, 8:8a).^[1]

In view of the mixed population of the area, however, it is probable that both Jews and Gentiles sat down together in meal fellowship on this occasion, and this prefigured Jesus' intention for the Church. This seems to be a more realistic approach to the historical situation than the desire to find an exclusively Gentile audience in Ch. 8:1–9.^[2]

This story and the differences with the earlier feeding story also provide us with some principles of mission. In the earlier story Jesus (and Mark) allude to a number of Old Testament passages and metaphors (such as the Good Shepherd, Psalm 23). Jesus is also shown as primarily teaching. But in the current story, Jesus’ concern is with primarily with the physical needs of the people, and there are no allusions to the Jewish scriptures. In addition Jesus gives thanks for both the bread and fish, a detail not found in the earlier story where it could be assumed that the Jews already understood that giving thanks for the bread was indicative of God’s supplying of all needs, but where the gentile audience would not have necessarily known.

We see that Jesus tailors his methods and message to the people; something that Paul will later be shown to do. Mission work begins with the missionary integrating herself or himself into the society and culture of those to whom her/his compassion has led. It begins with listening and understanding. When actions are taken and words are spoken, it begins with the immediate needs and understandings of the people. This is something that American Christians need to take to heart, especially as we attempt to communicate the gospel to those around us. We cannot assume prior biblical knowledge or spiritual foundations of those that we encounter. Our first step should not be to try to correct errors or misunderstandings, but to listen and understand, to build up and affirm, to discover what it is that they find valuable and life-giving already, and then build from there.

^[1] Reading Mark, 7:24-8:9.

^[2] NICNT: Mark, 8:8-10.

Friday, February 6, 2015

017-Did Jesus Really Say That?

The kingdom of God is not about maintaining purity and exclusivity but about finding as many as possible to bring into it.

In the two miracle stories found in the last half of Mark chapter 7, we are given a peek into Jesus redefining the kingdom of God to include everyone, Jews and Gentiles, male and female, privileged as well as the outcast.

The unit 7:1–37 radically expands the inclusiveness of the kingdom of God. It includes a redefinition of cleanliness, a major value in the Jewish and Greco-Roman worlds, breaks out of the boundary of Galilee into Gentile lands, and crosses boundaries between male and female, even showing Jesus’ honor being challenged by a witty Syrophoenician woman. If we miss all this boundary breaking and the inclusiveness of the kingdom, we miss the gospel’s essence.^[1]

We encounter two puzzling statements from Jesus:

The first story includes a saying that can be interpreted as a racial slur (calling the Gentiles a “dog”).
The second story continues Jesus commanding people to remain silent, but in the context that he has just enabled a mute man to speak, it seems particularly puzzling.

The study outline and the accompanying group discussion explores what Mark might have intended his audience to hear and understand. This outline includes extensive footnotes with commentary excerpts to help us see the different ways in which these stories could be read and interpreted.

So while both of these stories anticipate and justify a Gentile mission, they both indicate the great boundary that had to be crossed to start that mission. Often forgetting that Jesus crossed that boundary for our sake, we Gentile Christians institute new boundaries between us and them. Mark intends the kingdom as radically inclusive; we often reconstitute it as exclusive… The story of the Syrophoenician makes explicit one more boundary that had to be crossed: she was a woman… Even more, Jesus, as a Jewish male of honor, must give up some of that honor to meet the woman’s request. The first must become the last and slave of all (9:35).^[2]

[1] Feasting: Mark, location 7651.

[2] Feasting: Mark, location 7444.

Thursday, January 22, 2015

016-Bad Traditions

Jesus speaks out against laws and traditions that divide people.
He reinterprets and creates new laws and traditions that promote
positive social connections.

It’s been a while since we last studied Mark – since before the Advent season. And then there were people out and illnesses and such so that we didn’t return to it. We are finally back, though it looks like we will skip this next week again due to some people going out of town.

This next bit is from the study outline and provides the introduction for the current passage:

Mark chapter 7 is at the center of the unit that goes from chapter 6 to 8. Chapter 6 opened with Jesus’ rejection in Nazareth and his sending out of the apostles. This story was interrupted by the account of John the Baptist’s execution which asked the question, Who is Jesus? Upon their return the feeding of the five-thousand (in Jewish territory) occurs. Chapter 8 closes the unit with the feeding of the four-thousand (in Gentile territory) and Jesus asking his disciples, Who am I?
Chapter 7 in the center discusses traditions surrounding Jewish ritual purity and a story about Gentile woman. This entire unit serves to reveal what purity (or holiness) means and who is included in God’s kingdom.
We must be careful when reading today’s passage. It has sometimes been used to justify anti-Semitism, or at the very least denigrate Judaism. It has been used by “low-church” Christians to unfairly attack Christians who value and practice much more ritualized forms of Christianity. It has been used by one Christian group to criticize other groups who don’t belong for beliefs and practices that the first don’t believe or practice.
Here are some questions then that we ought to keep in mind as we study this text:

Are all “traditions” bad? And what does Jesus/Mark mean by the term?
What is Jesus/Mark attempting to communicate about purity and holiness?
What did Jesus/Mark mean when he writes, “Thus he declared all foods clean” (v.19b)?

Some of the key points from the discussion are:

Religious/theological context: The Jews (Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, Jesus, and more) were all invested in the proper interpretation of the Law/Torah and with purity/holiness. The point of contention between them all were the specifics of what it meant. This was an internal debate within Judaism. It was not a Christians vs. Jews debate about legalism/tradition vs. grace/salvation. Many Jews believed that a proper observance of the Law was a necessary prerequisite to the arrival of the Messiah. For a self-proclaimed rabbi (Jesus) to speak out against popular beliefs and observances about Law and tradition was unthinkable – it would have been seen as deliberately placing an obstacle to the Messiah’s arrival.
The problem with the Pharisaic/scribal tradition was that they placed observance of the Law and traditions above promoting good social relationships. According to the scribal traditions, the plain-reading of the Law could be violated if a person could show that God could be reverenced, worshiped and honored more through ignoring the Law. What Jesus appears to be implying by his rebuttals is that one cannot honor God if human relationships suffer as a result of such “honoring.” Paul seems to follow this line of thought in Romans 13:8-10 when he writes that all the Law (including worship and honor of God) is fulfilled by promoting good human relationships (love).
The Law of Moses encourages separation to attain purity/holiness. Jesus says that genuine purity and holiness comes from associating with the unclean and defiled; to encounter and touch them in order to transmit healing and holiness to the suffering and downtrodden. Relationships must never become slaves to rigid applications of laws and traditions. It is in this light that Jesus (Mark’s interpretation) dismisses Jewish food laws regarding the clean and unclean. As long as this law remains, the future of the Jesus movement will never go beyond Jews. As long as table-fellowship is segregated, the full picture of God’s inclusiveness will remain hidden. God’s holiness compelled him to become human, to take on defilement, in order that the defiled might become holy.

Though baptism has long been associated with cleansing and forgiveness of sin, it has for just as long been associated with the deeply unclean death of Jesus. When we are baptized, we are joined to Jesus’ death as well as his resurrection (Rom. 6:3–5). Thus, baptism does not remove us from the stains of the world, but joins us to blood, dirt, and anguish, and to all those whom the world regards as unclean.^[1]

[1] Feasting: Mark, location 7140.

Sunday, November 23, 2014

015-Loaves to Stones

Being with Jesus is insufficient; he must be allowed to lead.

“One might wonder which is more troubling,
the presence of Jesus or his absence.”^[1]

Another Sea Crossing and Storm

The crowd has had their physical needs fully satisfied by the provision of bread and fish. In Mark’s gospel, only the disciples know what has happened. Mark does not state the reason(s) why Jesus commands the disciples to cross over to “the other side” and abruptly dismisses the crowds before going away by himself to pray. According to John’s account of the miracle provides a possible reason, which has some historical basis, and should be included as a possibility.

Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself. (John 6:15 ESV)

Whatever the reason the disciples are away from Jesus when the winds and sea turn against them and they struggle to reach their commanded destination: Bethsaida. Mark has Jesus “seeing” their struggles but only going out toward them in the “fourth watch”, in the final hours before dawn. Why did Jesus wait so long?

Mark writes that Jesus’ intent was to “pass by them” (v.48). It seems an odd phrase but can be read as an allusion to God passing by Moses on Sinai, and of Jesus’ intent to lead the disciples to safety, as a good shepherd leads his flock (echo back to the previous story of the feeding).

Jesus’ presence does not have the desired effect upon the disciples. Rather than recognize Jesus, they think it is a water spirit come to destroy them, and they react in horror and fear.^[2]

Jesus speaks to them, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid,” to calm them down.^[3] He gets in the boat and the wind and sea return to calm. They are astonished but do not recognize the significance or the revelation of Jesus’ identity. The reason given by Mark for this failure to recognize Jesus is that “they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.” (v.52)

In spite of the disciples having been with Jesus, having been sent out to do as Jesus had done, having witnessed Jesus as Shepherd just hours before, they have failed to recognize Jesus. Even after Jesus uses phrases that allude to Old Testament identifiers of divinity, they do not understand. Instead of experiencing peace, they are amazed – which in Mark, is usually a description of unbelief. (In the first storm calming, they are filled with great fear, 4:41).

Their failure of theological imagination is complete. Rather than understanding the epiphany of God-in-Christ represented by Jesus as he passed by, they feared a demonic attack of some sort. Having followed him more and less faithfully in the preceding days, they had grown accustomed to the ‘normal’ form of his presence among them, teaching and healing the people. But in their own situation of distress, they were unable to ‘see’ his encouraging manifestation of the divine presence on their behalf.^[4]

As far as faith goes, the disciples are no better off than Jesus’ opponents and the rocky soil of the parable. The Complete Jewish Bible translates 6:52 as follows: “for they did not understand about the loaves; on the contrary, their hearts had been made stone-like.” It is as if the loaves of the bread of life that the disciples have been given have been turned to stone – the exact opposite of what Jesus was tempted to do at the beginning of his ministry (recorded in Matthew and Luke, but not in Mark).

Missing the Mark

They reach shore, but not the intended destination. They end up in Gennesaret, the western shore, rather than Bethsaida, on the eastern side. They end up on the same side as they started, the more-Jewish territory, rather than “the other side,” the predominantly Gentile side. Jesus original intention was to take his ministry to the Gentiles^[5], but it had been thwarted^[6]. But as the next couple chapters in Mark will show, Jesus will eventually make it there.

As the company went ashore and traveled about the crowds recognized Jesus, quite in contrast to the disciples out on the sea, and came to him with their requests for healing. Their thinking about Jesus and his power was rather magical, however. Yet unlike the disciples, they recognize he who can help. The peoples’ “faith,” if it can even be called that, is primitive and even superstitious^[7], yet Mark implies to his audience that this is greater than what the disciples possessed during the sea crossing^[8].

Jesus chooses to meet the peoples’ needs, not because they have any great faith, but because he is compassionate. Jesus certainly desires that they understand who he is and why he does what he does, but he realizes that is beyond their comprehension. Therefore he does no teaching. It does not matter to him that they may never come to understand. He is not motivated by “opening the door to evangelism” but simply by compassion.

They are not interested in following. They are interested in getting: getting what they want, getting relief from their suffering, getting deliverance from their affliction. We do not know if those who sought Jesus out in Gennesaret for healing also intended to join his movement. We only know that they wanted something. That is what happens when the people all around sense there is a divine presence in their midst, even if those whom the Son of God has called to be his community do not understand who he is… That he is an effective teacher and compassionate human being is beside the point. Their plea is, ‘What can you do for me? Now!’ By the end of the Gospel, the crowd will have forgotten his good deeds and will turn against him.^[9]

On Boundaries

Through the next couple of chapters, the question about Jesus’ identity continues in the background until he explicitly asks it of his disciples in 8:27. With this question comes a related question, “Who is included in the gospel?” The next chapters reveal God’s inclusiveness and a re-drawing of boundaries.

Remember, the Pharisees’ hearts are also hardened. Mark describes what that hardening is about (3:1–6). The Pharisees with hardened hearts are sure they know where the boundaries of the community of God’s kingdom lie—in their case, with those keeping the law, particularly the law of the Sabbath. Can it be that the disciples’ hearts are also hardened because they are so sure they know where the boundaries of the kingdom lie?^[10]

A church that has been very comfortable in its cultural context is finding the culture around it radically shifting… The age of the culturally established Christian church is gone. The church is, again, sent by its Lord to cross over to the other side. There are adverse winds blowing against the church on this crossing, and the crossing is over ‘the sea’—‘the deep,’ in biblical language—the symbol of threatening chaos.^[11]

Left on their own, and then with Jesus but in fear, the disciples failed to break boundaries that limited God’s work and power. Only with Jesus in the lead do fears subside and faith rise. Only then can disciples/apostles transcend cultural, social, and religious boundaries to meet the needs of all (literally, all) people included in the gospel audience.

[1] Feasting: Mark, location 6865.

[2] NICNT: Mark, 6:48-50. “The disciples reacted to Jesus' appearance with terror, convinced that they had encountered a water spirit. The popular belief that spirits of the night brought disaster is illustrated by a tradition preserved in the Talmud: ‘Rabbah said, Seafarers told me that the wave that sinks a ship appears with a white fringe of fire at its crest, and when stricken with clubs on which is engraven, ‘I am that I am, Yah, the Lord of Hosts, Amen, Amen, Selah,’ it subsides.’”

[3] Reading Mark, 6:31-56. “Continuing the imagery of the new exodus, the narrator has Jesus identify himself with the self-designation of Yahweh, ‘I am’ (Exod 3:14, Is 41:4, 43:10-11). Thus the author of Mark provides the audience with a definitive answer to the question raised by the disciples in the previous sea- rescue story: ‘Who then is this?’ (4:41). The promise of deliverance is reinforced by an echo of Deutero-Isaiah's ‘Don't be afraid’ (Is 43:10, 43; 45:18; 51:2). Sadly, none of this provides clarification for the disciples, who remain ‘utterly astounded.’”

[4] Feasting: Mark, location 6698.

[5] Feasting: Mark, location 6741. “Going to the other side in Mark’s language means going to Gentile territory. It means going to the unknown, going to the foreign, going to the other side of humanity. No wonder the disciples were made, or as the Greek word more strongly suggests, forced to go.”

[6] Reading Mark, 6:31-56. “It soon becomes apparent, however, that without Jesus 'leadership the disciples are not going to make it to gentile territory; again they are meeting with opposition, as in 4:35-41.”

[7] UBC: Mark, 6:53-56. “This is another summary account of Jesus' ministry (like earlier examples in 1:39; 3:7-12), only this summary makes no reference to Jesus teaching or exorcising demons but concentrates on his healings… The attitude of the people is an almost superstitious reverence for Jesus as a wonder-worker, including the idea that even his clothing contained healing power (6:56; cf. 5:28)… Mark's attitude toward the popular notoriety of Jesus as a wonderworker is that Jesus did indeed do such works but that the crowd's perception of Jesus was all too shallow and incomplete by the standards of the Christian gospel.”

[8] Feasting: Mark, location 6911. “Already, allusion has been made to the contrast between the disciples’ slowness to trust the calming presence of God in their experience on the sea (vv. 45–52) and the villagers’ readiness to place the sick near Jesus. In this way, Mark reminds us that faithfulness is not always of the authorized sort.”

[9] Feasting: Mark, locations 6965, 6996.

[10] Feasting: Mark, location 6770.

[11] Feasting: Mark, 6747.

Monday, November 17, 2014

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.

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]

[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.

Monday, November 10, 2014

013-Thorny Ground

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

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]

[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.

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