A brief overview for Sunday School teachers and Bible study leaders of Lifeway’s “Explore the Bible” lesson of Mark 1:1-13, for Sunday, September 3, 2023.

A video version of this overview is available on YouTube at:

INTRO: Read some famous “opening lines” of books and see if members can identify them:

— One site said “Call me Ishmael” was the most famous opening line of a book. (Herman Melville’s Moby Dick.)

— I would say it might be: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times” (Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities)

— “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.” (Jane Austen, Pride & Prejudice)

— “Mr. and Mrs. Dursley of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.” (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, J.K. Rowling)

— “Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy.” (C.S. Lewis, The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe)

Why is the opening line of a book considered to be so important?

(Because it gets your attention; and it may set forth the course of the rest of the book.)

That’s what :1 of the Book of Mark does here: “The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”

??? What do you think of his introduction/first line???

(It’s brief, to the point. It does tell us what this book is going to be about: Jesus, the Son of God. That’s “typical Mark”!)

INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK OF MARK

Mark is the shortest of the 4 Gospels, and many believe the first to be written. It’s considered by many to be the account of Peter, that Mark wrote down for him, and which Matthew and Luke based their longer accounts on. Eusebius, the historian who lived in the late 200/early 300s A.D. wrote this account:

“Peter’s hearers, not satisfied with a single hearing or with the unwritten teaching of the divine message, pleaded with Mark … to leave them a written summary of the teaching given them verbally, since he was a follower of Peter. Nor did they cease until they persuaded him and so caused the writing of what is called the Gospel according to Mark. It is said that the apostle was delighted at their enthusiasm and approved the reading of the book in the churches. Clement quotes the story in Outlines, Book 6, and Bishop Papias of Hierapolis confirms it. He also points out that Peter mentions Mark in his first epistle and that he composed this in Rome, which they say he himself indicates when referring to the city figuratively as Babylon in the words, “Your sister church in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you greetings; and so does my son Mark” [1 Peter 5:13]. 

(Eusebius, The Church History, p. 64)

So early church sources indicated that the Gospel of Mark came from the witness of the Apostle Peter. 

Mark does not have the long sermons/teaching that Matthew, Luke & John have: the Sermon on the Mount, the parables of Matthew 13, etc. It’s mostly ACTION, and moves quickly. It doesn’t have the long nativity stories and genealogies that Matthew & Luke have. Thus it’s only 16 chapters instead of the 20+ all the others have.

(For example, read :18-21. What word do you see repeatedly there? “Immediately” three times in those four verses. That is typical of Mark; it’s about action, not “teaching” as much. It moves quickly. And it gets right into the story of Jesus, as we will quickly see in :1 and following. 

OUTLINE:

I. The Introduction we saw in (:1)

II. The Preparation for Ministry (:2-8)

III. The Messiah Arrives (:9-13)

So having looked just briefly at the introduction in :1, let’s move to:

II. The Preparation For Ministry (:2-8)

:2 starts “As it is written.” It is no accident that this book starts this way. The scriptural foundation for the coming of Jesus is immense. Jesus did not just appear out of nowhere. SO many Old Testament passages prophesied Him:

— from Genesis 3:15, which theologians call the Protevangelium, the “first gospel,” that One is coming whose heel the snake shall bruise, but He shall crush his head,

— to Malachi 3:1, which promises that the Lord whom you seek, shall suddenly come to His temple,

The Old Testament is FULL of prophecies of the coming of the Messiah; who He would be, and what He would do. 

This is important: because a guy could not just up and say, “Hey, I’m the Messiah!” NO! All these specific prophecies had to be fulfilled by Him.

??? Can your group name some???

(— Micah 5:2 that He would be born in Bethlehem

— Psalm 22 that He would say “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (:1) And have His hands and feet pierced (:16) and that they would divide His garments among them (:18)

— Isaiah 53 predicted His substitutionary suffering in an unmistakable way

And so on …)

So :2 gives us another prophecy about the Messiah, that He would have a forerunner who would come before Him to prepare the way. It says, “As it is written in Isaiah the prophet” — and then it quotes Isaiah 40:3 “The voice of one crying in the wilderness, make ready the way of the Lord, make His paths straight.”

Who is this talking about? Well the Bible gives us the answer, doesn’t it, in :4: “John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness …”.
It’s like: OK, here’s the fulfillment of that. John is the one that Isaiah prophesied was going to come before Jesus. 

A good discussion for your group might be: ??? WHY do you think God planned to send a forerunner like John, before Jesus came??? What purpose might He have had in it?

(We see in :2, don’t we: “who will PREPARE Your way.”

For so many things, preparation is important. 

I am reading a book by Dr. Larry Watson, on the history of the First Baptist Church of College Station. In one chapter it detailed how the church had a revival coming up in a few months, and the pastor preached a series of messages, preparing the church for the revival. They didn’t just “have a revival.” They prepared for it.

And there’s something to that. Most often, when God does something, it doesn’t just spring out of nowhere; it comes from preparation which has been made beforehand.

Just another example from our own church: over the last few weeks have had a real season of growth: we’ve seen a number of people saved, and baptized, and joining our church, and we’re expanding our facilities. I thought it was interesting that one of our ladies said to me the other day: This didn’t just “happen.” She said, I think this came out of that year that we spent last year, reading through the Bible, and the time we committed to prayer (we had done a study of Bill Elliff’s Simply Prayer in January). She said I think what we are seeing now, is a result of that preparation that was made before. And she may be right. It seems like God rarely just sends things “out of the blue.” He typically makes preparation for it beforehand.

And that is certainly what He did with Jesus:

— He prepared the way beforehand with scriptural prophecies

— He prepared the way beforehand with the Roman Empire, and the Greek language, giving just the right cultural setting for the gospel to be spread

— He prepared the way with John the Baptist, getting the hearts of the people ready for when Jesus would appear and begin His ministry.

??? SO how can WE apply this??? What do WE need to be getting ready for?

— Get our facilities ready to expand

— Get leaders trained and in place

— Get trained and prepared to witness

— Lay the foundation in prayer for what God wants to do

— Prepare for possible upcoming persecution: know the word, memorize scripture, prepare spiritually and mentally for it.

Just as God got things prepared for the coming of Jesus, so WE need to be prepared for what God is going to do next where WE are. You & your group might talk about what you think God might be doing, and what you all might specifically need to do to prepare for it.

In :4-5 we see one specific means of preparation that God had John the Baptist help the people make: it says he was “preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sin. (:5) And all the country of Judea was going out to him, and all the people of Jerusalem; and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.”

Do you see what preparation he was making? “Forgiveness of sin … confessing their sins.” TWICE He mentions it here: One of THE most important preparations we can make for the work of God is to purify our lives from sin. 

+x Joshua 3:5 when Joshua was about to lead the people of Israel into the Promised Land, he said to them: “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.” He was telling them: GET READY for what God is going to do. And HOW were they to get ready? “Consecrate yourselves.” Literally, “make yourselves holy.” Get all sin & uncleanness out of your life. God’s going to do some BIG things — but you need to make preparation for it by cleansing yourself from sin.

+x II Timothy 2:21 “Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.” 

That is such a good verse! If we want to be “prepared” for the work the Master has for us, we need “cleanse ourselves” from “these things” (he had talked in :19 about abstaining from wickedness, in :16 about “worldly and empty chatter,” and in :22 about “fleeing from youthful lusts.” So He’s saying, cleanse yourself from SIN — of all different kinds — so that you will be PREPARED for all that God wants to do with you.

WE need that word today. If we want to be “vessels for honor” that God will use, then we need to cleanse our lives from sin.

If we want to see God do something in our class, or in our church, our community, our country, then we need to make preparation for it. And one of the most important ways God shows us in His word to prepare for what He is going to do, is to confess and repent of our sins — just like the people did in the days of John the Baptist. 

So have your group members consider: is there anything in my life right now — words, a habit, attitudes, unforgiveness, anything left undone that God has told me to do — that might be hindering me from being used by God in a more powerful way? Like II Timothy 2:21 says, “Cleanse yourself from these things” so that you will be a vessel that God can use in a great way. 

Make the preparation of confession & repentance, as they did in the days before Jesus began His great work. 

In :6-8 we read something about John the Baptist himself:

— :6 “John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore a leather belt around his waist, and his diet was locusts and wild honey.”

??? Do you know WHY John wore this outfit???
(It linked him with Elijah — II Kings 1:8 says Elijah “was a hairy man with a leather girdle bound about his loins.”   — +x Malachi 4:5 = “Behold, I am going to send Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the Lord. He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children,” etc. So again, even John himself, the forerunner of Christ, did not just appear “out of nowhere.” HE TOO was prophesied in scripture. Everything God does, He does in conformity with His word. (Which is a good reminder to US too!)

Then notice his message in :7-8: “And he was preaching and saying, ‘After me One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to stoop down and untie the thong of His sandals. (:8) I baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

Do you see humility of John in :7-8? ??? What evidences of humility do you see in these verses???

(—“mightier than I” — Jesus is greater/stronger

— “I am not fit to stoop down and untie the thong of His sandals”

A very humble statement. Sandals were FILTHY in their day especially; removing sandals was a job for a lowly servant. But John said, I’m not even worthy to do that for Him! 

— “I baptized you with water; but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit” The ministry that Jesus has will be much greater. John’s is the symbol: baptism. Jesus has the real thing: The Holy Spirit!

So in all these ways John shows his humility. His ministry and service are NOT about HIM! 

+x John 3, when John’s disciples see everyone now going to Jesus, John said in :28, “You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent ahead of Him.’” And he said in :30 “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

RARE humility. He wasn’t protective and jealous of “his ministry;” instead it was all about Jesus.

Is there some application for US here? Sure! How many times are we protective of “our turf” at church, or “our ministry,” or “our role.” We need to follow the example of John: IT’S NOT ABOUT ME! It’s about Jesus. Let’s don’t make it about ourselves or “our ministry,” but about HIM.  Let’s point people to Jesus.

And that’s what John does here: he points them forward to Jesus.

??? And what do these verses tell us about JESUS???

— That He is Mighty (“mightier than I”)

— That He is Holy (“I am not fit to … untie the thong of His sandals” — “hinting” at the fact of His Deity here)

— That He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit (save you, put God inside you)

So he really tells us a lot about Jesus there — and THEN Jesus Himself comes!

III. The Messiah Arrives (:9-13)

A. His Baptism

:9 says “In those days Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.”

This is a little surprising, right? John had just said all that about how much greater Jesus was — and now Jesus comes — and He gets BAPTIZED by John! Do you see the incongruity here?

Who baptizes who? The greater should baptize the lesser, right? (In fact, John even SAYS that in another place, doesn’t he? Matthew 3:14 “I have need to be baptized by You, and do You come to ME?” John is shocked!) And when you think about it, it IS shocking, isn’t it? That Jesus, GOD HIMSELF, the Savior, would be baptized by a man!

??? WHY do you think Jesus came to be baptized???

(Your group can share their answers. I would suggest at least three reasons:

1. He demonstrated His humility. Philippians 2 says “He humbled Himself.” Jesus didn’t come to be served, but to serve. It WAS very humbling for him to do that. But He showed amazing humility here — so when He asks us to humble ourselves, He knows what He is talking about. He has humbled Himself more than we will ever experience, no matter what we do!

2. He demonstrated His obedience. This was God’s plan for Him to be baptized, and as He said in John 14, “I do exactly as the Father commanded.” So it was an example of His obedience. Even if it was humbling, He was going to obey!

3. He identified with us. He asked US to be baptized, so even though He didn’t have any sins to repent of, as our Substitute, He walked in our steps. He wasn’t baptized for HIS sins; He was baptized, in a sense, for OURS! He came to identify with us as human beings in every way (“tempted in all things as we are”) and baptism was one of them.

When WE are baptized, it is humbling (climbing in and out of that water, in front of everyone, etc; it is obedient to the command of God to do it; and we are identifying with Jesus as we do it. And it was the same for Him: He humbled Himself, obeyed the Father, and identified with us.)

B. His Trinity

:10-11 ???What characters do you see in these verses???

(— JESUS being baptized; “He saw the heavens opened”

— “the SPIRIT like a dove descending upon Him”

— “A voice out of the heavens: “You are My beloved Son” GOD THE FATHER.

So we have the TRINITY here! Importantly, ALL THREE PERSONS in ONE place, at the SAME time. 

Which confounds the errant teaching of “modalism,” that there is no such thing as a “Trinity”, but that God was the Father in the Old Testament, Jesus in the Gospels, and the Holy Spirit since, but not all three at once. But here all three are in the same place, at the same time, which reinforces the orthodox Christian doctrine of the Trinity: that there is ONE GOD, who exists eternally as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 

It is vital that we recapture, and re-emphasize the Bible doctrine of the Trinity. No, the word “trinity” is never used in the New Testament, but the TEACHING of the Trinity is all through it, as we see here. 

We need to be careful about some of the illustrations we use regarding the Trinity; some of them convey the wrong idea. 

I heard one man say: “Well, it’s like I am called ‘husband’ by my wife, ‘Daddy’ by my kids, but ‘boss’ by my employees — but I am the same guy!” Well, that’s not really a good illustration of the Trinity. These aren’t just three “names” for God. They are three Persons who talk to each other, as the New Testament shows. Yet somehow these three are one.

One of the best illustrations I have seen regarding the Trinity was by Nabeel Qurishi in his book Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus. He described how as a Muslim he was skeptical of the Christian teaching of the Trinity, that it was impossible to believe. Then a science teacher told them one day in class about “resonance structures” in a nitrate molecule. (Now I am going to admit, I am speaking well above my understanding here, but this is what Qureshi wrote!) “One molecule of nitrate is all three resonance structures all the time and never just one of them. The three are separate but all the same, and they are one. They are three in one. That’s when it clicked: if there are things in this world that can be three in one, even incomprehensibly so, then why cannot God?” (Nabeel Qureshi, Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, pp. 194-196)

That may or may not help you/your group. But the bottom line is, we believe what the Bible teaches us about the Trinity, by faith.

As Harold Lindsell wrote:  “He who has tried to understand the mystery fully will lose his mind; but he who would deny the Trinity will lose his soul.”  (From A Handbook of Christian Truth pp. 51-52)

We don’t always give the doctrine of the Trinity its proper place in our churches, but we need to. Gregory Nazianzen, one of the early church theologians, said: “When I say God, I mean Father, Son & Holy Spirit.”  That should be true of US too: when we say “God”, we mean “Father, Son & Holy Spirit.”  And that is how God shows Himself to us here in Mark 1, and in the rest of the New Testament.

C. His Preparation (:11-12)

“Immediately the Spirit impelled Him to go out into the wilderness. (:13) And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him.” 

You might think that after Jesus was baptized, He would “get right at it” in ministry. But NO — God sent Him out to the wilderness, to PREPARE Him for the ministry that was to come.

NOTICE the word “impelled” there in :11. The Spirit “impelled” Him to go. This is a very strong word, more than just “sent” etc.

The Greek word “ekballo” literally means “out of” (“ek”), “to throw” (“ballo”). It is used in other places in the New Testament of “casting out” demons. So the Spirit “threw Him out”, literally, into the wilderness. Jesus got baptized, then was “thrown out” to be tested and tempted. 

By the way, God often does that with us, doesn’t He? He commissions us for something, and then we get tested, sifted — but it’s all a part of His preparing us for ministry.
I shared before about how when I had graduated from seminary, I had to wait a year before I was called to my first church — with only a part-time job, and a new baby; it was a TOUGH time of testing — but I have often said I came out of that time a different pastor than I would have been had I not had that year. God was preparing me for the work.

When I got sick in 2012 and was out of the ministry for two years, God brought me out of that time a different minister too. Now I was the one who had been sick; I had lost my job and possessions; now I knew much better what people were feeling in these situations, and I believe God used it to make me a better pastor these last 8 years since I have been well.

(You are free to share my story if you’d like; and/or you can share a personal experience like that, and invite group members to share theirs.)

But the point is: God often “casts us out into the wilderness” to prepare us for something that He has for us.

??? You might point out/or ask your class to identify: what all facets of Jesus’ testing do we see here???

(— “the wilderness”

— “forty days” (Matthew = He was FASTING for the 40 days; that certainly adds another element of hardship to it. Anyone ever fasted?!)

— “being tempted by Satan” — Matthew 4 expands on that. But it’s a lot: as Hebrews says, He was “tempted in all things as we are.” And even more than we are: Satan gave Him his best shot!

— “He was with the wild beasts” — dangerous!

— “And/but” (the Greek word is the same) “the angels were ministering to Him.” So even in our testing/preparation, we are not alone; God takes care of us, just as He did Jesus here.

SO … Jesus is now introduced, “The Son of God,” as :1 says, whom God proclaimed as His in :11. We’ll learn a lot more about Him in the coming weeks in our study of the Book of Mark!

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