What you do for Christ will last

The Gospel of Mark starts with John the Baptist.  John is telling the people the good news of the coming Messiah.  He didn't stop with the message of good news, but he told the people they needed to repent and be forgiven of their sins.  He even went so far as to have the people demonstrate their repentance by baptising them.

What was it about John the Baptist that people responded to?  He was strange at best.  He lived out in the wilderness alone, he didn't wear the latest fashions, or have any type of financial or political stature at all, but he had a tremendous impact on those who saw and heard him.

I believe John the Baptist was successful for two reasons.  The first is that he understood what God's purpose was for his life and he was fulfilling it, and second he knew the Word of God and he wasn't afraid to use it.

In verses 2-3 it states:
as it is written in Isaiah the prophet:

“I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way”
³ “a voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.’”

 

How many times do we struggle with difficult issues?  We worry, we lose sleep, we stress ourselves out.  Why?  Because we don't know what to do, or what will happen.  Those of us who know God, know that God knows everything. All we have to do is turn our burdens over to him.  We don't because often we cannot let go, we fool ourselves into thinking we are in control.  Often we are operating and behaving outside the will of God for our lives.  Finally, we don't know the Word, or refer to it like we should.  We are often hindered because we do not take the time to study and understand all the power, grace, and mercy we have available to us. 

 

God's Word is living and it is powerful and it can change us, any situation, and anything else.  If we do not know that, if we are not in right fellowship with our Lord, then we miss out on all God has to offer us.

 

The Bible does not provide much personal information about John the Baptist.  We do not know if he had any other aspirations, dreams, or desires.  What we do know is that he highly valued the coming Messiah and wanted the people to be ready to receive him.  There is no account of if he totally comprehended that over 2000 years after his death and that of Jesus Christ, people would be reading about him and still repenting, and being baptised.

 

We may never receive the proper recognition or reward for what we do by humankind.  We may even be treated badly for speaking God's truth and living a righteous life, but one thing we do know is that what we do for Christ will last.

Expecting "Good News"

The gospel of Mark opens very unceremoniously. Being a man of few words, he lets those who are reading know, that he is writing about the "good news" of Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God.   Jesus is good news.  Think about what it feels like when you receive "good news."  Good is something that is desired and approved of.  Good is morally right, and righteous.  Good news is something we all want to hear and experience.

The reason Mark wrote this Gospel was to share the "good news" of the Messiah.  The Messiah was the anticipated one of the Jewish people.  They wanted a Savior to deliver them from their captivity and oppression of  theRomans.  They also wanted a leader that could secure their liberty and restore what was taken from them.

The only problem was he wasn't what the Jews excpted.  They wanted boldness, and Jesus was humble.  They want force and Jesus was gentle.  They wanted wanted a spokeman that the Roman Empire would fear and respect, and he taught in parables.  How disappointed they must of been.  Their messiah had come, but they did not recognize him, because he did not look like or act like what they were expecting.

Jesus did not come to save them from the Romans, but from their own sins.  Once they accepted Him, and learned His ways, they would of been able to take care of the Romans themselves.  Jesus not only saves, but he restores, he teaches and he enables to do things that we could never imagine.

How many things do we miss our on because it doesn't fit with our agenda, idea, dreams, hopes and desires?  How do we handle the disaapointment in our lives?  Are we simply being selfish or can we step back from what we want, and have a serving heart like Jesus and share the "good news" of the Word of God?

 

The Gospel of Mark - Who was Mark?

Mark's account of Jesus' life fits right in with our mobile social media society. We text instead of call,  we "Like" our "Friends" "Timeline"  on Facebook, we post pictures on Instgram, we Tweet in 140 characters or less,  but we very seldom take the time to talk with each other face-to-face.   The Gospel of Mark was written by a man that seemed to be in a hurry. He did not include a lot of details or elaborate.  He also did not exsaggerate anything.  He was very basic and to the point.  His gospel, for many years, was considered the least informative of the four, until it was discovered it may have been the oldest, and the others were referenced using it.

So who was Mark?  He is also referred to as John Mark. There are only ten verses in the Bible that refer to him.  He was a young man during Christ's ministry.  He was the son of Mary, who provided the early Christians with a meeting place, and the cousin of Barnabas.  He and Barnabas traveled with Paul during his first missionary journey, but left early for Jeruselum. He was the source of conflict between Paul and Barnabas when Paul refused to take him on a second missionary trip because he left the first one early, so he and his cousin went on a mission trip on their own and Paul went with Sila and later he reconciled with Paul and became a coworker in spreading the gospel. He also becomes like a son to Peter, one of Jesus' disciples.

Mark knew all the right people and made all the right connections, even after he disconnected for a while.  He was able to do a hard reset and get back "online" and carry out God's  purpose in his life.

I have been greatly inspired by the gospel of Mark and invite you to join me in a indepth study of this book in the Bible.  I believe we will be blessed.