We spent two whole months looking at chapter one. I personally was surprised at about how much stuff is in that first chapter. I challenge the guys to meditate on passages of scripture each week to get out of it what it's telling us. Why was it so important that the passage was even included in the gospel? Mark goes pretty fast through Jesus' life so it seems that what he's included might just be important.
On our blog "The Silbermans" I posted what I saw as an overview of Chapter One. It was interesting to me to see that it looks like it boils down to preparation. Preparation FOR Jesus (1-8), Preparation OF Jesus (9-13), and Preparation BY Jesus (14-45).
John the Baptist prepared the way FOR Jesus' arrival. He prepared the people for who Jesus is and what he had to say. It was really interesting to see how much similarity there is in that to us. We have a ministry of John the Baptist. We are in a sense "preparing the people" for Jesus' coming. Only this time, he's not coming to die on a cross and be rose again, he's coming to take his people home. Not only is this passage great for encouraging evangelism, but it's great for evangelism itself. Are you ready for Jesus to return?
One of the things I like most about John the Baptist is that his message points TO Jesus. He had a number of followers, but he humbly directed them TO Jesus. "After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
There are a lot of different beliefs and religions in the world today. NONE of them are correct if they don't point to JESUS! Does your spiritual leader point you to Jesus?
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