Chapter # 9 Paragraph # 1 Study # 3
December 20, 2022
Moss Bluff, Louisiana
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Thesis: The difficulty of the theology of Jesus as Incarnate Deity was no small matter for The Twelve in the face of Jesus' summons in
8:34-38 to serious levels of suffering for both Himself and any who would "come after Him" (in the sense of being a disciple).
Introduction: In the first century, and in every century after it, men have struggled with the reality of promises of "Life" while living in this present world of severe pain and suffering. In that first century, men had developed a "theology of deliverance by Messiah" that had its focal point upon the "outer man" and its consequent aches and pains by reason of diseases and demonic forces. Thus, the anticipated "Christ" was to be a Physical Deliverer.
Long before the first century, man had made his physical well-being the goal of all effort, and, in the process had turned "Life" upside down and made relational well-being a lesser objective. It was into this subversion of Reality that Jesus of Nazareth stepped.
His actual goal was the reestablishment of "Relational Life" in its proper place in the Loves of God respecting man (John 17:3), but to get there in the face of the massive subversion, He had to establish Himself as "capable" of providing "life" in man's terms so that men could be persuaded to "believe" in His capacity to provide "Life" in God's terms. Therefore, He initially set about to prove His "power of life": He healed every manner of disease and dominated every expression of demonic opposition.
Mark, understanding this, recorded Jesus' initial actions before he set about to move into the realm of True Life. We have come in our studies of Mark's effort to the point of the switch over to the Ultimate Thesis: Jesus, as the Incarnate Deity, is the God of Life by being the God Who subjected Himself to Death so that men might realize how great is the distance between a "comfortable physical life" and the divine reality of "Life" as a relational concept and experience.
This evening I want to consider, in further detail, how Mark went about his presentation of Jesus as the Christ of Heaven's goal of providing "Eternal, Relational Life" for men.
- I. Mark's Beginning Points (For Both Sections Of His Gospel).
- A. In 1:9-11 Mark presented Jesus of Nazareth as "The Beloved Son of The Father in Heaven" by recording That Father's Own audible, verbal identification of Jesus as His Son.
- 1. The was after Jesus had deliberately identified Himself with John and his message as the God-sent forerunner.
- 2. This was before Jesus was "driven" by the Spirit of the Father in Heaven to face the adversary of the entire Plan of the Father.
- 3. Thus, having demonstrated His unqualified loyalty to His Father, He set about to begin the process of returning men to the original truth about the supremacy of Relational Life over all other considerations.
- a. This "beginning" was initially the exorcism of an unclean spirit in a synagogue on the Sabbath.
- b. Then, immediately, He moved to accomplish His first healing of a physical malady on that same Sabbath day.
- c. And, following hard upon those two actions of Jesus, was the indiscriminate and gracious healings and exorcisms of all in Capernaum who came to Jesus after the sun was set.
- B. Then, in our current context (9:1-13) Mark once again presents Jesus as "The Beloved Son of The Father in Heaven" (9:7) by recording a second instance of that Father's Own audible, verbal identification of Jesus as His Son.
- II. Mark's Further Development Of This "Beginning Point" For Both Sections Of His Gospel.
- A. Mark 9:1-13 is the initial paragraph of the chiasm that ends in 11:11.
- B. These beginning and ending paragraphs of this extended chiasm have the same thesis.
- 1. At issue in the beginning paragraph is The Father's identification of Jesus as His King over His Kingdom.
- 2. At issue in the ending paragraph is the nation's recognition of Jesus as the prophesied Son of David Who is destined to sit upon David's throne.
- a. To make this point, Mark appeals to Jesus' ride into Jerusalem on a colt of a donkey and the crowd's acclamation of Him as the King of the Kingdom of David.
- b. Though Mark does not record it, this action was a deliberate parallel to Zachariah 9:9 in which Zion's King comes to Zion riding upon a colt of a donkey.
- III. Mark's Reason For His Approach.
- A. The immediately preceding context is focused upon the suffering and death of Jesus and any who would "follow Him".
- B. The "problem" is pointedly stated in 15:31: How can Jesus be "The King of the Jews" (15:2 and 26) if He cannot even save Himself?
- C. Mark's final "stroke" is 15:39 -- the Gentile centurion's recognition of Jesus as The Son of God.
- D. His "Point": the reality of The Kingdom of The God Of Heaven is that it is fundamentally a self-sacrificing, servant kingdom, so that the King has to be the Greatest Servant.
- 1. Thus, the "problem" is not a problem at all.
- 2. Jesus is both The Mighty God and The Ultimate Servant.
