Holy Textures

Mark 1:21-28

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Having recruited some disciples, Jesus now begins teaching in public places.

Malina points out that verses 21-27 are the first of a "Mark sandwich." That is, a set of verses that begin and end with similar material, with a different material in the middle. (See also: 3:20-35, 5:21-43, 6:7-31, and 11:12-25.) And just as a sandwich is eaten in a bite of the whole, and not first the top piece of bread, then the filling, then the bottom slice; so too the passage must be understood as a whole and not just the individual parts. In this case the parts are:

1. Jesus teaches with authority; the crowd is amazed.
2. An unclean spirit cries out and Jesus shows his authority over the spirit.
3. The crowd is amazed and comments on his teaching with authority.

Those are the pieces. The sandwich that must be chewed over is the authority of Jesus.

Mark 1:14-20

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Verse 14. Scholars speculate that Jesus was a disciple of John the Baptist based on this reference that Jesus begins his public ministry after John is arrested.

Verse 15. Mark began his gospel with "the good news of Jesus the Christ, the Son of God," and now we hear Jesus' "sound bite" of just what that good news is:

The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God has come near; repent and believe in the good news.

John 1:43-51

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By way of background, it may be helpful to note that this passage is the third that begins with, "The next day." (See John 1:29 and 1:35) The first of these gives John the Baptist's testimony that Jesus is the Lamb of God on whom John saw the Holy Spirit descend like a dove. (Note that there is no reference to Jesus being baptized by John.) In the second, John again says of Jesus, "Behold the Lamb of God." Two of John's disciples then leave him and follow Jesus. One of them, Andrew, then goes and fetches his brother Simon Peter who also goes to meet Jesus.

It cannot be overemphasized to pay attention to the frequency of the verbs "behold / see," and "come / follow." The whole purpose of the Gospel of John is that we should SEE who Jesus really is so that we might truly trust and abide in him and thereby have true life. (See John 20:31) For more information, see my Introduction to John.

Mark 1:4-11

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This text begins our Epiphany, Year B, readings. For the next several weeks, we will read through Chapter 1, verse by verse (with one exception next week).

The Gospel according to Mark is fast paced, and action oriented. It is the shortest of the Gospels, and believed to be the first written. Both Matthew and Luke include - sometimes word for word - most of Mark. But whereas Luke was written to present Jesus to a non-Jewish gentile; and Matthew was written for Jewish new converts or those considering becoming followers of Jesus, Mark reads like an early family history - the writing down of already familiar and often spoken stories that are told at family gatherings: "Remember when ... and then ...and then ..."