Intro to the Gospel of Mark

This Spring we are teaching on the gospel of Mark – the earliest story of Jesus of Nazareth. The experience of Jesus coming into their lives had changed everything for the early Christians and they were still reeling from the impact. Who was Jesus? He was clearly someone of immense power and authority – so much so that his followers often found themselves asking ‘Who is this?’ Yet at the same time he seemed to go willingly to a death that any other person would have avoided at all costs. Why did Jesus die? And what of the claims about his resurrection? What do you do with a person like this?

Mark’s story is a mix of history, biography and drama. But it doesn’t fit any of these perfectly. So Mark makes a new name for his sort of story. He calls it a ‘gospel’ which simply means ‘good news’. It’s not simply interesting history nor is it a ‘go and do likewise’ moralistic tale. A gospel is an honest reflection on the crisis that Jesus created. It is not a story with easy, moralistic answers. It doesn’t spell everything out. It allows us as the readers to make our own personal response. Is Jesus who he says he is? And if he is, what changes for us? Whether you are hearing these stories for the first time or the fiftieth, the same questions are asked of us.

As we teach through the book, we will not be giving good advice for living, good moral teaching or a new religious technique. We won’t be talking so much about us and what we should do. The story is about Jesus; who he is and what he has done. That’s the good news as Mark saw it – that Jesus came “not be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mk 10:35).