Mark My Words

Mark is the gospel for people on the go.  Short and succinct, the second book of the New Testament delivers maximum message with minimum words.  If your schedule is more hustle and bustle than rest and relaxation, Mark might just be your man, but even if you prefer detailed descriptions, enough minors are mixed with the majors to keep you engaged and enthralled.

The gospel of Mark conveys a sense of urgency as the word “immediately” is used forty times, but when we consider all the ministry and mission Jesus packed into only three years, it’s obvious that no one was sitting around still for very long.  We can almost get tired just reading the fast-paced account of one interaction after another, but the intentionality and purpose highlighted by Mark remind us that Christ’s days on earth were (and ours should be) more than just a busy blur.

We don’t know much about the guy who wrote this gospel, but he’s mentioned in several places by a few other authors, e.g. Luke, Paul, and Peter.  Mark’s mom hosted an all-night prayer vigil for the imprisoned Peter at their house outside of Jerusalem(Acts 12:12).  Mark headed off with Paul and Barnabas on their first missions trip but got homesick and deserted along the way(Acts 15:38).  Barnabas, Mark’s cousin, wanted to give him another chance the second time around, but Paul would hear none of it; however, as the years passed, Mark grew up and Paul got over it because he later desired for Mark to come help in his ministry(2 Tim 4:11). Peter refers to him as “my son Mark”(1 Pet 5:13), and many Biblical scholars believe that Mark got the information for his narrative from Peter himself.  We’ll have to wait until eternity to find out for sure, but we can be certain that what Mark wrote is worth reading and pondering.

All of the Bible is worth our time and effort, so as we start the new year with the recurring resolution to know God better, the best way to do so is to get the story straight from the Source.  That’s why I reflect and write, and that’s why you read and reflect.  We want to know the God of the Word through the Word of God, and as we treasure what God tells us about Himself, we grow in His grace and in bringing Him glory. 

Mark starts his gospel with the phrase, “The beginning of the good news about Jesus,” so as we flip the calendar, may the good news of our Savior become more real, more dear, more shown, and more shared than ever before.  Mark did that very thing by taking his script and heading to Alexandria, Egypt, where he preached Jesus and planted a church.  Few of us will relocate continents this year, but as we listen to and learn from what God says, many hearts and lives will changed.  Mostly our own.

Mark my words.