Clarifying in the Context
- Date: Sunday, July 4, 2010
- Speaker: Jason Smith
- Series: Jesus in 3D: Seeing Jesus through the Gospel of Mark
- Scripture: Mark 1:16–1:34
Fortunately for us, Jesus wasn’t out to win a popularity contest. If He was, He would have won it hands downs, but He was on mission to fulfill His calling to save sinners like you and like me. Last we saw three clear proclamations of the divinity of Jesus. First, Mark presents Him as Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Both titles that would have resonated with the readers of titles reserved for God alone. He confirms this through claiming that John the Baptist is the forerunner of the Messiah spoken of in Isaiah 40, a Messiah who is the LORD himself. By claiming John the Baptist as the forerunner, Mark is pointing to Jesus as the LORD who would follow. Second, John the Baptist then identifies Jesus as one who is mightier than himself, who would baptize with the Holy Spirit. In saying this, John is pointing back to the Old Testament promises that God would pour out His Spirit into the hearts of those He would redeem for Himself. Jesus is identified as God who would fulfill these promises. Finally, upon His baptism, God the Father identifies Jesus as His beloved Son with who He was well pleased. After being tempted by Satan, Jesus proclaimed that “the kingdom of God is at hand, repent and believe in the gospel.” From the outset, Mark wants to make it clear that Jesus is the “Son of God” who is the King of the kingdom of God. Now, He is going to take us on a journey to see how others discovered this truth for themselves. My hope is that today we will gain further clarity about the identity of Jesus as God, but not from proclamations, but by His actions and the reactions of those around Him. Let’s look at Mark 1:15-34.
