THROUGH THE BIBLE (Mark)

By Bishop Elijah H. Hankerson III, BA, MA, DD

LESSON NOTES:

I.                  THE KEY TO UNDERSTANDING THE ENTIRE BIBLE. If you understand that the Bible is written to show us how humanity was created for God, fell into sin, was reconciled through Christ (who was the product of a family) and God will restore everything through His sacrifice on the Cross; then you have the message of the entire Bible.

2 Corinthians 5:17-21 ¹⁷Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. ¹⁸And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; ¹⁹To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. ²⁰Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. ²¹For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

II.            WHO IS THE AUTHOR OF MARK? To be technical this Gospel really appears anonymous. However, it is attributed to Mark, who was a minister of the Gospel. He wrote this book with the sole purpose of spreading the Gospel message about Jesus Christ. His message is that Jesus is the Messiah that we have all been waiting for.

Mark 1:1 ¹The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God,

III.            WHY IS HE CALLED JOHN MARK?

                         A.            JOHN WAS HIS HEBRAIC NAME, WHICH MEANS, “THE LORD IS GRACIOUS.”

                         B.            MARK, HOWEVER, WAS A NAME RECOGNIZED IN ROMAN CULTURE. Thus, that is a Latin name (the official language of Rome for dealing with military matters), which means, “hammer or warlike.”

1.               SO OBVIOUSLY, SINCE THE LATIN NAME IS USED; THIS GOSPEL WAS PRODUCED FOR THE GENTILE WORLD. Written in Greek, it was too have influence on the larger region of people. Such people would have been more concerned about the Messiah’s actions vs Old Testament prophecy (which would have been irrelevant to them).

Acts 12:12 ¹²When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying.

2.               MARK HAD TO EXPLAIN TO GENTILES; THINGS THAT JEWS WOULD HAVE TAKEN FOR GRANTED.

Mark 7:3-4 ³(The Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing, holding to the tradition of the elders. ⁴When they come from the marketplace they do not eat unless they wash. And they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of cups, pitchers and kettles.)

Mark 15:42 ⁴²It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached,

3.            IT IS BELIEVED THAT THIS BOOK WAS WRITTEN IN ROME. Tradition says that Peter was martyred in Rome; thus Mark would have been present with him.

IV.            MARK IS THE FIRST GOSPEL EVER WRITTEN. Mark was not one of the apostles. We are not certain whether he would have been an eyewitness of Christ’s ministry. However, we do know that he held an esteemed place in the early church.

 V.            HIS MOTHER MARY WAS VERY PROMINENT AND INFLUENTIAL IN THE CHURCH; her house was a house used for prayer by the early church’s leadership. She apparently was a widow with a very large house.

Acts 12:12-17 ¹²When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying. ¹³Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer the door. ¹⁴When she recognized Peter's voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, "Peter is at the door!" ¹⁵"You're out of your mind," they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, "It must be his angel." ¹⁶But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. ¹⁷Peter motioned with his hand for them to be quiet and described how the LORD had brought him out of prison. "Tell James and the other brothers and sisters about this," he said, and then he left for another place.

VI.            HE WAS A PROTEGE OF THE APOSTLE PETER. Peter was a part of Christ’ inner circle. Peter’s house in Capernaum was Jesus’ ministry headquarters. So the information that Mark received about Christ’s ministry; would have been from a very reliable source. Peter actually looks at Mark as a son.

1 Peter 5:13 ¹³She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you her greetings, and so does my son Mark.

Perhaps this is why Matthew and Mark patterned their Gospel’s after Mark’s because Matthew as not in the inner circle (which Mark emphasizes) and Luke was a Gentile convert of Paul; so he would not have had firsthand information (which he did admit to).

Mark 9:2 ²After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them.

Mark 14:33 ³³He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled.

Luke 1:1-3 ¹Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, ²just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. ³With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,

VII.            THE INFLUENCE OF BARNABAS ON MARK.

                         A.            MARK’S COUSIN WAS BARNABAS. He had a profound impact on Mark’s life.

Colossians 4:10 ¹⁰My fellow prisoner Aristarchus sends you his greetings, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. (You have received instructions about him; if he comes to you, welcome him.)

                         B.            IT IS BELIEVED THAT BARNABAS WAS A PART OF THE 70 (SOME RECORDS SAY 72). This group was really just as anointed as the apostles; but their function was different.

Luke 10:1-20 

10 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. ² He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. ³ Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. ⁴ Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.

⁵ “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ ⁶ If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you. ⁷ Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.

⁸ “When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is offered to you. ⁹ Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ ¹⁰ But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, ¹¹ ‘Even the dust of your town we wipe from our feet as a warning to you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God has come near.’ ¹² I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.

¹³ “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. ¹⁴ But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you. ¹⁵ And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades.

¹⁶ “Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; but whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me.”

¹⁷ The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”

¹⁸ He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. ¹⁹ I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. ²⁰ However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

                         C.            BARNABAS, AN UNSUNG HERO IN THE BIBLE; THAT INFLUENCED THE LIFE OF MARK.

1.               THE APOSTLES HIGHLY RESPECTED BARNABAS. “Barnabas” wasn’t his birth name (Joseph was); it was his nickname meaning “Son of Encouragement.” He was from the tribe of Levi, but he was born on the island of Cyprus.

Acts 4:36 Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means "son of encouragement"),

2.               HE WAS PRETTY WEALTHY. He sold land and gave the proceeds to the Church. He was able to support his ministry financially from his own means.

Acts 4:37 ³⁷sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles' feet.

1 Corinthians 9:6 ⁶Or is it only I and Barnabas who lack the right to not work for a living?

3.               HE IS THE ONE THAT VOUCHED FOR PAUL; WHEN THE CHURCH WAS BEING SKEPTICAL.

Acts 9:26-28 ²⁶When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. ²⁷But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the LORD and that the LORD had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. ²⁸So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the LORD.

4.               BARNABAS WAS AN EFFECTIVE PREACHER AND HE WAS ALWAYS OUT TO HELP OTHERS. He was a good man and was very dependable.

Acts 15:35 ³⁵But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, where they and many others taught and preached the word of the LORD.

Acts 11:19-24 ¹⁹Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. ²⁰Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the LORD Jesus. ²¹The LORD's hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the LORD. ²²News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. ²³When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the LORD with all their hearts. ²⁴He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the LORD.

Acts 11:25-26 ²⁵Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, ²⁶and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.

5.               HE WAS A PROPHET AND TEACHER; A FASTING AND PRAYING MAN THAT HEARD GOD’S VOICE AND OBEYED.

Acts 13:1-3 ¹Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. ²While they were worshiping the LORD and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." ³So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.

6.               HE WAS ONE OF THE ONES THAT VOUCHED FOR GENTILES TO BE A PART OF THE CHURCH; WHICH WE BENEFIT FROM TODAY.

Galatians 2:1-10 ¹Then after fourteen years, I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also. ²I went in response to a revelation and, meeting privately with those esteemed as leaders, I presented to them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. I wanted to be sure I was not running and had not been running my race in vain. ³Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek. ⁴This matter arose because some false believers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves. ⁵We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you. ⁶As for those who were held in high esteem-whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not show favoritism-they added nothing to my message. ⁷On the contrary, they recognized that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been to the circumcised. ⁸For God, who was at work in Peter as an apostle to the circumcised, was also at work in me as an apostle to the Gentiles. ⁹James, Cephas and John, those esteemed as pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the circumcised. ¹⁰All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I had been eager to do all along.

7.               UNFORTUNATELY, HE HAD MULTIPLE FALL OUTS WITH THE APOSTLE PAUL. Paul had a very outspoken, almost harsh personality. He and Barnabas had a couple of run ins.

                                                                     a.                  PAUL CALLED HIM A HYPOCRITE FOR FEEDING THE GENTILES WITH A LONG HANDLED SPOON.

Galatians 2:11-14 ¹¹When Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. ¹²For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group. ¹³The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray. ¹⁴When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in front of them all, "You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?

                                                               b.                        PAUL FELL OUT WITH HIM, BECAUSE MARK ABANDONED THEM ON THEIR FIRST TRIP; SO PAUL DID NOT WANT HIM TAGGING ALONG ON THE SECOND TRIP. The argument was so bad that they parted ways. Barnabas did not give up on Mark.

Acts 13:5 ⁵When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper.

Acts 15:36-38 ³⁶Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, "Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of the LORD and see how they are doing." ³⁷Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, ³⁸but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work.

Acts 15:39-40 

³⁹ Paul and Barnabas had a big argument about this. It was so bad that they separated and went different ways. Barnabas sailed to Cyprus and took Mark with him ⁴⁰ Paul chose Silas to go with him. The believers in Antioch put Paul into the Lord’s care and sent him out.

                                                                c.                        PAUL LATER ACKNOWLEDGES THAT MARK IS A BENEFIT TO THE MINISTRY. Perhaps if Barnabas had not believed in his cousin, we may not have had our first Gospel, from which two other Gospels patterned themselves.

2 Timothy 4:11 ¹¹Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry.

VIII.            THIS BOOK FOCUSES ON SUFFERING AND MARTYRDOM. Written close to the time that the Jewish temple would be destroyed; the Christians (which are still looked at as a Jewish sect) would suffer at the hands of both Jew and Gentile. This prepares the new Gentile converts for the suffering that lays ahead for them.

Mark 1:12-13 ¹²At once the Spirit sent him out into the wilderness, ¹³and he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.

Mark 3:22 ²²And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, "He is possessed by Beelzebul! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons."

Mark 3:30 ³⁰He said this because they were saying, "He has an impure spirit."

Mark 8:34-38 ³⁴Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. ³⁵For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. ³⁶What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? ³⁷Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? ³⁸If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels."

Mark 10:29-30 ²⁹"Truly I tell you," Jesus replied, "no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel ³⁰will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields-along with persecutions-and in the age to come eternal life.

Mark 10:33-34 ³³"We are going up to Jerusalem," he said, "and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, ³⁴who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise."

Mark 10:45 ⁴⁵For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

Mark 13:8 ⁸Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains.

Mark 13:9-13 ⁹"You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. ¹⁰And the gospel must first be preached to all nations. ¹¹Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit. ¹²"Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. ¹³Everyone will hate you because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.

IX.            MARK’S GOSPEL IS FILLED WITH ACTION. The word “immediately,” or “straightway,” is the key word. He focuses more on what Jesus did than what he said. Jesus is presented as a servant to humanity; one that exercises great power and anointing. That power is passed on to the Church. While some conclude that the last few sentences of Mark 16 have been added; they are definitely in line with the spirit of the book.

Mark 1:12 ¹²And immediately the spirit driveth him into the wilderness.

Mark 16:15-20 ¹⁵He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. ¹⁶Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. ¹⁷And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; ¹⁸they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well." ¹⁹After the LORD Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God. ²⁰Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the LORD worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.

 X.            THE GOSPEL OF MARK IS ABOUT JESUS.

                         A.            JESUS STARTS HIS MINISTRY (Mark 1:1-13).

                         B.            JESUS MINISTERS IN GALILEE (Mark 1:14-9).

                         C.            JESUS MINISTERS IN JUDEA (Mark 10).

                         D.            JESUS GOES TO THE CROSS (Mark 11-16). He is arrested, tried, killed and resurrected in Mark 14:12-16.

XI.            THE MESSAGE OF MARK IS THE CROSS!

Mark 8:31 ³¹He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again.

Mark 9:30-31 ³⁰They left that place and passed through Galilee. Jesus did not want anyone to know where they were, ³¹because he was teaching his disciples. He said to them, "The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men. They will kill him, and after three days he will rise."

Mark 10:33-34 ³³"We are going up to Jerusalem," he said, "and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, ³⁴who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise."

Mark 12:12 ¹²Then the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders looked for a way to arrest him because they knew he had spoken the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd; so they left him and went away.

Mark 14:1-2 ¹Now the Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread were only two days away, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were scheming to arrest Jesus secretly and kill him. ²"But not during the festival," they said, "or the people may riot."

Mark 15:9-11 ⁹"Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?" asked Pilate, ¹⁰knowing it was out of self-interest that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him. ¹¹But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilate release Barabbas instead.

XII.            PRAYER FOR SALVATION. As we close, if you have not received this Jesus pray this simple prayer:

"Father, I know that I have sinned against You. Please forgive me. Wash me clean. I promise to trust in Jesus, Your Son. I believe that He died for me—He took my sin upon Himself when He died on the cross. I believe that He was raised from the dead. I surrender my life to Jesus today.

"Thank You, Father, for Your gift of forgiveness and eternal life. Please help me to live for you. In Jesus' name, Amen."