by Henry Knapp
I’m old enough now where I’ve circled back to a number of books, rereading them, in some cases, multiple times. CS Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, an older detective fiction writer, Rex Stout, the Hornblower series and the multiple volumes on Richard Sharpe are just some of the fiction books I have read numerous times. For my discipleship, I have revisited books from authors like JI Packer, RC Sproul, John Stott, Jerry Bridges and Tim Keller. More than a few volumes on my shelf about the American Revolutionary and Civil Wars, as well as World War II, have been poured over many times.
Usually, when revisiting a book I have really enjoyed in the past, I do not have to remind myself of the “literary background” of the book—the author, the timing of writing, the setting of the situation, the overall plotline. Sometimes, these things become self-evident as we read the book. However, occasionally, it helps to bring to mind the background of the book’s authorship. It will help to know a bit of the author’s history, when he was writing, his audience and point. Our goal is to understand, and learning more of the author can help us follow his writing.
This week we return to The Gospel According to Mark. In the winter/spring of last year, we worked through the opening chapters of the Gospel, culminating in Jesus’ healing of Jarius’ daughter and the woman who was bleeding for twelve years (Mark 5). This winter/spring, we pick up the story in chapter 6 with Jesus’s own return to his hometown, and continuing through chapter 10. In the coming months, we will wrap the Gospel with a focus on Mark’s depiction of the death and resurrection of our Lord (chapters 11-16).
But, as we get back into Mark’s account of Jesus’s earthly ministry, we should remind ourselves of Mark’s own history. It is the unanimous testimony of the early church that this Gospel was written by the biblical character, John Mark (see Acts 12, 13, and 15). Mark began as a traveling companion of Paul and Barnabas on their first missionary journey, but eventually deserted them and returned to Jerusalem. Paul must have been deeply disappointed in this, since he refused to travel with him on future trips. This caused a rift between Paul and Barnabas which is significant in the early church. Mark’s restoration in Paul’s eyes is evident in his gracious greeting and assistance at the end of Paul’s life (Colossians 4:10, Philemon 24, 2Timothy 4:11). Most notable, however, is the tradition that Mark eventually served as Peter’s interpreter while in Rome, from whom Mark would have received much of the material included in this Gospel.
Most scholars hold to the view that Mark was the first full Gospel account of Jesus’s ministry, probably written sometime 20-30 years after Jesus’ death and resurrection. The early church accepted that Mark wrote the Gospel while in Rome with the Apostle Peter, prior to Peter’s martyrdom. The Gospel appears to be written for the benefit of the Church in Rome, or at least, a wider Gentile audience. Mark explains Jewish customs, translates Aramaic words, and keys in on persecution (a pertinent interest to the persecuted believers in Rome). Perhaps the early Roman attacks against the church, led by Emperor Nero, prompted the writing. Mark was preparing his readers for suffering by drawing attention to the sufferings of our Lord (this spring in chapters 8 and 10 we will focus on this characteristic of the Christian life). Mark’s particular concerns, his writing style and his presentation of the material will appear in the months ahead as we explore his account of Jesus, our Savior.
In preparation for worship this week, read Mark 6:1-6.
- Verse 1 loosely connects this passage to the previous one. Quickly review what has happened beforehand. How might this impact the reader of the current section?
- “Disciples followed him” (vs. 1) is a bit of a play on words. To be a disciple means to follow another. What kind of “following” might be intended here?
- What is the attitude/tone of the crowd in verses 3-4? Without a definite indicator, what different options are available? How might they change the way we view Jesus and his actions here?
- What might it mean that a prophet has no honor at home? What is Jesus saying to his hometown when he quotes this proverb?
- In verse 5, Jesus seems caught off guard by His inability to perform miracles. Why so? What does this mean for His divinity? What does this mean for “faith?”