Mark 1:14-20 (New International Version, ©2010)
Jesus Announces the Good News
14 After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. 15 “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!” Jesus Calls His First Disciples
16 As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 17 “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” 18 At once they left their nets and followed him. 19 When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets. 20 Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.
The thing that stands out to me most about this passage is the way in which Jesus' ministry compliments and completes John's. John was preparing the way, calling people to turn from their sins and get right with God, because the Messiah was coming. Then, after John is put in prison, Jesus begins preaching the same message--with a twist. John was preparing the way, but now Jesus says the time HAS come, the kingdom of God HAS drawn near, and it's good news!Mark 1:14-20 (New International Version, ©2010)
Jesus Announces the Good News
14 After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. 15 “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”Jesus Calls His First Disciples
16 As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 17 “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” 18 At once they left their nets and followed him. 19 When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets. 20 Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.I'll answer the questions in the comments section--if they don't get zapped again, LOL! Thanks for all your great thoughts and answers on the last post--we can all learn so much from each other!!!
I'm going to post my answers in synopsis form today, since I'm still adjusting to my new schedule and pressed for time.
ReplyDeleteBasically, this section and yesterday's section seem to me to ba about preparation: John was preparing the way for Jesus, Jesus was baptized and spent 40 days in the wilderness in preperation for his ministry, and now, in this passage, we see that John has been imprisoned, and Jesus takes up where he left off. As I said in the post, John said Someone greater than himself (the implication is the messiah, based on the passages Mark quoted in the beginning) was coming, and now Jesus said that the time has come, and the kingdom of God is near.
Then, Jesus calls his first four disciples, another act of preparation.
Application: The thing that struck me was how conscientiously Jesus went about preparing for his ministry. He was God in flesh, and you'd think he'd want to rush in and fix everthing that was broken in the world. But he wasn't rushed, wasn't frantic, was never in a hurry. He took the time he needed to prepare his heart for what was coming, to gather his inner and external resources. How often do I see a problem and want to rush in and fix it, without really taking stock of my internal and external resources and making a good plan? I think too often we DON'T engage things that we should, and make all sorts of excuses about it, but on the other hand rushing in without a good, sustainable plan isn't helpful either.
This passage always strikes me how easily the first disciples up and left their livelihood to follow Jesus. It certainly isn't that easy for most of us! What a profound trust they display in this passage.
ReplyDeleteI have also heard that boys the disciples age usually applied to a rabbi to be taught Torah and that because these boys were working and not in studies, perhaps they were the "flunkies" who were deemed not good enough for further study, no rabbis would accept them to teach them. I guess that would make sense with Jesus' love for outcasts. Not sure if that is what is really going on, but I thought it was interesting when I heard that thought.
I had heard that too, about the likelihood that many of the disciples were teenagers who weren't deemed good enough to study with a rabbi. It IS amazing how easily they just up and left what they were doing--but then they had their father in the boat, and hired men to help him. I find the stories about Levi or Suzanna even more astonishing--it's one thing to skip out on the family business, another to walk away from a government position or explain to your family that you're going to spend the next couple years following an itenerant teacher. :-O I wish the NT writers had written more about the women who followed Jesus as well--I think that would be fascinating!
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