When we open the pages of the New Testament, we notice right away that the times are Roman. The Roman empire is at its height!
The long-awaited promised Savior has arrived! Jesus Christ! Jesus has broken down the barrier of sin and has opened the gateway to Heaven! Everyone needs to hear the good news!
Jesus’s close disciple and follower, Matthew, penned the Gospel of Matthew to let the Jewish people know of this good news!
A young man, John Mark, penned the Gospel of Mark to let the Roman people know of this good news! John Mark had spent much time with Jesus’s close disciple, Peter … a group of early Christians, led by Peter, gathered in John Mark’s home (Acts 12:11-17).
John Mark also accompanied the Apostle Paul and Barnabas, as a helper, on their very first missionary journey … spreading the good news across the Roman empire! John Mark did extensive missionary work on the island of Cyprus. (Acts 13:1- 13; Acts 15:36-39) John Mark also traveled to Rome to help the Apostle Paul in the ministry. (2 Timothy 4:11)
John Mark wanted everyone to know that Jesus is the Savior who has opened the gateway to Heaven!
The Roman citizens to whom Mark wrote did not know anything about Jewish history or Jewish prophecy. They were curious – “You say Jesus is the Savior by whom we can gain access to Heaven? I’m curious … please do tell me more. Give me the facts. Plain and simple.”
Mark’s Gospel is just the facts … plain and simple. This is who Jesus was … this is what Jesus did. For the Roman reader, Mark kept the story moving! Jesus’s life was one of action: miracle, after miracle, after miracle!
Roman culture and society revolved around the key role of servants, therefore the Roman men and women who read Mark’s Gospel could very much relate to Jesus’s role as a Servant – Jesus healed the sick, Jesus released the demon-possessed, Jesus encouraged the downtrodden, Jesus raised the dead, Jesus fed the hungry.
As Mark’s Gospel progressed, Jesus’s work as a Servant shifted from serving others to becoming the greatest Servant in all of history by offering his own life as a sacrifice for sin. Wow! This would have been very powerful and compelling for the Roman reader!
God loves all people! God wants all people of the world to repent and turn to Him!
The Gospel of Mark is a very special book written so that those who are not Jewish, and know nothing of Jewish history, customs, or prophecy, can learn who Jesus Christ is.
Jesus Christ is the promised Savior!
Jesus Christ is the gateway to Heaven!
Jesus Christ in Mark
Jesus was a Servant at work, always busy serving others. (Mark chapters 1-8)
Jesus was a Servant offering the greatest service of sacrifice to the world. (Mark 8:31 – thru the end of the book)
“For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” – Mark 10:45
