The Beginning of the Gospel | Mark 1:1-8 | J. Allen Mashburn

Matthew begins his Gospel by sharing the genealogy of Jesus. He feels the need to prove that Jesus is a Son of Abraham and a Son of David. Luke begins by talking about the events which lead up to the birth of the Lord Jesus. John’s Gospel starts out in eternity past reminding us that Jesus is God in the flesh. Mark does not start out by talking about the Lord’s heritage or His birth. Mark’s desire is to present Jesus as a servant and a servant does not need a genealogy. Mark begins by jumping right into the action.

Mark’s first sentence serves as a title to the book and it serves to plunge us immediately into the earthly ministry of Jesus. Mark is going to share with his readers the good news concerning who Jesus is and what He did while He was here. Mark calls the Lord “Jesus Christ, the Son of God”.

The name “Jesus” is the Greek transliteration of the Hebrew name “Joshua”. It means “Jehovah is Salvation”. Jesus is a human name and it reveals the reason Jesus came into this world. Jesus came into this world to save lost sinners, Matt. 1:21; Luke 19:10. The name “Jesus” declares His Person.

He is called “Christ”. This identifies Jesus as the “Jewish Messiah”, or “the Anointed One”. The name “Christ” declares His Position. Jesus is pictured as the One Who will deliver His people from their enemies.

Then Mark raises the stakes. He calls Jesus “the Son of God”. Mark lets us know in very clear terms that he is writing about a man, Who is no ordinary man. He is writing about a man Who is God in the flesh, John 1:1, 14. The name “Son of God” declares His Power.

So, this title declares four important truths regarding Jesus.

1.  He is truly human – He has a human name – Jesus.

2.  He is truly divine – He is the promised Messiah. He is the Son of God.

3.  He is truly unique – He is both humanity and deity in one Person.

4.  He is the true source of Good News – Jesus alone is the source of salvation!

We have Mark’s introduction of the book that bears his name. Let’s begin the process of moving through these verses. We will consider the beginning of the ministry of Jesus as Mark writes about the man who was sent to prepare the way for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Today we are going to take a few moments to look at the ministry of John the Baptist.