Jesus, the Suffering Son of God: The Gospel according to Mark Chapter 6 Jesus, the Suffering Son of God: The Gospel according to Mark The New Testament Bart D. Ehrman

What to Expect The Gospel of Mark is the shortest and earliest surviving account of Jesus’ life It establishes Jesus’ character in a series of scenes The people in this Gospel have a hard time grasping Jesus’ identity Do Jesus’ own disciples ever get it?

The Gospel according to Mark Unknown author Was a Greek-speaking Christian Was presumably living outside of Palestine Had heard stories about Jesus “Mark” may also have used written sources This Gospel was used by the authors of Matthew and Luke

The Beginning of the Gospel: Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God Who Fulfills Scripture Traditions rooted in a Jewish worldview Mark begins by calling Jesus the messiah, but this could mean a range of things Future king of Israel Cosmic deliverer “Son of God” would have been a familiar concept: Like other sons of God, divinely inspired teachers or rulers

Jesus the Authoritative Son of God Jesus is portrayed as authoritative, setting the stage for the rest of the Gospel When he gives instruction, people hang on his every word He drives unclean spirits out, heals the sick He is still universally misunderstood, and becomes hated by religious leaders

Jesus the Opposed Son of God Leaders oppose Jesus despite his deeds and faithfulness to Jewish Law Question his actions and practices Take offense at his associations and activities Protest the actions of his followers Authorities find him threatening Authorities do not understand who he is

Jesus the Misunderstood Son of God Through the first half of the Gospel, only a few recognize Jesus’ identity: God, Jesus himself, evil demons, the author, and the reader Jesus’ own disciples fail to understand who he is “Who then is this, that even wind and sea obey him?”

Jesus the Acknowledged Son of God The sequence of the stories in the Gospel of Mark is significant: Jesus heals a blind man only gradually Jesus’ disciples have been blind to his identity, but gradually begin to see Peter identifies him as “the Christ” but still sees him only dimly, as the deliverer of Israel, not the suffering Son of God

Jesus the Suffering Son of God Readers are given several indications that Jesus must die Jesus is explicit about this after Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Christ After each prediction, Mark shows that the disciples do not understand Jesus is the messiah, but not in any way the Jewish authorities recognize

ch. 14 Betrayal, Last Supper, Arrest (cont.) Gethsemane – olive grove on Mount of Olives; prayer of agony Arrest – kiss of Judas; prohibits defense by sword; disciples scatter

Jesus the Crucified Son of God Jesus’ disciples are shocked when Jesus fails to restore the kingdom to Israel However, Mark’s readers have no doubt about the importance of Jesus’ death: The curtain separating the Holy of Holies from the outside world is torn in half The pagan Roman centurion recognizes Jesus as God’s Son

Jesus the Vindicated Son of God The Gospel of Mark concludes after Jesus has risen, when the women flee the tomb and tell nobody Mark demonstrated that the disciples never could understand what Jesus meant about dying and rising again

ch. 16 Discovery of Empty Tomb (Sunday) Women come at dawn to anoint Jesus’ body. “Angel” announces resurrection of Jesus. Instructions to go to Galilee, where Jesus will appear. “They went out and said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid” (v. 8). Did Mark tell resurrection appearance in Galilee? Garden Tomb

Conclusion: Mark and His Readers The first readers of this Gospel were Christians of Mark’s community For Mark, following Jesus is not a ticket to glory, but a path to suffering The lessons of Mark would make sense to a community experiencing persecution and hoping for vindication