JOHN PREPARES THE WAY

Mark 1:1-13

The Beginning of the Gospel

Verses 1-3: The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God, 2 as it is written in Isaiah the prophet: "I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way"— 3 "a voice of one calling in the wilderness, `Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'"

1 The four evangelists begin their gospels at different points in the gospel story. Matthew begins with the genealogy and birth of Jesus. Luke starts with the birth of John the Baptist. John begins with the preincarnate existence of the Word. Mark begins with the ministry of John the Baptist. What Matthew and Luke take about four chapters to do, Mark does in thirteen verses—he introduces Christ and the beginning of His ministry.

As God did in Genesis, He is about to begin a new work. The Gospel of Mark is a summary of the beginning of that creative work. God has invaded the planet and things will never remain the same.

The word "gospel" translates the Greel word euangelion and it means the "good news" or "good tidings." The gospel is the good news about the redemptive work of God. The Jews badly needed the good news because for centuries, God did not send a prophet to speak to them. The subject of the good news is Jesus. Jesus is the Greek form of the Hebrew Joshua and it means "Yahweh or God is salvation" (Matthew 1:21). This then is not the gospel of Mark but the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Mark gives Jesus two titles: Christ and Son of God. Jesus is the long-awaited Christ or the Messiah, which means "Anointed." Jesus is also the Son of God in a unique way. This title expresses Jesus' special relation to God.

2 The phrase "it is written" is the standard formula for introducing a quotation. Mark quotes verse 2 from Malachi 3:1 and verse 3 from Isaiah 40:3. He uses the quotation to show that the coming of Jesus was planned and prepared by God; it was foretold by the prophets. Although Mark mentions only Isaiah, his quotation includes phrases from Malachi. These two prophets predicted the coming of John the Baptist who will prepare the way for Jesus Christ. Malachi prophesied that a messenger would prepare the way for the Lord and identified the messenger with Elijah (Malachi 3:1,23). Clearly, then, the speaker ("I") is God; the "messenger" is John the Baptist; and "your way" alludes to Jesus' entrance into ministry.

3 This verse is a quote from Isaiah 40:3. Isaiah prophesied about the coming of the Messiah and the person who would announce His coming. Being guided by the Holy Spirit, Mark applies the prophecy to the ministry of John the Baptist. John is the voice calling the people to repentance. His call to make the paths straight is the same as preparing the way.

Why did the voice come from the desert or wilderness? John chose to live in the wilderness for at least four reasons: (1) to get away from distractions so that he could hear from God; (2) to capture the undivided attention of the people, (3) to symbolize a sharp break with the hypocrisy of the religious leaders who preferred luxurious homes over doing God's work; and (4) to fulfill OT prophecies.

Preparing the Way

Verses 4-8: And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. 6 John wore clothing made of camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7 And this was his message: "After me comes the one more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. 8 I baptize you with[e] water, but he will baptize you withthe Holy Spirit."

4 We notice that Mark's story begins in the wilderness, not in Jerusalem, the holy city, where the temple was located. John is introduced to us in an abrupt manner. He is a miracle child, born to Zachariah and Elizabeth (Luke 1). He suddenly appears in Israel, where there has been no prophets for more than four hundred years. The locale of his ministry was the wilderness or dessert. John's ministry involves preaching, which is focused on baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

John is not looking for proselytes; he wants penitents. He makes it clear that repentance, forgiveness, and baptism belong together. To repent means to "to turn;" it involves turning from sin to God. Forgiveness takes place in heaven where the pardoning power is. Baptism is a symbol of repentance. It is literally "plunging" people into water. By the time of Paul, baptism has become the Christian sacrament of initiation into the body of Christ.

5 Those who wish to obtain forgiveness come to John in droves. Mark's statement that "the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem" went to John is hyperbolic. However, it indicates that John is popular and successful in preparing the way for the one who is to come after him.

His base of operation is at the Jordan River, where there is plenty of water to baptize penitents. The Jordan River is about seventy miles long and it stretches between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea. It is at least twenty miles away from Jerusalem. (See map in the Introduction.) John tells people to repent in preparing for the Messiah. Those who repent confess their sins and are baptized by John in River Jordan.

6 We note the simplicity of John's lifestyle—his dress and diet. He puts on clothing made of camel's hair and puts on a leather belt. His appearance reminds one of the OT prophet Elijah the Tishbite (2 Kings 1:8), who called the people to national repentance. He eats locusts (similar to grasshoppers) and...