Mark Ch. 1

Reading the gospels is sometimes tricky to me.  Mostly because I think it seems routine.  It's somewhat similar to me trying to edit my own writing.  Once I've written something down, I read not what I wrote but what I believe I wrote every time after that.  This often times results in mistakes I don't catch until I either read it aloud or have someone else read it for me.  

Just the same, as a life-long believer, I find it hard to read the gospels without simply coasting through because I am already familiar with the stories and the way things play out.  This is where I have to remind myself that God's word is living and breathing and is in fact capable of speaking to me no matter how many times I may have read it.  Not only is it capable, but it seems purposed to do just that.  It is for this very reason, the familiarity of it all, that I found myself surprised at the questions that were raised as I read chapter 1 the past two days.

v10-12

Jesus being baptized has never struck me as odd.  However, I found it interesting that the Spirit descended on him at the time of his baptism.  I know that the Holy Spirit comes with believing, but, as God, I imagine Jesus already has the Holy Spirit at this point.  But the strangeness of the situation doesn't stop there.  

Immediately after receiving the spirit, he is led into the desert for 40 days of temptation.  What a drag.  And to think that I joke about how, since deciding to be more committed to reading the word, I've been scheduled for hernia surgery and been rear-ended while sitting at a stop light on 287.  Not exactly equal predicaments.

Still, how would you like your ministry (or for most of us, our jobs) to begin by being subjected to the worst possible situation for over a month?  I think that as the Son of God, I might have a gripe with that.

v35-38

As a habitual people pleaser, this one helps me out- gives me a little courage/ammo to think past what others might ask or require of me for their own sake.  I have a hard time seeing beyond the thought that, "Well, they may have a point.  Maybe I ought to think about what they say first."  Jesus doesn't have that problem.  

Having just healed numerous people, Jesus decides to get up early one morning- while it was still dark is what it says- and slips out to pray alone in a solitary place.  While he is out, a couple of his disciples seek him out and reprimand him when they find him.  "Everyone is looking for you!" they exclaimed.  I take that as anger.  Jesus' response is wonderfully calm- and self-assured.  "Let us go somewhere else-"  He basically says I have places to be and people to preach to, so let's be off.  No apologies or trying to smooth things out.  Just a simple, let's go.  There's work to be done, and that is what I must do.

I'm pretty sure the people looking for him were plenty angry for that decision too.  In fact, had he returned, there's a good chance they'd have laid into him for it.  If it had been me, I'd have cleared my plans with the others first- or made sure I apologized upon returning.  I'm weak that way.  Jesus just does what needs to be done- he requires no permission.  He is surprisingly forceful and bold and yet a few verses later he bends his will to that of a leper who asks to be healed "if you are willing."  

So that's what I took from Mark 1.  Jesus does that which he is called to do and doesn't worry about getting clearance first or making sure that his decisions make sense to everyone else- like spending 40 days in the desert being tempted or splitting town unannounced for the sake of others.

Mark