CHAPTER 6 :: Jesus’ Message: The Message to Repent (Mark 1:14-15)
“Jesus came to Galilee preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the gospel” (Mark 1:14-15).
The CallingÂ
Jesus initiated His public ministry as the long-expected and God-promised Davidic King. The Jewish Messiah. He had yet to announce that He would go to the cross and was not yet offering Himself as the Savior of the world. So, this Gospel of the Kingdom He offered was not of individual salvation for all who believe. The word “Gospel” means “good news.” What those glad tidings are is determined by the context. He offered to establish the Kingdom of God, with Himself as King, to rule over the Jewish nation as promised by the prophets.
However, Israel was under divine discipline, specifically national exile, for breaking the covenant established by God at Mt. Sinai. According to the Mosaic Covenant, when the Jews strayed from their covenant, they were to repent to restore covenant fellowship. Jesus was offering them that restoration, which He conditioned on their repentance. God made that covenant with the Jewish people, and they agreed to obey its terms. When they didn’t, God disciplined them, as outlined in Deuteronomy 28. The call to repent was God’s command to return to covenant obedience.
Jesus brought the same message of restoration, but with His presence, repentance would establish the promised Kingdom.
Storybook
Mark was a young man when Jesus began His ministry. As a faithful Jew, he looked to God to fulfill His covenant promises to Abraham to bless all the nations through his seed, and to David, to establish his kingdom through his descendant, who would rule forever. He longed for the promised Kingdom when Israel would be a glorious nation and not under covenant discipline.
Jesus’ gospel of national repentance would prepare Israel to receive the Kingdom. But Jesus delayed the promise of the Kingdom to the nation when they rejected Him as their Messiah.
Jesus’ Call: Become Fishers of Men (Mark 1:16-20)
Storybook
Peter explained how Jesus had called him and his brother Andrew as disciples. When Jesus called them, they were fishing with their families, including James and John. At His call, they immediately dropped their nets and left their family’s business to “become fishers of men.” This is an example of what it means to follow when Jesus calls.
Summary
After His introduction, Jesus offered the Kingdom to Israel and called His disciples to follow Him. In the rest of the chapter, Mark presents Jesus performing three sequential miracles that each required the power of God.
