44-Mark 12 – Luke 9
Oct. 24, 2009
We will continue our study this week in the Gospel of Mark in Chapter 12. Last week we finished the first Gospel, Matthew and began to look at the events of Jesus‘ life in John Mark’s account. This week we will finish up the Gospel of Mark and move on to the Gospel of Luke. In Chapter 12 Jesus began to speak to the people in parables because the leaders had rejected Him. He first told the parable of the vine grower who lost his son to the selfishness of his workers. This parable represented what they, the Pharisees, would do to Him. Jesus then spoke to these same Pharisees and Sadducees who came to trap Him into condemning Himself with His own words. Jesus answered their questions correctly and gave them nothing to accuse Him with. At the end of the chapter Jesus noticed a widow place all she had into the temple treasury and commended her before His disciples. The rich gave from their surplus to be seen, but the poor widow gave in obedience and faith in her poverty. Jesus then spoke to His disciples, in Chapter 13, on things to come. He told them that terrible times were coming and that many men would mislead the people away from the truth. The disciples were told to be on their guard and to preach the gospel to all nations. Jesus also told them to be on guard for His return. In Chapter 14 the chief priests and scribes gathered to find a way to do away with Jesus. They wished to have Him killed before the Passover so as not to incite the people to riot. Jesus did not want His death to be in secret, but made sure His death would occur during the most prominent time of the year. Jesus then angered Judas Iscariot during supper at Bethany when He allowed a woman to anoint Him with costly perfume that could have been sold for the poor. Judas actually wanted to steal the money for himself. He went off to the priests and betrayed Jesus for a reward. The disciples were then asked by Jesus to obtain an upper room where they could celebrate the Passover meal together. Jesus knew this would be the last time they would eat supper together on earth. During the meal Jesus said that one of them would betray Him, and also instituted the Lord’s Supper to be done in remembrance of Him after He was gone. He told His disciples that they would flee from Him at His capture and told them the Old Testament prophecy in verse 27 “I WILL STRIKE DOWN THE SHEPHERD, AND THE SHEEP SHALL BE SCATTERED.” On the Mount of Olives in the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus asked His disciples to stand watch while He prayed. He asked His Father if there was some other way, but submitted to His will for what had to come. Jesus woke His friends before the soldiers came to capture Him. Jesus was taken before the high priest and condemned while Peter did deny His Lord three times before morning. In Chapter 15 Jesus was brought before Pilate the Roman Governor for disposition. He believed Jesus was innocent but did not want to anger the Jews by setting Him free. He allowed them to choose between Jesus and the criminal Barabbas for crucifixion. The people chose the criminal for release and had the Son of God killed instead. Jesus was taken by the soldiers and mocked, beaten, and whipped to near death before being marched to the place of execution. A man named Simon was placed into service to carry the cross of Jesus through the streets to the place of the skull where His death would be carried out. The Son of God was then nailed to the cross and crucified as an innocent man to take away our sin. He had fulfilled the reason for His coming, and at His death, a centurion remarked in verse 39 “Truly this man was the Son of God!” Jesus was then buried in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea and a stone was placed at its entrance. In Chapter 16 Mary Magdalene and some other women came to the tomb of Jesus to anoint His body. The stone had been rolled away and a man who sat on the stone told them that Jesus had risen. They were told to tell the disciples that Jesus would meet them in Galilee. The women were afraid and left. The final verses of the Gospel of Mark, from verse 9 to the end do not appear in the earliest manuscripts, but are similar to the Great Commission of the Gospel of Matthew. This ends the Gospel of Mark, we will now move into the next Gospel, Luke. The Gospel of Luke was written by Luke the Physician around 60 AD. Luke was a Gentile and companion of Paul on his missionary journeys described in Luke’s other work, the Book of Acts. Luke wrote his account on the life and times of Jesus from eyewitness accounts. We do not know if Luke ever actually personally met Jesus during His ministry on earth. The Gospel of Luke was written with Gentile people in mind and has emphasis on the healing work of Jesus. His Gospel shows Jesus the Son of man. Chapter 1 covers the birth of John the Baptist in detail missing from the other Gospels. Zacharias and his wife Elizabeth were old and had not had children. The Lord blessed them with a boy in their old age that was to become the one prophesied to come before the Messiah and lead the way. The angel Gabriel we read about in the Book of Daniel visited them and told them what was to come. Zacharias was made mute until the boy was born. Gabriel also visited Mary of Nazareth and told the virgin she would bear a son named Jesus by the Holy Spirit. She was also told her relative Elizabeth was pregnant and to visit her. When the baby in Elizabeth’s womb came near Mary he leaped for joy at who she carried. Elizabeth was filled with the Spirit and blessed Mary. Mary also spoke a prayer acknowledging the Lord and her place in His will. She also revealed her knowledge of the word of God as she spoke. At the proper time the baby was born to Elizabeth and Zacharias regained his voice to name him John. He also spoke a prophecy on his son’s future ministry and the Messiah who would come after him. In Chapter 2 Jesus was born in Bethlehem because of a census ordered by Caesar Augustus of Rome. Each man had to return to the city of his birth to be counted. There was no room for the poor family at the town inn so Jesus was born in the place that housed animals in a feeding trough. On the eighth day after His birth Jesus was taken to the temple to be named and circumcised. The devout old man that blessed Him prayed to see the Messiah before he died and his prayer was answered when he held the boy. The family then returned to Nazareth and Jesus grew. When Jesus was twelve His family took Him to Jerusalem during the feast because it was His time to become a man in the congregation. His parents misplaced Jesus when He stayed behind in the temple and talked with the priests there. They marveled at His understanding and answers. In Chapter 3 John the Baptist began to preach a message of repentance throughout the land. He was doing the prophecy of Isaiah as recorded in Luke 3:4-6 “THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, ‘MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT. ‘EVERY RAVINE WILL BE FILLED, AND EVERY MOUNTAIN AND HILL WILL BE BROUGHT LOW; THE CROOKED WILL BECOME STRAIGHT, AND THE ROUGH ROADS SMOOTH; AND ALL FLESH WILL SEE THE SALVATION OF GOD.’” John baptized many and also predicted the coming of One greater than he. Jesus came to John for baptism before He began His earthly ministry. During His baptism His Father spoke from heaven “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.” The end of the chapter contains the genealogy of Jesus from His adopted father Joseph’s side. Jesus was then tempted by Satan in the wilderness in Chapter 4. Satan attempted to use the word of God to tempt Jesus into disobeying the will of His Father. Jesus, being the Word refuted each of Satan’s attacks. Jesus then returned to Galilee and began to teach in the synagogues there. News of Him spread and He was praised by all. In Nazareth He entered the synagogue and spoke from the scroll of Isaiah in verse 18-19 “THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR. HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED, TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD.” Then He added in verse 21 “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” The people of the town rejected Him because they could not believe that this Son of Joseph had the authority to speak the words He spoke. Jesus then went on to Capernaum and went about healing many. In Chapter 5 Jesus called His first disciples. The account of their call is different here than in the other Gospel accounts. Jesus performed a miracle for Simon Peter when He caused his net to become full of fish on a day when Peter had caught none. This story does not go against the other Gospels, but gives us more depth and insight on the event. Jesus went on, in the chapter, to heal a leper, and to forgive the sins of a paralytic man. This forgiveness of sins angered the Pharisees because only God could forgive sin and they could not believe Jesus was God. At the end of the chapter Jesus also called Matthew the tax collector to service as a disciple. In Chapter 6 Jesus continued to anger the Pharisees with His acts. He chose twelve men from His disciples and named them apostles. These twelve were different from the disciples in that they were given the power to heal the sick and cast out demons like Jesus. They were the ones who were to lead the spread of the Gospel after Jesus’ death. Jesus then spoke to the multitudes the beatitudes and turned around the people’s ideas about God and obedience. In Chapter 7 Jesus healed a centurion’s servant from a distance because of his faith, even though he was a Roman and not a Jew. Jesus also brought the son of a woman of Nain back to life out of compassion for her loss. John the Baptist sent some of his disciples to Jesus to find out if He was the Christ. John was confused because he thought the Messiah was going to come as King, and not a healer of the sick. Jesus replied with scripture that told John He was who he thought. Jesus continued to minister to the sick and heal and the Pharisees continued to find fault in His works. At the end of the chapter Jesus commended a woman for showing him hospitality when the master of the house He was in did not. In Chapter 8 Jesus ministered to some women including Mary Magdalene and gained their support. He spoke to the crowds that gathered the parable of the sower, to help them understand the different types of believers. He also described, in detail the parables meaning to His disciples. He then stilled the Sea of Galilee while crossing and healed a demon possessed man on the other side. This angered the townspeople because they lost a large herd of swine as a result of the event. Jesus then returned to the other side of the sea and continued to heal the sick. He raised the dead child of an officer of the synagogue also because of his faith. In Chapter 9 Jesus gathered His twelve apostles and sent them out in twos to spread the gospel and continue His ministry. They were to rely on the hospitality of the people they met and return and give an account of their travels to Jesus. On their return Jesus fed five thousand men after a day of teaching and Peter gave his confession of faith. Jesus then took Peter, James, and John to the Mt. of Transfiguration to show them His true glory. In the end of the chapter Jesus told His disciples the true tests of greatness and gave them further insight on what is required to follow Him. This ends our study for this week. Next week we will finish up the Gospel of Luke.