(Chapter 1:1-20)
IN THE GOSPEL of Mark the Holy Spirit presents the Lord Jesus in all His lowly grace as the Servant of Jehovah. Nevertheless, we are ever to remember that the One who stoops to become the obedient Servant never ceases to be Who He is, as a Divine Person, because of what He became as a lowly Servant in the likeness of men. Thus, to guard His glory, the gospel opens with a sevenfold witness to the greatness of His Person.
(V. l) The first witness is the writer of the Gospel. Mark, who is used by the Holy Spirit to bring before us the One who made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, opens his gospel by reminding us that He is “Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”
(Vv. 2, 3) Secondly, the prophets are quoted, as bearing witness to the glory of His Person. They not only foretell His coming, but they announce His glory. Jehovah's word to Malachi is, “Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before Me.” The Spirit applies these words to Christ, for He says, “Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way.” Jesus of the New Testament is the Jehovah of the Old Testament. (Mal. 3:11Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. (Malachi 3:1)). The second quotation from Isaiah speaks of preparing the way of the LORD. Thus again it is Jehovah whose way is prepared—for Jesus is Jehovah. (Isa. 11:33And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: (Isaiah 11:3)).
(Vv. 4-8) Thirdly, we have the witness of John, the Forerunner, to the glory of the perfect Servant. On the one hand, he bears witness to the sinful condition of man, and the need of “repentance for the remission of sins;” on the other hand, he witnesses to the glory of the One who had come in lowly grace as the Servant to meet man's need. He takes his stand in the wilderness, “and there went out to him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem.” Long centuries before, the Lord had said to the prophet, “Behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak to her heart” (Hos. 2:1414Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her. (Hosea 2:14)). As one has said, “There was no talking to her heart ... in the fair and flourishing city...; but out in the cold, hungry, waste wilderness, He allured her,” there to speak to the conscience and win the heart. And today how often this way is taken with sinners, and, indeed with saints. We seek comfort and ease, too often to find our hearts growing cold and careless; then the Lord breaks in on our ease with sorrow and trial, in order to speak to our hearts and attract us to Himself.
Appealing to the conscience, John shows that our sins have turned the fair creation into a moral wilderness, and separated man from God. His manner of life, lived apart from the world, was in consistency with his testimony. Above all, he bore witness to the glory of the One that was coming. If the One who “thought it not robbery to be equal with God,” stoops to become a Man, and takes the form of a servant, John, the greatest among prophets, delights to own that a yet greater Servant has come, the latchet of whose shoes he is not worthy to unloose. John may, indeed, baptize with water, and by this sign of death separate people from their former associations with a corrupt world, but Jesus will baptize with the Holy Ghost—a Divine Person—the seal that henceforth believers belong to Christ in a new world.
(Vv. 9-11) Fourthly, we have the witness of the voice from Heaven to the glory of Christ. In infinite grace the Lord submits to baptism, thus identifying Himself with the godly remnant in separation from the guilty nation; Straightway the Father's voice is heard declaring His glory as the “beloved Son,” the One in whom the Father finds His delight. Already, in days of old, Jehovah had said by the prophet, “Behold my Servant ... in whom my soul delighteth: I will put my Spirit upon Him” (Isa. 42:11Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. (Isaiah 42:1)). Thus the voice from heaven can say, “My Servant” is “My beloved Son.” It has been truly said, He was “sealed by the Holy Spirit even as we are; He, because He was personally worthy of it; we, because He has made us worthy by His work and by His blood” (J.N.D.).
(Vv.12, 13) Fifthly, we have a brief allusion to the temptation in the wilderness. The temptation of our first parents in a garden of delights brought out their weakness whereby they were overcome by Satan. The temptation of our Lord, in a wilderness, became a witness to His infinite perfection, whereby He overcame Satan.
Sixthly, creation, itself, bears witness to the glory of His Person, for we read, He was “with the wild beasts.” However much the beasts may fear men, they have no fear of this blessed Man, for He, indeed, is their Creator.
Lastly, we read, “the Angels ministered unto Him.” The One who came to be the Servant is, Himself, served by angelic hosts. He is none less than “the Son,” “the First Begotten,” of Whom, when He comes into the world, it is said, “Let all the angels of God worship Him.” (Heb.1:5, 6.)
Thus, in their various seasons, heaven and earth, prophets and angels, declare the glory of Jesus as a Divine Person and so prepare the way of the Lord for the lowly place He was about to take as the Servant among men.
It will be noticed that, in this gospel, no genealogy is given, and no details of His birth, or circumstances of His early life are recorded. These details, so precious and needed, duly recorded by others, would hardly be in keeping with either the Gospel of Mark or John. Here, as the Servant, He takes a place beneath all genealogies, whereas, in the gospel of John, as the Son, He takes a place above all human genealogies.
Following upon this sevenfold witness to the glory of His Person, we have, in these introductory verses, the record of the event that prepared the way of the Lord to enter upon His public service, the character of His service, and the sovereign grace that chose others to be His companions in service.
(V.14) It is significant that it was after John had been “put in prison” that Jesus came forth to serve. Nature might argue that if the Forerunner is rejected it will be useless for Jesus to proceed with His mission. But God’s times, and ways, of action, are very different to those of men. The ministry of John, as indeed the rejection of John, was a demonstration of man’s sin and need; but this only prepared the way for, and proved the need of, a ministry of grace that alone can meet the need. When the world proved its sin by rejecting John, God declared His grace by sending Jesus.
(V. 15) The great end of the Lord's service, as recorded in the Gospel of Mark, is summed up in this verse. He was present in the midst of Israel to proclaim that the Kingdom of God had drawn nigh―a Kingdom marked by righteousness, peace, and joy (Rom. 14:l7). Already, John had come in the way of righteousness, convicting men of their sins; now the Lord was present—not to judge men for their sins― but in grace, calling men to repent in view of the glad tidings that proclaims the forgiveness of sins.
(Vs. 16-20) We then learn the grace of the Lord that identifies others with Himself in service. He passes by the official priests, the learned scribes, and the religious Pharisees, and takes up humble fishermen. Simon is one who can say, “Silver and gold have I none,” and of whom the world said he was an “unlearned and ignorant man” (Acts 3:6: 4:13). The lack of riches and human learning is no hindrance to being a companion of the Lord, or to being used in His service. Nevertheless, however humble the calling of those the Lord may engage in His service, they are not unemployed. These simple men were pursuing their occupation of fishermen, when the Lord called them to become fishers of men. The Lord's service is not to be taken up by those who have nothing else to do.
Moreover, His servants need to be fitted for service, and this training can only be effected by being in His company; therefore, the Lord's word is “Come ye after Me, and I will make you to become fishers of men.” This is still true, for the Lord's word remains, “If any man serve Me, let Him follow Me” (John 12: 26). Alas! we may be content with believing the gospel for the benefit of our souls, and know little of going on to follow the Lord in the path of faith and lowly obedience that prepares the way for service. We may not be called to literally forsake all, as with the disciples when the Lord was present on earth, but if we are to serve Him it can only be as, in spirit, He becomes the blessed Object before the soul. All may not be called to surrender their daily calling. This, indeed, is only the path of a few. The majority of God's people are definitely told to remain in their earthly calling (1 Cor. 7:2020Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called. (1 Corinthians 7:20)). Nevertheless the Lord has some service for all, for “Unto every one is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ” (Eph. 4:77But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. (Ephesians 4:7)). This service will involve the surrender of all those things that would entangle us in the affairs of this life, and can only be carried out as we keep near to Him. On the part of these disciples there was an immediate response to the Lord's call, for we read, they “followed Him,” and again they “went after Him.”