Mark 1:1-121The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God; 2As it is written in the prophets, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee. 3The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 4John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. 5And there went out unto him all the land of Judea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins. 6And John was clothed with camel's hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins; and he did eat locusts and wild honey; 7And preached, saying, There cometh one mightier than I after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose. 8I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. 9And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan. 10And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him: 11And there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. 12And immediately the Spirit driveth him into the wilderness. (Mark 1:1‑12)
“THE BEGINNING of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” v. 1.
In the opening of this gospel we notice that the writer is not presenting the “kingly” character of Jesus, and so under the Holy Spirit’s guidance he entirely omits the story of the virgin birth, the angels and shepherds, the wise men with their gifts, among other things. Instead, the record opens by emphasizing that every heart should be ready to receive the Lord’s ministry, because He had been so faithfully foretold by John the Baptist (not to be confused with John the Apostle).
“And John was clothed with camel’s hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins; and he did eat locusts and wild honey; and preached, saying, There cometh One mightier than I after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose.”
We can see that John spoke with much power, because even though he was roughly dressed and lived in the plainest manner, a great number of people came to him, stricken with a sense of their sins, and accepted his baptism in confession thereof, both as individuals and as belonging to a nation that had forsaken God.
But we should not fail to notice that in verse 8 John tells them that there is going to be a definite difference between what he was doing and the work of the Lord who was to follow. “I indeed have baptized you with water: but He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.”
This is important because some have mistakenly thought that in Luke 3:33And he came into all the country about Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins; (Luke 3:3) and similar scriptures, where it speaks of “the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins,” that this applies to us today and that this is the way of eternal life. But John knew that the repentance and baptism he was preaching was strictly for Israel. Up until the work of Calvary, baptism was only in connection with the promise of an earthly kingdom (to be fulfilled in the coming Millennium). After the cross the baptism of John was no longer called for, even for a devout Jew, because the Lord Jesus’ work on Calvary ushered in a new and living way.
Turning to Romans 4:20-5:220He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; 21And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. 22And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. 23Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; 24But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; 25Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification. 1Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. (Romans 4:20‑5:2), we find that the faith of Abraham and others was accepted of God unto righteousness, but that now our faith must be in the Saviour who died for us and rose again (Rom. 4:2424But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; (Romans 4:24)). Such faith brings us into peace with God and gives access to Him. Then in Romans 6 we find the true aspect of baptism in connection with Christian faith, applying to our present time.
“And... Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan. And straightway coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon Him: and there came a voice from heaven, sang, Thou art My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
The Lord accepted the baptism of John, not because He personally required any remission of sins (for He was “holy, harmless, undefiled"), but in order to indicate here His place He was taking in grace in connection with Israel. God was pleased with this gracious act of His beloved Son and the fullness of the Trinity is expressed in the testimony of Jesus, the descent of the Holy Spirit and the Father’s voice from heaven. All this spoke of how fitting it was that Jesus should identify Himself thus with Israel bore His public ministry began, and none could truthfully point a finger at Him and claim any shortcoming. (His enemies did this falsely but were always condemned by their own words.)
ML-04/14/1963