Black (2009) describes the Gospel of Mark as being the “earliest account of Jesus' life narrated from a point of view that would soon be accepted as characteristically Christian: history viewed through the confessional lens of Jesus as the Messiah of Israel and of the nations” (p. 66). Mark disproportionately spends less time on Jesus’ early ministry with vague time links, while focusing a great deal more on the cross and his death as he demonstrates with more detailed information on Jesus’ final week of his life spent in Jerusalem (Wenham & Walton, 2011). Mark cuts to the chase by proclaiming God’s good news and that His kingdom is at hand (1:14-15) defining the public ministry of Jesus Christ. Jesus reveals the loving presence of God throughout his ministry that will bring about the peaceful and just society that God promised in the Old Testament for salvation for the world, and freedom from evil and sin that existed (Maloney, 2009). This essay will examine the historical details surrounding Mark the evangelist and the writing of the Gospel of Mark, discuss the …show more content…
There is no formal introduction of Jesus or his genealogy. Instead, he uses the prophecies of Isaiah (40:3) and Malachi (3:1) to introduce Jesus through the one who came before him, John the Baptist (Wallace, 2004), unlike Matthew and Luke who wait until chapter 3 in their Gospels. John’s baptizing of Jesus (1:9) is the beginning of his ministry. His baptism was his authentication from heaven, “You are my Son” (1:11), and when the Spirit sent him into the wilderness to be tempted, this servant vindicated himself by standing strong against Satan (1:13). Mark then defines Jesus’ ministry with two distinct cycles: first, as servant of the Lord (chapters 1-8:21), and then as the suffering servant of the Lord (Wallace, 2004). It could be said that Jesus’ ministry could be divided geographically – first in Galilee, and then in