Although the first chapter of the Gospel of Mark is an ancient story that is foreseeably written for a largely agrarian society with subjugated people, it has many important messages that are relevant to people in the 21st century. For instance, in the first chapter Mark elucidates upon the importance of John the Baptist. In particular, John the Baptist is described as “the voice of one crying out in the wilderness. ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight’” (Mk 1:3). Within the first three verses Mark characterizes John the Baptist as God’s “messenger” (Mk 1:2) whose purpose is to prepare people for God’s arrival in the form of Jesus (Pagola 81). Therefore, the first chapter of Mark is significant in relating the importance and role of John the Baptist to people in the 21st century.
Moreover, among the many important and contentious scenes in the Gospel of Mark, the baptism of Jesus in the first chapter is particularly interesting to 21st century people. Mark states, “In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan” (Mk 1:9). Pagola suggests that being plunged into the river of Jordan by John the Baptist “felt like a gift of God” and that “God himself was offering purification to Israel. John was only the messenger” (Pagola 83). More importantly, John’s baptism was seen as a “sign of commitment to a radical conversion to God” (Pagola 83). I think that this is a significant section of the Gospel of Mark that is very