1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet,
“Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way, 3 the voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight,’”
4 John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. 6 Now John was clothed with camel's hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. 7 And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. 8 I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”
12 The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. 13 And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.
14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
Whereas the gospel of Matthew seems especially addressed to the Jews, Mark seems to be more fitted to the secular Roman world. His does not spend time on details like genealogies or warm fuzzy manger scenes - he cuts right to the chase. His key word is "immediately" - Jesus was a man of action. But as we run to keep up, we are also exposed to the greatest teacher of all times. Though He is a real man, we are told right away here that He is the Son of God, sent here on a mission. He was sent to do battle with Satan, and we find early and often the mention of "the cross", where the ultimate victory is won. For people in our fast-paced world, where most would rather watch than read, I encourage you to look inside this shortest of the gospels. Then look around. Where do you see Jesus? What short, yet powerful things do you hear Him say? What is the Good News He shares with us today? Take a picture. Show me. Tell us about this great Son of God.
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