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Home , Mark 3

Mark 3: 7 - 19 Verse 7

• As we finish the 5 Controversies and begin this new section in Mark 3:7, it is important to remember that CONTEXT determines MEANING!! Verse 7 says, “ withdrew with his disciples to the lake and a large crowd from followed.” Why did Jesus withdraw to the lake? Was He continuing His travels? Was He taking His annual vacation? Why? This is my stupid way of saying that as we begin a new section we have to go back to the old section and remember what was happening within the immediate AND overall context of the book.

• As we read and discussed the 5th controversy, we found that Jesus was in the (presumably at ) and healed a man with a shriveled hand on the . This was seen as the ultimate “no – no” in the Jewish mindset because to effect a healing on the Sabbath was to perform work. As twisted as it may sound, the religious leaders would have preferred the man come back the next day to receive the healing rather than violate THEIR VERSION of the Sabbath Day Law. This type of hypocritical and controlling power incensed Jesus to the point that He not only performed the but did it in FULL VIEW of His opponents in order to provoke their worthless religion.

With that in mind we read in Mark 3:6 that the “ went out and began to plot with the how they might kill Jesus.”

Jesus is now fully aware that He has stepped over the line from a mild irritant, to a full-fledged threat to the existing power of the day. This is the proper context as we begin to read this new section in Mark 3:7.

• In light of Jesus’ new threatening status, what does He do? He retreats! This is not a sign of weakness but a sign of true . Jesus challenges their self-righteous and unbiblical behavior and then disappears! He displays His incredible wisdom by choosing His battles carefully and knowing when it’s time to let things cool off. Jesus is using spiritual GUERRILLA WARFARE tactics here! He hits His opponents HARD and then retreats, thus allowing Him to live to fight another day. Incredible! However, Mark shows that even in His retreat to the lake, Jesus is plagued by large crowds that continue to follow Him.

What a powerful example for us to learn! The principle here is that we don’t always have to fight every religious battle. What we see here from Jesus’ example is that we should choose our battles wisely. That is not to say we should not fight!! Jesus offers many examples of times to fight and not back down an inch…but at times I have felt that every religious battle is one I should fight to the bitter end.

Verse 8

• When and Jesus’ ministries are compared and contrasted, you find very interesting similarities and some major differences. The obvious similarity is found in their messages. They are both preaching a message of repentance and an impending invasion of the Kingdom of God. One baptizes in the Jordan and the other is baptized in the Jordan. Other similarities include their martyrdom. Both will sacrifice their lives for the Kingdom of God.

1 • However, there are some major differences between the two. One such difference is found in Mark 3:8. Remember that John the Baptist came on the scene abruptly, as a type of Elijah, performing baptisms of repentance that were typically reserved for converts to Judaism. John the Baptist had a significant influence with the people of Israel because he was the first prophet to be sent to them in FOUR CENTURIES. But a major difference between John and Jesus is seen in the sheer magnitude of their geographical influence.

• About John the Baptist, :5 reads:

“The whole Judean countryside and all the people of went out to him. Confessing their , they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.”

• This is a fairly substantial amount of square footage! Collectively this is roughly a few hundred miles of space that John’s reputation alone has reached. That’s huge when taken into account that these people were on foot or on a donkey at best.

• But as we read Mark 3:8, we see that Jesus’ reputation reaches far beyond the borders of the nation of Israel. Mark 3: 8 reads:

“When they heard all he was doing, many people came to him from , Jerusalem, Idumea, and the regions across the Jordan and around Tyre and .”

• Here we see that Jesus’ reach far surpasses that of John the Baptist. Not only is He reaching the nation of Israel (e.g. Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea), He is reaching across the Jordan (the area of the Decapolis and the modern day nation of Jordan), and Tyre and Sidon (modern day Lebanon). Jesus has crossed over into three different countries and was drawing people from all. This is amazing in an era where transportation is not easy!

Verses 9 - 12

• In verses 9 and 10, Mark shows us that everywhere Jesus turned He was confronted with enormous crowds. And now that Jesus’ reputation as a healer is in full swing, we read that the sick and diseased no longer wait for His touch but throw themselves upon Him. Because of this mob-scene of people, Jesus tells His disciples to get a boat ready, not so that He can retreat from the people, but so that He is able to have enough personal space to properly teach the crowd.

If you’ve ever been in a place where there are crowds of people, you will be able to identify with Jesus’ request for some personal space. I’ve been at sporting events that were jam-packed with 60,000 + people and have felt the claustrophobia of large crowds and that crowd wasn’t FOCUSED ON ME!! So I can’t imagine the constant logistical problems one would face of massive crowds pressing forward wanting to simply touch you. What a nightmare!!

• Verse 11 shows that the unclean spirits continue to know Jesus immediately, fall before Him in surrender and blurt out His identity. Strangely enough, the demons that are mentioned here in Mark 3:11 were reportedly crying out that Jesus was the “.” This is a marked difference from the demon in Mark 1:24 that said Jesus was the “Holy One of God.” At first glance this may seem insignificant (if it would even be noticed at all) but think of the difference in message of both titles. A “Holy One of God” could be someone that is set apart for God’s use. The kings of Israel were set apart for His purposes. In this case it is referring to the Messiah or 2 the promised one that would come and deliver Israel. However, as we have already discussed, the term messiah was used for many different people. Different kings or warriors were viewed as messiahs that would deliver Israel from its immediate physical danger.

• Now in Mark 3:11, the demons were crying out that Jesus was the “Son of God.” Without question this has completely different ramifications. Now Jesus is not attested to by these demons as someone that is holy or set apart for God but now as the very Son of God. What a huge difference!! The demon’s cries of recognition in Mark 3:11 more closely echo the heavenly voice at the (“…You are my Son…”).

• In verse 12 again we find Jesus giving strict orders (in this case to demons) not to give testimony about who He was. Not only is this about timing issues but more so about who is giving testimony. The cries of demons can never be used as an agent of revelation. And verse 12 shows again the power of Jesus to silence these demons with only His words. Mark continues to show Jesus’ absolute and unquestioned power over demonic forces in the ongoing invasion of the Kingdom of God.

Verse 13 - 19

• Verse 13 says, “Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him.” Now here is where culture makes all the difference. If we were living in 1st or 2nd century Israel, this verse would IMMEDIATELY jump off the page to us. Why? Because Jesus went up on a mountainside! You might be thinking that I’m crazy but stop thinking like an American and try to get inside the mind of a Jew in the 1st century with their rich history of the Old Testament and how God operated.

• Most often in the Old Testament when God (or God’s prophets) moved in power or with deep theological significance, where did it happen…….on a MOUNTAIN!! An example of this would be Mt. Carmel (1 Kings 18) where Elijah opposed the prophets of Baal and God responded by fire. The Ten Commandments were given to …..where…..on Mt. Sinai (Exodus 20). Mountains had incredible significance to the Jewish people. And now Jesus goes up on a mountainside and notice here in verse 13 that he “called to him those He wanted, and they came to Him.” This is a major separation from the crowds. Jesus does not allow the crowds to follow Him up the mountain but instead hand picks who He wants to be by His side. This shows a major distinction between the people that are following Jesus because of His miraculous powers and the people Jesus calls to follow Him with a particular task in mind.

• It’s on this mountainside that Jesus picks the 12 Apostles. The word “apostle” simply means someone that is “sent out” similar to a missionary today. The only extreme difference is that these 12 now were not only sent out by Jesus Christ, but were also brought into personal and intimate fellowship with Jesus Himself, more so than anyone else. Jesus now turns His attention to these 12 men in order to groom them as His representatives on earth after He ascends back into Heaven.

• The number 12 here has symbolic significance. This points to the restoration of the 12 tribes of Israel, and Jesus stands over them as leader. What this implies is that the religious leaders in Israel have been REVOKED by God and a new order is being established. With these men, Jesus expands His reach to a lost and dying world. He gives the Apostles the authority to preach and drive out demons thereby using them as an extension of Himself.

3 • Verses 16 – 19 provide us with a list of men that were chosen by Jesus as His Apostles. Here is yet another small subtlety that we would easily miss if we aren’t very careful. Of all the 12 that are listed the first 3 are given nicknames. Mark 3: 16 – 19

“These are the twelve he appointed: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter) 17James son of

Zebedee and his brother John (to them he gave the name Boanerges, which means Sons of

Thunder) 18Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus,

Simon the Zealot 19and , who betrayed him.”

• Why the nicknames? There is much debate and speculation about this occurrence in the of Mark but what we can see is that Jesus has already set these initial 3 apart for His inner circle. It’s not by accident that these 3 men make up Jesus’ INNER circle even among the Disciples. Jesus had His 12 that He was shepherding to ultimately change the world and within the 12 He had 3 that He had an even deeper relationship with. Finally Judas is identified as the betrayer, a name given to him by the church…not Jesus.

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