RBWords

     The baptism by John the Baptist and John's arrest by Herod seem have been the triggering events for Jesus' public ministry.  The gospel scriptures will not invite us to join the crowd following him around.  In today's gospel, he establishes his credentials by showing he has power over demons and that he teaches on his own authority and not by someone else's!  This would be a bit like a law student attempting to argue a point without citing case law!!  Teachers in Jesus' time continually cited other rabbinical authority for what they taught, or if they attempted an exorcism, they invoked some other power than their own.  Jesus did neither of these.  He was definitely something new.  But, the evangelist Mark had his own way of telling the story of Jesus.  Despite all the teaching and healing that Jesus did, his true identity does not dawn on the disciples until Jesus' death and resurrection.  

     Why would this be important in our own time?  The response is that there are many who gladly concede that Jesus was a great teacher and wonder-worker of some sort and that his teachings are worthy as a life-style guide, but still deny him any divinity or "Lordship."  The Gospel According to Mark will challenge us to understand that the key to understanding Jesus' life is to see it in the light of his death and resurrection.  We cannot acknowledge him as "Lord" on the basis of his death and resurrection and ignore his teaching or acknowledge his teaching without acknowledging him as "Lord!:    In this, we have an advantage over the first disciples.  They could not foresee what was going to happen, so their inability to grasp the "big picture" might be understandable.  We don't have that excuse.  AMEN