As is typical of Mark, the scene shifts suddenly in today’s passage. John the Baptist has been put in prison, and we’ll revisit him later on, and now Jesus begins his ministry. He is now in the spotlight and this week we will see an almost ‘prelude’ to the rest of the Gospel. What we see Jesus say and do, we will see him do in the rest of the book.

Firstly, he comes proclaiming or preaching the good news of God. The good news that we can be with God and worship him for eternity in his presence, through Jesus. It is great news and according to Jesus, that time is now here. Other translations have this verse as ‘the time has been fulfilled’. The prophesies, the hopes and dreams of a messiah of the Israelites, the expectation the God would save his people are all being fulfilled in the coming of Jesus - the coming of the king bringing in his kingdom.

We’ll see this week what the signs of the Kingdom of God are but the Kingdom is simply where, God’s people, are in God’s place, under God’s rule. Where God is ruling is where the Kingdom is and through Jesus, that kingdom is drawing near. The effects of it will be seen, touched, and heard, however, it won’t find its full culmination until Jesus comes again. Until then, we can catch glimpses of the Kingdom, of God at work through the rest of the gospels and in our very own lives.

But how can we be part of the Kingdom? By repenting and believing. Jesus’ first words recorded by Mark are fundamental. To be under God’s rule, we have to deny ourselves of our own rule, turn away from it, repent and turn to living under God’s rule and believe the good news of the Gospel, not just in an intellectual way but with our whole entire lives, giving everything over to Jesus. MC

Questions

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you for sending Jesus and thank you for the great news of the Gospel. Help us to submit to your loving kingship and to live the whole of our lives in service of you. In Jesus’ name, Amen.