Started writing a new Bible study this week, on Mark's Gospel. In a sense it's an odd one to begin in Advent because Mark doesn't give us the nativity narrative!
However, all the elements are there to show who Jesus is. There might not be lists of ancestors that Matthew gives us to prove Jesus' Royal lineage, or angels appearing to Mary and the Shepherds, but from the opening words we see that this is going to be the story of the Son of God.
Not only this but we find that John the Baptist is already looking for the One who is to come, as prophecised in the Scriptures. And John's message is at the heart of Jesus' own words - that humankind needs to understand the need for repentance, a change of heart and mind and to be reconciled to God.
Within the first few paragraphs we see more evidence for the Sonship of Jesus when he enters the Jordan in a symbolic offering for baptism - and both Spirit and Father appear to him, confirming what Mark has already revealed.
And all this within the first twelve verses!
Mark doesn't hang about - he's got a story to tell. It's a story that began a long time ago in the mind of God, spoken through the prophets, identified in the message of John and finally revealed in the person of Jesus!
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