The Beginning of the Gospel

For every Christian in every country and in every generation, there is one consistent question that we daily have to face: how do I live as a faithful Christian in my time and place? Chinese believers have to ask that question as they live under the burden of an atheistic, communist government that demands the supremacy of the state. Indian brothers and sisters struggle with how to navigate the unending sea of idolatry. European Christians daily face the reality of a completely secularized society in which their religious beliefs have no place. Even in the United States of America, we must daily wrestle with how to live for Christ in a society that values self-identity over the commands of Scripture. As American Christians, we can often make the mistake of assuming that because our nation was once a deeply religious culture and because many of the principles of the constitution are profoundly Christian, that our society is definitionally Christian. Yet, it’s easy enough to prove this wrong. One only needs to look at the of the over-sexualization of women, the redefinition of marriage, the devaluing of human life, the radical libertarianism, the greed, and the government corruption to show that our nation is far from Christian. In my view, there are three unique challenges to living as a faithful Christian in America. For one, we live in a consumerist society. We are consumed by stuff. We are told from the time we wake till we go to bed at night that happiness can be bought – it can be experienced through the things we own or the money we make or the vacations we can afford. Second, we are a radically individualistic culture. In some ways, this individualism is what makes us so great. We believe that a man is not defined by his lineage or station in life. If he puts in the time, works hard enough, then he can be whomever he wants to be. But, individualism has its negative traits, too. It can cause us to ignore our duty to our family, church, community, and nation. Lastly, our society values self-determination overall. Again, this is part of what makes America great. We believe that one can pull himself up by his own bootstraps and be whatever he wants to be. We believe that everyone is born with a blank slate and totally free from the constraints of others. But, this self-determination leads to false worship. After all, if I am totally free from constraints, then that means I am the final judge of my life. I am the master of my own destiny, the creator of my own story. So, it is no surprise that children’s TV and movies now revolve around that very idea of defining one’s own story. It is no surprise that we are in the midst of an identity crisis in our country, with people believing that they can freely choose their own sex, or whether they are even human at all.

But, we are not the first Christians to struggle with such things. This morning, I want to begin a new series in the Gospel of Mark, because I think this simple Gospel has a great deal to teach us about how we can live as Christians in our post-Christian, American culture. To begin, let’s consider Mark 1:1. From this verse, I want you to see the claim of the good news.

Mark begins his Gospel with a unique claim and introduces the singular theme of his book. The story that he is going to tell is the good news of the divine king of the universe, Jesus. There are three pillars to this claim that we must not miss. First, Mark is writing about the Gospel. Now, we certainly use this word all the time, but I wonder how well we comprehend its meaning. The word “gospel” means “good news”. The Gospel is an announcement of something good that has happened in the world. Consider three ways that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is good news. For one, it is good news because of its effect. In Matt. 4:23 we are told that Jesus went throughout Galilee proclaiming the Gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people. Jesus wasn’t just another scholar, another lawyer, another pastor. He worked amazing miracles. He healed people with lifelong maladies, cured dreadful diseases, and brought the dead to life again. To be around Jesus was to experience a different kind of reality – a reality in which the curse of sin seemed to be turned back on itself. The story of Jesus is also good news because of its power. In Romans 1:16, Paul announces, “I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe.” Not only does Jesus turn back the curse of sin, but his life brings salvation for all who trust in him. Finally, his story is good news because of its scope. In Matt. 24:14, Jesus tells his disciples that the judgment of God won’t come until the Gospel has been proclaimed in all the earth. The consistent testimony of the NT is that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is for everyone. The Gospel is for those in China living under the thumb of communism, for the Indians living in the shadow of idols, and for Americans enslaved to our stuff.

A second pillar of this claim is the first title that Mark gives to Jesus. He announces, “the Gospel of Jesus Christ.” We say the name “Jesus Christ” so often that we could make the mistake of thinking that “Christ” is Jesus’s last name. Christ isn’t his name, but his title. The word “Christ” means “anointed one”, and it holds a dual meaning for those who first read the Gospel of Mark. The Jewish readers would hear in this title a claim to be the Messiah. The Messiah was a promised king who would come to rule over the nation of Israel, and ultimately over the whole world.  For the Gentile reader, the claim of an anointing would bring to mind the coronation of their kings. In ancient times, kings weren’t political figures – they were divine figures. All kings ruled by divine authority, and a sign of that divine authority was the anointing that they received at the hands of a priest.

This anointing leads us to the third pillar of Mark’s claim: Jesus is the Son of God. Not only did ancient kings hold divine authority, but they were believed to be the sons of the gods. Egyptians believed that their Pharaohs were gods on earth. The Romans, too, worshipped their Caesars as gods. The Ephesians referred to Julius Caesar as “the manifest God… universal savior of human life.” Augustus was called “son of god” and “god from god.” And, most importantly for Mark, the emperor Nero, who ruled in Rome while Mark wrote his Gospel, was said to be “the good god of the inhabited world, the beginning and existence of all good things, the son of the greatest of the gods” and “Nero, the lord of the whole world.” Oh, do not miss the audacity with which Mark wrote this opening statement, “Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” Mark was writing his Gospel in Rome, the home of Nero. He was likely writing at the beginning of great persecutions that Nero would order against the Christians. I can just imagine him sitting at a café, looking out over that great city of monuments and inscriptions, reading one of those many declarations of “Nero, son of God”, and writing, “The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the son of God.” 

What a stark contrast. By all accounts, if anyone on earth at the time deserved this title, it would be Nero. He boasted the greatest army of the ancient world. He ruled with an iron fist. He enjoyed the adoration of his people. Jesus, on the other hand, was carpenter’s son from the backwoods of a forgotten land. He had no home, no pedigree, no army (just twelve men of poor reputation). In the end, both faced the same fate. Nero was condemned by his Senate to face crucifixion, and at that terrible threat, he took his own life. Jesus, on the other hand, carried his cross to the hill called Golgotha, and there he was crucified between two thieves. The monuments and inscriptions to Nero faded and crumbled. His reputation as a great emperor was overshadowed by his decadence and deception. In the end, he was lord of nothing. In the end, he was no son of God, just a sad, abandoned man.

Jesus, however, would prove to be the true Son of God. Though the soldiers would beat him to within an inch of his life. Though the crowds would mock and spit as he hung on the cross. Though the Roman governor would seal his tomb. Even still, three days later, that tomb was empty. His disciples would proclaim, even at the threat of their own death, that he had risen from the dead. Witnesses of that resurrection would take the message to the furthest ends of the earth, and strangest of all, people who heard the message, regardless of their culture or language, would believe it. They would believe it in a way that would change their lives forever. Jewish leaders like Saul would go from persecuting Christians to proclaiming Christ. Court advisers like the Ethiopian eunuch would take the good news back to their nations. Pagan priests would give up their idols. Men set their slaves free. Wherever the message went, the world changed. It changed because the claim of Mark 1:1 is true – Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. His story is good news because it changes the whole of reality. It’s good news because it saves us from the judgment that is to come. It’s good news because it is for everyone.

Brothers and sisters, Jesus is the king who rules over all things. As Christians in America, this means that Jesus takes priority over our stuff, our freedom, our rights, and our self-identity. Jesus is not our best friend. He isn’t our co-pilot. He isn’t there to make us feel better about ourselves or give us encouragement on a hard day. Jesus IS KING! He rules over our lives. As believers, everything we do should be governed by the rule of Christ, from how we spend our money to the relationships we develop to the way we spend our time. It also means that we are empowered by that same king to live for him. The Gospel is power. It has the power to save. It has the power to make new. It has the power to change lives. So, may we leave this place and live for our king under the power of his good news.