Okay. See if you want to look at a central section in the Gospel of Mark, as Mark has composed it. He uses the passion predictions in a real rhetorical way. People like to ask whether or not Jesus really did predict His own death, and the folks who are studying the recovery of the historical Jesus, or as much as they feel they can do that, like to haggle over whether that has any validity or not. That's really not Mark's concern. Mark wants to use these passion predictions to get us to look once more at these disciples, these rocky ground people.

[01:08]

And he has a real pattern to all this. The pattern is, in each case, and he sets them about exactly one chapter apart, chapter 8, 9, and 10. Starts with 8, 27, 9, 30, 10, 32. Almost exactly a chapter apart. He'll start by having Jesus predict the passion. And really it's not so much a prediction as it is a description of Jesus' understanding of what it means to be Messiah. So that's the first point Mark will make. The second point he will always have is the misunderstanding on the part of the disciples. They won't know exactly what he means or they'll object. And then the third point is always Jesus will come back and offer a teaching.

[02:12]

And in this teaching, this third point, Mark apparently intends that for more than just that little group of disciples. He intends that for the reader and the hearer also. But it sets up, it puts the disciples, in a sense, on their definitive collision course. They're never going to recover. And then shortly after this, starting in chapter 11, we move into a whole new setting when he starts with the cleansing of the temple, the entry into Jerusalem, the cleansing of the temple, then we are headed toward the whole passion narrative. Earlier scholars like to refer to Mark as nothing more than a passion narrative with a real long beginning, real long introduction. And for some sense, you can see it that way, but it doesn't really respect the creativity of Mark.

[03:14]

So the first prediction is in chapter 8, verse 27. Most commentaries will try to make this the division of the book into its second part. They say the gospel divides handily into two parts and 827 is the beginning of the second part. Well, in my reading, I think 827 through 10 is a central section, but I think the second part doesn't really begin until chapter 11. But that's just my opinion, so you can throw that right out. Here's how it goes. First one. Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way, he asked his disciples, who do people say that I am? That's a legitimate question in the story of Mark because he's out of the mainstream now.

[04:18]

Remember, he got exiled, shunned or rejected by his family so he hasn't been hanging around them. got thrown out of his town, Nazareth, so he's not hanging around them, and basically, because of the crowds, he's been sort of circulating out around the perimeters of the towns and villages. So, this would be a real legitimate question. What's the press say? What's folks saying about me? And they answered him, John the Baptist, and others, Elijah, and still others, one of the prophets. Typical kind of responses. He asked them, but who do you say that I am? Really pinpoint, who do you say that I am? Peter answered him, you are the Messiah, which is astounding. Peter got that right.

[05:19]

I mean, Peter has not been portrayed as what you would call the epitome of brilliance up to this point. But here it is, no ifs, ands, or buts. You are the Messiah. And He sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about Him. Now we have to keep in mind that in these days, days of Mark anyway, and in the days of Jesus, there was not one definition or one expectation of who the Messiah would be. Judaism was very pluralistic. You could have a wide variety of beliefs and still be included within the family of Judaism. You could be a Pharisee, you could be a Sadducee, you could be an Essene, you could be a Zealot. None of those folks really believed everything together.

[06:19]

So, at the time of Jesus, or right after Jesus, if you were a Christian and said, you know, well, I'm a Christian, but I believe Jesus was the Messiah. Well, that's all right. No problem. You know, Essenes believed in a couple of messiahs, different kinds. What the Messiah would do was not universally agreed upon. What was expected We sometimes get the impression that there was one very clear-cut strand of thought, and it was so precise that only a dummy would miss it. Well, all the studies in literature say it was very complex, even to the point of, was there such a person, thing, family, acceptor or expected? In the Bible, you know, we trace that back to the second book of Samuel, chapter 7. Round verse 14, you have that very intriguing passage. Remember King David who now is feeling his oats because he's in office and his kingdom has just really skyrocketed.

[07:27]

He thinks that it's just about time that God get a little more civilized and a little more acceptable and quit trying to run around in this little cart on wheels, you know, which they did. The Ark of the Covenant used to be very mobile. And somehow or other, nobody really knows what happened to it. The Bible says the Philistines captured it, or kind of, because when they'd touch it, you know, they'd fall over dead. It just kind of really went out of use. And when David came into office, he was looking for a way to unite the country. And he came up with this brilliant plan. He bought himself a little town. Bought, in the broad sense, he probably just took it. Canaanite town, Jerusalem. He was about in the center of his kingdom. Then he resurrected that Ark of the Covenant. And he brought it back with great fanfare, wonderful story about him taking off his clothes and dancing naked in front of that and his poor wife's up there looking out the window just in tears, embarrassed by what he's doing.

[08:37]

He didn't care less. This is a great time. He enshrines that object, the Ark of the Covenant in Jerusalem, and by that fact unites the country politically and religiously. And so he tells God, I think I'm about to build you a house. You really need a permanent house. The days of mobility are no longer. Well, he probably forgot who he was talking to because God just as clearly speaks back and says, I don't really need a house, don't want a house. You build it. I won't live there. I like being mobile. This has been fine. But I'll tell you what I'm going to do for you. I will build you a house, referring to David. And there you get that interesting passage where he talks, he basically gives David a blank check. He renews with David a sense of covenant, but not anything like the Sinai covenant. This covenant has no stipulations. I will be in your house forever.

[09:42]

And from that moment on, the house of David became the foundation place for the new king, the Mashiach, the anointed, Christos. Did that mean a family? Did that mean a clan? Did that mean an individual? Nobody knew. But certainly by the time of Jesus, it had been narrowed down to a person having some way to come from that family of David. That's why Matthew and Luke go to such great extent to link Jesus up with King David in those genealogies that if you take your Bible and check those genealogies out, you cannot get there from here. They don't work. There are huge gaps. And if you'd call those guys up, Mr. Matthew and Mr. Luke, and say, we checked your references, and we're sorry to say, your bookkeeping's terrible. You really got some gross errors here. You know, they'd just laugh and say, oh, you're just too uptight about that.

[10:46]

We didn't care about it. You know, you got the point, didn't you? Jesus, David, linkage, family, Messiah, did you get that? Well, yeah, we got it. Well, then, don't worry about it. That's all I wanted to say. We like it a little tidier than the Bible does, but nonetheless. So, it really wasn't clear what was expected. A few commonalities had emerged. Messiah basically was a warrior. That seemed to be a common feature. A warrior who was going to come and kick the hind end out of the Romans. That was one thing we could all agree on, because the Romans were in our land, had been in our land, were tired of being foreigners in our own land, tired of having no power, tired of having no money, tired of having no influence. The Messiah is going to come and kick those folks out. Now the zealots were saying all along We're not so sure we need to wait that long.

[11:49]

Maybe we ought to do a little something to initiate this whole process. And so they were quite fond of guerrilla warfare. But there's no indication Jesus had anything to do with that, nor did the zealot movement get that big. Another thing that was understood by the Messiah in addition to being a great warrior, was the warrior would be successful. There was no such thing as failure. The Messiah, when the Messiah came, would be totally victorious. That we would agree on. And by being totally victorious, that added another feature, namely, he will not be harmed in any way, shape, or form. So those were about the common elements that were understood. And then, of course, you have the other aspect. He's supposed to be anonymous, almost like Melchizedek, no mother or father.

[12:51]

But you certainly wouldn't expect a hometown guy. I mean, it's got to be a person who you don't know, where his background, he just sort of emerges in. So those were some of the common elements that were believed. Now notice what the early Christian church is up against. Jesus qualifies for absolutely none of these. He's hardly anonymous, and the scriptures go out of their way to say that. Oh, we know you. We know Joe and Mary. They live down the street. Yeah, I know him. Yeah, yeah. They bring that up when he comes home to preach. Who are you? You just live down here, bud. Where'd you get all this stuff? And crucifixion is hardly what you would call victorious. And he didn't do anything warrior-esque. He didn't even lead a movement in any way political. So the Christians are up against it. How are you going to say this Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah?

[13:59]

when he doesn't fill any of the even commonly held expectations of a Messiah. That's part of what Mark is up against, trying to set that forth. Now of course they went back and re-read their scriptures and certain texts that at one point had not made much sense to them all of a sudden jump out, you know, big passages like Isaiah 52, 53, Suffering Servant. Some of the other Isaiah passages, Isaiah 7, 14, Isaiah 9, Isaiah 11, all of a sudden Before Mr. Handel got a hold of those passages, all of a sudden the early Christians said, yes, that makes sense now. That makes sense. But they had to redefine Messiahship, didn't they? Messiahship now had to take on suffering and death as part of victory.

[15:00]

Disciples ain't buying that, you see. Peter apparently has the old definition in mind. I mean, he's bold about it. You are the Messiah. So, Jesus is going to give Peter and the others His definition. Okay, here's what I understand by Messiah. Because apparently He accepts Peter's acclamation here. Then He began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again." He said all this quite openly. Now, Peter gets back on stage And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.

[16:09]

It's a strong word. Peter, of course, one of those rocky ground people, rebuking Jesus, the Messiah. And, of course, Jesus not to be outdone. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, Get behind me, Satan. Remember the big dichotomy between fear and faith? Mark is convinced that evil has taken over the world in the form of the contest between Satan and God. And now Peter is placed squarely on the side of Satan. He is equated with Satan. For you are setting your mind not on divine things, which the disciples never can set their minds on, but on human things."

[17:24]

That's about as strong a reprimand as you get in the Gospel by Jesus. And it's directed point blank at Peter. Unlike John, Peter will not be rehabilitated in this gospel. And of course, our temptation is always, because of the models in our mind that we use, this cannot be. But for Mark, it can be. And it is. Now comes the teaching. He called the crowd with his disciples and said to them, Here's his definition of sort of what it means to be a disciple. If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. Now most people feel that this is Mark speaking, this is the theology of Mark, because at this stage Jesus hasn't even been on a cross yet.

[18:38]

So this is Mark projecting that event here in this place. But it's a powerful theology. For those who want to save their life will lose it. And those who lose their life for my sake and for the sake of the gospel will save it. And that is the fundamental reversal of the way of the cross. That is the fundamental reversal of discipleship. That is the you've got to let go of your false life before you can get the real life. Now, the dynamic that we usually try to operate from is pretty simple, you know. How about if we hang on to this old life with one hand, reach out with the other until we get a hold of that, and then I'll be pretty secure. Then I'll let go with the other hand and go. But that's not the way it's going to work.

[19:41]

For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Which is a description of the disciples. Indeed what can they give in return for their life? And then he goes on with some other Pull interesting references, so that's the first setup there Moves into this it even gets more dramatic Transfiguration story comes right here and again They blow it you know as we know And there at the end you know And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. Then Peter said to Jesus, Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah. And then here's the comment of Mark.

[20:44]

He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. See, the fear is just powerful for these folks. They were terrified. Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice. And here's that interesting voice again. Remember, we saw it back, or heard it back at the baptism. The opening verse, Mark just point-blank told us. In the baptism, the voice crept out, and here it is again. This is my Son, the Beloved. Listen to Him. The emphasis on listening again. Well, a chapter later, 9.30, He does it again. They went on from there and passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know it, for He was teaching His disciples, saying to them.

[21:47]

So here's His definition once again. The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill Him. And three days after being killed, He will rise again." Response? But they did not understand what He was saying, and were afraid to ask Him. Much like that double feeding scene, you know, where they don't have a clue the second time what He's going to do, but they've already seen it once, you'd think they might catch on. Well, a chapter earlier, they just went through this. He laid it all out to them, told them point blank what it meant to be Messiah, what was to happen to Him, so on and so forth. Tells them a second time, no clue. No clue at all.

[22:49]

But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him. Good question for us, of course, is always to ask ourselves, what are the obstacles in place of their understanding? What's blocking this understanding? Now Mark wants to say it's fear, which is on the side of Satan. And concretely, Mark wants to say, because they misunderstood Jesus from the beginning, thinking that discipleship was going to get them something in terms of attainment, power, glory, honor, whatever. But it wasn't. Then they came to Capernaum And when he was in the house, he asked them, what were you arguing about on the way?

[23:58]

Now, here's what their concerns are. But they were silent. For on the way, they had argued with one another who was the greatest. Now, here Mark is not even being subtle. You know, here Jesus is laying it out for them in terms of His future, in terms of Messiahship, suffering and death, the way of the cross, trying to implant in them some little bitty seed of understanding. And what's their conversation? Hey, what do you think? Do you think I'm greater than you? Well, maybe. Are you great? How great are you? I'm pretty great, yeah. It's kind of ludicrous, isn't it? If it wasn't so true. He sat down, called the twelve and said to them, so here's his teaching,

[25:06]

Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all. Doulos, servant, slave. Now watch what he does. Then he took a little child and put it among them. and taking it in his arms, he said to them, whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me, but the one who sent me." Now, some people get all oogly and ogly over this and say, oh, isn't that sweet, innocent little child? We have to be childlike and all that malarkey. That's not what Jesus is talking about at all. His little visual aid here, this little child, would have been understood real clear because culturally, socially speaking, a child was a nothing.

[26:14]

Child had no rights. Child wasn't even considered, in terms of the culture, a person. Now, humanly speaking, they were, of course. It wasn't that they didn't count. But, in terms of legally, a child did not exist. So, if you were trying to say to somebody, here is an example of about as close to a nothing as you can get, a child was even lower than a slave. So, when Jesus brings that little child out and puts it right in the midst and says, Whoever wants to be first of all must be last of all and servant of all. Then He took a little child and put it among them, and taking it in His arms, He said to them, Whoever welcomes one such child, whoever welcomes nothingness in My Name,

[27:15]

welcomes me and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me." That almost sounds Johannine. But you can see he's going in the exact opposite direction as the disciples are headed. Their conversation two seconds earlier, who do you think is the greatest? Let's talk about greatness. and he goes in the exact opposite direction. Let's talk about the cross. Let's talk about the Messiah. Let's talk about salvation. But first, let's talk about nothingness. They don't have a clue, of course. And then Mark fills it in with more passages, all the passages that come after these. Passion predictions are kind of filler passages to exemplify what he's just said.

[28:19]

I mean, they kind of read themselves. Here's a guy who almost made it. He's one of those thorny ground people. He's better than rocky ground. It's an interesting passage. Chapter 10, 17. As he was setting out on a journey, man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life? Jesus said to him, why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. People get offended by that thinking Jesus is a little high-handed, but this is all part of the cultural social exchange, you see. When anybody complimented you, if you accept the compliment, then you are obliged to compliment them. It's just like when you want to test somebody, the way you test somebody is ask them a question.

[29:22]

If they're foolish enough to try to answer it, you always phrase the question so that they can't win. Do you still beat your wife? You know, you can't win however you answer that. Okay. And though Jesus will try, they'll try to trap him on that too. He never falls for it. He always responds with a question. What's the greatest commandment in law? Well, what do you read there? And before the next person realizes what's happened, they're starting to answer the question and Jesus has them. He wins those contests upside down. So he doesn't accept this compliment by this guy because Jesus doesn't want to be obliged to him. Then the conversation goes on. You know the commandments. You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness. You shall not defraud. Honor your father and mother. He said to him, Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth. Now it changes. Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, You lack one thing.

[30:35]

You lack one thing. Go sell what you own and give the money to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come and follow me." That's a direct call. That's as much a call as the disciples got. When he heard this, he was shocked. and went away grieving for he had many possessions. And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, how hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God. And one of the guys, after he's eaten, coos up to Abraham and wants to know where his wife is. It's an off-color comment. It's not something that we would admire.

[31:41]

If we understood the literature, we'd be rearing back saying, hey, that's an odd thing for you to say. But we've misread that in terms of it's not what we think it is. And so this is the Lord who's going to tell Sarah a little good news. He tells her, you know, you're going to have a child. She laughs right in his face. Hey, how old do you think I am? You had any idea about how old I am and how all this works? And then he kind of rears up and says, why do you think it's so funny? And then she doesn't know exactly who it is, but she kind of gets a little bit frightened. And he says to her, nothing is impossible for God. That's a refrain that runs out throughout scriptures. Nothing is impossible for God. And it wasn't. Sarah, in her old age, had a child. And since she laughed when she heard she was going to have a child, that's what she named the child.

[32:45]

Yitzhak. Laughter. The divine joke. So that theme runs all the way through even to the Gospels. Nothing is impossible for God. Peter began to say to him, look, we have left everything and followed you. Well, that's questionable, isn't it? What have they left? Certainly not their attitude. Certainly not their false expectation. What have they left? It's a good question. Truly I tell you, Jesus says, there is no one who has left house, or brothers, or sister, or mother, or father, or children, or fields for My sake and for the sake of the Good News. That's key. And for the sake of the Good News. Remember the Good News, chapter 1, verse 15, if you've forgotten.

[33:45]

who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age, houses, brothers and sisters, mothers, children, fields with persecutions, and in the age to come, eternal life. But many who are first, the disciples, will be last. And the last, those little people, will be first." And that takes him right up to the third time. We can tell, it's not going to work out well anyway, but they were on the road going up to Jerusalem. Jesus was walking ahead of them. They were amazed. These guys have been with Him all this time, through all these events, you know, it's kind of like the first time they've seen Him. Wow, what is this? Who is this? Nothing seems to have sunk in, does it? They were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. He took the twelve aside again and began to tell them what was to happen to him, saying, and this is the most detailed that he gets, and this is the blueprint for the next chapters, because this is exactly what's going to happen to it.

[35:06]

See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn Him to death. Then they will hand Him over to the Gentiles. They will mock Him and spit upon Him and flog Him and kill Him. And after three days, He will rise again." Here's the misunderstanding. This stuff gets worse. James and John, the sons of Zebedee, guys in the boat, remember, came forward to Him and said to Him, Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask of You. And He said to them, What is it you want Me to do for you? And they said to Him, Grant us to sit one at Your right hand and one at Your left in Your glory. They're not getting anywhere.

[36:10]

Fame, glory, power. Now, of course, remember, Mark is a wonderful master of irony. And you remember, when Jesus is in his final glory, the positions of being on the right and on the left are not necessarily what you'd call thrones. You'd call them crosses. But these guys don't know that yet. Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory." But Jesus said to them, you do not know what you are asking. And that is understatement. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They replied, we are able. No, they're not. Then Jesus said to them, the cup that I drink you will drink. And with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized, but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared."

[37:20]

Then when the ten heard this, they began to be angry with James and John, probably because they think, these guys are getting something we're not. We better get in line. So Jesus called them and said to them, and here comes the teaching, You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them, but it is not so among you. But whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant. And whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all, doulos, slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve and to give His life a ransom for many. Well, you can't get much more point-blank than what He has been.

[38:28]

And the disciples still show not one sign of comprehending any of this. And remember Mark's little subtext to all this? If they could have missed the boat so far, what about us? And we're sitting here thinking, oh, I'm smarter than that. You know, I've got the tradition, I've got the book, I read that. I'm not going to be like that. But Mark is prodding us, you see. Think about that. And then the final little section here, this first part, then the first part of the Gospel comes to a conclusion, is a real interesting thing. They came to Jericho and as He and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho. Bartimaeus, son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. It's the only guy that gets cured that gets a name. Bartimaeus, son Bar of Timaeus.

[39:35]

When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, Jesus, son of David, correct title. Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me. Many sternly ordered him to be quiet. But he cried out even more loudly, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me. Jesus stood still and said, Call him here. And they called the blind man, saying to him, Take heart, get up, he is calling you. So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. Then Jesus said to him, What do you want me to do for you? The blind man said to him, My teacher, let me see again. Jesus said to him, Go. Your faith has made you well.

[40:41]

Immediately, he regained his sight and followed him on the way. So far in the story, this is the only real disciple. This is the only guy who really knows. This is the only one who is really following Jesus, the son of David, not because he wants to be famous or rich or wealthy or influential, but because he wants to see. With the eyes of faith, he has seen. This is the disciple. The other 12, they're just kind of hangers-on. Well, Mark's going to close the first half of his story. Well, over half, but it's the first part. He's going to close it on this tone. And it's an interesting one.

[41:47]

And there are no more miracles. Basically, that's over. And from now on, it's all going to be downhill. And just as Mark used one story around which to organize the first half of his story, namely the parable of the sower, and to show us the different ground and how all of that ground, you know, except for the good soil, and this Bartimaeus is the epitome of good soil, how that all worked, now he's going to use another parable. And it's connected because it's also about ground. This time it's about a vineyard and an owner. And it tries, the vineyard's leased out and the owner tries to get his spare share, sends out his messengers and one by one or group by group, they get killed until finally he's had enough.

[42:50]

Sends his son, they kill him and then The owner goes wild. And Mark is really saying, this is how this is all going to end up. They're going to reject him all down the line. And when that final rejection comes, namely the son, then the owner of all this land, and remember I'm saying Mark is using ground as a metaphor also for kingdom, So that God who owns the vineyard, God, the kingdom of God, once the sun is gone and God's almost going to appear naive in thinking that maybe this would work, then he's going to have his revenge. And that's what Mark thinks is going to happen. God is going to come and do in the present world. And only those who have faith are gonna be able to survive.

[43:55]

He'll lay that out in chapter 13. So between now and Sunday morning, we'll be looking at that. And we'll start in chapter 11, take us through chapter 16. And of course, remember, all along, we have to keep asking, where are we in all of this? Where are we? How are we following? How are we understanding? It doesn't matter if we tell one another or anything, because God obviously knows. But we're not fooling ourselves, are we? That's one of the ironic things about the disciples. They fool themselves. We're not doing that, are we? Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. We're real loud.

[44:52]

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