Talk 3 Mark 1:14-20 Winning others for Jesus
Welcome to Talk 3 in our series on Mark’s Gospel. So far we have seen how Mark begins by establishing very clearly that Jesus is none other than God himself who came to make possible the forgiveness of our sins. To prepare for his coming the people were to confess their sins, repent and be baptised. But when Jesus came he would do more for them than baptism in water ever could. He would baptise them in the Holy Spirit.
I also pointed out that in New Testament times repentance, faith, water baptism and baptism in the Spirit would usually have all taken place on the same day, and that, though these are each distinct elements with the process of Christian initiation, they would probably have been viewed as all part of the same event.
In our last talk we saw in the baptism of Jesus, his willingness to be identified with sinners even though he was sinless, his determination to do what is right, and his desire always to do the will of God. And we suggested that, if we truly wish to be his disciples, we must not only repent and believe the gospel, but that we should follow his example and be baptised by total immersion.
We saw too that Jesus’ baptism in water also teaches us about the relationship between water baptism and the baptism in the Spirit. The baptism in the Spirit was the gateway to his miracle working ministry. For Jesus, this was received at/after his baptism in water. And this was just what the early disciples expected and, although this is rarely the case today, it is certainly what we should be teaching and believing for.
And finally, we considered five reasons why the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the desert to be tempted by the devil. Perhaps the most important of these was that we could learn from his example how to deal with temptation. We saw the importance of keeping full of the Spirit, of being led by the Spirit, and of correctly understanding and using the Spirit’s sword, the word of God.
Today we’ll be looking at Mark 1:14-20. The passage introduces us to the message that Jesus preached and how he called his first disciples. It also shows us how, like the first disciples, we can get involved in spreading the good news of the gospel – how we can win other people for Jesus. The key, as we shall see, is found in verse 17 where Jesus says:
“Come, follow me, …and I will make you fishers of men.”
If we want to win others for Jesus, we must first follow him ourselves. And we must allow him to make us. And as we work through the passage we’ll see from the example of Jesus and the response of the disciples several other important principles. But first, let’s begin by reading the whole passage.
14. After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of (the kingdom of) God. 15. “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!” 16. As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 17. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” 18. At once they left their nets and followed him. 19. When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets. 20. Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.
After John was put in prison (14)
Mark begins by mentioning briefly that John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin, had been put in prison. We know from chapter 6 that this was because he had annoyed Herod by telling him that it was not lawful for him to have married his brother’s wife. Undeterred by this news, Jesus begins his public ministry. He preaches essentially the same message as John – Repent and believe the good news. Despite the possible danger in doing this – John was eventually executed by Herod – Jesus is determined to do God’s will. So the first thing we can learn from the example of Jesus is that if we are going to be used in spreading the good news, we must not be deterred by apparent setbacks. We will need to embrace the danger.
Jesus went into Galilee (14)
Before Jesus could proclaim the good news he had to go. Actually, the Greek literally means, he came. I’m reminded that before Jesus could tell us the good news, he had to come. He had to come from the glory of Heaven to a sin-sick world to make our salvation possible. And if others are to be saved, we too need to go. This is what he commanded us – Go into all the world and preach the good news (Mark 16:15). And the world begins right where you are. Jesus went into Galilee. Jesus had been brought up in Nazareth, which is in the region of Galilee. He went to where he had been brought up. If we’re going to be used in spreading the good news about Jesus, we must be willing to go. If need be, to the ends of the earth, but at least to those who are already around us. This implies intentionality. To catch fish, you have to GO fishing.
proclaiming the good news of (the kingdom of) God. (14)
The message must be proclaimed, announced. Of course, it’s no good talking the talk if we’re not walking the walk. Nevertheless, living good lives is not enough. Actually I’m not living a good life if I’m not telling others what they need to hear.
The message is good news about God. More specifically, the kingdom of God. It’s good news that God’s in charge. More of this in a moment.
The time has come (15)
For thirty years Jesus had been relatively silent, but now the time had come. How did he know? He lived life in dependence on his Father and in close fellowship with him. He was now baptised in the Spirit and empowered to begin his ministry. It was through the power of the Spirit that the kingdom would be manifested.
In Matthew 12:28, after healing a demonized man who had been blind and mute Jesus says:
If it is that by the Spirit of God I drive our demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you (v28).
The kingdom of God is near. Or, the kingdom of God has come.
The Greek verb engizo literally mean to come near.
The kingdom is present wherever the king is present. Wherever Jesus was present, there were manifestations of the kingdom like healing and casting out demons. And in Matthew 10:1 he gave his disciples authority to do the same:
He called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.
And in verses 7-8 he went on to say:
As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.
They did this with the special authority Jesus gave them at that time. Later, after Jesus had returned to Heaven, to do these things they had to wait until they were baptised in the Spirit. Their authority would come from the Spirit, and the miracles they performed, like those performed by Jesus, would be done through the direction and power of the Spirit. When we’re baptised in the Spirit we should expect him to work miracles through us. It’s not so much a matter of claiming promises as being led by the Holy Spirit.
Repent and believe the good news! (15)
The message we have to share with people is good news, demonstrated by amazing miracles of healing, deliverance, provision and forgiveness. But its blessings are to be received by repenting and believing. When we share the good news with people, we must not dodge the issue of repentance. It’s not good news for those who refuse to repent and believe.
So we’ve looked at the example of Jesus. We’ve seen that if we are going to be used in spreading the good news:
· We must not be deterred by apparent setbacks. We will need to embrace the danger.
· We must be willing to go.
· We must be willing to speak.
· We should expect God to work miracles through us as we are led and empowered by the Holy Spirit.
· We must not dodge the issue of repentance.
But now let’s look at the response of the disciples.
16. As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 17. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” 18. At once they left their nets and followed him. 19. When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets. 20. Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.
17. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”
The purpose of our calling to follow Jesus is to make us fishers of men (17).
18. At once they left their nets and followed him
At once… they followed him
Taken with verse 20 where we’re told that Jesus called his disciples without delay, we see three things:
· We should not delay in telling others the good news.
· When Jesus calls us to salvation, we should not delay.
· When he calls us to serve him, we should not put off the decision.
There is a clear sense of urgency in all this, and this is emphasised in verses 18 and 20 where the fishermen left their nets (v18) which were their livelihood, and their father (v20). They left their family as well. They left all to follow him. Their attitude can best be summarised in one word – COMMITMENT. As CT Studd, a Cambridge graduate and former England cricketer once said:
If Jesus Christ be God, and died for me, no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for him.
And Studd lived up to his words. After his father’s death, he gave away his entire inheritance and became a missionary, serving the Lord in China, India, and finally in Africa. Now we may not all be called to give up our means of livelihood or our family to follow Jesus, but we should all be willing to do so. We are all called to commitment. So now let’s summarise the principles we have discovered in today’s passage.
· When Jesus calls us to salvation, we should not delay.
· When he calls us to serve him, we should not put off the decision.
· We should follow his example and allow him to make us fishers of men.
· We should not delay in telling others the good news of the kingdom of God.
· We should expect God to work miracles through us as we are led and empowered by the Holy Spirit.
· We must not be deterred by apparent setbacks. We will need to embrace the danger.
· We must be willing to go.
· We must be willing to speak, and we must not dodge the issue of repentance.
Of course, we’re all different, but how can these principles be worked out in YOUR life?