[caption id="attachment_33" align="aligncenter" width="259" caption="Sunset over the Sea of Galilee"]
[/caption]I sometimes find that a good way of looking at a book (and in particular a gospel) is to look at how it begins and ends. Very often by looking at the two 'bookends' you can pick up a good idea of the tenor of the book.
In the case of Marks gospel it begins with a strong evangelical flavour:
"the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ..."
This was the beginning of the story of good news concerning Christ! Here was Gods salvation being revealed to the world.
The gospel also ends with a re-emphasis on the spread of the gospel:
"go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature..."
Marks gospel is certainly focussed on reaching out to the world with the message of the gospel.
As you read through the gospel, you can certainly see the many ways in which the Saviour reached out to the people of his day, touching their lives and blessing them in ways in which they could never have imagined!
It is also an interesting study to look at the first words of the Saviour in the gospels as well. It may be of no surprise to note given what we have said about Mark's Gospel that the first words of the Saviour are gospel orientated: "...repent ye and believe the gospel."
A personal application can be drawn from these simple observations and that is that our lives like Marks gospel should be evangelical through and through! We should live our lives in the light of the gospel and it's claims, to reach out and tell others of the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Time is short, and only what is done for Christ will last!
Every blessing,
No comments:
Post a Comment