In this episode we continue our reading of the Gospel of Mark, covering Chapter 1:9-14. Although Mark had introduced his work as the Gospel of Jesus, calling him “the Christ” and “the Son of God” he qualifies both of these titles, which are parallel, by the phrase, as it is written in the prophets. Mark is telling his hearers that they cannot understand Jesus as Christ/Son of God, in just any old way, but exclusively according to Scripture, and specifically its second part, the prophets. And Mark uses both Isaiah and Ezekiel as his touchstones. Mark’s expression that Jesus “comes from Nazareth of Galilee,” as well as his mention of Jordan as the location of Jesus’ baptism connects Jesus, via Isaiah, to the mission to the Gentiles. In Mark, Jesus as a teacher, the use of parables to teach, and the title Son of Man are all connected in that they have their source in Ezekiel.

Notes:
Isaiah 1:9
ἐλάλει αὐτοῖς τὸν λόγον - he was speaking to them the word
Mark 3:7
Ezekiel 1:1
Mark 4:33-34
ἐγένετο - it came to pass, it happened
ἐν ἐκείναις ταῖς ἡμέραις - in those days
Mark 13:24-27
ἀγαπητός - beloved
εὐθὺς - straightway, immediately
εὐθείας - straight
רוּחַ - spirit
Ezekiel 1:7, 12

“Sing A New Song Unto Me” performed by Raphael Shaheen.
“Voodoo Who” performed by The Flesh.
Photo by Ron Lach : https://www.pexels.com/photo/orthodox-icon-of-jesus-christ-baptism-scene-10619928/

In Matthew 17, a boy’s father brings him to Jesus’ disciples to be healed but they cannot do it. Since the man is “from the multitude”, that is a Gentile, his son may be said to represent the second generation of the ekklesia, the Church, the primary addresses of Matthew’s Gospel. This story depicts the Gentiles in need of healing (the gospel), but prevented from hearing it because of the disciples’ “little faith.” Matthew is intentional in his word choice, changing Mark’s “having a mute spirit” to “an epileptic,” which in Greek means literally “under the influence of the moon,” or “moonstruck.” In Scripture the first reference to the moon in the creation narrative says it is “for a sign.” Thus, as a sign, it is merely a pointer to something, and not itself the reference. Matthew’s use of “epileptic” suggests that, as a Gentile, the boy was under the control of the sign, but kept from accessing the thing he really needed, which the sign merely points to: the preaching unto repentance.
Join me in a discussion of Matthew 17:14-23.
*Note that the next episode will continue our reading through the Gospel of Mark. Stay tuned!

Notes:
Genesis 1:14
Galatians 1:11-12
Matthew 12:38-39; 16:1, 4; 28:18-20

κατ’ἰδίαν (kat’idian) - apart, by themselves, privately
κατεγνωσμένος (kategnosmenos) - fully condemned
σεληνιάζεται (selēniazetai) - epileptic, literally under the influence of the moon; moonstruck
אוֹת (ōth) - sign, miracle; Greek σημεῖον (sēmeion)

προσευχῇ (proseuchē) - praying, prayer, place of prayer

Photo by Joonas kääriäinen: https://www.pexels.com/photo/clouds-under-full-moon-239107/
“Fortune Presents Gifts Not According to the Book” performed by Dead Can Dance.

In Scripture, God’s people don’t come to him, but he comes to them via the word that he puts into the mouth of his prophets. In Mark, John the Baptist follows this Scriptural pattern by beginning his ministry outside of Judea and Jerusalem. In other words, God appears in the wilderness and his people meet him there by hearing and accepting his words via what is preached by the one he sent, who is John. Mark also tells us they “were baptized by him in the River Jordan confessing their sins” (1:5). In Scripture the Jordan represents the line of demarcation between on the one hand, the wilderness and on the other, Canaan, the land of milk and honey. After being delivered from Egypt, the sons of Israel crossed the Red Sea; before entering Canaan, they passed through the Jordan. Thus, in the gospels, baptism is associated with the Jordan, since after entering Cannan, the Israelites sinned and were cast out again into the wilderness of Babylon. This “second” crossing, as it were, of the Jordan via baptism is like acknowledgment of that sin; and their being washed via the prophetic word of John leads them not into Canaan, but into the Kingdom of God, the Jerusalem above (see Galatians 4:26). But why is John’s food said to be locusts and (wild) honey? Mark’s reference is Scriptural, specifically to the prophets Joel (1:4) and Ezekiel (3:1-3).

Join me as we continue working our way through the Gospel of Mark, 1:4-8.

“Brand New Orleans” performed by Prince.

Many biblical scholars consider Mark to be the earliest production among the four gospels.
Unlike Luke and Matthew, Mark contains no infancy narrative of Jesus. And compared to the other three, there is little by way of a post-resurrection appearance. What is there (Mark 16:8-20) seems to be compiled from the accounts in the other gospels; moreover, these verses are not found in the earliest manuscripts. When one considers how, for centuries, Jesus’ nativity and resurrection have been the main foci of Christian theology, the virtual absence of both in Mark, the first written gospel, is striking. In Mark, we are left to deal with Jesus first and foremost as teacher. The concern isn’t so much who Jesus is as what he says. Still, who he is matters. and Mark addresses it in the opening verse of his gospel scripturally, having no need to resort to philosophy or theology: “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as it it written in the prophets.”

With this episode, A Light To The Nations begins an exclusive focus on the Gospel of Mark. Every two weeks we will hear the text and discuss its content, particularly the terminology in the original Greek. Join me today for The Beginning Of The Gospel (Episode 58), and our discussion of Mark 1:1-3.

Notes:
“Passing Clouds” performed by Roger Limb

What does Jesus mean when he says that, for those who are willing to accept it, John the Forerunner “is the Elijah to come”? How does John function as Elijah in the Gospels? In this episode we discuss the text that is heard in the Orthodox Church on the Nativity of the Forerunner, in which John is said to go before the Lord “in the spirit and power of Elijah” (Luke 1:17).

Koran performed by Delerium.
Photo by Brett Jordan: https://www.pexels.com/photo/page-of-book-of-malachi-in-bible-20764514/

The Scriptural God has no representative statue, no temple and no earthly city. As such, he is unique among other deities of the ancient near east; they are made by the hands of men, they reside in temples made of stone, set in fortified cities and governed by a king who, like the statue, is the representative of the deity, his plenipotentiary on earth. By comparison, the Scriptural God seems like an anti-god. He is present among his people exclusively through his word of instruction, his Torah.
The heaviness, the weight of this God is to be found not in a statue, but rather in his statutes.

References
כְּב֣וֹד - ke-bowd - δόξης (Greek) glory; weight, heaviness
ὑποστάσεως - hypostasis - substance; something that stands under or supports something
χαρακτὴρ - charaktēr - a graver, character, imprint, or expression
Exodus 13:21-22; 16:10
Isaiah 53:6-12
Mark 14:36
Philippians 2:5-10
Hebrews 1:1-4, 13 7:28; 8:1; 10:12; 12:1-2

Brand New Orleans performed by Prince.

Photo by Sidorela Shehaj: https://www.pexels.com/photo/low-angle-shot-of-an-athena-statue-under-a-cloudy-sky-14458428/

Have You Anything Here To Eat?

This episode is the audio of a sermon given on the Feast of Annunciation. The prescribed texts for the feast are Acts 1:1-12 and Luke 24:36-53. In the New Testament, table fellowship (koinonia) between Jews and non-Jews is an expression of the oneness of the Gospel. Peter was taught in Acts 10 that he must not call “common” what God has cleansed, and Jesus continued to teach that to his disciples until he was taken up into Heaven. The dietary differences between Jews and Gentiles didn’t matter because the food itself was secondary. The word of teaching cleansed what was considered common. In the table fellowship, the breaking of the bread, Jesus taught his disciples that the real food is the bread of instruction proceeding from his mouth.

References
Acts 10
Luke 24:41 - ἀπὸ τῆς χαρᾶς (“falling away from the joy”)
John 10:16
Mark 16:19

“Fortune Presents Gifts Not According To The Book” performed by Dead Can Dance.
“Koran” performed by Delerium.
Photo by Mizuno K: https://www.pexels.com/photo/men-with-coffee-13335452/

Harmonizing the Narrative is a Betrayal of the Text.

The Church considers the complete and necessary depiction of Jesus to be that which is drawn out of all four gospels. Rather than assuming a harmonized narrative that each one gives some little glimpse into, the Church has always affirmed the full authority, and thus the necessity, of all four. This is apparent in Church’s use of similar but different stories involving a woman anointing Jesus. Elements of Luke 6 are used in the hymnography to shed light on the Gospel reading from Matthew 26 on Wednesday in Holy Week. Join me in a discussion of the texts from Matthew 26, Mark 14, Luke 7 and John 12.

“Fortune Presents Gifts Not According To The Book” performed by Dead Can Dance. Hymn of Kassiani chanted in Byzantine Tone 8 by the Very Rev. Fr. George Shaheen (of blessed memory).