The Beginning of the Good News About Jesus
Mark wastes no time in introducing the main character of his book: ‘the beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God…’ (1:1). In the first of a series of sermons in walking through Mark’s gospel, we will be introduced to Jesus and the Kingdom that he brings. We see the preparation that John the Baptist carries out (v1-13), Jesus’ proclamation of the Kingdom of God (v14-20), and the proofs of the Kingdom’s arrival (v21-45). Hanging heavy in this first chapter is Jesus’ invitation to Simon and Andrew: ‘Come, follow me.’ That invitation is echoed to us as his followers in the modern age. Together, we will investigate what exactly the Kingdom of God is, and what it means for Jesus’ invitation to be extended to us today.
