“A proper kick start”

By Rev. Michael Stonhouse

Meditation – Monday, February 19, 2024 Mark 1:1-13 (Forward, p. 21) CEV p. 1026

Technology has progressed exponentially over the last number of years and certainly when it comes to motorized transport. Older motorcycles were somewhat temperamental, and required a good, solid downward thrust of the pedal, a ‘kick start’, to get the engine going. And sometimes the first ‘kick’ wasn’t enough, and several tries were necessary.

I like to think that today’s passage describes the ‘kick start’ of the ministry of Jesus, and a good and proper one at that. I find it to be of particular interest that this ‘kick start’, as Mark describes it, combines aspects both secular and religious, Roman and Jewish.

The word that Mark uses to open his account, euangelion, is rather significant. The Britannia Encyclopedia has this to say about it: “In the emperor cult particularly, in which the Roman emperor was venerated as the spirit and protector of the empire, the term took on a religious meaning the announcement of the appearance or accession to the throne of the ruler. In contemporary Greek it denoted a weighty, authoritative, royal, and official message.”

Mark’s readers, for the most part Gentiles, would have immediately understood his thrust: John the Baptist was announcing the coming of a new king and was doing so with a message that was both weighty and undoubtedly authoritative. Moreover, what John saw himself commissioned to do, inspired by the very words of the prophet Isaiah, is the very thing that routinely had to be done prior to a royal visit, namely bringing all the roads up to par, making sure they were safe and satisfactory for the sovereign to travel. This was a very Roman, and secular, thing to do and Mark’s audience would have understood it and gotten his point. John the Baptist was preparing the way, paving the way, for someone much greater than himself, a new Caesar, if you will.

But then, by way of contrast, the manner of this preparing is totally Jewish. Ceremonial baths, the mikvah, were—and still are—part of habitual Jewish practice for purification prior to special occasions. But the baptism of John

took this one step further. It was like the cleansing, the baths, required of converts to Judaism. And so, for normal, practicing Jews to have to go through it was like saying that they weren’t ‘really’ Jews after all. It was like saying that they needed to start all over again. And indeed, that was exactly what John was implying. They needed to repent, that is, to forsake their own ways and agendas, and do an about face and turn back to God. Having a population that had thus been prepared was truly a ‘kick start’ to Jesus’ ministry, and so too, then, was His receipt of the Holy Spirit and His testing in the desert. This way Jesus was truly prepared to ‘take on the world’ and everything in it, and begin His ministry.

Having said all this, there are also aspects of this preparation of Jesus for His work of ministry that are most appropriate for us as well:

a) We need to hear the weighty, authoritative word of God for what it is and take heed of it and obey it.

b) We need to eliminate all from our lives that would impede His work there, not just sin, but anything else that clutters or interferes with His presence or activity in our lives.

c) We need to turn away from our own agendas, our own self wills, and instead surrender them, and our entire selves, to Him.

d) And we need to be filled, infilled, with His own Holy Spirit, in order to be empowered and equipped for ministry, indeed, for all of our lives as Christians. We all need this kind of ‘quick start.’

Forward notes: “See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way (verse 2b).

Commemoration: Agnes Tsao Kou Ying, Agatha Lina Zhao, and Lucy Yi Zhenmei

“Agnes Tsao Kou Ying, Agatha Lina Zhao, and Lucy Yi Zhenmei were three remarkable women who lived with unwavering faith and dedication to God even as they suffered persecution and death for refusing to renounce their faith during China’s Communist Revolution. They all faced interrogation and were tortured and executed in an attempt to make them relinquish their Christian faith.

“Their deaths were a tragic loss for the Christian community in China, but their legacy of faith and courage lives on, inspiring countless others to stand firm in their beliefs even in the face of persecution and death. Their martyrdom reminds us all that the Christian life is not always easy or comfortable. It requires us to be willing to suffer and sacrifice for our beliefs, just as Jesus Christ himself did. We may not face persecution or martyrdom like these women, but we all face challenges in our daily lives that require us to be steadfast in our faith and to live our lives with a sense of purpose and meaning.”

Moving Forward: “Think about a time when your faith has been tested.”