Chapter # 1 Paragraph # 3 Study # 2
November 20, 2018
Moss Bluff, Louisiana
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Thesis: The descent of the Spirit upon Jesus was a "sign" from the "beginning" (of Jesus' public ministry) that He was to "completely deliver" His people.
Introduction: We have seen that Mark's intention is to present Jesus as "The Mighty One" Who came to "deliver" those who trust in Him. The "might" is an essential capacity to address the "moral" problem of people who have been enslaved to The Sin. The "deliverance" is both instantaneous and absolute (the "forgiveness" of sins) as well as incremental and partial in this present time (addressing the multitude of issues involved in a man's desire to be "glorious" in the eyes of other men). And the "trust" is recognizing His credentials as the fulfillment of omniscience-based revelation and committing oneself to Him as "The Mighty Deliverer".
This evening we are going to consider what happened when Jesus came from Nazareth to be baptized by John in the Jordan.
- I. What "Happened" Happened "Immediately".
- A. There are 80 New Testament texts that use the word translated "immediately"; 40 of them are in Mark's record.
- B. The "gist" of the word is that what is recorded is to be understood as having no "interim" between the preceding event and the following one.
- 1. In some cases, the "lack of an interim" is "temporal" -- no "time" gap between.
- 2. In other cases, the "lack of an interim" is related to "thought processes" -- no interruption between connected events in terms of significance.
- C. In our current text, it is both.
- 1. That the descent of the Spirit occurred "immediately" as Jesus was "coming up out of the water" signifies the absence of a "time-gap".
- 2. But that descent as Jesus is pictured as "coming up" (He is "ascending" as the Spirit is "descending") also signifies that the two issues are significantly "linked" as "thought-directors".
- a. Jesus' "descent" into the water is to be understood as His "entire-person-commitment" to John's "Gospel" of "repentance unto forgiveness".
- b. In the same way, the Spirit's "descent" upon Jesus is to be understood as His (the Spirit's) visible validation of Jesus' "entire-person-commitment".
- II. What "Happened" Was Visible To Jesus.
- A. Jesus "saw" the "heavens" splitting apart.
- 1. That it was "visible" to Him means that it was intended to be a "visual sign" of something highly significant.
- 2. That it had to do with "the heavens being split" is crucial to "the beginning of the Gospel".
- a. On the one hand, the "plural" form of "heavens" means that Jesus could see to the very root of the Spirit's descent.
- b. The significance of the "split" is likely to have two (or more) "applications".
- 1) The only other time Mark uses the word is in 15:38 where he records that, at the point of Jesus' death, the "veil" in the temple was ripped into two pieces from top to bottom.
- a) That Jesus' death was an actual event that made it possible for us to "enter into the 'accepting' presence of Him Who dwelt behind the veil" (Hebrews 6:19).
- b) That the veil was torn asunder from top to bottom strongly suggests that this "way into the presence of an 'accepting' God" was made by God Himself as if it was His finger that tore the fabric from top to bottom.
- 2) But, theologically, it is the heart of the Gospel that there was a "tear" in the Godhead when the Father turned away from the Son so that "forgiveness" could be extended to those who "repent" (in this sense, "the heavens were torn asunder").
- B. Thus, from the beginning, Jesus "saw" His mission in terms of "the cup" which He was to drink (a "cup" that was to bring His "soul" to the exceeding sorrow of death: Mark 14:34).
- III. What "Happened" Was the Descent of the Spirit "As a Dove".
- A. Just so there would be no misunderstanding as to what "as a dove" means (in the "manner" of a dove, or in the "form" of a dove) we have Luke's clarification in Luke 3:22.
- B. Thus, we turn to the ancient issue of the "dove" in order to grasp the significance of the image of a dove descending out of the torn heavens: Genesis 8.
- 1. The "dove" in Genesis 8 was a "testament" to the fact of a "safe deliverance".
- 2. The "descent upon Jesus" signifies that Jesus' endurance of the tearing of the heavens was to bring about an absolute and entirely effective "deliverance" from the wrath of God.
- IV. What "Happened" Included an Audio Testimony From God.
- A. A "voice" came into human history out of "the heavens".
- B. The testimony.
- 1. You are My Beloved Son (erasing all difficulties regarding God's attitude toward Him that might have been raised by His treatment of Him).
- 2. I am well-pleased by You (heaping divine "glory" upon Him for rejecting human "glory").
