Chapter # 7 Paragraph # 2 Study # 1
June 14, 2022
Moss Bluff, Louisiana
(Download Audio)
(315)
Thesis: Mark's "point" in
7:24 is that no one will be excused in the coming day of the Judgment of The Mighty One.
Introduction: In our last few studies we were concerned with Jesus' "
get this" doctrine that man's problems with God are
not the consequence of their
external circumstances, but are, rather, the consequence of the condition of their perverse
hearts.
We have not gone into the type of detail to which we are accustomed in these studies partly because the list of "heart fruits" is significantly long so that the major point is made simply by going through the list, and partly because we have seen many of the issues involved already.
This evening we are going to begin a new paragraph so that we may see what Mark is doing in his record of Jesus' removal of Himself from Galilee and Judea.
- I. There Is A Large Context For This Record.
- A. There is the fact that this record falls into the first of two major sections of Mark's effort.
- 1. Introduction
- 2. 1:21-35 ---- Mark's Focus Upon The Evidence For Jesus' Identity As "The Mighty One".
- 3. 2:1-3:6 ---- Mark's Focus Upon The Responses Of Those Subject To The Evidence.
- 4. 3:7-12 ----- Mark's Pivot From Evidence To Response.
- 5. 3:13-35 --- Mark's Record Of The Responses.
- 6. 4:1-6:6 ---- Mark's Presentation Of The Mystery Of The Kingdom And Its Requirement: Faith.
- 7. 6:7-8:26 -- Mark's Presentation Of A Major Danger To The Disciples.
- B. And there is the fact that this record in an integral part of the structure of Mark's desire to establish the disciples of Jesus as The Coming Mighty One in the light of their coming task.
- 1. Introduction
- 2. 6:14-29 --- Leaven of Herod --------- 7:1-23 ---- leaven of Pharisees (from 8:15).
Inverted Pattern
- 3. 6:30-44 --- Feeding of 5,000 -------- 7:24-30 --- power story (exorcism) ** we are currently here
- 4. 6:45-52 --- "astonished" ------------ 7:31-37 --- "astonished"
- 5. 6:53-56 --- power story (healings)--- 8:1-9 ----- Feeding of 4,000
- C. At this point, Mark is drawing his theses together in terms of the accountability of all mankind because they are not ignorant of the Truth of Jesus' Message.
- 1. The large reason for Mark's record of Jesus' departure from the area of Gennesaret is the reality that those whose hearts remain "disowned" will not escape the Justice of God.
- a. This makes the message of "repentance unto forgiveness" of critical significance.
- b. This also makes the commission of The Twelve of critical significance.
- c. This thesis is established by Mark by his use of the words that indicate Jesus' departure into the regions of Tyre.
- 1) Mark's first word in 7:24 (ekeithen).
- a) His first use is found in 6:1 where the "there" (in "from there") is Capernaum in respect to the restoration of Jairus' 12-year-old daughter.
- i. Mark's focus at this point is upon "keep believing" (5:36).
- ii. The people were "completely astounded".
- iii. Jesus gave them "strict orders" that "no one should know about" the restoration.
- iv He gave them instruction that the girl should be given something to eat.
- v. "From there" He went to Nazareth and was rejected, and "He wondered at their unbelief".
- b) His second and third uses are found in 6:10 and 6:11 (for emphasis) where the issue is the "sent forth disciples" and their response to any place to which they go and find the people resistant to their message: when they "go from there", they are to shake the dust off of their feet as a witness against them.
- i. This is Jesus' instruction to the disciples as Mark winds up the section where he has focused upon the disciples' time with Jesus according to 3:14.
- ii. The focus is upon the potential of "rejection": in other Gospel records, there is instruction regarding both "acceptance" and "rejection": Mark does not say anything about what to do if the message is accepted.
- iii, The issue is stark: if the message of Jesus, communicated by His disciples, is resisted by the hearers, they will be judged accordingly when the "testimony against them" is given by those disciples in the day of judgment.
- c) His fourth use is the first word in our current text where the setting was Jesus' insistence that the crowd buy into His "truth" that the problem with men is the condition of strong antagonism to Truth that is in their hearts.
- i. The setting is connected (rather loosely) to Jesus' ministry in Gennesaret where a great host of diseased people were healed when they touched His garments as He passed along on His way through villages, cities, countryside, and market places.
- ii. This is not unlike Jesus' dealings with the great host of demons in the man of the Gerasenes (The Mighty One is expanding His reputation as the Mighty One).
- d) His final use is found in 10:1, which has, as its prior context, Jesus' very strong words about what happens when men reject Him in the light of the inevitable coming of the final day of judgment.
- i. With this use, Mark comes "full circle" because it is "Capernaum" (9:33) from which He departs (as in 6:1).
- ii. Additionally, the "judgment for rejection" is a major part of this setting, as in 6:10-11.
- iii. And the immediate focus of the words is upon the presence of the crowd and His teaching "according to His custom".
- e) All things considered, Mark uses this first word in our new paragraph to bring the issue of "being held accountable" into focus.
- i. If we have been given the opportunity to hear of our condition before God and resist that truth, there will be no escape in the great Day of the Judgment of the Creator (Mighty One).
- ii. This is demonstrated by the exorcism of yet another demon.
- 2) Mark's other words and their connected themes.
- a) His use of "got up" and "regions".
- b) His references to "Tyre".
- c) His records of Jesus' "desire" to escape the "knowledge of Him by the crowds" (this is a back-handed way of saying that "everyone" knew and, thus, were not ignorant, nor excusable).
