Mark

The good news about Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I’m going to tell it fast. It starts with a voice in the desert.

Replying to @johnthebaptist

Worth knowing: he wears camel hair and a leather belt, and lives on locusts and wild honey. Yes. Locusts.

Jesus comes from Nazareth and John baptises him. As he comes up out of the water the sky tears open, the Spirit comes down on him like a dove, and a voice from heaven tells him he’s God’s Son, loved, and that God is so pleased with him.

Then forty days in the desert. Satan tempting him. Wild animals. Angels looking after him.

Sun goes down, Sabbath over, and the whole town is at the door. Everyone sick, everyone with an evil spirit. He heals loads of them.

When the Pharisees complained about the grain, Jesus sent them here. Haven’t you read what David did when he and his men were hungry? He went into the house of God and ate the holy bread, which only the priests were allowed to eat.

Ahimelech@ahimelech.nob · NobDavid turned up here at Nob, where we priests live, on his own. That scared me. The only bread we had was the holy bread from the LORD’s table, so I gave him that. And Goliath’s sword.

Replying to @stretchedout

The Pharisees walk out and start planning with Herod’s people how to kill him.

He’s picked twelve, to be with him and to be sent out to preach. One of them is Judas Iscariot, who later betrayed him.

Replying to @hisfamily

His mother and brothers get there and stand outside. They send someone in to call him. He looks round at the people sitting in a circle around him. Here are my mother and my brothers, he says. Whoever does what God wants is my brother and sister and mother.

He couldn’t do any miracles there, apart from laying his hands on a few sick people and healing them. He was amazed at how little they believed.

The people of Nazareth@nazareth · NazarethHang on. Where’s he got all this from? Isn’t he the carpenter’s son? We know his mum. We know his brothers.

What he saw when he stepped off the boat. So many people, like sheep without a shepherd. His heart went out to them, and he started teaching them.

The crowds@thecrowdsWe were there for the loaves. He had us sit down in groups on the green grass, hundreds and fifties. Every one of us ate till we were full.

Replying to @thebelievers

They still hadn’t understood about the loaves.

In other words: all food is clean.

Jesus@jesusNothing that goes into you from outside can make you unclean. It’s what comes out of the heart.

Some people bring him a man who’s deaf and can hardly speak. He takes him away from the crowd. Fingers in his ears, a touch on his tongue, a look up to heaven, a deep sigh. “Ephphatha.” Be opened. He can hear, and talks plainly.

Replying to @jesus

Then he took a little child in his arms.

When the disciples sent the children away, he was angry. Then he took them in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them.

Matthew@matthewPeople brought their children for him to bless. We told them off. Wrong call. He said to let the little children come to him. The kingdom of heaven belongs to people like them.

He ran up and knelt in front of him. And before Jesus told him to sell everything, he looked at him and loved him.

A rich young man@whatdoistilllackAsked him what I was still missing. He said sell everything, give it to the poor, and follow him. I went away sad. I have a lot.

On the road up to Jerusalem, Jesus walking out in front. The disciples astonished, the others afraid. He tells the Twelve again: condemned, mocked, flogged, killed. Then risen, three days later.

Hosanna means “save us”. They were shouting about the coming kingdom of our father David too.

The crowds@thecrowds · The road into JerusalemHosanna to the Son of David! God bless the one who comes in the Lord’s name!

He goes into the temple, looks around at everything, and leaves. It’s late.

He’s hungry. A fig tree in leaf, but nothing on it except leaves. It wasn’t the season for figs. He tells it nobody will ever eat fruit from it again.

Replying to @doves.temple

The chief priests hear, and start looking for a way to kill him. They’re afraid of him. The crowd loves his teaching.

When the Sadducees tried to catch him out on the resurrection, he took them to the burning bush. God told Moses he’s the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. So he isn’t the God of the dead. He’s the God of the living.

Moses@mosesGod called my name from inside it. Told me to take off my sandals, because the ground I was standing on was holy. I hid my face. I was afraid to look at God.

Asked which commandment matters most, he started with Moses: listen, Israel, the Lord our God is the one and only Lord. Love him with everything you’ve got: heart, soul, mind and strength. Then: love your neighbour as yourself.

Moses@mosesListen, Israel: the LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your strength.

Replying to @notfar

After that, nobody dares ask him anything else.

He talked a long time on the Mount of Olives, and none of it was easy. Arrests. Families turning on each other. Being hated for his name. The line people held on to: whoever stands firm to the end will be saved.

In Gethsemane he’s deeply distressed. Tells them he’s so full of sorrow it could kill him. He falls to the ground and prays. Abba, Father, you can do anything. Take this cup away from me. But not what I want. What you want.

He’s still speaking when Judas, one of the Twelve, turns up with a crowd carrying swords and clubs, sent by the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders. Judas walks straight up to him, says “Rabbi!” and kisses him. They grab Jesus and arrest him.

Replying to @mark

The kiss was the signal. He’d told them beforehand: the one I kiss is the man. Arrest him and take him away under guard.

A young man following him, wearing only a linen cloth. They grabbed him. He left the cloth behind and ran off naked.

The high priest asked if he was the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One. His answer started with two words: “I am.”

Matthew@matthew · Caiaphas’ houseAt Caiaphas’ house they’re hunting for false evidence. Nothing holds. Jesus says nothing. Then Caiaphas puts him under oath: are you the Christ, the Son of God? “You have said so.” And he tells them that from now on they’ll see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.

Every Passover Pilate lets one prisoner go, whoever the crowd asks for. There’s a man called Barabbas in prison with the rebels who committed murder in the uprising. Pilate offers them the King of the Jews. The chief priests get the crowd shouting for Barabbas instead. What should I do with Jesus, then? Crucify him. Why, what has he done wrong? They just shout louder.

Replying to @mark

He wanted to keep the crowd happy. So he let Barabbas go, had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.

Golgotha, the Place of the Skull. Nine in the morning. They crucify him, and throw dice for his clothes. The charge above him: THE KING OF THE JEWS.

At three he cries out, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” It means: my God, my God, why have you abandoned me? Then a loud cry, and he dies.

Sunday, first light. The women walk to the tomb asking each other who’ll roll the stone away. It’s already rolled back. Inside, a young man in white tells them he’s risen, he isn’t here. Go and tell his disciples, and Peter.

Three days. Like he said.

Jesus@jesusThe Son of Man is going to be handed over and killed. And three days after he’s killed, he will rise.

Replying to @mark

They ran from the tomb, trembling, and said nothing to anyone. They were afraid.

A note before you read on. Some of the oldest copies of this book end there, at verse 8. Others go on with verses 9 to 20. Those verses aren’t in the earliest manuscripts we have, but churches have read them for a very long time, so they’re here too.

Replying to @thebelievers

Later he appears to the Eleven, and tells them off for not believing the ones who’d seen him.

Then the Lord Jesus is taken up into heaven and sits at the right hand of God. And they go out and preach everywhere.

Then they all head into Capernaum, and on the Sabbath, first thing, he’s in the synagogue teaching. Immediately. You’ll notice I like that word.

Replying to @capernaum.beach

It spread fast. Soon it was all over Galilee.

So off they go round Galilee. Synagogue after synagogue, town after town. Preaching, and driving out evil spirits.

Result: Jesus can’t walk into a town openly any more. He stays out in the countryside. And people still come out to him from everywhere.

He steps off the boat and sees them all. His heart goes out to them. They’re like sheep with no shepherd. So instead of resting, he starts teaching.

Replying to @luke

Groups of hundreds and fifties, all over the green grass.

Replying to @thebelievers

Bread and fish, both.

Up the mountain to pray. Night falls. Him alone on the land, them in the middle of the lake.

From the land, he can see them straining at the oars.

Replying to @andrew

He looked like he was going to walk right past them.

They were completely stunned. They still hadn’t understood about the loaves. Their hearts had gone hard.

Across, and in at Gennesaret. Boat tied up.