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Saturday 5 January 2013

Mark 1:9-15 - Jesus starts His ministry

Mark gets right down to the action, giving virtually no details on what Jesus did before His public ministry started, apart from the fact that He spent the time in Nazareth.
Similarly, he just states that Jesus was baptised by John without any preamble. However, Mark does state that the Spirit descended upon Jesus like a dove, and that a voice from heaven declared that He was God's Son and God was well pleased with Him. The role of the Spirit is one of the many key features in Mark's gospel, as is the Sonship of Christ.
Then we read that the Spirit led Jesus out into the desert for forty days, where He was tempted by Satan. Mark gives none of the details that Matthew and Luke give, but does mention that He was with wild animals and that angels attended Him. Even in times of trials we can expect God to send angels to help us. We may not always see them, and it will often not mean that we are spared the trial, but God will provide the strength for us to get through the trials.
After John was put in prison Jesus began His preaching. Jesus also preached repentance. He also announced that the Kingdom was near, and called on people to believe the good news that the Kingdom was near. This is the good news, that God's kingdom is at hand. It is possible for anyone to enter into God's kingdom, and the way in is through repentance and faith.

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