Jacqui: 0:12

Greetings listeners. What if the very first story written about Jesus wasn't neat or slow at all, but urgent, fast-paced, almost breathless, like someone saying this happened and immediately this happened, and then immediately this? That's the gospel of Mark, and if your life ever feels like it's moving a mile a minute, you'll connect with Mark. And especially if you're brand new to the Bible, this is the place to start. It's a short book, it's vivid and it doesn't let you sit back. It sweeps you right along into the story. Well, welcome everyone. I'm your host, Jacqui Adewole, and this is the Bible Basics Podcast, where every two weeks we break down the basics of the Bible into understandable, bite-sized chunks. And today we're walking through the gospel of Mark together. Now picture this with me. We're sitting side by side, you've got your coffee, I've got my tea and we're flipping through Mark like friends. I'll point things out, pause on the surprising bits and check in with you along the way. Can you picture that? My hope is that by the end of our time, you won't just know about Mark, you'll actually want to read it for yourself this next week. Okay, let's set the scene.

Jacqui: 1:54

Mark is the shortest of the four Gospels 16 chapters. You could read it in about an hour and a half or listen to it on your commute. Now just a reminder. The word gospel means good news. It's a written account of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. Most scholars think Mark was the first gospel written somewhere between AD 55 and 65. Somewhere between AD 55 and 65. So this is likely the earliest written account we have about Jesus's life.

Jacqui: 2:31

Tradition tells us this gospel was written by John Mark. You might remember him from the book of Acts where he worked alongside Paul and was a close friend of Peter. Many believe Mark was basically writing down Peter's preaching, which gives the book this unpolished eyewitness feel. If you've ever heard someone retell their friend's powerful story, you know the emotion and the honesty that can come through. That's what Mark captures for us through Peter. Unlike Matthew the tax collector or John the beloved disciple, Mark wasn't one of the 12 apostles himself, but through Peter's perspective he still gives us a front row seat. Now we've been talking about Mark as the writer and Peter as the eyewitness behind much of the story. But here's something crucial Christians believe this gospel, like the rest of the Bible, isn't just human memory or storytelling. It's God's Word. 2 Timothy 3, verse 16 says All Scripture is God-breathed, that means God's Spirit was guiding the writers. So what Mark wrote down isn't just Peter's preaching, it's God's truth for us. The Holy Spirit inspired these words and that same Spirit helps us understand them today.

Jacqui: 4:14

Now let's move on to Mark's audience. It was likely not Jewish, and here are a few of the clues. In this book Mark explains Jewish customs, such as the washing of hands before eating, and we find that in chapter 7, verses 3 and 4. And it even translates Jesus's Aramaic words. We see that in chapter 5, verse 41, chapter 7, verse 34, and chapter 15, verse 34. That tells us that his audience was most likely Gentile Christians in Rome, people who didn't grow up with the Old Testament but still wanted to know who exactly is Jesus. So what's Mark's answer? Right from the first verse chapter 1, verse 1, it says the beginning of the good news about Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of God, and it's repeated throughout the book. Messiah means anointed king, but as we'll see, he's not the kind of king anyone expected. He came not to be served, but to serve and give his life a ransom for many, and we find that in chapter 10, verse 45. Find that in chapter 10, verse 45.

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Now let's talk about how Mark tells the story. Here's what makes Mark feel different from the other Gospels Matthew, luke and John. First there's the pace. If you notice one word, it's immediately. Mark uses it about 40 times. We see that in chapter 1, verse 10, chapter 1, verse 12, chapter 1, verse 18, and on and on and on. Like he'll say Jesus heals Immediately. They move. Or we see a demon cries out Immediately. Jesus silences it. Mark just sweeps you along. And right alongside that speed comes amazement. From the very first chapter, people are astonished. In chapter 1, verse 22, we read they were amazed at his teaching. In chapter 2, verse 12, when Jesus heals the paralyzed man who was lowered through the roof quote they were all amazed and glorified God. And then in chapter 5, verse 42, when he raises Jarius' daughter from the dead quote they were overcome with amazement. And that wonder, that amazement, pulses throughout the book of Mark. Twelve times that word shows up.

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Another difference is the treatment of Aramaic words. This is beautiful, this is the language Jesus uses. And when he goes to that little girl who has died, he says Talitha koum, which means little girl, get up. In chapter 7, verse 34, to the deaf man. Jesus says Ephatha, which means be opened. In chapter 14, verse 36,. In Gethsemane he prays Abba, which is Father At the cross. We hear him cry Eloi, eloi, , my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? That's chapter 15, verse 34. Mark keeps those words so you could almost hear Jesus' voice yourself. And here's a theme that keeps repeating Follow me. In chapter 1, verse 17,. Jesus calls fishermen, follow me and I will make you fishes of men. Calls fishermen, follow me and I will make you fishes of men. In chapter 2, verse 14,. Later, jesus says to Levi, the tax collector follow me. 16 times in Mark the word shows up Not admire Jesus from a distance, not just agree with him. Follow him.

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Now let me tell you one more unique thing Mark does with his writing. Scholars call it the sandwich technique, and here's how it works He'll start one story, pause to insert a second story, then circle back to finish the first one. Why does he do that? Because he wants you to hold the stories together. The clearest example is in chapter 5, verse 21 to 43.

Jacqui: 9:31

Jarius begs Jesus to heal his dying 12-year-old daughter. That's story A. On the way to his house, a woman who's been bleeding for 12 years, pushes through the crowd, touches Jesus' cloak and is healed. That's story B. Then Mark brings us back to Jarius' daughter. Jesus raises her from the dead. That's story A. Again.

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Now here's the beauty of it Two daughters. One is 12 years old, one has been bleeding for 12 years. Both are hopeless cases. One story highlights faith, the other never mentions it, but in both salvation comes through Jesus. So Mark is saying don't read these separately, read them together.

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And once you see this technique, you'll start spotting it in other places too, like the story of the fig tree wrapped around the story of the temple cleansing in chapter 11, verses 12 through 25. This isn't just about Jesus purging the temple. His words in verse 17 actually point forward to its destruction. 17 actually point forward to its destruction, just like that fig tree. These sandwiches are Mark's way of slowing us down, inviting us to notice connections and showing us deeper truths about who Jesus is.

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So what's the main message of the book of Mark? What's Mark really driving home? He tells us right from the start, as we talked about before in chapter 1, verse 1,. Quote the beginning of the good news about Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of God. End quote. That's the headline and the whole gospel circles around this question who is Jesus? Well, mark wants us to see Jesus for who. He is the Son of God, the Messiah who serves, suffers and saves. That's the main message of his gospel.

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Now, along the way, mark shows us glimpses of what this looks like. First, he talks about Jesus's authority being the good news for the broken. Mark records 18 miracles, and in every one of them it points to Jesus's authority and his compassion. He speaks and storms stop Chapter 4, verse 39. He touches and fevers leave, and fevers leave. Chapter 1, verse 31. He forgives sins and the crowd can't believe it.

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Chapter 2, verses 5 through 7. And if you've ever thought, hmm, my mess is too much for God, mark says watch Jesus. He runs toward the broken. Second, we see that Jesus' path is the way of suffering. Once Peter declares in chapter 8, verse 29, you are the Messiah. And what happens? Jesus flips their expectations. The Son of man must suffer, be rejected, be killed and after three days rise again. That's chapter 8, verse 31. He even says whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves, take up their cross and follow me. That's in chapter 8, verse 34. So in Mark's gospel, greatness doesn't look like winning. It looks like serving, suffering and sacrificing out of love, out of love.

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And finally, mark shows us that Jesus models a life rooted in prayer. In chapter 1, verse 35, we see him praying early in the morning. In chapter 6, verse 46, on a mountainside. Chapter 14, verses 32 through 39, he's praying in Gethsemane. No-transcript, and woven throughout the book is a clear call Follow. As I shared before, 16 times Mark uses the word. He's not inviting fans, he's calling followers. So maybe for you this week, following looks costly but simple, like making that hard phone call to repair a relationship, telling the truth at work when a shortcut would be easier, or setting your alarm 10 minutes earlier to pray like Jesus did. That's the invitation of Mark, not just to admire him but to follow him, because Mark wants us to see Jesus for who he is the Son of God, the Messiah who serves, suffers and saves. Now here's something that might surprise you. It certainly surprised me In the earliest copies of Mark that we found the book ends at chapter 16, verse 8.

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The women go to the tomb. They find it empty and they run away trembling and afraid. That's it. But if you look in your Bible you'll probably see more verses Chapter 16, 9 through verse 20. Most translations include those verses, but almost always with a note or brackets explaining the situation why?

Jacqui: 16:08

Well, we don't have Mark's original handwritten scroll. What we do have are hundreds of ancient handwritten copies of the New Testament, called manuscripts. These manuscripts were written in the original language, greek. Some were older than others and close to the time of the originals. Others are later. The two oldest and most reliable Greek copies of Mark, both from the 300s, end at verse 8. But many later Greek manuscripts include the longer ending.

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Early church leaders were aware of both endings and that's why Bible translators today are upfront about it. If you're reading the King James Version or the New King James Version, you'll see verses 9 through 20 right in the text. The New King James Version will usually add a note add a note. In most modern translations like the NIV, the ESV, NASB, CSB, NLT and NRSV, the longer ending is included, but it's bracketed off or footnoted to explain that the earliest manuscripts don't have it. A few translations, like the NET Bible or the Revised English Bible, stop at verse 8 and then move verses 9 through 20 into the notes.

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Catholic and Orthodox Bibles usually include that longer ending in their main text. The point is translators don't hide this. They show you the evidence right on the page. And that honesty, that straightforward approach, is one of the reasons we can trust our Bibles. And whether you stop at verse 8 or keep reading through to verse 20, the heart of the message doesn't change Jesus is the Son of God, who came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom.

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For many, the tomb is empty. Jesus is risen. Jesus is risen. Okay. So how do you actually read Mark this week?

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Here are three simple paths, not about speed, but about discovery. Option one read it in one sitting. Set aside about 90 minutes. You'll feel the urgency of immediately and see how the story races toward the cross. Option two take it in chunks, read two or three chapters a day for a week and each time ask three simple questions what do I learn about Jesus here?

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Two, how are people responding? And three, what does following him look like in this passage? And then there's option three Go slow. Ten minutes a day. Pay attention to Mark's details, circle the word amazed, identify the sandwiched stories and notice when Jesus prays. And don't stress if you don't get everything. Keep the two big questions in front of you.

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Who is Jesus and what does it mean to follow him? Now let me leave you with this picture. Imagine that little girl in Mark, chapter 5, verse 41. In Mark, chapter 5, verse 41, everyone said it was too late, she was gone. But Jesus takes her hand and says Talitha koum, little girl, get up. And she does.

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Listeners, whenever you feel stuck, hopeless or too late, hear Jesus' voice in Mark, get up, come with me. The tomb is empty. He's alive. And this invitation is still open to all of us. And do you remember how we started this episode? And do you remember how we started this episode? Mark's gospel moving almost breathlessly from scene to scene, immediately, this immediately. That that urgency isn't just about Jesus's ministry, it's about our response. Mark doesn't want you to admire him from a distance. He wants you to follow Jesus now. So this week, take one step, pick one of those reading paths and begin, and maybe share this episode with a friend. Thank you for listening. Episode with a friend. Thank you for listening and until next time, keep reading, keep seeking and keep growing in your faith.