Mark (Expository Thoughts on the Gospels) E-Book

J. C. Ryle

• Herausgeber: Crossway
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Serie: Crossway Classic Commentaries
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 1993

Seitenzahl: 558

Beschreibung

For hundreds of years Christendom has been blessed with Bible commentaries written by great men of God highly respected for their godly walk and their insight into spiritual truth. The Crossway Classic Commentaries present the very best work on individual Bible books, carefully adapted for maximum understanding and usefulness for today's believers. Mark is a dynamic discussion of the second Gospel. Here is all the excitement and fervor of this action-packed biography of our precious Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Familiar and not-so-familiar passages bring deep encouragement and powerful vision, leading to inner renewal and holier living. A potent volume sure to enlighten and strengthen all modern-day believers as they seek to serve their Master!

Leseprobe

Mark

Mark

Copyright © 1993 by Watermark.

Published by Crossway

1300 Crescent Street Wheaton, Illinois 60187

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, except as provided by USA copyright law.

Art Direction: Mark Schramm First printing 1993 Printed in the United States of America

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Ryle, J. C. (John Charles), 1816-1900

    Mark/ J. C. Ryle.         p. cm. — (Expository thoughts on the Gospels) (Crossway classic commentaries : v. 2)    ISBN 13: 978-0-89107-727-5    ISBN 10: 0-89107-727-8     1. Bible. N.T. Mark—Commentaries. I. Bible. N.T. Mark. English. Authorized. 1993. II. Title, m. Series. IV. Series: Ryle, J. C.     (John Charles), 1816-1900. Expository thoughts on the Gospels. BS258S.3.R955 1993 226.3'07—dc20                                                                  92-45785

PG18 17161514 13  1211  10918  17  16  15  14  13   12   11 10 9   8 76  5

Contents

Series Preface

ix

Introduction

xi

Preface

xiii

Chapter 1

The Gospel begun: John the Baptist's ministry

(1:1-8)

1

Christ's baptism, temptation and calling of his first disciples

(1:9-20)

4

An evil spirit cast out; Peter's mother-in-law healed

(1:21-34)

8

Christ's private prayers; the purpose of Christ's coming

(1:35-39)

11

A man with leprosy cleansed

(1:40-45)

15

Chapter 2

Privileges of Capernaum; a paralytic healed

(2:1-12)

19

The calling of Levi; Christ the physician; new wine

(2:13-22)

22

The right view of the Sabbath day

(2:23-28)

25

Chapter 3

The man with a shriveled hand; Christ watched by his enemies and distressed

(3:1-12)

32

The appointing of the twelve apostles; Christ's zeal misunderstood by his friends

(3:13-21)

35

Warning against divisions; forgiveness; damnation 3:22-30)

39

Christ's brother and sister and mother

(3:31-35)

43

Chapter 4

The parable of the sower

(4:1-20)

46

A lamp on a stand; the importance of hearing

(4:21-25)

50

The parable of the growing seed

(4:26-29)

53

The parable of the mustard seed

(4:30-34)

57

The storm on the Sea of Galilee miraculously calmed

(4:35-41)

61

Chapter 5

Demons cast out in the region of the Gerasenes

(5:1-17)

65

The man who had been possessed by demons sent home to his friends

(5:18-20)

69

A woman's bleeding healed

(5:21-34)

72

The ruler's daughter raised to life

(5:35-43)

76

Chapter 6

Christ in his own town; the sin of unbelief

(6:1-6)

79

The first sending out of the apostles to preach

(6:7-13)

83

John the Baptist put to death by Herod

(6:14-29)

86

The apostles' return; the importance of rest; Christ's compassion

(6:30-34)

90

The crowd fed with five loaves and two fishes

(6:35-46)

92

Christ walking on the water

(6:47-56)

95

Chapter 7

The religion of the Pharisees

(7:1-13)

98

The heart as the true source of impurity

(7:14-23)

103

The Syro-Phoenician woman whose daughter had an evil spirit

(7:24-30)

106

The healing of a deaf and mute man

(7:31-37)

108

Chapter 8

The crowd fed with seven loaves; the unbelief of the Pharisees

(8:1-13)

112

Warning against false doctrine; the disciples' slowness

(8:14-21)

115

The blind man at Bethsaida healed

(8:22-26)

117

Peter's confession of faith; his ignorance of the need for Christ to die

(8:27-33)

119

The necessity of self-denial; the value of the soul; the danger of being ashamed of Christ

(8:34-38)

122

Chapter 9

Christ's transfiguration

(9:1-13)

126

The boy with an evil spirit healed

(9:14-29)

130

The crucifixion predicted; humility commanded

(9:30-37)

134

A tolerant spirit; self-sacrifice; the necessity of hell

(9:38-50)

137

Chapter 10

The right view of marriage expounded

(10:1-12)

142

Young children brought to Christ; infant baptism

(10:13-16)

147

The rich young man; Christ's love to sinners; the peril of being rich

(10:17-27)

151

Leaving all for Christ; Christ's foreknowledge of his sufferings

(10:28-34)

154

The ignorance of Zebedee's sons; Christ's example of humble devotion

(10:35-45)

157

Blind Bartimaeus healed

(10:46-52)

161

Chapter 11

Christ's entry into Jerusalem, and his poverty

(11:1-11)

165

Christ's humanity; the fig-tree cursed; the temple cleansed

(11:12-21)

168

The importance of faith; the need to forgive

(11:22-26)

172

The spiritual blindness of the chief priests and teachers of the law; mental dishonesty in prejudiced believers

(11:27-33)

176

Chapter 12

The parable of the tenants

(12:1-12)

181

The tax, and the claims of Caesar and of God

(12:13-17)

184

The Sadducees, and the doctrine of the resurrection

(12:18-27)

187

The teachers of the law, and the greatest commandment

(12:28-34)

191

Christ in the Psalms; a warning against hypocrisy; the widow's offering

(12:35-44)

194

Chapter 13

The beginning of the prophecy on the Mount of Olives

(13:1-18)

199

What Christ's people must expect between his first and second advents

(13:9-13)

203

Providing for our own safety; privileges of the elect

(13:14-23)

206

Christ's second coming described; the importance of observing the signs of the time

(13:24-31)

209

The uncertainty of the time of Christ's second coming; the duty to keep awake

(13:32-37)

213

Chapter 14

The chief priests' plots; the anointing at Bethany

(14:1-19)

218

Judas agrees to betray Christ; the time of the crucifixion

(14:10-16)

222

The institution of the Lord's Supper

(14:17-25)

226

Christ's foreknowledge of his disciples' weakness; the self-ignorance of believers

(14:26-31)

229

The agony in the garden; the apostles' weakness

(14:32-42)

232

Christ taken prisoner by his enemies

(14:43-52)

236

Christ condemned before the high priest

(14:53-65)

240

Peter disowns Christ three times

(14:66-72)

243

Chapter 15

Christ condemned before Pilate

(15:1-15)

247

Christ mocked and crucified

(15:16-32)

250

Christ's death, and the signs accompanying it

(15:33-38)

253

Christ's burial

(15:39-47)

256

Chapter 16

The power of love for Christ; the stone rolled away; mercy to backsliders

(16:1-8)

Proofs of the resurrection; kindness to great sinners; the weakness of believers

(16:9-14)

263

The apostles' commission; the terms of the Gospel; the promise to faithful laborers

(16:15-18)

266

Christ's ascension; the word of preachers confirmed by signs

(16:19-20)

269

Series Preface

The purpose of the Crossway Classic Commentaries is to make some of the most valuable commentaries on the books of the Bible, by some of the greatest Bible teachers and theologians in the last five hundred years, available to a new generation. These books will help today's readers learn truth, wisdom, and devotion from such authors as J. C. Ryle, Martin Luther, John Calvin, J. B. Lightfoot, John Owen, Charles Spurgeon, Charles Hodge, and Matthew Henry.

We do not apologize for the age of some of the items chosen. In the realm of practical exposition promoting godliness, the old is often better than the new. Spiritual vision and authority, based on an accurate handling of the biblical text, are the qualities that have been primarily sought in deciding what to include.

So far as is possible, everything is tailored to the needs and enrichment of thoughtful readers — lay Christians, students, and those in the ministry. The originals, some of which were written at a high technical level, have been abridged as needed, simplified stylistically, and unburdened of foreign words. However, the intention of this series is never to change any thoughts of the original authors, but to faithfully convey them in an understandable fashion.

The publishers are grateful to Dr. Alister A. McGrath of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, Dr. J. I. Packer of Regent College, Vancouver, and Watermark of Norfolk, England, for the work of selecting and editing that now brings this project to fruition.

Introduction

Crossway Classic Commentaries are selected with the purpose of making available some of the best quality help ever produced for the understanding of the Bible's practical message. All the books of Scripture were written to nurture faith and promote godly living, and expositions in this series are explicitly attuned to this aim, which on the whole was better understood by the church's older teachers than by its more recent ones. The first Crossway Commentary was J. C. Ryle's layman's exploration of Matthew's Gospel, and no apology is needed for the choice of his exposition of Mark as the second.

Ryle was a remarkable man. A banker's son, plunged into poverty by the failure of the family firm, he served for most of his life as a country clergyman who by his ability as preacher, writer, and statesman, and by the spiritual force of his ministry at all levels, became the leader of the evangelical wing of the Church of England in the second half of the nineteenth century and finally served for twenty years as first bishop and ministerial architect of the diocese of Liverpool, to which he was appointed in 1880, at the age of sixty-four. His roots were firmly fixed in the heritage of the Reformers, the Puritans, and the eighteenth-century evangelicals, from which he drew the vision and resources that shaped his own rugged, down-to-earth, no-nonsense ministry. The aim of his writings, as of his life, was the Apostle Paul's aim — to present everyone before God's throne perfect and mature in Christ (Colossians 1:28) — and his expositions are very obviously honed to this end.

If growth in faith and holiness is what you are after, therefore, Ryle is the man for you! The wisdom, clarity, force, and piercing quality of his commentaries are classic in every sense.

Pairing Ryle's expositions of Matthew (1856) and Mark (1857) is truly appropriate, for the two Gospels are noticeably parallel in their narrative — either because Matthew wrote with the Gospel of Mark in front of him, or because Mark wrote with the Gospel of Matthew in front of him, or because both drew on the same stock of organized material. (Scholars have been debating the pros and cons of these three possibilities for more than a century, and are still at it, without any certainty forthcoming.) But Bible students do not need to know why the narrative framework of the two books is so similar; what is important is to grasp the distinct design of each, and to appreciate the portrait of Jesus and the presentation of his grace that each presents. So Ryle thought, and surely he was right.

To dismiss Mark as "a mere abridgment of St. Matthew," says Ryle, is "an entire mistake." Matthew highlights Jesus as King and teacher, "great David's greater son," and the new Moses, fulfilling and transcending the Old Testament order of things. Mark's focus is on activity — the historical journey of Jesus, the God-appointed Savior of Isaiah 53, from his baptism through growing hostility to his cross and empty tomb, and the personal journey of disciples out of spiritual blindness and incomprehension into faith, repentance, self-denial, and cross-bearing, whereby they follow their Master. Ryle notes the difference, and his comments faithfully pursue it, so his two expositions, the one centering on Jesus' words and the other on Jesus' works, are quite different.

In both, however, Ryle's exegesis is accurate within its limits, his applications are consistently searching, and the truths explored are per-manendy valid. I confidently predict that any who have appreciated either will then want the other, and I am delighted that this series should make both available.

J. I. PACKER

Preface

by J.C.Ryle

The volume now in the reader's hands is a continuation of a work already commenced by Expository Thoughts on St. Matthew.

The nature of the work has been so fully explained in the preface to the volume on St. Matthew that it seems unnecessary to say anything on the subject. It may be sufficient to repeat that the reader must not expect to find in these Expository Thoughts a learned, critical commentary on the Gospels. If any expect this they will be disappointed. The work makes no pretense at being anything more than a continuous series of short practical expositions.

The main difference between this volume and the one which has preceded it will be found to consist in the occasional explanatory footnotes. [These have been printed in the main text of the present edition, in square brackets. - Ed.] The subjects of these notes will generally prove to be difficult passages or expressions in the inspired text. I cannot pretend that I have thrown any new light on the difficulties in St. Mark. But I can honestly say that I have endeavored to put the reader in possession of all that can be said on each difficulty.

In composing these expositions on St. Mark, I have tried to keep continually before me the threefold object which I had in view when I first commenced writing on the Gospels. I have endeavored to produce something which may be useful to heads of families in the conduct of family prayers - something which may assist those who visit the poor and desire to read to them - and something which may aid all readers of the Bible in the private study of God's Word. In pursuance of this threefold object, I have adhered steadily to the leading principles with which I began. I have dwelt principally on the things necessary to salvation. I have purposely avoided all topics of minor importance. I have spoken plainly on all subjects, and have tried to say nothing which all may not understand.

I cannot expect that the work will satisfy all who want some book to read at family prayers. In fact I know, from communications which I have received, that some think the expositions too long. The views of the heads of families as to the length of their family prayers are so exceedingly various that it would be impossible to please one group without displeasing others. In some households the family prayers are so short and hurried that I should despair of writing anything suitable to the master's needs. In such households a few verses of Scripture, read slowly and reverently, would probably be more useful than any commentary at all. As for those who find four pages too much to read at one time, and yet desire to read my Expository Thoughts, I can only suggest that they have an easy remedy in their own hands. They have only to leave out one or two divisions in each exposition, and they will find it as short as they please.

In preparing for publication this volume on St. Mark, I have looked through Chrysostom, Augustine, Theophylact, Euthymius, Calvin, Brentius, Bucer, Musculus, Gualter, Beza, Bullinger, Pellican, Ferus, Calovius, Cocceius, Baxter, Poole, Hammond, Lightfoot, Hall, Du Veil, Piscator, Paraeus, Jansenius, Leigh, Ness, Mayer, Trapp, Henry, Whitby, Gill, Doddridge, Burkitt, Quesnel, Bengel, Scott, A. Clark, Pearce, Adams, Watson, Olshausen, Alford, Barnes, Stier. After careful examination, I feel obliged to say that, in my humble judgment, very few commentators, whether ancient or modern, seem to give this Gospel the attention it deserves. It has been too often treated as a mere abridgment of St. Matthew. This view of it I believe to be an entire mistake.

The only large separate commentary on St. Mark that I have been able to meet with is a remarkable work consisting of 1666 folio pages, by George Petter, Vicar of Brede, in the county of Sussex, published in the year 1661. It is a work which from its scarcity, price and size is much less known than it deserves. The greater part of the impression is said to have perished in the great fire of London. Some account of this book may not be uninteresting to some readers.

Petter's commentary was originally preached by him in the form of expository lectures to his own congregation. He began to preach on it on June 7th, 1618, and continued preaching on it most Sundays with very little intermission till May 28th, 1643. The dates of each sermon are given in the margin.

The doctrine of this remarkable book is excellent - Protestant, evangelical and spiritual. The learning of the author must also have been not inconsiderable, if we may judge by the number and variety of his quotations. His faults of style and composition are the faults of the day in which he lived, and must therefore be charitably judged. But for laborious investigation of the meaning of every word, for patient discussion of every question bearing on the text, for fullness of matter, for real thoughtfulness and for continual practical application, there is no work on St. Mark which, in my opinion, bears comparison with Petter's. Like Goliath's sword, "there is none like it."

I now send off these Expository Thoughts on St. Mark with an earnest prayer that it may please God to use the volume for his glory. It has been written under the pressure of many public duties, and amidst many interruptions. No one is more conscious of its defects than myself. But I can honestly say that my chief desire, if I know anything of my heart, in this and all my writings is to lead my readers to Christ and faith in him, to repentance and holiness, to the Bible and to prayer.

If these are the results of this volume in any one case, the labor I have bestowed on it will be more than repaid.

J. C. RYLE Helmingham Rectory September 1857

Mark Chapter 1

The Gospel begun: John the Baptist's ministry (1:1-8)

The Gospel of St. Mark, which we now begin, is in some respects unlike the other three Gospels. It tells us nothing about the birth and early life of our Lord Jesus Christ. It contains comparatively few of his sayings and sermons. Of all the four inspired histories of our Lord's earthly ministry, this is by far the shortest.

But we must not allow these peculiarities to make us undervalue St. Mark's Gospel. It is a Gospel singularly full of precious facts about the Lord Jesus, narrated in a simple, terse, pithy and condensed style. If it tells us few of our Lord's sayings, it is eminently rich in its catalogue of his doings. It often contains minute historical details of deep interest, which are wholly omitted in Matthew, Luke and John. In short, it is no mere abridged copy of St. Matthew, as some have rashly asserted, but the independent narrative of an independent witness, who was inspired to write a history of our Lord's works, rather than of his words. Let us read it with holy reverence. Like all the rest of Scripture, every word of St. Mark is "God-breathed," and every word is "useful for teaching" (2 Timothy 3:16). [As Stier says in his Words of the Lord Jesus:

St. Mark has the special gift of terse brevity and of graphic painting in wonderful combination. While on every occasion he compresses the discourses, works and history into the simplest possible kernel, he on the other hand unfolds the scenes more clearly than St. Matthew does, who excels in the discourses. Not only do single incidents become in his hands complete pictures, but even when he is very brief, he often gives, with one pencil stroke, something new and peculiarly his own.]

1. The dignity of Christ's person

First, let us observe in these verses what a full declaration we have of the dignity of our Lord Jesus Christ's person. The very first sentence speaks of him as "the Son of God."

These words, "the Son of God," conveyed far more to Jewish minds than they do to us. They were nothing less than an assertion of our Lord's divinity. They were a declaration that Jesus was himself true God and "equal with God" Qohn 5:18).

There is a beautiful fitness in placing this truth at the very beginning of a Gospel. The divinity of Christ is the citadel and keep of Christianity. Here lies the infinite value of the satisfaction he made upon the cross. Here lies the particular merit of his atoning death for sinners. That death was not the death of a mere man like ourselves, but of one who is "God over all, forever praised!" (Romans 9:5). We need not wonder that the sufferings of one person were a sufficient propitiation for the sin of a world, when we remember that he who suffered was "the Son of God."

Let believers cling to this doctrine with jealous watchfulness. With it, they stand on a rock. Without it, they have nothing solid beneath their feet. Our hearts are weak. Our sins are many. We need a Redeemer who is able to save completely, and set us free from the wrath to come. We have such a Redeemer in Jesus Christ. He is "Mighty God" (Isaiah 9:6).

2. The beginning of the Gospel fulfilled Scripture

Second, let us observe how the beginning of the Gospel was a fulfillment of Scripture. John the Baptist began his ministry as "it is written in Isaiah the prophet" (verse 2).

There was nothing unforeseen and suddenly contrived in the coming of Jesus Christ into the world. In the very beginning of Genesis we find it predicted that the woman's offspring would crush the serpent's head (Genesis 3:15). All through the Old Testament we find the same event foretold with constandy increasing clearness. It was a promise often renewed to patriarchs, and repeated by prophets, that a deliverer and redeeemer would one day come. His birth, his character, his life, his death, his resurrection, his forerunner were all prophesied long before he came. Redemption was worked out and accomplished in every step, just as it was written.

We should always read the Old Testament with a desire to find something in it about Jesus Christ. We study this part of the Bible with little profit if we can see in it nothing but Moses, David, Samuel and the prophets. Let us search the books of the Old Testament more carefully. It was said by Jesus, whose words can never pass away, "these are the Scriptures that testify about me" (John 5:39).

3. The effects ofJohn the Baptist's ministry on the Jews

Third, let us observe how great were the effects which the ministry of John the Baptist produced for a time on the Jewish nation. We are told that "the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River" (verse 5).

The fact here recorded is one that is much overlooked. We are apt to lose sight of the person who went before our Lord, and to see nothing but our Lord himself. We forget the morning star in the full blaze of the Sun. And yet it is clear that John's preaching arrested the attention of the whole Jewish people, and created an excitement all over Palestine. It roused the nation from its slumbers, and prepared it for the ministry of our Lord when he appeared. Jesus himself says, "John was a lamp that burned and gave light, and you chose for a time to enjoy his light" (John 5:35).

We ought to remark here how little dependence is to be placed on what is called "popularity." If ever there was one who was a popular minister for a little while, John the Baptist was that man. Yet of all the crowds who came to his baptism and heard his preaching, how few, it may be feared, were converted! Some, we may hope, like Andrew, were guided by John to Christ. But the vast majority, in all probability, died in their sins. Let us remember this whenever we see a crowded church. A great congregation no doubt is a pleasing sight. But the thought should often cross our minds, "How many of these people will reach heaven at last?" It is not enough to hear and admire popular preachers. It is no proof of our conversion that we always worship in a place where there is a crowd. Let us take care that we hear the voice of Christ himself, and follow him.

4. John the Baptist's clear teaching

Fourth, let us observe what clear doctrine characterized John the Baptist's preaching. He exalted Christ: "After me will come one more powerful than I" (verse 7). He spoke plainly about the Holy Spirit: "He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit" (verse 8).

These truths had never been so plainly proclaimed before by mortal man. More important truths than these are not to be found in the whole system of Christianity today. The principal work of every faithful minister of the Gospel is to set the Lord Jesus fully before his people, and to show them his fullness and his power to save. The next great work he has to do is to set before them the work of the Holy Spirit, and the need of being born again and inwardly baptized by his grace. These two mighty truths appear to have been frequently on the hps of John the Baptist. It would be good for the church and the world if there were more ministers like him.

Let us ask ourselves, as we leave the passage, how much we know in our own experience of the truths which John preached. What do we think of Christ? Have we felt our need of him, and fled to him for peace ? Is he King over our hearts, and all things to our souls? What do we think of the Holy Spirit? Has he done any work in our hearts ? Has he renewed and changed them ?Hashemadeus participate in the divine nature ? Life or death depends on our answer to these questions. "If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ" (Romans 8:9).

Christ's baptism, temptation, and the calling of his first disciples (1:9-20)

This passage is unusually full of matter. It is a striking instance of that brevity of style which is characteristic of St. Mark's Gospel. The baptism of our Lord, his temptation in the wilderness, the commencement of his preaching and the calling of his first disciples are all related here in eleven verses.

1. The voice from heaven

First, let us notice the voice from heaven which was heard at our Lord's baptism. We read: "a voice came from heaven: 'You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased'" (verse 11).

That voice was the voice of God the Father. It declared the wondrous and ineffable love which has existed between the Father and the Son from all eternity. "The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands" (John 3:35). It proclaimed the Father's full and complete approval of Christ's mission to seek and save the lost. It announced the Father's acceptance of the Son as the mediator, substitute and surety of the new covenant.

There is a rich mine of comfort in these words for all Christ's believing members. In themselves, and in their own doings, they see nothing to please God. They are daily aware of weakness, shortcomings and imperfection in all their ways. But let them recollect that the Father regards them as members of his beloved Son Jesus Christ. He sees no flaw in them (Song of Songs 4:7). He sees them as "in Christ," clothed in his righteousness and invested with his merit. They are "accepted in the beloved" (Ephesians 1:6, kjv), and when the holy eye of God looks at them, he is "well pleased."

2. The nature of Christ's preaching

Second, let us notice the nature of Christ's preaching. We read that he came saying, "Repent and believe the good news!" (verse 15).

This is that old sermon which all the faithful witnesses of God have continually preached, from the very beginning of the world. From Noah down to the present day the burden of their sermon has always been the same: "Repent and believe."

The apostle Paul told the Ephesian elders, when he left them for the last time, that the substance of his teaching among them had been: "turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus" (Acts 20:21). He had the best of precedents for such teaching. The great head of the church had given him a pattern. Repentance and faith were the foundation-stones of Christ's ministry. Repentance and faith must always be the main subjects of every faithful minister's instruction.

We need not wonder at this, if we consider the necessities of human nature. All of us are by nature born in sin and are children of wrath, and all need to repent, turn to God and be born again if we want to see the kingdom of God. All of us are by nature guilty and condemned before God, and all must flee to the hope set before us in the Gospel, and believe in it, if we want to be saved. All of us, once penitent, need daily stirring up to deeper repentance. All of us, though believing, need constant exhortation to increased faith.

Let us ask ourselves what we know of this repentance and faith. Have we felt our sins, and forsaken them? Have we taken hold of Christ, and believed? We may reach heaven without learning or riches or health or worldly greatness. But we shall never reach heaven if we die unrepentant and unbelieving. A new heart and a living faith in a Redeemer are absolutely necessary to salvation. May we never rest till we know them by experience, and can call them our own! With them all true Christianity begins in the soul. Religious life consists in the exercise of them. It is only through the possession of them that people have peace in the end. Church membership and priestly absolution alone save no one. The only people who die in the Lord are those who "repent and believe."

3. The occupation of Christ's first disciples

Third, let us notice the occupation of those who were first called to be Christ's disciples. We read that our Lord called Simon and Andrew, when they were "casting a net into the lake" (verse 16), and James and John while they were "preparing their nets" (verse 19).

It is clear from these words that the first followers of our Lord were not the great of this world. They were men who had neither riches, nor rank, nor power. But the kingdom of Christ is not dependent on such things as these. His cause advances in the world " 'not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the Lord Almighty" (Zechariah 4:6). The words of St. Paul will always be found true: "Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong" (1 Corinthians 1:26-27). The church which began with a few fishermen, and yet spread over half the world, must have been founded by God.

We must beware of giving way to the common notion that there is anything disgraceful in being poor, and in working with our own hands. The Bible contains many instances of special privileges conferred on working men. Moses was keeping sheep when God appeared to him in the burning bush (Exodus 3:1-3). Gideon was threshing wheat when the angel brought him a message from heaven (Judges 6:11). Elisha was plowing when Elijah called him to be prophet in his place (1 Kings 19:19). The apostles were fishing when Jesus called them to follow him. It is disgraceful to be covetous, proud, a cheat, a gambler, a drunkard, a glutton or unclean. But it is no disgrace to be poor. The laborer who serves Christ faithfully is far more honorable in God's eyes than the nobleman who serves sin.

4. The task to which the disciples were called

Fourth, let us notice the task to which our Lord called his first disciples. We read that he said, "Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men" (verse 17).

The meaning of this expression is clear and unmistakable. The disciples were to become fishers for souls. They were to labor to draw people out of darkness into light, and from the power of Satan to God. They were to strive to bring people into the net of Christ's church, so that they might be saved and not perish everlastingly.

We ought to note this expression well. It is full of instruction. It is the oldest name by which the ministerial function is described in the New Testament. It lies deeper down than the name of bishop, elder or deacon. It is the first idea which should be before a minister's mind. He is not to be a mere reader of services, or administrator of sacraments. He is to be a "fisher" of souls. The minister who does not try to live up to this name has mistaken his calling.

Does the fisherman try to catch fish? Does he use every means, and grieve if he is unsuccessful? The minister ought to do the same. Does the fisherman have patience? Does he toil on day after day, and wait, and work on in hope? Let the minister do the same. Happy is the person in whom the fisherman's skill, diligence and patience are all combined!

Let us resolve to pray much for ministers. Their function is no light one, if they do their duty. They need the help of many prayers from all praying people. They have not only their own souls to care for, but the souls of others. No wonder St. Paul cries, "Who is equal to such a task?" (2 Corinthians 2:16). If we never prayed for ministers before, let us begin to do it today.

An evil spirit cast out; Peter's mother-in-law healed (1:21-34)

These verses begin the long list of miracles which St. Mark's Gospel contains. They tell us how our Lord cast out demons in Capernaum, and healed Peter's wife's mother of a fever.

1. Uselessness of mere intellectual knowledge

First, we learn from these verses the uselessness of a mere intellectual knowledge of religion. Twice we are specifically told that the evil spirits knew our Lord. In one place it says, "they knew who he was" (verse 34). In another, the demon cries out, "I know who you are - the Holy One of God!" (verse 24). They knew Christ, when teachers of the law were ignorant of him and Pharisees would not acknowledge him. And yet their knowledge did not save!

The mere belief of the facts and doctrines of Christianity will never save our souls. Such belief is no better than the belief of demons. They all believe and know that Jesus is the Christ. They believe that he will one day judge the world, and throw them down to endless torment in hell. It is a solemn and sorrowful thought that on these points some professing Christians have even less faith than the devil. There are some who doubt the reality of hell and the eternity of punishment. Such doubts as these find no place except in the hearts of self-willed men and women. There is no unbelief among demons. "The demons believe.. . and shudder" (James 2:19).

Let us take care that our faith is a faith of the heart as well as of the head. Let us see that our knowledge has a sanctifying influence on our affections and our lives. Let us not only know Christ but love him, from a sense of actual benefit received from him. Let us not only believe that he is the Son of God and the Saviour of the world, but rejoice in him, and cling to him with heartfelt determination. Let us not only know him by hearing with our ears, but by coming to him every day for mercy and grace. "The life of Christianity," says Luther, "consists in

possessive pronouns." It is one thing to say "Christ is a Saviour." It is quite another to say "He is my Saviour and my Lord." The devil can say the first. The true Christian alone can say the second. [As Petter says in his 1661 commentary on Mark:

Rest not in an historical knowledge or faith. If thou do, it will not save thee; for if it would it would save the devils: for they have their literal knowledge and general belief of the word. Dost thou think it enough to know and believe that Christ lived and died for sinners? The devil and his angels know and believe as much. Labor then to outstrip them, and to get a better faith than is in them.

2. The Christian's first remedy in trouble

Second, we learn what remedy a Christian ought to turn to first, in time of trouble. He ought to follow the example of the friends of Simon's mother-in-law. We read that when she "was in bed with a fever," they "told Jesus about her" (verse 30).

There is no remedy like this. We must use whatever means are available in time of need, without question. In cases of sickness, we should send for doctors. When property or character needs defense, we should consult lawyers. We should seek the help of friends. But still after all, the first thing to be done is to cry to the Lord Jesus Christ for help. No one can relieve us so effectively as he can. No one is so compassionate, and so willing to relieve. When Jacob was in trouble he turned to his God first - "Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau" (Genesis 32:11). When Hezekiah was in trouble, he first spread Sennacherib's letter before the Lord - "deliver us from his hand" (2 Kings 19:19). When Lazarus fell sick, his sisters immediately sent to Jesus - "Lord," they said, "the one you love is sick" (John 11:3). Now let us do the same. "Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you" (Psalm 55:22). "Cast all your anxiety on him" (1 Peter 5:7). "In everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God" (Philippians 4:6).

Let us not only remember this rule, but practice it too. We live in a world of sin and sorrow. The days of darkness in people's lives are many. It needs no prophet's eye to see that we will all shed many a tear, and feel many a heart-wrench, before we die. Let us be armed with a recipe against despair, before our troubles come. Let us know what to do when sickness, bereavement, cross, loss or disappointment breaks in upon us like an armed man. Let us do what they did in Simon's house at Capernaum. Let us at once "tell Jesus."

3. Jesus'perfect cure

Third, we learn from these verses what a complete and perfect cure the Lord Jesus makes when he heals. He takes the sick woman by the hand, and helps her up, and "the fever left her" (verse 31). But this was not all. A greater miracle remained. At once we are told "she began to wait on them" (verse 30). That weakness and enervated state which, as a general rule, a fever leaves behind it was in her case entirely removed. The fevered woman was not only made well in a moment, but in the same moment made strong and able to work.

[Let us not fail to observe here that Peter, one of our Lord's principal apostles, had a wife. Yet he was called to be a disciple, and afterwards chosen to be an aposde. More than this, we find St. Paul speaking of him as a married man, in his letter to the Corinthians, many years after this (1 Corinthians 9:5). How this fact can be reconciled with the compulsory celibacy of the clergy, which the Church of Rome enforces and requires, it is for the friends and advocates of the Roman Catholic Church to explain. To a plain reader, it seems a plain proof that it is not wrong for ministers to be married men. And when we add to this striking fact that St. Paul, when writing to Timothy, says that "the overseer must be ... the husband of but one wife" (1 Timothy 3:2), it is clear that the whole Roman doctrine of clerical celibacy is utterly opposed to holy Scripture.]

We may see in this case a living picture of Christ's dealing with sin-sick souls. That blessed Saviour not only gives mercy and forgiveness, he gives renewing grace as well. To all who receive him as their physician, he gives power to become the children of God. He cleanses them by his Spirit when he washes them in his precious blood. Those he justifies, he also sanctifies. When he gives an absolution, he also gives a new heart. When he grants free forgiveness for the past, he also grants strength to "wait on" him for the future. The sin-sick soul is not merely cured and then left to itself. It is also supplied with a new heart and a right spirit, and enabled so to live as to please God.

There is comfort in this thought for all who feel a desire to serve Christ but at present are afraid to begin. There are many in this state of mind. They fear that if they come forward boldly and take up the cross they will shortly fall away. They fear that they will not be able to persevere, and will bring discredit on their statement of belief. Let them fear no longer. Let them know that Jesus is an Almighty Saviour who never deserts those who once commit themselves to him. Once rescued by his powerful hand from the death of sin, and washed in his precious blood, they will go on "waiting on him" to their life's end. They will have power to overcome the world, and crucify the body, and resist the devil. Just let them begin, and they will go on. Jesus knows nothing of half-cured cases and half-finished work. Let them trust in Jesus and go forward. The pardoned soul will always be enabled to serve Christ.

There is comfort here for all who are really serving Christ, and are still cast down by a sense of their own weakness. There are many in such a state. They are oppressed by doubts and anxieties. They sometimes think they will never reach heaven at all, but will be cast away in the wilderness. Let them fear no longer. Their strength will be sufficient for each day. The difficulties they now fear will vanish out of their path. The lion in the way which they now dread will prove to be chained. The same gracious hand which first touched and healed will uphold, strengthen and lead them to the end. The Lord Jesus will never lose one of his sheep. Those whom he loves and pardons he loves to the end. Though sometimes cast down, they will never be cast away. The healed soul will always go on waiting on the Lord. Grace will always lead to glory.

Christ's private prayers; the purpose of Christ's coming (1:35-39)

Every fact in our Lord's life on earth, and every word which fell from his lips, ought to be deeply interesting to a true Christian. We see a fact and a saying in the passage we have just read, which deserve close attention.

1. An example ofJesus'prayer habits

First, we see an example of Jesus' habits in private prayer. We are told that "very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed" (verse 35).

We will find the same thing often recorded of our Lord in the Gospel story. When he was baptized, we are told that he was "praying" (Luke 3:21). When he was transfigured, we are told that "as he was praying, the appearance of his face changed" (Luke 9:29). Before he chose the twelve apostles, we are told that he "spent the night praying to God" (Luke 6:12). When everyone was speaking well of him, and wanted to make him a king, we are told that "he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray" (Matthew 14:23). When tempted in the garden of Gethsemane, he said, "Sit here while I pray" (Mark 14:32). In short, our Lord always prayed, and did not give up. Sinless as he was, he set us an example of diligent communion with his Father. His divine nature did not make him independent of the use of all human methods. His very perfection was a perfection kept up through the exercise of prayer.

We ought to see in all this the immense importance of private devotion. If he who was "holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners" prayed continually like this, how much more ought we who are subject to weakness? If he found it necessary to offer up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears (Hebrews 5:7), how much more necessary is it for us, who offend daily in many ways?

What shall we say to those who never pray at all, in the face of such a passage as this? There are many such people, it may be feared, in the list of baptized people - many who get up in the morning without prayer, and without prayer go to bed at night - many who never speak one word to God. Are they Christians? It is impossible to say so. A praying master, like Jesus, can have no prayerless servants. The Spirit of adoption will always make people call on God. To be prayerless is to be Chrisdess, godless, and on the high road to destruction.

What shall we say to those who pray, yet give only a little time to their prayers ? We are obliged to say that they show at present very litde of the mind of Christ. Asking little, they must expect to have little. Seeking little, they cannot be surprised if they possess little. It will always be found that when prayers are few, grace, strength, peace and hope are small.

[As Traill wrote in 1696:

Ministers must pray much, if they would be successful. The aposdes spent their time this way (Acts 6:4). Yea, our Lord Jesus preached all day, and continued all night alone in prayer to God. Ministers should be much in prayer. They used to reckon how many hours they spend in reading and study. It were far better both for ourselves and the Church of God, if more time was spent in prayer. Luther's spending three hours daily in secret prayer, and Bradford's studying on his knees, and other instances of men in our time, are talked of rather than imitated.]

We would do well to watch our habits of prayer with a holy watchfulness. Here is the pulse of our Christianity. Here is the true test of our state before God. Here true religion begins in the soul, when it does begin. Here it decays and goes backward, when a man backslides from God. Let us walk in the steps of our blessed Master in this respect as well as in every other. Like him, let us be diligent in our private devotion. Let us know what it is to "go off to a solitary place and pray."

2. Christ's purpose in coming into the world

Second, we see in this passage a remarkable saying of our Lord as to the purpose for which he came into the world. We find him saying, "Let us go ... to the nearby villages - so that I can preach there also. That is why I have come" (verse 38).

The meaning of these words is plain and unmistakable. Our Lord declares that he came on earth to be a preacher and a teacher. He came to fulfill the prophetic role, to be the "prophet greater than Moses" who had been long foretold (see Deuteronomy 18:15). He left the glory which he had shared with the Father from all eternity, to do the work of an evangelist. He came down to earth to show people the way of peace, to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind (Luke 4:18). One principal part of his work on earth was to go about telling good news, to offer healing to the broken-hearted, light to those living in darkness, and pardon to the chief of sinners. "That is why I have come."

We ought to observe here what infinite honor the Lord Jesus puts on the job of the preacher. It is a job which the eternal Son of God himself undertook. He might have spent his earthly ministry instituting and keeping up ceremonies, like Aaron. He might have ruled and reigned as a king, like David. But he chose a different calling. Until the time when he died as a sacrifice for our sins, his daily, and almost hourly, work was to preach. "That is why I have come," he says.

Let us never be moved by those who cry down the preacher's job, and tell us that sacraments and other ordinances are of more importance than sermons. Let us give to every part of God's public worship its proper place and honor, but let us beware of placing any part of it above preaching.

By preaching, the church of Christ was first gathered together and founded, and by preaching it has always been maintained in health and prosperity. By preaching, sinners are awakened. By preaching, inquirers are led on. By preaching, saints are built up. By preaching, Christianity is being carried to the heathen world. There are many now who sneer at missionaries, and mock those who go out into the highways of our own land to preach to crowds in the open air. But such people would do well to pause and consider calmly what they are doing. The very work which they ridicule is the work which turned the world upside-down, and cast paganism to the ground. Above all, it is the very work which Christ himself undertook. The King of kings and Lord of lords himself was once a preacher. For three long years he went about proclaiming the Gospel. Sometimes we see him in a house, sometimes on the mountainside, sometimes in a Jewish synagogue, sometimes in a boat on the sea. But the great work he took up was always one and the same. He came always preaching and teaching. "That," he says, "is why I have come."

Let us leave the passage with a solemn resolution never to "treat prophecies with contempt" (1 Thessalonians 5:20). The minister we hear may not be highly gifted. The sermons that we listen to may be weak and poor. But after all, preaching is God's grand ordinance for converting and saving souk. The faithful preacher of the Gospel is handling the very weapon which the Son of God was not ashamed to employ. This is the work of which Christ has said, "That is why I have come."

A man with leprosy cleansed (1:40-45)

We read in these verses how our Lord Jesus Christ healed a man with leprosy. Of all our Lord's miracles of healing none were probably more marvelous than those performed on people with leprosy. Only two cases have been fully described in the Gospel story. Of these two, the case before us is one.

1. The nature of the disease

First, let us try to realize the dreadful nature of the disease which Jesus cured.

Leprosy is a complaint of which we know little or nothing in our northern climate. In Bible lands it is far more common. It is a disease which was completely incurable. It is no mere skin infection, as some ignorantly suppose. It is a radical disease of the whole man. It attacks not merely the skin but the blood, the flesh and the bones, until the unhappy patient begins to lose his extremities and to rot by inches. Let us remember besides this that, amongst the Jews, the leper was reckoned unclean, and was cut off from the congregation of Israel and the ordinances of religion. He had to live in a separate house. No one was allowed to touch him or serve him. Let us remember all this, and then we may have some idea of the remarkable wretchedness of a person with leprosy. To use the words of Aaron when he interceded for Miriam, the leper was "like a stillborn infant coming from its mother's womb with its flesh half eaten away" (Numbers 12:12).

But is there nothing like leprosy among ourselves? Yes, indeed there is. There is a foul soul-disease which is engrained in our very nature, and clings to our bones and marrow with deadly force. That disease is the plague of sin. Like leprosy, it is a deep-seated disease, infecting every part of our human nature, heart, will, conscience, understanding, memory and affections. Like leprosy, it makes us loathsome and abominable, unfit for the company of God and for the glory of heaven. Like leprosy, it is incurable by any earthly physician, and is slowly but surely dragging us down to the second death. And worst of all, far worse than leprosy, it is a disease from which no mortal is exempt. "All of us have become" in God's sight "like one who is unclean" (Isaiah 64:6).

Do we know these things? Have we found them out? Have we discovered our own sinfulness, guilt and corruption? Happy indeed are those who have been really taught to feel that they are "miserable sinners," and that there is "no health in them"! Blessed indeed are those who have learned that they are spiritual lepers, bad, wicked and sinful creatures! To know our disease is one step towards a cure. It is the misery and the ruin of many souls that they never yet saw their sins and their need.

2. Christ's power

Second, let us learn from these verses the wondrous and almighty power of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We are told that the unhappy leper came to our Lord "and begged him on his knees, 'If you are willing, you can make me clean'" (verse 40). We are told that "filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. 'I am willing,' he said. 'Be clean!'" (verse 41). At once the cure was effected. That very instant the deadly plague left the poor sufferer, and he was healed. It is but a word, and a touch, and there stands before our Lord not a leper but a sound and healthy man.

Who can conceive the greatness of the change in the feelings of this leper when he found himself healed? The morning sun rose upon him, a miserable being, more dead than alive, his whole frame a mass of sores and corruption, his very existence a burden. The evening sun saw him full of hope and joy, free from pain and fit for the society of his fellows. Surely the change must have been like life from the dead.

Let us bless God that the Saviour with whom we have to do is almighty. It is a cheering and comforting thought that with Christ nothing is impossible. There is no heart-disease so deep-seated that he is unable to cure it. No plague of soul is so virulent that our great physician cannot heal it. Let us never despair of anyone's salvation, so long as he lives. The worst of spiritual lepers may yet be cleansed. No cases of spiritual leprosy could be worse than those of Manasseh, Saul and Zacchaeus, yet they were all cured. Jesus Christ made them well. The chief of sinners may yet be brought near to God by the blood and Spirit of Christ. People are not lost because they are too bad to be saved, but because they will not come to Christ so that he may save them.

3. A time to be silent about Christ's work

Third, let us learn from these verses that there is a time to be silent about the work of Christ, as well as a time to speak.

This is a truth which is taught us in a remarkable way. We find our Lord strictly telling this man to tell no one of his cure: "See that you don't tell this to anyone" (verse 44). We find this man in the warmth of his zeal disobeying this injunction, and "spreading the news" of his cure freely. And we are told that the result was that Jesus "could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places" (verse 45).

There is a lesson in all this of deep importance, however difficult it may be to apply it properly. It is clear that there are times when our Lord would have us work for him quietly and silently, rather than attract public attention by a noisy zeal. There is a zeal which is "not based on knowledge," as well as a zeal which is righteous and praiseworthy. Everything is beautiful in its season. Our Master's cause may on some occasions be more advanced by quietness and patience than in any other way. We are not to "give dogs what is sacred," nor "throw your pearls to pigs" (Matthew 7:6). By forgetting this we may even do more harm than good, and retard the very cause we want to assist.

The subject is a delicate and difficult one, without doubt. Unquestionably the majority of Christians are far more inclined to be silent about their glorious Master than to confess him before other people, and they do not need the bridle so much as the spur. But still it is undeniable that there is a time for all things; and to know the time should be one great aim of a Christian. There are good people who have more zeal than discretion, and even help the enemy of truth by unseasonable acts and words.

[It would not be wise for a speaker at an English public meeting to proclaim the names of the families in Italy where the Bible is read, and to point out the streets and houses where these families resided. Such a speaker might be well-meaning, and full of zeal. He might really desire to glorify Christ, and spread the news of the triumphs of his grace. But he would be guilty of a sad indiscretion, and show great ignorance of the very lesson which the verses before us contain. The words of Petter on this subject deserve notice:

In that our Saviour forbids this leper to publish this miracle at this unseasonable time, we learn that all truths are not fit to be professed or uttered at all times. Though we must never deny any truth, being demanded of it, or lawfully enjoined to profess it, yet there is a wise concealment of the truth, which is sometimes to be used (Ecclesiastes 3:7).

When are we to conceal the truth? 1. When the case stands so, that the uttering of it may bring hurt to the truth itself, as here, the publishing of this miracle was like to stop Christ's ministry. 2. When we are in the company of such persons as are more likely to cavil and scoff at the truth, than to make any good use of it. 3. When we are in the company of malicious enemies of the truth.]

Let us all pray for the Spirit of wisdom and of a sound mind. Let us seek daily to know the path of duty, and ask daily for discretion nd good sense. Let us be bold as a lion in confessing Christ, and not be afraid to "speak of him before princes'" if need be. But let us never forget that "wisdom is profitable to direct" (Ecclesiastes 10:10, kjv) and let us beware of doing harm by an ill-directed zeal.