Jesus is revealed as the Savior of Mankind in his sufferings and self-sacrificial death for others, including his enemies.
The inability of men to recognize Jesus as the Son of God until after his crucifixion is a central theme of the Gospel of Mark. Ironically, the first man to do so is the Roman centurion on duty at his execution. His self-identification as the suffering “Son of Man” made him unrecognizable to unregenerate men. He was the Savior no one expected or wanted.
Continue readingПосле предсказания о его смерти два ученика начали соперничать за высокие посты в его грядущем Царстве. Мысля в соответствии с представлениями этого мира о политической власти, они не понимали, каким Мессией был (и остается) Иисус, и, следовательно, что значит следовать за ним, “куда бы он ни пошел”. Однако вскоре в Иерусалиме он продемонстрирует, как человек достигает “величия” в Царстве Божьем.
Continue readingThe inability of men to recognize Jesus as the Son of God until after his crucifixion is a key theme of Mark, and the first man who identified him as such was the Roman centurion on duty during his execution. The self-identification of Jesus as the “Son of Man” who suffers for his people made him repugnant to unregenerate men and unrecognizable to Israel (“His own received him not”).
Continue readingDisciples of Jesus are called to leave everything behind, if need be, and dedicate their entire lives to his mission of proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom throughout the Earth. Though the story as recorded in the synoptic gospels is brief, we already begin to glimpse the true cost of discipleship. Jesus began to build his new covenant community in “Galilee of the Nations” by inviting four fishermen to leave their livelihoods and follow him “on the way” which would lead inevitably to his death in Jerusalem.
Continue readingThe Parable of the Sower provides the key to understanding the parables of Jesus. The story’s point is that the Kingdom of God began to invade the present age starting with the proclamation of the Gospel by the “Son of Man.” That process commenced with his announcement of the Good News when he was in “Galilee of the Nations.” Ever since then, the Kingdom has been advancing across the Earth though largely unnoticed by humanity and even by many of his followers.
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