In Jack
London’s novel, The Sea Wolf, we meet a man who is completely
materialistic, a hedonist and without morals.
He is Captain Wolf Larson; the captain of a sailing ship that hunts
seals and takes them for their furs. The
crew lives in terror of the captain because as his name suggests, he is a
beast. He is intelligent, crafty and extremely
strong.
He has read
Darwin and believes that all life rose up out of a primordial soup. He compares life to a yeast that grows and
moves and struggles to survive. Life to
Wolf is cheap. The law of supply and
demand says that there is an abundant supply of life so it is of little
value. It one sailor dies there is
another to take his place. According to Wolf, animals and men alike eat each
other to survive.
The Sea
Wolf is not a Christmas story.
Through the
mouth of Wolf Larson, the author raises up many arguments against the existence
of God. He strikes hard at hope, purpose and anything that could be called a
reason for living.
Most of us
do not live with a Wolf Larson that violently assaults our lives every
day. However, we do live in a world
where hardship, struggles, sickness and injury are inescapable. These
experiences can and do assault our hope and sometimes even our reason for
living.
Today, we
will see from the book of Mark that we have reason for hope, a reason for
living and great purpose in life. Today’s story is
true, not made up like Wolf Larson. It
is the story of Christmas.
Mark says, “The
beginning of the gospel.” “Gospel” means “good news.” Mark, who wrote in Greek, used the word “euangelion” which means “good news.”
Speaking of
the ministry of Jesus, Matthew in his account quotes Isaiah saying, “The people
who sat in darkness have seen a great light. And for those who lived in the land
where death casts its shadow, a light has shined.”[ii] (Matthew
4:16, NLT)
The story
of Christmas, the story of Jesus, is good
news.
The whole
world remains in the grip of darkness wherever this story is not known. The shadow of death hangs over every place
where this good news is lacking. The light that dispels the darkness is the “good news.”
The “good news” is about,
concerning and belongs to Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God. To understand
the nature of this connection, let’s unpack what and who we are
talking about.
Jesus is
His given name.
It is the
English name derived from changing the Greek alphabet letters into English
letters. Jesus was a Jew. His name was given in Hebrew. It is the same name as the hero of the
conquest of Canaan, Joshua. Pronounced something like “yeshua,” the Greeks transliterated it as “iesous.” In Spanish it becomes “Jesus,” in Japanese “iesu” and in English “Jesus.” The meaning of the name is “God saves.”
Christ is
not His name.
He is Jesus
the Christ. Christ is again taken from
the Greek. The Hebrews, or Jews, call
him the Messiah or “Mašíaḥ.” The Greeks translated this as “Xristos.”
The meaning
of the word is “the anointed one.” For example, when God chose David
to be king of Israel he sent the prophet Samuel to “anoint”
David. Oil was poured on David’s head
symbolizing God’s choice of this one to be King. When we say, “Jesus
Christ,” we are saying that Jesus is the one chosen by God to be both
Savior and King.
Mark says, “The
beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”
Jesus
Christ is made known to us a little more by the phrase, “the Son of
God.”
He is the
Son of God.
This makes
an assumption. The Bible assumes that
God is. The Bible claims for itself that
it is God’s revelation of Himself to us. (2 Timothy 3:16) As God speaks
to us, He assumes that He exists.
When I
speak to a person, I generally will try to get their attention first, but that
is as far as I go in defending my existence. I assume that the other person
knows I exist; although, this assumption has proven wrong at times.
God does
not neglect the subject of His existence entirely. He says, “They know the truth about God
because he has made it obvious to them.” (Romans 1:19, NLT) God does try to
get our attention, a star, angels singing to shepherds and that sort of stuff.
The
questions Jack London raises through his portrayal of Wolf Larsen arise out of
the darkness that comes from not knowing the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son
of God. Purpose, meaning and hope come first from knowing the God who made us.
Before
Jesus Christ, the world was in darkness.
Hebrews 1:3 says, “He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint
of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.” (ESV) It
is Jesus who has made God known to us. This is a significant part of the
meaning of him being called “the Son of God.”
Mark 1 is
telling us about the beginning of Jesus making God known to us. First, the way had to be prepared before
Him. Mark 1:2 says, “Look, I am
sending my messenger ahead of you, and he will prepare your way.” (NLT)
I understand
that in ancient days in some places, when a king traveled, he would send a
messenger ahead to prepare the way. Even in the present day, before the
president or pope visit a city there are many preparations that generally take
place. Many of the preparations are for
security and safety. Preparations are made for transportation, accommodations,
meals, communication and staff.
Nothing is
left to chance.
Mark tells
us that John the Baptist was the messenger sent ahead to prepare the way. God’s anointed
one, His own Son was coming.
There were
two elements to the preparation that John was sent to do.
First, he
preached a baptism of repentance. Mark 1:4 says, “He was in the wilderness and
preached that people should be baptized to show that they had repented of their
sins and turned to God to be forgiven.” (NLT)
Repentance
is the translation of a Greek word “μετάνοια.” The historian Josephus defined the
word as speaking of “the change of mind of those who have begun to abhor their
errors and misdeeds.”[iii]
Repentance
is important in preparing the way for Jesus Christ, because one must first
realize that there is a God, and that He has been offended.
The strange
thing about the human psyche is that although we might struggle with a guilty
conscience, we still have trouble seeing ourselves as sinners, bad or
evil. Evil and bad people exist, but
externally. The evil is never me, myself
or I. There is evil in the world, but
never in me.
In order to
be prepared for the good news of Jesus Christ, it is necessary for me to
recognize that the problem between God and me is me. I have to change my mind
about the darkness in the world, and realize that I need a Savior because the
darkness is in me.
After this
repentance has taken place, we are ready for the second part of the preparation.
John the Baptist proclaimed the Good News.
Mark 1:7-8
says:
7John
announced: “Someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much
greater that I’m not even worthy to stoop down like a slave and untie the
straps of his sandals. 8I baptize you with water, but he will
baptize you with the Holy Spirit!” (NLT)
We have
already spoken of the greatness of Jesus.
“He is the
radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds
the universe by the word of his power.” (Hebrews 1:3, NLT) And, as we
humble ourselves before Him in repentance we find that, “He will
baptize you with the Holy Spirit!”
This is a
remarkable part of the good news about Jesus Christ, the Son of God. It is
preparation, but it requires nothing on our part. Once the repentance and calling of God is
done, He takes over.
Jesus told
us, “I tell you
the truth, of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John the Baptist.” (Matthew
11:11, NLT) According to Jesus, the greatest man who ever lived said of
himself, “I’m not even worthy to stoop down like a slave and untie the
straps of his sandals.” (Mark 1:7, NLT)
Jesus takes
us just as we are and transforms us. 2
Corinthians 5:17 tells us that if any person is in Christ he is a new
creature. This happens as a result of
this baptizing by the Holy Spirit to which John the Baptist points. We cannot
add even one little bit. If John the
Baptist was not worthy to even untie the Son of God’s sandals,
neither are we.
But here is
the wonderful thing, when we are baptized with the Holy Spirit; we are made
children of God. We become heirs with
Jesus. He is the first born among many.
Galatians 3:28 says, “There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and
female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (NLT)
We are all
sons and daughters of God in Christ Jesus.
This
baptizing by the Holy Spirit that Jesus does opens us to the light. 1 Corinthians 2:16 tells us that we have the
mind of Christ. The whole world lies in darkness, without hope, without
purpose, without a reason for living, but the Holy Spirit brings hope, purpose
and a reason for living. We have,
through the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, the Son of God living within us.
When we
face hardship, struggles, sickness and injury we can face them with hope
because of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. This is why believers
the world over are now preparing their hearts and homes to celebrate the Advent
of the Son of God into our world.
This is the
ONE of whom the Apostle John said, “10He came
into the very world he created, but the world didn’t recognize
him. 11He came to his own people, and even they rejected him. 12But
to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children
of God. (John 1:10-12, NLT)
[i] Scripture
quotations marked ESV are from The ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard
Version) copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News
Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
[ii] Scripture
quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible: New Living Translation.
Copyright 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House foundation. Used by permission of
Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
[iii] http://biblehub.com/greek/3341.htm
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