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The Verse
Mark 1:22 The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law.
My Paraphrase
The people were amazed at the authority of His teaching, because it wasn't like their normal bland teachings.
My Thoughts
This verse always perplexes me. How could there have been, prior to Jesus' arrival, teachers teaching anything if they weren't being authoritative? Doesn't teaching, by definition, naturally carry authority? I mean, can it even be called teaching if it doesn't? On top of that, these teachers had the Torah! From God's own mouth! So. . .what were they wasting time saying?? I mean, we find out later in Mark that the Pharisees had added thousands of rules and regulations to the law. So. . .how did they foist these rules onto their congregations if not authoritatively?
I've always wonder what the teachings were like before Jesus showed up.
I grew up in a church environment and I have heard my share of bland, lifeless sermons (as well as many good ones, don't get me wrong), but. . .in the end, even the tritest, most boring messages still proclaimed the Gospel of Jesus along with whatever else they were saying, so there were still things to quicken your heart into an "Amen" agreement. . .
So. . .I always wonder what these lackluster teachings sounded like. Social reform? Behavior modification? Slaps on wrists? I mean, even a rote, monotone reading of Scripture is still the Words of a Holy God, right? So these Pharisees and rabbis must have been so way out in left field, it took the preaching of The Author of Creation only once to get the people excited and interested again!
Anyway, this is obviously to show that Christ was God, and Life-Giver, in all respects. He healed, did miracles, and even raised people from the dead; and in addition, He taught with authority--bringing souls back to life. But what made Him so different as a teacher (besides being the Son of God and all)? I think, it is because, unlike the other teachers, He taught with Grace.
See, the concept of Grace naturally has more authority than mere law. This is why: People, believers and non, will always question a rule with, "But why should I follow it?" That is just human nature. A law-slave can only answer, "Because God said so." The most authority a law-slave can experience is guilt. Which isn't a very strong selling point to an unbeliever (nor a believer like me, frankly). However, Grace answers the "why" question like this: "Because God has paid a way for sinful souls to enter holy heaven and therefore calls us all to walk in newness of Life."
Even if you reject that statement, or even if you don't quite understand it, it does give you pause. It makes you think. It changes your heart. The question is no longer "why should I do....(fill in the blank)?"--which is easy to ignore. Instead, it becomes, "But why would a Holy God do that for me?" There is something wonderful, awe-inspiring, and terrible in that statement. And isn't authority much deeper and truer when it is based on love and empowering rather than guilt and force?
The Verse
Mark 1:21 They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach.
My Paraphrase
They went to Capernaum, and on the Sabbath, Jesus taught in the local synagogue.
My Thoughts
My Archaeological Study Bible makes the note that this was a custom in synagogues of the time, that visiting rabbis were allowed to come and teach. Jesus took advantage of this. What is interesting is that Jesus began to teach. So many people want Jesus to be so meek, mild, and passive, but He wasn't. He got up and started teaching. He had a message, and He was going to share it.
And no one would stop Him.
Do we take advantage of times to teach and learn? I know for me, I can waste a lot of time searching stupid things on Google or eBay or checking my Facebook feed. . .Listen, I know it's kind of a cheap shot these days to preach against the evils of social media, but what if we took the same time we use mindlessly searching and changed it to mindful searching of the Scriptures? Not a whole lot different in the execution (you cand still do it online or on your iPhone), yet so much more impact for eternity!
Take advantage of your sphere of influence and share the message God has put on your heart!
The Verse
Mark 1:20 Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.
My Paraphrase
Right away He called them, and they left everything--their nets, their father, and the hired men--and followed Him.
My Thoughts
This is a strange verse because it mentions Zebedee, their father. A fast reading would cause you to gloss over this fact. But when you slow down an think about it, a very significant question arises: Is this disobedience? The fact that they left their father--in a seeming time of need--seems to be disobedience of the commandment, "Honor your father and mother," doesn't it? Wouldn't it have been more in accordance with the law to finish the day's work and then follow Jesus? Apparently not, though, as Jesus would not have called them to sin. Apparently, either Zebedee was cool with it (he had other hired men with him after all), or Jesus--knowing hearts--knew that Zebedee was fine with it. We can probably assume that this moment was not a big deal because the verse doesn't record any anger on Zebedee's part. I wonder if it was another situation where James and John were perhaps discussing Jesus earlier--maybe even in front of their father--so when Jesus shows up, they drop everything and follow, and Zebedee is no worse for the wear.
Still, it's a point I hadn't thought of before, so I felt like sharing it.
My last thought on this verse is that, in this situation, James and John had more at stake seemingly, than Peter and Andrew had. First of all, they had familial attachment that they had to choose to leave. Peter and Andrew were brothers, but neither of them had to leave family in order to follow Jesus in this particular case--as far as we know, anyway. This temporary spurning of family perfectly illustrates Jesus' command in Matthew 19:29 "Everyone who has left houses, brothers, sisters, father, mother, children, or farms to follow me will get much more than they left. And they will have eternal life." Secondly, unlike Andrew and Peter whose nets were working at the time of their call (verse 16), James and John were here having to fix theirs (verse 19). This denotes an extra struggle. Not only did they have the regular stress of fixing torn fishing nets, but also the fact that any repair time is actual fishing time lost. They were set back twice before Jesus ever came a'calling. This could mean that they hadn't even been able to catch any fish that day, and after following Jesus, they definitely wouldn't have. That's a big deal for a fisherman not to have caught any fish for an entire day, you know? These probable setbacks show James and John giving perhaps even greater personal sacrifice than the original two. . .but again, they saw following Jesus as worth it.
And apparently, Zebedee had enough men to cover it. So. . .the lesson here is. . .don't drop the ball in Jesus' name, unless there are enough people to cover you! But on the other hand, you can't be like the man in Luke 9:59-60 who uses burying his father as an excuse not to follow Jesus. You need to love and honor your family, and leaving them in the lurch is not responsible, but transversely you can't make them an idol to hold you back from doing what God wants you to do. Apparently in this verse, James and John were being completely obedient both to their earthly and Heavenly fathers, or their action would not have Jesus' endorsement!
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