Notes on Mark 2:1-3:6

In chapter 1 Mark established a plethora of rich facts about Jesus’ identity. Here in chapter 2 we’ll begin to see the inevitable tension between Jesus and the religious elite of his day. Mark carries this tension into the first section of chapter 3 where it culminates in the Pharisees’ decision to destroy Jesus.

An Annotated Outline:

I. Jesus has power over the individual condition, both physical and spiritual (vv. 1-12)
A. Jesus forgives sins, claiming power over the individual spiritual condition. As an aside, we see here an early allusion to Jesus’ role as sacrificial lamb. Jesus forgives the man’s sins, but there is no forgiveness for sin without the shedding of blood (Heb 9:22).
B. Jesus heals the body, demonstrating in an observable way that, if he says it, he can do it, an obvious indication that he is the God who makes things happen with a Word.
C. The men lowered their friend through the roof. Remember that Middle-eastern dwellings were typically built so that the flat roof was like another room in the house. Families slept there during the hottest weather, they worked there, etc. This was no flimsy construction, nor was it an easy task. They were desperate to get their friend near Jesus.

II. Jesus came to call sinners (which is awful good news to those who feel the weight of their sin, 13-17)
A. Jesus called Levi
B. Levi followed Jesus
C. Jesus fellowshipped with Levi at table
D. Note Jesus’ pointed dig, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.” Spiritually speaking, is anybody really well? Jesus is challenging the Pharisees to examine themselves and have the humility to be honest about their need. The big question is this: Will they admit that they are sick, repent from their prescribed, self-invented religious formulas / ideals and come to Jesus? Will they continue to assert their own spiritual wellness and remain enemies of God, or will they scramble to be near Jesus like those guys who came through the roof? Certainly they are near him in proximity, but their hearts are far from him. They want nothing to do with him.

III. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Covenant and initiates a new paradigm (18-22)
A. John represents the old paradigm – longing for God’s salvation
B. The Pharisees represent self-made religious formulas – “deserving” God’s salvation
C. Jesus is God’s salvation, and so his disciples celebrate.
D. The old forms are inadequate for the New Covenant life. Or to put it another way, the shadow can’t contain the substance. A question about fasting provokes Jesus' wineskin illustration. OT fasting came in two basic modes: 1) abstaining from food in the midst of intense emotion (see Hannah's response to her barenness and her tormentor, 1 Samuel 1); 2) religious fasting, the primary fast prescribed as part of the Day of Atonement ritual (Lev 16), but there are also examples of unprescibed fasting with religious significance (see 2 Sam 12). During the inter-testamental period, fasting became a way to acquire spiritual merit. The Pharisaical tradition grows out of this inter-testamental scheme. Jesus is asked, Why don't your disciples fast like those of John, and why not like those of the Pharisees? I think Jesus ignores the question regarding the Pharisees: Jesus' disciples don't need to score spiritual points with him. He answers the question about John's disciples with two reasons. "Why don't my disciples fast like John's? For two reasons. 1) everything John represents, the Old Covenant promises about a coming Messiah has come true. I am the Messiah, the Bridegroom. Now is not the time for mourning, but for celebration. 2) Everything John represents, the Old Covenant religious forms, were only foreshadowing elements, now that the real thing is here, those forms are no longer sufficient.

IV. Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath (23-28)
A. Jesus was with his disciples; they were nourished with grain (an image of broken bread?)
B. The Sabbath is made for man, not to burden him with regulations, but to refresh him (Ex 20:12).
V. Jesus brings life where self-made religion brings death (3:1-6)
A. This incident takes place in the synagogue, the local place for spiritual instruction and corporate worship apart from the Temple. At the synagogue people gathered to hear the Scriptures read and expounded. In other words, they came here to encounter the Word of Life. On this day, they gather with Jesus, the Living Word, the Word made flesh.
B. Note the contrasts:
Jesus v. Pharisees
To save life v. to kill
Compassion v. hardness of heart