Gospel of Mark 2 and 3
Sometime ago I wrote about a possibly of 7 days of creation
pattern in the Gospel of Mark chapter 1. Here are some thoughts on structure of
the next block of the narrative – chapters 2-3.
a. 2:1-12,
healing of a paralytic in a house, Jesus is accused of blasphemy
b. 2:13-16, call of Levi, need of a physician
c. 2:17-22, People ask Jesus about fasting
d. 2:23-28, Sabbath, Son of Man is the Lord
of the Sabbath – Ex. 20:8-11 reasoning, creation
d’. 3:1-6, Sabbath, a man with a withered
hand healed – Deut. 5:12-15 reasoning, freedom
c’. 3:7-12, crowds are following Him
b’. 3:13-19, call of 12, power over the
unclean spirits
a’. 3:20-35, conversation in a house, Jesus is accused of
blasphemy
According to this outline the movement of life goes from
house to sanctuary and back – regular pulsation of life. In between them we
have the ministers and people/crowds. Jesus calls the minister individually
(see example of Levi) and as a group. The apostles (at this stage of Christ’s
ministry) are to learn from Him how to lead crowds/people from their houses to
the sanctuary and back, helping them to arrange their homes.
Following this logic, it is noteworthy that the very first
lesson for the apostles was an accusation of their Rabbi being a blasphemer
being possessed either by Beelzebub or an unclean spirit, or both (v. 22 and 30).
Here comes the story – in the USSR, in medical colleges for
Physician Assistant by the end of very first semester many students would drop
out. The reason was not bad grades, but inability to withstand a time of
surgery and/or autopsy at a morgue. Some weaker students would faint or pass
out. I think this arrangement makes great sense. Why do one would want to waste
one’s time for Latin, list of sicknesses, pharmacology etc. if he or she can
stand blood or guts…
The apostles went through the same “baptism by fire.” If
they want to follow Jesus and be able to bring others to Him, they should
experience firsthand how the world (including Jesus’ mom and brothers) relates
to the Savior – false accusations, name calling, forceful attempts to seize Him.
After all, the world sees no one else but a blasphemer of their gods. The only
problem is these gods are actually idols.
To conclude, this is an example of theological pursuits supporting that structural analysis is a helpful tool – unlocking the deeper flow of the narrative pointing out the themes and their interconnectedness.
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