Jesus Begins His Ministry

KEY VERSE: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the Gospel.” —Mark 1:15

SELECTED SCRIPTURE: Mark 1:14-28

FROM our text in Mark it appears that Jesus started his ministry when John ended his, but when we compare the parallel passages in John 1:29-51; 2:1-12; 3:22-36, it is quite evident that Jesus preached and baptized by the hand of his disciples for a considerable length of time before John was imprisoned. The purpose of Jesus during this time was to begin to establish himself as the long-promised Messiah by his enlightened message and by the performance of many miracles. The people said of him that “he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” (Matt. 7:29) In John 7:46 we read, “Never man spoke like this man.” But there can be no doubt that when Jesus received the news that John was imprisoned, the content of his message changed and its purpose became more defined and its intensity increased.

In Mark 1:14,15, we read, “Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the Gospel.” In Luke 16:16 Jesus said, “The Law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached.” To understand these statements it is necessary to know that this incident marked the approach of a change of ages. It was the ending period of the Jewish Age during which the Law Covenant, established at Mount Sinai with the nation of Israel, was the manifestation of God’s relationship with the Jews. And it was also a time of preparation for the incoming Gospel Age, which would see the development of the seed of blessing promised in the Abrahamic Covenant, which was first manifested by the appearance of Jesus.—Gen. 22:16-18; Gal. 3:7,8,16

Jesus was fully aware of the time fixed by the prophets and especially the prophecy of Daniel 9:25-27 which reads in part, “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.” (vs. 25) In the prophecy it was understood that a week represented seven years. Therefore, at the end of the sixty-nine weeks, Messiah was expected. Jesus was also aware that according to the prophecy Messiah was to be cut off in the midst of the seventieth week (vss. 26,27), thus limiting his ministry to three-and-one-half years. We believe Jesus knew exactly when his ministry was to begin and when it was to end.

The Apostle Paul confirms the thoughts expressed. “Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; but is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father. Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world: but when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the Law, to redeem them that were under the Law.” (Gal. 4:1-5) The first phase of the Abrahamic Covenant we call the Gospel Age, and it is during this time that the message of the coming kingdom was and is to be announced. This was the commission God gave Jesus at the time of his baptism and begettal of the Holy Spirit. (Isa. 61:1,2; Luke 4:18,19) The message was to confirm to the nation of Israel their hope of deliverance from their oppressors in the kingdom of God, administered by the Messiah. The message was also to announce to those who had ears to hear that Messiah was not to be just one, but was to include many in Israel who were of the right heart attitude and would accept God’s arrangements for deliverance through Jesus and were willing to walk in his footsteps. The Jews at that time, and afterward both Jews and Gentiles who accept this invitation and are faithful unto death, are promised a heavenly reward. They will have the privilege of living and reigning with Christ during the time of the kingdom. Jesus said, “Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”—Matt. 19:28

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