5: The Christian Community

Task Mk 1

Turn in your Bibles to the parable of the Sower, which you will find in Mark 4, 3-9, and the explanation of the Sower, which you will find in 4, 14-20

Read the parable of the Sower and the explanation, then make a chart in three columns as follows.

The Sower is a parable which tells about the conditions of entry to the Kingdom of God. The Jews had long hoped for the Kingdom of God. It was the time when God would make his presence felt on Earth and would drive away all evil. It was open to those who lived righteously. In the Sower Jesus is saying how the word of God is varyingly accepted. The fear of persecution and love of riches can prevent the word of God from bearing fruit in a person. Jesus is saying that to enter the kingdom of God you have to ensure that you have let God work in your life.

But what kind of fruits is Jesus talking about? How do we know when God’s word has borne fruit in us? We can examine the way in which people relate to each other. Sometimes we meet people who are simply unpleasant to know and who leave us feeling unhappy, sad, depressed, degraded and so on; yet there are others who leave a good impression on everyone around them. Knowing such people is a positive experience, and we are happier, wiser etc. as a result. A good rule of thumb is that at the end of every day we should be able to say to ourselves that the world is a better place because we have lived in it, that our actions have produced good, that the sum total of goodness in the world has been increased. This is something that we should also be able to say at the end of our lives. Those who let God’s influence get to work in them will be able to meet this standard. They will have helped to build the Kingdom of God.

How might the pressures of modern life work against the word of God in our lives?

How might an ordinary Christian do good in the course of the day?

It is likely that the parable of the Sower was included in Mark’s Gospel because it encouraged the Christians being persecuted at Rome. How might it have encouraged them?

Read the parable of the Lamp. Summarise it in your own words.

This parable instructs Christians that they ought not hide the light of faith. God has given them faith, and this faith must shine out to encourage others. This is one way in which Christians should produce good fruits in their lives.

Task Mk 6

Read the parable of the Seed Growing Secretly. Summarise it in your own words.

This parable is a way of giving Christians confidence. Despite the instruction that we must do good, the kingdom of God cannot be built on human effort alone. It can only be built by God, although God works with the aid of people. Thus this parable tells Christians that although they may not see any progress, God is still working and one day they will see God’s will come to fruition. It is a parable which tells how the kingdom comes in God’s good time.

Read Mark, 4, 30-33. Summarise it in your own words.

This is a parable of the growth of the kingdom. The kingdom starts small, just with Jesus and then with a small band of followers. But it grows steadily until it becomes a vast community. No one is sure what the meaning of the birds of the air is in this parable. Many think that they stand for the Gentiles, others think that Jesus meant that all nature would be absorbed into the kingdom where it would be preserved and protected.

What is the message of the parable of the lamp for Christians?

The great question which has been discussed is whether the Kingdom of God is a present or a future reality. Is it found now on Earth or in the future on Earth or in Heaven? Jesus claims at the beginning of Mark’s Gospel that it is close at hand, implying that it is to be an earthly reality. In Mark 2, 18-22 Jesus says that the apostles do not fast as the bridegroom is with them. The bridegroom was a messianic title, implying that Jesus was messiah. The kingdom arrives when the king comes, so Jesus is implying that the kingdom is here already. Yet things are not yet as they ought to be, so there is no way that the kingdom can have arrived in the full sense of the word.

The answer to this problem is found in the fact that Jesus used the imagery of seeds. Is the acorn the same being as the oak which grows from it? In one sense it is, as it is continuous with the oak tree, yet the difference between the two is enormous. Christians can explain the kingdom in this way: what we have in the present is the kingdom in immature form. Its fulfilment lies in the future.

If Christians were asked what grounds they have for thinking that the kingdom of God exists in the world today they might give the following reasons.

The kingdom is the community headed by Jesus, which is the Christian Church. This must not be identified with the church buildings. It is the fellowship of those who believe in Christ.

That Christ is alive and with us.

The power of Christ is evidenced in the world, as miracles still occur, and Jesus’ influence is working for good.

The gospel is being preached.

What can we learn from Jesus’ parables about the kingdom of God?

How might Christians justify their claim that the Kingdom of God is present in the world today.

This short saying in Mark 1, 14-15 is the key to the whole gospel.

The Kingdom of God is close at hand, repent and believe the Good News.

The word repent is of vital importance. It must not be equated with merely saying sorry for the wrongs you have done. It making a radical change in your whole life, turning away from evil towards God. When Jesus proclaimed repentance he was asking people to make a fundamental change in their lives. Without this fundamental reorientation of your life towards good you cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

Believing is also important. It is not just intellectual belief but believing with both the mind and the heart. An example of merely intellectual belief would be my saying that I believe William the Conqueror had red hair. It is may be true, but it has no impact upon my life. But I can believe in a person, which means that I value them and put my trust in them. I am, therefore, emotionally involved in a way far stronger than I am with merely intellectual belief. To believe in Christ is not just to say, "Yes, I think he is the Son of God.", but to say "Yes, he is the Son of God and I am on his side." It is to make a commitment to Christ.

"It is not enough just to say that Jesus is the Son of God." Do you agree with this statement? Give reasons for your views.

Read Mark 10, 13-16. In your own words write down what happens.

This passage is important because in it Jesus turns conventional value systems on their heads. Rather than saying that children are not of great importance, a view current in the ancient world, he treats them as important. Furthermore, he declares that childlike qualities are necessary for those who want to enter the Kingdom. We must not confuse being childlike with being childish, which is mere immaturity. To be childlike is to be innocent and enthusiastic. Being childlike involves being free of cynicism, a negative, mistrustful quality which looks on the suspicious side at everything that seems good. Jesus seems to have been saying that to receive the kingdom we must be have innocent minds free of suspiciousness and sin, and we must be able to recognise the good when we encounter it, for, if we cannot recognise true goodness, we can never recognise the Kingdom of God for what it is. We would not let God into our lives. To be childlike means to be open to growth, to self-improvement, to character development. Jesus is saying that if you are not willing to keep on developing your character to make it better and better you are in danger of losing out on God’s kingdom.

What did Jesus mean when he said that we should receive the kingdom like a child?

Why might cynicism make it difficult for a person to enter the Kingdom of God?

Does the above passage indicate that Christians ought to be idealists?

Read Mark 10, 17-27. Make a list of the main points.

This account is sometimes known as the Rich Young Man or the Rich Young Ruler. Note that Jesus says that entry to eternal life is by keeping the commandments. It is when the man wants something more that Jesus challenges him to give up all his wealth to the poor and to be one of his disciples. This is a kind of personal vocation to which Jesus is calling him.

When he goes away sad Jesus compares a rich person’s chances of entering Heaven to those of a camel going through a needle. The imagery here is unclear. There was a small gate in Jerusalem known as the needle, through which a camel could only pass if it was unloaded first. A camel could also be a thick rope, which would be able to pass through a needle’s eye only if it was seriously thinned down. Either way Jesus is saying that attachment to wealth is a burden which hinders your spiritual development as a Christian. Those who are attached to wealth love it more than they love people and are unwilling to give or make sacrifices for others.

Why do Christians believe that wealth is a hindrance to the Christian life?

Why do you think monks and nuns have no personal wealth?

Many Christians believe that having wealth is not wrong if you earn it fairly and use it generously. Write a set of instructions showing Christians how to do this.

Read Mark 12:28-34.

Jewish rabbis often discussed which of the commandments was the greatest, so the scribe wanted Jesus’ opinion on this issue. Jesus quoted two commandments from the book of Deuteronomy. These were quite well-known to the Jews, but Jesus’ originality was to show that they are the key to understanding the whole law of God. Jesus is saying that the Christian life is based on love of God and neighbour, so that any lovelessness in any form is unchristian. There are many different systems of moral thought, both religious and non-religious, and each one has a basic principle on which its teachings are founded. In Christianity this basic principle is love of God and neighbour.

In the Christian view your neighbour is anyone who is near you or who enters your life in any way. It might be someone who dislikes you or someone whom you dislike.

Suggest three ways in which a Christian can show love for their neighbour.

How do Christian voluntary agencies, such as Christian Aid, show love for their neighbour? You can refer to any Christian agency you wish.

Read Mark 1:16-20.

List the disciples whom Jesus called at the lakeside.

This passage is a modelled on old testament tradition. In this tradition a prophet would call a disciple who at once would abandon everything to follow him. Elijah called Elisha in this way. The thinking behind this is that Jesus is at least a great prophet and in the Christian view even greater, so his disciples would treat him as the prophets’ disciples treated them. It is likely that they already knew him and were told to be ready for his call. The thinking underlying this passage is that Jesus has the right to make absolute demands on people, to expect them to give up all for him. Note that the gospel says that they left their nets immediately, which implies that Christ is so important that you should give up anything and everything in his cause.

The statement that he would make them fishers of men means that he would give them the opportunity to lead people into God’s kingdom.

How might people in our time make sacrifices to follow Christ? You might think of missionaries or those who work for the poor and the needy in our society.

Read Mark 3:13-19.

This is a list of the twelve apostles. What is important here is that the apostles are given a commission to preach and to cast out demons. This is a mission to enlighten people on one hand and to fight against evil on the other.

Give the names of three apostles, other than Peter James and John.

Read Mark 6:17-13.

Being told not to take a spare tunic etc. was an instruction to travel light. Excessive goods would mean that they travelled more slowly and were more likely to be robbed. Christians, however, Read this passage more deeply to mean that those in the service of Christ should not be burdened by possessions which could impede their freedom of movement. To be free to preach the gospel you have to be free to go wherever the need is, and this means that there should be nothing to burden you or hold you back.

The apostles are told to accept hospitality. In the Middle East even today hospitality is very important. People are expected to give it and to receive it thankfully. Note that Jesus tells the apostles that once they are given hospitality they should stay in one place. To do otherwise would be to give offence to their host. The rule seems to be that you should have less care about possessions than about people’s feelings.

In your own words say what were Jesus’ instructions to the apostles.

Read Mark 14:26-31 and 66-72.

The important point here is that Jesus is forgiving. Peter had just managed to let Jesus down, first by sleeping in the Garden of Gethsemane when he should have been praying, then by making a pointless attack on the high priest’s servant, and finally by denying Jesus despite all his promises. Yet Peter went on to become one of the most important apostles and the source of Mark’s Gospel. Peter became a Christian leader despite his weakness.

What did Jesus say when Peter said that he would go with him to death?

Recount the events in the courtyard of the priest’s house.

Read Mark 16:14-18.

Jesus in this passage gives Christian ministers a specific task. What is it?

Essay

a) What is meant by the kingdom of God? Illustrate your answer with reference to relevant parables. (12)

b) Is the term Kingdom of God meaningful for modern people? (8)