Text:
1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God,
2 As it is written in the prophets: “Behold, I send my messenger before you, who will prepare your way before you. 3 A voice crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight his paths.” 4 John was baptizing in the wilderness and preaching the baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 Then all the country of Judea and the people of Jerusalem went out to him, and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins. 6 And John was clothed with camel's hair, and with a leather girdle around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7 And he preached, saying, “After me comes one mightier than me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and loose. 8 I baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.
the explanation:
The text of today's Gospel constitutes the introduction to the Gospel of Mark. The talk revolves around John the Baptist, whose mission is to prepare for the coming of the Lord Jesus. From this standpoint, the talk about John the Baptist at the beginning of the Gospel of Mark serves as an introduction to the main topic, which is “The Gospel of Jesus Christ.”
“The Beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.” The word Gospel here does not mean a book. In Greek origin, it means good news, which is the linguistic term that used to express victory. “The Gospel of Jesus Christ”: What is meant is not the Gospel or the good news of Jesus, but rather the good news whose beginning, content, and goal is the Lord Jesus. The gospel brings the Lord Jesus fully, and the Lord Jesus expressed this inextricable unity between his person and the Gospel by saying: “Whoever loses his life for my sake and for the sake of the Gospel will save it” (Mark 8:35, see also 10:29 and 13:9-11).
The Evangelist Mark does not mention at the beginning of his Gospel that the Lord Jesus is the son of Abraham or the son of David. This is because he directs his Gospel to non-Jews, that is, to Christians of pagan origin. As for the title of the Son of God, it does not appear on people’s tongues. God announced it at the baptism of the Lord Jesus (see Mark 1:11), and the Lord did not use it to refer to Himself except during the final trial when the high priest asked him, saying, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” Jesus said, “I am he.” (Mark 14:26-36). Therefore, the Lord Jesus does not declare that He is the Son of God except during His Passion, in order to indicate that the believer is not known as the Son of God except during His Passion.
“As it is written in the prophets: Behold, I send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me.” This is precisely what God announced through the prophet Malachi (see Malachi 3:1). So the evangelist indicates that the Lord Jesus, coming after John the Baptist, is God Himself. “A voice crying in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way of the Lord.’” It was mentioned by the Prophet Isaiah (see Isaiah 40:3) and meant the return of the people from the Babylonian captivity to Jerusalem. This quotation from the Old Testament not only clarifies the mission of the Baptist in preparing the way of the Lord, but also emphasizes that the prophecies are being fulfilled.
“John was baptizing in the wilderness and preaching the baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” This verse does not mean that John's baptism was sufficient for the forgiveness of sins, but rather that John's baptism was a sign of repentance in the hope of forgiveness of sins. So, John’s baptism has the character of preparation for the coming time of salvation, as is evident from his call: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2). Repentance does not mean remorse, but rather it is a complete and radical existential change and a complete transformation to God.
John was baptized in Bethabara (John 1:28) in the Jordan Valley, north of the Dead Sea, “and all the people of the country of Judea and Jerusalem went out to him.” This shows the widespread influence of John the Baptist on his contemporaries, to the point that some people began to “think in their hearts about John, perhaps he is the Messiah” (see Luke 3:15). Also, the Jews in Jerusalem sent “priests and Levites to ask him who you are” (John 1:19), believing that he was the Messiah.
The description of John the Baptist reminds us of the Old Testament description of the prophets. The Prophet Zechariah mentions that the garment of hair is the garment of the prophets (Zechariah 13:4). Camel hair and the skin area are reminiscent of the prophet Elijah (see 2 Kings 1:8). It was mentioned by the Prophet Malachi through the Lord that the coming of the Prophet Elijah would precede the coming of the Day of the Lord (see Malachi 4:5). The Lord Jesus referred to the Prophet Elijah when he said about him to his disciples, “If you are willing to accept it, this is the Elijah who is about to come” (Matthew 11: 14). The one referred to as Elijah is John the Baptist, who followed in the footsteps of Elijah and was in his style and spirituality. Thus, the Lord Jesus interpreted this prophecy of Malachi by saying to his disciples: “If you are willing to accept it, this is Elijah who is about to come” (Matthew 11:14).
Certainly, there is no way to rely on this last verse to support the theory of reincarnation. Elijah's spirit does not transfer to John's body, especially since the Old Testament says that Elijah was raptured to heaven and the ancients believed in him as being alive. In addition to this, Jesus' teaching about resurrection denies reincarnation.
Untying shoelaces was considered one of the most despicable jobs, so it was done by a slave. So John considers himself of a lower status than a slave in relation to those after him. John speaks in the present tense, not the future, to assure his listeners that the appearance of the One to come is imminent and that his work is to inaugurate this appearance. John's role is similar to that of the messenger who precedes the king into the city to announce victory.
Baptism with the Holy Spirit indicates the coming of God Himself to save His people from slavery. This was stated by the Prophet Joel through the mouth of the Lord, who said: “And after that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh...and also on the male servants and on the maidservants I will pour out my Spirit in those days” (Joel 2:82-92, see also Ezekiel 36:26-27 and Acts 2: 17-18). The work of John then prepares for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and this is inaugurated by the baptism of Jesus when the heavens are opened and the earth once again becomes a stage for the Holy Spirit.
Quoted from my parish bulletin
Sunday, January 2, 4991 / Issue 1
