Mark 1:11-15

Mark 1:11 (KJB)
And there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

The voice from Heaven was God the Father. Verses 10 and 11 are killers to those who deny the trinity, especially the oneness Pentecostals and many cults. The entire Godhead was involved in this event. God speaks from Heaven that Jesus is His beloved Son in whom He is well pleased. This removes any doubt that Jesus was the Son of God and deity. This goes back to Isaiah 42. (Isa 42:1 KJV) Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. Here Jesus is referred to as His servant and His elect. We read that God has put His spirit upon Him as we read in verse 10 and the fact that He is going to bring judgment to the Gentiles, that is, He is going to die for the Elect, of whom many will be Gentiles from all over the world. God is now giving affirmation to the earthly ministry of His Son. The reason that the Christian can be pleasing to God is because we are in His Son, (Col 3:3 KJV) For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. Since God was pleased with His Son, the sacrifice Christ made on Calvary was imputed to all the Elect and that is why the Christian, not the religious person pleases God.

Mark 1:12 (KJB)
And immediately the Spirit driveth him into the wilderness.

The word “immediately” is used 17 times in the book of Mark. Now that Jesus was baptized and was introduced to the world it was now imperative for Him to be tested in the wilderness. The word “driveth” in this verse carries with it the meaning of “send out” when used in a positive manner but in the negative it means “to violently expel.” So this meant that right after the baptism of Jesus, there was literally no time to be spent between His baptism and His trek into the wilderness.

Mark 1:13 (KJB)
And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him.

While Jesus was in the wilderness for forty days, He had undergone the temptations of Satan. Remember, Jesus did not eat for forty days and that would place a great hunger strain on the body so Satan came to Jesus and tempted Him to turn stones into bread. Jesus refused to yield to the temptation. He also rejected the other temptations of Satan, the one where Jesus could throw Himself down from the highest point of the temple and the second one where if Jesus would worship Satan, then he would give Him all the kingdoms of the world to rule over. Mark is the only one of the Gospels to state that Jesus was in the wilderness with wild beasts which showed that He was king even of those beasts because He was safe among them just as Daniel was safe in the lion’s den. During his forty days in the wilderness, the angels of Heaven had ministered to Him which showed God’s care of His Son in the wilderness.

Mark 1:14 (KJB)
Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,

John was placed into prison because he had stated that it was unlawful for him to have his brother’s wife. The ministry of John the Baptist was rapidly approaching the end because he would never leave that prison. Herodias would make sure of that by having Herod behead him. The real reason for this is found in John 3:30. (John 3:30 KJV) He must increase, but I must decrease. John the Baptist knew that eventually he must fade away and the Lord Jesus Christ must take over. This is why the timing of John going into prison and the Lord Jesus Christ coming into Galilee to begin proclaiming the gospel was almost a simultaneous event.

Mark 1:15 (KJB)
And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

The essence of the message of Jesus was that the time was now fulfilled or completed and the long awaited kingdom of God was now at hand. Jesus uses the term “repent” and those who heard John would have already been familiar with that term. The gospel of the salvation of grace is now at hand and comes through the Lord Jesus Christ. No longer will any forgiveness of sin come through the Mosaic law once Christ goes to the cross. (1 Cor 15:3-4 KJV) For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; {4} And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: Jesus had the power and authority to destroy sin in this present world. When a person becomes saved, sin is totally expunged from their soul but Christians still have to deal with it in their flesh. The ultimate coming of the full kingdom of God will be when the last one is saved on the last day and then comes the New Heavens and the New Earth. Till then, every person who becomes saved, is representative of the Kingdom of God at present.

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