Discipleship in the Gospel of Mark
Translated by AI.
The Gospel of Mark and Its Emphasis on Discipleship
All four Gospels record important material on discipleship. But the shortest Gospel — Mark — places a comprehensive emphasis on the themes of discipleship: its cost, obedience, persecution, and reward. Since Jesus is the Gospel's central focus, Mark repeatedly turns his attention to Jesus' disciples, who wrestled with many challenges — selfishness, fear, unbelief, hesitation, and shortsightedness. By the time the Gospel was written, of course, they had become heroes of the faith. By stressing discipleship and service, Jesus was preparing the disciples for the mission that lay ahead.
Through Peter, one of the disciples closest to Jesus, Mark describes the disciples' difficulty in grasping Jesus' true identity. They did not understand His parables (4:13, 34; 7:18), His miracles (4:35-41; 6:45-52), His teaching on divorce (10:10-12), or His predictions of His death and resurrection (8:32-33; 9:9-13, 32). In fact, in this Gospel the disciples never fully comprehend who Jesus really is (see Peter's response to Jesus in 8:31-32) or why He came into the world. Jesus knew that His disciples would not truly understand His identity and mission until after the resurrection, and so He waited until then to reveal it plainly. Meanwhile He continues teaching them about the cost of following Him (8:34-38), humility and the life of the kingdom (9:33–10:31), and the importance of serving others (10:35-45).
For the writer of Mark's Gospel, discipleship is not only endless victories and supernatural works displayed in miracles and teaching. Discipleship is also about lowliness, humility, and costly obedience to God in confronting the sin and evil of human nature. Accepting this side of discipleship did not come easily to the disciples. They delighted in the victories and wonders but drew back from the cost. Their quarrel was over which of them ranked higher!
Two of Mark's favorite words are "way" and "follow." John prepares the way of the Lord (1:2), and Jesus teaches the way of the Lord (12:14). When we read the section of Mark from 8:27 to 10:52, we find the key teachings on discipleship, for Jesus is on the way to Jerusalem. Here the word "whoever" is used again and again to say that everyone is invited to discipleship (3:35; 8:34; 9:35, 37, 41, 42; 10:11, 15, 43, 44; 11:23). Most likely the first readers of this Gospel were being persecuted for their faith, and perhaps some were denying it. The Gospel contains teachings that fit exactly these circumstances (8:34-38; 10:30; 13:9-13; 14:27-31).
Mark spends much time showing the different dimensions of discipleship. He portrays twelve men who truly needed Jesus. They lacked insight, vision, and courage. At times they gave up everything for the kingdom; at other times they were utterly self-reliant and showed off. Yet none of this made Jesus give up on them. He kept on teaching them, forgiving them, and calling them again and again. In time they became pillars of the faith. He does the same today.
Discipleship is costly. If you want to follow Jesus, expect your days to hold both suffering and glory. Do not be taken in by the claim that a Christian always moves ahead smoothly and always feels good. There are times when religious teachers will confront you. There are times when the whip and the lash lie on the road. Mark wants us to know that pain and suffering pass; shame and disgrace pass; even death passes — but glory remains forever.
If until now the disciples had only felt what an honor it is to be a disciple of Jesus ("how blessed we are"), it was now time to see the other side of the coin. From the one who has been given more, more is expected. We must live with a sense of accountability and responsibility to God for everything, for He has given everything and He sees everything.
In the final hours of Jesus' life, in the garden of Gethsemane, we see disciples who showed how flimsy and baseless the strength they had claimed really was. Jesus had taken three of them with Him into the garden. For Jesus, too, enduring to the end was costly. His battle had begun at His baptism and His testing in the wilderness, and now it reached its climax. In such circumstances we can understand His need for the companionship of His friends, to stay awake beside Him.
The story goes on, and it fits our lives today: the teaching, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus are a repeated rebuke to human values and systems. God's order proclaims principles like these: give in order to receive; die in order to live; measure time by eternity; greatness is measured by humble service; the first shall be last and the last first; and the meek shall inherit the earth. Mark's narrative not only reports what happened to Jesus — it prepares His disciples for the same destiny.
