Ethel Green

Jesus Said It, A March through Mark Ethel Green

From the heart and lips of Jesus through the eyes and memories of Peter to the pen of Mark comes the good news, "The kingdom of God is near" (Mark 1:15). Jesus' followers immediately realized that they must repent and believe to enter that Kingdom. From the voice of Jesus' forerunner, his cousin John, we hear of a better baptism. "I baptize with water, but he [Jesus] will baptize you with the Holy Spirit" (Mark 1:8). From over two hundred verses containing words of Jesus in Mark, I chose thirty-two to head up devotional messages. Why thirty-two? You may consider it a math problem. With sixteen chapters in Mark, I chose to do two devotionals per chapter-thirty-two quotes for thirty-two devotionals. Following the devotionals are questions for contemplation either as an individual or in a group setting. For your commitment, there is the keeping up with the prescribed scripture readings for each day. I trust you are up to I this challenge. You will have read through Mark in thirty-two days. From the remaining seventy-seven quotes, you will find some arranged into categories in an appendix showing their importance to holiness doctrine. In Jesus Said It: A March through Mark, I came to realize how important the emphasis on holiness is-the filling with the Holy Spirit. You will notice this emphasis on the theme page. From Bible historians, we learn that Mark's writing is considered the earliest of the Gospels, having been written in the early AD 60. From his first sentence, we hear, "The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God." This helps us understand the time, the beginning, the subject, the Gospel [good news], and the main participant-Jesus.