**Recommended Use**: Listen to the short sermon clip. Read through the provided passages and summaries. Think and talk through the provided questions. Ideally, do all that before, during, or after you meet up to with one or more followers of Jesus

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DISCUSSION ICEBREAKER:

Q: What do you think the Bible is mostly about?

INTRODUCTION OF THE "GOSPEL":

Did you know that the primary message of the Bible is summed up with a word that means “good news”? We are going to spend six times together talking about the Bible's good news.

"Good news" is what the word "gospel" means. The word "gospel" is used by the Bible and followers of Jesus to refer to: (1) the primary message of the Bible, (2) what God is accomplishing in history, (3) as a written record of the life and ministry of Jesus, and (4) what the church believes, preaches, and lives. In the first century, a "gospel" message was usually an announcement of victory from a king or general that gave reason to rejoice.

We have four distinct gospel records of the good news of the historical Jesus. Eye witnesses of Jesus's life and ministry wrote, reviewed, and accepted these records as both historically and theologically true. This is how one of Jesus's most well-known followers and apostles described the gospel records:

2 Peter 1:16

"For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty."

The Bible says there must be at least two witnesses of an account before you consider it, and we have double that in the four gospel accounts. Reading them is like sitting down with one of Jesus's eye witness representatives. You sit and hear him retell what Jesus's representatives had told and retold. As you listen, he makes various points for you to consider about Jesus.

Mark’s Gospel of Jesus—which many believe to be the earliest—was likely written within 25 years of Jesus’s ministry. The author, John Mark, assisted Peter and would have worked with Peter in writing this record. This gospel account makes a concise claim in the first verse and then backs it up by spending the remainder of the account recording what Jesus said and did. This account is written and arranged to not only inform but also to compel the reader to respond to Jesus.

Here is the title and claim: Mark 1:1 "The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God."

Consider each primary word in context of all the Bible:

• Beginning—promised new creation and covenant

• Gospel—promised good news

• Jesus—Yahweh (the LORD) saves

• Christ—promised Messiah (Anointed One/Prophet/Priest/King)

• The Son of God—promised Offspring and resurrected King

Q: What do you think about that enormous claim?

We are inviting you to examine the evidence and consider this claim by going through Mark's Gospel of Jesus. Here's how we will do that.

INTRODUCTION TO THIS SERIES FORMAT:

Our church heard 55 sermons in Mark's Gospel. You can listen to them in our app as you read through Mark, but we recommend you start by listening to the last of those sermons over six days. That's a part of what we will do in these six meetups.

The idea is that you go through this with someone by meeting together six times. You will find discussion questions added along the way to help you think critically and engage in meaningful conversation.

Over the six days in Mark's Gospel, we will follow the way Mark arranged the various accounts of Jesus’s ministry to confront each one who hears it with this question: “What good is the gospel doing you?” Or, “How are you responding to Jesus, His message, and His work?”

More of this is summarized in the series description. It will be helpful to have read that. Also, here's two quick tech tips: (1) Consider using the notes feature to keep your own discussion questions and answers together with each lesson in the app. (2) You can find links to other sermons in our app and website to help you dive deeper on topics that come up.

Q: Any questions so far?

INTRODUCTION TO THE GOSPEL MESSAGE:

Now that we have covered what we will be doing, let's consider what we will be learning as we go through Mark's Gospel. Billions of people in the past and present have been convinced that there is nothing more important than what we will discuss here. It is a matter of life and death. It is about living in joyful fellowship with God according to His good design... or not.

All creation, all of history, all followers of Jesus, all the Bible, and even truths God put in your conscience bear witness to the message of Mark’s Gospel.

Q: Did that get your attention? Be honest, does it sound a bit dramatic to you at this time?

Before going into Mark's Gospel, it is important to see how it fits within the grand narrative and message of the Bible. So that is where we will start.

THE BIBLE'S GOSPEL MESSAGE OUTLINED:

It may feel a little overwhelming at first. That' okay. We will go through all of this again one point at a time as we go through Mark's Gospel in the remaining five days. Consider this a "bird's eye view" of the Bible.

Much of this series follows this outline. We will only read a few of the Bible passages now, but you are being invited to read the rest of them on your own during the week.

Alright, here it is:

God’s Gospel is the good news and Kingly announcement revealed in all the Bible that...

1) GOD RULES: The one true God created us to enjoy and reflect His glory in all His creation.

Genesis 1:1

"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth."

Genesis 1:26–28

"And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth."

Q: Why does this matter? How does God as creator and ruler give meaning to everything? How would this affect the way we live our lives?

Q: How does God sharing His glory and presence with us give purpose to us? What does it tell us about God? What does it tell us about true joy, pleasure, and fulfillment?

Q: What does being made as God's "image-bearers" say about us? What does it mean for your life? How might it change the way you view and treat others? How might it shape the way you see yourself and how you want others to see you?

Read Later:

Genesis 1:26–28

Exodus 34:6

Psalm 90:2

Revelation 4:11

2) HUMANITY REBELS: We have rebelliously sought our own glory, earning shame and God’s just judgment for our sin.

Genesis 2:15–17

"And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die."

Q: Do you see the connection between the need to trust and obey God with enjoying and reflecting His glory? How did a test like this give Adam and Eve opportunity to trust and obey God?

Q: God said he had made everything "very good," so what knowledge was really being forbidden? Why would God create and forbid a source of knowing both "good and evil"? How does that relate to God's purpose for us to represent Him on earth?

Q: What is the end result of seeking, knowing, and doing evil? How does this relate to trusting and obeying God? Do you think God would be good if He let evil go on for ever without it being justly judged? Was God clear about the consequences?

Read Later:

Genesis 3:1-24

Romans 5:12

Romans 6:23

Revelation 21:8

3) CHRIST REDEEMS: As planned and promised, God sent His eternal Son in Christ Jesus to perfectly live, sacrificially die, victoriously rise, sovereignly reign, justly judge, and faithfully save sinners from God’s good wrath.

Genesis 3:15

"And I will put enmity between thee [Satan] and the woman [Eve], and between thy [Satan's] seed [offspring] and her seed [a singular promised offspring/a man]; it [the promised man] shall bruise thy [Satan's] head, and thou {Satan] shalt bruise his [the promised man's] heel."

1 Peter 3:18

"For Christ [Jesus] also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened [made alive/resurrected] by the Spirit:"

Q: What connections do you see between these two verses?

Q: In what way did Christ suffer? Did Christ deserve this? Why did Christ suffer?

Q: What ultimately happened to Christ? What does this have to do with why He died? What does this have to do with why we were created?

Read Later:

Genesis 3:21

Exodus 12:13

Leviticus 16:30–34

Isaiah 52:13-53:12

Psalm 22

Romans 3:19–26

4) REPENT & BELIEVE THE GOSPEL: God is reconciling back to Himself a beloved people born of His Spirit who, at the hearing of this good news, repent from sin and lovingly follow the Lord Jesus by faith now and for all eternity in the new creation to the glory of God.

Here are examples of how Jesus's followers and representatives told people to respond to this good news:

Acts 20:20–21

"...I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you... Testifying... repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ."

Acts 26:20

"...repent and turn to God, and do works meet for [consistent with] repentance."

Acts 2:38

"Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission [forgiveness] of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost."

Acts 3:18–21

"But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled. Repent ye therefore, and be converted [turn], that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."

And all this good news makes known the riches of God's grace for all eternity. God's grace saves, keeps, and continually transforms those God saves.

Ephesians 2:4–10

"But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them."

Not only is God's grace good news but also it produces good works in and through us now. As sinners, we could never restore ourselves back to enjoying and reflecting God's glory. We have no ability to do this.

Left to ourselves, we would go on sinning. And we would receive God's just, eternal judgment without forgiveness of sins. But those who receive God's grace through faith in Him are eternally reconciled to both God and His good design for us. We become living, eternal testimonies of God's grace.

Q: Does this sound like good news to you? How does it make you think differently of God? Of yourself?

Q: How is this different than a mere moralistic or idealogical framework for living? How is it different than the message of other religions? How is it different than what you thought Christianity was about?

Q: So far, how are you responding to Jesus and this good news?

Read Later:

Mark 1:14–15

John 3:16–21

Romans 10:8–14

Romans 6:1–11

Acts 2:41–47

Next week, we will begin seeing how this message is communicated through Mark's Gospel of Jesus. So, let’s sum up both the gospel message and Mark's Gospel record in a sentence.

MARK'S GOSPEL IN A SENTENCE:

God eternally redeems and righteously rules a people who repent from sin and believe on the crucified and risen Lord of all—Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

That summarizes the good news of Mark's Gospel. Keep that in mind for next time when we begin Mark's Gospel. Until then, read through the questions below and begin thinking about each one as you read some or all of the Bible passages listed above. You can find all of them by going to the Bible tab in our app and clicking on the Bible reference listed on the bottom left.

QUESTIONS TO ASK AS YOU READ THE SCRIPTURES BETWEEN MEETUPS:

Q: Is there anything that has gotten your attention? Which of those scriptures stood out to you most and why?

Q: What is something you did not realize that the Bible said before reading this?

Q: What would you like to be made more clear? Is there anything you are having a hard time accepting?

Q: How would you summarize the Bible's gospel message in your own words?

Q: How would you have described it before going through this?