Studying a Gospel: The Gospel of Mark

A gospel is good news

The word gospel means good news. In the Christian Bible there are four gospels, and each one is an account of the life, teaching, death and rising of Jesus. The Gospel of Mark is one of them. It is often described as the shortest gospel and is widely thought to be the earliest, and it moves quickly from one event to the next. Christians read it as a source that tells them who Jesus was, what he taught and what he did. This module looks at what the Gospel of Mark contains, how it presents Jesus, the themes that run through it, and why Christians treat it as a source of authority. Belief is described here as belief that Christians hold, so that the material can be studied fairly.

Gospel words

Learn these terms before you work with the Gospel of Mark as a source.

Match each Mark episode to what it shows

Two pictures of Jesus in Mark

The Gospel of Mark holds together two portraits of Jesus at the same time.

What kind of Messiah?

In the Gospel of Mark, Peter names Jesus as the Christ, and straight afterwards Jesus begins to speak about his coming suffering. What does this suggest the Gospel of Mark means by calling Jesus the Christ?

• That being the Christ involves suffering and service, not only power
• That the Christ would avoid all hardship
• That the Christ would be an earthly king with an army
• That the title has no real meaning

Reading Mark as a source

For Christians the Gospel of Mark is more than a story. It is a source they turn to in order to learn what Jesus taught, how he acted and what his death and rising mean. It is read aloud in worship, studied for guidance, and used to support beliefs about who Jesus is. When you study it in this subject, the fair approach is to say what the account presents and what Christians draw from it, and to back up a point by pointing to an actual event in the gospel, such as a healing, a parable, the entry into Jerusalem or the empty tomb. That habit of giving evidence from the text is exactly what the exam rewards.

Pick the true statements about Mark

Select every statement about the Gospel of Mark that is true.

• The word gospel means good news
• It tells of the life, teaching, death and rising of Jesus
• It is often thought to be the shortest gospel
• It was written down by Jesus himself
• It leaves out the death of Jesus

Order the events in Mark

Put these events from the Gospel of Mark in the order they come.

• the baptism of Jesus
• the calling of the first disciples
• the confession of Peter
• the entry into Jerusalem
• the empty tomb

Complete the gospel facts

The word _____ means good news. The Gospel of Mark is one of _____ gospels in the Christian Bible. It tells of the life, teaching, death and _____ of Jesus. Christians treat it as a source of _____ about his life.

A friend writes down what they saw

Imagine a close friend who was there through the most important part of a life sits down and writes it all out for you, not to show off fine writing but so that you will know what truly happened and why it mattered. The friend picks which moments to include, tells them plainly and quickly, and wants you above all to understand the person at the heart of the story. That is close to how the earliest Christians received a written account of the life of Jesus: a plain, urgent record from people near the events, set down so that readers would grasp who Jesus was and what he did. Studying the text well means asking what the writer wanted readers to see.

Tap what a gospel contains

Tap every item that a gospel account of Jesus actually contains.

• his teaching in parables
• accounts of his miracles
• the story of his death and rising
• a list of modern football scores

The Gospel of Mark run

Answer each one correctly to keep your lives. Choose the best answer.

Study Mark fairly

Read each situation and choose the fairest, best-supported answer.

• You are asked to explain what Christians believe about Jesus from the Gospel of Mark. What is the fair way to write it?
• A question asks for a key theme in the Gospel of Mark. Which is a strong answer?
• You want to support a point about Mark with evidence. What should you do?

Build a point about Mark

Choose the word for each gap to complete one accurate point about the Gospel of Mark.

Explain the Gospel of Mark

A student new to the subject asks you what the Gospel of Mark is and why it matters to Christians. Explain it clearly and fairly, presenting belief as belief that Christians hold.

• Explain what a gospel is and what the word means
• Explain what the Gospel of Mark contains, namely the life, teaching, death and rising of Jesus
• Explain how the Gospel of Mark presents Jesus, as the Son of God and as a servant who suffers
• Name a key theme, such as the identity of Jesus or the cost of discipleship
• Explain why Christians treat the gospel as a source of authority