Shownotes:

After the preparation time of Jesus for ministry, we come to the beginning of the King starting his Kingdom reign. First, he must establish the mission of calling people to repent and believe. Then, the King chooses subjects and servants to fulfill his decrees. These guys aren’t who you would expect Jesus to use as the core team. That’s because his Kingdom is an upside down one. Let’s start with today’s text:

Mark 1:14-20 (NLT) Later on, after John was arrested, Jesus went into Galilee, where he preached God’s Good News. “The time promised by God has come at last!” he announced. “The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!”// One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living. Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” And they left their nets at once and followed him. // A little farther up the shore Jesus saw Zebedee’s sons, James and John, in a boat repairing their nets. He called them at once, and they also followed him, leaving their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired men.

The starting of a ministry necessitates establishing the mission and training up a team!

The King’s Speech

Jesus begins his ministry with a call to repent and believe in the Gospel. 

• Repent and Believe. The Kingdom is near. Inauguration.

Mark 1:14-15 Later on, after John was arrested, Jesus went into Galilee, where he preached God’s Good News. “The time promised by God has come at last!” he announced. “The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!”

• Why Galilee?
• Jesus is from there.
• It’s where he will call his 1st disciples.
• He does his first miracle there. Water into wine.
• Herod's base camp is there. 
• The Kingdom is coming with every step he takes on the earth. He's spreading seeds for it to grow as he walks around Israel.

Mark 4:26-27 Jesus also said, “The Kingdom of God is like a farmer who scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, while he’s asleep or awake, the seed sprouts and grows, but he does not understand how it happens.

• Unseen and invasive. Somewhat unpredictable but powerful.

Luke 17:21 You won’t be able to say, ‘here it is!’ or ‘It’s over there!’ For the Kingdom of God is already among you.”

The good news is that we are invited to join up with a loving but powerful King.

• “Kingdom of God is near”
• A brief definition = the rule of God on earth. 
• Because God is good, his rule is a blessing to his subjects.
• Imagine: wouldn’t it be awesome if our government officials were all absolutely GOOD. None crooked. Power-hungry. Foolish. Etc.
• The Kingdom is a system that replaces or is at war with the World system. 
• Because God is righteous, his rule is also a threat to his enemies.
• This is good news because humanity is plagued / oppressed by evil and spiritual darkness. God’s kingdom will prevail over these powers. 
• Starts prevailing when Jesus appears on the scene. He heals people’s broken bodies. He frees people from demonic powers. 
• It continues to prevail as people follow him and he works liberation in their lives. 
• his kingdom rule will eventually prevail over all evil / all enemies when he returns.
• The response Jesus calls for = repent and believe this good news
• As in message #2: “Sins” are merely the expression - outward or inward - of a self-directed life. Repentance is turning from my self-directed life and turning to God. 
• The reason most people reject this good news is that they don’t want another king besides themselves: “the Kingdom of Me.”
• Application: surrender the “kingdom of Me” to the Kingdom of God
• “Believe” = accepting / trusting in / applying the good news of Jesus to your own life. Here in Mark 1, the reader doesn’t yet know about the cross or rez. This will all be filled out as we go. But the most foundational idea here: trust in God’s promise through Jesus. 
• The Gospel = the King takes our place and dies! This is Upside Down!
• Only humble servants can be a part of this. You must have a relationship with the King!
• Isn’t that backwards? No one has a personal relationship with earthly kings unless they are of some great importance.

The King's People 

Jesus enlists ordinary people to follow him. These guys aren’t who you would expect to be used as the core team.

1:16-17 One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living. Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!”

• The King and his subjects are too ordinary. The core team. He's enlisting more people to plant seeds. He knows the call to faith isn’t just passive but can actually hook the intended catch.
• Fishing illustration about how we just hope that our bait and hook and timing are right for the right fish. God’s more precise than that!

Jesus takes responsibility for shaping us “I will show you how to fish for men.” Lit. “I will make you fishers of men.” He doesn't just show us how, but he remakes us for the task. This is the greatest answer to the objection: “I can’t do this.” But Jesus can turn you from a 98-pound weakling into a Navy SEAL.

• Simon, Andrew, James and John
• A quick look at some of their stories in the gospel of Mark will tell you that they were in for a 3 year training program that would change them from prideful, arrogant, oblivious, rejects into confident, humble, servant, followers.
• Jesus knows that these guys are going to fail, even desert Him, but It’s not based on their performance that Jesus picks them.

1:19 A little farther up the shore Jesus saw Zebedee’s sons, James and John, in a boat repairing their nets. 

• Notice Jesus said "Follow me .." not I will follow you.
• Jesus calls ordinary people to follow him

Note that he did not call religious professionals, but ordinary people who were engaged in ordinary careers.

• Sons of thunder
• Nowadays, you would expect a great CEO leader to use the best of the best, packed resumes and generational pedigrees. 

1 Corinthians 1:26-29 Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.

• Jesus is great enough to use a bunch of nobody’s. If we’re humble enough to see it, that’s us!
• Their ordinary status proves that it is God who gets the glory and it is not self proclaimed brilliant leaders who make Kingdom work successful. The requirement to be a part of this Kingdom is repentance, faith, humility and sacrificial service.

(Trans) Following him involves engaging in his mission. The strategy is not to do it all by himself, but to enlist and commission ordinary human beings to represent him and the message we looked at last week.

Challenge: you can’t say you follow Jesus yet ignore the mission he gave us. The measure of a mature follower of Jesus is going full circle.

Leave Your Nets

Following Jesus means surrendering to his rule in our lives. This involves “leaving your nets” and getting on board with his mission.

• Immediately left their way of doing things and obediently followed The Way.

1:18 And they left their nets at once and followed him.

• What the net represents - entanglement, caught, held captive
• 2 Timothy 2:4 (ESV) No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.
• If a king calls you to action you should jump immediately to task.
• Application: Jesus is a King worthy of trust. He is righteous and good.
• The ultimate expression of trust is surrender. Illus: you trust the doctor enough to submit to going under anesthesia and letting him cut up your body. Illus: You trust your teenager enough to sit in the passenger seat while he/she drives. 
• Application: Trust Jesus enough to surrender to his rule in your life.
• His rule in your life involves getting on board with his mission.

1:20 he called them at once, and they also followed him, leaving their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired men.

• Your part is to follow. Hopefully, at once or immediately. This might mean you may have to make changes pretty quick.

Following Jesus means never being the same. Being gripped with a larger purpose than anything you’ve ever lived for.

Mark 8:34 Then, calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me.

• Maybe it involves leaving your nets, like these first disciples. Or maybe it involves following him in your current situation. We’ll see examples of that in Mark as well. But regardless of the circumstances God calls you into, the mission is the same. 
• Application: My way of life, thinking, career etc. worldly ways…

Following Jesus' example as the Servant King. Upside down from the world.

Mark 10:42–45 You know that those recognized as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise dominion over them. But it is not so among you. Rather, whoever wants to be great among you will be your servant, and whoever wants to be first will be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. 

Close:

Here we have the essence of Mark’s story. Though Jesus is indeed the mighty Messiah and Son of God, his role is not to conquer the Romans. It is to suffer and die as a ransom payment for sins. This is a far greater achievement than physical conquest. He will provide victory over humanity’s ultimate enemies: Satan, sin, and death. Those who would be his disciples must follow his path, taking up their own cross and following him in a life of self-sacrificial service—living for the kingdom and for others rather than for themselves.

Strauss, M. L. (2014). Mark. (C. E. Arnold, Ed.) (p. 19). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

Application ideas

• How purposeful / satisfying is your life? Are you bored with your routine / pursuits?
• If you’re a Christian, are you bored with how you’re living out your faith?
• Evaluate your highest purposes for living. Do they align with Jesus’ purpose?
• Accept his invitation to a higher way of living.

Big Idea: Jesus’ plan to spread the good news of God’s Kingdom is to enlist and equip ordinary people to work with him.