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The Gospel of Mark

The Gospel of Mark: Inductive Bible Study

-Notes (PDF)

-Sample Survey of Mark (PDF)
-Sample Segment Survey of Mark 4:1-4:34 (PDF)
-Sample Detailed Observation of Mark 15:34 (PDF)
-Sample Detailed Analysis of Mark 4:3-4:20 (PDF)

-Gospel of Mark, Part 1
-Gospel of Mark, Part 2
-Gospel of Mark, Part 3
-Gospel of Mark, Part 4
-Gospel of Mark, Part 5
-Gospel of Mark, Part 6
-Gospel of Mark, Part 7
-Gospel of Mark, Part 8
-Gospel of Mark, Part 9
-Gospel of Mark, Part 10
-Gospel of Mark, Part 11
-Gospel of Mark, Part 12
-Gospel of Mark, Part 13
-Gospel of Mark, Part 14
-Gospel of Mark, Part 15
-Gospel of Mark, Part 16
-Gospel of Mark, Part 17
-Gospel of Mark, Part 18
-Gospel of Mark, Part 19
-Gospel of Mark, Part 20
-Gospel of Mark, Part 21
-Gospel of Mark, Part 22
-Gospel of Mark, Part 23
-Gospel of Mark, Part 24
-Gospel of Mark, Part 25
-Gospel of Mark, Part 26
-Gospel of Mark, Part 27
-Gospel of Mark, Part 28

135 Responses

  6. Everything you’ve said is false. Samson WAS black, the bible clearly states he had locs. Non blacks cannot have locs naturally, because they do not possess the coily and kinky texture of afro hair. Samson never touched his hair and it was never touched (till Delilah came around) because it was his source of strength, which is why it makes sense that his hair became locs. When Afro hair is left overtime, it naturally locs itself. Straight hair cannot do this. People need to understand that Christianity of today has been europeanised. Black people were the original.

    Reply

    1. I love how you Afrocentrists misquote the Bible to make it look like everyone was black. The Bible says that Samson had seven locks. A lock is a piece or pieces of hair that have been bunched or tied together in some way. White people frequently refer to bunched sections of their hair as locks. Stop searching for your identity in the religion that was given to our ancestors by slave masters. It was not the religion of our ancestors before they were enslaved and shipped across the Atlantic Ocean.

      Reply

      1. ARE U SERIOUS RIGHT RIGHT NOW?? IF WE DIDN’T ALL COME FROM AFRICANS..EXPLAIN THE SUB-SAHRAN AFRICAN BLOOD INSIDE EVERY LIVING PERSON ON THE PLANET????

        Reply

  15. If you research the Ethiopian Jews, known as, Beta Israel (or Falasha)
    they have been associated with the Tribe of Dan for centuries, and this
    has been asserted by a number of noted rabbis and rabbinical scholars as
    far back as the 15th century (as if the latter really matters to these people).

    Beta Israel still perform the most ancient religious ceremonies known to “Judaism” or Hebraism.

    Secondly, I guess you never heard of the Lemba people of Uganda, a Black African People, who have more actual Hebrew or Jewish DNA markers than any of the other European or Mediterranean Jews known in the world today, including within the modern state of Israel!

    Let’s not even talk about the number of African skulls found in Lachish or the wall reliefs of the Assyrian conquest, or that Hebrew is considered an Afro-Asiatic language.

    Just as today and even more so in the past, the Hebrews or the nation of Israel was not confined to a ‘pure race’ as mythologized, Abraham was from Ur (Sumeria) and even Moses married an Ethiopian woman, and throughout the bible we see the Israelites mixing and some having even Canaanite names.

    A portrayal of a Black Samson, is wa-aaaay more plausible and likely than a “white” Charleston Heston Moses!

    You need to read, The Invention of the Jewish People, written by, Shlomo Sanda, a “white” Jewish scholar.

    The book was in the best-seller list in Israel for nineteen weeks. It was reprinted three times when published in French (Comment le peuple juif fut inventé, Fayard,
    Paris, 2008). In France, it received the “Prix Aujourd’hui”, a journalists’ award given to a non-fiction political or historical work. An English translation of the book was published by Verso Books in October 2009. The book has also been translated into German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, and Russian, and as of late 2009 further translations were underway The Invention of the Jewish People has now been translated into more languages than any other Israeli history book.

    Posted are the pictures of an Ethiopian Jew (Beta Israel) and two Lemba men.

    Reply

  16. I enjoyed the article and agree for the most part. I especially liked points 2, 7, 10, 12. However, I take issue with points 3 and 4, and think you sort of stretched point 14. I don’t agree that it is un-Biblical and to distort the Gospel to argue that the early Christian most certainly looked forward to the second coming of Christ with great anticipation…and we can be fairly sure that they thought that included Heaven.
    Also, I see a very early and clear understanding in the Scriptures that the laity/clergy split is indeed a split but not one out of prestige, power or human prejudice. It begins with Moses and Aaron and continues all through Scripture. God specifically calls some people for certain tasks. Jesus called 12 to a certain task, not 502 (though all are called to the cross), and it seems to me that God does indeed (to this day) call certain people to be his “clergy”. However, I don’t believe for one second that that means that the laity is without purpose, point or value. On the contrary, it is just a matter of order and purpose. The laity has , throughout church history, proved to be just as important as the the clergy and currently it is the laity that holds many churches to the Biblical faith in a time of progressive pastors trying on the suits of post-modern age.

    Again, thank you for your stimulating post!

    /Andreas (UMC pastor in Norway and married to the granddaughter of the late Dr. Robert Traina)

    Reply

    1. Thanks, Andreas. Robert Traina was one of my heroes. On pt. 3, I do not mean to exclude heaven; just to avoid unbiblical dualism. On pt. 4, again I am focusing on the NT itself; the distinction in the NT is not between clergy & laity (since in the NT “laity” means ALL the people). I deal with this in “Community of the King.” It is unbiblical the take “laity” to mean something less than 100% of all people. Biblical Greek does not support that (as I am sure Dr. Traina would affirm). On pt. 14, I devote a whole book to that.
      Shalom!

      Reply

      1. Thank you for your response. Yes, Dr. Traina was a great man. I never had the privilege of taking his classes but I still remember visiting him one year while in seminary and asking him about an assignment on Romans and IBS. Priceless.
        I see what you were trying to do on point three and agree. On point 4 I don’t know what “Community of King” means, but if the people of God are the laity then surely there is no distinction between what we today would call clergy and laity. However, the point then seems to be that out of the people of God, the laity, God calls certain people to certain tasks (and equips them accordingly). Paul, Timothy and the rest seems to fit that description.
        As I am sure you are aware, it is the people of God (the laity) in the UMC that determine and validate the calling of God on certain persons today…and then set them apart for the task they are called for. Those people then make up the called ones, or the clergy. It seems to me that that fits with the Biblical story…although in the Scripture God often called people directly.

        Reply

        2. Andreas, yes, I can agree with that formulation. Clearly there are “varieties of ministries” and God raises of “apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers.”
          Community of the King refers to my book by that title, which has been translated into a number of languages.
          I never had Dr. Traina as a teacher, but know of his background in the Free Methodist Italian Mission in Chicago.
          Shalom, Howard

          Reply

  17. I really like this! Especially since it’s really not specific t any particular brand of Christianity (i.e. Evangelical, progressive, etc.), but rather applies to all believers. Many of these are ideas I’ve been trying to get across to people. Excellent read! I am certainly a fan of adopting a Christological hermeneutic.

    Reply

  18. Paul did not know Jesus, nor hear his words as written by Matthew. Paul leads many down the path to iniquity through his false teachings regarding salvation. Anyone who reads Matthew and Paul can understand how Paul perverts the teachings of Jesus. Never underestimate the power of evil in the world. Paul was/is a tool of the devil… beware of those who come in the clothing of sheep to scatter the flock…

    Reply

    2. Paul was not a tool of the Devil, but rather one of the greatest of the apostles having met Jesus on the road to Damascus. The point is that Paul’s writing must be read and interpreted within the context of the whole of scripture. To eliminate Paul ‘ writings would be more damaging to the church than to over-emphasize them.

      Reply

  19. I am using this article as a series of studies. Just the first one, has caused a storm in FB. I am translating it into Spanish, bit by bit.
    You can find it here, luisjovel.com

    Reply

  23. If that was their reasoning for making him black, I find it silly. I’ve never seen a portrayal of Romeo and Juliet that made Romeo black so that a modern audience could relate. How hard is it for people to understand the tension caused by a marriage between members of feuding families, tribes or nations?

    Reply

  28. I would like you to say more about using Romans as the theological lens for the rest of Scripture, and do we blame Karl Barth for that, or does it go back to Luther and/or Calvin? As to much of the rest, including discipleship rather than believers and the Kingdom of God rather than heaven, it seems as if you are reading my blog 😉 Perhaps we can include in the topic of salvation, Luke the Evangelist’s understanding that salvation has some practical, tangible reality — it is the dead being raised, the sick being healed, rich thieves making restitution and changing their lives. I could go on all day, so I’ll just stop with saying thanks for this piece.

    Reply

  30. Break The Chains Of Mental Slavery Give The White Man Back His Jesushttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XrOQrm0xKo

    Reply

  33. People who make the greatest story ever told about race are entirely missing the point. Jesus is the son of God…race does not enter the equation. And whether any character from any story mentioned in the Holy Bible is black, brown, yellow, red or white means nothing. Who really cares. Anyone who wants to argue over race is simply listening to and following the voice of satan. Heaven will be full of those from all people, all tribes, all tongues and all lands! End of story. End race hatred…it’s up to you individually overcome and God expects from each of us.

    Reply

  65. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOomBSTTzrU

    qoute” Kushi is an offensive way to describe a dark-skinned person (mostly African Americans and Ethiopian Jews). Its origin is in the biblical land of Kush, which is today’s Sudan and southern Egypt.
    The word is translated as Nigger or Negro, but believed to be (I’ve heard it few times) less offensive than these names. I personally think that it doesn’t matter how offensive the word is, as long as it is offensive.
    Anyway, you shouldn’t use this term.

    http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/kushim.1380997/

    Reply

  99. Black People Are the Most Hated People in the Country and These States Have the Most Hate Groups: Report

    http://www.theroot.com/articles/news/2015/07/black_people_are_the_most_hated_people_in_the_country_and_these_10_states.html

    “America has a plethora of people and a bunch of haters. For the haters, there are hate groups, and hate groups thrive in this country. So the good people over at 24/7 Wall St. have come up with a list noting the “10 States With the Most Hate Groups.” Using data from the Southern Poverty Law Center, which notes that there are some “784 active hate groups nationwide,” 24/7 has recognized and determined that black people face the most hate, more than the number of those hated based on sexual orientation or other racial or religious affiliation.

    According to 24/7 Wall St., “White nationalist or white supremacist groups, including the Ku Klux Klan, neo-Nazis, racist skinheads, and neo-Confederates are by far the most common hate groups in the United States. And African Americans are by far the most victimized group of people by hate-group activity and other, less extreme forms of discrimination.”

    The report also determined that separation has contributed to the level of hatred that blacks face. “Dislike, intolerance and hatred seem to diminish when people live alongside each other, and these attitudes are more likely to flourish when people are separated,” the site notes.

    Unsurprisingly, most of the states in the top 10 are in the South, which has historically been more segregated than the rest of the nation.

    “The legacy of racial hatred in the South contributes to the high concentration of hate groups. There is a belief among many Americans in the South that ‘the [Civil] [W]ar wasn’t even over slavery, that the South has been pilloried, defeated militarily and treated terribly ever since,’ ” Mark Potok, senior fellow at the Southern Poverty Law Center, told the news site.

    Below are the top five of the 10 states with the largest number of hate groups, according to 24/7 Wall St. To see the full list of 10, with in-depth analysis, go here:”

    Reply

  112. this site here just block me because they can’t take more the video links of the mistreatment of black and murder of black people I don’t blame them i f they can’t take

    What Indians Need To Know About American Black People

    http://www.patheos.com/blogs/whitehindu/2015/04/what-indians-need-to-know-about-american-black-people/

    I add this here cause your so called Christians eye and my followers to see. It’s depressing.

    they delete me after I post this video
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9j55QPiwIIE&feature=share

    Reply

  113. Samson wasn’t a white man, torah and bible are african fairy tales. one more thing I dislike religion

    Reply

  118. Eurocentrics are something else.. smh. it has been proven over and over again that the so called jews you see today are not the original inhabitants. they are converts

    Reply

  119. black people being the first humans on this planet for trillions of years. we are the original humans our ancestors watched civilizations come and go. we cant forget that kemet wasnt our first kingdom but all of africa had large kingdoms

    Reply

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