Prompt:

How do the Gospel’s seem from the perspective of a non-believer like Jesus’s younger brothers James and Jude?

Introduction:

Research:

Mark 1

After (his wildman cousin) John announced and baptised him, and (Jesus disappears for 40 days) Satan tempted him in the wilderness, Jesus returned to Galilee to start his ministry. The mission: preaching the Message of God: “Time’s up! God’s kingdom is here. Change your life and believe the Message.” (Mark 1:14-15 MSG)

(what does ministry mean?) (Unbelievers wouldn’t know that the good news of Jesus Christ “follows to the letter the scroll of the prophet Isaiah” (Mark 1:1-3))

Jesus began assembling his boys. Telling them he would turn them from fishermen to fishers OF men. (Mark 1:16-18)

(it’s weird to imagine John, “The Disciple Jesus loved” who was putting his head on Jesus’s shoulder during the last supper being a “son of thunder.” That nickname implies rowdiness, but following Jesus apparently tamed him. )

In Capernaum he began teaching in the meeting places. It was good teaching, but what really got the people buzzing was when a possessed person was cleansed before their eyes. (Mark 1:23-24)

The disturbed man made a scene, knew Jesus, and announced him as a Holy One of God come to destroy “us.” And Jesus told the unclean spirit to get out of the man, causing the guy to spasm and yell before “getting out.” (Mark 1:23-26)

(From a non-believer’s perspective, this would be an easily stage-able spectacle.)

But the spectacle worked. At Simon and Andrew’s house (29), people start bringing sick and evil afflicted people to Jesus and he cured them. (Mark 1:32-34)

From there they went through the villages’ meeting places… teaching and throwing out demons. (Mark 1:39)

(So Jesus became the “demon slayer dude”) (What does a demon possessed person look like, what does an exorcism/deliverance look like?)

But he didn’t just throw out demons, he showed himself able to cure normal ailments. Simon’s mother in law had a fever. After he took her hands (laid hands on her), the fever left her (Mark 1:29-31).

The people didn’t just bring demon possessed people, but people with a variety of ailments. A leper begged Jesus to cleanse him, and Jesus laid hands on him and spoke. Immediately the leprosy was gone and his skin was healthy (Mark 1:41:45)

Jesus told the leper to keep to Moses’ law, but the man didn’t. As a result, Jesus got too popular to move freely in the city and had to move about more sneakily. People still flocked to him. (Mark 1:44-45)

(It must have been pretty exciting to be healed instantly, but was the leper’s excitement over getting the miracle WITHOUT keeping the law? Did he go to the priest and keep the law like Jesus told him to, or did he ignore it and make Jesus seem like a criminal to Jewish law?)