Mark's Gospel

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All of the four gospels are portraits of Jesus. They are not exactly biographies, and they leave out many things that a modern biography would include. Rather they help us to see things that we need to know about Jesus.

The Christian life is a matter of living on Jesus. "Out of his fullness have we all received". We need to see a lot of Jesus. He stays the same "yesterday, today and for ever". When we see the way He was when He walked around on planet earth, we can know He is like that today. We need to see His power, His authority, and supremely we need to see His dying for us on the cross. We need to know that He is alive for us today.

In different ways the four gospels make Jesus real to us. By the Holy Spirit, Jesus is still real to us today. Through the four gospels we have records concerning what Jesus was like and what He actually did. We do not know everything we would like to about the life of Jesus, but we have enough. We are given sufficient for us to know Jesus for ourselves - by the Holy Spirit.

Mark's Gospel is the simplest and most straight-forward write-up of the material concerning Jesus' ministry in Galilee. It contains no hidden meanings. We do not have to look for hidden theological controversies that caused it to be written. It does not have any symbolism except the symbolism that Jesus Himself used. Mark's meaning lies on the surface. He writes a straightforward account of basic facts about Jesus: how He was rejected, how He was a man of supernatural power and compelling authority, how He died on the cross as a ransom for many.

Michael Eaton's slices for the Gospel of Mark can be found in the table below.

Mark's Gospel - Small Group Study

Sovereign World Trust has also produced two workbooks and two leaders' handbooks as part of a SMALL GROUP STUDY resource for Mark's Gospel. The workbooks are based on Michael Eaton's Preaching Through the Bible - Mark. They are produced by Chris Moffett, with input from Calvin Eaton, to support his father's teaching legacy. The workbooks offer structured questions and answers suitable for different experience levels, helping readers understand the Gospel of Mark and apply its teachings in practice. The leaders' handbooks offer guidance, support and study-by-study explanations of the open questions contained within the workbooks. All study resources can be found here:

find the study

Part	Title	Reference
1	Introducing Mark's Gospel
2	God Prepares Jesus for Ministry	1:1-20
3	Jesus the Messiah	1:21-45
4	A Friendly Saviour	2:1-17
5	Grace in God's Kingdom	2:18-3:6
6	Family of Disciples	3:7 - 35
7	The Parables of the Kingdom	4:1 - 20
8	Responding to the Kingdom	4:21 - 34
9	Jesus, Lord of All	4:35 - 5:20
10	Lord of Death and Disease	5:21 - 43
11	The Experts at Nazareth	6:1 - 6a
12	Expansion and Opposition	6:6b - 29
13	Abundant Provision from Jesus	6:30 - 56
14	Useless Legalism	7:1 - 23
15	The Power of Faith	7:24 - 37
16	A Second Touch	8:1 - 26
17	The Revelation of Jesus as Messiah	8:27 - 30
18	The Revelation of the Cross	8:31 - 9:1
19	The Transfiguration	9:2-13
20	Power Through Persistent Prayer	9:14-29
21	The Offer of Greatness	9:30-50
22	Divorce, Children, Wealth	10:1-31
23	Greatness in the Kingdom of God	10:32-52
24	Looking for Fruit	11:1-26
25	A Question of Authority	11:27 - 12:12
26	A Day of Questions	12:13-44
27	The Predicted Fall of Jerusalem	13:1-23
28	The Coming of the Son of Man	13:24-37
29	Three Views of the Cross	14:1-11
30	The Last Supper	14:12-26
31	Faithful Saviour, Weak Disciples	14:27-42
32	Able to Sympathise	14:43-72
33	The Innocent Found Guilty	15:1-20
34	Crucifixion and Burial	15:21-47
35	Jesus is Alive!	16:1-8
36	Some Facts About Mark's Gospel

MARK'S GOSPEL - SMALL GROUP STUDY

Workbook 1 (Mark 1-9:1)

This study workbook is based on the first nine chapters of Preaching Through the Bible - Mark, originally published in 1998. It has been produced by Chris Moffett, Director of Sovereign World Trust, with input from Calvin Eaton, Michael Eaton's son, who helps oversee his father's teaching legacy.

The guide includes structured questions designed for participants with varying levels of experience. These questions, along with answers, aim to ensure that readers understand the teachings in the Gospel of Mark and reflect on their practical application.

For ease of reference, each of the studies below is prefaced with the relevant 'slice' from Michael Eaton's Preaching Through the Bible - Mark.

Additionally, a Leaders' Handbook has been created to support facilitators of study groups. This can be found below. This manual provides guidance on responding to the open-ended questions and offers practical advice on leading groups effectively.

Study No.	Study Title	Bible Reference	Workbook 1 Page
	Introduction
1	Introducing Mark's Gospel		6-9
2	God Prepares Jesus for Ministry	1:1-20	11-15
3	Jesus the Messiah	1:21-45	17-21
4	A Friendly Saviour	2:1-17	23-28
5	Grace in God's Kingdom	2:18-3:6	31-36
6	Family of Disciples	3:7 - 35	38-42
7	The Parables of the Kingdom	4:1 - 20	45-52
8	Responding to the Kingdom	4:21 - 34	55-59
9	Jesus, Lord of All	4:35 - 5:20	61-65
10	Lord of Death and Disease	5:21 - 43	67-72
11	The Experts at Nazareth	6:1 - 6a	74-78
12	Expansion and Opposition	6:6b - 29	80-85
13	Abundant Provision from Jesus	6:30 - 56	88-92
14	Useless Legalism	7:1 - 23	95-99
15	The Power of Faith	7:24 - 37	102-106
16	A Second Touch	8:1 - 26	109-113
17	The Revelation of Jesus as Messiah	8:27 - 30	116-119
18	The Revelation of the Cross	8:31 - 9:1	122-126
	Answers Studies 1-4		129-132
	Answers Studies 5-7		133-139
	Answers Studies 8-12		139-143
	Answers Studies 13-18		144-150
	Glossary		151-153

Sample of Workbook combined with Leaders' Handbook 1 (Mark 1-9:1)

Intro to workbook..................... and how the table below works.

The leader's handbook provides guidance and help for those leading a study group through the course. It is particularly written for those new to the role of study group leader or to this course. It offers specific help in answering the workbook's For further thought and discussion open questions.

Study No.	Study Title & Page Range	Bible Reference	Leaders' Handbook Guide Page
	Introduction to Workbook		Introduction to Leaders' Handbook
1	Introducing Mark's Gospel (pages 6-9)		Leaders' Handbook guidance 1
2	God Prepares Jesus for Ministry (pages 11-15)	1:1-20	Leaders' Handbook guidance 2
3	Jesus the Messiah (pages 17-21)	1:21-45	Leaders' Handbook guidance 3
4	A Friendly Saviour (pages 23-28)	2:1-17	Leaders' Handbook guidance 4
5	Grace in God's Kingdom (pages 31-36)	2:18-3:6	Leaders' Handbook guidance 5 MISSING
6	Family of Disciples (pages 38-42)	3:7 - 35	Leaders' Handbook guidance 6
7	The Parables of the Kingdom (pages 45-52)	4:1 - 20	Leaders' Handbook guidance 7
8	Responding to the Kingdom (pages 55-59)	4:21 - 34	Leaders' Handbook guidance 8
9	Jesus, Lord of All (pages 61-65)	4:35 - 5:20	Leaders' Handbook guidance 9
10	Lord of Death and Disease (pages 67-72)	5:21 - 43	Leaders' Handbook guidance 10
11	The Experts at Nazareth (pages 74-78)	6:1 - 6a	Leaders' Handbook guidance 11
12	Expansion and Opposition (pages 80-85)	6:6b - 29	Leaders' Handbook guidance 12
13	Abundant Provision from Jesus (pages 88-9)	6:30 - 56	Leaders' Handbook guidance 13
14	Useless Legalism (pages 95-99)	7:1 - 23	Leaders' Handbook guidance 14
15	The Power of Faith (pages 102-106)	7:24 - 37	Leaders' Handbook guidance 15
16	A Second Touch (pages 109-113)	8:1 - 26	Leaders' Handbook guidance 16
17	The Revelation of Jesus as Messiah (pages 116-119)	8:27 - 30	Leaders' Handbook guidance 17
18	The Revelation of the Cross (pages 122-126)	8:31 - 9:1	Leaders' Handbook guidance 18
	Answers Studies 1-4 (pages 129-132)
	Answers Studies 5-7 (pages 133-139)
	Answers Studies 8-12 (pages 139-143)
	Answers Studies 13-18 (pages 144-150)
	Glossary (pages 151-153)

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