Mark’s gospel always has a certain directness. There is no poetic introduction like the prologue in John’s gospel - no infancy narratives like Luke. No long genealogy of Jesus like in Matthew and Luke. Just straight to the point – this is “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God.” – The beginning of the gospel – ‘gospel’ - which is a translation of the Latin evangelium, which comes from the Greek εὐαγγέλιον – which means good news – Typically good news in battle – that victory is at hand!
Mark is out to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God – and it is good news – for it is Christ, the second person of the Trinity, who becomes man and, by his death and resurrection, reconciles us back to God and pours out the Holy Spirit for the forgiveness of sins – It is good news indeed, for it is our salvation! It is a battlefield victory, for Christ has defeated sin and death!
But with how blunt Mark is sometimes and how quick he is to the point - he does not start right with Christ – his birth, death, resurrection, or ascension – but with the fulfillment of a prophecy – the prophecy of the forerunner – a messenger sent to prepare the way – John the Baptist. Even looking to the good news, something must be done - one must be prepared– something must come prior. One cannot hear if not listening – one cannot see if not looking.
And so, to get attention and announce the coming of the Messiah – to call people to prepare – to watch – to listen – the forerunner is sent – so crucial that Mark jumps straight to it – “Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you;” – For there, John the Baptist is – preaching out in the desert. – “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.” - and he was hard to miss.
Going to the desert to see John would have been a unique experience. It would not have been far; it is only 20 miles from the Jordan River – but in between is complete desert – almost no rainfall – and John was not exactly pleasant to look at – living on locusts and wild honey – clothed in rough clothing of camel’s hair.
And his message? – Repent! – calling to acknowledge one’s sins – looking at – he was a fire and brimstone preacher – he preached admitting one’s sins – to turn away from sin – and he could be bold in his preaching … yet he could not bring for the forgiveness of sins – for he was not the messiah – all he can do is point to one who is to come – that “One mightier than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” - … - John brings fire and brimstone – the reality of sin – the need for repentance – but he is not the Messiah – he does not forgive sins – he can only point to the one who does. – It is the gospel of Jesus Christ – not John the Baptist.
Yet Mark starts his Gospel with John for a reason – for he holds an essential place with his fire and brimstone – for one cannot look for forgiveness if one does not know you are guilty – if you do not know you need mercy, you will not look for the one who brings mercy – if you do not know you need salvation – you will not look for a savior – Look to all those in scripture who missed Christ – His preaching is essential to call to listen – fire and brimstone preaching has its place! - One must be prepared, or they will miss Christ –– but fire and brimstone is not the goal of preaching – and the end is not with John – but with Christ – the one who is mightier, who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.
Two thousand years ago, John was there to announce the coming of Christ - and calling people to see their sins – to repent - to prepare to recognize and welcome Christ - Still today, we must prepare – and we do in this penitential season of Advent – we prepare to celebrate the coming of Christ at Christmas - we prepare the house, travel itineraries, gift wrapping, and dinner menus, but do we prepare our souls? Do we examine our conscience? Do we go to confession? – do we take that fire and brimstone preaching of John the Baptist seriously – look to our sins – and repent – knowing that we can only recognize our savior, the one who is mightier – the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit – we only welcome him if we know we need a savior.
Indeed, John the Baptist has a purpose – fire and brimstone has a purpose – to help call us out of complacency – to recognize sins – to repent – but it always points to something greater to Christ who seeks to show us his mercy – who became man on Christmas, 2023 years ago for our sake – seeking to reconcile us to God by defeating sin and death.
After all – the prayer of absolution in the sacrament of penance begins, “God the Father of Mercies, through the death and resurrection of your Son, you reconciled the world to yourself and poured out the Holy Spirit for the forgiveness of sins.”