THE SERVANT KING

It has been noted that Mark’s gospel uniquely sets forth Jesus as the perfect servant. It contains no genealogy of his heritage and no mention of His birth. His works are emphasized, not His words. Mark 10:45 is a key verse: “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”

But Mark began his gospel by asserting an essential and glorious truth, the perfect servant is none other than the divine Son of God: “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God” (Mark 1:1). These two truths—the divinity and servanthood of Christ—are wonderfully coalesced in His person and gloriously revealed in His work. Both majesty and meekness serve as fitting descriptions of our Lord Jesus.

The many works of the servant Jesus recorded in this gospel account are indeed the works of a servant, but no ordinary servant. He is the Divine Son of God, the creator of all things (John 1:1-3; Colossians 1:15-16; Hebrews 1:1-4). That He would come in human flesh to dwell among men testifies to the love of God (John 3:16; 1 John 3:16). That He would die for our sins exalts the great measure of His love, grace and mercy (Cf. Ephesians 2:4; 3:18-19).

J. C. Ryle, “There is a beautiful fitness in placing this truth in the very beginning of a Gospel. The divinity of Christ is the citadel and keep of Christianity. Here lies the infinite value of the atoning sacrifice He made on the cross. Here lies the peculiar merit of His atoning death for sinners. The death was not the death of a mere man, like ourselves, but of one who is “over all, God blessed forever” (Romans 9:5). We need not wonder that the sufferings of one person were a sufficient propitiation for the sin of a world, when we remember that He who suffered was the “Son of God.” Let believers cling to this doctrine with jealous watchfulness. With it, they stand upon a rock. Without it, they have nothing solid beneath their feet. Our hearts are weak. Our sins are many. We need a Redeemer who is able to save to the uttermost, and deliver from the wrath to come. We have such a Redeemer in Jesus Christ. He is “the mighty God” (Isaiah 9:6).

Emptied of His glory;
God became a man,
To walk on earth in ridicule and shame.
A Ruler, yet a Servant;
A Shepherd, yet a Lamb;
A Man of Sorrows, agony and pain.

Amazing love! How can it be
That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me!

Pastor Jerry