Mark 1:9-15 contains three events, the Baptism of Jesus, hie temptation, and a summary of his preaching ministry in Galilee. Other gospel writers give each of these events a good deal more room than mark. In his characteristic way, he has summed up a great deal in a handful of words.
This compressed way of telling the story helps us to see the relationship between three events that we all too commonly see only one at a time.
The baptism of Jesus concludes our grand tour (over the last three blogs) of the occasions in the gospels in which God spoke aloud from the heavens. Mark tells us little else, in fact, about the event. It is helpful to compare his version of the words spoken by God here with the versions recorded in Matthew and Luke.
Both Mark and Luke agree that the words "You are my son, with whom I am pleased" are directed at Jesus.
Matthew records the words differently. In Matthew, God speaks not to Jesus, but to the onlookers. Matthew also contains the argument between Jesus and John over whether Jesus should be baptized. Matthew seems to struggle with what's going on here. Why does Jesus need to be baptized? Why does God need to tell him who he is?
In modern circles, we tend to equate baptism with the forgiveness of sin. Why, we wonder, would the Sinless One need baptism?
Over the centuries, however, a fuller bodied approach to baptism has been held. While forgiveness is clearly a part of baptism, it is not the totality of what is going on. Martin Luther, for example, spoke of baptism as our ordination into the Priesthood of Believers. Baptism, in other words, is a celebration of the call God has placed on our life to be ministers of the gospel.
In this sense. the baptism of Jesus makes more sense. Mark and Luke seem both to recognize this event as a highly personal moment in the life of Jesus, in which God affirms his call as "Son of God."
A few verses later, in Mark, Jesus is proclaiming the good news that the Kingdom of God is at hand. He has moved from call to response in an act of obedience.
In each of the gospels, though, something falls between call and response that we have come to call the "Temptation." Jesus goes into the wilderness, where he is confronted by Satan with a variety of tests of his faithfulness. Interestingly, Satan does not try to break Jesus down in the obvious areas of morality. This is not a head on display of brute strength, Good versus Evil. In fact, Mark suggests that something far more profound is going on here.
Satan is present in this moment, to be sure, but he is not in charge. The Holy Spirit has ushered Jesus into this wilderness, and God's angels attend upon him throughout. Something about this confrontation in the wilderness is divinely appointed and guided. Satan is given latitude to tempt Jesus, but the option to destroy him never seems to be present. Instead, Satan subtly challenges the shape of Jesus' calling.
You could become Messiah by feeding the hungry, Satan suggests. People have needs. Meet their needs and they'll follow you anywhere.
You could become Messiah by conforming to the spirit of this world. Bow to the idols of commercialism and empire. Work within the power structure people know and respect.
You could become Messiah by invoking God's protection. After all, wouldn't people rather follow a king of miraculous victories than one who carries a cross?
In short, Satan does not so much attempt to turn Jesus back from his calling as to nudge him aside. The temptation is not to turn away from God's call to Christhood, as to become a different sort of Messiah. In the wilderness, Jesus learns who he is, and who he is not. The shape of his call is fully discovered and established.
None of this, of course, is in Mark's account. The temptations are alluded to without description. Possibly, Mark is not aware of the more extended versions of the story that Matthew and Luke retell.
Or possibly he is aware of these more particularized accounts and simply opts not to include them.
Because for Mark, this handfull of verses is not simply a description of histry... not just something that happened to Jesus. It is also a description of discipleship... a path to be followed by all who would walk in his footsteps. We each are called and affirmed in baptism. We each seek to be ministers of the gospel in the world around us.
But in between, something else must happen. We must discover the particular shape of our own call... who we are, and who we are not.
