The Gospel of MarkSample

Chapter 16 of Mark can be quite controversial, we are going to walk through this together this week. It opens with some women going to the tomb to anoint the body of Jesus. When they arrive, they find the stone is rolled away and a “young man” (v5), most probably an angel, tells them that Jesus has risen. The women are seized by “trembling and astonishment” (v8).

The account then tells us that Jesus first appears to Mary Magdalene, then to two disciples walking, both of these accounts are included in other gospels (John 20, Luke 24). Notice though how the eleven do not believe either of these accounts. Jesus then appears to the eleven and rebukes them. He then commissions (similar to Matthew 28) them to “go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation” (v15). After, he ascends to the Father and the disciples go into all the world as they were commissioned to.

For this study, we are going to do some apologetic work on the reliability of Mark’s account.

This will lead into how we respond to the resurrection of Jesus and remind us of his grace for us even when we fail.

We recommend reading through Erin Vroom’s blog post on the BibleProject on Mark 16 as a companion to this week’s devotions.