Persecution Of Jesus In Mark's Gospel

When looking at who Jesus is according to a specific gospel it 's important to understand who wrote the piece and who it was written for. Mark’s Gospel was written in 65-70 CE, a time of persecution of Christians by Romans for their belief in Jesus. In Mark’s Gospel we see Jesus as healer and champion, suffering servant, and Messiah.
In a time of persecution, it is no wonder that seeing Jesus as healer and champion appealed to the Christian audience. Throughout Mark’s Gospel we see evidence of Jesus healing people from their plights and standing up against the injustice they face in their lives. Many lepers are made clean and people who are possessed are cured from it. In chapter 12, Jesus criticizes the scribes who are making money off religious …show more content…
Another very real role Jesus was playing was that of the suffering servant, putting himself in danger for preaching what he believed to be true. During the time of persecution, the Christian people needed someone to suffer alongside them, but also raise them up past the suffering. In this role Jesus does just that. In Mark’s Gospel we see Jesus be arrested and killed for political reasons. In many ways the persecution of Jesus reflects the coming persecution of the early Christians. However, we can also see where he calls us to act in certain ways while being persecuted. Jesus calls us to take up our cross, our struggles, and to not be ashamed of his teachings even in the face of peril. It 's easy to see why Mark would have included such passages in order to encourage the group and give them strength. In chapter 13 Jesus predicts the coming persecution, calling people to continue to preach the gospel even when families turn against themselves. Jesus not only suffers with the Christian people but promises that the first will be last and the last will have more in the next life. This is the ultimate promise of hope for a people who are last and are oppressed in the here and