Thank you for the question about the Gospel of Mark, “What is your reflection about the Gospel of Mark?”
Here are some thoughts regarding my reflection of the Gospel of Mark:
A. The Gospel of Mark is the shortest of the four Gospels.
If one wants an abbreviated and simple accounting of the life of Jesus, I would recommend starting with the Gospel of Mark. It provides a very broad framework from which the other Gospels would give the reader greater understanding of the words and works of Jesus.
B. The Gospel of Mark is the most controversial of the four Gospels.
As many readers know the ending of the Gospel of Mark is very abrupt. The reason for the abrupt ending is unclear.
There are various thoughts as the copyist may have stop there at the end of the day’s copying and intending to continue the next day. The following day someone else thought it was finished and kept that scroll and disposed of the old worn out copy.
The other option is that the copy of Mark was worn out and the “pages” were falling apart. It is common that the front and back of the book are worn out before the middle. It was a scroll and depending on how it was carried, read and rolled up, it was worn out and eventually that page became loose. The carrier tried to hold onto it, but eventually it was lost or not read. What do we do with a loose page or torn out page?
Does the story of Mark end so that scholars says that there is a contradiction between the other Gospels? I don’t think so.
If the angel commanded the women to go and tell his disciples that Jesus would meet them, would they be silent and not tell the disciples what the angel told them? Wouldn’t the men asked as the women as they returned, “What happened and what was it like when you went to the tomb?” Would they say, “Nothing happened.” Possible but unlikely. Is it more likely that they didn’t stop and tell anyone else until they reached their home? I think so.
C. The Gospel of Mark has few quotes from the Old Testament in comparison to Matthew.
If Mark was written to Jewish believers, he would have cited more of the Old Testament to convince or affirm to the Jewish believers that Jesus is the Messiah.
Since this Gospel has few citations, it appears that the addresses were more non-Jewish believers. Quoting the Old Testament would not be relevant to Greek-Roman believers. Listing the genealogy of Jesus with all the name would be irrelevant since they had limited knowledge of the Old Testament. Many of them had limited knowledge of Israel. The writer wrote in the manner that would help the readers to understand the life of Jesus, not confuse them with details of names and places.
There is also this factor that the abbreviated writing of the life of Jesus is that the author was in a hurry so his writing or dictation of it was limited. Since many of the believers had heard about John the Baptist, he decided to begin with a common starting point.
D. The Gospel of Mark depicts Jesus as a Servant of God.
The writer moves from scene to scene. The words of Jesus are limited in the Gospel for it does not contain the Sermon on the Mount, the Parables, or the Olivet Discourse in detail as the other Gospels. The author highlights the actions of Jesus. The word, immediately, is repeated again and again in the Greek being translated as “at once” in other versions.
Jesus the Son of God was obedient to the Heavenly Father. The lesson for believers was that they too are to be obedient to the Heavenly Father. Jesus didn’t come to serve but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.
E. The writer of the Gospel is most likely Mark.
Peter and Mark had a close connection. It was Mark who was a follower of Jesus and enabled Peter to enter the courtyard of the priest.
John 18:15–16 says this, “Simon Peter and another disciple were following Jesus. Because this disciple was known to the high priest, he went with Jesus into the high priest’s courtyard, 16 but Peter had to wait outside at the door. The other disciple, who was known to the high priest, came back, spoke to the servant girl on duty there and brought Peter in” (NIV).
Some scholars thinks that this person who knew the high priest family was John Mark. But that is for another study or debate. Whoever this disciple was, Peter and this person had a connection. That is the reason why I believe that Mark penned the words of Peter as a fisherman would recount or tell about the life of Jesus. Peter was a man of motion and this account fits that description.
SUMMARY: The Gospel of Mark is very relatable to the common person without getting into the theological and technical discussion of the life of Jesus.