At the end of chapter ten we have the conclusion of the Slave-Savior’s ministry of the gospel. Mark 4:35—10:52 is a long section covering the move of the Slave-Savior’s gospel service. In this section twenty-nine matters are covered: silencing the wind and stilling the sea (4:35-41); casting out a legion of demons (5:1-20); healing a woman with a flow of blood and raising up a dead girl (5:21-43); being despised by the Nazarenes (6:1-6); sending the twelve to preach (6:7-13); the martyrdom of the forerunner of the gospel (6:14-29); feeding the five thousand (6:30-44); walking on the sea (6:45-52); healing everywhere (6:53-56); teaching concerning the defiling things from within (7:1-23); casting a demon out of a Syrophoenician woman’s daughter (7:24-30); healing a deaf and dumb man (7:31-37); feeding four thousand (8:1-9); not giving a sign to the Pharisees (8:10-13); warning concerning the leaven of the Pharisees and of Herod (8:14-21); healing a blind man in Bethsaida (8:22-26); being recognized as Christ and unveiling His death and resurrection the first time (8:27—9:1); being transfigured on the mount (9:2-13); casting a dumb spirit out of a man’s son (9:14-29); unveiling His death and resurrection the second time (9:30-32); teaching concerning humility (9:33-37); teaching concerning tolerance for unity (9:38-50); coming to Judea (10:1); teaching against divorce (10:2-12); blessing young children (10:13-16); teaching concerning the rich and the kingdom of God (10:17-31); going up to Jerusalem and unveiling His death and resurrection the third time (10:32-34); teaching concerning the way to the throne of the kingdom of God (10:35-45); coming to Jericho and healing blind Bartimaeus (10:46-52). By means of these twenty-nine matters, the Lord Jesus prepared His disciples to be brought into His death and resurrection.
Why was it necessary for a number of the Lord’s disciples to be brought into His death and resurrection? The answer to this question is that the disciples could not participate in the enjoyment of the Lord otherwise. Furthermore, if they did not enjoy the Lord by being brought into His death and resurrection, they would not be able to enter into the kingdom of God or have anything to do with the kingdom.
We enter into the kingdom through the enjoyment of the Lord, through the enjoyment of the all-inclusive Christ as the universal replacement. In order to enjoy Him in this way, we need to pass through His death and resurrection. Therefore, the Lord worked on the disciples to make them ready to be brought into the process of His death and resurrection.
We have seen that the Lord was proceeding onward to Jerusalem in order to die there. But we also need to realize that the Lord was not going to Jerusalem alone. Rather, He was bringing with Him a number of His faithful followers. These followers were not clear about what was happening. They may have felt only that the Lord was very lovable and that they wanted to go wherever He went. Actually, the Lord’s purpose was to bring all of them into His death and resurrection. Once the Lord’s followers were brought into His death and resurrection, they could participate in the enjoyment of Him in an actual and practical way. It is through death and resurrection that the Lord becomes our portion and our replacement.