Prepare your heart for the Sermon by looking through these suggestions that will assist you in making the most of our time together hearing God's Word.

You will find suggestions for thinking more critically through the passage, meditating more intently on the text, and prayerfully seeking wisdom to deepen your understanding of the passage to be preached this Sunday.

Carefully Think

• Read Mark chapter 1. What is the first account Mark gives of Jesus? What is the message he records Jesus preaching? (1:14-15)
• Skim through the Gospel of Mark, paying attention to the chapter and paragraph headings. What does Mark want to make sure his audience knows about Jesus from the following verses: 2:10, 2:17, 3:14, and 4:41?
• How is Jesus received as recorded in 3:6 and 5:17?
• What does Mark highlight about Jesus in 1:1 and 15:39?
• Read Mark chapter 16. What does Mark want his audience to know about Jesus from this chapter? How does this gospel record conclude?

Prayerfully Meditate

• What have been your previous interactions with the Gospel of Mark?
• Why do you think Mark recorded the assertions Jesus made about himself so early in his account?
• How did Mark record Jesus displaying power over the natural world? Why is this important?
• Could it be possible to believe Mark’s historical account and not come to the same conclusion as to who Jesus is and why He came?