What Jesus Did! 'Good News!' — Mark 1:1

Monday, January 1, 2024

This is the Good News about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God.
— Mark 1:1 NLT

Key Thought

We are beginning a journey through the Gospel of Mark. Gospel means "Good News." Mark wants us to know four things about our journey with him through the life of Jesus.
  1. It is a journey about God's Good News.
  2. It is about a very human person named Jesus; his humanity is revealed throughout Mark's Gospel.
  3. This Jesus is also the Messiah (or Christ) promised in the Old Testament.
  4. He is the Son of God.
Never lose sight of the fact that Mark is telling us the Good News of God about Jesus in the message that he shares with us. Sometimes the words and stories will be challenging and hard to understand. Yet, at the heart of each story, event, or teaching is an implicit hope that God has brought us something very good in Jesus!

Today's Prayer

Father, as I make the journey through this new year, please help me know Jesus better. Help me see Jesus as the source and foundation of your Good News. Open my eyes and help me see Jesus, in whose name I pray. Amen.

Related Scripture Readings

Have thoughts on this devotional? Leave a comment

8 Related Resources by Heartlight

Preparing Hearts for Jesus
Article by Phil Ware
The sequence of grace — serving before saving! Phil Ware shares insight on the beginning of Mark's gospel and how salvation is preceded by service, serving comes before saving, and the gospel always begins with a servant.
Prepare the Way
Devo: What Jesus Did!
"This is the Good News about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God. It began just as the prophet Isaiah had written: "Look, I am sending my messenger..."
God's Good News Always Begins with a Servant
Devo: A Year with Jesus
"Dear Servant of God, I love the way Mark begins his good news story about Me:This is the beginning of the good news of Jesus, the Anointed One, the....."
Prepare Him Room
Article by Phil Ware
'Prepare Him room': Inviting Jesus to reign in our hearts is how the strange beginning of the Gospel of Mark fits into the Advent season. Phil Ware shares how Mark's gospel, which doesn't even mention the birth of Jesus, fits into the Advent season.
See All 8 Related Resources about Mark 1:1

Illustration

Illustration of Mark 1:1 NLT — This is the Good News about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God.

Other Devotionals from Heartlight for Monday, January 1, 2024

Unstoppable!
A one-year devotional guide through the book of Acts.
'God Turned Away from Them' (Acts 7:41-43)
"[In his defense before the council, Stephen spoke of his rebellious ancestors and God's judgment on them:] "So they made an idol shaped like a calf,....."
Spiritual Warfare
A daily devotional about God's power for our battles.
'God Makes All Things Work Together for Good'
"And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. For God...."
Praying with Paul
Features the apostle Paul's writings turned into daily, powerful prayers.
'Slave to All' (1 Co. 9:19-23)
"Dear Father, lover of all peoples, Though I am free from all men, let me become a slave to all, that I may win many, many more people to the cause of..."
Quotemeal
A daily dose of Christian quotes to inspire and encourage.
Quote by Fyodor Dostoevsky:
"It is not as a child that I believe and confess Jesus Christ. My hosanna is born of a furnace of doubt."

About This Devotional

What Jesus Did! is a series of one-year devotional guides through each gospel, using one short scripture passage each day and following the Gospel in sequential order. Each devotional consists of a scripture passage and a reflection and a prayer which open up the day's scripture and show how it challenges you to live for Jesus.

What Jesus Did! is written by Phil Ware and is available in book form.

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

More What Jesus Did!