The Gospel of Mark

Dear Beloved!

Beginning this week, I am entering into an expository journey through the Gospel of Mark. If we confess that we believe in Jesus Christ, then at least once in our lives we must walk slowly, carefully, and prayerfully through the Gospels. For the Gospels are not merely books but they bear witness to the life of Jesus—His ministry, His compassion, His suffering, His death, His resurrection, and His promised return. The Gospels are entirely and exclusively about Jesus!

As I prepared this series, my heart came to a halt at Mark 8:34: “And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them,‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.’” This word is spoken immediately after Peter’s confession of faith. For the first time, Jesus openly declares that the path before Him is one of suffering, rejection, and death on a cross. Peter, seeing through human eyes and reasoning with human logic, recoils and tries to prevent it. And it is at that very moment—after the misunderstanding, after the resistance—that Jesus calls not only the disciples, but the crowd as well, and speaks these words. “Deny yourself. Take up your cross. Follow Me.”

Yet I found myself wrestling with that command: take up your cross. Lord, I do not have the strength to carry a cross. Lord, I am not worthy to stand near it. Lord, I am a sinner who cannot even approach the holiness of that glorious cross—how could I ever carry it?

And then, quietly, the Spirit reframed the question. It is not that I carry the cross.The cross carries me. I once thought I was the one holding onto the cross. But the truth is, the cross has been holding me—holding me fast, embracing me, and carrying me forward. I once thought I was clinging to the Word. But in reality, the Word of God has been sustaining me, upholding me, and preserving me when I could not even stand. This is the great reversal of the gospel: It is not I—it is Him. It is not what I do—it is what God has done.

We must never dare to place ourselves as the subject of the sentence. I have done nothing. We have done nothing. Not even the taking up of the cross belongs to us. I do not carry the cross by my strength, my resolve, or my will. The cross carries me. It gathers me in my weakness. It bears me in my brokenness. It leads me when I cannot take another step. God has done everything. From beginning to end, salvation is His work. Even today, the cross embraces me. Even today, the cross leads me onward. Even today, the cross carries me home. All glory belongs to God alone. Dear RockSpring Family, I look forward to our fellowship through the Gospel of Mark series, beginning this Sunday. Please be in prayer. See you soon!

Soli Deo Gloria!

Rev. Won D. Kim

Lead Pastor of RockSpring Church