“will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields--and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life.“(Mark 10:30)
In continuation with verse 29, verse 30 was written in a much plain-spoken manner. A list of items of leaving for the sake of Jesus as narrated in verse 29 is repeated in verse 30. It is not only repeating but also exaggerating. Why does the author of Mark’s gospel emphasize on this list? Did he take this list from the existed long tradition? Or was this a piece of self invented information of the author of Mark’s gospel?
Here the important point we need to understand is that the list mentioned above is closely related to the great risk felt by people in the community in which they lived. The situation in which they were living was much more fatigued than that we imagine today. It was really a tiresome life even as Paul said, “but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles.” (1 Cor. 1:23) Though there was only a slight difference between Judean Christian and Gentile Christian, there literally existed an actual treat in their life.
The author of Mark’s gospel explained the reason why Christian should not compromise their faith in the face of such risk and threat. Even if they lost certain thing in the process of resisting such threat, they would gain all the more. Such kind of conviction must have been greatly influenced by the book of Job. And he said, in the age to come, they would receive eternal life.
What is the key point of this content that contains a very complicated situation of Early Christianity? It is the fact that Jesus is the root of eternal life. He quoted the Old Testament and other traditions in order to explain it.
For us today, one fact is very clear. Jesus is the root of eternal life. Eternal life is the true life and the life of resurrection. The fact is that eternal life has been bestowed to mankind through Jesus Christ and it remains a mystery. And whether people want to accept it or not this fact holds the destiny of Christianity.
In continuation with verse 29, verse 30 was written in a much plain-spoken manner. A list of items of leaving for the sake of Jesus as narrated in verse 29 is repeated in verse 30. It is not only repeating but also exaggerating. Why does the author of Mark’s gospel emphasize on this list? Did he take this list from the existed long tradition? Or was this a piece of self invented information of the author of Mark’s gospel?
Here the important point we need to understand is that the list mentioned above is closely related to the great risk felt by people in the community in which they lived. The situation in which they were living was much more fatigued than that we imagine today. It was really a tiresome life even as Paul said, “but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles.” (1 Cor. 1:23) Though there was only a slight difference between Judean Christian and Gentile Christian, there literally existed an actual treat in their life.
The author of Mark’s gospel explained the reason why Christian should not compromise their faith in the face of such risk and threat. Even if they lost certain thing in the process of resisting such threat, they would gain all the more. Such kind of conviction must have been greatly influenced by the book of Job. And he said, in the age to come, they would receive eternal life.
What is the key point of this content that contains a very complicated situation of Early Christianity? It is the fact that Jesus is the root of eternal life. He quoted the Old Testament and other traditions in order to explain it.
For us today, one fact is very clear. Jesus is the root of eternal life. Eternal life is the true life and the life of resurrection. The fact is that eternal life has been bestowed to mankind through Jesus Christ and it remains a mystery. And whether people want to accept it or not this fact holds the destiny of Christianity.
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