Race to the Cross

The Jesus that Mark reveals to us in his biography is a man on the move. There’s no lengthy backstory in Mark. He lets Luke handle Jesus’ birth, Matthew delve into the Old Testament, and John explain his divine, ancient origins! Instead, in Mark’s gospel, we see Jesus go and do. Miracles! Mercy! People are AMAZED. There’s never been anyone like this before.

Why? Because Jesus is on a mission and it’s nothing short of saving the world. His destination: the one inescapable place Jesus must go to complete the mission—the cross. Mark shows us his unwavering determination in every verse that leads to Holy Week.

In this multi-week series through the gospel of Mark, we begin a new year with Jesus on his race to the cross. As we journey with Jesus, we will be challenged to go there with him as well, learning, step by step, what it means as a follower of Jesus to carry our own cross or risk forfeiting our souls.

Ultimately we will learn how to run the race of our own lives faithfully to the end too, finding strength in our Savior’s cross, and successfully crossing the finish line of our earthly lives to gain the ultimate victory where endless glory awaits.

For a devotional companion on this journey, we recommend the book “A Path Strewn With Sinners: A Devotional Study of Mark’s Gospel and His Race to the Cross” by Prof. Wade Johnson of Wisconsin Lutheran College.