Mark: living the way of Jesus in the world, by Tracy Cotterell 

Engaging Bible study series which focuses on a contemporary presentation of the message in the Gospel of Mark, and has a robust emphasis on practical Christian living

Mark: living the way of Jesus in the world
By Tracy Cotterell
IVP 
ISBN: 978-1789743661
Reviewed by Terry Young

As part of the Gateway Seven Series (series editor, also Tracy), this booklet of studies makes few assumptions about people’s background knowledge and focuses on a contemporary presentation of the message in the Gospel of Mark. The magnificent 7 of the series title provide bite-sized studies across the Bible: one from the Old Testament Law (Exodus), one prophet (Ezekiel), one gospel (Mark, here), one letter (1 Peter) one sample of wisdom literature (Proverbs), one piece of apocalyptic (Revelation) and one piece of narrative history (Ruth).

Tracy’s aim is to guide us through Mark’s gospel in six studies. She's divided the whole gospel into a prologue and three acts, and pp 16-17 show how the studies fit into this scheme. If you want to read Mark through in a couple of sittings, that's as good as scheme as any. Given the LICC connection, you would expect a robust emphasis on practical Christian living and also on the workplace or wherever the frontline is for you. If you haven't come across the idea of the frontline, the pages at the back will point you to introductory material.

Because it's designed to support group study and because different members of the group may differ greatly in their grasp of the Bible, it's up to you how much effort you put into working through this book. There are links to web-based resources, such as the Bible Project, and there are whole pages and shaded boxes with summaries of what is happening or how people have come to understand the text since it was first written.

As you may have guessed from other reviews of mine, I like this kind of open-ended resource. You could probably pitch up every week, read out the What does the Bible say? questions, and get something from the study, but I think you'd do better to spend time grazing around the material provided and thinking through the other sections such as Going deeper.

If you're leading a group, I would certainly recommend a spot of planning to work out which questions and lines of thinking are most likely to appeal to your group. I like the way Tracy seems to want you to find your own way through Mark and provides waypoints without trying to steer you onto a particular road. In the end, the usefulness of this book will depend upon how well your group gels and does its own legwork rather than how it relates simply to the material printed in this study guide.

If you want more support in working through Mark, then this may not be the best study guide for you. But if you want a thin versatile booklet to start you off on your journey into systematic Bible reading on your own or in a group this might be just the ticket. I liked it.

Enjoy…
 

Terry Young is a missionary kid who read science and engineering. After a PhD in lasers, he worked in R&D before becoming a professor, when he taught project management, information systems and e-business, while leading research in healthcare.

He set up Datchet Consulting to have fun with both faith and work and worshipped at Baptist churches in Slough for 19 years before moving to the New Forest