ABSTRACT
The Galilean mission can be viewed from two perspectives. The first concerns the reception of Jesus’ mission. Initially, Jesus was received with a mixture of awe and enthusiasm. This phase of his ministry is conveyed by Mark through a series of miracle stories, 1.21-45. Even here a premonition of conflict is conveyed in the exorcisms where Jesus is challenged by the possessed (1.23-24, 34). Although Jesus’ first exorcism was on the sabbath, his conflict with the Jewish authorities does not emerge until the healing of the paralytic in 2.1-10, when Jesus was charged with blasphemy by a group of scribes, 2.6-7. Conflict, not always with the scribes, dominates the section 2.1-3.35 and is expressed in a series of objection stories.
