The disciples start out with real promise, but do they stay there? Consider
4.35-41, a passage which comes immediately after Jesus' teaching on parables.
The disciples do not have faith; rather, they are afraid. In Mk, fear is the
opposite of faith. There are several places in the gospel in which fear and
faith are opposed to one another.
In 8.1-4, the disciples' question, "How can one feed these people with bread
here in the desert?" seems incredibly out of place, since Jesus has already
fed 5000 in 6.30-34. In 8.14-21, Jesus addresses their lack of understanding.
At this point in the gospel, Jesus seems frustrated with the disciples. He
asks them, "Do you still not perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened?
Do you have eyes, and fail to see? Do you have ears, and fail to hear?"
A significant misunderstanding occurs in the story of Peter's confession of
Jesus as the Messiah. Consider 8.27-33, which is the first point in the gospel
at which any human being identifies Jesus as the Messiah. Jesus orders the
disciples not to tell anyone about him. Then he teaches them that "the Son of
Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief
priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He
said all this quite openly."
What is Peter's reaction? "He took him aside and began to rebuke him." The
word "rebuke" here is "epitimao." It can also mean "command." This is the word
used when Jesus "ordered" the disciples not to tell anyone about him. It's
also a word that is sometimes used when Jesus rebukes demons. It's as if Peter
is saying to Jesus, "Shut up!" Peter refuses to hear Jesus' teaching. What
Jesus has to say about messiahship is not something that Peter is willing to
hear. In turn, Jesus rebukes Peter and refers to him as "Satan."
In 10.37 James and John request of Jesus, "Grant us to sit, one at your right
hand and one at your left, in your glory." Jesus responds with a question:
"Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism
that I am baptized with?" Clearly, they do not understand what being a
follower of Jesus entails, nor do they understand the nature of Jesus'
messiahship. At the consummation of Jesus' ministry, two thieves are at Jesus
right and left; they are the ones who are crucified along with him.
In14.32-42, the disciples seem to be completely unaware of what is about to
happen, even though Jesus implores them to keep awake. When Jesus is betrayed
by one of his own disciples, he is arrested. In 14.50 we read, "All of them
deserted him and fled." When Jesus is taken before the Jewish council (the
Sanhedrin) Peter follows, but at a distance (14.54).
The story of Peter's denial is told by means of an "intercalation," a sandwich
story. Intercalations are two stories told together so that they may be read
in light of one another. The story of Peter's denial is sandwiched in the
middle of the story of Jesus' being placed on trial.
In 14.53, Jesus is before the council. He is on trial, and people are making
false accusations against him. Jesus gives no reply to these false charges.
The high priest asks him, "Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?"
Jesus' reply is "I am; and 'you will see the Son of Man seated at the right
hand of the Power,'and 'coming with the clouds of heaven.'"
Meanwhile, Peter is down in the courtyard. In 14.66-72 we read that, while
Jesus is making the confession that will lead to his crucifixion, Peter is
saving his own skin. He curses and swears an oath. Jesus is telling the truth,
and he is accused of blasphemy, of which he is not guilty. Peter swears an
oath of his innocence, even though he is "guilty" of that with which he is
charged.
This is the last time that any of the disciples appears as a character in the
narrative.
Mark's Portrayal of the Disciples
With these things in mind, the Parable of the Sower takes on new meaning.
Jesus has given Simon a nickname, "Petros," which is very close to the Greek
word for "rock," "petra." Matthew has interpreted this nickname to mean that
Peter is the rock on which the church will be built. In Mk 4.5-6, we read of
the "rocky soil." Ancient hearers of the gospel would have heard the
similarity between Peter's name, Petros, and the word for "rocky" in 4.5, "petrodes."
Peter and all the disciples start out with a great deal of promise, but as it
becomes clearer what will be involved in following Jesus, the disciples become
more and more distant. By the end of the gospel, everyone has fallen away, and
Jesus is left entirely on his own.