Is Mark's portrayal of Jesus an example of fulfilling the Old Testament Scriptures, or does it bring something entirely new?
Your question seems to assume a dichotomy between "fulfillment" of the Old Testament in Mark's Gospel and bringing "something entirely new" to the table in regards to Jesus. But it is not really a case of "either à or" but of "both à and." Since time and space will not permit me to address every instance of this in Mark's gospel, I'll simply provide some examples.
For instance, in Mark 1:2-3, Mark refers to the book of Isaiah:
I will send my messenger ahead of you,Mark 1:4 indicates that this "messenger" is none other than John the Baptist. But things get interesting when we actually turn to Isaiah 40:3-5, the original source of Mark's quotation. In this latter portion of his book, Isaiah was writing a message to the future exiles in Babylon, assuring them of God's power to restore the Israelite nation (40:1-2). He referred to "a voice of one calling in the desert" (probably an angelic messenger) commanding the construction of a "superhighway" that was to run through the desert between Babylon and Jerusalem:
who will prepare your way -
a voice of one calling in the desert,
Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.
Prepare the way for the LORD;Isaiah's original audience would have recognized that the purpose for constructing this metaphorical "superhighway" was to prepare for the coming victory processional for the parade of triumphant Israelites out of the captivity of Babylon back to their home in Jerusalem. Its real-life counterpart was probably the Way of Marduk, a Babylonian ceremonial highway built to celebrate Marduk for giving the Babylonians victory over their enemies.
make straight in the wilderness
a highway for our God.
Every valley shall be raised up,
every mountain and hill made low;
the rough ground shall become level,
the rugged places a plain.
And the glory of the LORD will be revealed,
and all mankind together will see it.
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken
(Isaiah 40:3-5).
Larry Gwaltney is Vice President of New Production Initiatives at Third Millennium Ministries.