Haven of Truth Article – A Very Hopeful Verse
By Pastor
Barry Black
“Which
hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and
stedfast.” Hebrews 6.19
The Bible is a living book filled with truth for daily
living. Sometimes a single verse can speak volumes.
However, as with all scripture, we must interpret scripture
with and by scripture, and not build a doctrine around a
single verse (known as “prooftexting”). With that in mind,
let us take a look at the passages of scripture concerning
Mark. At the end of his life, the Apostle Paul told
Timothy:
“Bring Mark with thee, for he is profitable to me for
the ministry.” (2 Timothy 4.10) (See also our
article “A Very
Sad Verse” in the
“Haven of
Truth” section.)
First though, let us back up to earlier references to
Mark.
All in
the Family
We know a little of the man named Mark. He is mentioned
several times in the New Testament, sometimes he is
called
“John” (Acts 13.5,13) (but not to
be confused with John the Apostle), sometimes
“John Mark” (Acts 12.25), sometimes
he is called
“Marcus” (Colossians 4.10; Philemon
24). His
mother’s name was Mary. Mary lived in Jerusalem, and quite
possibly Mark lived with her. It is possible that Mary was
a widow since nothing is mentioned of John’s father. The
scripture tells us in
Acts 12.12:
“…he
(Peter) came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose
surname was Mark; where many were gathered together
praying.
Apparently
John Mark had the spiritual heritage of a Christian mother
that believed in prayer, and was willing to open her home
for believers to gather for prayer (Acts
12.5, 12).
Mark was the
nephew of Barnabas:
Colossians 4.10 “Aristarchus my fellowprisoner saluteth
you, and Marcus, sister’s son to Barnabas, (touching whom
ye received commandments: if he come unto you, receive
him;)
Mark is also mentioned in the book of Philemon
along with three other of Paul’s friends in ministry; one
of which was Demas:
“Marcus, Aristarchus, Demas, Lucas, my
fellow-labourers.” (Philemon vs.
24)
The
influence of the Apostle Peter
1
Peter 5.13 “The church that is at Babylon, elected together
with you, saluteth you; and so doth Marcus my son.”
It is quite
possible that Mark had been converted through Peter’s
personal influence. If not, it is evident that he was at
least mentored or discipled by the Apostle Peter. Peter was
a “spiritual Father” to Mark, much the same way Paul was to
Timothy (see
2 Timothy 1.2). At the
opening of
Acts 12, Simon Peter
is in prison and awaiting execution, as commanded by Herod
(see
Acts 12.1-6). While
Peter was in prison, the Bible tells us that at Mary’s
house
“many were gathered together praying”
for Peter’s
release. It is very possible that Mark was in the prayer
meeting that took place in his mother’s home when Peter was
in prison (Acts
12.5,12). Imagine
the impact made on young Mark when Peter was miraculously
released from prison, and thus escaping execution
(Acts
12.13-17)! I can just
imagine him saying, “Hey
Pete, tell me again about that angel…did it hurt when he
hit you on your side to wake you up?” “How were you able to
sleep so soundly when you were about to be executed?” “What
did you think when that gate just swung open on its
own?” Many writers
and commentators believe that Simon’s influence can be
greatly seen in the writing of Mark’s Gospel.
A helper
on the mission field
In
12.25 we read that
John Mark accompanied Paul (still called
“Saul” until
Acts 13.9) and
Barnabas on their first missionary journey.
Acts 13.5,13
“And
when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in
the synagogues of the Jews: and they had also John to their
minister. Now when Paul and his company loosed from Paphos,
they came to Perga in Pamphylia: and John departing from
them returned to Jerusalem.”
It is
uncertain as to why John Mark (referred to as
“John” in
Acts 13.5,13 and as
“Mark” in
Acts 15.39) departed
from Paul and Barnabas and went back to Jerusalem. Possibly
he was homesick. Maybe it was because of the difficulties
that they faced in Paphos when they confronted a false
prophet and sorcerer named
“Barjesus” – the
(Acts
13.6-12). It could
be that he felt that he was not equipped mentally or
spiritually for the journey. Another possibility is that he
did not like the idea that Gentiles were saved by simple
faith alone. Whatever the case, he left and went back home
to Jerusalem.
No way,
not him!
15.36-41
“And
some days after Paul said unto Barnabas, Let us go again
and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached
the word of the Lord, and see how they do. And Barnabas
determined to take with them John, whose surname was Mark.
But Paul thought not good to take him with them, who
departed from them from Pamphylia, and went not with them
to the work. And the contention was so sharp between them,
that they departed asunder one from the other: and so
Barnabas took Mark, and sailed unto Cyprus; And Paul chose
Silas, and departed, being recommended by the brethren unto
the grace of God. And he went through Syria and Cilicia,
confirming the churches.”
In this
passage, Paul is about to embark on his second missionary
journey. As he begins talking to Barnabas about traveling
with him, Barnabas wanted to take Mark along with them.
Perhaps Mark had matured, and Barnabas was able to see it.
However, Paul did not think that he could trust John Mark.
It is apparent that Paul had strong feelings about it –
just as strong as Barnabas was convinced that Mark was
ready for the trip:
“the contention was so sharp between them, that they
departed asunder one from the other” (Acts
15.39).
This was no minor disagreement. It was a major rift of two
co-laborers in ministry – two friends. It could have been
that Paul was in the wrong, or maybe it was Barnabas.
However, it is obvious that God’s providential hand was
upon John Mark; and that Barnabas was there to motivate
Mark toward spiritual maturity, and to help Mark to prepare
for usefulness in the furtherance of the gospel.
Enter the
Encourager
Somewhere between the disagreement between Paul and
Barnabas as recorded in
Acts 15.39, and Paul’s
words in
2 Timothy 4.11, the
influence of Barnabas encouraged Mark and helped him to
grow in grace. In
Acts 4.36,
Barnabas is
called
“the son of consolation” – meaning,
“encouragement”. It may have partly been his influence as
Mark’s uncle, but Barnabas ministry of encouragement made a
difference in Mark’s life. Perhaps it was during that time
that John Mark penned the gospel of Mark.
Time can
be a great healer
In another
article entitled, “A Very
Sad Verse”, we talked
about the Apostle Paul at the end of his life. We see in
the closing statements of his last letter included in
Scripture, various greetings and comments, and requests.
In
2 Timothy 4.10, Paul
mentions a former co-laborer who had quit serving and
ministering, quite possibly to never return:
“For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present
world, and is departed unto Thessalonica…”
However, in
the very next verse, he now mentions one who had once left
ministering, but was about to return:
2
Timothy 4.11, “Take Mark and bring him with thee, for he is
profitable to me for the ministry.”
This young
man that Paul once saw as a “deserter” is now described
as
“profitable”. The
particular greek word for
“profitable” (euchrestos
– meaning:
“easy to make use of, useful”) found here
in
2 Timothy 4.11, is used
only two other times in the New Testament
(source:
blueletterbible.org). It is translated in
2 Timothy 2.21 “meet for (i.e.
“profitable for”)
the master’s use”. In the
context, Paul is talking about being a believer that is a
useful, clean vessel (2
Timothy 2.20).
This same
greek word is also found in
Philemon verse 11 where,
interestingly enough, Paul writes concerning another
individual named Onesimus (a runaway slave), who was also
once unprofitable, but later proved to be
“profitable” (greek
-
euchrestos). We are not
sure as to how the Lord did it, but we do know that Paul
knew that Mark was now profitable for the ministry. I
believe that
“the ministry” (2 Timothy 4.11)
in
this passage refers to ministry in any form that honors the
Lord and is for the furtherance of the gospel; it may refer
to pastoring, youth ministry, missions ministry, deacon,
etc.
I don’t know about you, but I find the life story of John
Mark quite hopeful. For whatever reason, it is quite
possible for a believer to walk away from serving the Lord
in their life and works (John
6.66).
Unfortunately, I have known a few people over the years
that fit the description of no longer
“profitable” for the
ministry, and sadly they may never be. However, I hope that
some day they will follow the example of John Mark rather
than the example of Demas.
Barry
D. Black is Pastor of Anchor Bible Church
Their website is:
www.anchorbible.org
Barry’s
e-mail address is:
barry@anchorbible.org