A Sermon Preached on January 3, 2009 at Hebron Baptist Church, Denham Springs, Louisiana by Pastor Joe Alain.
“Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry.”
2 Timothy 4:11
You have an opportunity to begin again in 2010. Today, you can make choices that will ensure that these are the best days of your life. With a new year comes new possibilities, new adventures, new opportunities to live up to your God-given potential. Sometimes it’s our past that keeps us from moving forward. We spend too much time focusing on our imperfections, our failures, our sins. Because of that, we feel that we don’t measure up, that God cannot use us, that a full and meaningful life is for someone else, not me.
At the outset of a new year, we need to remind ourselves that God is not looking for perfect people. He’s only looking for people who are willing, who are moldable in His hands, He’s looking for the broken and scarred and He wants to do something amazing in your life. As Natalie Grant sings,
“There’s no such thing as perfect people
There’s no such thing as a perfect life
So come as you are, broken and scarred
Life up your heart and be amazed
And be changed by a perfect God.”
If you feel that you’re not good enough or have made too many mistakes in life, you need only to look at the Bible to see the kind of people God used and uses. John Mark, or simply Mark as we know him, was one of those imperfect people who God used in a great way. Mark, the believer who defected had an opportunity to begin again. The one who ran away was restored. You too can begin again in 2010. That new beginning can begin right here, right now.
As we look at Mark’s story, we see how we too can begin again. Mark’s beginning might best be described as one of . . .
I. Faithfulness: A Promising Start
The first mention of Mark in the Bible is in Acts 12:12.
– It was a time of intensifying persecution. Herod had James the brother of John executed (12:2). This was probably around A.D. 44, 14 years after the death of Jesus.
– Peter was imprisoned (12:3).
– The church was praying for Peter’s release (12:5).
– Miraculously, Peter was set free. Afterwards, he went to the home of “Mary the mother of John, also called Mark” (12:12).
– Paul and Barnabas were also in Jerusalem on a relief mission from Antioch. Their mission completed, they returned to Antioch and they took with them “John, also called Mark” (12:25).
– From these early references, we can imply several things about Mark: (1) Mark grew up among the early Christians, he had a godly environment. (2) Early on we see him associated with Peter. This will play out more importantly later one. (3) He’s obviously helpful in ministry. He’s not an apostle, or evangelist, or pastor, he’s simply a faithful believer in Jerusalem. God uses people like Mark, like us, people who desire to be used by the Lord and are moldable in His hands.
– Faithfulness characterized Mark’s early life because when Paul and Barnabas were commissioned by the church in Antioch to go on their first missionary journey, they chose Mark to with them “as their helper” (13:5).
– Why take Mark to Antioch? Why on the 1st missionary journey? We do know that Mark was a cousin of Barnabas (Col. 4:10). So Barnabas knew Mark, he trusted him, he knew something about his gifts and usefulness in ministry. It’s also possible that Mark had a connection with the priesthood. Barnabas was a Levite and it’s possible that Mark was too. He might have even served in the Temple. Regardless, Mark had the heart of a servant, a helper. He was faithful and in that sense, Mark had a promising start.
But something happened to Mark. Because Mark fell away from the faith for a time. He went through a period of decline.
II. Falling Away: A Period of Decline
– That 1st missionary journey was difficult from the very beginning as they faced opposition from “Elymas the sorcerer” (13:8) and other difficulties as well.
– 13:13 tells us that “From Paphos, Paul and his companions sailed to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them to return to Jerusalem.” 15:38 is more specific when it says that Mark had “deserted them.”
– This is a sad moment. Mark deserted the missionary party and returned to Jerusalem. But why did Mark fall away and literally disappear from the NT for a few years? Was the work too hard? Was it too costly? Too much sacrifice required? Did the cross become too heavy to bear? Did he become disillusioned? Did he feel as if he wasn’t making a difference? Did he get discouraged? Burnt out? Was the persecution too much? Was the appeal of the world too much? Did Mark lose his faith along the way? Was he homesick? Did the separation from his family get to him? We don’t really know why Mark left but we know that he did and did so for apparently some years.
Fortunately, Mark’s story does not end at Acts 13:13. Mark, the man who had such a promising start and who had such a public falling away, finished well!
III. Finishing Well: A Profitable Restoration
– The next time we see Mark is in Acts 15. Paul and Barnabas are discussing a 2nd journey to strengthen the disciples in the areas that they had previously gone to (15:36).
– 15:37 tells us that “Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark with them.”
– But Paul has not forgotten Mark’s defection, his cowardice, his weakness (15:38).
– There was such a sharp disagreement between Paul and Barnabas that they parted company. On the 2nd journey, Paul took Silas while Barnabas chose Mark (15:39-40). This obviously says a lot about Barnabas who was willing to give Mark another chance. You may be exactly where God wants you to be, but you might know a Mark or two. I believe there are many Mark’s in the body of Christ, people who once walked fervently with God but who have now defected. Maybe this year you could be a Barnabas to a Mark, you could come alongside someone who has fallen away and restore them to usefulness in the kingdom.
– We don’t hear anything about Mark until 10 years later where he shows up in Colossians 4:10 and in Philemon 23. Paul is in Rome as a prisoner. This is Paul’s first imprisonment. It is there that he writes three letters: Ephesians, Colossians, and Philemon.
– 10 years later Paul is a prisoner in Rome and who is his companion? The deserter Mark! Something dramatic has happened. He’s back in the good graces of Paul.
– How long did this restored relationship last? Paul wrote 2 Timothy from his second imprisonment. It is his last letter written around A.D. 66-67. It has been 22-23 years since the incident when Peter was released from prison. Paul knows that his death (his departure) is soon. It’s the end for Paul. Who does Paul desire to see? Paul tells Timothy to “Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry” (2 Tim. 4:11). From the time of his 1st imprisonment, he had Mark at his side. A few years later in his 2nd imprisonment facing death, he wants Mark by his side. What a testimony of a man who has been restored, who is finishing well.
– We should not be surprised at this. The Lord uses imperfect broken people all the time. God uses recovering sinners, deserters, recovered defectors.
– Mark finished well. Not only did Mark have this special relationship with the apostle Paul, but he also was very close to the apostle Peter. Peter calls Mark “my son” (1 Pet. 5:13). And most scholars believe that the Gospel of Mark accurately records the apostle Peter’s words. It is the memoirs of Peter.
Mark finished well because he began again. He did not let his failure be final. He did not let his past define his future. What about you? How will you finish? Perhaps you had a good start, a good home, a good environment. But somewhere along the way you defected, you dropped out. Maybe you didn’t cease doing the things you’ve always done, but you’re heart is not in it. You’re just going through the motions, you’ve lost your passion. You can begin again! It’s a choice that you have to make to get back in the race, to get back on the path. Where do I start? How do I begin?
1. Come to terms with your desertion.
Maybe you’re angry with God. Or someone has hurt you. Maybe it’s fear that has sidelined you. Maybe the appeal of the world has ensnared you. Maybe it’s a sinful action or attitude that is continually bringing you down. Whatever it is, it’s keeping you from finishing well. You need to see it as the barrier that is keeping you from experiencing God’s best. You don’t have to wander for years in the desert. You don’t have to waste your life. You were meant for better things. Somewhere along Mark’s journey, he came to terms with his defection. He didn’t want to stay a deserter forever. We too must come to terms with our desertion and desire God’s better life.
2. Start rebuilding your relationship with God.
Desertion is a heart issue, a relationship issue. Ask God to forgive you, He will! Forgive yourself and stop believing the lie that you cannot change, you cannot start over. Don’t listen to the unspiritual people in your life who only bring you down, who have no hope, who only bring condemnation. Begin daily walking with the Lord. Talk to Him, read His love letter to you, follow what He tells you to do. Worship Him regularly for worship feeds our soul. Connect with other believers in a small group where you can grow deeper in your walk with God. Develop your relationship with God. It’s that simple.
To begin again implies that there has first been a beginning. For some today, you need to have a beginning. Maybe I’ve described you today. Empty, lost, in search of something but you’re not sure what. If you’re willing, you can begin a personal relationship with the Lord your creator today. Will you give Jesus your sins, your life, and trust Him to save you today?
For His Glory!
Pastor Joe
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