“When Barnabas and Saul had finished their mission, they returned from Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark.”
Acts 12:25 NIV
Luke added, at this point in his story, by the way, the name of a young man who would play an important role in breaking up the partnership of Paul and Barnabas as the story unfolds. Who was John Mark?
If we go back a chapter, the prayer meeting that resulted in Peter’s rescue took place in the home of John Mark’s mother, Mary. It seems that this family played an important role in the early church.
John Mark, in Mark’s gospel, may have been the unnamed young man who fled naked when Jesus was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane.
So, John Mark has a history in the story of the early church…first, a coward,
“A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, he fled naked, leaving his garment behind.”
Mark 14:51-52 NIV
…then a quitter and splitter…
“Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.” Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord.”
Acts 15:36-40 NIV
…but, finally, in Paul’s own words, helpful…
“Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry.”
2 Timothy 4:11 NIV
What had happened to John Mark that transformed his life? According to Paul, he was changed from a quitter to “helpful”. A second chance? A “Barnabas” in his life?
How much the church needs the “Barnabas” kind of people who see the potential when others see only failure…who recognise the face of Jesus in the faces of mere humans.
John Mark’s story is echoed in the lives of many believers down the centuries. Without the “Barnabas’s” who saw light when others saw only darkness…who saw potential when others saw failure…how many of God’s precious children might have been lost to His kingdom. The church still needs those who stand by the weak ones, propping them up until they can stand. Thank God for grace that still reaches out to pick those up who fall by the wayside.
To be continued