And Are We Being Too Hard on John Mark?

(Also see previous post)

The other related point is that John Mark usually is painted as a quitter, because it says in Acts 13:13, "and John departing from them returned to Jerusalem." Of course, the fact that Paul didn't want to take him along on the next journey (Acts 15:36-40) seems to add a deeper tone of negative color to his decision.

Seems to. But once again, the premise is: We can't be sure.

The Bible's silence on John Mark's reason for returning to Jerusalem cannot be implied as condemnation. The Scriptures neither say "John was led of the spirit to return to Jerusalem" nor "John gave up the work of the spreading of the gospel." He is only mentioned twice again in Scripture: In Acts 15, where he may not have been present at the dispute; and in 2 Timothy 4:11, where Paul desires his company many years later. (If Col. 4:10 is referring to him also, then he was the nephew of Barnabas. This would also add some information about the dispute.)

Furthermore, it is possible—although the Bible is silent about this, too, so we should classify it as speculation—that John Mark had indeed quit, but later repented; and that Barnabas for this reason thought it good to bring him with them on a second missionary journey. Presumably he wanted to go with Barnabas and Saul (if he didn't, the dispute becomes foolish).

I already discussed that both Paul and Barnabas were strong-willed leaders. If John Mark was indeed Barnabas' nephew, that would also add another layer to the disagreement between Paul and Barnabas. [Aside: We who are Baptist have probably all seen disputes involving a pastor, one of his relatives, and someone else in the church—regardless of who was right in the dispute. Nepotism seems to be universal.]

In short, it seems reasonable that John Mark may have quit, but we cannot be certain; it is equally reasonable that if he did quit, he repented and wanted to go again; and if we know anything, it is that in later life he was a useful servant of God. The moral of the story: We need to be careful about condemning John Mark in this situation. Perhaps he was wrong. But we do not know...and as Christians, we must be careful about passing judgment when we are not in possession of adequate knowledge of the facts of the matter.

Didn't I say that once before?

A Christmas Verse: 1 John 4:9

"In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him."

Contemplate that...God sent his only begotten Son into the world. We celebrate this every year. But there are two more thoughts here:
1. What precipitated this event? God loved us.
2. What is His desired result today? That we might live through Him.

Christmas is not just a time to give gifts, eat well, and take time off work. It is, more importantly, a time to remember that God loves us, and that we, in gratitude, should live in the power of his grace and strength. This should cause others to want to do the same.

An Observation on John 21:11

"Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land full of great fishes, an hundred and fifty and three: and for all there were so many, yet was not the net broken." John 21:11

This verse comes near the conclusion of the famous story in John 21, where the disciples have caught nothing after fishing all night. A man they do not yet recognize tells them to cast their nets on the other side of the boat, where they catch all those fish; the disciples then realize that it is Christ.

Here is the part that jumped out at me today (a part not previously noticed): There were not merely 153 "average" fishes; they were 153 "great" fishes! The Greek word for "great" here is megas, the familiar word from which we get mega- and similar roots in English. Mega-, of course, refers to something which is unusually large in size, mass, etc.

The point here is this: When Jesus Christ gives us something, it is not just the "average" sort of thing we can get anywhere....it is great! His blessings are not only abundant but also exceedingly above what we ask or think. No doubt the fish those disciples ate that morning were also delicious and nutritious, in addition to being sizable. God's gifts are always good and always great.

The Name of Jesus

"But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name." (John 20:31)

"9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Phil. 2:9-11)

In just a few moments of study, and with these two verses to catalyze the process, here are several thoughts about the name of Jesus Christ:

• It is not to be blasphemed or taken in vain (Ex. 20:7).
• His name is "hallowed" (Matt. 6:9; Luke 11:2) and is to be "made holy" by us.
• All manner of spiritual things are to be done "in His name" (Matt. 18:5, 20; 28:19-20; Mark 9:41; Luke 9:48; Acts 2:38; 10:48; 2 Thess. 3:6; 2 Tim. 2:19; Heb. 13:15)
• Miracles were done by the apostles in His name (Luke 10:27; Acts 3:6, 16, 4:10; 16:18)
• Preaching is to be done in His name (Luke 24:47; Acts 9:27)
• Salvation comes through believing in and calling on His name (John 1:12; 3:18; Acts 2:21; 4:12; Rom. 10:13)
• Sanctification comes through His name (1 Cor. 6:11)
• Prayers are to be in His name (John 14:13-14; 16:23-24)
  
• Those who "hold fast" His name are praised (Rev. 2:13)

"And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him." (Col. 3:17)

And there is much more! Take a little time to make a study of this yourself—it will be most rewarding.

Thoughts on John 20:28

"And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God."

The story is a familiar one: Thomas, absent at the Lord's first post-resurrection appearance to the disciples, tells the disciples that "except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe." (vs. 25). A week later, Jesus meets His disciples again, and virtually quotes Thomas, inviting him to do just what Thomas claimed he wished to do.
Notice how quickly Thomas's tone changed. Immediately aware of his error, he believes and says just one sentence.

As Jesus said in the preceding verse, it is better for us to believe Him without seeing Him; but our response should nevertheless be the same: To call Him "My Lord and my God." There is no mystery in the Greek here; the sentence is both simple and plain. Do we call Him this, and live our life as if we believe it? Or do we refer to Him as something less, living in a manner that denies His lordship over us?

Words of Comfort

John 14:26-27 is spoken by Christ to the eleven disciples remaining with him:

26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Jesus Christ has indeed returned to His Father, where He sits on the Father's right hand now. Hours away from betrayal, crucifixion, and death when speaking these words, He reminds His disciples that they will not be left alone. This undoubtedly served to comfort them many times in the years to come.

Those of us who have accepted Christ as Savior must remember that, no matter how bleak the day, no matter how dark the trial, our hearts need not be troubled, nor should they be afraid. The peace which He gives—the peace that passes all understanding—is given to us. The Comforter, the Holy Ghost, is sent to us. We don't deserve this, but His grace allows it. Meditate on that: Sinners deserving of no better then damnation can receive salvation, the Comforter, and the peace which only Christ can give.

It is a blessed thought: Wonderful Peace

What a treasure I have in this wonderful peace,
Buried deep in the heart of my soul,
So secure that no power can mine it away,
While the years of eternity roll!

—Warren D. Cornell

Another Thought from John 12

John 12:28: "Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again."

The verb used in that verse three times is the Greek doxazo, which appears 62 times in the N.T. and is translated "glorify" (in the KJV) in all but eight of those. It is related to the Greek noun doxa, which appears 168 times in the N.T. and is translated "glory" in most of those. It is from this word that we get our term "doxology."

Consider what it must have been like that day, to have been in the presence of Jesus Christ, and to hear this "voice from heaven"—the same voice which said a few years earlier "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matt. 3:17)—speak! No doubt the crowd in Jerusalem was sizable, and many heard it. It must been an incredible and unforgettable experience. Most importantly, it indicated that Jesus Christ spoke truth—He was and is the Son of God.

John 12:42-43: "Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on Him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue: For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God."

It was very interesting to discover that the word "praise," used twice in vs. 43, is that word doxa again. Although it is translated "praise" in this verse, most of the time it is translated "glory" in our English Bible. Notice the sad truth: These men would rather receive glory/praise from men than receive it from God. They would rather hear the voices of men glorify their names than to hear the "voice from heaven" glorify them!

That was a tragic realization. And then I thought, how many of us are like that....how many of us would prefer to hear mortal, sinful humans praise and glorify us than hear God praise and glorify us?

Will we be content with the praise of men, or will we seek the "Well done, good and faithful servant" from God someday?

A Verse to Meditate Upon: John 12:26

John 12:26—"If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my father honor."

How Can Unbelievers "Work the Works of God?"

In John 6:28-29, shortly after the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus Christ is approached by the Jews. These verses are a portion of their conversation, and read:

"Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent."

From the context it is clear that these Jews do not (yet) believe that Jesus is the Son of God; therefore, we might refer to them as "unsaved" or "unbelievers." It is interesting that they ask him what works they ought to do. We believe that salvation is not of works, but by faith (Eph. 2:8-9); and that salvation ought to result in good works which both demonstrate our faith to the world and fulfill our responsibilities to God (Eph. 2:10). Notice the key principle: Salvation is by faith, not works; but after salvation, good works are to be found in one's life.

Instead, notice what Christ tells them their obligation is: "That ye believe on him whom he [God] hath sent." Every living human being's obligation is to believe—to believe on the One who came to be the sacrifice for our sins, the only One who can redeem us from our deserved eternal destiny in hell. That One is Jesus Christ. Do you believe on Him?

What do the Bible and Math have in common? Greek!

A large percentage of common mathematical terms have their origin in the Greek language...which is also the language of the New Testament. (The remainder, including terms such as radius and milli-, are primarily Latin.) Reading John 6:1-15, the story of the feeding of the 5,000, brought this back to mind, for it contains the following "Greek" numbers (my spellings are very approximate attempts at how they might have been pronounced):

5 loaves and 2 fishes (vs. 9, 13): The Greek numbers are "pente" (think: pentagon) and "duo" (the "o" would have probably have a short sound, not a long one).

12 baskets (vs. 13): The Greek number is "dodeka" (long "o" sound this time). Not a familiar-sounding number to you? Just think of the dodecagon (a 12-sided polygon) or dodecahedron (a 12-sided polyhedron with 5-sided faces).

5,000 (vs. 10): Yes, it has the "penta" root in it. It also has a portion of the word that might be a "kilo" in it...but I'm not scholarly enough in Greek to know for certain. Kilo-, of course, means one thousand.

But also in vs. 10, it says that the men were "in number about five thousand." What is the Greek word used here for "number"? Try "arithmon": The same root as arithmetic.

"Repent ye, and believe the Gospel"—Mark 1:15

When I was reading John today, I thought about the verse (5:39) I just wrote an entry about...suspecting that the verb "search" was an imperative (a command; this a particular verb "mood" in Greek), I looked it up.

I was incorrect. "Search" in John 5:39 is not imperative, but indicative—Jesus was stating the fact that if they search the Scriptures, which they could freely do, they would see that the Scriptures testified that He was the Son of God.

Being curious, I investigated a little further, and came across this wise tidbit: In Mark 1:15, early in Jesus Christ's earthly ministry, he preaches a simple and clear message,

"The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: Repent ye, and believe the gospel."

These verbs, "repent" and "believe," are in the imperative mood. My Online Bible describes the imperative mood, using this verse as its example, in this way:

"The imperative mood corresponds to the English imperative, and expresses a command to the hearer to perform a certain action by the order and authority of the one commanding. Thus, Jesus’ phrase, "Repent ye, and believe the gospel" [Mark 1:15] is not at all an "invitation," but an absolute command requiring full obedience on the part of all hearers." [Greek lexicon entry #5794]

Although determining the imperative mood from the English text is not always obvious, we should all have the heart attitude that we are willing to give absolute obedience to the commands of the Scriptures—for that is what they are, and that is what we are required by our Creator to do.

"Search the Scriptures"—John 5:39

In this verse, Jesus told the Jews, in short, that if they search the Old Testament scriptures, they would see that Jesus was the Messiah of whom the O.T. testified.

The same is true today; but we also have the New Testament scriptures, which greatly expand what we know about Jesus Christ, the Messiah and Saviour.

The point I want to emphasize is that each of us is wise to search and read the Scriptures. Not only do we learn so much about our Saviour Jesus Christ, but we also learn how to come to Him, how to live as He wishes, and how to love Him and our fellow man.

Search the Scriptures.

Faith Should Produce Action

In the last verses of John 4, we have the story of the nobleman who comes to Jesus Christ and asks him to come to his house, so that he would heal his son. He asks this of Jesus at least twice (vs. 47, 49). Instead, Christ says to him in vs. 50, "Go thy way; thy son liveth." How does the man respond (vs. 50b)?

"And the man believed the word that Jesus had spoken unto him, and he went his way."

The story ends with the nobleman arriving home to a healed child, and the servants reporting that the child was healed in the same hour that Christ told him to go his way.

We tend to praise the nobleman's great faith, and we should; but notice the man's actions. First, the man believed. After Christ tells him to "Go thy way," he asks no more questions, makes no more requests. He does not demand rationalizations nor does he express doubts. He believes. He has faith. Second, he "went his way." Having learned Jesus's will, he promptly begins to do it.

Notice how this is a simple picture of how our Christian walk is supposed to work! When we are confronted with God's will for our lives, we should trust—have faith, believe—in what He has told us to do. As some of you know, I am currently between full-time jobs; once God makes clear to me what the next one is, I should have faith.....and then do! Faith should always produce actions in obedience to God. May we all remember that today.

"...MUST worship him in spirit and in truth."

In John 4:24 we now come to a third instance of the word "must". The entire verse reads,

God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

As in John 3:7 and 3:30, it is the same Greek word meaning, "It is necessary."

There are many opinions today regarding the proper means and modes of worshiping God. The greater context of this passage, however, teaches us one thing clearly: Our worship must be in the manner which God has ordained. No man can dictate what our worship must be, apart from what God Himself has demanded. We must always remember: Worship is not about us; worship is about God.

Furthermore, God has given us guidelines for proper worship. This verse provides two of them: Worship must be "in spirit." The word "spirit" occurs twice in the verse, and is the same Greek word both times. The first instance clearly makes reference to God's existence as the third member of the Trinity. Then, we are told that true worship takes place "in spirit," almost certainly a reference to that same Holy Spirit. Only Christians can truly worship God, for only Christians have the Holy Spirit dwelling within them. Furthermore, true worship must conform to the character of God the Holy Spirit. And this is related to....

Worship must be "in truth." The Greek word for "truth" is used over a hundred times in the N.T. and has a consistent meaning very much like the English word. In combination with the facts that worship must be "in Spirit," and that true worshipers must be Christians, we are told here that our worship must be in keeping with God's true character and God's true Word. Any worship-so-called which does not conform to God's character, or does not accurately reflect His Word, is not worship in God's eyes.

Since it is necessary for us to worship in spirit and in truth, let us examine ourselves, to see that we are!

"He Must Increase"....and a small math lesson

Continuing in John 3, in verse 30 we see the words "He must increase, but I must decrease." Once again, the word "must" is the same Greek word meaning "It is necessary." John the Baptist was saying that it was necessary for Jesus Christ to increase, and for himself to decrease.

Today's society and philosophies recoil at such an idea, for they teach that I am to increase and get whatever I want or strive for. This is contrary to biblical truth.

In mathematics, we have a concept commonly called inverse variation: The idea that as one variable quantity increases, another variable quantity decreases. The most common example deals with travel: As the rate of speed increases (or decreases), the travel time decreases (or increases) proportionally.

The Christian life works this way. As I exalt Christ and lift Him up, I humble myself. As I bring glory to God, I deflect glory away from myself. The opposite is also true: If I fill myself with pride, and exalt and glorify myself, I steal Christ's glory, and He is reduced in the eyes of men.

Who am I exalting and glorifying today? Who is increasing?

"Ye Must Be Born Again"

After taking a class in Greek at Pillsbury Baptist Bible College in 2003-04, one of my goals was to read the entire N.T. in the original language. One of the books I have remaining, and which I am reading now, is the gospel of John; today, I read the first 21 verses of Chapter 3. This is where Nicodemus comes to Jesus "by night" and is told in verse 7, "Ye must be born again."

Two particular words in this passage, in the Greek, were very interesting. The first is the word "must" in verse 7. It is a word whose common meaning is "It is necessary." Becoming born again is not to be thought of in the sense of "You must try this restaurant," or "You must meet my friend Bob"—these are only non-literal meanings of the word. Instead, it should be thought of as a "necessary" thing—something we have an obligation to do. It is necessary for each of us to be born again.

The second word I found very interesting, was in that most famous of verses, 3:16. In the phrase, "that whosoever believeth in him..." the word "whosoever" is actually the common word for "all" (e.g., the "every one" in vs. 20 is this exact same Greek word). When we think of salvation, we should remember that it is offered to all—every man, woman, and child of every people, country, or language. It is not offered only to some, nor are there other conditions which must be met; all who believe will have eternal life in heaven.

Conclusion: It is necessary for all to be born again. Are you?