A great lesson to learn

If you do not know what happened in Acts 15:37-41, then you will miss out on a powerful lesson contained in II Timothy 4:11. Paul told timothy, “Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry.” It was nice to know how much Paul appreciated Mark. Reading Acts 15 gives a much deeper understanding though.

Paul and Barnabas had gotten back from their first missionary journey (Acts 14:28). During the trip, John Mark was with them and returned home sometime during that trip (Acts 13:13). We are not told why John Mark returned to Jerusalem instead of continuing on with Paul and Barnabas.

Shortly after their first journey, Paul approach Barnabas and wanted to head back out on a second journey to visit the new converts from the first journey (Acts 15:36). Barnabas was ready and willing to go with Paul, but he wanted to bring Mark with them again (verse 37). Paul adamantly did not want Mark to come with them (verse 38). Barnabas did not agree with Paul and insisted they take him. In the end, neither Paul nor Barnabas would give in, so they went their separate ways (verse 39-40). 

Both men had their reasons, but they were fundamentally disagreeing about an opinion rather than something doctrinal. Paul could have written Mark off and held a grudge against him and Barnabas, but he did not. When Paul told Timothy to bring Mark “for he is useful to me”, the apostle was willing to accept the maturity and ability of Mark. Paul did not let pride get in the way.

Let us not forget Mark in all of this. It is foolish to think that he did not know what Paul thought when he and Barnabas disagreed about brining Mark on the second journey. Mark could have easily held something against Paul and refused to work with him. Grudges are easy to harbor, so we need to learn from these men. I would even go so far as to suggest that even Barnabas had a role in not driving a permanent wedge between Mark and Paul. May we learn from them.

                                                                                                                                     Chuck