Stronger Together
Near the end of Paul's last letter to Timothy, we
find a verse that seems irrelevant at first glance. 2 Timothy 4:11 says,
"Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is
useful to me for ministry."
The fact that Paul asks Timothy to bring Mark along to help in the
preaching can be a good lesson for brethren in forgiveness if we think
about the history of their relationship.
Earlier in Paul's life, John Mark, probably a young man, traveled with
Paul on his first missionary journey. Yet, for some reason, Mark goes
home early as Luke tells us in Acts 13:13, "Now when Paul and his
party set sail from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia; and John,
departing from them, returned to Jerusalem."
This early exit from the work must have caused Paul to lower his
estimation of Mark. We know this because of what Luke writes in Acts
15:37-40, "Now Barnabas was determined to take with them John called
Mark. But Paul insisted that they should not take with them the one who
had departed from them in Pamphylia, and had not gone with them to the
work. Then the contention became so sharp that they parted from one
another. And so Barnabas took Mark and sailed to Cyprus; but Paul chose
Silas and departed..."
As Barnabas suggests Mark rejoin the preachers on this second journey,
Paul gets so upset that the men part in different directions - Barnabas
goes to Cyprus and Paul goes through Syria and Cilicia.
Now, understanding the history of their relationship, why is 2 Timothy
4:11 such an interesting note? Because it indicates to us that Paul had
learned a lesson.
He is near the end of his life saying, "...the time of my departure
is at hand" (2 Timothy 4:6). Is Paul still hanging on to the
bitterness he once felt toward Mark? Is he still going to refuse Mark's
help in preaching the gospel because of a mistake Mark made in his
youth?
No, instead, Paul realized that brethren are much stronger united rather
than divided and our life's end will be easier having forgiven rather
than holding a grudge.
Think about it.
January 2006