HEAL – God’s Heart for Healing in MarkSample

Honor God with your commitment of time to study His word.

Examine your heart and pray to invite Him into your study.

Ask God to reveal His truths in each passage.

Listen to what He says and write it down.

Meeting Mark (Also known as John or John Mark )

Mark was not one of the 12 disciples of Jesus. He was one of the many who had heard of Jesus by His reputation as a great healer, and joined the crowd to witness the mighty works of God. When Jesus arrived in Jerusalem on what we call “Palm Sunday,” Mark undoubtedly found a place among the crowd who welcomed the Savior with palm branches and cloaks laid in the path, as a conquering hero.  

During Passover week, church tradition holds that it was in the “Upper Room” of Mark’s own father’s house that Jesus gathered with His disciples for the last supper, a time of preparation and prayer before Jesus would be arrested in the olive grove known as the Garden of Gethsemane. How did Mark know that there was one young man, wrapped in a sheet, lurking on the sidelines to observe the way by which his hero was ambushed and arrested, and the commotion that followed? Was it Mark who panicked when the soldiers grabbed him, leaving his sheet in their hands, running away naked in fear of his own life? 

The next time we see Mark in the Bible, he has joined the Apostle Paul and gone on the very first hazardous trek to spread the Gospel salvation message of healing, love and eternal life to the world surrounding the Mediterranean Sea. That is, until, overcome by the dangers of the mission, Mark abandoned it, and left for the familiar safety and comfort of home. 

Interestingly, the next time Paul set out to visit the young churches they had planted on the first journey, he refused to trust Mark, the quitter, to accompany him. It was Barnabas who took the aspiring young evangelist under his wing and gave him the opportunity to prove himself an apostle.  

Ultimately, it was the Apostle Peter that Mark attached himself to. He became like a son to Peter. It was from Peter’s sharing of his personal experiences with Jesus that Mark gathered the details of the Master’s words and works, ministry and miracles, deciding to spread the Good News in writing. 

Thus, we have Mark’s own Gospel, the first account of Jesus Christ put into writing for us to meet not only Mark, but also his hero-Savior and Lord-Jesus. Through Mark’s Gospel, we hear of His power to heal and save those who trust Him as their own saving, healing Lord.  

Questions:

1. Which experience of Mark above can you identify with?
2. How does knowing a little more about Mark impact your desire to read the healing accounts of Jesus in this Gospel?
3. Have you ever known someone that breached your own confidence and trust, but looking back, you wish you would have given them another chance?