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The Life of John Mark - Week 1 Sunday, April 19, 2020

I. Intro

A. In November/December on 2019 I put together a road map for our study

1. God told me, “Revisit the first things”

2. I believe this was so we could examine our foundation

B. Therefore, over half this year is devoted to Mark and Genesis

1. Mark, two weeks on John Mark, a month on forgiveness, and then Genesis

2. While preparing this week, I couldn’t help but smile at God’s direction

3. He knew this quarantine would come, and we would be restricted to our homes

4. He knew we would be forced to confront many things we like to ignore

a) Fear is obviously something we are more aware of

b) Living by faith looks different too

c) But, something else needs our attention before we go back out into the world

C. As people who were forgiven a great debt, we really struggle to forgive others

1. We hold grudges against old friends, churches, and leaders

2. We harbor bitterness toward people who don’t see the world like us

3. We take offense at little things and big things

D. We need to deal with unforgiveness now, so it doesn’t continue when this is over

1. In my prayer time, it is obvious I'm enjoying a forgiveness I'm not willing to share

2. That is anti- and we need healing

3. With that in mind, I would like to walk us through a redemption story

E. Today, we are starting a two-week study on The Life of John Mark

1. It includes the writer of Mark, Peter, Paul, and many others

2. I want this series to:

a) Open your eyes to areas of unforgiveness

b) Create an appetite of walking in forgiveness

F. So, with that in mind, let me tell you a story

II. Text

A. The story begins on the night was betrayed

1. In :43-54, Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane The Life of John Mark - Week 1 Sunday, April 19, 2020

a) Judas betrayed Him with a kiss

b) Peter cut off the soldiers ear

c) A young man, ran away naked after being seized by a guard

(1) This young man was John Mark, he wrote the The

(2) This is the first time we see him, but it won’t be the last

2. In Mark 14:66-72, Peter is standing outside the priestly trial of Jesus

a) Someone accused him of being a follower of Jesus, He denied it 3x

b) Peter, the guy who cut off the soldier’s ear and swore he would never betray

(1) …Actually betrayed Jesus three times

c) This event really messed Peter up, and Mark doesn’t cover what happens next

d) However, John does – this story takes place after the resurrection

B. :1-17

1. This moment is very important for Peter; it’s the day he learned about forgiveness

a) Peter was beating himself up for denying Jesus 3x

b) Jesus came to Peter, made him say, “I love you” 3x, once for each denial

(1) Jesus wasn’t forgiving Peter with each, “I love you”

(2) Each “I love you” was a realization of the forgiveness Peter already had

(a) Peter didn’t have to put himself on probation

(b) Jesus already forgave him and it was time to move on

(c) Move on to what?

c) Move on to feeding the sheep with the same kind of forgiveness

2. Each “I love you” from Peter was met with a “feed, love, and tend” from Jesus

a) Jesus is saying, go love people in the same way I love you

b) Feed my people with a steady diet of forgiveness

c) You received it, go give it to others

3. In this story, we have someone who forgives and someone who needs forgiveness

a) Right now, everyone is standing on one side or the other of that fence

(1) If you need to forgive, Jesus is your example

(2) If you need forgiveness, Peter is your example The Life of John Mark - Week 1 Sunday, April 19, 2020

b) But the bigger story is why we forgive

(1) Forgiveness is the foundation for everything we believe as

(2) We forgive because we were forgiven

(3) We forgive because it preaches the gospel to the world

4. Less than 50 days later, Peter preached at

C. :37-47

1. Peter preached the message “forgiveness for your sins” and 3,000 were saved

a) Peter experienced forgiveness and fed God’s sheep with that message

b) This message began to spread, it was the cornerstone of the early church

c) People gathered in homes to learn more, to break bread, to grow

2. We are talking about forgiveness, but I want to mention something briefly

a) The early church started in homes, not buildings

b) The home has always been where lives are changed

c) The home has always been the training ground for faith

d) God will use your home too, but you have to view it as a training ground not a

jail cell

3. Back to the story

a) Fast forward a few years, the church is growing and persecution is increasing

b) Peter gets arrested and thrown in prison

D. :6-17

1. So, an broke Peter out of prison

a) Peter went to a house church that was praying for his release

b) Nobody believed he was at the door

(1) Didn’t even have enough faith that their prayers were answered

2. This house church was owned by Mary, who had a son named John Mark

a) This kid watched Peter cut off the soldier’s ear

b) Now, Peter was in this kid’s house

c) Why did God have Peter cross path’s with John Mark?

d) Because Peter would need to teach Mark the lesson from the beach The Life of John Mark - Week 1 Sunday, April 19, 2020

(1) Jesus forgives us, so we forgive others

(2) Jesus forgives us, so we forgive ourselves

III. Conclusion

A. Acts 12:25 / :5

1. Paul and invited John Mark on their first missionary journey

2. He was a scribe and traveling manager

B. However, in Acts 13:3 we are told:

1. When the group arrived in , John Mark left them and returned home

2. Matthew Henry thinks Mark left in the middle of the night, without telling them

3. Whatever happened, it really upset Paul

4. On their second missionary journey, Paul didn’t want Mark coming along

C. :36-39

1. John Mark’s failure became an issue that split a missionary team

2. This failure could have been the end of John Mark’s story

3. But it wasn’t, a named Peter taught John Mark about forgiveness

4. Peter took John Mark under his wing, treated him like a son, and restored him

5. Restored him to the point of writing the very first gospel!

D. We will finish this story next week, until then:

1. Spend some time this week working through unforgiveness in your heart

a) Are there people you need to forgive?

b) Do you need to forgive yourself?

c) Are you guilty of enjoying forgiveness but not “feeding it to others?”

2. Use this time at home wisely, it will end and I want us mature when it does