Demas
Paul had a number of people who helped him in his ministry – Timothy, Titus, Luke, and many others. Demas was one of his helpers. We see in Colossians 4:14 where Paul includes Demas in his greetings to the church.
Colossians 4:14 (NASB)
14 Luke, the beloved physician, sends you his greetings, and also Demas.
He also includes greetings in his letter to Philemon.
Philemon 1:23-24 (NASB)
23 Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you,
24 as do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, Luke, my fellow workers.
This Present World
At the end of Paul’s life, he was in prison in Rome. Church tradition tells us that he was beheaded in prison shortly after he wrote his second letter to Timothy. In this letter, he mentions Demas again.
2 Timothy 4:9-10 (NASB)
9 Make every effort to come to me soon;
10 for Demas, having loved this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica; Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia.
Crescens and Titus were on ministry journeys, but Demas had left Paul, because he “loved this present world.” Contrast this with verse 8, just above this.
Loved
2 Timothy 4:8 (NASB)
8 in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.
The same Greek word for “loved” His appearing also is used for Demas having “loved” this present world – agape. Instead of loving the appearing of Jesus, and preaching to those who were lost, Demas got distracted by his love for this world. This is the last that we hear about Demas.
Jesus told a parable about the sower sowing seed. Some of the seed fell among thorns.
Seed
Matthew 13:22 (NASB)
22 “And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
There are many things in this world that can distract us from following after Christ. Sometimes, we can get caught up in worrying about things that might go wrong, or even what has gone wrong. Other times, the deceitfulness of the world can either look very tempting or very scary.
Fear
Fear is basically the opposite of faith. Fear can cause us to look at our problems, instead of looking at the Problem Solver – Jesus. Fear is what made Peter look at the wind and waves instead of Jesus. As long as his eyes were on Jesus, Peter was defying the laws of physics and gravity. He was doing the impossible. He was walking on water.
Notice how Jesus said in the parable that this person became unfruitful. Living only in the world, tempted by temporary pleasures and terrorized by tales of what might go wrong, we can live our entire lives, and never do a single thing for the kingdom of God – or for our eternal destination and reward.
Laziness
Jesus told another parable about trusted slaves and talents. A talent was worth a lot of money, about 6,000 days (19 years) of labor for a typical worker. The master was leaving for a long trip, and he entrusted three slaves with his money. To the first one he gave 5 talents, and he earned 5 more, using the 5 talents he had been given. The second one received 2 talents, and he earned 2 more for his master. The last slave received one talent, but he dug a hole in the ground and buried his talent. When his master returned, he tried to justify himself, but the master saw through his deceitfulness.
Matthew 25:24-27, 30 (NASB)
24 “And the one also who had received the one talent came up and said, Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow and gathering where you scattered no seed.
25 And I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.
26 “But his master answered and said to him, You wicked, lazy slave, you knew that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I scattered no seed.
27 Then you ought to have put my money in the bank, and on my arrival I would have received my money back with interest.
30 “Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
This slave tried to say that it was because of his fear that he buried the talent. His master said that he was wicked and lazy. God has given all of us different abilities. If we don’t use them for the kingdom of God, we are wasting them. We could fall into the same category as this “wicked, lazy slave.”
John Mark
Acts 12:12 (NASB)
12 And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying.
This is the first time that we are introduced to John, also called Mark. He and his mother appear to have been faithful Christians, because there was a group of Christians meeting and praying for Peter’s deliverance from prison, from their own home. This could have cost them their freedom or even their lives.
They were also well-known in the church, and it seems that they had some wealth (see Col.4:10 and Ac.4:37). He was the cousin of Barnabas, a ministry companion of Paul. They brought John Mark from his home in Jerusalem to Antioch, Paul and Barnabas’s home base. When Paul and Barnabas were called by God for their first missionary journey, John Mark went with them.
He was there with them when they confronted a false prophet and magician who was opposing their preaching. He was there when God temporarily blinded this false prophet. He was there when the leader of Cyprus became a Christian, because of what he saw.
John Mark saw the trials and satanic attacks, but he also saw the power of God overcome them all.
Retreat
Acts 13:13 (NASB)
13 Now Paul and his companions put out to sea from Paphos and came to Perga in Pamphylia; but John left them and returned to Jerusalem.
Maybe what he had seen was just too much for John Mark. Whatever the reason, it seems that he left Paul and Barnabas with less of a ministry team than what they needed. When Paul and Barnabas were planning their next missionary journey, Paul did not want to take John Mark.
Disagreement
Acts 15:37-40 (NASB)
37 Barnabas wanted to take John, called Mark, along with them also.
38 But Paul kept insisting that they should not take him along who had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work.
39 And there occurred such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another, and Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus.
40 But Paul chose Silas and left, being committed by the brethren to the grace of the Lord.
From this, it seems that Paul and Silas had the approval of the church, but Barnabas did not. This could have ended badly for Barnabas and Mark. Instead, it seems that John Mark did humble himself and he became a faithful servant to the church. Even Paul told others how much he valued Mark’s assistance.
Colossians 4:10 (NASB)
10 Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, sends you his greetings; and also Barnabas’s cousin Mark (about whom you received instructions; if he comes to you, welcome him);
2 Timothy 4:11 (NASB)
11 Only Luke is with me. Pick up Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for service.
Unworthy
Luke 9:62 (NASB)
62 But Jesus said to him, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”
John Mark could have had a very different life. He could have determined that he just wanted to live a “normal” life, just like everyone else. If he had done this, Paul and many others would not have had the help that they needed, then they would not have been able to minister to others. Maybe, Paul would not have been able to write as much as he did.
If John Mark had not spent a lot of time with Peter, ministering to him and hearing Peter talk about his time with Jesus, we might not have the gospel of Mark today. It’s not certain, but many people believe that John Mark was the author of this incredible treasure in the word of God.
End Well
John Mark had a rough start to his ministry, but you could probably say the same thing about Moses (Ex.2:11-15), Jacob, and Abraham. It looks like Mark, after he had failed on his first missionary journey, went to God, changed his thinking, and decided to put all of his trust in Jesus. He was a great help to Paul and others in the church, including Peter. Perhaps Mark did not fully count the cost before he went on that first journey with Paul and Barnabas. It seems that he eventually did, and he chose well; he chose eternal riches, instead of temporary riches.
1 Peter 5:13 (NASB)
13 She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you greetings, and so does my son, Mark.
Trials and tribulations will come. God tells us this; there is no doubt. Whether we are tempted by the world with all of its riches, or we are scared by what ungodly people might do to us, things happen. How we handle them will have repercussions now and for all of eternity.
Eternity
Are we willing to give up everything we see now, so that we can gain more than we could ever imagine in eternity?
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