Last
week we looked at the John Mark and how he had broken the trust of Paul. Now how did John Mark regain the trust and
confidence of the apostle Paul?
You
can imagine the insult and the hurt of John Mark from all this. He could have
walked away and quit because Paul thought lowly of him. But instead he attached
himself to a man that was an encourager. He went off to Cyprus with Barnabas.
Guys like Barnabas can help you when you are trying to regain trust in your
life. If Job had a Barnabas, his would have been a different story. When you
are down, you need a godly mentor that will love you, support you, and tell you
the truth. They won’t just shove you to the side, but they will encourage you
to continue to serve the Lord in the capacity that is available to you. Sure,
you may not be able to travel with Paul and be in the limelight, but there is
something for the Lord you can do, and so get busy doing it!! People will still
remember your failures, and you may carry that reputation with you, but
determine to accompany an encourager.
I
used to think that Christian leaders lived in an unattainable plain no one else
could live up to. John Mark didn’t allow this disillusionment to detour him
from following after God’s calling on his life. People watch the failures of
others in leadership and use it as an excuse for not doing the right thing. No
matter who the leader is, no matter the abilities, every leader puts his pants
on the same way you do. Don’t be blown away by the humanities, frailties, and
weaknesses of those in leadership. When you get right with God, people may not
accept you back into ministry, and they are not always setting the best
example. It is vital to remember that the ministry is not about how other
people behave; it is about you and God and your relationship with Him. You can
only trust God; you cannot trust yourself; you cannot trust others. John Mark
had this same conviction. Later in Galatians 2, Peter went off into doctrinal
error, and Barnabas was also carried away with it. Often this leads to
discouragement and derailment from the work of God. It is imperative that we
keep our focus on God.
He
realized that his testimony needed to be rebuilt. He couldn’t write this for
himself nor recommend himself, but Paul said, “I’m going to help you out. I’m
going to write a letter for you and recommend you back into fellowship and
service.” Colossians 4:10-11, “Aristarchus
my fellow prisoner saluteth you, and Marcus, sister’s son to Barnabas,
(touching whom ye receive commandments: if he come unto you receive him.”
Why did Paul say that? Colossae was about 10 miles away from where John Mark
had said, “I’m quitting!” Paul is sending John Mark back to the church. In
essence he said, “John Mark is the real
deal, and you can receive him.” People tend to remember our mistakes a lot
more than they remember our successes. John Mark accepted that. An arrogant man
wouldn’t accept that and would refuse to reconcile or accept a letter from the
apostle Paul. Many people who break trust never rebuild it again, because they
never accept the fact that they need to rebuild it. Building anything takes
time and patience, especially when it is your trust and testimony. But, oh, how
worth the effort it is!!
God
did something with John Mark that he has only done with 38 or 39 people in
world history. God said to him, “I have
an assignment for you; I want you to write a Gospel, the Gospel of Jesus
Christ, along with Matthew the Tax Collector, Luke the Doctor, and John the
Beloved.” Sixteen inspired chapters God gave to John Mark, a fellow that
blew his testimony but regained trust. God let him write part of the Bible. In
Colossians 4:11, Paul referred to him as “…these
only are my fellow workers unto the kingdom of God, which are a comfort unto
me.” John Mark became a fellow-worker, servant, and a comfort to the very
man that had rejected him. That’s God’s grace, and that’s how you regain trust
and confidence.
So
never let the devil whisper in your ear and tell you that there is no way to
regain trust. He is the father of lies! It may not happen right away, or the
next day or month, or even sometime very soon. But it can happen!
If
you aren’t doing something trustworthy, then you are wasting your time. It is
vitally important that you learn to be trustworthy. No one should wonder where
you are, or if you are going to show up. The work of your ministry, the work of
your home, the work of your business – it all depends on trustworthiness. And
when we are not trustworthy, we cannot expect honest, hardworking, trustworthy
people to sit by and accept us or trust us. Be trustworthy, and be encouraged
that if you have lost confidence or trust, it can be regained by following the
example of John Mark.
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