Mark's Story: The Gospel According to Peter Page 13

  “Jesus said, ‘Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.’

  “Just then someone from Jairus’s house told the ruler, ‘Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?’

  “But Jesus told Jairus, ‘Do not be afraid; only believe.’ And He permitted no one to follow Him except the brothers James and John and me. When we reached Jairus’s house we encountered a tumult of wailing mourners. Jesus said, ‘Why make this commotion and weep? The child is not dead, but sleeping.’

  “They ridiculed Him, but He forced them all outside. He took Jairus and his wife and the three of us and entered where the child was lying. He took her by the hand and said, ‘Little girl, I say to you, arise.’

  “Immediately the girl arose and walked, and her parents were overcome with great amazement. But Jesus commanded them strictly that no one should know it and said that something should be given her to eat.”

  Mark followed Peter as he turned back to where they were lodging. “Were you able to comprehend all this, sir? I fear I would have believed I was dreaming.”

  “At the time it was easy to believe it, because such things were happening every day. It was only after His resurrection and return to heaven that I was able to reflect on the wonder of it all. There were many, however, who did not believe or follow Him, even though they saw his signs and wonders and heard Him speak. After raising Jairus’s daughter, He came to His own country, and we disciples followed Him. When the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue. Many hearing Him were astonished, saying, ‘Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands! Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?’ It was as if they were offended.

  “Jesus said, ‘A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.’ Because of their disbelief, He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them.”

  “What did He think of their skepticism?”

  “He marveled at it, but still He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching. Soon He called us twelve to Himself and began to send us out two by two, and gave us power over unclean spirits. He commanded us to take nothing for our journeys except a staff—no bag, no bread, no copper in our money belts—but to wear sandals, and not to put on two tunics.

  “He said, ‘In whatever town you enter a house, lodge there till you depart from that town. And whoever will not receive you nor hear you, when you depart, shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony against them. Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!’

  “So we went out and preached that people should repent. We cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.”

  “How could He get away with all this?”

  “Oh, you may rest assured, King Herod heard of Him, for His name had become well known.

  “Some said, ‘It is Elijah.’

  “Others said, ‘It is the Prophet, or like one of the prophets.

  “But Herod said, ‘This is John, whom I beheaded; he has been raised from the dead!’ You know Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John and bound him in prison because the baptizer had said, ‘It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.’

  “Herod’s sister-in-law, Herodias, held it against John and wanted to kill him, but she could not, for Herod feared John. The king knew John was a just and holy man, and he protected him.

  “But on Herod’s birthday he threw a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee. And when Herodias’s daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, ‘Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you. Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom.’

  “So she went out and said to her mother, ‘What shall I ask?’

  “And her mother said, ‘The head of John the Baptist!’

  “Immediately she came with haste to the king and said, ‘I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.’

  “The king was exceedingly sorry, yet, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her. Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded John’s head to be brought. And he went and beheaded him in prison, brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. The girl gave it to her mother. When John’s disciples heard of it, they came and took away his corpse and laid it in a tomb.”

  Even the retelling seemed to sadden Peter. He sat outside the inn where they were staying and said, “We gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what we had done and what we had taught. He said, ‘Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.’ What a relief! So many of us had been coming and going, and we did not even have time to eat. So we departed with Him in the boat to a deserted place.”

  “And what happened there?”

  “Something far too glorious to tell quickly. That’s enough for tonight.”

  Mark was abjectly disappointed and knew he would find it hard to sleep with such a good story looming. But he had promised not to plead for more.

  SEVENTEEN

  Over the next few days Peter did not seem to be of a mind to reminisce. When not ministering in the region, he bounced ideas off Mark, seeming to experiment with various approaches to Paul and the others about the Gentile question.

  “Perhaps it would be best if we maintained some distance between ourselves and Gentile believers.”

  “What kind of distance? And why? You yourself have championed the idea that we are as one in Christ.”

  “Oh, we are. No question about that. But I hate to offend strong Jewish believers by dining with Gentile brothers.”

  “But they are wrong to be offended.”

  Peter pressed his lips together. “I know,” he said at last, “but am I not wrong to offend them?”

  “Far be it from me to counsel you, master.”

  “Just answer the question, Mark. How do I justify offending brothers?”

  “Will you not offend the Gentiles if you do not break bread with them? And how would you justify that? By saying you’re keeping the peace with brothers who are in the wrong?”

  Peter shook his head. “You see what Paul deals with every day?”

  “Something tells me he is not conflicted over this.”

  “No doubt he knows his own mind, and so will everyone else in due time.”

  Within a few days Peter seemed less distracted, allowing that he had written both Paul and James—the brother of Jesus—who, along with John, was leading the church in Jerusalem. “I believe they will agree that we need a meeting of the minds on this. For it has to do with more than just following Jewish law. It concerns even circumcision. There are those among us who believe that Gentiles who become believers must be circumcised. Surely this is taking things too far.”

  Peter appeared more energized in his work while waiting for some response, and Mark was also able to ply from him more stories of Jesus. “I’ve waited patiently for the story you said was far too glorious to tell quickly.”

  “Indeed you have. Well, as you know, Jesus had been teaching in and around the area of the Sea of Galilee, and the multitudes just kept coming, running to Him from all the cities. I knew He had to be getting tired, but when He saw such vast crowds it was obvious He was moved with compassion for them. He told me, ‘They are like sheep not having a shepherd.’

  “All day long he taught them many things. When the day was far spent, we came to Him and said, ‘This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late. Send the people away so they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat.’”

  Peter chu
ckled at the memory. “Jesus said, ‘You give them something to eat.’

  “I asked him if he really expected us to spend more than half a year’s wages on bread for the crowd. He said, ‘How many loaves do you have? Go and see.’

  “Do you know, among the massive throng, all we came up with were five loaves of bread and two fish. But Jesus commanded everyone to sit on the grass in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties. He took those loaves and fish, looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to us to set before the people.”

  Peter trembled, beaming at the memory. “He divided those two fish among them all, and not only did they all eat until they were full, but we also gathered up twelve baskets full of fragments.”

  Mark furrowed his brow. “How many people are we talking about?”

  “Son, the men alone counted about five thousand.”

  “Amazing. And then did He finally get some rest?”

  “Yes. He bade farewell to the crowd and sent them on their way, then instructed us to sail to the other side to Bethsaida, telling us He would be along later. I asked Him how He would get there, and He told me not to fret, that He wished to depart to the mountain to pray. Naturally I assumed He would hire another boat later.

  “Now, Mark, this was not a long voyage, as you know, but all night the wind was against us and we began to despair. At about the fourth watch of the night, all of us were straining at rowing when the image of a man appeared to be walking right past us! We screamed in terror, assuming it a ghost. It stopped and turned toward us and said, ‘Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.’ It was Jesus! And when He climbed into the boat, the wind ceased. We were greatly amazed beyond measure and marveled. Feeding five thousand with one meager meal was nothing compared with this.

  “We finally crossed over and anchored in Gennesaret, and when we disembarked in the morning, immediately people recognized Jesus. They ran through that whole region and returned carrying on beds those who were sick. Wherever He went, into villages, cities, or the country, people laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged Him that they might just touch the hem of His garment. Now hear me, Mark: every person who touched Him was made well.”

  “No doubt Jesus was attracting the attention of the religious leaders again.”

  “Of course. The Pharisees and some scribes came to Him from Jerusalem. And when they saw some of us eating bread with unwashed hands, they found fault.”

  “You hadn’t washed in the special way of the elders?”

  “Correct, and as you know, the Pharisees and the rest of the Jews do not eat unless they do so. When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash.”

  “Not to mention all the other rituals, like the washing of cups, pitchers, copper vessels, and couches.”

  “Precisely. So the Pharisees and scribes said, ‘Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?’

  “Jesus said, ‘Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: “This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.” ’”

  “He said that to them?” Mark said. “They must have been furious!”

  “Oh, He said more than that. He told them they had laid aside the commandment of God in order to hold the tradition of men. ‘All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. For Moses said, “Honor your father and your mother”; and, “He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.” But you say, “If a man says to his father or mother, ‘Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban’” (that is a gift to God), then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do.’

  “Then He called the multitude to Himself and said, ‘Hear Me, everyone, and understand: There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man.’ And He concluded again with His charge: ‘If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!’

  “We disciples were puzzled too, and when Jesus finally slipped into a house away from the crowd, we questioned Him. He said, ‘Are you thus without understanding also? Do you not perceive that whatever enters a man from outside cannot defile him, because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated, thus purifying all foods? What comes out of a man, that defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a man.’”

  “What must it have been like to spend your days under the counsel of One so wise?”

  “Mark, we had not an inkling of our privilege until He was gone from us. From there we went to the region of Tyre and Sidon and followed Him into a house where He hoped to have some privacy. But He could not be hidden. A Greek woman, a Syro-Phoenician by birth whose young daughter had an unclean spirit, heard about Him and came and fell at His feet. She pleaded with Him to come and cast the demon out of her daughter. Jesus said, ‘Let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs.’”

  “What did He mean by that?”

  “We had no idea, but she seemed to understand. She said, ‘Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs under the table eat from the children’s crumbs.’

  “Her persistence seemed to convince him of her faith. He said, ‘For this saying go your way; the demon has gone out of your daughter.’

  “From there we traveled through the midst of the region of Decapolis to the Sea of Galilee. There some brought to Him one who was deaf and had a speech impediment, and they begged Him to put His hand on him. Jesus took him aside from the multitude and put His fingers in his ears, and He spat and touched his tongue. Then, looking up to heaven, He sighed and said, ‘Be opened.’

  “Immediately the man’s ears were opened, and his tongue was loosed, and he spoke plainly.

  “Jesus commanded the people that they should tell no one; but the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it. People were astonished beyond measure, saying, ‘He has done all things well. He makes both the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.’”

  “And that feeding of the five thousand men and their families was not the only time Jesus did that, was it?”

  “Oh, no. Another time, soon after this, Jesus called us disciples to Him and said, ‘I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat. And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way; for some of them have come from afar.’

  “Of course we asked Him where we would find bread in the wilderness when we had only seven loaves and a few small fish. And this time there were about four thousand people. Again He commanded the multitude to sit, and He took what we had and gave thanks, broke the food into pieces, and gave it to us to distribute to them. They ate and were filled, and we took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments.

  “After He sent the people on their way, we immediately sailed to the region of Dalmanutha. Again the Pharisees came to dispute with Him, seeking a sign from heaven, testing Him. He sighed deeply in His spirit and said, ‘Why does this generation seek a sign? Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation.’

  “We climbed again into the boat and left for the other side, but we had forgotten to bring bread. All we had on board was one loaf. Jesus said, ‘Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.’

  “Well, we whispered among ourselves that He must have said this because we had forgotten the bread. But He approached from the other side of the boat and said, ‘Why do you reason because you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive
nor understand? Is your heart still hardened? Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember? When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?’

  “We said, ‘Twelve.’

  “‘Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?’

  “And we said, ‘Seven.’

  “‘Then how is it you do not understand?’”

  “I still don’t understand, Peter. What was He saying?”

  “I believe He was reminding us that He could supernaturally provide anything we needed and warning us not to let religiosity invade our faith. That was when we finally understood that He was not speaking of the leaven of bread, but of the false doctrines and practices of the Pharisees and the Sadducees. That is one of the reasons I feel so strongly that we must not yoke Gentile believers with our old laws.”

  “Tell me of another miracle.”

  “Very well. When we came to Bethsaida, some brought a blind man to Him and begged Him to touch him. He took the man by the hand and led him out of town. Jesus spat on his eyes and put His hands on him, then asked if he saw anything.

  “The man looked up and said, ‘I see men like trees, walking.’ I believe he was saying that he could see, but not distinctly. So Jesus put His hands on the man’s eyes again, and he was restored and saw everyone clearly. Jesus sent him home, saying, ‘Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town.’

  “How I wish I could have been there, Peter.”