Mark 14:50-52

Passage

When Jesus was arrested, all of His disciples fled.  There was a young man who followed from a distance, wearing nothing but a linen cloth.  But when he was discovered, they tried to arrest him.  However, when they grabbed him he left his linen cloth and ran away naked.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

All of the disciples flee.  Every single one.  Nobody is left remaining.  Only a few hours ago they all confessed that they would die before leaving Jesus.  Then they couldn’t stay awake during prayer.  Now they are unprepared to make good on their promise.  They run.  They flee.  They abandon Jesus to save their own skin.  Through prayer, Jesus was ready to face His trial.  Because of the weak hearts of the disciples, they were not ready.

Why can human beings be so fickle?  Why are human beings prone to following their own desires and not being ready for the “big picture” events?

Second Thought:

Here in this passage we have “the streaker in the garden.”  While Matthew and Luke certainly used Mark’s Gospel when they wrote their own letters, neither Matthew nor Luke contain these verses.  What this means is that these two verses were likely of high importance to Mark but of little importance to Matthew or Luke.  Many have chosen to speculate that these verses are important because they speak about Mark himself.  I tend to agree with this understanding.  We know that Mark was a young boy at the time of Jesus and I believe he was fascinated with Jesus.  When Jesus and His disciples left the upper room, it is likely that Mark slipped out of his home to follow – which would explain why he was only wearing a linen sheet.

What does this story say about Jesus’ impact not only on the adults around Him but also on the next up-and-coming generation?  Why must we not overlook the teens and children in our midst? 

Third Thought:

Even Mark flees.  In fact, Mark chooses to go naked rather than be caught.  This seems like a silly discussion to have in the midst of such a powerful story, but it again shows us the human heart.  While not under pressure, few if any of us would voluntarily choose to go about in nakedness.  However, when under life-or-death pressure human beings would choose any option for escape – even if it meant nakedness.  We are a people who unless greatly prepared to choose otherwise we will always choose to think of ourselves and our own safety first.

How can we be prepared to do anything but think of ourselves first?  How can our propensity for thinking of ourselves be damaging to our witness for Christ?

Passage for Tomorrow: Mark 14: 53-59