Paul the
apostle continued to wind down his letter to the Colossians and
mentioned two men -“Tychicus” and “Onesimus”-
in his final comments. In chapter four and verse ten, Paul mentioned
two more men who ministered with Him - “Aristarchus” and
“Marcus” where we read:
Aristarchus my fellow
prisoner salutes you, and Marcus, sister's son to Barnabas,
(touching whom you
received commandments: if he comes unto you, receive him;)
The
verse begins, “Aristarchus my fellow prisoner salutes you,”
“Aristarchus” means “the best ruler” and Paul labels him
“my fellow prisoner” which means he was in prison during
the period that Paul was there. “Aristarchus” accompanied
Paul in his travels as seen in Acts chapter twenty and verse four and
chapter twenty seven and verse two. In Philemon chapter one and verse
twenty four he is mentioned as a “fellow laborer” with
Paul. Paul desired for the Colossians to know that he “salutes
you” or “greets, bids welcome to and wishes well to them”.
The
verse goes on to say, “and Marcus, sister's son to
Barnabas,” The next person
mentioned by Paul is “Marcus”
which means “a defense”, and he was “an evangelist who
was the author of the Gospel of Mark. Marcus was his Latin surname,
his Jewish name was John. He was a cousin of Barnabas and a companion
of Paul in some of his missionary journeys.” This is the same
“Marcus” who left Paul and Barnabas on their first
missionary journey and when Barnabas desired that “Marcus”
accompany them on their second missionary journey, the contention
became so great between Paul and Barnabas that they separated from
one another to carry the gospel in different directions. (See Acts
chapter thirteen and chapter fifteen for more concerning Mark).
Finally
the verse says, “(touching whom you received commandments: if he
comes unto you, receive him;)” Parenthetically, Paul adds
“touching whom you received commandments” or “about him
you previously received direction either by writing or possibly
verbally” “if he comes unto you, receive him;” Evidently
the separation and division between Paul and “Marcus” was
healed through Christian love. Even though they became separated
because of the contention over “Marcus”, Paul mentioned
“Barnabas” in this verse. The Colossians were to “receive”
“Marcus” even if they heard things about him from the past
experience with Paul.
As we
think about Paul's words, we cannot help but be reminded that the
gospel of Jesus Christ is not solely shared by one person. Paul had
his companions and helpers. Sometime there were contentions with
these fellow laborers, but they continued to work together to share
the good news of Jesus Christ. Perhaps there are people in our
present and past who have come alongside us to share in the work of
God's kingdom, and perhaps there are some who have become contentious
along the way. “Aristarchus” and “Marcus”
remind us to continue the Lord's work with those with whom we are
working now, and to heal the breech between any who have become
distant because of disagreements in the past. May the Lord Jesus help
us to continue in His great love as we share the gospel together.
Next
time Paul shares about more men who were with him, so read ahead,
and we shall join
together then.
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be
Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the
Mount” in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com
; http://www.barnesandnobles.com
; download to e-books, and find it locally at
http://www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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