November 12, 2007
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Breaking down the door
The beginning of the gospel of Mark highlights Jesus’ growing popularity. Consider the following verses from chapter 1, “The people were amazed at his teaching” “The people were all so amazed” “News about him spread quickly” “The whole town gathered at the door” “Everyone is looking for you!” “the people still came to him from everywhere.” It was so true up to the point that “Jesus could no longer enter a town openly.” They were all drawn to Him. They flocked to him. I can just picture the people running in droves to see Jesus. It calls to mind the picture of the 10,000 evacuees who flocked to Qualcomm stadium during the fires. People rushed to the Q because it was a source of shelter, protection and sustenance. Everyone flocked to Jesus because He taught with authority, drove out evil spirits and healed the sick of all sorts of diseases. They were absolutely right for running after Jesus.
But if truth be told, they really only scratched the surface of why they should be doing so. For “in Him is life and that life is the light of all people.” And by “life”, we’re talking about “the life that is truly life”. Eternal life. But they were ignorant of all this possibility. And in the same way, I realize that in these recent days, it is very seldom that I am running after Jesus. And when I do, it’s usually for some superficial reason or another — protection from physical harm, healing from a cold, favoritism of getting one parking spot over another. And as I think about it now, in mulling over Mark 1, I realize how much so I want to be running after Jesus — I want to gather at His door — I want to break down the door — just to be with Him and to drink deeply of the living water that wells up to eternal life.
