What’s happening? What’s going on here? I came as quickly as I could. If you linger, you will miss Him. He waits for no one. He acts immediately. He is the most urgent person I’ve ever known. He just does not wait for anything. He acts immediately.
So, again, what’s happening here? What is this about an arrest? Why would they arrest Him? On what charge? And why now? It must have something to do with that hurry-up style of His. I’ve never seen anything like it. He sees a need immediately, He acts to meet it immediately, and the results are immediate too. Not an instant wasted. No hesitation whatsoever.
Why am I dressed like this? Or rather, why am I not dressed?! Because it’s night, and I was already in bed when the word came. I knew that I had no time to dress. Not if I wanted to see everything. Not with Him. He responds immediately; and people respond to Him immediately too. No time to waste. So I threw on this linen cloth to cover my sleeping skin. Hope you are not offended. It’s a little chilly, but I’ll be all right.
I don’t see anything yet, do you? But it won’t be long. It never is with Jesus.
While we wait, let me wrap myself up a little better and tell you about Him and the way He operates. That will help you understand why it was so urgent that when I heard, I got out of bed and came here immediately.
You see, although I’m just a young man, I’ve been watching Jesus for about three years. I’m too young, I guess, to be one of the inner circle, but I’ve been walking the roads with them anyway. Oh, let me correct that. I’ve been running the roads with them! They do not waste time. And Jesus has done more, said more, and been more places in three years than I would ever have thought possible. He gets right down to business, and fast!
I
I noticed, early on, that He gets involved immediately. He does not seem to need to ponder things; wherever He is, whatever He is doing, He takes immediate action.
I saw Him approach James and John to call them as His disciples. He marched right up to their fishing boat, told them He wanted them to become fishers of men, and before their father Zebedee could calculate what it would cost to hire two new hands, it was over and done with. They belonged to Jesus immediately!
I saw Him waltz into the town of Capernaum; it was the Sabbath day, and He pushed into the synagogue, strode up to the pulpit, and began to speak. He did not consult the rabbi, He did not wait for a Board meeting, He did not inquire about procedures. He just got up there and preached, at Sabbath worship! I would have thought it better to get to know the people first, let them build up some confidence, then, maybe, after a while, offer a few modest words of greeting and work your way up to giving the sermon. But no! Jesus walked in like He owned the place and took over immediately!
Oh, and the best one of all. When He was out with His disciples, He could move with so quickly. One time He was teaching, and the crowd grew and grew … I think somebody counted about five thousand people that day … and somehow, I’ve never figured this one out, the disciples managed to find enough food to spread a repast for them all. Well, those disciples really worked, handing out fish and bread and then gathering up scraps – what a job that was! And do you know that as soon as the last scrap was picked up, Jesus snapped His fingers and ordered the disciples, all twelve of them, to get into a boat and set sail. Just do it, He said. Sail across the lake to Bethsaida. “What about you?” they said. He said, “I told you, immediately!” “But, Jesus, we need to wait for you to get in the boat too.” That’s now, He said, N…O…W, now! He is in such a hurry! And it seems like He wants you to be in a hurry, too!
Well, they set sail, and it wasn’t long before they were in trouble – winds and waves and turbulence. They weren’t getting anywhere. So what does Mr. Immediate Jesus do? He does not wait for wind or water or wave to subside; He steps right out on the lake, right out in the stormy sea, and somehow or another just glides right over to their boat and gets in! I’ve never seen anything like it! He moves so quickly. He cannot wait. He just cannot wait. He is on a mission, and He cannot wait. He acts immediately.
I don’t know about you, but I am scared of that. I feel I might make a wrong move if I don’t think about things for a long time. Sometimes I’ll agree to do something, and after a while, I find out I don’t like it and I want to quit. So I’ve always preferred to hang back and think twice or three times before I commit myself. Still … there’s something about Jesus and all this action. It’s fresh! He seems to know where He’s going. I wish I did. All I can do is follow Him and try to keep up.
Did you hear something? I thought I heard voices. Is somebody coming? Hello? Hello? Oh … don’t want to let them know I’m here. First of all, I’m not exactly dressed to be in public; and second, well, if there’s going to be trouble, I wouldn’t want to get caught in it. Better stay out of sight and think twice before I get involved. I’m not like Jesus, getting in the action immediately.
II
Well, while we wait, let me tell you a little more about Jesus and the way He deals with people, and the results He gets. I can summarize it this way: He responds to needs immediately, and He gets results immediately. It will take your breath away.
I’ve mentioned Capernaum and how He went in to preach without so much as a by-your-leave. Well, maybe the only reason they didn’t throw Him out right then and there is that a man, obviously a little off his rocker, began to scream out crazy things at Jesus. So Jesus immediately -- no polite smiles, no indulgent waiting -- Jesus immediately rebuked the man, some kind of spirit came out of the poor old soul, and he was changed. There’s something about confronting a need right away; it changes lives. Wish I could do that.
Well, when the service was over in the synagogue that day, Jesus and Peter and Andrew and some of the others went around to Peter’s mother-in-law’s house, where they were going to eat. But they found the lady sick. Peter said he guessed they’d have to find another place to get lunch. But do you know, Jesus just took her by her hand, lifted her up, and the fever left – you know what I’m going to say by now – the fever left immediately. And she got up and served their dinner, as if she had never been sick a day in her life! Amazing! When Jesus acts immediately to address the needs of people, the results come immediately.
Oh, there are so many similar stories. Time does not permit me to tell you all of them. I think of the Syrophoenician woman who begged Jesus to cure her sick daughter, and Jesus did spend a little time talking with her about the fact that she was not a Jew, but do you know, by the time she got back to her daughter’s bedside, the illness was gone? Gone immediately!
Oh, and maybe the best one of all – the boy whose father had brought him to be healed of convulsions, and the disciples, instead of bringing the child to Jesus – you know, immediately – they dallied with him themselves. They tried a few home remedies or something, and wasted precious time, but accomplished nothing. When Jesus heard about that, He was upset and visibly angry. He said, “How much longer must I put up with this nonsense? Bring the boy to me.” Well, Jesus again wasted no time at all; He prayed, He rebuked the demon, and it was terrifying – we thought the boy was going to die. But when the dust settled, we had one healthy boy and one absolutely joy-filled father! Immediate results!
Jesus responds to people’s needs immediately. And He gets immediate results. I couldn’t help noticing, since I’m barely out of childhood myself, that He responds to children’s needs very forcefully, very quickly. He is awesome!
But wait! Did I see some movement over there in the olive trees? At that stone? There’s someone there. Yes, several people. Three, maybe. No, four. One of them is kneeling next to the stone. What is he doing? Let me go and see … no, wait, I don’t want to be rash. Need to think this out. Wouldn’t want to get involved in something too soon. And, again, I’m not really dressed to meet anybody. Mustn’t jump immediately. That’s not me.
III
Oh! It’s Jesus. Jesus and Peter and – I think – James and John. Jesus is the one kneeling; do you see Him? I think He’s about to pray. Let’s just be quiet and watch a little while. I suppose He made the other three come with Him. He is so certain of what He wants, it’s hard to say no. Jesus has a way of making it clear what He expects of you, and then either you respond immediately or you get left behind. He probably made those three an offer they couldn’t refuse.
Look at that. He is praying, but the others are lying down to take a nap. Isn’t that something? I doubt very much that He called them out here just to get some sleep. In my experience, when Jesus calls people, He calls them to action, vigorous action, yes, immediate action.
Why, a couple of years ago, some people brought a sick friend to the house where Jesus was teaching. He applauded them for not wasting any time, because they tore up the roof so that they could get their friend to Him. He said that was great faith, and He thought that immediate initiative was wonderful.
When a woman with a long-standing hemorrhage reached out, without hesitation, and touched the hem of His garment, Jesus took notice of that. He liked that.
Jesus wants people to respond immediately when they need Him or He needs them. Why, a man named Bartimaeus, a blind man who use to sit by the roadside up around Jericho, asked for help. And when Jesus heard about it, he asked them to call Bartimaeus to come. That Bartimaeus immediately threw off his cloak – oops, got to be careful with my body language here – you don’t want to see what’s under this cloth, believe me – Bartimaeus immediately threw off his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. Jesus loved it, and told him that his faith had made him well. And, you guessed it, Bartimaeus regained his sight – how? That’s right. Immediately.
Jesus wants people to trust Him and to obey Him immediately. Why, only a few days ago, when Jesus brought the disciples to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover, He wanted to ride into the city on a colt, and He told His disciples, “Just go get one.” Just take it. No begging, no borrowing; well, I guess you might not want to call it stealing. But just go and liberate that colt! And they did. They found Him a colt, right away. Jesus loves it when people obey immediately.
By the way, I saw that one myself. I was there. I said to myself, “John Mark, you really ought to be around this man more. He would teach you a few things about maturity and about getting things accomplished.” My mother said the same thing. She said to my father, “John Mark is growing up, but he sure is having a hard time making up his mind what he wants to do with his life. He’s so slow about everything. I wish that boy could become one of Jesus’ followers. Jesus would show him a thing or two.” Well, Mom is probably right. She might be pleased if she knew I had jumped out of bed, without a moment’s hesitation, to come here to Gethsemane tonight. Not so sure she would approve of my wardrobe, but at least she’d be glad that for once I acted immediately.
Oh, oh! What’s that? I do hear voices now. Lots of voices. Who is that coming? Torches burning. Oh! People, lots of people. Some of them are carrying swords! Oh, look, clubs too! It’s like an army! I really do need to stay out of sight.
That one! Over there. I know him. That’s Judas Iscariot. One of the twelve, and he is leading this motley crew. Look at them! They are going right over to the stone where Jesus is praying. What’s happening? What is Judas doing? Look at that! He has gone to kiss Jesus! Why? What is this? Oh, I see, it identifies Jesus to the mob. Look. They are roughing Jesus up. They are taking Him into custody! Listen, Jesus is speaking:
“Have you come out …with swords and clubs… to arrest me … day after day I… was with you in the temple teaching,… and you did not arrest me.”
Listen to that. How like Jesus! He is scolding them because they did not act immediately. He wants them, even when they are His enemies, to respond immediately. If you’re going to do your dirty work, get on with it!
I guess it boils down to this. What do you gain by waiting, when eternal things are at stake? What is the good of thinking about it twice and three times when it is about Jesus and about the Kingdom? When He calls, He demands that we act now. He insists on a decision now. He expects a response immediately. This is a crisis moment for Him; isn’t this is a crisis moment for us too? And when life and death are in the balance, it does no good to sit around, to wait, to sleep, perchance to dream. He wants our hearts and souls now. Just as He came to those fishermen and called them to immediate discipleship, He calls us to immediate action. These days are critical days, and there isn’t time to wait. Our lives are not guaranteed – look at Him, out there, arrested, no doubt on the way to trial and to death. There isn’t any time to wait. He wants an answer from us immediately.
Folks, when you remember this day, as I know you will, remember me, John Mark. Remember the young man who lived with chronic uncertainty, never quite able to make up his mind, never quite sure of what he ought to do. Remember John Mark, who just couldn’t be as immediate a person as Jesus wanted; John Mark, who is afraid that whatever he does in life will be forever flawed by indecision; remember John Mark, who for one brief shining moment did at least one thing spontaneously, got out of his slumbers and came to see Jesus. Remember me, won’t you, and think about my sad indecision? Seems like I’m always giving up and running the other way.
Ah! What’s this? Who are you? Don’t touch me. Get off me! No, I have nothing to do with this. I don’t know anything about this man. No, I just stepped out of bed to see what the fuss was about. Let me go. Let me go. Stop pulling on my sheet. This sheet and my excuses are the only things that cover me. I need to get out of here. I need to go. I need to do something – immediately. Immediately. Immediately.
