John Mark, Part 1 - Revision history

Greetje: New page: {{info}}Not far beyond Gethsemane,
And bending toward the barren sea,
Beyond the Kidron Valley, lay
The "Hills of Hope," the name, they say,
That Peter gave to Joseph's field
2008-10-13T12:04:19Z

New page: {{info}}Not far beyond Gethsemane,<br>And bending toward the barren sea,<br>Beyond the Kidron Valley, lay<br>The "Hills of Hope," the name, they say,<br>That Peter gave to Joseph's field<b...

New page
{{info}}Not far beyond Gethsemane,<br>And bending toward the barren sea,<br>Beyond the Kidron Valley, lay<br>The "Hills of Hope," the name, they say,<br>That Peter gave to Joseph's field<br>When he had sold it, and then kneeled<br>Before the Lord's apostles at<br>Jerusalem and gave all that<br>He got to help the poor. It was<br>A better name than "field," because<br>There were so many bluffs and caves<br>And sacred mounds from ancient graves.<br>And Peter knew this district of<br>Judea well. It stood above<br>A hundred other places in<br>His heart because the weight of sin<br>Was lifted in a cavern where<br>He tasted grief and grace. For there,<br>Amid those hills and bluffs, one cave<br>Was transformed from a gloomy grave<br>Into a birthing place of hope —<br>From fearful darkness, where you grope<br>Along the unseen walls, into<br>A world of happy light. And through<br>One night of darkness passed not one<br>But two despairing men, undone<br>By craven cowardice. And so<br>He made the field of Joseph grow<br>With lilies, as it were, and turned<br>A field where bones were burned<br>Into the Hills of Hope. 

It came<br>To pass — this double deed — the same<br>Night that the Lord of glory set<br>His face against the mob that met<br>Him in Gethsemane and saw<br>His fair-wind followers withdraw<br>And leave him utterly alone,<br>As if he were a common stone<br>Rejected for the jewel of<br>Security — as though his love<br>Were not more precious than our breath,<br>Or worth a thousand woes of death.<br>That night one common sound, and one<br>Uncommon sight, was seared upon<br>The depths of Simon's mind. The sound:<br>A crowing cock. It would have drowned<br>The rolling thunder, had there been<br>A storm, besides the one within.<br>And in that moment, Jesus turned<br>And looked at Peter. How they burned,<br>These eyes of Christ! But not with rage,<br>Nor blame, nor pleading to engage<br>Some pity for himself. This sight<br>Would make no sense until the light<br>Of dawn had transformed Joseph's land<br>Into the Hills of Hope — as planned.<br>When Peter saw those eyes, he fled<br>Across the Kidron brook and sped<br>In fear and grief to Joseph's field,<br>In hopes that night and flight would shield<br>Him from the Jewish court and from<br>The eyes of Christ. When he had come,<br>He groped until he found a cave,<br>And there he hoped that he would save<br>His life. And in the dark he cried,<br>And poured out everything inside<br>To God. "O God of Abraham<br>What have I done! Three years a sham<br>Of faith! Three years of patient grace<br>Now thrown back in my Savior's face!<br>Three years of hope that this untamed<br>And cursed mouth might be enflamed<br>With truth, in one dark night undone.<br>Three years of saying, 'I am one<br>Who will not fail you come what may,'<br>In one weak moment thrown away.<br>And all the promises about<br>My name, the Rock, cut out,<br>And dashed in pieces by one thing:<br>The damning of my precious king,<br>And friend. O God, would I had died<br>Before I Jesus Christ denied."

The sun was rising on the field<br>Of Joseph, but the cave was sealed<br>In darkness deep within. And there,<br>As if in answer to some prayer,<br>A memory awoke among<br>Fresh thoughts of suicide. His tongue<br>Began to move again, as though<br>Some solid fact that he should know<br>Had forced itself from somewhere deep<br>Below the pain of grief and heap<br>Of heavy self-reproach, into<br>His conscious mind. Then softly through<br>The darkness, Peter spoke. "The earth<br>And sky may pass away, the worth<br>Of stars may fade, but every word<br>That Jesus spoke, and that I heard,<br>Will stand and never fall. And did<br>He not just hours ago forbid<br>Despair and say, 'You will deny<br>Me, Peter, these three times, but I<br>Have prayed for you, that your faith may<br>Not fail. And when you turn display<br>This mercy for the ones who flee<br>And weep that they've forsaken me.'"<br>He paused, and thought he heard a sound.<br>But then went on, "Lord, if I found<br>In you forgiveness for my sin<br>And treachery, I would begin<br>To speak this grace in hope to all<br>Of those who fell, and think their fall<br>Too far for grace to reach." Again<br>He stopped, more suddenly. And then<br>He swung around, "Who's there?" he cried.<br>The sound from further deep inside<br>The cave was clear this time. "Hello!<br>Who's there? And are you friend or foe?"<br>A trembling voice replied, "A friend,<br>I hope — that is, if you intend,<br>O please, to do what you just said."<br>"If I'm not speaking with the dead,<br>What is your name?" "John Mark," the voice<br>Replied. "Well, John! Shall I rejoice<br>That you are here, or think some bleak<br>And dreadful thought? Come here and speak,<br>And let me take your hand and go<br>Out in the morning light and know<br>What happened, lad." "I can't," the youth<br>Replied. "Why not? Come speak the truth."<br>"I don't have anything to wear,"<br>He said. "You what!" "My body's bare.<br>I have no clothes." "Well what on earth?<br>Is this some ritual of birth?<br>You think this cave's a womb?" The lad<br>Was silent. Peter said, "Here, clad<br>Yourself with this," and held his cloak<br>Out toward the voice. "It's not a joke,<br>I'm sorry. Put this on, my son.<br>What happened?" "I just tried to run.<br>They grabbed my clothes. I thought that they<br>Would kill me. Then I broke away<br>And ran to Joseph's field to find<br>A hiding place. I knew you dined<br>Last night at Mother's house, and when<br>You left, I saw the spying men<br>And hurried out to tell you there<br>Was danger, so you could prepare.<br>But as I crossed the brook, some men<br>Among the rabble noticed when<br>I tried to go around. They sent<br>A squad to chase me and prevent<br>The warning that I brought. I hid<br>Until I thought the way was rid<br>Of danger. Then I came. The Lord<br>Was being led away. A horde<br>Of angry men seemed everywhere.<br>I followed but I didn't dare<br>Come close. I thought that you and James<br>And John would strike with flames<br>Of rage and I would join the fight<br>And we would die or put to flight<br>The enemies of God. And then<br>They saw me, maybe eight or ten.<br>I outran all but two, and when<br>They caught my cape, I left it. Then<br>They laughed and left me in the dark.<br>And here I am, the brave John Mark."<br>As Peter held the shivering lad,<br>Silence filled the cave. "I'm glad<br>God put us in the same dark place,<br>Here," Peter said. "It is a grace<br>To you and me. For now I see<br>How Jesus' prayer was meant to be,<br>And how my sin and burning grief,<br>And turning back bring you relief.<br>'When you have turned, then raise the dead,'<br>He said, then let me fall, and led<br>Me, weeping, to an open grave<br>In Joseph's field, the only cave<br>In all these hills where John Mark said<br>Farewell to life among the dead.

Is this not what I saw last night<br>In Jesus' eyes? No sacred rage,<br>No blame, no pleading to engage<br>Some pity for himself. Instead<br>A sovereign sorrow, as he bled<br>To make my sin your soul's repair,<br>And buy the answer to his prayer?"

Now come and look at candle three<br>A flame that burns for you and me:<br>This is the fire in Jesus' eyes,<br>The sovereign sorrow as he dies,<br>And takes the lonely field of graves,<br>The mounds of grief and desperate caves,<br>The midnight foothills where we grope,<br>And turns them into Hills of Hope.