"For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it" (Mark 8: 35).
We've been going through the book of Mark with the kids this month. We recently did a background study to impress on them that the author was a "real person."
Sometimes I forget that Mark wasn't one of the 12 disciples (and neither was Luke). I'm not sure if he ever met Jesus. Mark heard the narrative of Christ's life from his friend Peter. Peter approved of Mark's written version of his remembrances and proceeded to distribute it to all the surrounding churches.
Mark went on to spread the gospel in Africa--including Egypt and Libya. Many people were converted due to his testimony. He so enraged the pagan authorities in Alexandria that they ordered a mob to kill him. They punctured his flesh with large metal hooks and dragged him repeatedly over rocky ground until he died. They wanted to burn his body, as well, but apparently a storm came and forced the mob to disperse. This allowed Mark's friends to retrieve the body and bury it before the crowds could come back to mutilate it further.
We also learned that Thomas was burned in a furnace and simultaneously speared to death (in India!), that Andrew was crucified in Greece, Peter crucified in Italy, James (the cousin of Jesus) thrown off the roof of the temple in Jerusalem, and Matthew beheaded in Ethiopia. These accounts aren't in Scripture, of course, but can be found in places like Eusebius's Ecclesiastical History or van Bragt's Martyr's Mirror.
Anyway, the kids were pretty fascinated by this history and it brought home verses like: "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel," and, "Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake."
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