Mark 1:28 - Fame Don't Equal Comfort

The Verse

Mark 1:28 And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee. (ESV)


My Paraphrase

Immediately, Jesus got super famous in all of Galilee.


My Thoughts
This should show us the impact we can have simply by standing firm and wielding God's authority with wisdom. Authority sets us apart. Authority gets people dialoguing about God. Even though we are about to see Jesus trying to keep Himself a secret in the next few verses (Mark 1:34, 44), at this point, the news needed to spread and God's Authority was what compelled that to happen. 

I think it's funny that in our day and age, there is such a desire among all of us to be "liked" and "favorited" on social media. Any of us would kill for half the followers Jesus was accumulating--but why? For our own egos? So we feel self-worth? So we can be successful? Jesus had no desire for popularity (because His self-worth came from God alone), but popularity was a side effect of his obedience to God and His filling of the soul-deficit in the people. 

Yes, we would all kill for that kind of impact, but we need to realize that there is a responsibility attached to popularity. We all like the fame, but we don't like the repercussion. As Loretta Lynn famously wrote, "Everybody wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die." This is so true. People may follow you in scads at the beginning, but it takes only one little issue, one little complaint, and they drop you like a rock. Note: when the masses dropped Him, Jesus' popularity directly resulted in His crucifixion! 

Now, I'm not saying that if you become popular, that you will also be crucified, but it should at least make you aware of the fickleness of humanity and what responsibility attached to fame should actually look like. (Also, Jesus was perfect, so. . .if people drop you a little faster than they did with Him, it's probably because you're not.) That should tell you something about people. And guess what, all those followers that you want more than anything are, you guessed it, people. 

However, God is God, so. . .He's really efficient and uses everything at His disposal, even the negative. It's really important to realize that God used both Christ's popularity and the ensuing crucifixion for our good and His Glory. Consider this: If Jesus had been a nobody with no impact, He would never have been able to pay for sin. God caused Him to become popular in order to save billions of people. That includes all the fickle people who like you and then drop you. And that includes you.

And that, Charlie Brown, is what Christmas is all about.

So remember, if you are obedient to God and you happen to get really popular, keep God first and He will guide you. But also know that while you aren't necessarily guaranteed to be crucified when and if people drop you, God-given fame doesn't often guarantee a super comfortable life.

It's like Spiderman's Uncle Ben once said, "With great power comes great responsibility."