There’s No Self-Rely In Team (Mark 10:17-22)

If you were a college football coach in 1982, you wanted Marcus Dupree on your team. He was the “best player on the field.”^[1] He broke Herschel Walker’s high school record for most touchdowns.  Some said that he was ready for the NFL at age 18.

Naturally, big name universities did all they could to get him. During the final month of recruiting, Marcus’ high school coach was receiving 100 phone calls a day from scouts. One school offered him an oil well. Another $250,000 a year.^[2] That’s 1980’s dollars.

Marcus verbally committed to Texas, but at the 11th hour, signed with Oklahoma. He had a great freshman season. But it didn’t last. His sophomore year revealed his utter lack of discipline. He was often late, missed events, packed on the pounds. Not what you want in a running back.

He suddenly announced he was transferring to Southern Mississippi. He assumed he could play wherever he wanted. But he wasn’t the one making the rules. The NCAA told him he would have to sit out the rest of his sophomore season and his junior season. So he quit college altogether.^[3]

Our text shows us a power player who came to Jesus ready to be recruited for the Kingdom. He had promise and prestige, wealth and position and influence. If they could get this guy on the team, well, who knows what kind of yardage they could gain! He would be their star player.

We can only imagine the shock when Jesus let the guy go. The astonishment was compounded when Jesus used the case study of this individual to then teach all His disciples just how hard it is to enter the Kingdom of God and how dangerous it is to have earthly wealth.

Jesus’ interaction with this man and then with the disciples afterward are one unit, but we’re going to take this scene in two parts. Tonight, we want to take a look at the case study which establishes the principle. And then, next time we’re in Mark, we’ll apply the case study to ourselves as disciples.  Both parts challenge our assumptions, so we want to take this text seriously and listen carefully.

Mark 10:17 – ¹⁷ As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

We know this guy as “the Rich Young Ruler.” My Bible even calls him that in the heading, despite the fact that Mark neither describes him as young or a ruler. So where does that name come from?

Well, Matthew, Mark, and Luke all tell this story. All say he has many possessions. It probably referred to owning many estates.^[4] In Matthew we’re told he’s young – a word meaning a man under forty.^[5] And finally, in Luke we’re told he’s a ruler. This could mean he was a magistrate or official. Jairus is called the “ruler” of the synagogue in Luke 8. Nicodemus is called a ruler of the Jews in John 3. It’s also a term for other civil authorities. So, taken together, this fellow is a rich, young ruler.

His entrance on the scene looks really good. He hears that Jesus is headed out of town and he literally runs to find Him and, when he does, he bows at Jesus’ feet. It wasn’t customary to kneel to a rabbi.^[6] Clearly, he had real respect for Jesus. Thus far, this guy’s interview is going really well!

But image isn’t everything. The rich young ruler’s heart problems start to show as soon as he opens his mouth. The first problem can be diagnosed by the title he gives Jesus. He calls Him “Good teacher.” That’s not a bad name, but it’s totally insufficient. What didn’t he call Jesus? He didn’t call Him Lord, as the Centurion had. He didn’t call him Master, as Simon had. He didn’t call Him Son of David, as the Canaanite woman had. He didn’t call Him a prophet or Messiah or the Son of Man. He’s “Good Teacher.”

You see, the Rich Young Ruler really only thinks he needs a teacher, not a Savior. He thought himself to be good enough to be drafted into heaven. He’s looking for recognition not redemption. He wants Jesus to give him a grade, not emancipation.

He heard that this rabbi from Nazareth had a novel and provocative way of applying God’s Law – that Jesus had a way of understanding and explaining and applying God’s Law unlike anything anyone had ever heard. And so, the rich young ruler comes to speak with Jesus because he wants to make sure he’s got all his bases covered – all his boxes checked.

And that’s the second problem we can see in the man’s question. He did not come asking the Lord to save him. He said, “What do I do to merit a place in the Kingdom?”

But understand: None of us are justified by works. You cannot perform your way into heaven. We can only be justified by faith alone through grace alone. Read Romans 4. Read Galatians 2. It is only through the blood of Christ, shed for us. There is nothing we can do to inherit eternal life the way this young man is talking about. Kingdom access is only, always a gift received by faith.

Mark 10:18 – ¹⁸ “Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked him. “No one is good except God alone.

Jesus is not denying His deity. He wants to cut through the man’s reasoning, his self-righteousness, his merit-based ideas for salvation and get to the truth. As a student of the Torah, this man should agree that only God is good. So Jesus holds his philosophy to the fire. “Are you calling Me God?” Remember what the theme of this whole book is: Who do we say that Jesus is? Because if Jesus is God, this is no longer a question of interpretation, but a matter of revelation.

If Jesus is God, then anything He asks of us must be right and it must be done. If you were on the street and a stranger came up to you and said, “I need you to go in that building,” we probably wouldn’t obey immediately. At very least, we’d be skeptical. We’d ask questions. We’d decide whether we agree. But if we recognize that person as having authority, our response changes. If a policeman walks up to us and says the same thing, we might still have questions, but we’d probably submit to their authority. If our boss walked up to us and said it, we’d also probably up and go. If our loving and caring father asked us, we’d go without question. Who is speaking to us?

If Jesus is God, then His words are not only interesting, they are authoritative. And if Jesus is God and if God is good – which He is – then the things He commands us are not only essential, they are also good, because He is good. All His commands are good. All His ways are good.

We understand this philosophically, but we need to apply it functionally. Jesus gives us commands. He lays serious requirements on us. He gives us boundaries and demands we not cross the lines He has drawn. In our humanity, we don’t always agree with Him. We’re convinced it would be fine if we crossed some of those lines. But Who do we say that Jesus is? If He is God, then not only must we believe His word and obey it, but we can be sure His directions and mandates are good.

Mark 10:19-20 – ¹⁹ You know the commandments: Do not murder; do not commit adultery; do not steal; do not bear false witness; do not defraud; honor your father and mother.”

²⁰ He said to him, “Teacher, I have kept all these from my youth.”

The man was totally confident in his self-righteousness. He says, “I’ve been perfect since before my Bar-Mitzvah!” Of course, he can only evaluate using his own standard. He’s his own judge.

He was interested in Jesus, but obviously he had not done much listening to Jesus. Because one of the things Jesus revealed was that heaven’s standard for keeping these commands is much higher than our own. If you’ve hated someone in your heart, you’re guilty of murder. If you looked lustfully at a woman, you’ve already committed adultery.^[7] Now, God doesn’t tell us that so that we say, “Well, what are you gonna do?” He says it to reveal just how ruined by sin we are and just how holy He is. That there is none righteous, no not one. Not us, not the rich young ruler, no one.

Meanwhile, this guy essentially says he has no sin. Listen, if we say we have no sin, we’re liars. This guy thinks he’s proved that God owes him a place in the Kingdom. But that’s never how it works.

Mark 10:21-22 – ²¹ Looking at him, Jesus loved him and said to him, “You lack one thing: Go, sell all you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” ²² But he was dismayed by this demand, and he went away grieving, because he had many possessions.

Jesus truly loved this guy – even though the guy didn’t love Jesus back! Here’s the man, thinking that he is his own savior. He didn’t come in worship. He didn’t come with affection. He didn’t come with humility. Respect, yes, but mingled with the respect was total self-dependence. And even still, the Lord opened the door to the Kingdom to this man. He gave him the answer he sought!

Jesus really loved him. He really wanted the rich young ruler to walk through the Door, into the Kingdom and become a disciple.

After all, where did this man find Jesus? Jesus is on a journey to pay the price for this man’s sin, even though the man thought he could pay it himself, or that he didn’t owe any debt at all! Jesus was trying to elevate this man. In Matthew, He says, “If you want to be perfect, go do these things.”^[8]

What did Jesus tell him to do? We focus on the financial, but let’s not forget the following. Go and give, come and follow. It wasn’t only about emptying his bank account. He needed to become a disciple from that day forward. Spirituality is never about box-checking. It’s about following in faith.

When the man got his answer, what happened? He was dismayed. It’s a term used in Matthew for a storm forming in the sky.^[9] After hearing this command, the man gets up from his kneeling, because despite what it looked like, he wasn’t really bowing in obedience to a King. He wanted validation.

Jesus gave him an amazing revelation: All those things he had were in reality a lack. Jesus said, “You lack this. You’re missing the freedom of not being possessed by your possessions.”

Now, this is where things usually get either overly bland or overly spicy. On the bland side, teachers and commentators rush to tell us all that this is not a universal command. That it was only for this guy. The following verses undercut that idea. And this man is a living, breathing proof of what Jesus taught back in Mark 4 in the parable of the soils – how the deceitfulness of wealth will choke out the word and make a life unfruitful. He is a case study of spiritual truths that apply to us. The call of Christ is demanding. We must sacrifice. We must forsake all other idols and surrender to the Lord.

On the spicy side, those teachers who are a little more enamored with asceticism will rush to say that obviously this is a demand for every Christian to empty their savings and give it all away. That penniless Christianity is in and of itself, better Christianity.

The problem with that is not only the rest of the Bible, but even the rest of this story. Next time we’ll see that it’s not just hard for a rich person to get into heaven, it’s hard for anyone to get into heaven. But also consider the rest of the Bible: We see righteous rich. We see ungodly poor. Peter would later tell Ananias and Sapphira that they did not have to sell their land and give it to the church, but that the money was theirs to do with as they pleased.^[10] One commentator deftly notes: “If possessions are evil in and of themselves, why would they be given to the poor?”^[11]

But that does not mean we’re off the hook. One scholar writes, “That Jesus did not command all his followers to sell all their possessions gives comfort only to the kind of people to whom he would issue that command.”^[12] Jesus Himself said plainly, “You cannot serve both God and money.”^[13]

The reality is, it’s very easy to be the rich young ruler in American Christianity. Statistically speaking, we are not a wonderfully sacrificial people. Our whole culture is set up for selfishness, not sacrifice.

The next time we’re in Mark, we will navigate how to apply the case study to ourselves. We will find that wealth is an obstacle to living faith. Why? Because it is so helpful. Because it is so luxurious. Because it seems to open earthly doors to us and solve earthly problems for us and give us security and fills our lives with so many other things. But that’s the problem. It entices us to rely on it rather than on the Lord. It naturally starts to possess us, rather than the other way around. The rich young ruler is a real, living, breathing case study of how wealth is, by its nature, deceitful and naturally chokes out the growth of spiritual fruit if we’re not careful. That doesn’t mean Christians can’t be affluent. But we should be keenly aware of the dangers, take them seriously, and respond accordingly because of how strongly Jesus warns His disciples in the very next passage. We shouldn’t assume that we’re not the rich young ruler in the story.

Remember: Discipleship means that Jesus Christ is not just a good Teacher. He is your Master. And He is the Master of all your life. You see, the Rich Young Ruler was willing to indulge some of Jesus’ teachings, but he would not open his bank book to Him. He was not interested in becoming a disciple. He assumed his works and his wealth were enough for him to be deputized as a “good” man – as a dignified prince in the Kingdom. But we see his lack. We see the failure to surrender. He may have bowed his knee, but his heart would not confess, “Jesus Christ is Lord.” We must do both. A heart that understands Who Jesus is and a life submitted to Him, even when He asks something difficult of us. Jesus will ask hard things of you. If you’ve never done something hard for the Lord, it might not be because He hasn’t asked, but because you’ve turned away from that command.

Marcus Dupree has been called, “The best that never was.”^[14] Think of what the rich young ruler missed out on. What could have been his life. Sure, he went home to his estates. I’m sure they were nice, though none of us would want to live there today. It wasn’t about doing things to be part of God’s powerful work. It was about following the Lord, knowing He must save us from our sin, from our weakness, from our misunderstanding of the truth. The road is narrow, but the door is open. We can go forward, overjoyed, lacking nothing thanks to all the Lord does for us. He demands obedience, but what He offers is altogether good. If we take the road with Him, He leads us through the Door into the greatness and glory of His eternal Kingdom. Come and follow.

Start Acting Like A Child (Mark 10:13-16)

It’s the time of year when college-bound high schooler seniors are getting serious about that next step into a new domain. For many it will mean packing up and moving onto a campus in another city, maybe another state. They’re going to become Bulldogs or Bruins or Banana slugs. In my case, I became a Sunbird – the most fearsome of all flying creatures.

For all of these schools you must qualify for acceptance. You’re ranked beside all other applicants and positioned in a line. The UC system requires a minimum 3.0 grade point average (3.4 if you’re out of state), with no grade below a C. Applications are judged on 13 different criteria.^[1]

On top of the academic, you’ll have to prove that you’ve received a particular list of vaccines and you’ll be required to take the flu vaccine every year, regardless of age.

And then there’s the matter of the fee. If you want into the club, it’ll cost you just shy of $50,000 a year. Unless you’re not a Californian, then it’s $86,000 a year.

Even if you meet all these standards, you still might be allowed into the UC of your choice, though if you rank in the top 9% of California high school students, they promise to find you a spot at another UC campus if space is available.

So, what do I have to do to get accepted into the Kingdom of Heaven? What are the prerequisites? Jesus gives a surprising list of requirements tonight – truths that proved to be naggingly difficult for the disciples to accept. They were constantly jockeying for position and frequently trying to point out to Jesus that they were, indeed, the top 1% of applicants. But once again Jesus stops them in their tracks to explain that God’s way is not man’s way. And what He’s looking for is not high achievement, but humble acceptance. And as He reveals this essential truth, the Lord does so with an affection and tenderness we don’t want to miss.

As we look at this scene, let’s notice how important Mark thinks it is. This story is told in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. But Mark’s account is the longest. And he’s the Gospel writer with the shortest book! He’s constantly editing and moving quickly. But here he takes an extra breath to tell us about Jesus taking toddlers into His arms with grace, kindness, and generosity.

Mark 10:13 – ¹³ People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch them, but the disciples rebuked them.

Let’s first talk about these parents. What they were doing is great. This wasn’t superstition. Matthew explains that they are also asking for prayer for their kids. This was a proper tradition for the Jewish people. We see times in the Old Testament where the patriarch would lay his hands on children to pronounce God’s blessing on their lives. How much more to have Jesus do so?

So often we see people coming to Jesus with emergency needs – they bring the blind, the lame, the leprous. But how sweet it is that they had the same desire for God’s grace for the futures of their kids as they would if they were dying or demon possessed. That every day of their lives mattered on the spiritual level and that God had grace and power for regular life, too. We need Jesus every day. Not only in the moments of crisis.

Now, in this time, children were much more vulnerable. In Egypt at this time, half of children died by the age of 12.^[2] These loved ones wanted the true best for their kids, and the hope they had for life and growth was anchored on Jesus.

But now to the disciples. They rebuked the people bringing their little ones to the Lord. We don’t know why. We are left to assume motives, but clearly they’re still stuck in this gate-keeping, posturing mentality. Who’s the greatest? Who’s important? Who is in line behind us. And they simply didn’t think little kids were important enough to take up Jesus’ valuable time.

The disciples were self-appointed bouncers, often restricting access to Jesus. Remember they tried to stop that other exorcist from casting out demons in Jesus’ name. In John, we see some Greeks who had traveled to Jerusalem and they want to see Jesus, but they get stopped by Philip, and then Philip goes to Andrew, and then those two guys go to Jesus.^[3] They put these layers of access between seekers and Jesus that Jesus never asked for.

Here’s what’s so frustrating: We only have to go back one chapter where we see Jesus saying specifically to the disciples, “Whoever welcomes a little child welcomes Me!” He told them, “Don’t forbid or exclude these other people who are on our side!” And yet, here they are, doing the exact opposite of what He told them.

It made me wonder: What am I slow to apply from God’s word? Undoubtedly, there are things, probably many things that God has said to me, commanded me again and again as I read His word, yet I just breeze past and do the opposite. May God help us to see where we are acting like these forgetful disciples.

Mark 10:14 – ¹⁴ When Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the little children come to me. Don’t stop them, because the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.

Indignant is a strong word – only occurring here in all the New Testament.^[4] It’s a term that speaks of pain.^[5] Of being much grieved. Jesus is very upset by what they were doing.

His response to the disciples was sharp and demanding – a double command. He said, “start allowing and stop preventing.”^[6] It wasn’t just, “Don’t do that again,” it was, “Go fix what you did.”

He said, “Don’t stop them.” That term for stop was what He told them specifically not to do up in Mark 9 when He talked to them about the exorcist. And so, He brands them as obstructionists.^[7] They’re doing the thing He commanded them to stop doing a short time ago.

It was not their job to be spiritual bouncers, putting obstacles between seekers and the Savior. We’ve seen how seriously God takes it when people put barriers or obstacles in the walk of faith.

David famously said, “I’d rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness,”^[8] but Christians aren’t supposed to stand at the door and keep people out. We are there to show people the way in.

Think of the New Jerusalem described in Revelation 21. The gates never close! God is never trying to limit access to His Kingdom. There are requirements. There are demands, but the door is open.

Jesus needed to adjust the disciples’ thinking. He says, “You’re trying to keep these children out, or at least thinking they don’t matter, but the Kingdom belongs to them.” That doesn’t mean everyone’s a kid in the Kingdom. One commentator notes, “It indicates not so much exclusive ownership, but having a rightful share in.”^[9]

This was an extremely counter-cultural idea at the time. Children were not considered special or wonderful, especially in the Gentile culture. Infanticide was not outlawed until 375 AD! And even then, the law wasn’t very effective.^[10]

Jesus elevates children to equal standing in His Kingdom. And Jesus turns the tables on the disciples, demanding that they reshape their hearts and minds to be like children.

Mark 10:15 – ¹⁵ Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive, the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”

So the disciples were in this pattern of saying, “this guy didn’t follow us, so we tried to kick him to the curb. These children aren’t important like us, so we sent them packing.” And now Jesus says, “Fellows, you need to become like them.”

First, let’s consider the gravity of this statement. If you don’t do this you won’t enter the Kingdom! And the term Christ uses for “never” is a strong one, meaning “never, no never.”^[11] So, the question is: What does it mean to receive the Kingdom like a child?

Children aren’t perfect. In fact, they do many things that they have to be trained not to do. Think about it – it’s not a good thing usually when someone has to be told, “You’re acting childish.” It means they’re being selfish or rude or throwing a fit or uncaring in some way. So what does Jesus mean?

We can examine the example of the children in this story and pair that with a direct command from Jesus in Matthew 18. In Matthew 18:3-4, Jesus is talking about this same issue and says:

Matthew 18:3-4 – ³ “Truly I tell you,” he said, “unless you turn and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child—this one is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Ok, so Jesus says humbling ourselves like these children is what He’s talking about. But humility can take a variety of forms. How is it happening in the scene?

Well first, the children are brought in total dependence. All they’re doing in the scene is receiving grace, presence, love, prayer from Jesus. But they were receptive. I mean, can you imagine that any of these kids were crying in fear like little ones do when they’re placed on the lap of the mall Santa?

One of the great things about kids is that they are content and excited to receive gifts – even when they’re small things. You can give a three year old a quarter and they’re gonna be excited. If I gave you a quarter, might not move the needle.

But the children in this scene are ready to receive from the Lord. They’re not worried about whether they have a better position in the Kingdom than the kid next to them. They’re receiving the love of God and the work of God and the presence of God as a gift to be enjoyed, not some sort of entitlement we think we’re owed, or one that we try to gatekeep others from tasting.

The disciples were trying to exert dominance. The children in the scene are fine with littleness. One commentator writes, “The disciples need to learn not only to minister to the little ones but also to adopt the attitude of littleness.”^[12]

As human beings, we always want to be “big,” don’t we? As children, we’re always wanting to get big. And that doesn’t go away once we are big. Then we tend to want to be “big” in other ways. But that mindset is what Jesus is talking about. And we know that because He says in Matthew, “Look, the key is childlike humility,” and because in the very next scene we’re going to see a guy coming to Jesus, talking about all the big time spiritual things he’s done and how he thinks he’s owed greatness in eternal life, and Jesus says, “You need to humble yourself,” and the man goes away sorrowful.

Instead, spiritual greatness is found in trusting the Lord like a little, little one would. As they entered the house, they’re not worried about pomp or decorum. There’s the door, we go through it. There’s Jesus, I go up to Him and climb into His arms. It’s about acceptance, not achievement.

Mark 10:16 – ¹⁶ After taking them in his arms, he laid his hands on them and blessed them.

Let’s note that Jesus did more than He was asked to do. And the term Mark used indicates that the Lord fervently blessed them.^[13] He didn’t just touch them, He embraced them. This wasn’t just a politician’s photo-op with a local baby in the stroller. He folded them up into His arms with real tenderness and affection. Not just one of them as a token, but each one of them.

Jesus Christ has tender, affectionate, attentive care for even the small things in your life. The small moments. The little concerns. The quiet questions and hopes. This is our King, taking you into His arms of love to hold you close and squeeze you tight.

Greek linguists note that the compound rendered “blessed” in this verse is only found here in all the New Testament.^[14] Isn’t it interesting that the word for indignant is only found here and the term for this blessing is only found here? Mark thinks this scene is incredibly important. We should, too.

If you apply to the University of California, if you have the grades, if you write a great essay, you take all the shots, there’s still a 1 in 4 chance that you won’t get in. The doors to Christ’s Kingdom are open to all who will humble themselves and receive the free gift of salvation, by grace, through faith. Faith requires doing things God’s way – obeying His commands, His directives, His directions for our lives. But to grow in spirituality and to be great in the Kingdom means joyfully embracing our loving Savior as a child in His arms. Not jockeying, not demanding, but receiving what God wants to say and do in our lives with ready hearts, little and humble and responsive, like a child full of trust and joy and wonder.

D. L. Moody once returned from a meeting and reported two and a half conversions. “Two adults and a child, I suppose?” asked his host. “No,” said Moody, “two children and an adult. The children gave their whole lives.”^[15]

When We Said, ‘I Glue’ (Mark 10:1-12)

Interviews are a minefield of tricky questions. “What is your greatest weakness?” “Where do you see yourself in five years?” “Would you ever bend the rules to get the job done?” In many cases, the panel is more interested in how you deal with the pressure of the question than they are the specifics of your answer.

Our text tonight is a discussion on divorce, but it’s not really about divorce. Those asking don’t actually care about Jesus’ theology. And Jesus’ response isn’t to give us a handbook on how to end our marriages. He wants to talk about our hearts and God’s high ideal.

Divorce is always a sensitive and controversial subject. That’s why the Pharisees brought it up. Undoubtedly, many lives in this room have been touched by divorce in one way or another.

There are several passages in the Bible that touch on divorce. Some are prescriptive, some are narrative. The context weighs heavily on those passages. In 1 Corinthians, Paul tells believers to not divorce their unbelieving spouses, if the unbeliever is willing to stay together. Page over to Ezra, and you’ll see God’s people commanded to send away their pagan wives.

Before we jump in, let me give a few disclaimers. First, there is a spectrum of doctrinal interpretation on the issues of divorce and remarriage.

Second, the Bible gives two grounds for Christians to divorce: Sexual immorality and abandonment. Theologians debate what falls into those two categories, but those are specifically listed. But it is not commanded that you divorce if, for example, your spouse is unfaithful.

Third, no one should ever be pressured to remain in an abusive situation, especially by the Church. If you or your children are being abused, we urge you to remove yourself and call the police. If you need help, we will help you. You do not need to submit to abuse or any sort of criminal activity.

Finally, divorce is not the unpardonable sin. In many cases it is sin, and a grievous one by God’s standard, He hates it. If it happens for unbiblical reasons, God considers it to be treason.^[1] But He is a God of grace, of forgiveness, a God Who cleanses us of our sins and makes us new. There is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. But, if you are pursuing an unbiblical divorce in your marriage right now, God commands you to follow Him, trust Him, and be transformed by Him by choosing His way in your life, including in your marriage.

Mark 10:1-2 – ¹ He set out from there and went to the region of Judea and across the Jordan. Then crowds converged on him again, and as was his custom he taught them again.  ² Some Pharisees came to test him, asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?”

The Pharisees are not on a fact-finding mission. They are in full-blown attack mode. If we understand the setting, it helps us understand just how tricky this question is.

First, Jesus is no longer in Galilee, He is in Judea – in Herod’s territory.^[2]The reason John the Baptist was killed was because he spoke out Herod’s wife’s divorce. So Jesus could potential face a similar reaction depending on His answer.

Second, while there were two different schools of thought about divorce among Jews, “most Jews took for granted that a man had an inalienable right to divorce his wife.”^[3] Think about that for a minute. An inalienable right. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights…Life, Liberty, the pursuit of Happiness…and for men to be able to divorce their wives!”

The two schools of thought divided not over whether divorce was allowed, but just how allowed it was. The liberal camp, represented by the Rabbi Hillel, said that a man could divorce his wife for almost any reason. And I mean any reason. He signed off on a man divorcing his wife because she overcooked his food.^[4] Another rabbi of this school of thought taught that a man could divorce his wife if he found another woman more beautiful.^[5]

The other school of thought was the more conservative, represented by Rabbi Shammai. It said a man can only divorce his wife for sexual misconduct. That didn’t only mean adultery, because after all, adultery was a capital crime. So in that situation, a divorce would not be necessary.

The Pharisees thought they had Jesus pinned. We see in Matthew that they specifically said, “Can a man divorce his wife for any reason?”^[6] They want to get Jesus in as much trouble as possible. Either with the people by being too conservative, or with Herod by being too vocal, or if He’s too liberal, they could try to build a case that Jesus denyied the Law of Moses. Lot of pressure!

Mark 10:3-4 – ³ He replied to them, “What did Moses command you?” ⁴ They said, “Moses permitted us to write divorce papers and send her away.”

Jesus is never concerned with popular or political opinion. He immediately brings them back to Scripture and to the heart of the issue and the high ideals of heaven.

This is how we should think about our life circumstances. We have a situation, we have something going on, we’re wondering what to do, the first question is not what we want or what we think is best, but what has God said. And, if God has not specifically addressed your problem, then what is His principle in the more general sense? How would His character react in your situation?

The Christian way of life is to follow God’s heart, not our hearts. We must concern ourselves with what God wills, not what we want.^[7]

Here’s what’s interesting: Jesus says, “What did Moses command you?” They answer, “Well, Moses permitted us…” We’ll find Jesus and the Pharisees are in totally different passages of Scripture. They quote Deuteronomy 24, but Jesus quotes Genesis 2. That’s where the command was.

In Deuteronomy 24, God provided a stipulation for the sake of women who were unloved and mistreated. Remember, in these ancient societies, women couldn’t just go and live on their own. If a wife was abandoned or thrown out, she would be left without help, without hope, and without prospects for a future marriage. So, God spoke through Moses to say, “Yeah, that’s not ok. You need to have a lever of mercy and compassion for ladies in this situation.”

To get the certificate of divorce, a man would have to get a Levite to write it and was probably required to pay back his wife’s dowry.^[8] So, rather than just kick a lady out, it would take time, it would cost something, and the man would have to go and say before God and the priests, “Yeah, I don’t want to provide for my wife anymore.” One commentator writes, “The law obviously was an attempt to promote some order and restraint in the society to which it was first given.”^[9] Moses didn’t invent divorce. This was a regulation of something that was already going on.^[10] Now, let’s hear Jesus’ side of the issue.

Mark 10:5-9 – ⁵ But Jesus told them, “He wrote this command for you because of the hardness of your hearts. ⁶ But from the beginning of creation God made them male and female. ⁷ For this reason a man will leave his father and mother ⁸ and the two will become one flesh. So they are no longer two, but one flesh. ⁹ Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”

Because human hearts are hard, because of their obstinacy, because of our willful defiance toward God,^[11] the Lord made this provision in the Law as a helpful right for women in a bad situation.^[12]

This is not the only time God made a provision to address the sinfulness and rebellion of human hearts. That’s why the guilt and trespass offerings exist. They’re given not because God wants you to sin, but because sinners must be governed. The ideal is that they would never have to do it!

God never intended for marriage to end in divorce. It is always the result of sin. Either people sinning by divorcing outside of God’s boundaries, or, when a spouse sins through abandonment or sexual immorality, which then clears the innocent spouse of the divorce in His eyes.

The command for marriage began in Genesis 2 and is then repeated multiple times throughout the Bible. Notice God’s involvement in marriage: God created them and God joined them.

It’s is God’s decision who you marry, not yours. Now listen – if you’re already married, whether you got married before you were a Christian or if you were a Christian, but married without God’s input, you’re married and God wants you to stay married. He wants to do a great, spiritual work in and through your marriage, and for you to grow together as a spiritually and physically joined entity.

But for those of you who are not married, please listen to what Jesus is saying. It is God’s decision who you marry. There are some people He calls to a life of singleness, and if that’s His will for your life, that’s great. It’s not more spiritual to be married, it’s not more spiritual to be single. It’s spiritual for you to follow His will for your life. And following God’s will in the only way to real fulfillment.

But, for most of us, God’s plan is marriage. And in that case you need to know He created you for someone and created someone for you. Joined here literally means “yoked together.”^[13]

Not only does God have a tailor-made individual for you, but that relationship is designed to be the closet human relationship, the most significant, the most stand-apart of your life. It’s beyond the child-parent relationship. It’s beyond the brother relationship. Beyond friendship. Beyond partner. Beyond any other bond or connection with any other human being on the planet. That’s what God intends marriage to be. That’s heaven’s ideal. Two custom-made people, intended for each other by God Himself, cleaving to one another. Literally glued together.^[14]

If we, as Christians, constantly focus on, “What are the allowable ways out of marriage,” then I think we’re failing to honor what God has designed and revealed for us.

If a person says, “Well, I married the wrong person, I’m not happy, so I’m going to get a divorce.” Ok, but they’re admitting that they rebelled against God’s plan and leading for their lives before and now they’re going to rebel again to get into a new situation.

The question is always a heart issue. Are we Christians or are we not? Do we believe God or don’t we? Do we trust Him or do we want to go our own way? Do we understand God’s design?

Mark 10:10 – ¹⁰ When they were in the house again, the disciples questioned him about this matter.

Matthew explains that Jesus’ answer was controversial, even to the disciples. They actually say to Jesus, “If the relationship of a man with his wife is like this, it’s better not to marry.”^[15] What??

That attitude reveals how prone we are to withhold some part of life, some piece of our hearts from the Lord, even when His intention is to bless us with something as wonderful as Christian marriage. “Lord, You knit me together in my mother’s womb, You loved me enough to send Your own Son to die in my place, You’ve created a spouse just for me, but Lord, I want to be able to reserve the right to reject Your ideas, reject your plan, because my emotions are that important to me.”

Mark 10:11-12 – ¹¹ He said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her. ¹² Also, if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”

Jesus blows their attitude out of the water even more here. In the rabbinical system, a woman could commit adultery against her husband, but a man could not commit adultery against his wife.^[16] It was a one-way issue. So here, Jesus elevates women to equal standing and responsibility.

Now remember: adultery was a capital offense under the Law. The term Jesus used for “adultery” is a general term for sexual sin – porneia. Let’s use two examples that are absolutely pervasive in our culture and, frankly, often in the Church: Pornography and premarital sex. If you engage in these activities, you are in sin. You are sinning against your spouse and your own body. Your body is not meant for that sexual immorality, but for the Lord. You must flee it and there should not be a hint of it among God’s people.^[17] It’s not “too hard” to obey, unless your heart is hard.

God’s design and ideal for marriage is hard-coded into His creation, His will, and His providence, since the Garden of Eden. If you want to know how to have a happy marriage that brings you and your spouse (and your family by extension) fulfillment and joy and growth, the answer is never in what you want, but on what God’s will is. If you want marital happiness, it’s not found in someone else. It’s found in each of you becoming who God created you to be.

“Oh how happy is the person who delights in the Lord’s instruction and walks the road of righteousness.”^[18] “Happy is the person who fears the Lord and takes delight in His commands.”^[19]

The softer my heart is, the happier my marriage is – even if my spouse doesn’t cooperate. That’s the teaching of 1 Corinthians 7. Undoubtedly some of you have had to endure or are currently enduring a lot of very difficult days in a broken marriage relationship. Even the best Christian marriages have times of extreme stress and hurt. That’s because we are imperfect people who don’t always follow the Lord. And there are times when you need to get together in a room with someone and talk through issues and maybe offer rebuke or correction to one spouse or another.

But Jesus says, “Come to Me, I’ll give you rest. My yoke is easy.” And He says here, “For those of you who are called to marriage, part of that yoke is to be yoked with this person God made for you.” That is a wonderful thing. We want to be people who have a growing regard for the wonder of Christian marriage as designed by God. If there is sin, there are times when a divorce is permitted. If there is danger or harm or abuse, call the police, reach out to us so we can help you.

But in the meantime, in regular Christian circumstances, let us never work to unglue what God created to be cemented. Let’s not focus on the technicalities of what God permits, but instead on the power of what He desires. And if we are doing things to pour solvent onto the marriage bond, we need to die to ourselves, trust the Lord, obey Him, and allow Him to do His incredible work of growth, blessing, and fulfillment in us and for us in this unique human relationship, by softening our hearts and serving our spouses, and functioning in this unique gift given to us by our loving Lord.

Laying Off Of Hands (Mark 9:42-50)

In the early 400’s, there was a Christian monk named Ammonius who lived in the Egyptian wilderness. They said he “reached the perfection of the love of God.”^[1]

Ancient writers venerated him for several factors. They recorded that he could recite the entire Old and New Testament, as well as 6,000,000 lines from the church fathers. But the main reason he’s remembered is for his extreme asceticism which even included self-mutilation.

Ammonius did not want to be ordained as a bishop. He did not want to receive that “promotion.” The problem is, he lived during a time when people were sometimes ordained by force.

The people of a nearby city really wanted him to be their bishop. So the bishop of Alexandria said, “If you get him here, I’ll ordain him and he’ll have to be your bishop.” The townsfolk found Ammonius and started taking him by force. Ammonius took out a pair of scissors and cut off his own ear. He said, “Leviticus 21 forbids a mutilated person from serving as a priest.” The people went back to Alexandria, and the bishop said, “We’re Christians and the Law doesn’t apply to us.” So, the people went back to Ammonius, who then told them if they tried to take him, he would cut out his own tongue. At which point, they left him alone.

But that wasn’t all. It’s also recorded that whenever Ammonius felt desire, he would heat an iron and burn himself, so that he “became a mass of ulcers.”

Is that what it means to love God? Do we look back on those choices and think that Ammonius was doing God’s will? I, for one, look on his story with sadness and pity. We understand that God has not called us to a life of self-inflicted pain and isolation, but of life more abundantly. We agree with C.S. Lewis who wrote, “In commanding us to glorify Him, God is inviting us to enjoy Him.”^[2]

How then do we square our perspective with the serious words of Jesus in this text? Remember: Jesus is in a formal teaching session with His disciples. He’s explaining what it means to be great in the Kingdom, how disciples should conduct themselves, and what God requires of His servants.

So, we want to try to understand what Jesus is saying, why it matters, and know why we don’t need to leave our homes, move to the desert, taking only a hot iron and a pair of scissors with us.

Mark 9:42 – ⁴² “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to fall away—it would be better for him if a heavy millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.

Let’s remember the lead up to these verses: The 12 had been arguing on the road about which one of them was the greatest. And, John admitted to Jesus they tried to forbid this other Christian exorcist from casting out demons in Jesus’ name because that guy didn’t follow after them.

Jesus is totally reshaping and rehabilitating their understanding about what it means to serve in His Kingdom. The  major point in these verses is that, rather than be worried about who they’re greater than, or being worried about outsiders, they should be worried about the evil within their own hearts that can cause eternal damage to themselves and others.^[3]

The Lord has been talking about how disciples should include not exclude others. Now He warns them not only about whether they include others, but how they influence them.

If a person causes a child, or someone young in the Lord to stumble – if they put an obstacle in the faith of one of these little ones,^[4] it would be better if they died this grisly death. This imagery of being drowned by millstone is vivid enough for us, but for the Galilean disciples, it would’ve been all the more graphic. The Roman government had taken some early Zealot insurrectionists and drowned them in the Sea of Galilee as punishment.^[5]

We’d expect that from the ruthless Romans, but from the mouth of Jesus? Add to that the fact that Jews considered death without burial to be the worst kind of death.^[6] But Jesus says, “No, that – all of that would be better than stumbling one who believes in Me.”

Now understand, Jesus is not talking about simply offending someone, or saying something you shouldn’t. Falling away here means to cause the shipwreck of someone’s faith.^[7] The term is used of a baited animal trap.^[8]

But, this is a serious warning. We must reckon with the reality that our choices and behaviors have an impact on the spiritual lives of those around us. If we live lives of hypocrisy and duplicity and selfishness while saying we love Jesus and represent Jesus, that will push people away from the Lord. And God does not take that lightly. He sees it as one of the greatest sins.

In response to John’s story about trying to shut down the other exorcist because he wasn’t underneath the disciples’ authority, Jesus is saying, “Listen, that kind of arrogant behavior leads to abuse and neglect of the lowly.”^[9] And God does not overlook it. Remember: He is a God of vengeance. He takes these eternal matters more seriously than we could possibly imagine.

Jesus challenges His disciples to think both about how they invite others and how their conduct influences them, especially those who are young in the faith.

In verses 43 through 48, the Lord pivots. In verse 42 He warned that ungodliness has grievous eternal consequences in the lives of others. Now He warns us about watching out for our own lives.

He uses the same idea three times, so we’re going to take these as a set.

Mark 9:43-48 – ⁴³ “And if your hand causes you to fall away, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and go to hell, the unquenchable fire. ⁴⁵ And if your foot causes you to fall away, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. ⁴⁷ And if your eye causes you to fall away, gouge it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, ⁴⁸ where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.

If you have the New King James version, verse 48 was repeated two times earlier, in verses 44 and 46. There is manuscript disagreement. Some have those verses, some don’t. Either way, the words are definitely in verse 48 in all the manuscripts, so no harm done.^[10]

The point here is that you and I – even apostles – could be led astray into sin with disastrous consequences. Jesus is not saying that it would be good for us to mutilate ourselves, but that we should radically avoid sin. Jesus used hyperbole at times. This is one of those times.

The Lord wasn’t telling us to be like Ammonius. I can say that with confidence for several reasons. First, self-mutilation was prohibited in the Law. Though we are not under the Law, Jesus fulfilled it. And Paul told Timothy to watch out for people who tell you you have to abstain from certain foods or forbid marriage.^[11] He said God provides us richly with all things to enjoy.^[12]

Second, when people came to Jesus with blind eyes, crippled feet, shriveled hands, He didn’t say, “Actually, that’s better for you so you won’t sin.” He healed them.

Third, let’s be honest: Your hand doesn’t cause you to sin. Neither does your foot. Neither does your eye. Those are members of your body controlled and directed by your heart and mind. A quadriplegic is still capable of sin despite their bodily limitations. A blind man can still lust.

Christ’s point is the serious danger that sin poses in a life. We should not think of it as just bugs on the windshield. He wants us to think of sin like gangrene. If we find our lives infected with sin in some area, we should do what any surgeon would do if we brought to him a necrotic hand, whose infection was spreading up the arm.^[13] He would amputate.

So in my life – the things I do, the places I go, the things I give my attention to, if those things are leading me into sin, I should die to myself and remove those elements for the sake of my spiritual life. I should sacrifice all of that because sin is not a paltry thing. It separates me from God.

Paul said it this way in Romans 8:

Romans 8:13 – ¹³ if you live according to the flesh, you are going to die. But if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

In the book of Job, Job talks about how he was determined to follow the way of the Lord.^[14] He talks about walking the path of righteousness and not going astray. And he references his hands, his feet, his eyes. Job said, “I’m going to walk the path of Godliness.” Because he knew a life of sin is a life astray. And a life astray, Jesus says, ends in hell.

Culturally, it’s easy to think there’s just heaven and hell. But in the Bible you have heaven – the place God dwells. Then there’s a place called Hades, or sometimes the Old Testament would use the term Sheol. It can be used in a generic sense as the place of the dead – the grave. But in the New Testament we see it is also a real location. It seems to have two areas: One called Abraham’s Bosom, a place of comfort where Old Testament believers waited before being led to heaven. The other side of Hades is a place of conscious torment. We learn this in Luke 16.

Today, Abraham’s Bosom is empty. The Lord Jesus led those believers to heaven where they await their glorified bodies, received at the resurrection. The torment side of Hades is still populated by unbelievers. They are awaiting the Great White Throne Judgment, at which point they will be cast forever and ever into the Lake of Fire, which is a different location, that we commonly call hell.

When Jesus references hell in these verses, He doesn’t use the term Hades, He uses the term Gehenna. That term is used 12 times in the New Testament and 11 of those times are by Jesus.

Gehenna is Jesus’ term for the lake of fire and it has a Biblical and a geographical reference point to help us understand. The Biblical reference used by Jesus here is Isaiah 66:24. There we see those who rebel against the Lord burning forever and ever. And here, Jesus says, “If you live a life of sin, you’ll end up there.” Revelation calls it the Lake of Fire. Here, Jesus calls it Gehenna.

Gehenna was also the name of a literal place  south of Jerusalem. It had once been the site where God’s people burned their children alive in sacrifice to Molech. But Josiah put a stop to that and defiled the valley. From that point, and in the time of Jesus, Gehenna was a garbage dump. A place they brought refuse and sewage and animal carcasses to burn. And the fires burned continually.^[15]

To give us a tiny glimpse into hell, Jesus pointed to literal Gehenna. And He referenced how those suffering in the Lake of Fire will not be rewarded with crowns, but with worms. They face both gnawing, internal torment and burning external torment.^[16] It is truly horrible, but altogether real. Hell is as much a Biblical reality as heaven.^[17] A person should do everything necessary to avoid it. The good news of the Gospel is that God has freely given you everything you need for life and Godliness. But God’s way demands you take up a cross, die to self, and live as a sacrifice to Him.

Mark 9:49 – ⁴⁹ For everyone will be salted with fire.

Wait, what? Do all of us have to take a dip in the lake of fire? Scholars admit this is one of the most difficult verses in the entire book.^[18] There are at least 15 explanations of what Jesus meant.^[19]

Here’s what I find helpful: Jesus is talking about the binary choice: Heaven or hell. Life or death. Either way, you’re choosing fire. Either the fires of hell or the fire of a life lived on the altar. Romans 12 tells us, “Present your bodies as a living sacrifice.” John the Baptist said that Jesus came to baptize us with the Holy Spirit and with fire.^[20]

So, I can willingly submit to His cleansing fire, or if I choose to reject Him and go my own way, and then have the unquenchable fires of hell. Which reward do I want? Which eternity do I want?

Mark 9:50 – ⁵⁰ Salt is good, but if the salt should lose its flavor, how can you season it? Have salt among yourselves, and be at peace with one another.”

The salt of that time was often sourced from the Dead Sea region, but they would also collect deposits of minerals that looked like salt but weren’t salt at all.^[21] And so, Jesus encourages us to evaluate our spiritual lives. Are we Christians? Are we part of the salty crew? It’s one thing to look the part, it’s another to be serving the Christian function of salting the earth with Godly flavor, preservative, purifying the world around us by the power of God working through our lives.

“Have salt among yourselves.” So again, He brings us back to our interaction with others. That we concern ourselves with our internal lives, but also with our interactions and influence on others. That together in the church we’re serving one another, salting one another, which leads to peace and growth and God’s glory. These are the things we should be focused on, not which of us is the greatest. Not exclusivity or jockeying for position. Saltiness, not self-aggrandizement.

Now listen: Jesus is not saying a genuine Christian can lose their salvation. The focus of His words here is that sin is a big, big deal to God. And a life of sin ends in Gehenna. And, remember: there was a counterfeit believer among the 12! Judas looked like salt, but he didn’t taste like salt.

Meanwhile, all disciples should set our own notions and concerns aside and allow the Lord to shape our perspective. That’s what He was trying to do with the disciples here, who had totally off-base ideas about the Kingdom and spiritual greatness and how they should conduct themselves.

The mental road they were on would lead to seriously bad consequences. And so Jesus took the time to help them recalculate the route. And He used the extreme and severe words so they could understand how serious He was about it.

The Lord isn’t telling us to scissor our ears off. He is telling us to radically avoid sin. And to choose carefully the lives we’re living. To consider what it really means to be a Christian – to go the way of the cross. It demands we embrace the fire of the altar. But if we do that, the result is a salted life. When a person doesn’t, the result is the unquenchable fire of eternal death.

And so, as we seek to follow the Lord and go His way, we’ll remind ourselves of another verse from Isaiah:

Isaiah 30:20-21 – Your eyes will see your Teacher, ²¹ and whenever you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear this command behind you: “This is the way. Walk in it.”

Water Works (Mark 9:38-41)

What a thrill it must be to win a gold medal. After so much dedication, study, training, expense, and effort, to receive that glorious award. Olympic events can be incredibly demanding. Consider the biathlon, where athletes must first cross-country ski with “all-out intensity,” then suddenly pivot to calm, “steady aim” as they shoot rifles both prone and standing at targets 50 meters away.^[1]

To bring home the gold in this event is quite a feat. In fact, the United States has never medaled in the biathlon. It’s the only winter Olympic event we’ve been shut out of.

But if you’re looking for something a little…simpler…you could consider being the third man in the bobsled. Effectively all you need to do is sprint for 50 to 100 feet. Jason Hartman, the strength and conditioning coordinator for the U.S. Olympic bobsled team, once said, “Honestly, after those five seconds, they’re kind of trying to stay as relaxed as possible while leaning into the turns.”^[2]

Whether you’re a biathlete, a downhill skier traveling at 95 miles per hour, a hockey team playing seven grueling, hour-long matches, or the third man in a bobsled just trying to be as relaxed as possible – the medals are the same: 500 grams of silver covered by 6 grams of gold, with a melt value of about $2,500.^[3]

There are two very different yet connected parts to our text tonight. It’s sort of like a biathlon’s skiing and shooting. On the one hand, this passage is about Christ adjusting the attitude of the disciples, which is dysfunctional at the moment. He’s still teaching them how to have servants’ hearts rather than trying to exclude others or lord over them.

But alongside that lesson, He formally discloses a remarkable truth. He takes the simplest act of care and hospitality and elevates it to be on par with a miraculous healing. He says, “These things, done in My name, will be rewarded.” Not just in a “that’s a nice thing to do” sense, but in the eschatological sense. When we are brought into eternity and ushered into Christ’s forever Kingdom, those who hand out cups of water are rewarded alongside those who exorcise demons.

Mark 9:38 – ³⁸ John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him because he wasn’t following us.”

There is a lot going on in this verse. From the words, to the actions, to the context, and the apparent attitudes – we want to break it all down. But this is one of those times where we’re not sure how this was said or the exact motivation behind it. I know I automatically come to this scene assuming some things about how and why John said what he did.

Did he say this because he was ashamed by what Jesus had just said in verses 35 through 37?^[4] Jesus said, “if you want to be first you must be last and the servant of all.” And, “Whoever welcomes a little child in My name welcomes Me.” So maybe John is convicted and confessing here.

Or, could it be that John is trying to change the subject? That perhaps, as was so often the case, the disciples really weren’t hearing what Jesus said and now John brings this up expecting praise?^[5]

Or maybe John just didn’t know what to think. That Jesus gave them the teaching of 35 through 37 and was saying, “Well, now that You mention it, did we do right or wrong when we did this…?”^[6]

We can’t be sure. And we don’t actually know when this interaction with the unknown exorcist took place. I always think they just came from confronting this guy, but they’re still in a house in Capernaum in a teaching session with Jesus. So this happened at some point in the past.

But let’s consider what John said. First, it wasn’t only John. He says “we,” speaking of all the 12.^[7] At some point, they witnessed this other fellow casting out demons in Jesus’ name. He didn’t come to them and try to join the 12. He didn’t come and tell them they should support him. He didn’t come and try to buy power like Simon the Sorcerer did in Acts 8. He’s doing his thing and they engage.

This was a guy who clearly believed in Jesus and was being used by God. I say that because he was successful at casting out demons. The supernatural power of God was at work in him.

There’s a story in Acts 19 where some Jewish exorcists try to use Jesus’ name to cast out demons and the demon says, “Yeah, it doesn’t work that way.” And proceeds to mess them up. They didn’t have real belief, so throwing the name of Jesus around like an incantation didn’t do anything.

But, the 12 saw this guy doing his thing, and then they go over and say, “Stop it. You’re not allowed to do this because you don’t follow us.” Did you notice that detail? It wasn’t even, “Jesus didn’t personally call you to be a disciple.” It was, “You’re not in our group and you’re not under us.”

The 12 were still very worried about which one of them was the greatest in the group. They argued about it openly. But at the time they also assumed they had a special place above everyone else.

So they told him to stop. There are two ironies here: First, they had the audacity to try to forbid him from successfully exorcising demons when just a few verses ago they had been unable to cast out a demon! And second, they say, “We tried to stop him.” Meaning, they were unsuccessful at that! So, they think they have the authority to lord over people, but they couldn’t even convince this guy to comply with their demands!

This was all flowing from a faulty mentality. You can see it even in John’s words. He calls Jesus “Teacher.” Not Christ. Not Lord. Not Son of Man. Instead, he used a term that was usually only used by outsiders in the book of Mark.^[8] Why? I don’t know. But it exposes a skewed attitude.

Now, a wrong attitude can happen to the best of believers. In the book of Numbers there’s a scene where the Holy Spirit falls on seventy elders of Israel. Two guys who had not come when Moses called also received the Spirit and began to prophesy. When it happened, Joshua says, “Moses, my lord, stop them!” And Moses says, “Are you jealous on my account? If only all the Lord’s people were prophets and all of them had the Spirit!”^[9] But in the moment, Joshua wasn’t sure if what they were doing was appropriate.

Were the disciples of Jesus jealous for Him or for themselves? The latter seems to be the case. Because their attention was not that some tormented soul be freed from demonic possession, but that this unknown exorcist must follow after them. In the interaction, they were acting more like Pharisees than like Jesus.

Mark 9:39-40 – ³⁹ “Don’t stop him,” said Jesus, “because there is no one who will perform a miracle in my name who can soon afterward speak evil of me. ⁴⁰ For whoever is not against us is for us.

Jesus uses the same verb that is used in the LXX when Joshua said, “Moses, forbid them!” Jesus says, “Don’t do that.” He acknowledges that this man really believes in Jesus. He calls this exorcism a “mighty work” – the same terminology that Mark uses of Jesus’ own miracles.^[10]

But now let’s pause and consider the implications of what Jesus says here for our own day and age, our own interaction with other Christians – particularly those with whom we’re not in fellowship. Other groups, other ministries, other churches, other believers who you may interact with but aren’t closely connected with.

Some say that it’s wrong that we have different churches and different denominations – that all Christians should just unite and agree. It gets said from time to time, because it’s easy to say.

But notice what Jesus did and didn’t command here: He said that they should not make themselves enemies of this man. Don’t try to stop him. But Jesus did not say, “Go join him.” He didn’t say, “Have him come join us.” He didn’t say they needed to get together and make an exorcism program.

As Christians, we are to be welcoming to one another, kind to one another, not combatants against one another – as far as in the church universal. But there is a difference between an ally and a partner. We can be allies with brothers and sisters who do things differently or have differences of opinion on non-essential issues. But that doesn’t mean we’re failing if we don’t partner together.

The important issue is not whether we’re plowing together in the same direction. The important issue is whether we are for or against Jesus. There’s no middle ground there. We are either for Jesus or we are against Him. And elsewhere in the Gospel, Jesus would say it in reverse: “If you are not for Me, then you ARE against Me.”^[11]

There are those who try to say they will come to Jesus before they die. There are some who believe it doesn’t matter whether they consider the issue here and now. But this is the principal concern of a human life: Are you in Christ? Do you belong to Him?

After we can answer yes to that question, then we can learn to serve Him, understand our calling, welcome others, interact with brothers and sisters, even if they’re not part of our tribe, and be in alliance or partnership according to God’s leading. As we grow in Christ, we should be growing in knowledge of what He wants us to be doing, but also growing in grace toward others who are called to other things. I shouldn’t become more narrow-minded when it comes to Christian brotherhood, but more willing to give what Paul calls the “right hand of fellowship” to other, genuine believers.^[12]

Mark 9:41 – ⁴¹ And whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in my name, because you belong to Christ—truly I tell you, he will never lose his reward.

There’s a sudden pivot from skiing to shooting. Jesus was not only talking about who is allowed to do the work of God, but He expands what gold-medal events are available in His Kingdom. He says, “Truly I tell you.” This is official heavenly policy! And notice how John had said, “Well, this guy was casting out demons in Your name.” Now Jesus talks about a cup of water in His name. He elevates the most basic act of kindness and provision to be, in some sense, in the same category as a miracle. That in the Kingdom, both are events for which you can receive a great reward.

Let’s marvel again at just how generous God is. This is the smallest service we could do for someone.^[13] The Lord is so excited to reward us in eternity. He so lavishly repays what we do for Him. In some cases, even when we didn’t even realize we’re doing it for Him!^[14]

But a couple of thoughts about this closing verse are important. First, notice that, in the image Jesus is painting for them, it is the 12 who are the thirsty ones. They receive the cup. This assumes that there will be times when Christians – even apostles – will face difficulty, need, even desperation.^[15] In those times, one of the great provisions God has given us is the Church to meet needs. Christians are called to love our enemies and reach out to the world – that everyone around us is our neighbor. But we are specifically commanded to give care and attention and compassion and support to our brothers and sisters, near and far.^[16] To do the one another commands for each other. That we learn to live as a connected body where each part has its own functions, but all parts are conscious of the health or hurt, strength or weakness of the other parts.

Here the image is of a Christian helping another Christian with a cup of water. And the Lord says this is a wonderful thing to do. It assumes that one person is thirsty. If you came up and handed me a bottle of water right now, it’s not necessary because I’m not thirsty. Really, it would be more distracting than a blessing.

It’s exciting to know that even small acts of kindness or provision or hospitality are counted as rewardable in Christ’s Kingdom, but we need to pay attention to who is thirsty. Or earlier, while Jesus was talking about the kind of gracious, welcoming attitude a Christian should have toward others, Jesus picked a kid out of the group that was there in the room.

In the book of Acts and the epistles, we don’t just see Christians doing acts of kindness to check a box. That’s the Pharisee mentality. Do certain acts to earn points with God. But that’s not how it works. In Acts we see the Church doing things like this: Certain widows were underserved, so they make a specific effort to serve them. The Jerusalem church was suffering with material needs and the Gentile churches sent relief money to them.^[17] Dorcas saw that widows needed clothes, so she made them.^[18]

In the biathlon, when it’s time to shoot, you shoot at a target. You need your own eyes to hit center. Rather than look for people to exclude, which is what the 12 did in verse 38, Jesus was encouraging them to look around at who they could serve. Who they could welcome. Who they could support. Some fellow Christians will be out there doing what they do and we don’t necessarily partner with them. But we want to be people who are looking around to serve in the name of Jesus. Who might be thirsty? I mean that figuratively or literally. Who might be struggling in a way we could help if we only knew it?

Jesus is compassionately observant. And He invites us to live with that mentality. And He throws in the wonderful revelation that, “Oh, when you do that for someone else, you’re also doing it to Me.”

The disciples were worried about their prestige compared to this exorcist. Instead, they should’ve been worried about the demon-possessed person. Better that they look for thirsty people. And, ironically, when we become the servant of all, that’s what puts us on the podium in the Kingdom. As we follow Jesus and live for Him, He leads us to people we can love and serve and bring to Him. It’s a cup given in His name. It’s welcoming someone in His name. It’s all empowered by and attached to the Gospel. It’s not about our greatness, it’s about His glory and His goodness. And, as we go, we can celebrate the other brothers and sisters running their races both near and far.

Great Exhortations (Mark 9:30-37)

Do you have what it takes to be victorious at the ISSA Show? It is billed as “the world’s largest and most influential event” in its category.^[1] It’s a “powerful platform” to showcase your greatness and help change the way the world views the people of this particular industry.^[2] You’ll have to compete against other top teams but standout participants will be featured across industry media and recognized in front of their peers. If your team is the greatest, you will receive “unmatched reach,” and “premiere exposure,” and “global visibility” according to the official website.

Who wants in? Oh, what is the event I’m talking about? It’s the Housekeeping Olympics. Contests include bed-making races, vacuum relays, and mop-bucket sprints. For 35 years, thousands of service industry professionals have competed to determine who truly is the greatest among them.

What makes a person great in God’s eyes and in His Kingdom? This is the topic of our verses tonight. They’re straightforward, but also vital for our perspective as believers and disciples.

Mark 9:30 – ³⁰ Then they left that place and made their way through Galilee, but he did not want anyone to know it.

Jesus and His followers have been up north in Caesarea Philippi, but now head south through Galilee on their way to Judea, Jerusalem, and Golgotha. Jesus wants to move without being noticed. When it says they made their way through Galilee, it’s not to stop from place to place, but to bypass the towns and villages.^[3] His public ministry was coming to an end.^[4] And He wanted to spend concentrated time instructing the disciples.

Mark 9:31 – ³¹ For he was teaching his disciples and telling them, “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill him, and after he is killed, he will rise three days later.”

Jesus makes three predictions like this in the Gospel of Mark. The first was in chapter 8 where He then had to rebuke Peter. The third will be in chapter 10. None of what happened was a surprise to Jesus. This is why He came – to give His life as a ransom for many.

But here He provides a new detail: He would be betrayed. Not that He would be ambushed by hidden enemies, but handed over by a follower – a friend. Who would it be? Jesus had more than 12 followers, but the group as big as it had been – not after the so-called “hard sayings of Jesus” which resulted in many people turning back and following Him no more.

Mark 9:32 – ³² But they did not understand this statement, and they were afraid to ask him.

They should’ve known the betrayer was, indeed, one of the 12, because when many followers turned away, Jesus said to them, “Do you guys want to leave, too?” They said no, and then Jesus said, “One of you is a devil.”^[5] But they didn’t follow up with, “Lord, is it I?” At least not yet.

The whole discussion and idea of a slain Messiah left them distressed and afraid. How could the Son of Man die? There in verse 31, Jesus once again identifies Himself as the Son of Man. But Daniel says the Son of Man is given an everlasting domain ruling over every people, every language, every nation. The Son of Man’s Kingdom cannot be destroyed.^[6] So how could He die?

And maybe they kept quiet because they remembered what happened the last time Jesus made this prediction and one of them responded. Now, Peter responded poorly – rebuking Jesus and telling Him to stop talking – but even so, they probably weren’t too keen on piping up.

On top of all that, the full understanding of these things was still hidden from them.^[7] It was after the resurrection that they would finally have their minds fully opened to understand the Scriptures.^[8]

Now, we have the indwelling Holy Spirit to help us understand these things. The 12 did not in Mark 9. But even post-Pentecost, we recognize that there are limitations to our knowledge and apprehension. But we remind ourselves and comfort ourselves with the truth that the Holy Spirit is given to counsel us and testify the truth to us and give us right spiritual vision.

Christians must have a healthy, growing relationship with God the Holy Spirit. His interactions with us are never going to contradict the Scriptures, but if we don’t have communion with Him, we can’t fully comprehend the Word of God. Intellectual growth is not sufficient on its own. We must also receive the Holy Spirit, be filled with the Holy Spirit, and be taught by the Holy Spirit.^[9]

Mark 9:33 – ³³ They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?”

When Jesus taught them about His betrayal and death, they were silent. But apparently, after a while, they started talking with each other. More than talking, they started arguing with each other. And though Jesus knew exactly what it was about, He takes this the opportunity later in the day to say, “Hey guys – What were you debating while we were on our walk?”

Jesus has such a patient compassion for us. He’s going to use this to teach them something super important, but can you imagine this moment? It’s downright humorous. We could imagine Him asking with severity, but does it come off that way? “What were you guys talking about?”

There was a lot for them to talk about: Jesus’ impending death. What that might mean for them. What they should do about it. Which of them might be the betrayer. The implications of the resurrection. But instead of all those things, this is what they had been arguing:

Mark 9:34 – ³⁴ But they were silent, because on the way they had been arguing with one another about who was the greatest.

Yikes. We can imagine how this might have gone. “Well, you nine guys biffed that last exorcism, so you’re definitely not gold medalists.”

“Yeah, well, Jesus said YOU are SATAN and you had to get behind Him!”

“Yeah, but WE just got to do something that definitely puts us in the front running.”

“Yeah, what WERE you guys doing up on Mount Hermon?”

“We can’t say. But obviously Jesus thinks we’re the most important.”

It wasn’t just an argument about glorifying God or being rewarded. They saw these things as a competition between each other. I get ranked higher and I want you to be lower than me.

This is human nature and none of us are immune. Even the Essenes, who isolated themselves from regular society out in Qumran and took care of the Dead Sea Scrolls, and lived strict, communal lives with no private property – even they obsessed over rank. Every year they would reevaluate each member’s rank which determined their seating and their speaking order among the group.^[10]

But what Jesus was trying to get across to the 12 is that the road He was leading them on is the way of the cross. And He uses this situation to drive home a key principle of Christianity.

Mark 9:35 – ³⁵ Sitting down, he called the Twelve and said to them, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be last and servant of all.”

In Christ’s Kingdom, greatness is not about beating your neighbor in position or accomplishment. It’s not about out-running the Christian next to you. It is about conforming our mentality, our choices, our goals, and values to Heaven’s standards of humility, grace, love, and service.

This little phrase in verse 34 is so important. First of all, Mark shows us that it is a formal moment of teaching.^[11] As Rabbi, Jesus sits and then calls the 12 to come and listen. There were other people around, but this is an official, class-in-session scene for those who claim to be disciples.

But not only that, this idea of the first being last and the greatness of serving is constantly repeated in the Gospels. Mark 9, Mark 10, Matthew 19, 20, and 23. Luke 13, 14, and 22. John 13.

One commentator writes, “This is such a radical challenge to natural human valuation that it needs constant repetition.”^[12]

Jesus said the path to spiritual greatness is service. Now, there are two principles I’d like us to think about. The first is that Jesus’ teaching here was about service, not suffering. There are people like the Essenes who convince themselves and try to convince you that the path to glory is suffering.

Now listen: We are going to suffer in this life. And we may suffer for the Gospel. If you suffer for righteousness, you are blessed.^[13] But the goal of your Christian life isn’t suffering. Jesus came to serve. His service was to suffer and die. But nowhere does He tell us to seek out suffering as a goal. We are commanded to seek out ways to serve Him. We can rejoice in suffering, knowing that the Lord is with us. But don’t swap out discipleship for asceticism. Service for suffering.

The second principle here is that Christian service is ultimately a mentality, not a meniality. Here’s what I mean: Christ’s goal is not that you only care about doing the worst, grosses thing, which somehow makes you better. It’s that you have the mentality of a living as a servant of all.

There are times when certain jobs need doing and you are not the person to do them. I know that because the 12, who Jesus was giving this teaching to, would later say, “We can’t leave the study of the Word to wait tables. Let’s find seven servants to do it.”^[14] That wasn’t them being snobbish or forgetting their place as servants. It’s about what the Lord leads us to do.

Our mentality should be, “I’m here to serve.” What does that mean today? It depends on the needs and opportunities the Lord has gathered around you. It depends on the direction of the Holy Spirit.

The path to spiritual greatness is through service. This is something we care about here at Calvary. Sometimes people will be new to our church and will say, “What can I do to be one of the leaders here?” Or, “When can I be the person speaking on the stage?” We always say the same thing: Push a broom. Stack a chair. Show the Lord you’re willing to serve in menial ways and see what else He leads you to do. We don’t need any other lords over the people. We have one Lord, and He will build His Church the way He sees fit. Our job is to serve Him and serve others.

To drive His point home, Jesus uses an object lesson.

Mark 9:36-37 – ³⁶ He took a child, had him stand among them, and taking him in his arms, he said to them, ³⁷ “Whoever welcomes one little child such as this in my name welcomes me. And whoever welcomes me does not welcome me, but him who sent me.” 

So there were other people there besides the disciples. Jesus uses this little guy to further elaborate on what it means for a Christian to serve. You see, children were not thought well of in ancient culture. They weren’t valuable or significant.^[15] They had no status, no rights. And here Jesus says, “This person is someone I want you to concern yourself with alongside everyone else.” So, it wasn’t only about serving the impressive or the important, but also having a caring, compassionate, serving mentality toward the weak, the vulnerable, the defenseless, the unimportant.

And Jesus, once again, highlights the essential, intrinsic, eternal value of every person. Each of us made in His image, loved equally by Him. Each of us filling an innumerable succession of thoughts and intentions and cares in His mind.

Not only should they serve this child, Matthew’s account explains that Jesus said they should become like him. Humble, dependent, submissive, and receptive to direction. Did you notice the boy does exactly what Jesus said without question? And did you see that beautiful tender detail: “And taking him in His arms.” The boy wasn’t just standing there awkwardly in the middle of the room. Jesus embraced him close to Himself in joyful affection. What an image. What a Savior!

This instruction is so key for us as Christians. But I was thinking about how gracious the Lord is, even in this. I mean, it’s an upside-down Kingdom, last will be first, and it flows counter to the corrupted human nature. So, it’s a challenge, to be sure, but did you notice the bar is set kind of low? Here’s what I mean: Become like this child. Ok, just realize that Jesus loves you and can be trusted and that we have a lot to learn and we should follow His directions and allow ourselves to be embraced by our Savior. We make it harder than it needs to be.

And then, when it comes to serving, the bar is still pretty low. It wasn’t, “Whoever raises this child from the dead in My name,” or, “Whoever heals the infirmities of this child in My name.” It wasn’t even, “Whoever converts this child.” Just welcomes. Receives. Meaning we make it our business to represent Christ with love and action and truth to whoever He brings into our path – recognizing they are gifts given to us to receive, well then the Lord counts that as greatness in His Kingdom.

Charles Dickens famously changed the ending of his classic book Great Expectations. A friend and fellow novelist convinced him the original ending was too bleak. So Dickens made alterations so that there was an atmosphere of love and hope, even amidst the ruins of Satis House.

Christ has changed what our expectations of greatness should be. Not competing against each other, but conforming to His image and thereby living lives overflowing with love, humility, and service. Embracing others the way He does. Embracing Him the way He wants to. Living with heaven’s mentality of humble willingness to love and serve whoever the Lord brings us to receive.

Believe It And Not (Mark 9:14-29)

Most Americans believe in God. That is, when polled, 83% of Americans believe in the idea of “God” or a “Universal Spirit.” Eight out of ten Americans may claim some level of belief, but for many it doesn’t translate to communion with God or the power of God in their lives. Between 2007 and 2024, the number of Americans who identify themselves as Christians has declined 16%.^[1] Only 46% of Americans pray every day. Just 43% say that religion is very important in their lives.^[2] All of those numbers are five to ten percentage points lower for the generations born after 1995.

And yet, 83% of our fellow citizens still say they believe in God. But does that ‘belief’ make a difference? What did James say? “Even the demons believe – and they shudder!”^[3]

The difference belief makes is in focus tonight. When Jesus went to Nazareth, He was unable to do many miracles there because the people of His hometown absolutely did not believe in Him.^[4] Tonight, we see the temporary disruption of miraculous healing, but not because people didn’t believe, but because their belief was incomplete to one degree or another.

Remember: this section of Mark has been highlighting the partial belief – the blurry spiritual vision – of the disciples. Exhibit A came after the feeding of the 4,000. Exhibit B was Peter’s spiritual eye exam first on the road and then again at the Transfiguration. The theme is emphasized by the story of the man whose sight was healed in two stages.

Of course the disciples aren’t the only ones struggling with belief. Jesus says the entire generation is unbelieving. A sad reality and stark contrast to the clear manifestations of His Messiahship.

Tonight we see the 12, a crowd, and scribes. Jesus calls all of them out on the state of their belief. Zooming in, we see a distraught father who has all but lost hope. In a moment of desperate crisis, he acknowledges he believes and does not believe. It is a powerful and heart-wrenching scene. But it gives Jesus a chance to speak to us about true belief and the difference it makes.

Mark 9:14-18 – ¹⁴ When they came to the disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and scribes disputing with them. ¹⁵ When the whole crowd saw him, they were amazed and ran to greet him. ¹⁶ He asked them, “What are you arguing with them about?” ¹⁷ Someone from the crowd answered him, “Teacher, I brought my son to you. He has a spirit that makes him unable to speak. ¹⁸ Whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams at the mouth, grinds his teeth, and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive it out, but they couldn’t.”

The father had a measure of faith. He said, “I brought him to have the demon driven out.” But Jesus wasn’t there when he arrived – Jesus was overnight on the mountain – so the father turned to the disciples. And I’m sure they told him they’d done exorcisms before and that it would be no trouble.

But, the spirit didn’t go anywhere. It wasn’t because the disciples were unwilling to help, they were unable. As one translator puts it, they “weren’t strong to help.”^[5] All 9 of them. Not a great start for the last exorcism in Mark’s Gospel.

In that dire moment what did they do? With a frightened father holding his still-stricken son in his arms? They start arguing with some scribes! Now, we don’t know what they were arguing about. It seems likely that the scribes were gleefully pointing out how their so-called power had failed them.

Jesus is going to rebuke everyone for unbelief. The scribes obviously have no belief. The father will admit he has, like, half belief. But the disciples are rebuked, too. In Matthew’s account Jesus tells them they failed, “because of [their] little faith.”^[6] Their unbelief was a major problem that day.

Their spiritual failure gave those on scene an excuse to be skeptical of Jesus Himself.^[7] We’ll see that their failure of faith shook the faith of the father. It certainly gave ammunition to the scribes.

One exhortation of this passage is that – as disciples – we have a responsibility to live Godly, Spirit-filled lives. We’re not going to be perfect. None of us live all the way up to the callings of Christ. But God forbid our failures of faith give the people around us a reason to disbelieve Jesus.

Mark 9:19-20a – ¹⁹ He replied to them, “You unbelieving generation, how long will I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him to me.” ²⁰ So they brought the boy to him.

Despite all He had said and done, there was still widespread unbelief. It’s a testament to the hardness of the human heart. One scholar writes, “Their faithlessness is symptomatic of the wider human condition, as Jesus in His ministry so often encountered it, an unwillingness to take God at His word and a horizon limited to merely human possibilities.”^[8]

Jesus wasn’t only disappointed – He’s also raising a valid concern. He was going to be gone soon. The disciples were the ones who were supposed to become the Body of Christ, found and build the Church, spread the Gospel from Judea to Samaria to the ends of the earth. But here they are, unable to do something they had previously done! Something Jesus gave them authority to do!^[9]

Mark 9:20b-22 – When the spirit saw him, it immediately threw the boy into convulsions. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth. ²¹ “How long has this been happening to him?” Jesus asked his father. “From childhood,” he said. ²² “And many times it has thrown him into fire or water to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.”

Just about every commentary rushes to say the boy had epilepsy or that his possession presented as epilepsy.^[10] This is a bad default to have. It undermines a plain interpretation of Scripture. Plus, we shouldn’t attribute every illness to demonic possession. And, as far as I can tell, epilepsy can’t see someone. It says, “When the spirit saw Jesus, it convulsed the boy.” Putting the descriptions together we also learn that the boy is deaf and mute. No communication with him.

This is what the devil wants to do to the people of this world. To you, your family, your neighbors. He wants to isolate and destroy them. The verb used for throwing the boy into convulsions was also used of a dog tearing up a carcass.^[11] That’s what the devil does. He seeks to devour and destroy. When the Bible warns us that unbelievers are held captive by him, picture this.

When the demon is brought before the Lord, he doesn’t speak. It’s possible the spirit itself was mute based on what Jesus says later. But it cannot hide its intentions from the Son of God. In His presence, all was laid bare, and the demon must reveal his presence and submit to judgment.

Does it seem strange that Jesus let this convulsion play out for a moment? The kid is suffering terribly while the Lord talks with the father. It reminds us of the time Jesus has a back and forth with Peter walking on the waves while the storm battered the boat.

Both of those moments remind us of how important the faith issue is to God. We usually prioritize feelings. He prioritizes faith.The boy needs physical help. Jesus is going to heal him. But their faith is the most important problem. And so the Great Physician deals with that first.

But whatever faith the father had was terribly shaken. He came asking for exorism. Now he’s downgraded his request. “If you can do anything…” He’s no longer directly asking for healing. The disciples failed, why would the Rabbi do any better?

Mark 9:23 – ²³ Jesus said to him, “ ‘If you can’? Everything is possible for the one who believes.”

The New King James phrases this differently, but linguists are confident Jesus quoted the man back to him.^[12] The Lord is calling out the man’s faltering faith.

God does not need to prove Himself to us. If you want proof of the existence of God, watch the sun rise tomorrow morning. Or take your pulse right now. Consider the flow of human history or the love that exists in your heart for your husband or wife, son, or daughter.

Our problem is when we stop believing in what God can do. We limit Him in our minds, for one reason or another. We limit His care for us or His ability to intervene in time. There is no limit to what God can do. There is a limit to what He will do. While God may choose not to act on everything we want, it is never because He lacks the power to do so.

Mark 9:24 – ²⁴ Immediately the father of the boy cried out, “I do believe; help my unbelief!”

A logician would say this answer makes no sense. But we’ve all felt this way and probably feel this way right now in some area of our heart. This is a tension all of us experience.

But what a treasure this verse is. One of the greatest prayers in all of Scripture. Certainly the most honest. Though the man was wavering in faith, we see here that he confessed and repented. He says, “Yeah, I’m starting to give in to unbelief. But I recognize that You are right, Jesus. And I’m turning from doubt to devotion, right now, but I need You to help me.”

If you’re struggling with doubt, you can step out of it into faith right now. You might not suddenly feel different, but you can do what this father did. Choose to say that God is true. That He is able. That He is no liar. And then ask Him for help and trust that He will.

Mark 9:25-27 – ²⁵ When Jesus saw that a crowd was quickly gathering, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You mute and deaf spirit, I command you: Come out of him and never enter him again.” ²⁶ Then it came out, shrieking and throwing him into terrible convulsions. The boy became like a corpse, so that many said, “He’s dead.” ²⁷ But Jesus, taking him by the hand, raised him, and he stood up.

The demon may have been able to withstand the disciples, but he was no match for the King. He would obey the word of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Some suggest that the boy really did die, but I don’t think for a minute that Jesus would’ve allowed the demon to kill this child after commanding him to come out. No, the Lord was in charge.

Mark 9:28 – ²⁸ After he had gone into the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”

Yeah. Why couldn’t they? They’d done it before. Jesus specifically gave them authority to do so.

We’ll see why in a moment, but this is an important doctrinal moment: No one has the categorical gift of healing or gift of exorcism where they can just exercise that power by their own will. There are some people out there who claim to be faith-healers, that they can cure people of things on demand. But that is not what happens in the New Testament.

In 1 Corinthians, when Paul talked about Christians miraculously healing people, he said, “Do all have gifts of healings?” Three times he references those gifts as plural.^[13] Those are specific moments and situations God works through, not a capability a human wields at liberty.

Mark 9:29 – ²⁹ And he told them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer.”

Some manuscripts have “and fasting,” at the end of this verse. But it wouldn’t really fit the context. And Jesus specifically said the disciples cannot fast as long as the Bridegroom was with them.^[14] What seems to be going on is that the disciples have slipped into a sort of Samson mentality. We know they’ve been distracted by human concerns more than spiritual concerns. So that day when the father brought his son they thought, “Well we have strength because we had it before. Jesus gave it to us and that’s it we’ve got His power on command forever.”

But that’s not how it works. All Christians must continue in an attitude of devotion and dependence on the Lord. We don’t just coast on one interaction from 2 years ago and think we’ll be strong enough for the new challenges ahead.

These guys were famously not strong enough to even stay awake during prayer times. Let alone facing a demon. And one that, according to Jesus, was a particularly difficult demon to cast out.

When the father came and they realized that their faith was weakened, they should’ve immediately gone to prayer – seeking God’s empowering and intervention. Instead, they went to arguing with the trolls who came to hassle them. That was not a good use of their time.

But listen: It’s not about how much we pray – that if we pray a certain amount we get more power. Or if we fast we juice up with supernatural strength. It’s about an attitude of dependence on the Lord. Recognizing that the wellspring of life is in Him.^[15] And that our part is to believe. A living faith in a Living Savior.

In his book, A Grief Observed, C.S. Lewis wrote:

“You never know how much you really believe anything until its truth or falsehood becomes a matter of life and death to you. It is easy to say you believe a rope to be strong and sound as long as you are merely using it to cord a box. But suppose you had to hang by that rope over a precipice. Wouldn’t you then first discover how much you really trusted it?”^[16]

All of us carry beliefs and unbeliefs in our hearts. The Christian life is about walking by faith. That the things we believe not only change our perspective and understanding, but that they drive us into communion with God, service to Jesus, dependence on His leading, His wisdom, His callings, and then experiencing what a difference that kind of belief makes in our lives.

You’ve Changed, GodMan (Mark 9:1-13)

It’s the most famous reveal in movie history. Dorothy and her three friends enter the chamber of Oz, The Great And Powerful’s – fire and smoke exploding around his throne. Their hopes are dashed when the curtain is pulled back, revealing Oz is no wizard. He’s just a man, pulling levers in a desperate attempt to keep up the charade. With tears in her eyes, Dorothy tells him, “you’re a very bad man.” To which Oz replies, “No…I’m a very good man. I’m just a very bad wizard.”

In Mark 9, Jesus brings three of His friends to a mountaintop. For a moment, the curtain is pulled back to show Jesus in His Divine glory. He’s not just some hot air balloonist stranded in a strange country. He is resplendent in power. He’s much more than the disciples thought of Him. He’s more than any prophet. He’s the great and powerful Son of Man.

Oz was revealed to be a sham. Christ is revealed as a Savior. But He was a Savior Who would suffer and die. And, at the time, that made for a “very bad messiah” in the minds of the disciples.

Mark 9:1 – ¹ Then he said to them, “Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God come in power.”

Was Jesus referring to the transfiguration here? On the one hand, Mark gives us textual clues that he’s tying chapter 8 verse 38 to chapter 9 verse 1 and then to what follows. On the other hand, the transfiguration happens only six days later. None of the disciples died in the interval.

As things play out, we see yet again their understanding has to be adjusted. The Jews expected only one arrival of the Messiah.^[1] God’s work was much bigger than deposing Caesar and defeating his legions. The Kingdom of God was a global work, spanning millennia. The consummation of God’s work wasn’t going to happen suddenly like they expected. It would happen in phases.

They expected the Messiah to bring one-step liberation. But God’s plan had first, transfiguration. Then crucifixion. Then resurrection. Then ascension. Then the interruption of the Church age and the inclusion of Gentiles. Then tribulation. Finally restoration, not just of Israel, but all the world.

Three of the disciples would see the transfiguration phase. Eleven would see the resurrection. John, alone, would see visions of Christ’s future second coming.

Now we didn’t get to eyewitness that scene, but we’ve been briefed much more fully about what is coming than Peter, James, and John at the time. The power and the character and the activity has been laid out for us. We can invest our lives in that Kingdom. We can stand firm in the power and the love and the truth of God as citizens now of His future Kingdom.

Mark 9:2-3 – ² After six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John and led them up a high mountain by themselves to be alone. He was transfigured in front of them, ³ and his clothes became dazzling—extremely white as no launderer on earth could whiten them.

James and John were brothers. Peter’s brother was left behind. Sorry, Andrew. I always wonder how Andrew felt about these moments. I know I would’ve struggled with it.

The traditional site is Mount Tabor in lower Galilee.^[2] But Tabor is not a high mountain. It’s a little puny. And at the time, its summit was inhabited and walled.^[3] Not exactly a good place to be alone. Plus, the last geographical marker Mark gave was in the region of Caesarea Philippi.

Most contemporary scholars believe this happened on Mount Hermon – the tallest in Israel.^[4] It has an elevation of over 9,000 feet. This would fit with the themes and parallels in this passage.

As Mark has shown before, this scene again reveals that Jesus is the greater Moses – the final Prophet-Deliverer that Moses told us to watch for, Who would bring a final exodus for God’s people. Hermon was known as a sacred and holy mountain and it is higher than Sinai.

Now, in Exodus 24, Moses brought Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu up Mount Sinai along with 70 elders of Israel. After waiting 6 days, the Lord God appeared to Moses in glory, and then delivered truth and revelation to him. Here, Jesus waited 6 days, and now brings three of His followers up – the 70 member Sanhedrin wants nothing to do with Jesus – and on the mountain, God’s glory is revealed.

Mark says Jesus was transfigured. The word used is the Greek term from which we get the word metamorphosis. Jesus’ true, heavenly glory was shown to them. He put on flesh to dwell among us, but He was always fully God, even while He was fully man.

When Moses saw God’s glory, his face shined for a time. A byproduct of being in God’s presence. But Jesus is the glory. All the power, all the greatness, all the magnificence is found in Him.

Now, there’s something wonderful here about the character of our King. When earthly kings want to show power, they parade weapons or trophies. Their power is measured in strength or wealth or the reach of their influence. When the power of Christ was revealed – when we get a tiny preview of His Kingdom – what do we see? Light. Truth. His presence. We’ll see also His patience. His kindness. That’s what God wanted to reveal to the disciples and to us on that mountain. Behold your King!

Mark 9:4 – ⁴ Elijah appeared to them with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus.

Why them? Why only them? Why not also David, Abraham, Isaiah and a host of other characters?  One possible idea God may have been trying to get across is the supremacy of Jesus. Moses represents the Law, Elijah the prophets. And here is Jesus – Who fulfills the Law and is the focal point of Bible prophecy. And they come to Him on the highest mountain. But we’ll see it was also an opportunity for Jesus to mend the disciples’ understanding of prophecy. These two guys specifically come up in a prophecy they’ll talk about on the way down the mountain.

Luke tells us that Moses and Elijah spoke to Jesus about His death on the cross – His departure from Jerusalem.^[5] Apparently, the disciples could hear at least some of the discussion.

Mark 9:5-6 –  ⁵ Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it’s good for us to be here. Let’s set up three shelters: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”— ⁶ because he did not know what to say, since they were terrified.

Luke says that the Lord brought these guys up there to pray, but they fell asleep. They wake up to this amazing scene, and then, as Moses and Elijah are leaving, Peter blurts this plan out.^[6]

Now remember: Peter was Mark’s source for this Gospel.^[7] I appreciate this moment of candid honesty here. “I didn’t know what to say because I was scared stiff.”

Peter is in a pattern of Christological misunderstanding. Even after being rebuked, he’s still off base. Just a few days ago, he identified Jesus as the Messiah. But what does he say here? “Rabbi.” He’s demoted Jesus. He is struggling again to recognize Jesus for Who He is.

Now why would he suggest this shelter idea (your version may say tabernacles)? Well remember: The disciples consistently wondered, “Is the Kingdom going to start now? Is the liberation from Rome now? Do we get to start ruling now?”

The Feast of Tabernacles (which was celebrated by the construction of temporary shelters) has a clear association with the final deliverance of God’s people.^[8] During the feast of Tabernacles, the Shekinah glory of God had filled Solomon’s temple. And Tabernacles had this important element called the Temple Lighting, where lights would shine for people all around to see.^[9] Tabernacles was celebrated six days after the Day of Atonement. So, perhaps Peter was thinking, “Ok Jesus talked about the Kingdom, now it’s been six days, there’s glory and light…are we doing this?!?”

But, once again, Peter wants to bypass the suffering and death of the cross. Jesus had been speaking plainly to them about these things, but remember – Peter rebuked Jesus for that teaching. They just overheard Moses and Elijah talking to Jesus about His death, but the disciples just couldn’t accept the idea of a suffering Savior.

He makes another mistake when he puts Jesus on the same level as Moses and Elijah.^[10] The point of what they were seeing is that Christ is greater than Moses and Elijah. They were both men who met with God on a mountain. They went up, God revealed truth to them. But here’s Jesus on the holy mountain, and He IS the One revealed! He is the glory! He doesn’t need to receive a word from God. In a moment we’ll see God says, “Listen to Him!” He is the Word.

But listen – despite Peter’s mistakes, despite them sleeping when they could’ve been praying, despite their insistence on bypassing the cross, do you know what Jesus did? Mark skips it, but Matthew says that Jesus came over, touched them, and told them not to be afraid.^[11] Christ’s patience and grace and tenderness did not abate, even as they missed the point. The transfiguration was for them, not for Jesus. So they could see. They were still struggling. But Jesus is so long-suffering, so compassionate, so loving and faithful even when we’re failing.

Mark 9:7-8 – ⁷ A cloud appeared, overshadowing them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my beloved Son; listen to him!” ⁸ Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.

Back in Exodus 19, God told Moses, “I’m going to come to you in a glory cloud and I’m going to speak with you so that when the people hear Me, they’ll believe what you tell them.” Later, at the end of his life, Moses told the Israelites, “[One day] the LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him.”^[12] And now that Figure has been decisively revealed by God Himself in a glory cloud on a mountain. The final Deliverer was not just a prophet, He is the very Son of God. And we must listen to Him.

This Deliverer does not only lead a single nation out of Egypt. The exodus Jesus leads is out of the grave. Out of slavery to sin. Out fromthe rule of the Devil, who holds people captive to do his will.^[13]

Now remember one more thing: The Shekinah glory of God was no longer in the Temple. It hadn’t been since Ezekiel 10. The holy of holies was empty. But here it has returned, enveloping Jesus and His disciples, verifying once again that humanity must listen to Jesus.

Again we remind ourselves that listening in the Bible is not just an auditory experience. Christian listening means to give attention, respond with submission, and move forward in obedience.

Mark 9:9-10 – ⁹ As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. ¹⁰ They kept this word to themselves, questioning what “rising from the dead” meant.

We scratch our heads at this because these three guys specifically had seen the dead rise. But their dyed-in-the-wool perspective was that the Messiah can’t die. He only comes once. He only comes to conquer. A suffering, dying Messiah did not compute.

To their credit, they did obey Jesus’ command to not tell anyone. And we commend them for that.

Mark 9:11 – ¹¹ Then they asked him, “Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?”

“Jesus, we still think You don’t have it quite right. The Messiah can’t die. After all, the scribes say so.”

They ask because Malachi 4:4-6 would’ve been pounding in their minds:

Malachi 4:4-6 – ⁴ “Remember the instruction of Moses my servant, the statutes and ordinances I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel. ⁵ Look, I am going to send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the LORD comes. ⁶ And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers. Otherwise, I will come and strike the land with a curse.”

The scribes seemed to teach that Elijah had to show up and that he would anoint the Messiah and that the Messiah himself might not even realize he was the messiah until that happened.^[14]

The problem was, for all their time with Jesus, some of their understanding was still rooted to the traditional, scribal perspective.

Mark 9:12 – ¹² “Elijah does come first and restores all things,” he replied. “Why then is it written that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be treated with contempt?

They appealed to the scribes. Jesus appeals to the Scriptures. “Hey guys – you keep thinking I’m wrong about dying. What about Psalm 22? Isaiah 49, 52, 53? What about Zechariah 9?”

Revelation always trumps tradition. All the Bible is necessary and revelatory and instructive for our Christian faith. The scribes’ mistake was that they locked into certain Scriptures but neglected others. And here Jesus says, “These other passages matter. You can’t just bypass them.”

Mark 9:13 – ¹³ But I tell you that Elijah has come, and they did whatever they pleased to him, just as it is written about him.”

Matthew tells us explicitly that Jesus was referring to John the Baptist. There were some clear parallels between their lives and ministries. Not least of which was that wicked queens wanted both of them dead. It’s just that Jezebel couldn’t get Elijah’s head, but Herodias got John’s.

But did you notice Jesus said both that Elijah has come and that Elijah does still come in the future? What’s going on here? Who’s Elijah?!?

Well look back to Malachi 4. The prophecy is that Elijah will come, not to anoint the Messiah, but before the day of the Lord and Elijah will turn the hearts of fathers and children, restoring all things. But then Malachi says, “if that doesn’t happen – otherwise – the land will be struck with a curse.”

In Exodus, God led the children of Israel to the edge of the promised land. They rejected Him so there was a postponement of 40 years. Jesus came, made a genuine offer of the Kingdom to Israel. They rejected Him. They rejected His forerunner. And now there has been a postponement of 2,000 years. And the land was struck with a curse. God’s people scattered through the nations.

So, Elijah still has a part to play before the Day of the Lord. What is it exactly? We don’t know.

What’s ironic is that it seems the scribes said that Elijah had to come to anoint the Messiah, who might not know he was the Messiah. Meanwhile, Jesus said John was Elijah. But John didn’t realize it! When he was asked “Are you Elijah?” He said no!”^[15]

So again and again the disciples are being told that they need to focus in on the teachings of Jesus and how the whole of Scripture points to Him. In the volume of the Book it is written about Him.^[16]

In the Wizard Of Oz, Dorothy hopes that Oz will keep his promises to them. When it’s revealed he’s just a man, that also means he has no power to help them. But then he explains they already had the power in themselves all along.

The transfiguration of Christ shows the power is not in us, it’s only in Him. But – He is not the only One transfigured. The Bible says that Christians, too are transfigured. The word is used only 4 times in the New Testament. Twice referring to this scene and then twice by Paul, speaking of the work God does in us! That we are transformed by the renewing of our minds.^[17] And that as we walk with Christ, we are being transformed into His image from glory to glory.^[18]

The disciples were still struggling with Who Jesus is. We know Who He is. The question is are we being transfigured by His truth, His Spirit, His sanctifying work? Are we changing and conforming to His glorious, gracious, Godly image? He is the Great and Powerful One Who keeps His promises. He’s no phony behind a curtain. He has installed His powerful Spirit in us. He has begun the metamorphosis. Now we are a preview of the coming King and His glorious Kingdom as the Light of the Gospel shines through us.

Road Under Instruction (Mark 8:27-38)

We’ve seen it in movies a thousand times. The great coach shows up to evaluate his new team, only to discover that they’re a bunch of misfits and losers. They don’t know their fundamentals. They squabble with each other. There’s no chance they’ll win a series, let alone a championship. The Mighty Ducks, The Bad News Bears, McFarland USA, Cool Runnings, The Big Green, Little Giants.

Usually these are comedic movies. We love to laugh at the antics of the team and shake our head at their inability. But I doubt any of us would actually want to coach a team like that.

Tonight we’ve come to the pivotal moment of the Gospel of Mark both thematically and narratively. Thematically, this is the moment Mark has been building to in the whole first half of the book. So far almost everyone has failed to recognize Who Jesus truly is. And here, He requires the 12 to make a determination themselves. Who is Jesus and what does that mean for their futures?

But this text is also a pivotal moment in the narrative of the book. Up to this point, Jesus has been moving around in ministry here and there. Capernaum, the Decapolis, this side of Galilee, then the other, up in Tyre and Sidon, over in Nazareth. Starting in verse 27, He is longer simply moving around. From this point, Jesus is moving toward His death and resurrection. This is about 6 months before the crucifixion.^[1] And Jesus is navigating purposefully, inevitably toward Jericho, then to Jerusalem, to Gethsemane, and then to Golgotha.

In this section, Mark really wants us to sense the movement forward, not only of Jesus toward the cross, but also the movement forward for the disciples in their discipleship. Between Mark 8:27 and Mark 10:52, our author points out the road, the journey, the way seven times!^[2] The disciples were being brought along as they walked with Jesus and we are brought along as we walk with Him.

As Jesus enters into the finals, as He gets ready for the big event, He stops and takes a look at His rag-tag team and here’s what happens: “Looking at His disciples…He said, “Get behind me, Satan!”

In this critical moment, we find they’re actually playing for the other team! Of course, they didn’t realize that was happening. Peter, especially, thought he was scoring some great points. Sometimes disciples see things with blurred spiritual vision. Sometimes we have an inadequate understanding of what God has revealed about Himself and about our calling. But if we want to develop the way God wants us to develop, into a thriving, victorious team of spiritual champions, then we must allow our Lord to teach us, adjust our thinking, and direct our steps.

Mark 8:27 – ²⁷ Jesus went out with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the road he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?”

The setting of this scene is climactic. Caesarea Philippi was on the border between Gentile and Jewish territory.^[3] It was also home to a special grotto dedicated to worship of the Greek god Pan.^[4] Among other things, Pan was said to be the god of shepherds and flocks.^[5]) Springs of water gushing from Caesarea Philippi serve as one of the primary sources of the Jordan River.^[6]

On top of all that, this city is found in the foothills of Mount Hermon.^[7] A sacred and monumental place in Biblical geography. There are many spiritual illustrations swirling around this sequence.

At this site, Jesus asks: Who do people say that I am? He’s not asking because He doesn’t know – He’s not just checking the poll numbers. He’s asking because, at this pivotal moment, He wants His disciples to start growing in their understanding. It’s time for them to advance in their discipleship.

It was not customary for Jewish rabbis to ask their disciples questions. They were supposed to ask Him.^[8] But Jesus is not like other rabbis. He is intent on bringing His disciples along. He knows they’re slow to understand and small of faith. But He is unwilling to leave them in that state. He plans to complete His work in them and to patiently draw them out of blurriness into clarity.

Mark 8:28 – ²⁸ They answered him, “John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, one of the prophets.”

There was a lot of talk, a lot of ideas. And, sure, these answers were better than what the Scribes and Pharisees thought – that Jesus was an agent of Beelzebub – but they were still wrong.

None of these answers have the right perspective on Jesus. The first problem is that the people giving these answers didn’t listen to what had been revealed right in their midst. At Jesus’ baptism, God the Father said, “This is My beloved Son!” Many demons had also rightly pointed out that Jesus was the Holy One of God and the Son of God. But here people said, “Well, He’s a prophet.” Or, “He’s just John the Baptist 2.0.” Someone we can maybe admire, but someone who will come and go just like the rest. Not God Himself, the Creator, the King of kings, the Potter, the Lord.

But on top of being wrong, the second problem is that they didn’t really believe what they said. In this Gospel, we do not see people coming to Jesus to say, “What must I do to be saved?” When John was around, people came to him saying, “What should we do?” Tax collectors and soldiers. When the Old Testament prophets were doing their thing, kings would go to them for wisdom and for help. But when we see these crowds coming to Jesus, it’s not in submission to Him, it’s almost always to solicit a miracle. “Jesus, give us what we want.” But that’s not discipleship.

Mark 8:29 – ²⁹ “But you,” he asked them, “who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.”

Notice the emphatic intensity in Jesus’ question. “But you, who do you say that I am?” He didn’t bother talking about what other people thought. This was about what they believed.

H.A. Ironside wrote, “It is not enough to be familiar with other men’s views of Christ, be they right or wrong.”^[9]

Discipleship is about personal faith. Other people can’t believe for you. Those of us who were lucky enough to be raised in Christian households, that is a great privilege. But having parents who are disciples doesn’t make us disciples. That’s a choice a person has to make on their own. Will you believe that Christ is the Messiah? Will you answer His call to follow Him and walk with Him?

When it comes to spirituality, the most important question is not, “What is going to happen?” or, “What will make me feel the best?” Or even, “Where are we going?” The essential question is not about the what, but the Who. Who Jesus is will determine where the road leads. If Jesus is God, if Jesus is good, if Jesus is loving, if Jesus is all-powerful, if Jesus is holy, if Jesus is trustworthy, if Jesus is gracious, if Jesus is Who He says He is, then we can follow Him anywhere – and He knows the way to go! As humans, we get distracted by the path. God wants us to focus on the Person.

Peter said, “You’re the Messiah.” The basic meaning of that term is “the One anointed by God.”^[10] In the Old Testament, priests and kings and other individuals would be anointed with oil, signifying that they were specially called out for God’s holy purposes.

The problem – we’ll see – is that the disciples did not agree with Jesus about what those purposes were. What was the Messiah set apart to do? What work would He accomplish?

Mark 8:30 – ³⁰ And he strictly warned them to tell no one about him.

Mark leaves out something else Jesus did here. We read in Matthew how he commended Peter and gave the apostles authority – how they would have the keys to the Kingdom.^[11]

Why then would He immediately muzzle them? Isn’t the whole point of Christ coming to reveal Himself as the Messiah?

Yes, but not yet. There are at least two reasons why He needed them to keep this secret for the time being. First, as Messiah, He would reveal Himself to the leaders of Israel. On the night before His crucifixion, the whole Sanhedrin would gather and put Jesus on trial. And after years of Christ proving Who He was, they would finally ask Him outright, “Are You the Messiah?” And Jesus answered, “I Am.”^[12] And then they condemned Him to death. The stone the builders rejected becomes the cornerstone.^[13]

But a second reason to silence the disciples for now was the fact that they had such an inadequate understanding of what it actually meant that Jesus was Messiah. They had their own notions, their own assumptions, their own preferences about what the Messiah would do. And, presently, we’ll see their perspective was in contradiction to the truth. They had a human design of Messiahship.

You see, they thought of the Messiah as only a David Messiah. A giant-slaying warrior who would tear the land of Israel from her captors and bring political power to the Jews.

Jesus is a Davidic Messiah. But the His work is much more than that. He would also be a Second Adam. Another Isaac on the altar. A Messianic Joseph, delivering the brothers who despised Him. But the disciples could not and would not see it. They were like the blind man healed in two phases. Spiritually speaking, they saw the Messiah like a tree walking. And in recent scenes, Jesus had been repeatedly rebuking them for their lack of faith and their lack of understanding.^[14]

Since they had a defective view, it was important they didn’t go out spreading their misinformation – a partial truth that would not properly illuminate those in darkness.

Mark 8:31-32a – ³¹ Then he began to teach them that it was necessary for the Son of Man to suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and rise after three days. ³² He spoke openly about this.

So listen, the disciples had a blurry view, but there was some progress. In Matthew, Jesus told Peter, “Peter, My Father in heaven revealed this to you.”^[15] And it’s not just Peter – from this point he really becomes a spokesman for the whole group. After Peter’s answer, Jesus starts the next step of their learning. He starts teaching them truths about the Messiah’s work they did not know. And He did so plainly – not with parables. Direct teaching about His coming rejection, death, and resurrection.

We should note that Jesus had total clarity and understanding about the plan. None of it was unknown to Him. And He was totally willing to endure all of it for you and for me.

Now, the disciples just said, “You are not only our Rabbi, You are the Messiah.” And, as their Rabbi, Jesus says, “Great. Now here’s what I have to teach you about what the Son of Man has to do.”

The Son of Man is a title found back in Daniel 7. The disciples would’ve known it well. The Son of Man comes with the clouds of heaven and the Ancient of Days gives him an everlasting dominion over every people, nation, and language.^[16] Jewish believers liked the sound of that.

But now Jesus starts to reveal and explain to them that before the Son of Man conquers the nations with the sword of His mouth, He would conquer sin and death not with a chariot, but with the cross.

He’s the rabbi. He’s the Messiah. This is the teaching. But like the old adage says, the (human) heart wants what it wants. And the human heart does not naturally want God’s way.

Mark 8:32b – Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.

Rebuke is the same word used when Jesus commanded the demons.^[17] It’s the same word seen in verse 30 as “strictly warned.” So, Jesus had just commanded His disciples to be silent about Him being Messiah and now Peter is commanding Jesus to be silent about this crucifixion stuff. He immediately misuses the revelation and authority given to him to try to put himself over his Rabbi.

This is what the human heart does. It wants to supplant God’s authority, God’s commands, God’s way in favor of our own wants and designs. It happens when God asks us to do or give something that we want to keep ourselves. It happens when we face sorrow or suffering and get angry at God about it. It happens when God gives us a standard or command and we just don’t want to comply. It’s the same as Peter here. A rebuke to God. And here’s what Jesus thinks about that:

Mark 8:33 – ³³ But turning around and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! You are not thinking about God’s concerns but human concerns.”

Mark highlights three moments of severe temptation in Jesus’ ministry.^[18] At the very beginning, when He is confronted by the Devil directly. At this point, when the ministry turns toward Calvary, Satan influences Jesus’ friends to discourage Him. And in Gethsemane where Jesus is tempted by His own desire to avoid the suffering of the cross.

Peter is the one rebuked, but we see Jesus was speaking to all the disciples. Peter was simply the spokesman. What a tough moment in what should’ve been such a wonderful scene.

And yet, even in rebuke we see the matchless grace of God. Jesus says, “Satan is speaking through you!” But He doesn’t boot Peter from the team. He is still full of love and patience and understanding toward him. Jesus will still invite Peter to witness the transfiguration in a few verses.

But He would not allow Peter and the others to stay in their weakness. He would not feed the rebel hearts that, by nature, want to defy the will of God and the truth of God. So, in the moment He says, “I have concerns. I have truth. I have a journey we’re going on and I demand that you submit to it if you want to be My disciple.”

Mark 8:34-38 – ³⁴ Calling the crowd along with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. ³⁵ For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me and the gospel will save it. ³⁶ For what does it benefit someone to gain the whole world and yet lose his life? ³⁷ What can anyone give in exchange for his life? ³⁸ For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

Pretty straight forward. Also pretty serious. But let’s pause and recognize that this is where we are brought into the story. This isn’t just about something Jesus said to the apostles. Here He calls the crowd, everyone who wanted to follow Him, everyone in attendance. You and me. This is what our Messiah and Rabbi has to say to us as disciples. It’s worth reading again.

And man, think about how hard it was for the disciples to hear that the Messiah would have to face the cross. Now He says, “And you have to take up a cross, too.”

But this is the disciple’s road to life to victory. We win by losing. We navigate life not by our own designs or our own desires or the culture around us, but by the revelation of God. His words, His directions, His truth leads to real life and real gain and glory. By answering the question: Who is Jesus?

If we understand Who Jesus is, then we can understand what His work is, and then He leads us to be a part of His work. And following in His work means following the way of the cross. It can be a very difficult path. But the championship at the end of that road is worth more than all the treasures in all the world.

But to lay claim to what Christ offers, we must be disciples. And true discipleship means renouncing ourselves and recognizing our Messiah. It means embracing God’s revelation, not spinning our own ideas into some sort of self-made spirituality. God has said Who He is, what He wants, what He’s doing, who we are, what He expects. Discipleship is a walk of faith that isn’t just one step. It’s a lifetime of steps as we progress with God on this path He’s leading us.

We can do it. Did you notice what the Lord said there? “If anyone wants to follow after Me…follow Me!” As we go, He will continue to reveal, He will continue to adjust, He will continue to clarify our spiritual vision, and He will continue in His patience, His grace, and His compassion toward us. Because He wants us to walk with Him. He wants us to grow in our understanding, to grow in our faith, to go from Peter in Mark 8 to Peter in Acts 2.

Do we want to follow on those terms? If so, we must submit to revelation, admit the inadequacy of our presuppositions, surrender our lives, take up a cross, and allow God to lead us forward step by step.

Sight For Poor Eyes (Mark 8:22-26)

Who here has had or needs to have cataract surgery? It’s a common experience as we age. One of every five Americans over 65 will develop cataracts. And 50% of those 80 and older will.^[1]

A cataract is a clouding of the lens on your eye. The lens is the clear layer inside the eye that focuses light. When that lens becomes cloudy, the light entering the eye is blocked or scattered, making what you see blurry or dark.

I was surprised to find out that babies can be born with cataracts. They can be caused by infection or a chemical imbalance. Often the specific cause is never determined.^[2] But whether you’re young or old, when you develop cataracts, treatment is absolutely necessary. And there’s nothing you can do to fix it yourself. You must have a surgeon help you if you want to be able to see.

Thankfully, in the modern world, this process is pretty simple. These days your vision can be restored to bright clarity with a 15 minute, multi-step procedure.

In this short text we see Jesus perform a healing miracle. A man is brought from blindness to blurriness to perfect vision. But there’s something about this story that has always bothered me.

Why did this healing not seem to work at first? This is the only miracle of Jesus that happens in two stages. He lays His hands on the man and he’s kinda healed, but not fully healed. There’s nothing to indicate the man had partial faith. Was Jesus overly fatigued? Was He distracted? Did He need to get a better grip on it? Some commentators suggest it was because this blindness was just so bad. But it shows Jesus could handle even the toughest problems. But is anything too difficult for God?^[3]

In 1 Samuel chapter 2, Samuel’s mother Hannah is pouring out praise to God for His goodness and His power. In her prayer she says something important: “The LORD is a God of knowledge, and actions are weighed by Him.”^[4] God knows what we are doing and He knows what He is doing.

What Jesus did in this story, He did on purpose. This situation was not only about healing a blind man, but helping His disciples understand their own spiritual blindness. Rather, not that they were totally blind, but they had proverbial cataracts clouding their spiritual vision.

We know this because in the very last passage Jesus confronted the 12 about their understanding and said, “Do you have eyes and not see?” And now we are barreling toward the pivotal moment of the whole book, where Jesus will say, “Who do you say that I am?” And we’ll see Peter step forward to boldly proclaim that Jesus is the Messiah. But then, immediately after, we see Peter’s spiritual vision is clouded. He doesn’t see clearly. He rebukes Jesus for talking bout His death and resurrection and, in response, Jesus says to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan.”

So when we see Jesus performing this two-stage healing of vision, many scholars understand that He is performing a live action parable that His disciples could remember and apply later.^[5]

And this contains a spiritual lesson not only for the apostles moving forward, but for us as well. We also have issues in our spiritual vision. Paul said that we see things dimly, or as one version puts it, we see only a blurred reflection.^[6] Peter would later write that a Christian can become “blind and shortsighted, [forgetting] the cleansing from his past sins.”^[7] A loss of clarity. A clouding of vision.

So let’s put ourselves into this parable, understanding that we tend to develop dim or blurred spots in our spiritual vision, and present ourselves to the Physician Who gives sight to the blind.

Mark 8:22 – ²² They came to Bethsaida. They brought a blind man to him and begged him to touch him.

The setting of the story itself lends to the drama of this live action parable. Bethsaida means “the house of fish.”^[8] And it was home to some specific fish: Peter, Andrew, and Philip.^[9]

In this familiar town, a blind man is brought to Jesus. We all come to Jesus blind. We have ideas and experiences and assumptions, but in reality, as Jesus told the Laodiceans, we are blind, wretched, pitiful, poor, and naked.^[10] But Christ came as the Light of the world so that we could be called out of our darkness into His marvelous light.^[11] So that we never have to walk in darkness again.^[12] But Christ’s revelation and vision-adjustment isn’t a one-and-done thing in our lives.

As we walk with Jesus, we need His continual illumination. We receive it through the Word of God, which is a lamp to our feet and a light for our path.

The friends of this blind man came to Jesus and seemed pretty convinced about what He needed to do: Put Your hands on our friend!

Their confidence is an interesting contrast to the last situation where the disciples – who should’ve known what Jesus was going to do – say, “We have no idea how anyone could feed 4,000 people in this desolate place.” Even though they had seen Jesus feed more than 5,000 people in a desolate place shortly before!

Now, the friends of the blind man were in no position to tell Jesus how to perform a miracle. They’re operating on some level of assumption. But at least they knew Jesus had power and had compassion and was the source of all that this man needed.

Mark 8:23 – ²³ He took the blind man by the hand and brought him out of the village. Spitting on his eyes and laying his hands on him, he asked him, “Do you see anything?”

The word Mark uses for “took” means “caught.”^[13] So, in the house of fish, Jesus catches a person who has a measure of faith, and Jesus catches Him so that He can save them, transform their life, give them a new future, and sight instead of blindness.

Once again, Jesus uses saliva in a healing. He’s on record using spit three times in His healings. We saw one a few passages ago where He spit on His fingers then touched the deaf/mute man’s tongue. Later He will spit to make mud and rub that on another blind man’s face. This use is the spittiest of all – He spits right on the guy’s eyes. At least he didn’t see it coming…

We don’t know why the Lord used this method. Lot’s of speculation but no explanation. Let’s see what else He did in this verse.

He took the man by the hand and personally led him out of the village. Maybe this was a fifty yard walk, maybe it was half a mile. No matter how far, it would’ve been a significant and intimate journey together. These two, hand in hand, as Jesus told the man where to step, what obstacles to avoid, where to turn, how to proceed. What a gentle and tender scene. That God would take this kind of time and share this kind of interaction with a random stranger.

This is how the Lord wants to lead you. Psalm 107:14 says, “He brought them out of darkness and gloom and broke their chains apart.” The Psalmist Asaph once wrote about a time when he was stupid and unthinking toward the Lord – spiritually blurry – but realized “Yet I am always with You; You hold my right hand. You guide me with Your counsel, and afterward You will take me up in glory.”^[14] And in Isaiah 42 God Himself says to His people, “I am the LORD. I have called you

for a righteous purpose, and I will hold you by your hand. I will watch over you, and I will appoint you to be a covenant for the people and a light to the nations, in order to open blind eyes.”

After Jesus spit and touched the man, He asked Him a question: “Do you see anything?” It wasn’t because Jesus didn’t know. It was for the later benefit of the disciples. In the next scene, Jesus is going to ask them what they see – who they see Jesus as? But again and again in this section of Mark He’s trying to help them understand that they do not see everything as they should. They need spiritual restoration as much as this man needs physical restoration.

Mark 8:24 – ²⁴ He looked up and said, “I see people—they look like trees walking.”

There is a prominent historical theologian who said the reason Jesus did this two-stage healing was to prove to the man – and to us – that as God He has the liberty to pour out grace on some people but to only give grace in drops to others.^[15]

Does that fit at all with what has been revealed about Jesus Christ in this Gospel? How often have we seen His patience, His generosity, His kindness, His willingness? Even here, He stops all He’s doing to interact tenderly, carefully, personally with this one man. Does it seem like He did so to jerk him around and say, “You know, I don’t really have to heal you?”

This scene is not about God penny-pinching His grace. It is about the spiritual impairments that we have in our hearts and minds on this side of eternity.

Now on the one hand, the man’s blindness was healed – before he could see nothing, now he saw something. But obviously he wouldn’t say, “You know what, blurry is good enough.”Obviously he need further help – further correction. He needed greater clarity to be able to move through life. He saw people dimly.^[16] And so, as Jesus began the work, He would continue and finish the work.

Mark 8:25 – ²⁵ Again Jesus placed his hands on the man’s eyes. The man looked intently and his sight was restored and he saw everything clearly.

At the start of the story the man is blind – he’s in darkness. Then he’s able to see some things close up, but they’re blurry and he can’t quite discern. Finally, he’s able to see clearly from afar.^[17] That’s the word used there. He’s no longer blind or shortsighted.

In the very next scene we will see how Peter had partial vision. He had a blurred view of the Messiah that needed to be corrected. He had a shortsighted perspective on the Messiah’s work.

In the same way, you and I have areas of spiritual understanding that are dim or blurred. Sometimes we’re not even aware of it as Peter was not aware of his cataracts. But walking with God means His continual shaping of us, His continual, hands-on work of healing our hearts, renewing our minds, adjusting our vision, and clearing away the impediments of our sin nature. Removing the veil from our hearts so that we can see the true glory of the Lord and be transformed by it.^[18]

Mark 8:26 – ²⁶ Then he sent him home, saying, “Don’t even go into the village.”

We’ve seen frequently in Mark how Jesus wanted to avoid the hysteria that healing miracles would produce among crowds. His main goal was not to perform miracles, but to preach the Kingdom and to lay down His life. He healed out of compassion, not out of a desire to show His greatness.

But here’s what I find interesting about this particular command: The blind man probably did not know the way to his house! Whether his friends were still there to help him is unclear. But now he’s been sent with orders by his Lord and he will have to figure out how to obey them.

You have been sent out with commands and orders from your Lord, too. You may not know exactly how to carry out certain aspects of the Christian life today or what direction God has for your life in some particular situation. Maybe He hasn’t illuminated very far down the path for you. But you can obey. You can choose to do what He’s asked you to do right now.

If you’re not sure what to do in the Christian life or how to serve the Lord, follow the example of this man: Start at home. Go home and be transformed. Have spiritual vision and passion in your home. That’s the first place God sends us. And from there more callings will come. More opportunities. More tasks. People were going to find out this man had been healed of his blindness. And he’d be able to share his testimony of Jesus’ power and grace.  But here was the job for today: Go home.

So here we are tonight. I don’t think it’s inappropriate to say that – generally speaking – our cataracts aren’t as developed as the disciples’ were at this point in their walk with the Lord. I doubt we spend a lot of time rebuking Jesus for things He teaches. But just like physical cataracts are a normal part of the human condition, so are spiritual cataracts. We see dimly. We have areas of shortsightedness, maybe even blindness. We shouldn’t deny it, we should understand it and seek out Christ for the illumination and clarity that we need.

A lot of people suffer from night blindness. Things are fine during the day, but their vision doesn’t work the same when it’s dark. It doesn’t help if those people deny their issue. In fact, it causes problems when they act like they can see when they can’t.

So where might we have a cataract developing in our spiritual vision? I can’t answer that for you. You might not even be able to answer that for you. But the Great Physician can. The Holy Spirit living within you can. And His desire is to illuminate and clarify and focus our spiritual vision so that we can walk worthy and walk effectively where the Lord sends us.

Psalm 119 is all about a passionate disciple of God praying for help and correction and vision and the continual work of God in their lives. It’s a beautiful song where a dedicated believer speaks of his love for God, the ways of God, and his dedication to pursue the things of God. He says something important in verse 18:

Psalm 119:18 – ¹⁸ Open my eyes so that I may contemplate wondrous things from your instruction.

Many of you have an annual checkup with your eye-doctor to fix your prescription, right? Oh how we need that regular interaction with our Lord, the Great Physician. May we go to Him, allow Him to take us in His hand, lead us on, heal and shape and correct and adjust us, and then send us out according to His will and His good pleasure.