No Stumbling Blocks

NO STUMBLING BLOCKS—Mark 9:38-50

This morning, we face a troubling reality: Many Americans are moving away from Christ and the church. Some are high-profile influencers, who might say they are “done” with church, or “deconstructing” their faith. Others are ordinary people—maybe people we know—who once had a connection to the church but are now pulling away.

WHY DO PEOPLE REJECT CHRIST OR THE CHURCH?

Some disconnect when they move away or move on to a new stage of life in college, work, or growing children. Some are too busy, tired, or they can’t find a church they love. Yet those reasons often hide deeper causes.

Some are fed up with narcissistic, manipulative leaders, who only seem to care about power, influence, and success. They feel like they are being used to pump up Sunday attendance numbers or make the church the biggest or coolest one in town.

Some have been hurt by people in the church who were insensitive or uncaring. Maybe they were shut out of the natural circles of families or friends. Maybe they were victims of idle gossip, judgmental attitudes, or humiliation.

Some had put their trust in people—maybe a pastor or close friend--and they became disillusioned when the ones they respected and trusted failed in some way.

Some feel that Christians are at war with each other, putting down other churches, or gloating over the problems of other Christians. Sometimes political or social polarization spills over into the church, and people don’t feel they can express what they really think without being attacked.

WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT THIS PROBLEM?

Our text for today is a collection of disconnected sayings of Jesus, which appear in different contexts in other gospels. Mark (and maybe Peter, in sermons Mark interpreted for Greek listeners) did not choose them at random, however, for they are gathered around concern for those who reject Christ or the church. The central verse is Mark 9:42, “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them if a large millstone were hung around their neck and they were thrown into the sea.”

Who are “these little ones”? We might think of them as children, because just a few verses before Jesus was holding a little child in his arms. We might think of teenagers or young adults, who are trying to find their way in the world. We might think of new believers, young in the faith. The “little ones,” however, could be any vulnerable seeker or believer who is struggling with trusting Jesus and living as a disciple.

Immediately before the verse about causing one of these little ones to stumble is a story about the disciples suppressing the efforts of an enthusiastic new believer.

Read Mark 9:38-41.

Jesus said something that is sometimes misinterpreted: “…no one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us.” Did he mean that everyone who passes out bottled water at a parade is on the side of Jesus, or that everyone who does a good deed is going to heaven?

Jesus clarified what he meant when he referred to “a miracle IN MY NAME” and “a cup of water IN MY NAME because you belong to THE MESSIAH.” Jesus was not talking about members of other religions or humanitarian groups, but about people who acted in his name and accepted his claim to be the Messiah, the one who embodies the kingdom of God in the world.

Yet not every person or group that uses the name of Jesus is truly Christian. History is full people and movements that have used the name of Jesus for their own evil purposes: Cult leaders, con artists, and evil dictators have identified with Jesus to gain credibility.

In Matthew 7:21-23, Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”

Yet Jesus did not doubt the sincerity of the man the 12 disciples shut down. The man is not identified, and he might have been one of the followers on Jesus’ short list when he chose the 12 disciples—one who didn’t make the cut. He might have been Mark, the gospel writer, too young to be a disciple. (Pure speculation!) He might have been one of many who heard and saw Jesus, with only the slightest understanding that Jesus was the Messiah. That would put him not too far behind Peter, who had first vocalized his recognition of Jesus as the Messiah in chapter 8.