Scripture: Mark 9:38 - 50
Title: Axe or Cup - Which Church/Person are We?
This sermon focuses on which type of person or church is your identity - 1. Big Axe Little Cup 2. Big Cup Little Axe or 3. Big Cup and the Axe in the hands of the Holy Spirit?
Grace and peace from God our Father and from Jesus Christ our Savior and LORD!
Some companies are famous for their logos and slogans. Companies like:
+Fed Ex +Wendy's +Tostitos +Hershey's
Did you know that each one has a hidden message in its logo?
(https://www.cnbc.com/2015/05/01/13-famous-logos-that-require-a-double-take.html)
+There is an arrow in the Fed Ex logo that shows that it is moving ahead.
+There is the word mom right under Wendy's face in the way they made her clothing.
+There is a little picture of two "T's" in the Tostitos logo that creates two people as they dip a tortilla chip into the bowl of salsa on top of the letter 'I'.
+There is an extra little Hershey kiss located in between the K and the I.
Even churches have gotten in on the act of making their symbols more than just a pictorial image. For example the Symbol for the Presbyterian Church contains eight different symbols that speak about their beliefs. When you look at their denominational symbol you can see:
+The Cross +The Pulpit +The Dove +The Fish +The Cup +The Fire +The Bible +The Trinity
The Symbol designed by the United Methodist Church is made up of two flames and a Cross - these images not only represents the Cross and the Holy Spirit but the union of the two main branches that came together in 1968 to created the United Methodist Church - Evangelical United Brethren and what was called at that time - The Methodist Church. Pretty creative!
In our passage this morning it could be said that Jesus and His Disciples may have been doing their best to come up with their own logos when it came to defining what kind of disciples that one should be in following Jesus. Let's look at this passage in more detail and you will see what I am saying.
In verse 40 we see Jesus making reference to a "CUP" and in verses 43 thru 47 you get the sense that Jesus is talking about an "AXE" or some sharp object being used to get rid of those things that would cause a person to slip up in their faith walk.
It got me to thinking about those two images - An Axe and A Cup -
I wonder which symbol would represent most churches and most people who follow Jesus today? Would they be seen as more of an Axe Church or more of a Cup Church?
I. More Axe than Cup
I remember a few years ago visiting a few congregations that from what I could glean would have to be seen as more of being Axe Churches/congregations than Cup Churches/congregation. I remember two of them in particular.
Both congregations were very inviting and hospitable. We were greeting at the door and they promptly handed us a worship folder, shook our hands and helped us find a seat. The church buildings were both well designed and there were signs so that you could easily find the restrooms, the nursery and the fellowship hall.
The dress was what the fashion world would call casual, smart casual and business casual. Very few people though wore business suits or tailored dresses or pant suits. Most people were in very comfortable clothing; the type that you would see every day by people working in retail or in an office building. No one was looking down on any one else for what they were wearing. The lighting was excellent, the seating area was clean and the floors were well maintained. All in all the environment was quite nice and pleasant.
In both churches the worship time was excellent. Both had a praise team but neither team was in full concert or performance mode. Both were doing their best to share the Gospel, to help those of us in attendance be able to praise and worship God. The words were put up on a screen in such a fashion that you could join in even if you were not familiar with the song.
All in all both churches were great churches in hospitality, in warmth, in helping a person enter into the sanctuary and be involved in the service. As you would sit or stand and sing you got the feeling that these were great places. These were places where you could attend regularly, enjoy some fellowship and share some sacred time with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
However, as you began to hear the message you realized that while they were a Cup Church in their hospitality and worship they found a big old AXE somewhere and brought it out. Each of the speakers spent most of their time sharing what a person should not do as a follower of Jesus. The messages were based more on the no's of following Jesus rather than the yes's of following Jesus. They focused on making sure that everyone under the sound of their voice would be able to fully understand where they stood in the sight of God.
If you ventured off to the right or to the left then you were in danger of backsliding and could perhaps even lose your salvation. The only way to make sure that you would make it to heaven was to make sure that every thought and every action lined up perfectly with God's Law. And I got the feeling that if you were in doubt then they would not mind telling you where you were straying off the path of righteousness.
In one of the churches they had the word "hope" as part of their vision and name began to share that the Church existed to get you into heaven but not so much to take care of your every day needs here on earth. The speaker made a point to make sure everyone knew that if they had come to have their bills paid or to get a load of groceries that this was not part of the church's main mission. They might be able to help you find those that could help in those areas but it was a part of their policy to allow other charities to do that kind of ministry. They were called to share the Hope of Jesus - the Hope of Salvation and Everlasting Life. They were called to share a Spiritual Hope.
I began to realize that these two Churches could be labeled as Churches with a Little Cup and a Big Axe.
It's the kind of Church that John appears to be in favor of in verse 38. John was quite upset that someone other than his team was healing people. This person was casting out demons but they were not a part of the chosen team. They were using the name of Jesus but John wasn't sure that they could pass the discipleship test. And so, the Bible tells us that John and some of the other disciples went over to the person and told them to quit. They told the person that it didn't matter that people were being freed. What mattered was that they didn't have the "authority" to use Jesus' name in such a manner. They picked up their big AXE and proceeded to chopped this person out of the ministry.
In fact it is interesting in how Mark records this little encounter. "Jesus - we stopped him. We stopped him because he wasn't following us - he is not a part of our group." John had not taken the time to speak to the man or to get his views on Jesus. Just the fact that the man wasn't a part of their little group was enough to cut him off (Axe him out).
It didn't matter that the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY had already endorsed the man. After all, how else could he really cast out demons and bring healing and wholeness? John was ready to use his "spiritual axe" to cut the man off. For John and part of the rest of the team it was important for them to get rid of this man and his kind.
I left those couple of churches and realized that they were both cup and axe churches. They were both hospitable and they both gave a message about the truth. But when it really came down to it I realized that they were the right places to come if I wanted to make sure that I was doing everything right. They could help me dot all the "i"s and cross all the "t"s.
However, if I needed some financial help I would have to go elsewhere. If I needed some help with a substance abuse problem I would have to go elsewhere. If I needed some marital counseling I would have to go elsewhere. If I needed some help emotionally I would need to go elsewhere. I realized that as wonderful as the hospitality had been and the worship had been that when all was said and done this would not be a place to be a part of long term. They were way to much axe and way too small a cup.
II. Big Cup and a Little Axe
I also visited a couple of churches that worked a little differently. For the most part they were a great deal like the other churches. They had a warm welcome and their sanctuaries were pleasant and nice as well. Their worship teams were not quite as good and not all the songs were thrown up on the screen.
The messages were excellent but they had more of a motivational bent. Very few words had any sharp edge at all. The Axe of making sure that you lived up to the Law was light or at least a little dull to say the least. The services were light on scripture but heavy on cups of love, joy and compassion. From their worship folders it appeared that each Sunday also seemed had a different theme - this Sunday there was an offering for this particular need while in a couple of weeks another need would have center stage.
Most of the conversation and literature that they had in various sections of these two churches shared more information about this project or that project that the Church was involved. There was a project to send money to buy animals for people who lived in 3rd world areas. There as a project to help people in the local area with some food, emergency shelter and clothing. There was even some people who invited others to come out and help them while they went around the neighborhood seeing what senior citizens needed - help mowing their yards, washing their clothes or fixing their food.
They even had one Sunday that they would either dismiss church or quickly have church and then spread out to the neighborhood to visit, to do chores or some other needed projects. Then late afternoon they would come back together for a meal and a debriefing session.
I must say that both churches were over all very pleasant experiences. These couple of Churches would have loved what Jesus said about tolerance and acceptance. In fact, I got the feeling that was part of their main mission - tolerance, acceptance and social compassion.
I also believe that they would have cut (using their small axe) out the second part of verse 42 and then by passed all of verses 43 - 48. They would have focused more on the first part of verse 42 about taking care of those young in the faith, young in age and those not being able to take care of themselves. They would have included the poor, the needy, the disenfranchised and marginalized into the mix as well.
I was amazed at their stamina. Both churches were full of very busy people. Neither church could be accused of being self-centered or lazy. Their calendars were full of this event after that event - all designed to reach out and help others. Their goal was to help as many as they could but yet I did notice that they were not only light on the Axe preachy part but also on light in the area of evangelism. It seems that they didn't want anyone to think that they were preachy or judgmental. It seems that part of their mission was that they wanted everyone to know that they were welcomed, loved and accepted no matter what they said or how they lived.
I was amazed at the stories I heard about one of their sister churches. Even though it was a very small church it helped over 35 families a month with food boxes. The church didn't even average 35 people itself. But it collected the necessary funds and made sure that 35 families had some extra food each month. They had been doing that for years but in all that time very few if any of those people or families had visited the church or become a part of its local ministry. These churches had a very big Cup but a very little Spiritual Axe.
To tell you the truth I left all those congregations a little confused. The ones that had a heavy axe but a light cup seemed to be alive and vibrant and yet for the life of me I went away wondering if they did anything through the week and in their community. I wondered if it all was just a Sunday Show. Everyone showed up Sunday, heard a fire and brim stone sermon and then went back home. They all came back the next Sunday, heard another fire and brimstone sermon and went home again.
I wondered if over time their cup would at least match their axe.
The other ones I wondered if for all their busyness they ever really reached down into the depths of people's souls? They fed them, cared for them but from what I could tell and what they told me they never really shared the message of the Cross, Salvation, Dying Out and Total Commitment. They had a big Cup but I couldn't tell if they had an axe for anything.
I wondered if over time their axe would at least match their cup.
And then I began to read this passage we are looking at this morning. It is not an easy passage to hear and to apply to our lives, our families or to our church.
+There are times we may want to side with the Apostle John. We may want to make sure that everyone is doing the right thing. We don't want people speaking in the name of Jesus ( in the Church's name) unless we know them and what they are doing. We don't want just anyone being able to do just anything. There has to be a proper process and procedure. Also, there are some things that people need to just cut "axe" out of their lives and the quicker they do that the better.
But then we stop and think -
What does Jesus say?
How does Jesus look at all of this?
As long as the person or persons are sharing Jesus does it really matter all that much about their degrees, their fine measures of their systematic theology and all that stuff? Does it really matter or should the fruit of their ministries tell us whether or not they are the Real Deal?
This is something that the Apostle Paul faced as well. Listen to what the Apostle Paul has to say in Philippians 1: 15 - 18 (NIV) concerning people preaching the Gospel.
15It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. 16The latter do so out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. 18But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice
+There are other times we may want to side with the Cup People. We want to be known as the Helping People. We don't really want to tell people about the Cross, Salvation, Heaven or Hell. After all, that may cause them not to like us and reject us. We don't want to be pushy or arrogant. We just want to take care of them. We want to make sure that they have food to eat, a place to stay and some adequate clothing.
So, what is Jesus really trying to say in all these verses? Let's give it a quick thought or two.
III. BIG Cup with Our Axe in the Hand of the Holy Spirit
Remember the Big Gulp? Have you ever had a Big Gulp?
The Big Gulp was/is this large soft drink cup that you can buy from a 7-Eleven Store that held 30 ounces of some type of soft drink. At the time it was seen as being larger than anyone could ever possible want or desire. It was a huge success. People could go in and get a Big Gulp drink and it would do them as they would travel down the road. They didn't have to stop quite as often to get another drink. All they had to do was to make a pit stop to go to the bathroom.
Over time, however, people wanted an even bigger drink. Soon the Big Gulp was superseded by the Super Big Gulp (44 oz) and then later the Super Big Gulp was superseded by the Double Gulp (64 oz). Whew! You could get nearly half of the calories you needed in a day just in that one drink alone.
You may also remember that for a little while the Big Gulp was on the top wanted list in New York City. It was seen as being a danger to the health of New Yorkers. The government (under Mayor Bloomberg) tried its best to outlaw all big size drinks like the Big Gulp and its even bigger siblings.
New York City finally banned all large drinks although for some reason it gave the Big Gulp the ability to still exist. The plan was to make sure no one could buy a soft drink 32 oz or larger anywhere.
Well, all that meant was everyone went to court. Apparently that is how we settle things in America. We sue, we counter sue and we go to court. We spend millions of dollars on court fees and lawyers to get what we want. After a long two year battle that ended up in New York State's Highest Court the big soft drinks won. It was decided that it was unconstitutional to limit the size of a soda beverage in New York City and State. The Big Gulp and its siblings were judicially saved along with all the other Supersized drinks as well.
Well, when it comes to the Church of Jesus Christ our Cup of compassion, love and acceptance of others ought to at least be on the size of a Big Gulp growing towards a Double Gulp. I do not think that it was Jesus plan for us to possess a shot glass size cup of compassion, love, mercy or acceptance. We don't even need soda can size (12 oz) of compassion, love, mercy or acceptance. I believe that the LORD wants us to grow into a Big Gulp and even larger sized cups of compassion, love and acceptance.
Now, we all know that there are a multitude of ways for us to have a large cup of compassion as a church, as families and as individuals. All we have to do is give is:
Our Time: However long or short.
It is not so much about quantity as it is about quality. It is being present in the moment with someone. It is about focusing just on them and not on anything else. Sometimes it is just sitting with someone being quiet. Sometimes it is just praying with someone or waiting with someone.
Our Essences: This is giving someone our personal energy and vitality.
Sometimes all we need to do is to share some of our enthusiasm, hope, grace, gratitude, patience, peace and love. This happens when we listen patiently with a young single mother who is struggling or with an older person having to deal with age and sickness. This is sharing our energy and life with them. This is us giving them some of our essence.
Our Talent: This is Investing our Skills and Knowledge into Someone else.
We can do this when we teach someone our trade. We can do this when we help someone learn how to garden, to make a budget, to learn how to sing or just share a little bit of our wisdom. Each one of us has God given gifts and talents. These talents are a part of our comfort zone and as well as our power zones. They can also be a part of our Cup Zones as well.
Money/Resources: Giving Away that Which God has given us Stewardship Over
There is a supernatural joy in giving away things - be it to provide aid or to favor someone with some clothing or a meal. There are thousands of ways to do it. We can pay for someone's lunch. We can give money to a local cause. We can clean out our closets and give the clothing to Goodwill or to the Veterans of America. The sum of money given is not as important as the spirit of the Gift.
Forgiveness: Simply that - forgiving someone.
This is one of the best cup gifts we can give to anyone - just forgive them as we have been forgiven.
And while we are at it we need to have a cup of that for ourselves as well. We need to allow ourselves to take the cup of forgiveness from Jesus. For when we do that we begin to notice something. We begin to relax. We begin to let go of all of our hang ups, anxiety and problems. When we realize that Jesus has given all of us a Double Gulp of grace, mercy and love we begin to rest more in His care and love.
Recently, I have been enjoying reading Barbara Brown Taylor's little book, "The Altar in the World." It is an amazing book that is full of grace, mercy and love. It is a Big Gulp book. It is a Jesus Big Cup Book.
Oh, she deals with some serious issues and she has an axe or two. But the Axe is put into the right hands. It is put into the hands of Jesus.
And that is where the axe in the Church has to reside. For when it comes out of Jesus' hands what we see most often is what Jesus says here in this passage - there is a great deal of cutting off - hands, feet and eyes. There is a great deal of mutilation that happens.
Now, we all know that Jesus was using hyperbole to get a point across. We know that he wanted his disciples to understand the seriousness of being a disciple. Jesus was not soft on sin nor should we as His disciples be soft on sin.
But what Jesus did was to allow His Holy Spirit to bring the conviction. Jesus tells us in John chapters 15 - 16 - 17 that the Holy Spirit will use the axe - not to destroy, not to chop off but to be used in the spiritual formation process of pruning. The Holy Spirit will not chop off for chopping off sake but will prune off that which is dead and that which will later bring harm. All of this pruning will be done to promote health and fruitfulness.
The truth is an axe in our hands will only create brokenness and carnage. When we get on our soap boxes we start swinging and hit everything and everyone in our path. But when the axe is given to Jesus - He, His Father and His Holy Spirit will use it to show us the truth, to bring about conviction and to help us find health, wholeness and fruitfulness.
So, we can have both a Big Cup and A Big Axe. A Big Cup of Compassion, Love and Mercy. A Big Axe in the right hands - in the hands of the Holy Spirit.
Some years ago I had a man in our church who was struggling to quit smoking. He came to me and ask me if I wanted him to quit. He wanted to know if I thought smoking was a sin that would put him in Hell. I told Him I didn't wear those shoes. That while I do not smoke and think it would be better for a person to not smoke I had no opinion about his smoking. That was something that he was going to have to go and talk to God about.
The only thing I asked him was - "If the LORD wants you to quit - will you quit?" He said that he would and that was the end of the conversation.
Two weeks later he came back to me and told me he had quit smoking. He also told me he wanted me to argue with him about the whole thing so he could get mad. But when I told him that he had to talk to God about it that changed his whole mind.
I still don't have an opinion about it or a lot of other things. What I do think is that we need to have a Big Cup of Compassion, Mercy and Love and allow the Holy Spirit to have the axe. Being under conviction by the Holy Spirit is far more effective than me trying to convince someone of right and wrong. You can argue with a human and think that you have the upper hand. The best way to be with God is to listen, learn and obey.
This morning which one do you have in your hand today - a cup or an axe?
+How big are our cups - shot glass, 12 ounces or growing towards a Double Gulp?
+Do we wield an axe - ready to tell someone what they should do, how they should act or how they should live? Do we put ourselves under a great deal of guilt? Do we have this inner critic that is always telling us that we are not good enough, that we are not holy enough or some other such thought?
Isn't it time to put the Axe in the hands of the Holy Spirit? Isn't it time to allow the Holy Spirit to bring conviction and spiritual formation?
It does mean that we pray for others. It does mean that we must listen to the leadings of the Holy Spirit. It does mean that we must put God Word into our hearts, minds and souls. But it also means that the LORD wields the Axe and we are open to anything in our lives that needs to be removed. It means we welcome whatever the LORD wants to add to our lives, graft into our lives or take away from our lives.
This morning - let's ask God to help us be more loving, more kind and to have a bigger cup - let's in fact see if we can be a Big Gulp Church. And then let's just obey the leadings of the Holy Spirit and we will be surprised how often the LORD uses the Axe to help us be more fruitful, more loving and more kind.
Closing Song - "Make Me A Blessing" - Traditional
Contemporary - Graham Kendrick - Love Each Other
Open Altar/Prayer/Blessing!
