John said to him, "Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us."
But Jesus said, "Do not stop him; for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. Whoever is not against us is for us. For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward.
If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea.
If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell, where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.
For everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another." Mark 9:38-50 (NRSVA)
Jesus tells his believing followers to have salt within them, and peace between them. And this unusual combination follows Jesus warning the disciples about the kind of putrified attitudes and actions that characterize the inhabitants of hell. All that started when the disciples reported how they tried to close the “club membership” to one who wasn’t like them. What does it all mean?
Each week on Project Runway, Heidi Klum says, as you all know, in fashion one day you’re in and the next day you’re out. Apparently, the disciples are fans of Project Runway, wanting all their competition "out." [1]
We can understand the attitude of the disciples over the “outsider” doing mighty works in the name of Jesus; they were just trying to protect their turf. They couldn’t do a good job of casting out demons, so they didn’t want to be shown-up by a maverick believer who wasn’t on their membership roll.
We can also understand the warning about hell – any day in heaven with one arm is better than any day in hell with two. The warning is that hell is THAT bad. The picture Jesus gives is the local garbage dump where there is always fire, smoke and worms consuming whatever is present.
Jesus says, Cut it out! Get rid of your pride and stop making roadblocks for people who just want to serve me. Boys, boys, not EVERYBODY needs to be just like you!
A Pastor shared how he …was in a small rural church
one time that had a major dispute about where the pies should be placed in the kitchen prior to serving them for the annual turkey supper. One woman actually left the church community because several new comers to the church had convinced the rest of the women working in the kitchen that it would be more efficient to put the pies on the counter beside the sink instead of the counter next to the refrigerator.
"It’s not the right way to do it", she said. "We’ve never done it that way before, and I am not going to be part of doing it that way now. I won’t have any part of that kind of thing. Those new people are going to ruin this church. They don’t know anything. They aren’t even from around here." [2]
Jesus warned that kind of attitude just won’t cut it in the kingdom. Rather he warned that we should cut ourselves loose from that kind of thinking like we would cut out a cancerous tumor. An unholy attitude can kill a spirit faster than cancer can the body.
I read a story where a trap was set in the barn for a rat. In the morning it was sprung, but only the leg of a rat was there. The explanation was that the rat understood he would die if he couldn’t get free. The rodent chewed off his own leg and left it behind.
Jesus doesn’t advocate spiritual growth by hacking off your limbs; but he IS giving us a metaphor to demonstrate true spiritual growth by cutting-off and leaving-behind attitudes that can cripple ourselves, and in the process become a stumbling block to others.
Jesus said, have salt within and peace between. In a double-fold interest of, first, describing the “salt” we are to have – that which changes the world, and preserves goodness, and gives the world Godly taste….and secondly demonstrating the peace between, I, an Arminian-bent, grace loving pastor would like to quote a predestination-bent, sovereignty of God loving Calvinist:
Perhaps we can view this passage as Jesus’ way of indicating that for all the grace, glory, and light of the kingdom-and despite the fact that inclusion in the kingdom really can and does come to all who are truly child-like in their faith-the kingdom is nevertheless an all-consuming, serious affair. The kingdom is properly life-changing.
C.S. Lewis once said that we too often content ourselves in thinking that God’s salvation is mostly about a little change in our lives here and there. If people were horses, we think that God’s work would be about teaching those horses to run a little faster. The truth, Lewis said, is that God’s grand project does not resemble a trainer teaching a horse to run a little faster. It’s more like a miraculous transformation in which the horse sprouts wings and is taught to fly. The kingdom of God is THAT radical….Are we running with the horses of our society or winging a whole new way through the heavens that have been opened up for us by our great God? [3]
Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter, was a flyer. I know nothing of his spiritual commitment, but the world lost a “horse with wings” a few weeks ago. His passion for conserving wildlife was contagious. During the memorial service Irwin’s father said not to grieve for Steve, because he’s at peace; he said, grieve for the world’s animals – they’ve just lost the best friend they ever had.
People viewed Steve Irwin as a nut or genius – fanatic or fun – but they could not deny his enthusiasm, his passion for bugs, reptiles and koala bears.
This is the salt Jesus said we should have. When it comes to the kingdom of God, that Salt is available at one location only – the foot of the cross of Calvary. When you come to Jesus in total surrender to his will, his way, the Lord sprinkles from his own personal shaker – and you’re covered with it!
With that salt you can change this generation for God. It will change everything it touches…the salt available from Jesus changes everything. Hunger is filled; want is satisfied; sorrow is exchanged for joy. This kind of salt even changes the attitude of war to peace. Have salt within you; and be at peace between you!
Benediction:
Be salty, peaceful people this week, "Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus."
May we go in peace, filled with the Spirit, ready to do God’s will and by the power of Christ serve God’s people, as well as those who are yet to become His people. Amen.
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ENDNOTES
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1] Susan Burdsall on PRCL
2] Richard J. Fairchild, Working Together
3] http://cep.calvinseminary.edu
