Lindsey Blair and Bobby Gilles recap and discuss Pastor Jonah Sage's sermon from Mark 9:39-50
Bobby: Welcome to the Midweek Checkup. My name is Bobby Gilles and I’m joined by Lindsey Blair. This past Sunday, Pastor Jonah Sage preached from Mark Nine, verses thirty-eight through fifty.
Lindsey: Jonah said thatHe said that following Jesus is a descent to greatness. But if you missed the sermon or need help remembering, you’re in the right place, because it’s time for the Midweek Checkup.
Bobby: We began in verse thirty-eight. The disciples thought someone was stealing their branding. They say, “"Teacher, we saw someone using your name to cast out demons, but we told him to stop because he wasn't in our group.” Jesus had just told them they needed to be like children, they needed to serve to be great. But here they are, upset that someone else might get some credit.
Lindsey: And so Jesus, over the next one and a half chapters, will offer several poignant pictures of life in his Kingdom. What does it mean to follow him? What does it actually look like? And underneath it all is Jesus answering the question, "what does true greatness look like?” Jesus never rebukes them for wanting to be great. But he says, ”Tour way won't work."
Instead of becoming impressive, you must become like a child.
Bobby: It was startling for Jesus to tell his disciples they had to become like children. But then he flips it around and says not only do we have to cultivate a child-like posture, we also have to protect the most vulnerable.
Not exploit, not overlook, but protect. According to JESUS, it's better to be thrown into a lake with a huge rock around you neck than to hurt a little one. The Family of God, Kingdom Living, is ABSOLUTELY revolutionary.
How many stories do we need to hear of people PROTECTING THE BRAND at the expense of the vulnerable and voiceless? How many stories do we need to hear of men and women abusing our little ones in the name of Jesus?
Lindsey: Our family does not exploit; our family empowers and protects.
Our family does not grasp for notoriety, does not cling to the brand, but we descend to greatness. This is the essence of the warnings Jesus gives next.
It's better to limp into holiness than run into hell; it’s better to see Jesus with one eye to see the fires of hell clearly. Kingdom living is a descent to obscurity, a leveling of worldly divisions, a sharing of glory, a life of service and smallness, and a return to childhood.
Bobby: And he says don't lose your saltiness, an impossibility that is meant to bring deep peace to our souls as we follow Jesus into a descent towards greatness. Salt's proper functioning will appear invisible to us. It changes everything it touches, but the change is not noticed until it is experienced. What comes next for us will be new images, new examples, new pictures all teaching the same things we've just heard.
Lindsey: To follow Jesus is to become like a child. To follow Jesus is to protect and lift up the vulnerable. To follow Jesus is to pursue obscurity, peace, and smallness. And in this way, following Jesus, we will descend to greatness.
Bobby: We are looking forward to seeing you this coming Sunday for the second sermon in our new series from the Gospel of Mark, called Kingdom Living. And in Bible Fellowship for this season of Lent, we’ll be discussing different psalms each week. Join us, and bring a friend.