MARK 9:38-50   Lesson 24

THE KEY TO GREATNESS: ACCEPTING

I. Greetings:

II. Introduction: Last week we spoke of what made an individual great in the eyes of God. It is not position or self-promotion but serving the least: either servants or children. What follows is four other ways to greatness and all of them are put in the context of “A Personal Conversation between Jesus and His Key Men”.

III. Other Ways to Greatness: Accepting. Mark 9:38-50.
Note: We spoke of becoming great through receiving children. Now we will see how accepting can make us great. We are to accept others, responsibility, and suffering, we therefore accept loss of control.
A. The Second Way: Accepting other Groups: Mark 9:38-40.
Note: After Jesus announced His death in chapter 8, Peter was seen to be spiritually imperceptive. He did not understand the program Jesus was teaching. Now it is the apostle John’s turn. Sometimes Christians take turns in misunderstanding the will of God. In chapter 10 it will be John and James’. Remember, these are the three disciples closest to Jesus. Take heart with your own behavior. Even the apostles of our Lord had a hard time being like Jesus. Even the apostles messed up for a while before they understood the program. Death to self, death to our self-centeredness is a hard concept to see or to want to seek.
>>>> Have someone read Mark 9:38-40.
Q What did John attempt to do?
An = A person was helping someone get free of demon-possession, through the power of Jesus’ Name. They were doing exorcisms, and John wanted to stop them.
Q Why?
An = They were not part of their group. John seemed to have a very controlling view of the ministry of Jesus. If John was a Baptist and they were Presbyterians (or use denominations that fit your group) then John would see those outside his group as illegitimate.
Q How did Jesus respond? Was He happy?
An = Jesus is not happy with our interference with the work of other groups. “Do not hinder others doing well” was Jesus’ basic answer and His reasons for saying so were quite interesting.
1) In verse 39, Jesus, not the group or its beliefs or organization, was the issue. Those others were doing good things in Jesus’ Name. The power came from His Name, not the disciples’ name. He was the key issue. Jesus says they would not soon speak evil of Him. It does not matter what others think of us, our church, or denomination, etc. What matters is the exaltation of Jesus Christ. He saved the world from its sins, not us. It is not us who control the machinery and operation of the church which saves souls.
2) In verse 40, Jesus was saying: “Do not look for enemies.”
Note: One key element of all the teaching of 9:33-50 is that of aggressive behavior. Death to the worst part of us has to be done aggressively. Thus, we are not passive when we accept other groups; we are aggressively deciding not to stop them in their good acts.
B. The Third Way: The Acceptance of Mercy, or Death to Ego. Mark 9:41
>>>> Have someone read Mark 9:41.
Q Is it hard to receive gifts sometimes? How come?
Note: Jesus reminded the disciples that others would be blessed for merely offering them a cup of cold water (A metaphor of performing an act of kindness). They needed to be humble enough to be able to receive, because others would be blessed as they attempted to bless them, because they belonged to the Lord.
C. The Fourth Way: The Acceptance of Responsibility. Mark 9:42-48.
>>>> Have someone read Mark 9:42-48.
Note: The term “little ones” has been understood by nearly all scholars to mean either little children or young believers. The disciples were responsible before Almighty God to take good care of them. If they hurt them in any manner they would be judged in Hell. These are very frightening verses.
Q Do a lot of you want to eliminate the doctrine of Hell?
An = I do not blame you. The concept of Hell terrifies me, yet Jesus says there is one. If you do not like the concept of Hell, then take it up with Jesus. He speaks over eight times more about Hell than any other person in the New Testament.
Part of what motivates me to obey Jesus Christ, and to be willing to die to myself is so that I can help others to Heaven thus helping keep them out of Hell. I do not enjoy the doctrine but I must admit it has helped me conquer my selfishness and for that I am grateful.
Note: Jesus said even the apostles could wind-up there if they did a certain type of action.
Q How many types of actions were mentioned that could bring condemnation?
An = If their hand, foot or eye caused them to sin. The disciples’ sins could cause others, especially young children or young believers, to sin. Hypocrisy always does this. Many people do not go to church because of the hypocrisy of those who do?
Q Why did Jesus give three examples of how to avoid hurting “little ones”? What did each of them represent: i.e. the hand, the foot and the eye?
An = (See Lane, p. 348) The Old Testament forbade self-mutilation. Jesus did not want all serious Christians to be possessed of one foot, one eye and one hand. That was not what He was saying. What He was teaching, in the strongest terms possible, was even those things, good things which are valuable to them were not worth losing their souls over. They would lose their souls in Hell if they hurt the little ones.
Q Can you give an example of holding on to things that are not bad in themselves but keep us in a position where we hurt little ones?
Note: Perhaps the hand means: “what we do”, the foot means: “where we go”, and the eye means: “what we see, understand or desire”. Any of these, if they hurt a little one, are to be carefully brought under discipline, so as not to hurt another.
Q Was He addressing this threat of Hell to prostitutes and sinners or to the apostles of the Lord?
Q Was Jesus talking to atheists here or to the clergy?
An = His scariest messages often were to leaders, especially Christian leaders.
Note: Jesus was saying discipline yourself for the sake of love. The disciples were to cut things out of their lives to appear to be holy or more sacrificial than others. That was the fuel of spiritual pride, the certain path of spiritual danger. They were to discipline themselves so that they did not hurt others. We are disciplined for the sake of our love for the “little ones”.

D. The Fifth Way: The Acceptance of Suffering. Mark 9:49-50.
>>>> Have someone read Mark 9:49-50.
Q What do you think these verses mean?
Q What does salt represent in verse 49?
Q What does salt represent in verse 50?
Q Does salt represent different things in each verse?
Note: Some scholars think verse 49 is referring to the salt that accompanied the sacrifices. The allusion is being made that all will be salted with persecution or difficulty. Only those who have not lived long enough are of the belief that suffering will not come to all. Verse 49 appeared to be saying rough times were good. Just as salt with sacrifices was proper, all of us would be seasoned with rough times. I know some of you in this room are definitely struggling with rough times.
Q Could rough times be good?
Q If we understand salt this way, as the seasoning of difficulty or persecution, what does “Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another” mean?
An = If we accept the Lord’s dose of suffering or persecution, it can help bring peace with other Christians.
Q Have you experienced this and could some of you share with us your experience?
>>>> Re-read Mark 9:50.
Q Was Jesus saying that the disciples should not try, to illegitimately get out of suffering because they would be useless?
An = Some scholars think that the salt referred to in verse 50 was more concerned with the preservative and seasoning qualities of salt. Once the disciples were like a true disciple, in that they died to their ego, accepted children, others outside their group, the merciful acts of others, suffering and their responsibility to the little ones, then they were the salt of the earth.
If the disciples did not act in these ways then they were useless.
Note: The last phrase of “Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another” could very well mean, in this context, that the disputes about who was the greatest that opened this section (9:33-37) would end when they were what they were supposed to be. It could mean we need to be too busy being servants and being the salt for the world to be bothered with our status. I have seen some people do this, in an interesting manner they were “too busy to sin”. They were too busy being salt to be caught up with the selfishness of their status among other Christians.[:]