“What were you arguing about?”

Meditation on Mark 9:30-37 

Sept. 20, 2015

Last Sunday with Ebenezer     

                                  

   They went on from there and passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know it; for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, ‘The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again.’ But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him.

   Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, ‘What were you arguing about on the way?’ But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, ‘Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.’ Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, ‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.’

                        

***

    Friends, this is my last message to you. I can’t believe it! At this moment, it feels like I have been here forever and have always known all of you. At the same time, it feels like I just got here! Four years is both a long time and not nearly enough time to do everything I wanted to do with you or hoped to do in ministry here.

     I love you.  I will miss you.

     But we know this is the Lord’s will for us, though it may not always be comfortable. Change is rarely comfortable. Still, our calling as Christians is to seek out God’s Will for our lives and then seek the Lord’s help to obey. As Jesus taught us to pray, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven!”

     Though I would rather take you with me, I leave you in God’s capable hands. I trust that the Lord will be faithful to carry you through this time of transition in leadership. You are NOT sheep without a shepherd. You still have the Good Shepherd! We are in an in-between time, and yes, it’s a little scary! But in this in-between time, you and I are, as always, a work in progress. We are not what we were yesterday. In Jesus Christ, the old has passed away! And we aren’t what we are going to be tomorrow, when God has completed His work in us.

      What’s left for me to say in this final message? To encourage you in your ministry in Christ’s name--to keep on loving and serving God and neighbor, daring to be different in thought and deed than the rest of society.

       I also want to say, “Thank you, Ebenezer.” I can’t say it enough! For it is such a privilege to be a minister. Thank you for calling me to be your pastor 4 years ago this month, and for sharing your faith and your lives with me. Thank you for allowing me to care for you and pray for you when you and your loved ones were in need. And thank you for all the times that you cared for and prayed for my family and me when we were in need.

       But let us not make today all about me and saying “goodbye.” After all, it’s not really “goodbye,” is it? In God’s everlasting Kingdom, it’s “until we meet again.”

***

    It’s wonderful that our last worship service together includes a baptism! What a great reminder of what God has done for us in Jesus Christ! God has claimed us as His own. The Lord has marked us and sealed us with the Holy Spirit, which, throughout our lives, fills us with all the gifts we need to be who God intends us to be! During the baptism, as we pray for and welcome the newest member of the Church, we are refreshed and renewed for service. We draw nearer to God and one another when we reach out to embrace a new lamb into the fold.

    When we baptize, we are being obedient to Christ’s call to “welcome the child.” In our Mark reading today, Jesus takes a “little child” into his arms and tells his disciples, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me, welcomes not me but the one who sent me.”

     The kind of welcome Jesus is talking about involves more than a baptism or initiation into church membership. Jesus is addressing the larger society of his day, a society that did not value children. They are seen as possessions of the father in the household.  They are “nonpersons or not-yet persons,” as one commentary says. Mark does not name the child nor the parent in this passage, so we get the impression that this is just any small child, perhaps a complete stranger to the disciples, one of many such children who may have been tagging along after them, drawn to the love and mercy of Christ.

     The kind of “welcome” Jesus is talking about involves relationship-- caring for that child, any child, every “little child” who is a “nonperson or not yet person” to the wider society. Christ is saying, if you love God and you love me, then you will love and care for this little child, too. Conversely, he is also saying, “If you don’t love this child, then you also don’t love me or the one who sent me.”

     But there is a broader interpretation for this passage. The “little child” may represent all of the “little people” in our world--the voiceless, powerless, nameless, poor and vulnerable. For Jesus, when he speaks of life in his Kingdom, speaks of a world that is the opposite of our world today. It is truly an “upside down Kingdom.” People who are wealthy, arrogant, vain and powerful-- everyone wants to hear what they have to say in our society-- well, they have no place whatsoever in the Kingdom of God. And the people who are the “greatest” in God’s Kingdom are the humble, meek, poor and persecuted for Christ’s sake; they are those whom nobody in our society wants to hear! For the gospel is really uncomfortable, at times, to hear, isn’t it? Especially when Christ tells us that we have to love and care for the people that our society doesn’t like--the ones that we don’t want to know their names or their problems and share what we have with them. We don’t want to have a relationship with them. We don’t even want to live next door to them. They are the outcast, by definition, the undesirables.

    What is the context in which Jesus teaches this lesson? Jesus has just told his disciples that he is going to be betrayed and killed, and that he would rise on the third day. They don’t understand. On the way to Capernaum, they proceed to argue over who, of the 12 disciples, is the “greatest”!

    Then Jesus asks, “What were you arguing about?”

    And the disciples know they screwed up. Again. Their response to his question? Guilty silence.

***

 

    Friends, please don’t be distracted from your ministry to the community and the world during this in-between time. If you focus too much on what is happening inside your congregation, you will miss the blessing and spiritual growth that comes with reaching out with the gospel and caring for people in need. Ministry in Christ’s name is what will keep you together.

      May God’s Word continue to challenge and guide you. Our Lord urges us to be different--to respond to the prejudice, hatred, and selfishness of our society by being humble, meek, gentle, and kind. That takes courage and strength, doesn’t it, to be gentle and kind when others are rude and unkind?

      Keep welcoming the children and all the people whom society doesn’t like. Dare to be different! Speak up for those who have no voice! For whoever welcomes the children, welcomes the Lord. This welcome means relationship.

     Don’t get caught up in arguments with your brothers and sisters in the faith. The root of all arguments is, when you think about it, vanity or pride. Wanting your own way. Don’t be like the disciples, who each wanted to be the “greatest,” even after Jesus had taught them about the upside down Kingdom and how to be servant of all. Be of one heart and mind in Christ Jesus. Let go of old hurts. Be merciful, for God has forgiven you!

    Give of yourself, and give some more.

    Thank you, again, dear Ebenezer, for your kindness and love to me. May God bless thee and keep thee --until we meet again!

Let us pray.

Loving Lord, we thank you for what you have done for us! Thank you that your Son, Jesus Christ, gave us the example of being the greatest in your Kingdom when He gave his all. Forgive us for becoming distracted from our gospel mission at times, forgetting the call to reach out to the world with your mercy, grace and love. By your Spirit, give us ears to hear your Word and really understand what it means for our lives today. Remind us that if we love you, then we will care for the children and the people whom society despises or ignores. Prepare our hearts and minds for the new thing you are doing with Ebenezer and with me. Get us ready, Lord, and give us courage and strength to do your will. In Christ we pray. Amen.