For Our Sake

We are in the final week of our series in Mark. We have been confronted with difficult passages of Jesus calling a Syrophoenician woman and her daughter “dogs,” with Jesus predicting his own death saying that he would be killed, and Jesus saying that he would be betrayed into human hands even as he is the human of humanity. Each of these puzzling tales have had implications for our discipleship. We have seen that Jesus came for the sake of the despised, for the sake of the nations, and for the sake of the children. But now we turn to perhaps our most perplexing passage. Herein we encounter exorcisms, a strange verse about worms and unquenchable fire, and a concluding statement on being seasoned with fire. This is, again, a puzzling pericope with an important point about discipleship. This time, however, it is about discipleship for our own sake.

The first portion of this pericope describes the problem. The point at issue is whether or not the disciples should welcome a charismatic prophet who calls on the name of Jesus but does not belong to their apostolic group. The problem as presented here is not that the man was not following Jesus, but that he was not following the Twelve. The pericope’s openness to outsiders, including exorcists outside of the Twelve, contrasts with the restrictive attitude of the later church and the church of our own divided days. Mark, then, not only dreams that those who are neutral about the Christian mission will one day join it, but he also discerns in their departure from the prevailing hostility a sign that God is already at work in them.[1] The solemn “Amen, I say to you,” pronounces a blessing on all healers and comforters, to those who provide as a cup of water, to any needy person who belongs to Christ. The giving and receiving which characterizes disciples is not to be limited to some in-group but should be common to all who have been claimed in name of Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit.

We turn then v. 42 and to the little ones who are believers in Jesus. This is an inclusive statement for those who are children as mentioned last week, but also those who are recent believers in Jesus. This is inclusive to those exorcists, those who are performing works of mercy and piety in the name of Jesus that have been ushered into the communion of the saints through the eschatological power of God. Such persons are exhorted to be welcomed in our midst, not to be forbidden from being co-laborers in God’s saving work, and not caused to stumble. Again, we have the inclusive turn that we are exhorted to see God’s Kingdom work as expansive and as inclusive beyond what we may expect. Despite their differences and newness, these ones are accounted among our number.

To this warning not to cause others to stumble is added a warning against causes of sin within oneself. We have here three parallel sayings about hands, feet, and eyes causing us to sin. The language in this section is particularly harsh, we are told to “cut off” our hands that cause us to sin, to “cut off” the foot that cause us to stumble, and to “tear out,” the eye that causes us to stumble. This particularly gruesome and, if I might add disturbing Halloween-esque imagery, is not a command to be taken literally but with the utmost seriousness. We see that the consequences of not heeding the Word of God are severe. Verse 48 speaks of worms that are eating the bodies of their victims from the inside, and an unquenchable fire burning us from the outside. Again, gruesome, Halloween-ie imagery. Dale Allison points out the similarity of this picture of eternal torment to that in the Greek myth about Prometheus, who was chained to a rock and had his liver devoured by an eagle. [2] At night the liver would be restored, and the next day the eagle would devour it all over again. This imagery very loudly proclaims the consequences of idolatry and selfishness. The concluding salt metaphor helps to further clarify and contextualize this imagery. Will we as Christians be seasoned as salt by the purifying fires of God or will we be punished by them?

Imagery of this sort brings about challenging questions of hell, torment, and eternal fire. Does God punish us? I want to frame this question a different way within the context of our passage. We see that having salt, that is being one purified by God’s fire, results in peaceableness, harmony, and concord among the believers. We can imagine that being refined by God’s Spirit gives us the wisdom to lead new believers and children into deeper relationship with God. We can also imagine that being refined by God’s Spirit gives us the eyes to see that Jesus Christ’s love is for all peoples at all times regardless of whether they are a part of the in-groups we desire. To be purified and to be seasoned with salt, is to be in Christ. It is to be, as we discussed last week, the lowest of all and the servant of all. Whereas, on the other hand, to set boundaries of who’s in and who’s out, to cause a believer to stumble, and to stumble ourselves these are marks that we have wandered and are no longer in Christ. The eschatological implications of this are marked by the external suffering of being a part from God and the internal suffering of guilt whereby we know that it did not have to be this way. Suffering, then, is being apart from the source of life, love, beauty, and life. It is the agony of being apart from God.

Jesus, as testified in the gospel of Mark, tells us that our choices and our decisions today have concrete implications for tomorrow. A horrific picture has been painted of the fate to which such selfish impulses, left unchecked, lead human beings to a place of torment, in which the only companions portrayed are devouring worms and consuming fire. While I believe that ultimately all humans, creatures, and creation—that no one will be left behind— will be reconciled to God through the triumphant return of Christ, we see the importance of continually taking up the mantle of discipleship and of following Jesus. We see that humanity is realized in relationship with God. The concluding exhortation in v. 50, then, sums up the point of the entire pericope: human selfishness and conceit that give rise to disunity and intolerance which wreak havoc in our homes, churches, and governments. As Jesus’ disciples, we can contribute to communal harmony available through the wisdom and peace of given to us by God. Jesus measures greatness not by success but by service. He identifies with the child who is not powerful but vulnerable.[3]

The church in America is faced with an eschatological decision this week. Will we love our neighbor? Will we welcome the foreigner? Will we welcome the Haitian migrant whose country has seen assassinations, earthquakes, and flooding all in the last three months? Will we welcome the one who has traveled across oceans and countries just to have a better life? Will we welcome our siblings in Christ whom we have prayed for these last months? Or will we support policies and protocols that lead border patrol agents to wrangle up this displaced people as if they were cattle? Will we not seek better? Will we not seek the reconciliation of creation? In this passage we see both the importance of inclusion and the consequences of causing discord. We see that Jesus was not as concerned about the apostolic title of the Twelve, but of our calling to be a servant to all. Our yes to Jesus and to a life of discipleship requires us to reject the cruel and inhumane treatment of the refugee, migrant, and foreigner at our border. It requires us to sound a triumphant “no” to any policy or action that diminishes the image of God in our neighbor. It requires us to expand our circle to see all people as the beloved children of God. It requires us cut off our allegiances to the temporal and the fleeting and align our understanding and wills to God’s. Will we let our mercies and love flow like a river, or will we send those begging for water away? Will the world know we are Christians by our love, or will they know us by our authorization of inhumane treatment at our borders?

We have the option to choose harmony or discord. We have the choice to let our love resound throughout the nations, throughout our state, and throughout our neighborhoods. We have the choice to participate in God’s reconciling work which removes stumbling blocks so that all might proclaim the name of Jesus. Jesus came for our sake, and it is for our sake that we participate in the work of spreading God’s love. For our sake we have been invited to join in God’s reconciling mission to the world, but the choice is ours. What will we choose today, tomorrow, and always?

[1] Joel Marcus, Mark 8–16: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, vol. 27A, Anchor Yale Bible (New Haven; London: Yale University Press, 2009), 686.

[2] Joel Marcus, Mark 8–16: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, vol. 27A, Anchor Yale Bible (New Haven; London: Yale University Press, 2009), 692.

[3] Lamar Williamson, Mark, Interpretation, a Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching (Atlanta, GA: J. Knox Press, 1983), 174.