Mark 8:34-38 Neither Gain nor Shame

First Things: Devotions in Mark’s Gospel

Mark 8:34-38 Neither Gain nor Shame

Mark 8:34   And He summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. ³⁵ “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. ³⁶ “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul? ³⁷ “For what will a man give in exchange for his soul? ³⁸ “For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”

This paragraph is so short, yet powerful, that it deserves separate comment. The verbs deserve meditation: deny, take up, follow. Saving life and losing it are deep subjects. These ultimate ends: “for My sake and the gospel’s” is worth living for, or dying for, as the case may be.

But two phrases seem to unlock the other meanings. One is this: “to gain the whole world.” Isn’t it what the devil himself wanted to do, when tempting Jesus, he said, “bow to me, and I will give you the kingdoms for your inheritance”? Jesus was given the opportunity “to gain the whole world.” And He said no. He denied Himself, took up His cross, and followed God’s will.

I’m not sure I’ve been offered the whole world. It’s too carved up by so many others placing claim on what part or another. But perhaps I could gain my sliver. Our stake in this world may be a piece of property, or the favor of certain persons, or a cache of goods or money. We must indeed have a place in this world, if we are going to live here. And yet, uncomfortably, we remember Jesus’ words: “The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” Is this what it means to “lose life,” to live as though we have no place here at all? Again, I’m not sure.

We receive gifts from God, and among those gifts, for some, oftentimes, are family, and a place for that family to lives; livelihoods, and the accumulations that go with them. And yet they must always be considered to be just that, gifts from God. They are gifts more than possessions; graces more than expectations; loaned rather than owned as rights. As they come, they are received with thanksgiving; and when they are removed, we remain grateful and trusting still. This is so amazingly counter-cultural that we wonder if it is even possible. And yet it must be. It seemed to be Jesus’ way, who was here merely inviting disciples to follow in His course.

The other unlocking phrase reads “whoever is ashamed of Me and My words.” While the first phrase describes an ungodly appetite and enthusiasm for the world, this phrase describes an avoidance of the uniqueness, interpreted as ugliness, of our Savior by “this adulterous and sinful generation.” How open and vocal are we about our conviction about the value and necessity of Jesus, and our devotion to Him and to His mission? Is it possible that people have known us for days, or years, and not known that we profess to be Christians, because our profession is silent, and its attending lifestyle is absent. 

The life of discipleship is not passive. Yes, we are to “deny ourselves,” saying no to temptations to gain for ourselves a slice of this world. But there is also to be an active “following of Jesus,” where our following of Him is clear because of certain things that we simply cannot follow at the same time, and because our following of Him demands a single-hearted focus that will be obvious to those around us. Further, we do not care that they notice, and we are determined that they do, in order that they too may find the way that leads to life, and step by faith off the path the leads to death.