Mark 9:30-48 Simplicity and Severity

First Things: Devotions in Mark’s Gospel

Mark 9:30-48 Simplicity and Severity

There is in this passage both simplicity and severity. Jesus begins with severity, regarding Himself. He predicts that He Himself will be mistreated, arrested, and killed. He also predicts His resurrection. All of these, of course, actually happened. 

The disciples seem to be missing the point of simplicity and severity. They are engaged in an argument about which of them would be the greatest. Though their lives were committed to focusing on and following Another, they were extremely conscious of their own selves. And though they were giving of themselves in regular acts of service, they were also engaged in significant self-serving.

Jesus responds by using a child as an illustration. Now children are not perfect. They also can be selfish. But Jesus says two things: “consider yourself last;” and, “Receive children as you would receive Me” (the statements in the text are longer, and are worth considering more deeply).

Both of these statements run counter to the conversation the disciples were engaged in. They were considering themself first. They had no thoughts of the welfare of children, since they were primarily concerned with the welfare of themselves.

One point of cultural  difference. We live today in a culture that in many cases caters to children. This is not universally true, and there are many children who suffer from terrible neglect. Even the best parents can at times be self-serving. But nevertheless, we tend to focus on children in ways that never would have happened in the 1st century. So “receiving a child” was a truly counter-cultural activity. To apply this better today, perhaps we should think, not only of receiving children, but receiving those who may be consistently overlooked, as children were in that day. Perhaps that would include the poor, or disabled. It’s the ones who, when we look at them, we tend not to see them.

The disciples then counter. “Where should we draw the lines. We are the insiders, and we saw some who weren’t part of our group casting out demons in Your name. Shouldn’t they be stopped?” Again, and still, they are worried about themselves and their status. If you have a certain amount of glory to share, the more you share it with, the thinner it gets. Maybe its best to keep the circle smaller. But Jesus will have none of this.  It is not the disciples’ job, or mine, or yours, to cull the herd.

Jesus, having once pushed back on the disciples with the simplicity of children, now describes the kind of severity that may be expected in the most strict of military units, where lack of disciple means peril for all. Here are some things that just cannot be tolerated. They cannot be tolerated, so much so, that the penalty involves being buried at sea, or cutting off hands, or feet, or gouging out eyes. It is not that these are barbaric punishments. Rather, they are severe efforts to remove the instruments of the offense.

Simplicity and severity. Are those good markers for the lives of disciples? Simplicity means that I follow Jesus, and put myself last. Severity means that I will not tolerate sin and the mistreatment of the vulnerable. Perhaps the state of Christianity today would be better if we all practiced both simplicity and severity.