Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost
September 20, 2015
Text: Mark 9:30-37
Who
is the greatest in the Kingdom of God?
Actually, here the Sunday School answer works pretty well. Jesus, of course! And notice that the greatest, Jesus, makes
Himself last of all and servant of all, giving His life as a ransom for all. Which makes it all the more silly that the
disciples are arguing about which of them is the greatest. The very fact that they’re arguing about it
disqualifies them. There are undoubtedly
a few favorite candidates among the Twelve.
There is Peter, of course, but then again, James and John, the “Sons of
Thunder,” are also in Jesus’ inner circle.
And you can never count Andrew out.
Andrew, after all, is the one who first witnessed to his brother Peter:
“‘We have found the Messiah’ (which
means Christ). He brought him to Jesus”
(John 1:41-42; ESV). The rest of the
disciples probably picked sides with one candidate or another. Perhaps Peter blushed as his devotees argued
for his supremacy. Perhaps those who
would be the greatest feigned humility during the discussion, making them all
the more attractive to potential supporters.
Though maybe not. Certainly James
and John did not blush to have their Mommy ask Jesus to exalt them to His right
hand and His left as He comes into His Kingdom (Matt. 20:21). Little did they understand what that meant,
or how it is Jesus would come into His Kingdom.
Jesus
comes into His Kingdom on the cross.
Just read the sign above His head: “Jesus
of Nazareth, the King of the Jews” (John 19:19). He is surrounded on His right and on His left
by thieves, one of whom hurls insults and derides Him, the other of whom prays
for mercy: “Jesus, remember me when you
come into your kingdom” (Luke 23:42).
None of this should surprise the disciples. Jesus had been teaching them about this all
the way through Galilee: “The Son of Man
is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he
will rise” (Mark 9:31). It is the
heart and soul of the Gospel, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is precisely what the apostles are
called to preach. But they don’t
understand any of it. They are afraid to
ask. Because they don’t know if they
want the answer. What does this all
mean? You can’t win a Kingdom by
submitting to your enemies! You can’t
win a Kingdom by dying! That’s just not
the way it works in the world.
Jesus
turns everything on its head. Jesus’
Kingdom, remember, is not of this world (John 18:36). So He reminds Pilate. This is how it works in Jesus’ Kingdom: “If anyone would be first, he must be last
of all and servant of all” (Mark 9:35).
The greatest of these in Jesus’ Kingdom is the least of these in
ours. Our Lord illustrates the
point. He takes a child, a paidivon, a little wobbly toddler just learning to pull
himself up on things… Jesus loves the little children… He stands him up in the
midst of this rugged group of fishermen and tax collectors and zealots and
whatever else they were, and He says this
is an example of a great one, a foremost citizen in Jesus’ Kingdom. He takes Him in His arms and says this is what you should be like. A toddler.
A babe. Simply trusting in
Jesus. For everything. For the salvation of your soul and for every
bodily need. Believing His every Word,
even if you don’t understand it and can’t give voice to it. Adults have trouble believing. We get in the way of our faith. A little child serves as an example to us:
Loved and safe in the arms of Jesus.
Be
like a child before God. Not childish,
but childlike. God is your Father. Jesus is your Savior. Who cares whether your first or last? It is enough just to be with Jesus. And then have mercy on your brothers and
sisters. Put them first. Put yourself last. Consider others better than yourself. Be a servant to all. That is your joy in Christ who came not to be
served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many (Mark
10:45). Jesus also talks about receiving
one such child in His Name. More on that
in a few minutes. For now, though, think
about how shocking it was for those manly men, those tough guys all worried
about who is the manliest of them all, to see Jesus pick out a child and say this one
is great in the Kingdom. And now think
about all of us gathered here today, and all the children of our congregation,
and how Jesus would find the most insignificant babe in arms and take him into
His embrace. It’s a beautiful
thought. Very comforting, even if a bit
shocking. Babies first. Oh, eventually He would make His way to our
esteemed president and our head elder and the other officers of our
congregation. Last of all, as to one
untimely born, He would even embrace this poor excuse of a pastor. He would have mercy on us all. He would delight in us all. But that baby, He would take in His arms
immediately. And, in fact, that is
precisely what He does… at the Font! For
all of us babies in the faith.
Who
is the greatest? Who is the best? Is that argument not at the heart of every
conceivable problem in the Church and in the world? Sin entered the world because Adam and Eve
wanted to be the greatest, as great as or even greater than God. They forgot that the greatest in the LORD who
gave them life. And you want to be
greater than your neighbor. You’re
always comparing yourself to others, tearing them down, building yourself
up. We virtually never gossip about the
good attributes of another person. We
delight to wallow in their negative characteristics and spread the stories that
knock them down a peg. Because if I can
tear you down, that makes me that much better in comparison. At least in my own eyes. And when it comes down to opinions about anything
under the sun, I’ll tell you what, my opinion is the best I’ve ever heard. Of course, I wouldn’t say it that way. I’d offer up my humble two-cents and then
secretly despise you if you didn’t take my advice. If you did take it, that’s just confirmation
of my theory. You see how this
works? Who is the greatest? Who is the wisest? Who is the strongest? Who is the fairest of them all? Every argument from the color of the carpet
to how best to prevent a nuclear Iran comes down to who is the greatest. Repent.
Jesus
is the greatest! And knowing that is
freeing. It frees you from the jockeying
for first position, the competition to be number one. It frees you to be a child in the Kingdom of
God, to simply receive what the Lord has to give: His forgiveness, His life,
His provision for every need of body and soul.
It frees you up to rely totally on Him, secure in His embrace. And it frees you up to love and serve your
neighbor, to have mercy on him, to put him first, give to him generously,
defend him, speak well of him, and explain everything in the kindest way. Which is to say, it frees you up to serve as
a Christian in your particular vocation.
This
is true of all vocations, but this text has particular application to the
vocation of parents. “Whoever receives one such child in my name
receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me”
(Mark 9:37). What does it mean to
receive one such child in Jesus’ Name?
In the wider sense, I suppose, it can mean receiving any person in the
Name of Jesus, and caring for them as you would for a child. But I think here receiving a child in Jesus’
Name has a more technical sense. Where
do you receive a child, literally, in Jesus’ Name? At the Font.
In Holy Baptism. Parents, bring
your child to Baptism, where Jesus puts His Name on them (Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit), and takes them up in His arms.
And then keep bringing them to Jesus here at Church so they can live in
their Baptism. I’m convinced this is
exactly what Jesus means when He says, “Let
the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of
God” (Mark 10:14). He’s talking
about Baptism. And life in Baptism. And so here.
And this also means that it is a blessing when parents receive children into their marriage,
into their family, as a gift from God. Our culture is against having children, or
certainly what our culture would consider too
many of them. That’s not what Jesus
says. Jesus is a Psalm 127 kind of Guy:
“Behold, children are a heritage from
the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s
youth. Blessed is the man who fills his
quiver with them” (vv. 3-5). So go
have kids. (Get married first, of
course.) “Be fruitful and multiply” (Gen. 1:28). It is the blessing of God. And think how highly this speaks of adoption,
or foster parenting, this receiving of children in Jesus’ Name. And think how much more horrendous, how greatly
offensive to our Savior, is the murder of babies in abortion. Lord, have mercy. Here in this text is a call to every one of
us, parent or not, to speak up for the little children in Jesus’ Name, to
defend them, to defend life, and hold it sacred. And notice what happens when you do any of
these things. You become last. You become least. You become servant. And you sacrifice yourself for the sake of
the other in the way of Jesus Christ.
Which is really great.
You
can do this for children of all ages, in Jesus’ Name, because you have been
received as a child of God in Jesus’ Name.
God’s own child, I gladly say it, I am baptized into Christ! The Kingdom is yours! Your sins are forgiven. God is your Father. Jesus is your Brother. The Spirit of God dwells in you. All things are yours in Christ Jesus, who was
handed over for you, killed for you, and the third day rose again for you. And He’ll raise you, too. So you have nothing to lose. Love and serve. And know that Christ is your all in all. In the Name of the Father, and of the Son
(+), and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.