In the name of the God the Father and Mother, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, Amen.

One of the key elements of Mark’s gospel is discipleship. And what is discipleship: it is about following Jesus, learning from Him, growing in faith, and living out His teachings. It involves personal transformation, obedience, sacrifice, and a commitment to help others discover and follow Christ.

Last week, Jesus and his disciples passed through Galilee on their way to Capernaum. ‘You see Jesus did not want anyone to know it, for he was teaching his disciples.’ This begins a series of teaching moments for Jesus, the direct education of his disciples.

Let me reset the stage for you. Jesus and his band of disciples are on their way to Jerusalem and take a pit stop in Capernaum for this disciple education 101.

This is a time that Jesus needs their full attention, with no outside interference as Jesus knows they are not getting what he is saying. I imagine they are in a room, sitting, kneeling, or standing as they face Jesus. We do not know all of what Jesus shares with them during that day, but I suspect his teachings are centered on how to be a good disciple of Christ, of the Messiah, and of each other.

We ended last week with Jesus and his disciples in a house in Capernaum, I assume in a secluded setting, teaching them that whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me, welcomes not me but the one who sent me. And last week Linda shared that like a child, Jesus enters our world and turns it upside-down, showing us that greatness is not about ego gratification and how we measure up against others. He has revealed that true greatness is rooted deeply, not in how we see ourselves, but in how God sees us; as Beloved.

After that beautiful moment, a moment of the disciples saying, ok, I get it, John interjects with a non sequitur concern. John does a complete180, radically changes the subject and directs this concern to Jesus. John is worried, and there is most likely a consensus among the disciples. John states that someone was casting out demons in Jesus’ name and that we tried to stop him because he does not follow you.

What a whiner…but I get his concern. Jesus is theirs, they do not want to particularly share him, who are these freelancers stepping on their turf and taking credit for their deeds. They want to curtail any unauthorized use of Jesus’ name, kind of like a copyright. But this is not what Jesus expects of them, he realizes they still are not getting his messages. One more opportunity to continue their education.

I can only imagine Jesus’ face and posture…a huff, and a shrug of the shoulders…and he is thinking, “you have got to be kidding me, they still do not get it.”

But in Jesus’ wisdom, he steps in and gets straight to the point…” Do not stop him!” What harm is he doing, for whoever is not against us is for us. A key part of this statement is the fact that Jesus is talking in the plural and not singular. Jesus is talking directly to the disciples, making them feel a part of Jesus, but also talking to the greater body of diversity and uniformity.  A part of the entire body and the importance they all are part of the one body. The community of Jesus’ followers is to include everyone unless there is a reason to believe that someone poses a negative threat. The body of many parts, of many gifts, of many approaches to witness God, be it Christian, Jew, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, and the like is the true body of Christ.

On a side note, we can speculate that Jesus is still holding the child in his arms and is drawing a connection between the special place a child or someone with child-like faith has in Jesus’ call, but also the importance of inclusiveness and the importance of cooperation among those working for good. This includes and is by no way a complete list, but regardless of your race, sexual identity, age, or financial status, we are all our own neighbors. We may not agree with the method or direction that another neighbor is trying to do good works. The fact that we are working towards the Way is what is important to Jesus and should be important to each of us.

He emphasizes that those who do good in His name, even if they are not direct followers, are still aligned with His mission. From Avery Brooke’s, Finding God in the World, “imagine God was at the center of a sphere and people were on the outside. There were many ways into the center, but you had to choose a way. Going round and round the circle got you nowhere. Yet if two people were trying to reach God from opposite sides of the sphere, the closer they got to the center, the closer they got to God and each other.”  You see, we all take different paths, our backgrounds are different, our ministries are different, but our destination is the same. This is were Jesus wants us to be. He wants his children to be diverse, and realizes that it takes many different parts to make up the one body of Christ.

Jesus continues his teaching and highlights that even small acts of kindness, such as giving someone a cup of water because they belong to Christ, will be rewarded by God. This passage promotes unity among believers and encourages tolerance towards others who may not belong to the same group but are still doing God’s work. Consider the families and peoples in FL, GA, NC that are suffering from lack of electricity, food, housing, and even water. Do they really care who is offering them help or assistance. Are their political or cultural differences creating a barrier to their well-being or Christ’s love?

Now, Jesus by no means is finished with his disciples’ education. Again, he continues to highlight the importance a child has in his kingdom. Jesus states that if any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones…notice that Jesus is directing this statement at his disciples. It is their time to understand so that they will be able to teach others to be disciples of Christ.

Jesus then gives a series of warnings about the seriousness of causing others to sin, the need for radical self-discipline to avoid sin, and the necessity of ridding ourselves of those things in our lives that keep us from wholehearted devotion to God.

Jesus alerts the disciples that if anyone who causes a believer, especially “little ones” (those with childlike faith), to stumble would face severe consequences. He says it would be better for them to have a millstone tied around their neck and be thrown into the sea.

If that did not get the attention of the disciples then Jesus urges extreme measures to avoid sin, saying if your hand, foot, or eye causes you to sin, cut it off or pluck it out. It emphasizes the need to take responsibility and to take drastic steps to deal with anything leading to sin.

He contrasts avoiding sin with the consequence of hell (Gehenna), where “the fire never goes out,” a stark image of eternal punishment.

With the fire and brimstone speech ended, Jesus knows that he must pull the disciples together with hope. Jesus says everyone will be “salted with fire,” referring to the refining and purifying process of trials to come.

He tells His disciples to maintain their “saltiness,” representing purity and uniqueness in their faith. Losing saltiness (holiness and obligation) makes a person ineffective. Remember when we are asked to confess our sins against God and our neighbor…we say together, we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. My personal take is that those things left undone are what get me in trouble, when my heart weighs the heaviest in my chest. How do I know what was left undone, the good things I failed to do, such as neglecting kindness, compassion, or justice when I should have acted. For example, when I am walking down the street, and there is a homeless person looking for some change, and I walk by, not even recognizing him or her. This is when my salt has lost its flavor in me.

Jesus concludes his class in Discipleship 101, by urging them to “have salt among yourselves, and be at peace with each other,” calling for harmony among believers. You see, Jesus teaches the gravity of sin and the need for personal devotion. He emphasizes avoiding behaviors that cause harm to others or oneself spiritually, even if it requires extreme sacrifice. To quote theologian Paul S Berge, “we are called by Jesus into a cosmic engagement against the powers of evil and injustice and to serve our neighbor in love.” The ultimate goal is to live a life of purity, resisting sin, and maintaining peace with others.

From Kaley’s sermon two weeks ago, she talked about how Jesus keeps converting us and educating us as we walk the Way (capital W). In this scripture, it is Jesus educating his disciples how to walk his path, but it is also Jesus asking us and teaching us to be his disciples, to walk his path, to love and cherish our God and to love our neighbor, regardless of who they are, or what beliefs differ from ours. So, I ask you, will you stand forth and be a disciple of Christ? Do you want to walk in his way each day, each hour? Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?

I will, with God’s help, Amen