Mark 9:38–50 ³⁸ John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.” ³⁹ But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. ⁴⁰ For the one who is not against us is for us. ⁴¹ For truly, I say to you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward.

⁴² “Whoever causes the downfall one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. ⁴³ And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. ⁴⁵ And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell. ⁴⁷ And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell, ⁴⁸ ‘where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’ ⁴⁹ For everyone will be salted with fire. ⁵⁰ Salt is good, but if the salt has lost its saltiness, how will you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.”

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

One theologian says that preaching is, “Doing the text to the hearers.”  Who’s first?  We’ll get to the lopping, plucking, and cutting stuff, and don’t worry; I’ll keep the hatchet and hacksaw up here.

This is not an easy passage.  Jesus says several things that are hard to understand in this text—the instructions for self-mutilation are not the only difficulty.

Context, context, context.  When you get confused about a Scripture passage, remember to consider the context.  If you were simply reading the Gospel of Mark, you would certainly remember the context in which this is placed.

Today’s text picks up from last week’s where Jesus speaks to the disciples about His coming death and resurrection.  He plainly says, “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.”  Then, the disciples argue about which of them is the greatest.  Jesus takes a child—the obvious least and lowest among them—and teaches the Twelve that discipleship is a life of service to the lowest of the low.  God wants you to serve Him by serving your neighbor.  Jesus says, “Whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me, and whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him Who sent Me.”

Today’s text begins with one of the three “inner circle” disciples, John—“the disciple whom Jesus loved”—saying, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.”  Isn’t that interesting?  An unidentified exorcist is doing the work of God, he is casting out demons in Jesus’ name, but he “isn’t following us disciples.”  As though the disciples are people to follow, or as though Jesus said, “Follow us, and we will make you fishers of men.”

The disciples may have stopped arguing amongst themselves who is the greatest, but they think they must at least be greater than others who are not with them.  Just after Jesus has called them to be servants to the least among them, they are thinking egotistically that they have a corner on the Jesus market.  Jesus begins teaching the disciples to get over their pride and realize that disciples of Christ Jesus are called to a life of service.  With His first swing of the axe to chop down the tree of pride Jesus says, “Do not stop him.  The one who is not against us is for us.”

You know what, my fellow Lutherans, disciples of Christ, do we not often think just as John and the disciples thought that we have a monopoly on Jesus?  Jesus would say to us today, “Do not stop the Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, or Roman Catholic who does a mighty work in My name for they will not be able soon afterward to speak evil of Me.”

Jesus gives a simple picture of what service looks like.  Jesus says that real service isn’t what brings the television cameras out, rather, “Whoever gives you, disciples, a cup of cold water to drink because you belong to Christ will not lose his reward.”  A cup of water is nothing.  In Jesus’ day, giving someone a cup of water is what you do to prove you are not a jerk.  But here are the Twelve demanding this unknown exorcist stop serving his neighbor.  The disciples should have offered this man their assistance—even something as small as a cup of water.

We also hold back from assisting and serving our brother and sister in Christ.  Worse than that, we hinder others’ service because of our own pride and jealousy.  We disagree with other believers (and that is ok), but they are as equally part of the Body of Christ as we are.  Jesus has called us into His Church—the Body of Christ—not into a sect.

Jesus continues to pull the disciples and us down from our soap boxes saying.  “Whoever causes the downfall one of these little ones who believe in Me, it would be better for him if a great millstone [the kind that took a donkey to move] were hung around his neck and have been cast into the sea.”

Jesus gives a perilous warning about destroying the faith of any brother or sister, no matter how insignificant we think they are.  It would be better to be in the state of sinking down into the sea with nothing to slow your descent.

Jesus really starts swinging in an effort to chop down the pride of the disciples and us.  Jesus speaks of self-mutilation.  This is the same Jesus Who was born in a livestock stall and laid in a feeding trough.  This is the same Jesus Who healed the sick, blind, deaf, and lame.  This is the same Jesus Who described in Scripture, “a bruised reed He will not break, and a smoldering wick He will not quench” (Mt. 12:20).

Jesus’ words here are direct and plain.  But we rationalize and assume that Jesus is simply speaking metaphorically.  We use our reason and logic to get away from Jesus’ desperate call to cut off the sin in our lives.  We think, “Even if I cut off my hand and foot and pluck out my eye, I would still be sinful.  I would have to cut off all my limbs and simply be a torso holding up a head with no eyes or ears or tongue.  But even then I would still have my mind and that will still think sinful thoughts.  I would still have an evil heart.  Didn’t Jesus say, ‘Out of the heart comes evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness.’  If I took Jesus literally, I would have to cut off my head and pluck out my heart.”

And that is precisely the point; that is the conclusion Jesus wants you to reach.

Cut it all off.  You do not have to get a second opinion.  Jesus does not allow for tolerance of sin.  You do not adjust to evil, you do not reform evil, and you do not allow evil to remain.  Evil must be cut off like a limb with gangrene.

Yet we still rationalize.  We excuse our sins and others’ sins.  Sure we aren’t perfect, but does that really justify calling for amputations and plucking?  Yes.

Maybe we fall short of God’s standard, but does that really mean that we deserve to be sent to an eternal hell “where the worm does not die and the fire is not quenched”?  Yes, it does; it most certainly does.

And we get a little upset with Jesus for speaking to us this way.  How dare even He speak to us this way?  Jesus can because He knows the severity of your sins because He made them His own (2 Cor. 5:21).

Thank God that the One speaking these terrible words is the very One Who was Himself mutilated, not for His sins, but for our sins.  He cut off all of your sin by mutilating His Own hands, His Own feet.  Jesus is the One who cast your sins into the depths of the sea.  He gives you not just a cup of water, but living water springing up to eternal life.

God connects you to Jesus’ mutilation and death in baptism (Ro. 6:3-7).  To us, baptism looks like a fairly mundane thing—just a little ‘cup of cold water’ in the name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  But in God’s opinion of things, baptism has lopped off your sinful limbs and kills your sinful mind and heart.  In God’s opinion of things, you have been drowned in the sea.

But Jesus isn’t done saying difficult things; “Everyone will be salted with fire.”  Wait, didn’t Jesus come to keep us from the fire?  What is this, “Everyone will be salted with fire,” business in v. 49?

Fire purifies.  In Jesus’ day salt had three main uses: preserving, cleansing, and flavoring. In Lev. 2:13, God had required worshippers to offer their grain sacrifices, which were burned, with salt.  What is unsettling here is that Jesus is saying worshippers are the ones who are salted and fired.  Fire purifies; salt preserves.

Yes, Jesus delivers you from the eternal, unquenchable hellfire, but He does not deliver you from all fire.  Sobering, isn’t it?  Jesus knocks the pride of His Twelve disciples and our pride down even further.

Then, in v. 50, Jesus says what might be the most mundane thing He says in this text.  Even though it is mundane, it is still difficult.  “Salt is good.”  In Mt. 5:13, Jesus calls His disciples the salt of the earth.  Salt is good.  Salt makes a bland baked potato tasty; it can make a dry roast palatable.  We put salt on corn, cucumbers, and even sometimes on watermelon.  Salt is good.

Jesus says, “If salt loses its salt-ness [not just salty taste] it is no good for anything.”  The salt used in Israel during Jesus’ day was not the pure sodium chloride we have today, so this is something that would happen often.  If salt loses its salt-ness it is no good but to be cast into the depths of the sea, lopped off, plucked out, thrown into the eternal fire with the undying worm.

Salt can be a food connoisseur’s best friend, but salt where it is unwanted is offensive.  Believer, there are times where you will offend others.  You will be salt where someone wanted sugar.  Lovingly offend; serve others with your offense.  And you might get burned in the process.  Yet, if the salt loses its salt-ness, what good is it?

God loves His world, and He has made you, disciple, the salt of the earth.  God wants this earth salted.

Receive His grace; live in His grace, but do not expect a ‘happily ever after’ in this life.  The story-book ending is yours, but you await the revelation of it.  Amen.

May the peace of God guard you mind, body, and soul until the resurrection of your body.  Amen.