Mark 9:38-50 (NRSV)
Read Mark 9:38-50 on biblegateway.com
Verse 38John 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." Verse 39But Jesus said, "Do not stop him; for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. Verse 40Whoever is not against us is for us. Verse 41For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward.
Verse 42"If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea. Verse 43If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. Verse 45And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell. Verse 47And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell, Verse 48where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.
Verse 49"For everyone will be salted with fire. Verse 50Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another."
Devotion
Have you bit into a cookie in which the salt has funneled down into a clump? It is no treat. That bite is ruined. It does not give life. Salt is meant to be spread throughout the dough. In its intended dispersion it is like a megaphone rather than a funnel. Funnel behavior changes the dough – and not for the better.
Throughout this week we’ve seen that the issue is not “What’s in it for me?” We don’t enter the life of heaven through selfishness. Self-centeredness causes us to ignore the “little ones,” to run roughshod over them in church meetings and in life. When I focus a religious funnel on me – when I bloat spiritually – both the funnel and I together become a heavy weight – a millstone, you might say – that drags me down. Living for others is lighter.
Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for making me part of your body, the church. I live my part gratefully. Keep me from holding in your love. As your love changes me, let it flow through me to others. I speak to them and touch them in your name. Amen.