And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” And he took a child and put him in the midst of them, and taking him in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me.” Mark 9:35b-37
I continue my study of Mark, leaning on the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for Mark. Today, my focus is a commentary-assisted review of Mark 9:30-50. Excerpts from the second (of four) division (vv33-37):
- For the first division, the title is: "Service to Others."
- "In spite of what He has taught [the disciples] about self-denial, dying to self (8:34) and losing their lives for Christ and the gospel (8:35), they still aspire to be sovereigns and not servants. They remain deaf to what He has said about the road to true greatness. Serving others out of an overflow of “gospel gratitude” has still not sunk in."
- "Jesus confronts them about what they had been talking about. They admit they had debated “with one another about who was the greatest” (v. 34). Matters of rank and recognition were important to the Jews of Jesus’ day. The nature of man and the times have not changed all that much. Pride and the cult of personality arise even among the people who follow after the lowly Jesus."
- The commentary exhorts to deeply examine ourselves for signs of pride.
- We are referred to Proverbs 11:2 and James 4:6 where the text urges us to avoid pride (one the most prominent and dangerous of sins) and instead to be humble.
- "Jesus does not repudiate greatness. He redefines it. Be great in things that matter to God not man."
- "Jesus says you will only find real and lasting happiness (joy) when you do serve someone, not because you have to but because you get to and want to."
- "Jesus does say there is a position you should aspire to obtain: a diakonos, a waiter of tables, one who washes others’ feet (John 13:1-20) or changes their soiled undergarments. The work is not glorious in man’s eyes, but it is great in God’s! Here is a posture and position worthy of heaven!"
- "Effectively, “Treat well those who have no standing in this world (children, lepers, AIDS victims, the mentally impaired, the physically disabled, the aged), and you will receive an audience with My Father!” Jesus points the way to true greatness: Die to self, serve others, care for those no one else cares for. Receive them in Jesus’ name, and you receive Jesus—and His Father too!"
Arrogance and pride has long been a sin of mine and God working in me has helped me, and while there is work for God to do within me to "move this along" I am grateful for what He has done. It's no wonder that the tag cloud for my blog both directly and indirectly ranks humility and related variants as the top topic during my bible study over the years.
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My Prayer: Father God You are an awesome God who loves and saves....You came to earth as the Incarnate Son of God and to die - willingly laying down Your life - in a gruesome and violent manner - so that I could have life now to the full and for eternity in Heaven. The greatest gift of all time. Thank You Jesus! I am not deserving of such love and of such a gift. My sin is great and it continues...daily. Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You. Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me. Help me grow in my faith. Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength. Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior. Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin. Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.
