The Way of Exclusion

The following is adapted and updated from a sermon preached at Bright Star UMC on October 28, 2018, and based on Mark 10:46–52.

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I wonder if you can picture it. Jesus has been traveling with his disciples around the countryside teaching, performing miracles, and challenging the religious authorities of his day. In the last 2 chapters of Mark, there has been not one but two feeding miracles, multiple accounts of healing, and more than one conversation with Pharisees and other authorities questioning Jesus about his beliefs and understanding of Scripture. As the stories about Jesus spread, more and more people were following him and coming to him for help and healing. These people heard the stories about Jesus and came to him with hope.

And yet, those closest to him were having trouble recognizing all that he was trying to teach them. The disciples have been blind to all that Jesus is trying to show them. They have failed to hear what Jesus is telling them about what is to come. They don't understand why he would need to go to Jerusalem. They don’t get what he means when he speaks of the coming resurrection that will follow. They don’t really understand the consequences of following Jesus. They argue over who is the greatest amongst them. They want to sit on the right and the left hand in the kingdom to come.

Over and over, they fail to see the kingdom that Jesus is showing them right now. They are only able to see in terms of the world they have known. And in the world they have lived in, there are winners and there are losers, those on top and those on the bottom, the Romans and the conquered. They have been on the bottom for so long; with the Messiah here, they figure they finally get to be on top. The disciples, the bulk of the crowds following Jesus, and even the religious and civil authorities are mainly paying attention because they cannot see the truth of the kingdom that Jesus is promising them all.

Questioning Jesus: Will You Do What I Ask?

As we continue to explore the people around Jesus and the questions that they asked him, we turn this week directly to the disciples themselves. We started the month with a story of the Pharisees who came to Jesus asking questions in order to test him. Last week, we heard from a potential follower who wanted to know what he needed to do to gain eternal life. This morning we hear a request from the sons of Zebedee and the aftermath of their questions among the entire group of disciples.

Today’s reading follows just a few verses from where last week’s readings ended (see Mark 10:35-45). Last week, you may recall, the reading ended with Peter pointing out that the disciples had left everything behind to follow Jesus. Jesus then tells them how anyone who gives up family and home and work in order to follow him will receive back one hundred fold family and home and work (with suffering!) in this life and the age to come. 

This of course makes a certain amount of sense given that Jesus is talking about the kingdom of God that is coming into the world. Let’s think for a moment about Jesus’ description here in light of all that Jesus has tried to get them to understand. In the kingdom, who is our family? Where is our home? What is our work? Is it any wonder that we will gain far more of those in the kingdom than what we may have left behind to follow Jesus? Jesus even makes it clear that the way of the kingdom of God will not be easy. Again, given that it is often in direct opposition to the ways of this world in so many ways, is that really surprising?

Questioning Jesus: What Must I Do?

As we know from reading stories about Jesus, people are constantly questioning him as he goes about the countryside preaching and teaching and healing. It is kind of natural for people to have questions. People want to understand things better. They have their own particular interests to clarify. They have a need that they know Jesus can address. I suspect many of us today still have questions for Jesus.

As we noted last week, one of the groups that frequently questions Jesus is the religious scribes and leaders. The Pharisees are primarily interested in making sure everyone is acting in the way they are supposed to act. Want to know how you are supposed to act? Well, look at what scripture says. If it doesn’t address exactly your concern, let’s figure out what comes closest and go from there. Following God for them as described in the Gospels is an either/or situation. Either you are doing what scripture says or you aren’t. There is no concern for nuance or the reason why certain rules are as they are. According to them, our purpose is not to ask why but simply to follow the rules as we find them. Maybe you have met people like this. There are people like this both within and outside of our churches.

Because Jesus tends to not always follow the exact letter of the Law, opting instead to consider the purpose of the rule, the Pharisees are suspicious of him. As we saw last week, they often question Jesus in order to test him. They aren’t looking to understand better. They are looking for Jesus to admit he doesn’t follow the Law so that they can have a reason to denounce him.

On the other hand, this week we continue reading Mark 10 and find a man who approaches Jesus with a very different question (Mark 10:17-31). Following his encounter with the Pharisees and then his blessing of the children, Jesus continues down the road. A man runs up and kneels before him. “Good Teacher, what must I do to obtain eternal life?” Unlike the Pharisees, this man acknowledges Jesus as a teacher with authority. He wants to learn from him. “What must I do?”

Questioning Jesus

As we read through the stories we have about Jesus, there is one thing that we find numerous times throughout the Gospels -- people are always questioning Jesus. Jesus is questioned by the Pharisees and other Jewish leaders. Jesus is questioned by his disciples. Jesus is regularly approached by random people on his journeys that have questions for him. There are even times that Jesus seems to question all that he is doing himself; consider his prayer in Gethsemane, for example. Truthfully, I think the questions didn’t stop with Jesus’ earthly ministry; many of us today still have questions for Jesus.

As we encounter these different questions in Scripture, we can see that they seem to have many different purposes. There are some who questioned Jesus in an attempt to trap him. There are some who wanted something from Jesus. There are some who simply want to understand what it is that Jesus is talking about. I think that there are those of us today who still ask questions of Jesus for all of these reasons and more.