Mark 9:30-37 (NRSV)
Read Mark 9:30-37 on biblegateway.com
Verse 33Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, "What were you arguing about on the way?"
Verse 34But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest.
Verse 35He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, "Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all."
Verse 36Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them,
Verse 37"Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me."
Devotion
The disciples did not understand what Jesus was saying. He often taught them using “once-upon-a-time” stories (aka parables) of truth based on the realities of the world in which they lived. But now he talks to them about betrayal and death, and accustomed to looking for hidden meaning in Jesus’ teaching and struggling to find it, they assume it is yet another fairy tale. For Christians who have grown up hearing about Jesus’ death and resurrection these words sound almost reasonable. But for those wanting and needing to hear the stories of Jesus for the first time, these words must sound as bizarre as they did to the original disciples.
God made the first covenant with Abraham and Sarah and expanded it over time to include larger sections of humanity. Jesus expanded it the final time to include everyone. Jesus calls to those of us who know his story well to tell it to those who know it and those who do not.
Prayer
Truth telling God, help me to tell the truth of your love and how you went all the way to the cross to tell it. Amen.
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