Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost |
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Scripture |
Mark 10:2-18 2 Some Pharisees came, and to test him they asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” 3 He answered them, “What did Moses command you?” 4 They said, “Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her.” 5 But Jesus said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart he wrote this commandment for you. 6 But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ 7‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, 8 and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh. 9 Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” 10 Then in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter. 11 He said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her; 12 and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.” 13 People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch them; and the disciples spoke sternly to them. 14 But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. 15 Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.” 16 And he took them up in his arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them.
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Devotional |
Mark’s story is not about a warm, cozy and fluffy Jesus but a wild, unpredictable Jesus offering up radical advice and examples. The first teaching of Jesus is about divorce. Divorce at that time was very different from divorce today. All a man had to do was give his wife a letter announcing that he was divorcing her. Only men could seek a divorce. Women were not allowed to obtain a divorce. Also marriage was more like the transfer of property from one person to another. The father transfers ownership of the daughter to the new husband. Probably God is not pleased with broken relationships of any type. Being the product of a divorcee and remarriage, I have not experienced God’s wrath. I see God’s blessing instead. I now have a loving wife, four children instead of one, six grandchildren instead of one. Also divorce and remarriage has brought us a new daughter-in-law and three grown grandchildren. If God is angry and seeking to punish me, I have not experienced it. Again, we have a story involving children. Jesus’ disciples have brought with them society’s valuation of children. Children were not important; they had no status and no rights. Their presence is a nuisance for the adults. Jesus sees the children as an important part of God’s reign. These children are a part of God’s kingdom. Children in our society have not always occupied a place of importance. I remember when Joy’s mother was alive, we would have family dinners but she would always insist the children were served before the adults. She grew up in a family were the children were fed after the adults had finished eating. Her thinking was not different for Jesus. Jesus seems to be teaching that God’s reign includes the lowly, unacceptable, and strangers. Is our world to be any different? Indeed, the previous two passages show Jesus to be the protector of both women and children, the most vulnerable members of society. In the first instance he protects women by forbidding divorce, thus giving them more social and economic security. In the second instance he protects children by showing them to be valid and valuable members of God’s domain who should be welcomed with open arms. 1 Just as Jesus was protecting the most vulnerable members of society, Jesus calls us to protect those same persons in our society. God’s grace comes to all persons and we should be assisting others to experience this grace. “The rule of God comes as pure unadulterated grace, to hungry people at the crossroads and in the byways of life who are invited to attend a scrumptious banquet, and to children without status. They have no excuses to give no dowries to offer, no bargaining chips. They are eager to be taken up into Jesus’ arms and blessed.” 2 Where do we find God? I find God in the imperfect world around me. Waiting for the perfect is not a practical answer for me. “The most amazing fact about Jesus, unlike almost any other religious founder, is that he found God in disorder and imperfection- and told us that we must do the same or we would never be content on this earth.” 3 1 Ben Witherington III, the Gospel of Mark. Grand Rapids : Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2001. p. 281
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