There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to be born and a time to die,
“It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God”. Thus says Jesus. The thing with wealth is that it is relative. There is always someone richer than me, so I can always shimmy my way around the uncomfortable implication of Jesus’ meaning. But, as good as we are at shimmying, at some point we have to face up to the fact that we are the camel. As we look at the eye of the needle and the eye of the needle stares back at us, what are we thinking? What, or who, do we trust to get us through? What, or who, does the church trust to get it through? Is it our wealth? Is it our prestige? Is it our doctrine? Is it our intellect? Is it our commitment? Is it our Lord? Whoever, or whatever it is, whoever or whatever we put our trust in, it’s only when we die that we’ll find out for sure whether our trust is rewarded or misplaced. So, Jesus invites us to come and die, with him. That’s where he’s heading as he teaches his disciples about camels and needles. He’s on his way to Jerusalem where he will be killed, and on the third day . . .
Well, you know the rest of the story, but will you trust the rest of the story?
Pastor John Strelan Ecclesiastes 3:1-2a
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to be born and a time to die,
In Mark 9:38-50, Jesus emphasizes the priceless value of faith, urging us to recognise what is truly precious. Just as we protect and cherish our most valuable possessions, Jesus calls us to guard our faith with even greater care. We are infinitely precious to God, and the gift of faith He gives us is beyond compare. Jesus warns us to avoid anything that could harm our own faith or cause others to lose theirs. As we reflect on this message, may we treasure our connection to God, nurturing the precious gift of faith that unites us to Him eternally.
NOTE: There is no audio recording of this sermon.
Tone deaf. Oblivious. An inability to read the room. Thick as two bricks. Call it what you will. It is clear that Jesus’ disciples were clueless. Jesus had just finished telling them (again!) that he would be betrayed, arrested, killed and rise again. One might reasonably expect that information might be of interest to them! But, no, there’s something else on their minds. They are more interested in debating who is the greatest! Methinks someone needed to take away their shovel.
The American psychiatrist, Elizabeth Kubler-Ross is well known for her five stage model of grief, which describes the inevitable human journey of dealing with death and dying. The stages are: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance. It’s a tried and true model.
As Jesus and his followers journey towards Jerusalem, Peter is well and truly stuck in the first stage. He can’t stand to hear Jesus talk about death. Most people I know are like Peter. But, dying is something every single person has to face. It is unavoidable. According to Kubler-Ross’s scheme, the lucky ones reach acceptance. Emotionally, that’s a great place to be. But, still, the result is death: the end of life.
If Jesus of Nazareth had become a psychiatrist instead of a carpenter I’m sure he would have added a sixth stage: hope.
Jesus’ journey towards Jerusalem is a journey to the cross, a journey to death. It’s the human journey. But, Jesus calls his disciples to a new way of thinking and being. A way of thinking and being where the acceptance of death is not the final stage, but the first stage, the first stage of life. And, after acceptance comes hope.
Please note: The recorded sermon audio is taken from the 10am School Service on Sunday 15th Sept. A different sermon 'Take up your cross' was given at our 8.30am service, and you can find the printed copy here.