Sunday Reflection – September 29, 2024

Salt and fire

Mark 9 38 John said, “Teacher, we saw a man using your name to force demons out of people. But he wasn’t one of us, and we told him to stop.”

39 Jesus said to his disciples:

Don’t stop him! No one who works miracles in my name will soon turn and say something bad about me. 40  Anyone who isn’t against us is for us. 41  And anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name, just because you belong to me, will surely be rewarded.

42 It will be terrible for people who cause even one of my little followers to sin. Those people would be better off thrown into the ocean with a heavy stone tied around their necks. 43-44  So if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off! You would be better off to go into life paralyzed than to have two hands and be thrown into the fires of hell that never go out. 45-46 If your foot causes you to sin, chop it off. You would be better off to go into life lame than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. 47  If your eye causes you to sin, get rid of it. You would be better off to go into God’s kingdom with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell. 48  The worms there never die, and the fire never stops burning.

49 Everyone must be salted with fire.

50  Salt is good. But if it no longer tastes like salt, how can it be made salty again? Have salt among you and live at peace with each other.

Kids Korner: Knowing God (September 29th)

Read Mark 9:38-50 with your family.

One of the things churches find hard to remember is Jesus never asked anyone to follow a belief system. Jesus never asked anyone to sign a faith statement. Jesus never told anyone to memorize a bunch of theories about God and then repeat them to prove someone ‘believes’.

No… all Jesus did was ask us to love each other, and follow him.

Today’s story reminds us that other people can share the love of God too, they don’t have to all come from the same church or even the same belief system. God doesn’t put those kinds of boundaries on us.

This lesson also reminds us that it is a ‘sin’ (which means: turning away from God) to try to interfere with anyone’s relationship with God. Our ‘sin’ is stoping others from showing God’s love.

We only get to intervene when people are being hurt. We don’t have the responsibility or the right to interfere with the ways others are trying to make it better for others.