April 20th, 2024

This Sunday’s title is ‘The Fourth Sunday of Easter’, and in the three-year series it is also known as ‘Good Shepherd Sunday’. And as we are continuing our walk (like sheep) through the post-Easter appearances of Jesus and the pre-Easter big-picture references of the Easter season (the Gospel reading being John 10:11-18), in the writings of this website we are currently walking through the Gospel according to Mark, as it has carefully been laid out for us (like sheep following the shepherd).

What is below is the last part of the last time that Jesus is far away from Jerusalem. He had already predicted that he would suffer. He already predicted many awful things. But, simply put, those are just words. But, also simply put, any words from God are extremely important. God’s words can create and destroy. Jesus is going to be giving a lot of words in the following section. And some of those words are meant to handle problems when he is no longer visibly among them. And it could be said that a similar situation continues to this day.

What follows is somewhat-literal translation of the next section of this gospel account (Mark 9:30-50; you may wish to look at other translations or a study bible to examine the text more closely; and the only phrase below that is in bold print is called an ‘historical present’—they are given more frequently in other parts of the account when Jesus is not doing so much teaching; these historical presents occur when a past-tense verb is expected, but a present-tense verb is given; and this time the historical present is given as a result of his followers being difficult, and Jesus, like a lion, knows how to deal with that):

And from there, having come out, they were going along through the Galilee, and not he was wanting that anyone would know; for he was teaching the disciples of him, and he was saying to them, “The Son of the Man is given over into hands of men, and they will kill him, and, having been killed, after three days, he will arise.” Now the ones were ignorant of the word, and they were fearing him, to question.

And they came into Capernaum. And in the house having been, he was questioning them. “What, in the way, were you dialoguing?” Now the ones were being silent; for toward one another they debated, in the way, who is greater. And having sat, he called the twelve, and he says to them, “If anyone wants first, to be; he will be, of all, last, and of all, a servant.” And having taken a child, he stood him in middle of them, and embracing him, he said to them, “Whoever, one of the such children, he receives upon the name of me, me he receives; and whoever me, he receives, not me, he receives, but on the contrary, the one having sent me.”

He spoke to him, the John: “Teacher, we saw someone in the name of you throwing out demons, and we were hindering him, because not he was following us.”

Now the Jesus said, “Do not hinder him; for no one, there is, who will make a mighty thing upon the name of me, and he will be able, quickly, to speak evil of me. For who, not, he is against us; for us, he is. For whoever gives drink, you, a cup of water in name, because of Christ you are, amen, I am saying to you that certainly not he will lose the reward of him. And whoever scandalizes one of the little ones of these, the ones believing, good it is for him, more, if it was laid around, a millstone (donkey-sized) around the neck of him, and he is thrown into the sea. And if it scandalizes you, the hand of you, cut off it; good it is for you, deformed, to enter into the life, than the two hands having, to go away into the Gehenna, into the fire, the asbestos. And if the foot of you scandalizes you, cut off it; good it is for you, to enter into the life lame, than the two feet having, to be thrown into the Gehenna. And if the eye of you scandalizes you, throw out it; good for you it is one-eyed, to enter into the kingdom of the God, than two eyes having, to be thrown into the Gehenna, where the worm of them, not it dies, and the fire, not is extinguished. For all with fire, he will be salted. Good, the salt; now if the salt, unsalty it becomes, in what, it, will you season? Have in yourselves, salt, and be at peace in one another.”

Perhaps you noticed that near the beginning of the text, Jesus said that the Son of the Man IS given over. Although that is not an historical present, you may call that a futuristic present. It certainly gets one’s attention. And Jesus certainly gets attention when he, with the power of God, lets himself be given over and killed as a sacrificial lamb. You might say that it totally redefines what it means to be a ‘good’ shepherd.