The problem with most marriages isn’t the spouse. It’s you. You are the problem. I thought someone should tell you…I mean, if we truly love one another, shouldn’t we say in love what we honestly believe will help? I promise you this: If you are willing to change you, or allow God to change you…then your marriage can be saved. Or would you rather that it ended? (that says something too).
On divorce: The question I am asked most often is “under what circumstances can I divorce my wife without sinning?” The question itself betrays a heart that has stopped loving. I think that loving God and loving our spouse are related more closely than we might imagine. Failure to love our spouse is almost certainly preceded by a decrease in love for God. I can almost hear the protests as I type….but hang with me for a second and let me explain. Didn’t Jesus tell us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us? (Matthew 5). No, I am not trying to be funny…think about this for a minute.
If Jesus wanted us to love those whom He guaranteed would show no love in return, how much more should we be showing love to someone who has professed love for us, and a desire to spend their whole life with us? The hard heart is the reason for divorce, not “irreconcilable differences” or “we just drifted apart”. Those, and other excuses like them are merely cop-outs that mask the true problem. Too much focus on self, and not nearly enough focus on Jesus.
I almost forgot the most obvious reason to stay together. When God created us, He intended for those who married to stay in the union for life. This passage makes that clear. Marriage is a lifetime commitment. A commitment to love, forgive, be patient, be empathetic, to learn, to be humble, to celebrate, to feel sadness, to grow, etc.
The children: the disciples wouldn’t be scolding the parents if the kids were acting like “little adults”, but they probably aren’t. They are acting like kids. Kids don’t know to respect what adults respect. They will ask amputees what happened to their “arm” or “leg”. They will want to know if it hurts….we want to know as well, but our respect of privacy and modesty prevents us from asking the very same question. I’m sure these kids ran up to Jesus as if He were their best friend or favorite uncle. Perhaps they even resisted being “blessed” by him because he was a stranger. In any case, I think they were being fussy, and the disciples didn’t approve. After all, Jesus had important work to do…healing blind people, casting out demons, teaching the scholars; you know, “adult stuff”. Running around trying to corral a couple of squealing kids was beneath His station….so the disciple thought.
Jesus uses the opportunity to point out the innocence of the children, and how we must all approach Christ with the same innocent trust in order to be saved. He also reminds the disciple that He loves the children (just as He loves everyone) and He clearly isn’t holding their age against them.
I wonder if any of these kids grew up to do something incredible? If Jesus could bless a blind man and make him see…then what happened to a child that Jesus blessed? Did they grow up to become leaders, missionaries, martyrs?
The rich man: one brief comment here. You cannot be a disciple unless you give up everything you own, including yourself. If Jesus asks for it, then you must surrender it. There’s no sin in having much. It becomes sin when Christ asks for it and you won’t release it. God pours many blessings out on us…it goes without saying that He does it for a reason. Some of what God has given us wasn’t meant to be used for ourselves, it was given so we could help others. The mistake the rich man makes isn’t in being rich, it’s in refusing to let go of his wealth when Jesus asks for it. Had Jesus not asked, He could have kept it, I suppose. Although I think that if we truly have the heart of Christ, we will be more generous and benevolent to the poor.
I often call to remembrance the phrase Jesus uttered here “those who have given up……will not fail to receive 100 times as much, and eternal life..etc.” But as I read this passage this morning, I consider that I haven’t truly given up much. My life after going into ministry is many times more blessed than it would have been if I had not. I can’t think of anything that I have given up! Every time I even try God gives me more, and I am left with more than when I started.
Mark 10 offers some insights that Matthew didn’t include: Jesus warning the disciples that He was about to be persecuted and killed, but that He would rise on the third day. Of course, they didn’t comprehend, as we often don’t understand what Jesus is telling us at the time He tells us. It’s not until later that our brains catch up (if they ever truly can).
Blind Bart is a great sermon. He didn’t care what anyone thought, he just kept screaming for Jesus. The crowd that was upset suddenly became benevolent when Jesus responded. I’ll bet Bart was the happiest man in town as he followed Jesus out of town. I wonder what ever happened to him? I wonder how old He was, and if He had a family. I wonder if the people who gave coins to Bart became Christians after hearing Him tell the story. I wonder how many years he lived after this, and what he did with the rest of his life. It almost seems like we should do something incredible for Jesus once He heals us, doesn’t it?
Faithfully
PR