March 21st at 10:45 AM

Join us for our virtual worship service. Contact us at staff@gbcbb.org for info on how to join.

Sunday, March 21

Scripture: Mark 9:33-10:31

Sermon Title: Entering the Kingdom of God

Scripture for Sermon: Mark 10:13-31

Fellow children of God,

We continue our journey through the Gospel of Mark this Sunday.  This week’s scripture is from Mark 9:33 to 10:31. When we observe this passage of scripture, we see a couple of phrases which are repeated.  First, Jesus’ statement in 9:35, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.” is repeated at 10:31, “But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”  Second, Jesus’ reference to children is repeated twice.  First at 9:36, “he took a little child and had him stand among them.  Taking him in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me.”  Then at 10:14-15, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.  I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”

At no other place in Mark’s Gospel does Jesus speak of the kingdom of God belonging to anyone.  He did not say anything like that to the men and women who were following him.  What is it about children that warrants this claim?  Some might point to a child’s innocence.  Others may point to a child’s simplicity.  Still others may say it is about having childlike faith.  However, these attributes are missing from the immediate context in Mark’s gospel.  Rather, in the immediate context of Mark’s Gospel, children have been presented as those at the bottom of the social hierarchy.  This is one of those statements that illustrates what some call the “upside down nature” of God’s Kingdom.

Tomorrow, we will unpack what it means for us to become like a child so that we might enter the kingdom of God. Until then, I’ll leave you with a few questions to ponder: What about children warrants the claim that the kingdom of God belongs to them?  What does it mean to receive the kingdom of God like a little child?

See you tomorrow on zoom,

Pastor David