You're not listening

 

How 'bout the way he acts?  Oh no, that's not the way--you're not listening to all I say.  If you want to know if he loves you so...   --"It's in his kiss" by Betty Everett, 1964

Communication is hard work.  Teachers know this.  Parents know this.  Wives who send their husbands to the grocery store with a very specific list know this.  Not only do you have to use clear and understandable language, you also must repeat yourself many times before the lesson is learned. 

Jesus knew this.  He tried multiple times to warn His disciples that He would be arrested, mistreated, even crucified--but they should not worry, because after three days He would rise again.  The message did not sink in.

In the Gospel of Mark, there are three instances where Jesus tried to forewarn His disciples about His impending death.  We have already looked at the first, back in Mark 8:31 and following. Jesus told them plainly that "the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again."  Peter's response was to offer his protection to Jesus.  Instead of recognizing that this was God's plan to save the world, Peter offered to man up and save Jesus from the hands of those who would put Him to death.

Jesus turned that conversation into a lesson on self denial.  Jesus was willing to offer Himself up as a sacrifice, to deny His divinity, and to become a scapegoat.  He knew that God would raise Him up, and that even though He would lay down His life in this world He would be exalted.

In our text today, Jesus would try again to get through to His disciples the prophetic warning that He would be persecuted and suffer death, but that they should not worry.  Once again, even though the message was repeated plainly, the disciples were not ready to receive it.

They went from there and passed through Galilee.  And He did not want anyone to know, for He was teaching His disciples, saying to them, "The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill Him.  And when He is killed, after three days He will rise."  But they did not understand the saying, and were afraid to ask Him.  And they came to Capernaum.  And when He was in the house He asked them, "What were you discussing on the way?"  But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest.  And He sat down and called the twelve.  And He said to them, "If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all."  And He took a child and put him in the midst of them, and taking him in His arms, He said to them, "Whoever receives one such child in My Name receives Me, and whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me."  --Mark 9:30-37

 Don't be afraid to ask

In the 2001 movie Rush Hour 2, Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker have a memorable scene together.  As an international law enforcement agent, Chan's character has an epiphany, but is having trouble communicating it to the LA detective played by Tucker.  Frustrated by the lack of communication, Chan says, "Do you understand the words that are coming out of my mouth?"  Tucker responds, "Don't nobody understand the words that are comin' out of your mouth."

This describes perfectly the communication problems between Jesus and the disciples.  Jesus was not speaking in unknown tongues that the disciples could not understand.  He did not have a heavenly accent that was difficult for them to decipher.  He did, however, want to teach them spiritual truths that were beyond their ken.

Instead of asking Jesus what His words meant, the disciples may have misinterpreted the non-verbal cues and decided to keep quiet.  Why did Jesus take them away from the crowds?  Perhaps it was to keep the scribes and Pharisees from asking so many questions.  Why was He speaking so cavalierly about His own death at the hands of those same scribes and Pharisees?  Maybe it was just a figure of speech, like, "Man, those Pharisees are killing me!  I've got to get away for awhile."

We know now that Jesus didn't mean any of those things, but the disciples did not get clarification.  Maybe they saw something in His countenance that made them afraid.  Luke 9:51 says, "When the days drew near for Him to be taken up, He set His face to go to Jerusalem."  This is a fulfillment of the prophecy in Isaiah 50:7, saying "Therefore I have set my face like a flint and I know that I shall not be put to shame."  Perhaps they saw the set if His jaw and the glint in His eye, and were afraid to bother Him.  For His part, Jesus was facing not only the specter of His death, but of taking on the sin of the whole world.  It was a grim reality He was facing, and it likely showed in His countenance.  So the disciples let it go, and started talking about something else.

Don't be childish

During an apparent period of introspection on the part of Jesus, the disciples got into a spitting match.  The saying goes that men are just boys who are able to afford bigger toys, and it appears to apply here.  The fracas appeared to be an ego measuring match, so childish that when Jesus asked them what they had been discussing they didn't want to answer.

One of the rules in courtroom procedure is that a lawyer never asks a question of a witness that he or she doesn't already know the answer to.  This helps to avoid surprises in court, and helps the lawyer control the narrative.  Jesus was not a lawyer, but He is the Law giver.   Don't you think He knew the answer to His question before He asked the disciples what they had been talking about?  In a prior passage Jesus was quoted as saying, "How long will I need to be with you?"  The thought may have crossed His mind again here, but he showed remarkable patience and restraint.

A lot of religious people today get into arguments about who is greater.  God must love me more, they say, because He has blessed me financially.  I'm a more committed Christian, one might think, because I belong to a certain church, or I avoid certain sins, or I, I, I.  Jesus doesn't care.  He knows it's not about you.  It's about Him.  The mark of maturity in a Christian's walk is to do all that you do for His glory.

Don't think you're better

Jesus said the way to be considered great is to be a servant to all.  Hadn't He been showing them that, modeling that for them for all the time that He had been with them?  Walking humbly before God was an Old Testament theme that Jesus followed to the letter.  In other words, it didn't matter who was better, or bigger, or richer, or more committed.  Jesus called us to serve them all.

He then called a child to Him.  Holding the child close, He said we should accept all people who sincerely come to Jesus.  If we accept them, then Jesus accepts us, and God the Father accepts us.  The implied threat is that if we do not accept the child of God, then Jesus will not accept us, and we will be rejected by the Father.

What a wake-up call to those men who had been acting so childish themselves.  Trying to one-up each other did not make any one of them better.  It only served to put the others down.  It's the same with us today.  If you or I make a habit of bad-mouthing others, of putting them down because of some perceived doctrinal deficiency or denominational deviancy, it does not elevate our own standing before God.  What it does is attempt to elevate ourselves into God's position of final Judge, which places us in danger of being judged by God without Jesus' righteousness to cover our sin.

So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, and participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.  Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.  Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.  Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.  And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.  Therefore God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the Name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.  --Philippians 2:1-11

 With 20/20 hindsight we now know exactly what Jesus was talking about, therefore we have no excuse.  Jesus did, in fact, humble Himself to the point of death on the cross.  We who humbly accept Him as Savior and Lord are obliged to accept all who come to Him.  John 6:37 says, "All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out."  

Fasting and praying for faith to free us from oppression

 

Bear up the hands that hang down, by faith and prayer; support the tottering knees.  Have you any days of fasting and prayer?  Storm the throne of grace and persevere therein, and mercy will come down.  --John Wesley

These days there is a lot of weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth concerning the national sin of racism. Woke liberals, who are the most emphatic and dogmatic, like fundamentalist revivalists focus in on what they feel is the very worst kind of racism, which is white supremacy. All white people stand accused of it.

"White supremacy," they say, "is kind of like high fructose corn syrup. Very few people would purchase a bottle of it for themselves, but it's cheap, palatable, effective, and an ingredient in just about everything. To me the experience of opening my eyes to white supremacy was like realizing that high fructose corn syrup is a component in everything I picked up off the shelf at the supermarket--even in things you wouldn't expect. Just a constant refrain of, 'Seriously? It's in this too?' If you don't really care and aren't actively looking for it, you likely won't find it. You'll just consume it thoughtlessly. Those who are adversely affected, though, will be rigorous in identifying it because a failure to do so is harmful. They will look harder and find more." (Source: Twitter @absurdistwords Feb 26)

I suppose the remedy to this particular national sin is to confess my white supremacy, repent, and embrace BLM doctrine. Only then will all men be able to walk free together hand in hand, at least until another crisis emerges and we are again accused of a different societal transgression.

I submit to you that we should take a step back, and take a broader view. White supremacy is a sub-set of the sin of racism, which is a sub-set of the sin of pride. Pride itself is a subset of the sin of rejecting the grace of God that came through Jesus Christ. Romans 12:3 says, "For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned." The cure for this particular sin, then, is Jesus. He is the cure for pride and the other so-called "deadly sins", therefore He is the remedy for racism and all the other sub-sets of sin, all of which our nation is guilty.

The disciples of Jesus were guilty of a certain amount of pride, as well, a pride that led to frustration and arguments within themselves and within the religious leaders of the day. Let's look at Mark 9:14-28 to see more.

And when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them, and scribes arguing with them. And immediately all the crowd, when they saw Him, were greatly amazed and ran up to Him and greeted Him. And He asked them, "What are you arguing about with them?" And someone from the crowd answered Him, "Teacher, I brought my son to You, for he has a spirit which makes him mute. And whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked Your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able." And He answered them, "O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me." And they brought the boy to Him. And when the spirit saw Him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. And Jesus asked his father, "How long has this been happening to him?" And he said, "From childhood. And it has often cast him into the fire and into water, to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us." And Jesus said to him, "If you can!? All things are possible for one who believes." Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, "I believe; help my unbelief!" And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, "You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again." And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, "He is dead." But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. And when He had entered the house, His disciples asked Him privately, "Why could we not cast it out?" And He said to them, "This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer."

Okay, there's a lot to go over here, so let's focus in on a few things that stand out. You remember the prior passage, where Jesus took three of the disciples with Him up the mountain (Mark 9:1-13). You will also remember in Mark 6 where Jesus gave them authority over sickness and over demons, and sent them out two by two (Mark 6:7). These are the same disciples, all with the same experience: "And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them." (Mark 6:13).

Frustration leads to dissension

When Jesus approached the multitude with Peter, James and John, He saw the scribes arguing with the other nine disciples. The Greek word used here is συζητέω (syzētéō), meaning to investigate jointly, i.e. discuss, controvert, cavil (make petty or unnecessary objections); dispute with. Scripture doesn't go into much detail, but based on our experience of human nature, we can kind of figure out what went on here. The man, maybe a Scribe himself, has a son with both a spiritual need(demon possession) and a physical need (epilepsy, or some other seizure disorder). Relying on past experience, the disciples took turns speaking to the boy, but to no avail. They may have begun accusing one another of unfaithfulness. "Simon, if you weren't so zealous, God might have answered you." Or maybe, "Judas, if you weren't so stingy with the moneybags, maybe you could heal this poor boy."

Anybody who has had an unhappy customer ask to see a manager might understand the disciples' reaction. When the people asked to see Jesus instead, they could only say, "Jesus isn't here, I'll do the best I can." This, in turn, might have led to discussions about their best not being good enough. That would describe the reaction of the crowd when Jesus appeared on the scene. To their utter amazement, Jesus showed up at just the right time. Someone in the crowd may have shouted, "Hey look, there's Jesus; let's ask Him." So they all ran up to Him and greeted Him heartily.

Focus on the wrong problem

It strikes me as odd that the man in verse 17 identifies the unclean spirit as one that mutes his son. According to Thayer's Greek Lexicon, the evil spirit was identified as a mute spirit "because the defects of demoniacs were thought to proceed from the nature and peculiarities of the demons by which they were possessed." In other words, the boy was mute because it was a mute spirit that indwelt him.

As frustrating as it must have been for the father of the boy to ask time and again, "Son, what is wrong?" and to have no answer, his being unable to speak was not his greatest problem. The demon was set upon destroying the boy. Only later does the man admit that not only does the demon manifest in seizures with grinding teeth and foaming at the mouth, but it also throws him into the fire or the water to destroy him. How often must the father have had to rescue his son from burning or drowning without being able to address the root cause? John 10:10 says, "The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy. I came that they might have life and have it abundantly."

The problem was not just that the boy could not speak; it was that he was shriveling up and dying because the demons that beset him were set upon his destruction. The answer to this problem, as it is with every problem on earth, is Jesus.

Faith like a mustard seed

The poor father inherently knew that Jesus was the answer. He just needed a little encouragement. He told Jesus, "If you can do anything, have compassion on us and help him." Jesus may have raised his eyebrows here. "If?" He asked. "If you can? All things are possible for one who believes." The man answered with what little faith he had: "I believe; help my unbelief!"

Later, when the disciples were alone with Jesus, they asked him about their inability to do what He did, what they had been able to do before. Let's read Jesus' response in Matthew 17:20-21. "He said to them, 'Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, "Move from here to there," and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you'." Mark and Luke add these words: "This only comes about by prayer and fasting."

Faith in Jesus covers a multitude of sins. Prayer and fasting can build our faith, but it also can point out the sin that so easily entangles us (Hebrews 12:1). In this way, I agree with the Twitter analogy above, not about the specific sin of racism, but for every sin that separates us from God. "If we don't really care and aren't actively looking for it, we likely won't find it. Those who are adversely affected by it (like the father in this passage, or like the disciples, or like all of us) will be rigorous in identifying it because a failure to do so is harmful."

Jesus forgives us from all sin. He imputes His righteousness to us, and took our sin upon Himself on the cross. If that is all we know, that is all we need to know. However, continued or habitual sin can make us ineffective in our walk and work for Christ. To be effective as a Christian, we must purge all sin from our lives, not for our own salvation (for He saved us out of our sin) but for our work in salvation and service to others. If we are active in prayer and fasting, the Spirit of God will reveal our sin to us, and help us repent from it and stop doing it. In this way our faith can grow from the size of a mustard seed to the size of a large tree or shrub, and then how much more effective we could be for His glory.

The mountain-top experience is a call to change

 

But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.  --2 Corinthians 3:18

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.  --Romans 12:2

Have you ever had a religious experience that brought you so close to God you felt that you could reach out and touch Him?  People describe these "mountain-top" experiences as moments so precious, they wanted to stay there forever.  Some people describe these experiences as transformative, something that they will take with them forever.

Many times, however, it is in these very mountaintop experiences that God points out our sinful humanity.  Moses had several mountaintop experiences.  The first was when God spoke to him from a burning bush; God asked him to go back to the slavery and oppression he had escaped some forty years earlier, to lead his people out of slavery.  His response? "God, please send someone else."  Later, God met Moses on the mountain to give him the ten commandments, but when he came down from the mountain Moses threw the stone tablets down in disgust at the sin of the people.  Finally Moses was led up a mountain to look over into the Promised Land, but was not allowed to go there himself because of his own sin.

Another Old Testament figure who had a mountaintop experience was the prophet Elijah.  You remember when he called fire down from heaven in front of the false prophets of Ba'al.  Yet when Elijah came down from that mountain, he thought he was running for his life and got so depressed he wanted to die.

In our study today, we see that Jesus led his three closest disciples up to a mountaintop where they had a truly remarkable religious experience, yet they did not appreciate it until much later.

Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John, and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves; and He was transfigured before them.  His clothes became shining, exceedingly white, like snow, such as no launderer on earth can whiten them.  And Elijah appeared to them with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus.  Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah"--because he did not know what to say, for they were greatly afraid.  And a cloud came and overshadowed them; and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son.  Hear Him!"  Suddenly, when they had looked around, they saw no one anymore, but only Jesus with themselves.  --Mark 9:2-8

Several things stand out to me here.  The Greek word translated "transfigured" is metamorphóō, literally "metamorphosed".  This same word is translated "transformed" in Romans 12:2 and 2 Corinthians 3:18.  Jesus was literally changed from a physical being into a spiritual being right in front of their eyes.  Paul's use of the same word means that God expects us to undergo that same change, the metamorphosis from a physical creature into a spiritual being.

The Greek word translated "appeared" is optanomai, which to be allowed to be seen, or gazed upon; it also means to see, to gaze upon with wide open eyes, as if seeing something remarkable.  It has the same root word as our English "optical" or "optics".  I do not believe this was a vision or something they saw in a trance--the parallel passage in Luke actually says "they they were fully awake they saw His glory and the two men who stood with Him." (Luke 9:32).  In other words, this was not an optical illusion; it was happening before their very eyes.  1 John 3:2 says, "Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see (optanomai) Him as He is."  Revelation 1:7 says, "Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see (optanomai) Him, even they who pierced Him.  And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him.  Even so, Amen."

Peter recognized the spiritual significance of this event, and wanted to memorialize it.  He asked Jesus if he could build three tabernacles.  This was a reference to the Tent of Meeting that Moses had built, kind of a mobile Temple for use as a worship center while the people of Israel were traveling through the wilderness.  It also references the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles, set by God as a season of commemoration of the temporary structures or tents that they all dwelt in during their wandering in the wilderness.  Peter, at that time, was offering to do something as an act of worship, but it was apparent that God was not finished yet.  The audible voice of God interrupted Peter, and bade him listen. Sometimes that's is all we are asked to do in the moment, for when we hear the voice of God, it becomes a mountaintop experience no matter our physical location.  I think Peter realized later that the event was made special not because of anything he or the other disciples did, but because God spoke and the glory of His Son was revealed.  Peter later wrote these words:

For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty.  For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."  And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain."

John may have been thinking of this experience as he began to pen his Gospel: "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only Begotten of the Father) full of grace and truth." (John 1:14).  And yet as these three disciples came down the mountain, they did not yet fully understand.

Now as they came down from the mountain, He commanded them that they should tell no one the things they had seen, till the Son of Man had risen from the dead.  So they kept this word to themselves, questioning what the rising from the dead meant.  And they asked Him, saying, “Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?"  Then He answered and told them, “Indeed, Elijah is coming first and restores all things. And how is it written concerning the Son of Man, that He must suffer many things and be treated with contempt? But I say to you that Elijah has also come, and they did to him whatever they wished, as it is written of him.” --Mark 9:9-13

Jesus tried to get them to see that even as the glory of God rested upon Him, He would have to be killed as a sacrifice for them.  Not to worry, though, because He would rise from the dead.  This was over the disciples' heads, as they wondered what in the world He was saying to them.  They couldn't begin to understand.  But instead of asking Jesus about this directly, they had a different question.  Since they had just seen Elijah, it reminded them: why did scriptural scholars of the day say that Elijah must come first, before the Messiah?  Jesus answered that Elijah had come, in the form of John the Baptist.  Unlike Elijah, who was caught up into heaven without tasting death, John had been killed; the Son of Man, also, must suffer many things and be treated with contempt.

The disciples did not yet fully realize the significance of the events they had just witnessed.  Coming down from the mountain, they started arguing among themselves, as sinful people do.  It was not until after the resurrection that they understood fully that this mountaintop experience had been truly transformative.  They did not continue as they had been.  How could they?

A fate worse than death

 

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.  --1 Corinthians 1:18

During World War II, British and American secret services developed a poison pill, initially called an "L-pill" (Lethal pill) which was given to agents going behind enemy lines. For example, one of the objectives of the Dieppe Raid in August, 1942 was to discover the importance and performance capability of a German radar station on the cliff-top to the east of the French town of Pourville.  To achieve this, RAF Flight Sergeant Jack Nissenthall, a radar specialist, was attached to the South Saskatchewan Regiment.  He was to attempt to enter the radar station and learn its secrets, accompanied by a small unit of 11 men of the Saskatchewans as bodyguards.  Nissenthall volunteered for the mission fully aware that, due to the highly sensitive nature of his knowledge of Allied radar technology, his bodyguard unit were under orders to kill him if necessary to prevent him from being captured.  He also carried a cyanide pill as a last resort.

After the war, the L-pill was was offered to pilots of the U-2 reconnaissance plane who were in danger of being shot down and captured while flying over Eastern Europe, but most pilots declined to take it with them.  During wartime, brave people like Sergeant Nissenthall took the poison pill with them to avoid a fate worse than death.  After the war, the pilots refused to take this instrument of death with them, perhaps believing they would never need it.  They may have thought they would avoid capture, or that they would not be tortured, or that perhaps they were not brave enough to use it.

In our passage today, Jesus bade His followers to take the Cross, an instrument of physical torture and death, with them everywhere they went.  If they refused, then they were not considered true followers of His.

When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, "Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it.  For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?  For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels."  And He said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you that there are some standing here who will not taste death till they see the kingdom of God present with power."  --Mark 8:34-9:1

 Many so-called Christians today have a shallow view of what it means to follow Christ.  They believe that Jesus will lead them out of harm's way in this life, and rescue them from all physical danger.  He will heal all their diseases, they say, and provide them earthly riches.  To them, there is no fate worse than death, because they believe Jesus has borne all their sorrows in this world and taken away all earthly grief.  They even go so far as to say that if they do have earthly troubles or are inconvenienced in any way, then that is their cross to bear.  

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Instead of looking out for our own best interest, Jesus asks us to deny ourselves.  That's crazy.  According to Larry Pierce's Outline of Biblical Usage, a cross is "a well known instrument of most cruel and ignominious punishment, borrowed by the Greeks and Romans from the Phoenicians; to it were affixed, among the Romans down to the time of Constantine the Great, the guiltiest criminals, particularly the basest slaves, robbers, and the authors and abettors of insurrections."  This is what Jesus want us to identify with?  That's insane!

Were the soldiers and airmen of World War II to be captured, their silence was to be secured at any cost for the sake of themselves and their countrymen.  Conversely, Jesus admonishes His followers to go seek out the lost, and to speak the name of Jesus and tell the good news of Christ, which the world is trying to keep secret.  We are not to remain silent, but to preach Jesus even if it costs us our lives, because in spiritual terms, there is a fate worse than physical death--the eternal separation from God in hell.  To the world, logic says that self-preservation is instinctual, and that doing everything you can to prolong life and avoid death is quite logical.  But the Bible says,

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.  For it is written, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent."  Where is the wise?  Where is the scribe?  Where is the disputer of this age?  Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?  For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.  For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.  --1 Corinthians 1:18-24

Each of us has within ourselves the thing that will kill us.  If we are to die in a car crash, chances are good that we have access to a car.  If we are to die of sickness, we live with the potential of exposure to that very disease.  If we are to die of old age, we possess within us the genetic make-up that will cause our hearts to stop after so many years.  If we realize that, then it may be easier for us to proclaim the name of Jesus and share His word to all we encounter, no matter the cost.  It may cost us our reputation, but God is glorified.  It may cost us our standing, but Jesus is exalted.  It may cost us our very lives, but the Holy Spirit will gather us up to Himself in heaven, along with those who have believed the gospel that we preached.  If it was worth it to Jesus to take up His cross for me, then it follows that I deem it worthy to take the cross of Jesus with me wherever I go, regardless of cost.

There is a fate worse than death, but the world doesn't believe it.  We are to repeat that message relentlessly.  In this age of Covid, governments may enforce rules that are designed to protect the health and well-being of the populace.  An unintended consequence is that the gospel is not shared in churches.  God bless the brave pastors in Canada and elsewhere who are willing to go to jail rather than limit the scope of their preaching.  They are truly denying themselves (e.g. foregoing their own health, safety and freedom) for the sake of the gospel.

At the end of our focal passage, Jesus told His followers that at least one person among them would not die before seeing the kingdom of God in His power.  He may have meant the young disciple John, who was arrested for preaching the Gospel, and exiled to the small, barren island of Patmos.  It was on this island during this period of exile that John saw the vision that became the book of Revelation.  Generations of Christians have been encouraged by John's vision and the words written in the Book because John was faithful, and did not keep his mouth shut.