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Scripture Reading: Mark 9:38-50
In this message we shall give a further word on 9:38-50. We have pointed out that in this portion of the Gospel of Mark we have the Lord’s teaching concerning tolerance for the sake of unity.
In Mark 8:27-38; 9:1-13 we have a vision of Christ as our all-inclusive replacement through His death and resurrection. Throughout chapter nine the Lord was teaching the disciples to realize that they should be terminated and be nothing. However, in Mark 9:33-37 we see that they were arguing with one another over the matter of who was greater. The Lord was teaching the disciples and trying to help them realize that they should be nothing, but they were arguing in their effort to be somebody, even someone who was greater than others. Therefore, in 9:33-37 we have the Lord’s teaching concerning humility.
In 9:38 John said to the Lord Jesus, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name who does not follow us, and we forbade him, because he was not following us.” The remainder of this chapter is given over to the Lord’s teaching concerning tolerance for the sake of unity, a teaching given in response to John’s statement in verse 38.
We need to see that if we forbid others in the way John did in verse 38, this indicates that we consider ourselves greater than others. Furthermore, when we forbid others, thinking ourselves to be greater, we also cause others to stumble. While we are causing others to stumble, we are also causing ourselves to stumble. The evil one may use the members of our body — the hand, the foot, or the eye — to express lust and cause us to stumble. We need to be very careful regarding this.
We should not consider ourselves great. Instead, we need to realize that we are nobody and nothing. If we have this realization, we shall pray. For us to pray indicates that we realize that we are nothing and that we can do nothing. We need another One — Christ Himself — to replace us.
If we do not consider ourselves to be someone great, someone greater than others, we shall not cause others to stumble. But if we think that we are great, we shall cause others to stumble. At the same time, we shall open the gate for the enemy to use the lust in our members to cause us to stumble.
The members of our body, especially the eyes, are lustful. If we cause others to stumble by considering ourselves greater than they are, we may have a wicked eye. Then the way will be open for the enemy to utilize the lust in our members to cause us to stumble.
We all need to learn to take the cross, to bear the cross, and to apply the Lord’s terminating death to our situation. If we put ourselves to death in this way, we shall not consider ourselves to be great. Rather, we shall regard ourselves as nothing. As a result, there will not be any ground for the enemy to come in to utilize the members of our body to cause us to stumble.
If we do not take the cross and apply it to ourselves, we shall not only cause others to stumble, but we shall cause ourselves to stumble again and again. We shall be caused to stumble by the lust in our hand, in our foot, and in our eye. If this is our situation, then eventually when the kingdom age comes, we shall need salting because we are still full of “germs.”
The salting about which I am speaking is the salting with fire. Concerning this, the Lord Jesus said, “Everyone shall be salted with fire” (v. 49). Here we have the “fire-salt,” or fire as salt. In the coming age, some may be put into fire to be salted. This salting by fire will purge them. In a sense, this purging is a discipline, a chastisement, a punishment. But in another sense this purging causes the believers to be preserved. Hence, this purging is not merely a punishment but also a preserving that keeps the purged one from perishing, from being eternally lost.
As we have pointed out, the fire in 9:49 is a refining fire (Mal. 3:2), a purifying, purging fire. As in 1 Corinthians 3:13 and 15, this fire will purge, in the kingdom age, those believers who commit sin and are unrepentant in this age. Therefore, this refining by fire will be a dispensational punishment. We have seen that even in this age God purges the believers through trials as by fire (1 Pet. 1:7; 4:12, 17). Dispensational punishment by fire in the coming age is in the same principle as God’s chastisement through sufferings as by fire in this age.
In 9:50, which is the Lord’s concluding word in this section, we see the real significance of this portion of Mark. In this verse the Lord says, “Salt is good, but if the salt has lost its saltness, with what will you restore its saltness? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.” Here we see that the underlying meaning of this portion is that we should be at peace with one another.
We have emphasized the fact that 9:38-40 begins with John’s word about forbidding someone to cast out demons in the Lord’s name, because he did not follow the disciples. In response to John’s word, the Lord seems to be saying in these verses, “That one who cast out demons in My name did not follow you. But he is nevertheless one of My believers, and you should be at peace with him. However, you were not at peace with him because you regarded yourselves as greater than he. You also considered that you are closer to Me than he is. You think that you are better than he. This kind of thought causes him to stumble and also opens the door for the enemy to come in to cause you to stumble by using your lustful members.”
Actually, this portion of the Gospel of Mark is profound. Here we see the real cause of the divisions among today’s Christians. Christians certainly are not at peace with one another. In 9:50 the Lord says, “Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.” But the entire situation among believers today is the opposite. We cannot say that the believers are at peace with one another.
The reason the believers are not at peace with one another is that so many consider themselves to be somebody and think of themselves as greater than others. The result is that others are caused to stumble, and the door is open for the enemy to utilize the lustful members of the believers’ body to cause them to stumble. Therefore, eventually the vast majority of Christians today have been caused to stumble.
Where are those Christians who have not been caused to stumble either by others or by their own doing? The situation is that the believers cause others to stumble, and then Satan comes in to utilize their hands, feet, and eyes to cause them to stumble. Hence, the believers cause one another to stumble, and each one causes himself to stumble.
Because of the situation among believers, a situation full of stumbling, we urgently need the vision of Christ that the disciples saw on the mountain of transfiguration. Mark 9:7 says, “And a cloud came overshadowing them, and a voice came out of the cloud, This is My Son, the Beloved. Hear Him!” We also need to hear Christ, God’s Beloved. We should not hear ourselves or anyone else.
We need a vision in which we see not only Christ but also His all-inclusive death and His resurrection. We need to be replaced by Christ through His death and resurrection. This means that we need to apply His death to ourselves and then receive His rich supply in His wonderful resurrection. If we are replaced by Christ in this way, we shall be healed of the “germs” within us. We shall be salted even in this age. There will be no need for us to wait for the coming age in order to be salted.
To be salted in this age is to be salted by grace through the death and resurrection of Christ. But if we wait to be salted in the coming age, we shall be salted by fire. If we salt ourselves today through the death and resurrection of Christ, we shall have grace.
In Colossians 4:6 Paul puts grace and salt together: “Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.” In Ephesians 4:29 Paul refers to words that give grace to those who hear: “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but only that which is good for needful building up, that it may give grace to those who hear.” Grace is Christ as our enjoyment and supply. Our speech should convey this grace to others. The word that builds up others always ministers such grace to the hearers. For our speech to be with grace means that Christ is expressed through our words. This means that our words should be the expression and utterance of Christ. Every word should be the expression of Christ as grace.
According to Colossians 4:6, our speech should also be seasoned with salt. Salt makes things agreeable and pleasant to the taste. Speech seasoned with salt will keep us at peace with one another. This is the reason the Lord tells us in Mark 9:50 to have salt in ourselves and then to be at peace with one another. If our words are with grace and are salted, they will cause all things to be agreeable.
When we salt ourselves with Christ’s death and resurrection, we receive grace. But if we do not salt ourselves with Christ’s death and resurrection, we shall miss the opportunity to receive grace. As a consequence, we shall be salted by fire as a punishment in the coming age.
I would encourage the saints to pray-read 9:38-50. Through the pray-reading of these verses you will be enlightened. Then you will realize that you should never be divisive. You should not forbid others, and you should never force others to follow you.
In this message I would also like to impress you with two maxims uttered by the Lord Jesus, the first in Matthew 12:30 and the second in Mark 9:40. In 9:40 the Lord says, “He who is not against us is for us.” This maxim speaks of outward formality in practice regarding those who are not against the Lord (v. 39). According to verse 38, someone was casting out demons in the name of the Lord Jesus, although he was not following the disciples who were close to the Lord. Here we have a matter of outward formality. Both this person and the Lord’s disciples were casting out demons. However, that one did not follow the Lord in the same way the disciples did. Here we see a difference in formality. The disciples’ formality was to follow the Lord Jesus, but the formality of this other party was not to follow Him with the disciples. The disciples cast out demons by following the Lord; this other person cast out demons not by following the Lord but by being in the name of the Lord. What we have here is a difference in formal practice, a difference in outward formality.
Concerning differences in outward formality, we need to be very open. The person mentioned in verse 38 was casting out demons in the name of the Lord Jesus. It was right for him to do this, for he was doing the same thing the disciples were doing. Likewise, believers today may preach the gospel in a way that is different from our gospel preaching, but both they and we are still preaching the gospel. This is a matter of outward formality in practice, and we need to be general in our attitude regarding it.
The second maxim is in Matthew 12:30: “He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who is not gathering with Me is scattering.” This word concerns inward unity for purpose, and it was spoken regarding those who were against the Lord. In particular, it was spoken concerning the Pharisees, who said, “This man does not cast out the demons except by Beelzebub, ruler of the demons” (Matt. 12:24). The Pharisees were not one with the Lord Jesus; rather, they were against Him. Instead of gathering with Him, they were scattering away from Him. Hence, they were absolutely separated from Him and joined to His enemy, Satan.
We need to see that the maxim in Matthew 12:30 is related to inward unity for purpose. This maxim surely applies to us today in the Lord’s recovery. Because we are here for the recovery, we must be one with one another. It is not possible for any among us to say, “Even though we are not one with you, we are still for the Lord’s recovery.” We do not believe that someone can be for the Lord’s recovery and yet not be one with those who are in the recovery. There must be an inward unity for purpose.
With respect to these two maxims, we need to see the difference between practice and purpose. Regarding practice, we need to be general. But regarding purpose, we need to be particular. Concerning outward practice, the Lord says, “He who is not against us is for us.” But regarding inward unity for purpose, He says, “He who is not with Me is against Me.”
