Cut it Out!
a sermon based on Mark 9:38-50
by Rev. Randy Quinn

Joan is a friend of mine who happens to be a Presbyterian pastor serving as an associate pastor in a large United Methodist Church in Phoenix, Arizona. I know her because she is also a Naval Reserve Chaplain.

The pastor of the church where she serves reminds people of the diversity in the United Methodist Church. “On any given issue,” she says, “you will find there are people in the pew next to you who disagree with you. You cannot be a United Methodist if you expect everyone to believe the way you do about every issue – and that is true in this congregation as well as the entire denomination.”

While these are his words and not mine, it is what I have always cherished about being United Methodist. The way I say it is that our greatest strength is also our greatest weakness. We have so much diversity that many different people feel welcome here, but we’re also so diverse that it’s hard to say what we believe.

Of course, that’s easily misconstrued. Some people mis-state our diversity by concluding that it doesn’t matter what you believe.

It does matter.

But what matters is not what your favorite hymn is.

It’s not whether or not there is an organ accompanying the hymns.

It’s not whether or not you are a part of a Sunday School class.

It’s not whether or not you tithe faithfully.

Nor is it the more controversial issues of smoking or drinking or gambling – though our church has had strong statements against all three for many years.

What matters is your commitment to Christ.

What matters is your commitment to Christ.

The Disciples didn’t quite understand that. They rebuked someone who wasn’t following them (v 38). It didn’t occur to them that for someone to act in the name of Jesus means they are following Jesus (v 39).

It may just be a curious coincidence, but I think there is a connection between the jealousy expressed by the Disciples and their own inability to cast out demons earlier in this chapter (Mk 9:18). In that instance, they were unable to cast out a demon because, as Jesus told them, “this kind demands prayer” (v 29). They were trying to do it their own way and were failing.

Now someone else is succeeding and they become indignant.

I think these events are connected because I’ve seen other examples of the same kind of jealousy. One contemporary example is the status of immigrants to America. We, as Americans, are generally not willing to do much menial labor; but our society is often quick to condemn the immigrants who come to do the work.

Another good example comes from the pages of the Old Testament where God’s spirit descends upon the leaders of the people of Israel. But two of the leaders are in the camp rather than outside the camp with Moses and the others. Those who hear them quickly run and tattle to Moses.

But Moses is nonplussed by the affair. “I wish everyone would experience God’s power all the time and in every place,” he responds (Nu 11:29, my paraphrase).

My own jealousy is aroused when I see ads and articles in the newspaper about a church that is doing something I think we should be doing or that I have tried with limited success.

That’s when I realize that, like the Disciples, we are quick to condemn someone else for doing what we could not or would not do.

The difference in our text for today is that it isn’t the actions that are being questioned. Everyone agrees that demons are being cast out (Mk 9:38). Nor does it appear that they are concerned about their method of doing it. They don’t offer a ‘correct’ formula for casting out demons – after all, they didn’t know how to do it themselves!

What is being challenged is their motivation. Why are they casting out demons?

It’s an affront to their perception of their own importance. If they’re not one of us, they have no right to be casting out demons. If they don’t follow us, they must be wrong. So they tell them to cut it out.

Like so many of us today, the Disciples were acting as if they were the only followers of Jesus. There were no others in their minds.

It’s like the story of Saint Peter giving tours to the new arrivals in heaven. He was walking with a group of people pointing out where things are. Then he saw a group over in the distance.

“Shhh,” he said while pointing in their direction. “They’re the Methodists,” he whispered, “They think they’re the only ones here.”

You may not have heard about it, but a few years ago there was some controversy at the World Council of Churches over the use of the word “Church” in their title. There are those Christians in the world who believe they are the one true church. Everyone else is either false, misguided, or not a church. For them to continue participating in the World Council, they were asking for a change of titles. One proposed title was the World Forum of Christian Confessions.

It seems like a minor point to some people, but churches have split over minor points in the past and will probably do so in the future.

All because we have lost sight of what really matters. What matters is that we are following Jesus. What matters is that we have a vital, life-giving relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

What matters is our commitment to Christ.

As a child, my brothers and I would often wrestle around. Sometimes my dad would get involved in the wrestling. But it almost always ended when someone was hurt. Someone would bump a head on the table or come up with a bloody nose or develop a rug burn on their arm.

We also learned there were times when wrestling was inappropriate. “Cut it out!” would be the authoritative word from my parents.

Controversy and disagreements have always been a part of church politics. That’s the way it’s been at least since Peter and Paul wrestled over how to include Gentiles in the church, and the controversies continue still today.

As you know, the United Methodist Church is no stranger to controversy. We had an historic split over the right of lay people to attend and vote at Annual Conference as early as 1844; we re-united in 1939, nearly 100 years later. I think controversy has been a part of every General and Annual Conference since the church began in 1784.

And the internal fighting is often the worst kind. It’s what keeps some people away from the church. “How can they claim to love,” outsiders will ask, “when they keep fighting all the time?”

There comes a time when we need to say, “Cut it out.” It’s time to set aside our differences long enough to recognize our agreement on the essentials.

That is part of why I am glad we are a part of the Walk to Emmaus community. It is a multi-denominational organization that keeps their commitment to Christ in the foreground. They put flesh on our text for today as they remind us all that:

God is bigger than this church.

God is bigger than our denomination.

And God is bigger than our in fighting and bickering.

God can work through us and God can work through others.

Thanks be to God. Amen.