“You’re a radical!” No one wants to be called that. It’s a word that makes us uncomfortable. It suggests extremes in viewpoints, habits, beliefs, lifestyles, or institutions. Radicals are people you want to stay away from! Most people find their comfort zone somewhere in the middle rather than the extremes.
In the United States, the 1960s was known as the radical decade. I know; I lived through it. Long-held traditions and social mores (mor-ayz) were vilified and cast aside. It was the decade that introduced “free love,” public nudity, hallucinogenic drugs, college campus anti-war riots, Woodstock, the modern “green” movement, the removal of the Bible from public education, the JFK assassination, and more.
While a few positive things resulted from this time, like the Civil Rights movement, most changes were negative. Widespread use of birth control, cohabitation, out-of-wedlock births, and a skyrocketing divorce rate all severely damaged the social, moral, spiritual, and physical health of the people and the nation. Unfortunately, much of the radicalism and its resulting ills have been exported to other parts of the world through industry and entertainment.
Many of these things are no longer considered radical; they have become part of the mainstream of culture and, sadly, the church. Today, those who make a sincere attempt to follow Jesus’ teachings and live them out are considered radical.
The English word radical comes from the Latin radix, which means root. It was initially applied in the 1800s as a political label. Later, it came to mean anybody whose opinions went to the roots and was steadfast in their commitment. As we learned last time, our core values or roots determine our lifestyle choices.
So, the radicals of the 1960s went to their roots. They were disciples of Satan, of the kingdom of darkness, and they lived out of those roots, his core values. As disciples of Jesus, we are called to live out his core values: anonymity, humility, and inclusivity. That’s radical discipleship. That’s my teaching subject from Mark 9:42-50, “Radical Discipleship.” Please follow carefully as I read Mark 9:42-50. This is God’s Word to us.
In these verses, Jesus teaches us the several essential QUALITIES of radical discipleship that identify us as His genuine followers.
As we begin our study, we must look back at what preceded the verses of our text. We do that to avoid wrong conclusions. Context plays a vital part in proper interpretation.
Verse 42 begins with the word but. It carries a warning about offending “one of these little ones.” That connects with verse 37. Jesus said, “Whoever receives one of these little children in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me.”
The First QUALITY (of radical discipleship) is,
Radical Love
Think carefully about the meaning of what I just read a moment ago. By loving one of these “little children,” we love Jesus; if we love Jesus, we love God. In this context, Jesus showed the disciples how to be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. It was the opposite of what they thought and expected!
How do we get radical love from this? First, remember that “little children” isn’t confined to actual children. In John’s epistles, he repeatedly refers to Believers as “my little children.” I...
