Six Words to Live By
“Six Words to Live By” (The Gospel of Mark) – May 12th, 2024
Today we’re looking at Mark chapter 6. Actually, we’re going to look at just six words to live by from the sixth verse of the sixth chapter of the Gospel of Mark. I do encourage you to read all of Mark chapter six this week. There is a lot to unpack!
David DeSilva, author of one of my favorite seminary textbooks on the New Testament, says that in the gospel of Mark, we see that “Jesus is to be met ‘out there’ … in the ongoing life of the church and its mission to the world.” When we read about what Jesus did, part of Mark’s intended message is to give us the details of what happened. The other part of Mark’s intended message is to tell us to continue what Jesus started. Immediately after our six words to live by, Jesus sent out some of his followers out two by two to continue what he’d started. Jesus later expanded that to all followers to come when he gave us the Great Commission right before his ascension and the sending of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (which we will celebrate next Sunday).
Are you ready for our six words to live by from Mark 6:6b? There are six words in the Greek. Here’s the English in the NRSV:
“Then (he went about) among the villages teaching.” (Mark 6:6b, NRSV)
Let’s look at each of these six words in turn.
1. Then
I read out loud to my children each and every day, whether picture books, biographies, books they chose, or the one chapter each evening at our dinner table. Whenever they thought I was finished reading, there was often a chorus of, “Then what happened?” “Well, let’s turn the page and find out” or “We’ll have to wait until tomorrow to see what comes next.” Whether we read God stories in Scripture or in church history, or whether we hear God stories from neighbors or nations today, or whether we become more aware of where we are in God’s story in our own lives, God’s stories are not just entertaining. I dislike stories in which I can too easily guess the “then what happened?” I’m guessing you do, too. God is the master storyteller. God’s stories are transformational, surprising, epic, messy, inclusive, and life-giving. God’s story is infinitely better than the best possible story any human mind could conceive. We cannot imagine the “then what happened?” of God’s stories because our creator God is the most creative and innovative being in the universe, and I suspect God never does the same thing the exact same way twice.
Sometimes when we’re particularly discouraged, disheartened, or desolate, we might feel that in some area of our life, it is never going to go well. We might even feel that our entire life is never going to go well. These feelings may be true, but the conclusion is false. The good news of Jesus Christ means that no matter what has happened before, no matter what is happening now, God invites us into the mystery of the “then.” God’s then is always infused with life!
We are invited to trust God with the “then what happens?” of our lives. God is fully trustworthy, fully present, fully true. We are not promised explanations of why things happen the way they do. We are not promised easy pathways ahead of us. We are not promised clear outcomes that match our expectations. What we are promised is that God is and always will be present with us today and forever, no exceptions. Nothing can change that, nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord!
Ephesians 3:20 (The Message) – “God can do anything, you know – far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.”
This week marked the 33rd anniversary of my mom’s death. The previous year, our first pregnancy had ended in miscarriage on the day of our 5th anniversary. Two months later, we lost my our last grandparent, my beloved grandmother. Three months after that, my mom died by suicide. Within 6 months I had lost three generations of my immediate family. Although I had been a follower of Jesus for 16 years already, in other words, I had lived for years in the hope of Christ, in a very real way, on that day, I felt like all hope was lost. I honestly thought I was doomed, maybe even cursed, and that death would soon overtake me, too. But God! Through prayer, through Scripture, through the body of Christ, through the love of family and friends, God restored my soul. Later that year, God blessed us with our firstborn! Joy was restored. Hope was restored. Life was still good and life was still hard. There were blessings. There was suffering. That’s how life works, always a mixture.
But the amazing thing is that each time we remember that God is present with us right here, right now, we get a glimpse of God’s “then.” In the mystery of the “then,” God strengthens our faith, our hope, our joy. And God gives us the courage and grit we need to face whatever comes our way. God assures us that no matter what the answer to, “Then what happened?” is, God is with us in all of the highs and lows, in all of the joys and sorrows, in all of the blessing and the suffering of life.
Theologian Jürgen Moltmann encourages us to embrace a theology of hope: “All too often, the hope for a fulfilled life ‘there’ draws off love from this life here, so that people feel that life here is like a waiting room for eternity, and only participate in it half-heartedly. Life here and now is a life in time … not just a transitory life … it is at the same time a life that begins every moment, and an awakening vitality, provided that we look to the future and welcome the possibilities of the new morning … Every moment in life is an end of the past and a beginning of the future.”
What is the “then” you are facing in God’s story of your life? You might have experienced a turn of events, a trauma, or a tragedy. You might be in a valley of decision and are not sure which way to turn. You might be surrounded by so many unknowns that even the idea of a then causes you to feel anxious or stressed. God is and always will be present with you today and forever. Right here, right now is an end of the past and a beginning of the future. No matter what happens, you are invited into the mystery of your “then” with God.
2. Then he went about
Jesus was not one of those gurus who sat in a cave and waited for people to seek him out. He went about from here to there. He went about with people, among people, to people. Jesus still does that today, going about with us, among us, to us, not waiting for people to seek him. Jesus seeks us!
As Jesus went about, Jesus brought transformation, healing, justice, and freedom in all that he said and did. Jesus opened the way to life, making space for each of us within the eternal embrace of God. As Jesus went about, Jesus called people to follow him, to do what he did. And as followers of Jesus have gone about for the last 2000 years, Jesus’ transformation continues, by the power of the Holy Spirit, bringing transformation, healing, justice, freedom, and life. Here are a few of the ways:
- The compassion of Jesus followers has resulted in the development of hospitals and charitable care, a privilege formerly only available to slaves, gladiators, and the rich.
- The belief by Jesus followers that all people are bearers of God’s image has resulted in the adoption of unwanted, discarded, or deformed children.
- The inclusion of and advocacy for women by Jesus followers has resulted in greater dignity and freedom for women, most of whom had no rights or legal recourse because of their low status.
- The value of beauty by Jesus followers has resulted in the creation of magnificent works of art, music, literature, and so forth, that move our hearts away from despair and towards hope.
- The value of goodness by Jesus followers has resulted in the development of palliative care and hospices, to offer comfort to the dying and bereaved.
- The value of truth by Jesus followers has resulted in the establishment of schools available to both males and females from all stations of life for the development of minds.
- The belief by Jesus followers that the universe is ordered has resulted in the foundation of scientific studies, guided by curiosity and scholarship.
- The equality of all people as believed by Jesus followers has resulted in the ongoing abolition of slavery in whatever forms it takes.
No single individual accomplished all or even one of these wonderful things! These changes happened slowly over time as countless followers of Jesus sowed countless seeds on the way of love. Where is Jesus inviting you to go about? How can you show and tell the good news of the kingdom of God so that God’s transformation, healing, justice, freedom, and life can spread into all of your spheres of influence?
I love the way the Great Commission is rendered in The Message translation – Matthew 28:19-20 – “Go out and train everyone you meet, far and near, in this way of life, marking them by baptism in the threefold name: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 20 Then instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you. I’ll be with you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end of the age.”
3. Then he went about among
Back in 2016, I experienced one of the most transformative months of my life when I walked 460km of the pilgrimage across Spain known as the Camino de Santiago with my daughter Cascade, joined in the last 110km by my daughters Karis and Esther.
My final journal entry for this pilgrimage included this excerpt: “Hola! today from Monte do Gozo! We Sculley Peregrinos (pilgrims) are just a short walk down the hill from each reaching the destination of our pilgrimage, Santiago de Compostela. I am expecting floods of tears tomorrow, mine and many others, as this beautiful journey draws to a close. Tears will come for many reasons. Although each Peregrino’s experience is unique, we have tasted of something deeper. I’ve already said some heartfelt goodbyes. Our Camino pilgrimage may be ending tomorrow, but as Peregrinos on the journey of life with God, we go on.”
Back up a couple of weeks. Cascade and I spent that very hot summer’s night in a tiny town called Hontanas. While sipping on a refreshing drink outside a small café, I struck up a conversation with a Belgian banker. He had walked for an entire week at this point and, apparently, I was the first person with whom he had had an in-depth conversation. Why? He was quite wealthy, and as a result had opted to stay in private hotels along the way and eat in expensive restaurants. The vast majority of Peregrinos opt to stay in communal hostels, with up to 50 beds in a single room, open-plan communal bathrooms, hand washing clothing side by side after each day’s walk, cooking meals together in the hostels. “Can you please apply this cream to my back?” “You look pale – please take a handful of muesli.” “Do you have a spare Compeed for my new blister?” These kinds of close quarters make for fast friendships and tight bonds with fellow pilgrims from all over the world. I heard from some of my Camino friends in Brazil and Poland this past week! This Belgian banker was near many pilgrims each day, as we all were. But he had set up his journey in such a way that he was not among anyone else.
There are so many people that we are near but not among. I devised an acronym to hopefully spark some ways in which we can be not just near but among people.
A – Be available. If we pack our schedules too tightly, we will resist being interrupted. It’s good to have sustainable rhythms in life. It’s good to have breathing room as part of each day, each week, each season, each year. If we forget how much God loves us, we’ll be tempted to try to control every detail of our lives. Novelist and thinker Wendell Berry wrote, “The world doesn’t stop because you are in love or in mourning or in need of time to think. And so when I have thought I was in my story or in charge of it, I really have only been on the edge of it.” I’m all about planning, but I’ve become convinced that planning should more closely resemble a box of crayons where possibilities and pathways and dreams and destinations open up rather than a paint-by-number where every detail of the picture is pre-planned.
M – Be mindful. I’m not talking about mindfulness, which is about noticing what’s going on inside of us individually. To be mindful is to “be attentive, aware, or careful.” To be mindful is to notice other people. It’s so easy to walk right past someone without really seeing them. I’m sure I’ve done that more times than I could count. Even taking the time to extend some kind of welcome to the other communicates volumes, especially with people who are overlooked or looked down on by society. “I see you” is one of the best gifts we can give to another person.
O – Be open. What could happen if we stepped out of our comfort zones or crossed over that divide? What could happen if we were prepared to adjust or even let go of our expectations? Joseph F. Girzone was the author of a marvelous series of books about Joshua, a carpenter and Christ-like figure who arrives in a small town and transforms peoples’ lives with random acts of kindness and messages of peace. He wisely wrote in Joshua and the Children, “We have to adopt the forgiving nature of Jesus, who never allowed himself to take offense, so we can each in his own way, reach out to heal the hurts all around us.”
N – Be non-shockable. Just as a picture paints a thousand words, our faces can convey a thousand judgments. Honestly, I can’t picture Jesus being shocked by anything that went on in his day. I’m sure language was salty then as now. I’m sure both male and female prostitutes dressed provocatively then as now. I’m sure addictions were a thing then as now. I’m sure children did stuff that rubbed their parents up the wrong way then as now. It’s good to train ourselves to not react in the moment to things we see or hear, both inwardly and outwardly. Proverbs 17:27-28 (NRSV) – “One who spares words is knowledgeable; one who is cool in spirit has understanding. Even fools who keep silent are considered wise; when they close their lips, they are deemed intelligent.”
G – Be generous.
Generosity is not only about giving our money. We know that. We read Scriptures like, “be generous and ready to share” (1 Timothy 6:18), “A generous person will be enriched” (Proverbs 11:25), and “the one who plants generously will get a generous crop” (2 Corinthians 9:6, NLT). Being generous is about being open-handed, being willing to share, giving from a liberal attitude that is ready to reach out. We are not expected to give what we don’t have, but to be ready and willing to share as we are able. We can all share our time, our presence, our prayers, our encouragement, and our wisdom.
Being available, mindful, open, non-shockable, and generous will help us to go about, not just near people, but among others.
4. Then he went about among the
I promised Nancy a sequel to a teaching I did years ago in which I spent some time on this next word. In English we define “the” as a “definite article.” It is true that every person on the planet has our core identity and purpose as bearers of God’s image, created to bring God glory. It is also true that each person on the planet has a specific identity and purpose. No two people are exactly the same. God doesn’t just call us generically. God calls us personally. God knows us better than we know ourselves. God calls us to not just anything but to a very definite and specific something. We are called not to a but to the. How do we know what our the is, anyway?
At Sculley Academy, in helping my children to discern next steps in finding God’s direction in their lives, in their choices of classes, courses of study, training, and so forth, I used a simple tool that sparked great conversations and helped steer our searching. SHAPE is the tool (and a book by author Erik Rees) that we walked through to help each one to discover who God made them to be. It turned out to be such a great tool to help each one discover more about God’s purpose for each person’s life, and to discover God’s unique purpose for their life based on the way God has shaped them. The word SHAPE forms an acronym to help us to explore our God-given shape, recognizing that we are formed through a variety of means.
S – Spiritual Gifts: A set of special abilities that God has given you to share his love and serve others.
H – Heart: The special passions God has given you so that you can glorify him on earth.
A – Abilities: The set of talents God gave you when you were born, which he also wants you to use to make an impact for him.
P – Personality: The special way God wired you to navigate life and fulfill your unique Kingdom Purpose.
E – Experiences: Those parts of your past, both positive and painful, which God intends to use in great ways.
If you’re interested in exploring this tool for yourself, there’s a short assessment at www.freeshapetest.com that you can do. I took this assessment again myself in preparing for today’s sermon. I would love to have a conversation with you about these things – by all means, put my email at the bottom, if you like.
Whether we’re young or old, already heading down a definite pathway or wondering what to do next, it’s helpful to peruse these things periodically. We are complicated beings, so exploring our God-given shape is not an exact science. It’s more like the fabulous 2007 TV show, Pantry Raid: Imagine opening your front door to a surprise visit from a master chef who comes into your kitchen and whips up an incredibly satisfying and beautiful meal, using only the ingredients you already have on hand. God has given each one of us a marvelously eclectic mixture of gifts, passions, talents, and personalities. God has allowed each one of us to experience both positive and painful things on our journeys of life. In the economy of the kingdom of God, none of these things is wasted. God uses the ingredients of our lives that we already have on hand and makes something incredibly satisfying and beautiful from those. It is in this the that we discover the unique purpose for our life, and it is through this the that we offer ourselves to love and serve the world. In Revelation 21:5, the one who was seated on the throne says, “See, I am making all things new.”
5. Then he went about among the villages
Recently we visited some family members who live in a village that has a population of less than a thousand people. I have never lived in a place of that size, and it was fascinating to visit and learn firsthand about what life is like in the village. The first and perhaps most obvious thing is that everyone knew all of their neighbors quite well, not just hello-goodbye as often happens in cities. As we did a walking tour with our hosts, they pointed out the houses of people they’d gone to school with, the freshly dug grave of a distant relative who had recently died, and a passing neighbor who had recently retired and moved back to the village after working elsewhere for 30 years. In a village, people know each other’s stories in detail. When a neighbor’s barn begins to break, they don’t call in an expert repair company, but ordinary people come together to fix it together. When someone with dementia wanders off, they don’t send them to a nursing home, but ordinary people keep an eye out for them and walk them home again. When someone with a new name moves into the village, they don’t file a change of address form (especially because there are no street numbers), but ordinary people chat with the mail carrier to let them know who’s living where. Villages are filled with ordinary people.
If Jesus had come as an influencer with a flashy ministry, he wouldn’t have gone about among villages. He would have gone about among royalty and scholars and landowners and bigwigs. He didn’t ignore those types; the reality is that Jesus didn’t ignore anyone. But Jesus invested almost all of his time among people in villages. Among ordinary people. And ordinary people all over the world include women and men, children and elderly, refugees and residents, the disabled and destitute, the forlorn and the forgotten. Ordinary people live close to the edge. Ordinary people have little to no margin in their lives. Ordinary people are one emergency away from disaster.
In one of my seminary textbooks, In the End – the Beginning, Jürgen Moltmann wrote: “The Eros of the ancient world was a love for the beautiful and radiant. But Jesus’ love turned to the sick, the victims of violence and little unnoticeable people. Jesus evidently saw the helpless as important, and people who were shut out by the world as called by God … to these people, to whom society held out no future, he proclaimed the future of the kingdom of heaven.”
6. Then he went about among the villages teaching
It’s not only people with teaching degrees or teaching gifts who can do what Jesus did. Jesus gave the Great Commission to everyone. We can all instruct someone. We do it all the time, and sometimes with words. Jesus used the show and tell method. We can do the same. We do this formally on Sunday mornings. But the vast majority of the time, our teaching will happen as we go about and among people.
Pioneer missionary Vincent J. Donovan who served among the Masai people of Tanzania reports that upon his arrival, he and his team focused on building schools and hospitals. Much later, he began to talk with the leaders about God in the life of the Masai, and about the message of Christianity. The chief elder responded, “If that is why you came here, why did you wait so long to tell us about this?”
Every follower of Jesus is meant to be a teacher, to share the good news of Jesus and to show it and to explain it. We can ask ourselves, do people know more about Jesus and his kingdom because of me? Do others experience more of God’s righteousness, peace, and joy because of my presence with them? Do those that among whom I move enter more fully into the eternal embrace of the Trinity because of the witness of my life?
Six words to live by: Then he went about among the villages teaching.
May we then go about among the people showing and telling the good news of the kingdom of God! Let’s go!
