He Who Is Not against Us Is for Us

Bible Study series: Mark 9:38-41: Be for Jesus, not against him. Then help his disciples. You won’t lose your reward.

Friendly greetings and a warm welcome to this Bible study! I write to learn, so let’s learn together how to apply these truths to our lives.

I also translate to learn. The translations are mine, unless otherwise noted. If you would like to see many others, please click here:

biblegateway.com.

If you would like to see the original Greek, please click here:

Mark 9

At that link, I also offer more commentary and a Summary and Conclusion, geared towards discipleship. Scroll down to the bottom and check it out!

Let’s begin.

Scripture: Mark 9:38-41

³⁸ John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone expelling demons in your name, and we forbad him because he does not follow us. ³⁹ But Jesus said, “Don’t forbid him, for there is no one who will do a miracle in my name and will soon be capable of speaking badly of me. ⁴⁰ For whoever is not against us is for us. ⁴¹ Whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in my name because you belong to Christ—I tell you the truth: He will certainly not lose his reward.” (Mark 9:38-41)

Comments:

38:

Why did John speak up? He was part of the Inner Three, so he may have seen the need to defend the entire group of twelve. John’s (needless) warning looks like Joshua telling Moses to curtail the prophesying of Eldad and Medad. Moses told Joshua to cool his jets (Num. 11:26-29). The two men were doing the right thing.

John’s wording seems a little off. “Because he did not follow us.” I expected him to say, “Because he did not follow you.” (Interestingly, Luke’s version says “with us.”) But Jesus does not rebuke John about “us,” so Jesus must gradually be allowing the disciples to have authority on their own, as followers of him, in preparation for the time when he will be resurrected and ascend. Yes, Jesus will lead the church from the throne of heaven, but he also delegates authority to his apostolic community.

“follow us”: Luke’s version says, “follow with us” (9:49). The stranger disciple was not part of the group. Recall that Jesus also had seventy-(two) additional disciples than the twelve (Luke 10:1-12). Evidently this stranger was not even part of the larger group to be commissioned and given authority over demons. What is so impressive is that the stranger used the name of Jesus to triumph over demons. Somehow the stranger must have caught on to the power that resides in that name.

39:

This is a general rule, because the seven sons of Sceva used Jesus’s name and got pummeled by a demonized man, who was “supernaturally” strengthened by the demon to overpower the seven sons (Acts 19:11-16). Who knows? Maybe the seven sons and their father converted, though Acts says only that Jews and Greeks feared and threw their book and scrolls on a fire. Presumably, these crowds also converted to Jesus. One hopes that the eight men also did, but we don’t know. In any case, don’t make an iron rule out of a general statement, as if it is true one hundred percent. General rules always allow for exceptions. It is possible that some people dabble too deeply into the dark arts and invoke the name of Jesus deceptively. But I really like how Jesus promises that the woman who does will not soon speak badly of Jesus. To me, this indicates she is close to converting to him.

40:

Notice how Jesus broadens the pronoun to “us.” He identifies with his group, his team. This refers to the delegated authority that he gave them during their commissioning (Mark 3:13-15; 6:7-13).

“miracle”: it could be translated as “an act of power.”

What Are Signs and Wonders and Miracles?

41:

A drink from a cup of water indicates hospitality. But it has to be specific. The welcomer gives you a cup of water because you belong to Jesus. That’s when the reward kicks in. I urge caution in saying that the reward is automatic by virtue of handing the cup of water to anyone (though God approves of any good deed). In this case, the giver must recognize who Jesus is and who the disciple is, first, and then the giver can have a reward.

“I tell you the truth”: see v. 1 for more comments.

“the one who sent me”: this refers to the Father. The representative stands in for the person represented. Wessel and Strauss say this is a Jewish concept. John’s Gospel makes Jesus mission being sent by the Father from to the world very clear, while the Synoptic Gospels are more subtle. On the differences between the Synoptics and John, and how this does not pose a real problem, please see this post:

5. Do I Really Know Jesus? He Came Down from Heaven

GrowApp for Mark 9:38-41

1. Whose side are you on? Your own or Jesus’? How do you move over to his side?

10. Eyewitness Testimony in Mark’s Gospel

2. Church Fathers and Mark’s Gospel

2. Archaeology and the Synoptic Gospels

1. The Historical Reliability of the Gospels: Introduction to Series

SOURCES

For bibliographical data, please click on this link and scroll down to the very bottom:

Mark 9