by Rev. Scott Summerville

Mark 9:30-37:

They went on from there and passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know it; for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again.” But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him.

Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.”

In the Buddhist tradition there is a famous story of the time that the Buddha was gathered with his disciples beside a lake on Mount on Mount Grdhakuta. On this occasion the Buddha’s disciples were expecting him to speak. They were eager to hear his voice. But on that day he said nothing. He simply picked a flower and held it up. He held that flower and silently looked around into the eyes of his followers. (Some say it was his best sermon.) In the Buddhist tradition this is referred to as the Buddha’s Flower Sermon. Not bad, just pick a flower and hold it up, and you don’t have to go to all the trouble of writing a sermon. In Buddhist teaching, the most important truths cannot be expressed in words. This is a part of Christian understanding as well: the greatest truths lie beyond description in human language and concepts.

In the Gospels, Jesus sometimes teaches with words. Usually he uses just a few words or vivid phrases to proclaim a message and to prompt people to think. He was not long-winded. The longer sermons we have in our gospels are undoubtedly actually compilations of his shorter teachings.

In one of Jesus most important sermons, a child was brought to Jesus. He held that child in his arms. Because children are typically seen as either cute or as a nuisance, that is probably what the disciples thought. Probably some of them thought “How sweet.” Others probably found the presence of children to be distracting from important business. But the way Jesus took the child into his arms and spoke made it clear that from Jesus’ perspective that child was not a distraction and the child was not a cute little bundle of joy to smile over; the child was the key to understanding the gospel, the key to understanding Jesus, and the key to understanding the nature of God.

The child in Jesus’ arms says nothing, but says everything.

It is a common thing as young people grow up for their to brains start questioning things. They may decide that science explains the world perfectly well, and who needs old books to teach you truth, and “Where is God, anyway?” because look at the condition the world is in. This is a common and quite natural progression in life and attitude on the part of the inquisitive young.

It is also quite common that when a woman gives birth or when a man becomes a father, they turn back to their religious roots or experience a reawakening of religious interest. This is partly cultural: you may want to have your child baptized or to participate in other religious rituals. Or a parent may feel a sense of duty: “It’s my responsibility to provide my child was some kind of religious education.” But at a deeper level in the experience of pregnancy and birth and in the new parents’ unfolding relationship with their child, they are having a powerful experience of the holy. The holy is hitting them right between the eyes. The encounter of parent and child is an awesome encounter.

We may have heard this story a thousand times, “Jesus took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, ‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.’” We may think that this is a lovely story. It is lovely; certainly the tenderness of Jesus with children strikes us deeply. But the teaching of Jesus takes us beyond that place. He takes us to a place of awesome encounter with the holy. Just as Moses received his call from the burning bush and was told to take off the shoes from his feet because he was standing on holy ground, Jesus is declaring that the place where the child encounters us is holy ground.

The child’s presence is not a distraction. And the point is not that child is cute. The point is that in right awareness of the child we encounter the awesome God. The encounter of the adult with the child is nothing less than the meeting place of the human and the holy; in this encounter we are encountering God. This is our Scripture; this is our teaching. When we speak of the relationship of adult to child – any child – rich or poor, hungry or well fed, we are standing on holy ground. Christ has explicitly blessed this ground.

The National Center for Children in Poverty at the Mailman School of Public Health at Colombia University reports that nearly 40% of the children in the United States of America live in low income families. They report that 43 percent of children under age six live in low-income families, compared to 37 percent of children over age six.

Our minds are dulled by statistics. But we are talking about millions, – millions – of children, living in poverty with all the associated risks and injuries that apply to being poor and young. I included in the bulletin this morning a page from the report, “Setting a Goal to Eliminate Hunger and Poverty in the United States,” from The Bread for the World Institute. Bread for the World is a Christian citizens lobby that works in a bipartisan effort to encourage national policies that address hunger and poverty globally and in the United States. This report cites data from the U.S. Census Bureau and for the National Center for Children in Poverty, to describe the scandal of childhood poverty in the United States.

The Census Bureau sets what it calls a “poverty line,” but the National Center for Children in Poverty and other advocates for the poor state that families with children must earn approximately twice the official “poverty line” to provide adequately for their children.

This is a political issue. This is an ethical issue. And for Christians it is a theological issue. It is a sacred issue, because we understand that what is happening in lives of children in poverty is happening on holy ground.

There is no big one-shot program that is going to eliminate poverty in this nation or resolve the plight of millions of poor children. The issues are complex and vexing. But if there is no sustained focused national commitment to reducing poverty, then we will see it increase and deepen. Already we have seen the phenomenon of working families who are living in poverty despite the fact that they are earning wages. Millions of individuals are affected by bankruptcy as a result catastrophic medical expenses, with direct consequences for the well-being of their children, while we await reform of our health care system.

There are proven steps to reduce poverty and its devastating effects, such things as universal healthcare for children, the food stamp program, school meal programs, priority housing for homeless families with children. Such measures are all part of the solution. Like the exploration of outer space, this is a complex challenge that requires thoughtfulness and vision, long-term dedication, research and experiment, and the commitment of significant resources.

If we were to randomly pick ten children to represent our nation, two of them would be officially poor, and one or two more would be unofficially poor. Can we be okay with that? Can Christians be okay with that?

I know that our congregation right now is taking a lot of joy in having the presence of so many young children among us. Those of us who don’t have to change the diapers or get up in the middle of the night or break up the fights between little brothers and sisters can just sit back and take pleasure in these children, and love them, and watch them grow.

But if we are students of the Gospel, we will know that the pleasure we take in seeing these children opens a door into holy ground, into the awesomeness of God, it into the acceptance of our responsibilities as followers of Jesus Christ to commit ourselves to being advocates for children, and in a special to being advocates for those who are most vulnerable.

Every pastor has some funny story of a little child confusing them with God.
When your name is “Scott,” it’s even easier for a child to get you mixed up with “God.” A few years ago there was a little girl in church with her daddy. As the clergy and the choir were processing in at the beginning of the service, her father heard her say quietly, “Hi, God.” Her father said, “Who were you talking to?” She pointed me and said, “Jesus Christ.”

It is deep in our faith that the human and the divine come together – the holy in the human and the human in the holy.

Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.”

Grace and peace to you.