Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me. For he who is least among you all will be great

 Now it happened on the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, that a great multitude met Him.  Suddenly a man from the multitude cried out, saying, "Teacher, I implore You, look on my son, for he is my only child.  And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out; it convulses him so that he foams at the mouth; and it departs from him with great difficulty, bruising him.  So I implored Your disciples to cast it out, but they could not."  Then Jesus answered and said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you and bear with you?  Bring your son here."  And as he was till coming, the demon threw him down and convulsed him.  Then Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the child, and gave him back to his father.

And they were all amazed at the majesty of God.  But while everyone marveled at all the things which Jesus did, He said to His disciples, "Let these words sink down into your ears, for the Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men."  But they did not understand this saying, and it was hidden from them so that they did not perceive it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this saying.

Then a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest.  And Jesus , perceiving the thought of their heart, took a little child and set him by Him, and said to them, "Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me.  For he who is least among you all will be great." 

Now John answered and said, "Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow with us."  But Jesus said to him, "Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side."

- Luke 9:37-50

Yesterday we read that, about eight days after Jesus' prophesy that He would suffer and die, that He took Peter, John, and James and went up on the mountain to pray.  As He prayed, the appearance of His face was altered, and His robe became white and glistening.  And behold, two men talked with Him, who were Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of His decease which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.  But Peter and those with him were heavy with sleep; and when they were fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men who stood with Him.  Then it happened, as they were parting from Him, that Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles:  one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah" -- not knowing what he said.  While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were fearful as they entered the cloud.  And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son.  Hear Him!"  When the voice had ceased, Jesus was found alone.  But they kept quiet, and told no one in those days any of the things they had seen.

 Now it happened on the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, that a great multitude met Him.  Suddenly a man from the multitude cried out, saying, "Teacher, I implore You, look on my son, for he is my only child.  And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out; it convulses him so that he foams at the mouth; and it departs from him with great difficulty, bruising him.  So I implored Your disciples to cast it out, but they could not."  Then Jesus answered and said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you and bear with you?  Bring your son here."  And as he was till coming, the demon threw him down and convulsed him.  Then Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the child, and gave him back to his father.  We should remember that Christ's disciples have only recently (as far as the narrative of the Gospel text is concerned) returned from their first apostolic mission (see Wednesday's reading).   There are a lot of "firsts" that has recently happened, including the revelation that Jesus is the Christ, and Jesus' first prediction about His suffering, rejection, death, and Resurrection (see Thursday's reading).  Here the disciples are attempting on their own to cast out a demon and heal a young boy.  We can read the desperation in the father's complaint.  We recall that Jesus and Peter, James, and John are returning from the mount of the Transfiguration.  This attempt at exorcism shows in a microcosm what the disciples will be up against, a world in which unjust suffering and affliction are everywhere, and their ministry will be called upon for its healing and grace as response.  It's important to note the cruelty of the demonic and how it makes both child and parent suffer.  My study bible says that while the disciples' faith was incomplete here (see Matthew 17:19-20), the rebuke by Christ is also to the crowds, who faith was still weaker (see Mark 9:22-24).

And they were all amazed at the majesty of God.  But while everyone marveled at all the things which Jesus did, He said to His disciples, "Let these words sink down into your ears, for the Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men."  But they did not understand this saying, and it was hidden from them so that they did not perceive it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this saying.    This is the second of Jesus' predictions to the disciples of what is to come.  Here the emphasis of Jesus is that He will be betrayed into the hands of men.  Let us note that Jesus interjects this note as they are surrounded by people who are all amazed at the majesty of God, and in which everyone marveled at all the things which Jesus did.  The message is clear:  they are not to trust in the opinions of the crowds.  My study bible says that Christ's repeated prediction of His passion was meant to encourage and strengthen His disciples for the terrifying events they will face, and also to assure them that He was not powerless, but rather went to the Cross willingly.

Then a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest.  And Jesus , perceiving the thought of their heart, took a little child and set him by Him, and said to them, "Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me.  For he who is least among you all will be great."   Although Jesus has just warned them that He will be betrayed, all that the disciples apparently understand is that He will soon be coming into His Kingdom, which in their expectation in accordance with popular notions of the Messiah, they assume will be a worldly kingdom.  Thus, they start to dispute among themselves which would be greatest!  Here is the repeated important lesson of His kingdom:  so much of the way in which they will use power depends upon humility.  Pulling them from their selfish interest in worldly power, Jesus points to the little child as model of discipleship.  My study bible says that a little child embodies the virtues required for entrance into the Kingdom:  humility, dependence, lowliness, simplicity, obedience, and a willingness to love and be loved.  They must be able to receive even the least with the grace and honor required by the presence of the Father.  Moreover, he who is least among them will be great.

Now John answered and said, "Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow with us."  But Jesus said to him, "Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side."  My study bible cites two different perspectives here in commentary.  Theophylact sees John's comment as a regret, and believes that John's conscience has been pricked by what Christ said about the least and the great, above.  But St. Ambrose sees John as one who expects full obedience to accompany such blessings.  But either way, Jesus sets them all straight on exactly how His power works:  it is not exclusive to one particular group or another, but rather extends beyond them to all who act in good faith -- even those not currently numbered among the disciples.  This is another teaching of humility as regards their positions.  The enemy is the enemy; power and grace work to counter the effects of the evil one.  My study bible quotes Theophylact:  "See how divine grace is at work even in those who are not His disciples."  There are also examples in Scripture of those who seek to use Christ's name without good faith; see 11:23, Acts 19:13-16.

Jesus' power expands far beyond His present disciples; this is a message hidden in today's text.  Moreover, this power does not extend in other directions that one would normally expect it would in a conventional sense of a king or ruler over a kingdom.  Betrayal is bound to happen, Jesus assures His disciples.  Betrayal will come from within; betrayal is an act that belongs to a friend, a trusted person, one supposedly on one's own side.  Jesus knows about it in advance, and yet He will do nothing to put it down or repress it.  He will continue to try to offer Judas every chance, even at the final moment of betrayal with a kiss, asking Judas, "Friend, why have you come?" (see Matthew 26:48-50).  All of these disparate glimmers of the nature of Christ's power conspire to tell us something important:  the free will of human beings is unassailable, sacrosanct.  Manipulation in the sense of coercion is not a part of Christ's power; violence is not at the heart of Christ's power.  In this vein, the understanding of grace and humility is all important.  To receive even a little child as if one is receiving either Christ, or even God the Father, is to understand something deeply important about God's perspective on human beings, on just exactly what or whom we are created to be.  There is a threshold here that Jesus forbids His disciples to cross.  It gives us a notion of how deeply valuable and worthy the souls of human beings truly are in the sight of God and God's ministers.  If only we understood this about ourselves!  On the contrary, the forces of evil or the demonic know no such boundary.  They are full of abuse of human beings, seeking to enslave human souls to pain and misery.  They afflict, and are quite actively hostile to Christ's Kingdom -- a revelation hidden in Christ's saying that "he who is not against us is on our side."  They are aggressive, and respect no boundaries except only those which they are compelled not to cross by God's superior power.  And this is the grand war that is going on amidst all the skirmishes and conflicts we may read of and think about in the context of our faith.  There is a bigger war going on, one whose aspects and extensions we may not know nor see, but nevertheless one which plays itself out in this world.  In a modern context, we are not used to hearing or speaking of the world or our reality on these terms, but the Gospels constantly remind us of this otherworldly existence that is parallel and intersecting with our own.  Jesus' Transfiguration on the mountain is an illustration of a reality that co-exists with us, but which we have no common perception of; this is why it is a revelation.  So it is also with the demonic, the "prince" or "ruler" of this world, as Jesus puts it (John 14:30-31).  In Jesus' teaching about His power and its extension to those who are His disciples, the stress is on grace, on love, and most especially on the respect for persons inherent in all of the ways He teaches His disciples to interact with others.  Even a little child is to be received not only as if they are receiving the Christ, but moreover God the Father.  When going out on their first mission, invested with His power and authority to cast out demons and to heal, the emphasis for their conduct was on humility (see Wednesday's reading).  Here, in today's reading, their humility is to extend to others even who do not follow with them, but nevertheless are not against them.  These are the teachings of Christ.  The big overall unseen battle going on and those things that characterize either side remind us of what we are up against.  Our own inclination to impatience, a lack of forbearance, an unwillingness to take up our own crosses (which come so frequently beyond our own control and through the hardships that may be imposed by others), or a desire for expedience so often may get in the way of truly following the path He teaches us.  This is the heart of the reason why "by any means necessary" is the last thing a true follower of Christ should ascribe to;  He did not.  This Kingdom needs followers who come voluntarily.  It is a Kingdom of hearts and minds before all else, where the chief prize is the soul, its value beyond our capacity to truly estimate.   Let us consider how we sell ourselves short, and the long learning curve of humility in service to Christ.  Where is He calling you? What is He calling you to let go of?  What lies beyond your control that you need to see as a cross to bear, and find His way to do it?  Let us consider the ways in which His power and grace and truth reach to us today -- and the struggle for faith into which we enter and through which we participate in His life.