DEVOTION – FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2011
“Don’t divide”
BY
PASTOR BOB COY
John answered Him, saying, “Teacher, we saw someone who does not follow us casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow us.” Mark 9:38 (NKJV)
Over the course of their adventures, the disciples ran into a man using the Lord’s name to drive demons out of people. Jesus wasn’t with them at the time, so they decided to take matters into their own hands. Predictably, they did the wrong thing. In essence, they claimed the copyright on Christ’s name and told this man to stop using it to deliver people.
It’s obvious that the disciples felt they had done the right thing here, because John goes out of his way to bring it up. They were probably expecting a pat on the back. They thought Jesus would say, “Well done! Way to protect our brand!” So imagine the surprise of Christ’s response:
“Do not forbid him, for no one who works a miracle in My name can soon afterward speak evil of Me…he who is not against us is on our side.” Mark 9:39-40 (NKJV)
Jesus told His disciples this wasn’t something worth dividing over. This man was different to a certain degree in that he wasn’t physically following them. But this difference wasn’t worthy of division. Ultimately, he was working toward the same goal they had, and they should have encouraged instead of discouraged him in this work.
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