Bring

No one who brought a person to Jesus in Mark's Gospel is ever given fame or even identification.  They are nameless, anonymous servants who will never be known. At least not by human history.  On five different occasions, these unknown servants introduced hopelessness and despair to eternal hope and power found in Jesus.  The recipients included the sick, the demon possessed, the deaf, the mute, the blind, a seizing boy, and a paralytic.

It took a great deal of effort and courage for them to bring people to Jesus.  We sometimes make the mistake of thinking that it was easier in biblical times.  But it was probably more difficult.  The effort demanded the pursuit of an unknown Source.  We have the benefit of 2,000 years of history of that Source, Jesus, being fully known. Imagine lugging someone across town in full view wondering if you might be returning the same way embarrassed, frustrated, and result less.  The faith of those who brought people to Jesus was probably greater than those they were bringing.

There is a difference between significance and fame.  We can get these two mixed up if not careful.  Significance occurs when another person finds greater value in Jesus as a result of our interaction with them.  Fame occurs if a lot of people hear about it. Significance without fame is the biblical norm in Mark.  The Kingdom of God flourishes through nameless, significant people that are empowered by God to bring others to Jesus.  When we are fame chasers, our acts of significance become nothing more than fronts for selfish gain.  We end up wanting to hear people say our name not His.

There is no such thing as significance without inconvenience.  We often want one without the other.  And when lack of fame is added to inconvenience, the non-compelling combination of these two often renders us stagnate.  And those who are lost or sick or hurting or lonely or just too broken to bring themselves remain in hopeless isolation.  In right theological thinking, God does not need us to bring them; He does not need our help.  But God dwells among us and in that dwelling, He orchestrates opportunities for us to be bringers.  We are not forced often selfishly avoiding the opportunity.  But God compels hearts by His Spirit and for His purposes. And Jesus is still changing those being brought.

To bring is to express faith boldly.  It is a selfless act full of mystery and complexity.  It is not for the faint of heart but for those who proudly walk in the tradition of the earliest bringers in Mark.  Bringers who discovered that significance is better than fame.  And that bringing is sacred.  Bring.

Ex nihilo,

R.J. Rhoden