46 Then
a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest. 47 And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their
heart, took a little child and set him by Him, 48 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.” 49 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.” 50 But
Jesus said to him, “Do not forbid him, for he
who is not against us is on our side.”
Commentary
Vs. 46 “Then a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest.”
Against the back drop of Jesus healing a little child and again foretelling the disciples of His betrayal and their having not understood the saying Jesus gave to them after He told them of it, the disciples soon break down into an argument among themselves about which of them would be the greatest. And so selfish ambition rears its ugly head once again amongst themselves. Something that is not unique to them, but every congregation must be on guard against it, as the Apostle James having learned this lesson from his own experiences will later warn the whole church about it, and the destructive nature of it (see James 3:13-18, and meditate heavily upon vs. 16).
Vs. 47-48 47 And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a little child and set him by Him, 48 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 when Jesus perceived the thoughts of their heart, He took a little child (as an object lesson) and set him by Him. Having done so He then says to the disciples, “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.” In so elevating a mere child who rests and believes in Him, Jesus is showing us all that greatness in the sight of God is not found in holding places and positions of high stature, whether inside of the church or outside of it. But rather in receiving one of the least of His brethren, Jesus says that one is receiving Himself, and thus in receiving Him one is receiving God who sent Him. Jesus’ whole point then is to take our focus off our own selfish ambitions and put our whole focus on caring for and identifying with the least of His people. “For he who is least among you all will be great.” That is, he who takes the lowly road of service caring for the least of His people will be great. Just as Jesus Himself did not take the path of seeking fame, riches, and glory, but rather He sought out and identified with the least of God’s people, before being crucified for us all. Humility, service, caring and compassion are the things then that make a person great in the Kingdom of God. Not having titles beside ones name and or seeking after positions of “high stature.”
Vs. 49-50 49 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.” 50 But Jesus said to him, “Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side.”
Now Johns response to Jesus clearly indicates that he and the other disciples still had a carnal focus and were not seeing the big picture. For he now says to Jesus that when they saw someone casting out demons in Christ’s name that they forbade him because he was not following Christ with them. Which is just like a church congregation (or ministry) that does not believe that those outside of their sphere are true followers of the Lord Jesus Christ because they don’t follow Him with them. All which is only being carnally minded, not Spiritually minded. For as Jesus told John, and thus tells us all, “Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side.” Thus, anyone who speaks a good Word, or does a good work, in the Lord Jesus Christ’s Name is not to be forbidden, but rather embraced!
Scripture Quotations
Commentary
Vs. 46 “Then a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest.”
Against the back drop of Jesus healing a little child and again foretelling the disciples of His betrayal and their having not understood the saying Jesus gave to them after He told them of it, the disciples soon break down into an argument among themselves about which of them would be the greatest. And so selfish ambition rears its ugly head once again amongst themselves. Something that is not unique to them, but every congregation must be on guard against it, as the Apostle James having learned this lesson from his own experiences will later warn the whole church about it, and the destructive nature of it (see James 3:13-18, and meditate heavily upon vs. 16).
Vs. 47-48 47 And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a little child and set him by Him, 48 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 when Jesus perceived the thoughts of their heart, He took a little child (as an object lesson) and set him by Him. Having done so He then says to the disciples, “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.” In so elevating a mere child who rests and believes in Him, Jesus is showing us all that greatness in the sight of God is not found in holding places and positions of high stature, whether inside of the church or outside of it. But rather in receiving one of the least of His brethren, Jesus says that one is receiving Himself, and thus in receiving Him one is receiving God who sent Him. Jesus’ whole point then is to take our focus off our own selfish ambitions and put our whole focus on caring for and identifying with the least of His people. “For he who is least among you all will be great.” That is, he who takes the lowly road of service caring for the least of His people will be great. Just as Jesus Himself did not take the path of seeking fame, riches, and glory, but rather He sought out and identified with the least of God’s people, before being crucified for us all. Humility, service, caring and compassion are the things then that make a person great in the Kingdom of God. Not having titles beside ones name and or seeking after positions of “high stature.”
Vs. 49-50 49 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.” 50 But Jesus said to him, “Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side.”
Now Johns response to Jesus clearly indicates that he and the other disciples still had a carnal focus and were not seeing the big picture. For he now says to Jesus that when they saw someone casting out demons in Christ’s name that they forbade him because he was not following Christ with them. Which is just like a church congregation (or ministry) that does not believe that those outside of their sphere are true followers of the Lord Jesus Christ because they don’t follow Him with them. All which is only being carnally minded, not Spiritually minded. For as Jesus told John, and thus tells us all, “Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side.” Thus, anyone who speaks a good Word, or does a good work, in the Lord Jesus Christ’s Name is not to be forbidden, but rather embraced!
Scripture Quotations
New King James Version (1982): Thomas Nelson
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