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.”  Mark 9:33-37

Our gospel this Sunday begins with Jesus predicting his own crucifixion, for the second time.  It’s as if the disciples didn’t understand it the first time he told them, so he has to repeat himself.  It doesn’t go any better this time, because Mark reports “they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him.”

They finally get to their destination and after they go inside, Jesus asks, “so….what were you guys arguing about on the road” and they all totally freeze up…guilt stricken… since they weren’t exactly talking about how to care for the poor or who might need some extra prayer these days.  They were talking about themselves, and they were arguing about who was the greatest among them.

To which Jesus says whoever wants to be great must be least.  And then he takes a small child into his arms and says whoever welcomes such a child as this in his name welcomes him, and indeed, welcomes God.  Which is pretty radical when you remember that first century folks didn’t quite have the sentimental view of childhood that we do these days.

So, another bad day for the disciples.  The message is pretty clear, they need to be more open and welcoming and less concerned about themselves.  Obviously, all this talk about suffering and death has made them a little anxious and so they defensivley begin to focus on themselves—and Jesus sees right through that.

So, the lesson is clear: we need to be different then the disciples.  We need a bit more openness and operate with a child-like wonder.

Except, wait.  Why it is, when reading the Gospels, that we seem to always assume that the disciples are a stand in for us?  I mean, not that there’s anything wrong with that, it’s just that then it’s so easy to see everything Jesus says as a to-do list.  Try to be last, pray more, forgive everyone…  But how helpful is that when you are already exhausted and it seems like the forces of evil and death are winning the war?

What if, this time, we put ourselves in the place of the child?  What if instead of acting out of our anxiety, focusing on ourselves, and pretending we have it all under control, we really believed it is exactly those childish part of ourselves that Jesus welcomes?  After all, isn’t it true that more often than not, rather than the strong, knowledgeable and competent people we aspire to, we tend to be small, scared and confused, and rather childish.

So, connect with your “inner child” and know that we serve a God who folds into God’ love arms all those things we might be embarrassed to admit are part of us and says “welcome.”