Mark 9:42 “On the other hand, if you give one of these simple, childlike believers a hard time, bullying or taking advantage of their simple trust, you’ll soon wish you hadn’t. You’d be better off dropped in the middle of the lake with a millstone around your neck.” (The Message Bible)
A few verses earlier Jesus “put a child in the middle of the room. Then, cradling the little one in his arms, he said, “Whoever embraces one of these children as I do embraces me, and far more than me—God who sent me” (36-37). In this verse the “simple, childlike believers” are Peterson’s term for the “little ones (micron) who believe in me.” In a world where bigger is better and everyone wants to be the smartest one in the room, having regard for the little ones isn’t often a great value. But it was for Jesus and he would like it to be for us. Who are the little ones that are taken advantage of around you? What can you do about it for Jesus’ sake?
Logan Memorial Presbyterian Church 