Breaking Down the “Us Versus Them” Mentality

Post Author: Rune Marie Nielsen

A sermon based on Mark 9:38-50 and James 5:13-20

It’s been over 2,000 years since Christ’s coming, yet today’s churches and Christians face some of the same problems as Jesus’ original disciples. “John said to [Jesus], ‘Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.” In Mark 9:38, John, and possibly the other disciples, are jealous of an unnamed exorcist who is doing what they failed to do in the preceding passage—drive away demons. Unfortunately, this jealousy and contempt for believers outside one’s own group continues in our churches and Christian circles. Churches compete to raise more money and recruit more members than other churches, even within their own denominations. Social groups form and target each other. ‘Us versus them’ is the order of the day. The modern world is flooded with competition at every level, from parents trying to outdo other parents to social influencers spreading harmful rumours about their peers who advocate for the same issues as themselves.

Since the dawn of humanity, people have encountered the presence of other cliques and interpreted the situation as a threat to their own group. There exists a tendency to judge everyday situations and turn them into competitive ones. However, in Mark 9:42, Jesus warns against putting stumbling blocks in front of people who believe in him. His disciples have done that by trying to stop the good work of a believer outside their group. In today’s world, we all are also guilty of placing stumbling blocks in front of others, whether through pompous arrogance, refusal to acknowledge the existence and dignity of others, or even by taking away resources and opportunities from those who need them just as much as we do.

Jesus says “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them if a large millstone were hung around their neck and they were thrown into the sea.” Scholars theorize that the “little ones” Jesus is talking about are people of low social standing. Perhaps the unknown exorcist Jesus’ disciples encountered was of lower class, or the disciples automatically assume he is less than them because he is not part of their group. The disciples forget that they started out as ‘little ones,’ for before joining Jesus they worked trades of the lower classes. And thinking in terms of ‘us versus them’ certainly has big consequences if a millstone around the neck is involved. But what is even more bizarre in Jesus’ words is the realization that Jesus came for the little ones, those who fall in the ‘them’ category of ‘us versus them.’ Why is it so devastating to ignore the ‘little ones’? Why mention hanging a millstone around your neck? It is important because rejection of the little ones is rejection of Jesus. Jesus has lived among the little ones—the poor, oppressed, and ignored—and he relates to them.

Jesus has a lot to say about this topic. There are very few instances in the Gospel of Mark in which Jesus says more than just a couple lines, and this is one of those pivotal moments. After the disciples tell Jesus that they tried to hinder the work of the exorcist from outside their group, Jesus says “Do not stop him; for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me.” Jesus’ disciples are proud to be followers of Jesus, which is honourable, but their competitiveness has turned their pride into a sense of selfish elitism. By judging that another is not worthy of casting out demons in Jesus’ name, they try to take authority away from God. They forget that the decision of who is worthy of such spiritual gifts, such as exorcism, rests with God alone.  Like children opening presents at Christmas, the disciples compare the gifts of others with their own. The unnamed exorcist is like the child who has received a shiny new, top-brand bicycle, and out of jealousy the others try to prevent him from using it. In a world of ‘us versus them,’ the disciples forget that God gives gifts without taking into account who is part of the ‘them.’

With his next statement, Jesus further broadens the scope of the ‘us versus them’ issue. “Whoever is not against us is for us.” That’s an interesting take on ‘us versus them.’ And by saying this, Jesus has opened the door to including the unnamed exorcist, one of the ‘little ones’ in the ‘us’ category. 

But even within the ‘us’ category there can be divisions. A problem arises when people are too focused on themselves to think about the broader group. An adage about competitive thinking says that “The true tragedy is when us versus them turns into me versus them.” Someone with the ‘me vs. them’ view believes that all other people fit into one of two categories: enemies to fight against or lesser people who can be used to get what they want. Imagine a sports team scenario. A basketball player with the ‘me vs. them’ attitude only views his teammates as means to an end rather than as fellow humans working together. The opposing team is an enemy to be beaten at all costs, and at the same time his own teammates are just pawns to help secure a victory. In that player’s mind, it’s not the team that wins a game, it’s him who wins. The ‘me vs. them’ outlook is exactly the kind of thinking that Jesus wants his disciples to avoid. In the previous passage, verses 33 through 35, Jesus’ disciples argue about who among them is the greatest, displaying a competitive ferocity that disregards the equality and contributions of their fellow disciples. In Mark 9:38, this sense of elitism continues in the disciples’ attitude towards the unnamed exorcist who was working in Jesus’s name. In their egotism, Jesus’ disciples have shunned the ‘little ones,’ and by extension they have shunned Jesus.

Today’s ‘us versus them’ society also needs some help. Fastcompany, a business advice website, suggests some steps for overcoming an ‘us versus them’ culture in the organization you work for. The first step is to “take responsibility for what you can control.” Afterall, we only have full control over ourselves. Jesus promotes the same response to the judgmental competitiveness that his disciples display. He teaches that instead of judging others, it is better to examine ourselves. Jesus instructs us with the following metaphor: “If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and go to hell, the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out.” 

The idea of sacrificing an arm, foot, or eye for the sake of not sinning, of not hindering others, seems rather violent and foreboding. But this metaphor foreshadows Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice upon the cross. If Jesus can give up his life for the sake of others, shouldn’t we also offer a lot of ourselves in order to do the same? In the ninth chapter of Mark Jesus is speaking for the last time in Galilee, and he is trying to teach others how they should lead his followers once he has left.  

Mark 9:43 also reminds us that what is useful to us can also be used for bad purposes. Rather than judge the hands, feet, and eyes of ‘them,’ a person ought to examine their own hands, feet, and eyes. A fictional story illustrates the same point. There were once three people who looked in a mirror to examine themselves. The first person looked in the mirror and saw that his hands and feet were small, and his eyesight was average. He said to himself, “There’s nothing special about my hands, feet, and eyes. I’ll let someone else with better parts do good work for Jesus.” 

The second person who looked in the mirror saw that he had very strong hands and sturdy feet, and his eyesight was very sharp. He said to himself, “I must be very important to have such a fine body.” The more he admired himself in the mirror, the more he felt superior to others. He used his hands to point at others in condemnation, and he used his feet to avoid contact with people who were shunned. His eyes looked only at the faces of people he labelled important, without glancing at the ‘little ones’ who needed his attention and support. 

Then a third person looked into a mirror. She was an elderly woman with arthritis in her hands and feet, and her eyesight was quite poor, dwindling away in her old age. She said to herself, “I better use what I’ve got. It’s a blessing that my frail body has lasted this long, and I’m going to use it well.” The elderly woman used her eyes to identify people who needed help. Though her hands were weak and shaky, she used them to hold hands in prayer with those who were sick or injured. She walked very slowly with a cane, but she used her feet to walk to nonprofit events to volunteer. In a world of ‘us versus them,’ these are all positive ways we can lessen the gap between the two. For the elderly woman, using her hands, feet, and eyes was a sacrifice. She knew that Jesus made a sacrifice for all of us, dying on the cross. He gave up more than a limb—his very life! If Jesus can sacrifice his life for us, surely we can sacrifice something for the good of others.

James 5:19 says “if anyone among you wanders from the truth and is brought back by another, you should know that whoever brings back a sinner from wandering will save the sinner’s soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.” We are all wandering and we all need to be brought back. If we put aside elitism, we can allow other people to guide us back to Jesus. We must not only learn from the little ones, but become like them, for that is what Jesus does when he becomes friends with the lower classes and sees the situation of the poor. In a world of ‘us versus them,’ we need to let the ‘little ones,’ the ‘them’ guide the ‘us.’ But… would that make ‘them’ a part of ‘us’? Yes.

God only made an ‘us.’ People divided the ‘us’ into an ‘us’ and a ‘them.’ But it’s not about ‘us versus them.’ It’s about all of us. There is no real ‘them’ because we are all one people and Jesus died for the sake of all people when he hung on the cross.