Finding Unity In 'Inclusive Exclusivity'; Luke 9:49-50

Delivered during the Sunday morning worship service, 03/26/2023. As we come to these final verses in Luke's record of Christ's Galilean ministry, Jesus has just reprimanded His disciples for arguing over who will be the greatest. Using a child as an example, He has emphasized that true Kingdom greatness is grounded in humility rather than pride. In response, the apostle John relates an encounter with a mysterious exorcist who was casting out demons in Christ's name but was not one of their tight-knit group of followers. It is almost as if John was questioning Jesus' broad statement of who should be included in their fellowship with an example of someone who should be excluded. The harmony between these seemingly opposite concepts will become the focus of our study as we probe the vital distinction between inclusivism and exclusivism within Christianity and the church. Once we have established and analyzed the reality of this distinction, we will tackle the critical question of how to recognize the difference between the two in real-life situations. Ultimately we will turn to the Scriptures for practical applications of how we can learn the vital lesson of Kingdom discernment and find unity in "inclusive exclusivity".