“Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, approached Him and said, ‘Teacher, we want You to
do something for us if we ask You.’ ‘What do you want Me to do for you?’ He
asked them. They answered Him, ‘Allow us
to sit at Your right and at Your left in Your glory.’ But Jesus said to them, ‘You don’t know what
you’re asking. Are you able to drink the cup I drink or to
be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?’ ‘We
are able,’ they told Him. Jesus said to
them, ‘You will drink the cup I drink, and you will be baptized with the
baptism I am baptized with. But to sit at My right or left is not Mine to give; instead,
it is for those it has been prepared for.’
When the ⌊other⌋ 10 ⌊disciples⌋ heard this, they began to be indignant with James and John. Jesus called
them over and said to them, ‘You know that those who are regarded as rulers of
the Gentiles dominate them, and their men of high positions exercise power over
them. But it must
not be like that among you. On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you must
be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be a slave to all. For even the
Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give
His life — a ransom for many.’” (Mark 10:35-45 HCSB)
Sit down in your car, and look at the
instrument panel. You will notice all
kinds of gauges—oil pressure, amps, fuel level, temperature, speedometer. These
are important—or you might find yourself stranded on the highway! It is also
vital that the gauges be accurate, or a minor problem may lead to a major
expense.
Did you know that God has given gauges
for our spiritual life? Specifically, I want to examine our text for God’s
gauge of greatness. We could get all kinds of opinions about what constitutes
greatness. Only God has an accurate gauge.
First, we hear THE REQUEST FOR GREATNESS.
“Then James and John, the sons of
Zebedee, approached Him and said, ‘Teacher, we want You to
do something for us if we ask You.’ ‘What do you want Me to do for you?’ He
asked them. They answered Him, ‘Allow us
to sit at Your right and at Your left in Your glory.’” (v.35-37)
Were James and John wrong to request a
position of greatness in the kingdom
of God
Spiritual ambition springing from the
wrong motives or using the wrong means to attain it is a vice. Yet spiritual
ambition rooted in a desire to glorify God and using godly means is a virtue.
I challenge you to find any Bible
heroes who were not ambitious for the things of God. Paul pursued Christian
excellence relentlessly. He challenged us, “Don’t you know
that the runners in a stadium all race, but only one
receives the prize? Run in such a way to
win the prize.” (1 Cor.9:24)
What can we discover about the request
of the two brothers?
THE REQUEST SHOWS THEIR FAITH.
“Then James and John, the sons of
Zebedee, approached Him and said, ‘Teacher, we want You to
do something for us if we ask You.” (v.35)
On the positive side, they used the
right approach, expressing belief in His ability to answer. This is pleasing to God: “Now
without faith it is impossible to please God, for the one who draws near to Him
must believe that He exists and rewards those who seek Him.” (Heb.11:6)
Many muddle along in mediocrity, never
attaining the high calling of God because they never trust the power of God to
do in them what they could never do themselves.
The request not only shows their faith,
but THE REQUEST SHOWS THEIR FOCUS.
“‘What do you
want Me to do for you?’ He asked them.
They answered Him, ‘Allow us to sit at Your right and at Your left in
Your glory.’” (v.36-37)
Have you had a child ask, “Will you do
something for me?” If you rashly agree to such a blanket request, you’re
foolish. Jesus isn’t going to agree to
such. Though He who knew the hearts and minds of men, knew what they wanted,
they needed to express it. Jesus wasn’t seeking information, but soliciting
confession.
A similar incident follows in verse
46-52:
“They came
to Jericho Jericho
Jesus
stopped and said, ‘Call him.’
So
they called the blind man and said to him, ‘Have courage! Get up; He’s
calling for you.’ He threw off his coat, jumped up, and came to
Jesus.
Then
Jesus answered him, ‘What do you want Me to do for you?’
“Rabbouni,” the
blind man told Him, ‘I want to see!’
‘Go
your way,’ Jesus told him. ‘Your faith has healed you.’ Immediately he
could see and began to follow Him on the road.”
Too
many prayers are generic—when God wants specifics. Otherwise, if God answers how will we know
and if we don’t know how can we give Him glory?
But, when we ask God for a particular thing and it happens, then we know
it is God and express gratitude.
It is virtually useless to pray in
sweeping generalities, “God bless the missionaries,” “God heal the sick,” “God
save my neighbors.” Prayer becomes powerful when it becomes focused.
Maybe you remember one of the “Our
Gang” comedies where Alfalfa decided to bring some firecrackers to school. Some of them were hanging out of his back
pocket. No problem—until Porky took a
magnifying glass and focused the sunlight on them. That brought explosive results! Such is the power of focus.
When James and John declare their
request, we are not surprised at their hesitancy in asking at first. It was, after all, rather audacious! They wanted to be vice-president and secretary
of state in Messiah’s administration!
Do you long for something more in your
spiritual life? Do you believe in a big
God who can do a big thing for you? What are you waiting for? ASK!
Next we note THE REQUIREMENT FOR GREATNESS.
“But Jesus said
to them, ‘You don’t know what you’re asking. Are you able
to drink the cup I drink or to be baptized with the baptism I am baptized
with?’ ‘We are able,’ they told Him. Jesus said to them, ‘You will drink the cup I
drink, and you will be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with. But to sit at
My right or left is not Mine to give; instead, it is for those it has been
prepared for.’” (v.38-40)
Christ gives the brothers a gentle
rebuke. James and John had calculated
reward, but had not factored in the price.
We all have picked up an item in a store,
and thought, “I’d like to have that.” Then we flipped it over and saw the
price, and set it back down so fast, you’d have thought it burned our hand! Some things are very expensive. As I have heard John Maxwell say often, “You
have to give up to go up.”
Consider THE PRICE OF POSITION IN THE
KINGDOM.
“But Jesus said
to them, ‘You don’t know what you’re asking. Are you able
to drink the cup I drink or to be baptized with the baptism I am baptized
with?’ ‘We are able,’ they told Him. Jesus said to them, ‘You will drink the cup I
drink, and you will be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with.’”
(v.38-39)
Jesus addresses the personal aspect of
the cup and baptism. They are His. The cup is that which He drank in
Gethsemane, and the baptism is that in which He was immersed on Calvary .
“They were on the road, going up
to Jerusalem
‘Listen! We are going up to Jerusalem
If we would reign with Him, we must
suffer with Him.
James drank the cup of martyrdom, being
the first of the Apostles to die for the faith. John, as an old man, would be
baptized in suffering, exiled to a rocky island of Patmos
The price of position in the kingdom
brings us to THE PRIVILEGE OF POSITION IN THE KINGDOM.
“But to sit at
My right or left is not Mine to give; instead, it is for those it has been
prepared for.’” (v.40)
One day, the rewards will be handed
out. But the honors will not be passed out to friends as favors, as politicians
often do to their patrons, but this privilege is reserved for those who earn it
by faithfulness in life and service to God. How we sit in heaven will be
determined by how we stand on earth. If you want to excel in your spiritual
life, are you willing to pay the price?
But, importantly, there is a need to
grasp THE REVELATION OF GREATNESS.
“When the ⌊other⌋ 10 ⌊disciples⌋ heard this, they began to be indignant with James and John. Jesus called
them over and said to them, ‘You know that those who are regarded as rulers of
the Gentiles dominate them, and their men of high positions exercise power over them. But it must
not be like that among you. On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you must
be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be a slave to all. For even the
Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give
His life — a ransom for many.’”
(v.41-45)
The hypocritical reaction of the other
apostles is interesting. This jockeying for position in the kingdom was a
regular pastime of these men. They occupied themselves with frequent arguments
about who was the greatest. Sometimes
spiritual sibling rivalry in the church is as bad—or worse—as the biological
variety in the home.
Weigh for a moment THE HUMAN STANDARD
REVEALED.
“When the ⌊other⌋ 10 ⌊disciples⌋ heard this, they began to be indignant with James and John. Jesus called
them over and said to them, ‘You know that those who are regarded as rulers of
the Gentiles dominate them, and their men of high positions exercise power over
them.’” (v.41-42)
Power and might, possessions and
influence, superior status and strength—this is greatness as the world measures
it. Those standards are often carried into the church. A church is great if it
has a big crowd, a large building, and a big budget. A preacher is great if he
preaches to thousands, baptizes hundreds and is on T.V. each week. A Sunday School
teacher is great if they have a huge class and a choir member is great if they
are the featured soloist in the cantata.
Maybe, but, not necessarily.
It isn’t ultimately about the applause
of men, but the approval of the Master that counts. Our Lord declares: So, let us contemplate THE HEAVENLY STANDARD
REVEALED.
“But it must
not be like that among you. On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you must
be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be a slave to all. For even the
Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give
His life — a ransom for many.’”
(v.43-45)
At the close of this devotional, we
come to the bottom line. God’s gauge of greatness is measured by our service
and modeled by our Savior.
It is measured by our service. “But it must
not be like that among you. On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you must
be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be a slave to all.” (v.43-44)
The Greek word for servant is the word
from which we get our term “deacon” and it literally means, “through dust.” It is a picture of one speeding along,
sweeping up, stirring dust by their activity.
Somebody has to do the dirty work. Have
you kicked up any dust lately?
The even stronger word, “slave” is used. A slave has no will of their own. He or she
lives to do the will of their master.
The great soul is one who fully obeys
the will of God without question or hesitation.
Jesus set the standard. He never demands what He is not willing to
demonstrate. It was modeled by our
Savior. “For even the
Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give
His life — a ransom for many.’” (v.45)
By man’s standards Jesus was a failure. The more He preached, the smaller the crowds
got. The more love He showed, the more
hate He received. In the end, all His
followers fled, the leader of the pack denied Him three times, and one of them
betrayed Him with a kiss of affection.
Instead of a crown of gold, they thrust on His head a crown of
thorns. There was no throne—He was
mounted on a cross. He died and was
locked up in a borrowed tomb. Yet, that supposed failure was the greatest of
triumphs and this is the testimony:
“Make
your own attitude that of Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God, did
not consider equality with God as something to be used for His own advantage. Instead He emptied Himself by assuming the
form of a slave, taking on the likeness of men. And when He had come as a man in
His external form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of
death —even to death on a cross. For
this reason God highly exalted Him and gave Him the name that is above every
name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow—of those who are in
heaven and on earth and under the earth—and every tongue should confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil.2:5-11)
I heard someone say years ago that the
test of having a servant’s heart is how you react when someone treats you like
one!
Remember the TV commercial, “How do you
spell relief? R-O-L-A-I-D-S”
How do you spell greatness?
S-E-R-V-I-C-E!
What does your greatness gauge indicate
right now?
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