And they were on the
road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them; and they were
amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he
began to tell them what was to happen to him, saying, "Behold, we are
going up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man will be delivered to the chief
priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death, and deliver him to
the Gentiles; and they will mock him, and spit upon him, and scourge him, and
kill him; and after three days he will rise." And James and John, the sons
of Zebedee, came forward to him, and said to him, "Teacher, we want you to
do for us whatever we ask of you." And he said to them, "What do you
want me to do for you?" And they said to him, "Grant us to sit, one
at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory." But Jesus said to
them, "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup
that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am
baptized?" And they said to him, "We are able." And Jesus said
to them, "The cup that I drink you will drink; and with the baptism with
which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right hand or at my
left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been
prepared." And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James
and John. And Jesus called them to him and said to them, "You know that
those who are supposed to rule over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their
great men exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you; but
whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first
among you must be slave of all. For the Son of man also came not to be served
but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
------------------------
Was Jesus a pessimist
or a stark realist? On three different occasions the Gospels record that Jesus predicted
he would endure great suffering through betrayal, rejection, and the punishment
of a cruel death. The Jews resorted to stoning and the Romans to crucifixion –
the most painful and humiliating death they could devise for criminals they
wanted to eliminate. No wonder the apostles were greatly distressed at such a
prediction! If Jesus their Master were put to death, then they would likely
receive the same treatment by their enemies. Jesus called himself the “Son of
Man” because this was a common Jewish title for the Messiah. Why must the
Messiah be rejected and killed? Did not God promise that his Anointed One would
deliver his people from their oppression and establish a kingdom of peace and
justice? The prophet Isaiah had foretold that it was God’s will that the
“Suffering Servant” make atonement for sins through his suffering and death. Jesus paid the price for our redemption with his blood.
Slavery to sin is to want the wrong things and to be in bondage to destructive
desires. The ransom Jesus paid sets us free from the worst tyranny possible –
the tyranny of sin and the fear of death. Jesus’ victory did not end with death
but triumphed over the tomb. Jesus defeated the powers of death through his
resurrection. Do you want the greatest freedom possible, the freedom to live as
God truly meant us to live as his sons and daughters?
Jesus did the
unthinkable! He wedded authority with selfless service and with loving
sacrifice. Authority without sacrificial love is brutish and self-serving.
Jesus also used stark language to explain what kind of sacrifice he had in
mind. His disciples must drink his cup if they expect to reign with him in his
kingdom. The cup he had in mind was a bitter one involving crucifixion. What
kind of cup does the Lord have in mind for us? For some disciples such a cup
entails physical suffering and the painful struggle of martyrdom. But for many,
it entails the long routine of the Christian life, with all its daily
sacrifices, disappointments, set-backs, struggles, and temptations. A disciple
must be ready to lay down his or her life in martyrdom and be ready to lay it
down each and every day in the little and big sacrifices required. An early
church father summed up Jesus' teaching with the expression: to serve is to
reign with Christ. We share in God's reign by laying down our lives in
humble service as Jesus did for our sake. Are you willing to lay down your life
and to serve others as Jesus did?
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“Lord Jesus, your
death brought life and freedom. Make me a servant of your love, that I may seek
to serve rather than be served.”
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