Mark
10:35-45
Series:
“Discipleship Camp”
October
18, 2015
This
is our fourth week in Discipleship Camp. As Jesus moves from his success in
Galilee to his sacrifice on the cross, he has a number of conversations with
his disciples along the way. What does it mean to follow him? What does it mean to be his disciple? Today we
have one more conversation in chapter 10 of the Gospel of Mark:
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 is it 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 be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” They replied, “We are able.” Then
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.”
When the
ten heard this, they began to be angry with James and John. So Jesus called
them and said to them, “You know that among the Gentiles those whom they
recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants
over them. But it is not so among
you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among
you must be slave of all. For the
Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom
for many.”
Well,
let’s give them a little bit of credit. James and John have walked with Jesus
from the beginning. They left their fishing nets and their father at Sea of
Galilee, and they have gone wherever Jesus has gone.
James
and John have seen it all. They saw him cast out the demon at their synagogue
at Capernaum, and they went next door to watch him cure a woman’s headache. He
scared them when he touched a leper and made him well. They were in the boat
when he shouted away a terrible storm. They heard him preach about the kingdom
and saw him raise a little girl from the dead. They watched him turn as bright
as the sun and heard God say, “This is my Son.”
Now
they come forward from the others and lay on him the title, “Teacher.” James
and John are his students - his disciples – and he is their Teacher. His words
and his works have instructed them. They believe God is real, that God is
present in him. They call him “Teacher.”
And
they already know what he is going to teach them in very chapter of this
Gospel. He’s going to say, “Ask whatever you wish, believe that you are
receiving it, and it will be yours” (Mark 11:24). They believe in the power of
asking God for whatever you wish . . . but that’s when the conversation quickly
takes a bad turn.
Jesus
the Teacher says, in effect, you don’t know what you’re talking about. They
request something that seems to be above his pay grade to approve. He gets kind
of snarly with them. It sounds like he is annoyed. And whatever they ask
ignites the anger of the other ten disciples, who are furious with James and
John.
So
what’s the problem? My friend Mark Davis says it this way: James and John want
to “ride shotgun” with Jesus.[1]
Have you heard that phrase? When you see a vehicle that somebody else is
driving, and you want a good seat next to the driver, you call out “shotgun.” That
allows you to sit right up front. You can watch everything that is happening
and you can be ahead of the guys who are behind you.
Of
course, James and John “call shotgun” before the other ten can speak up. Most
of the Bible scholars say that’s why the other disciples get so upset. They are
slow on the uptake, and James and John step in to scramble ahead. The two
brothers must figure they have put in their time. They have seen the hidden
secrets. They are part of the inner circle, along with Simon Peter - - and we
all know what a blowhard he can be.
“So
put us right up front, Lord, close by your side. Lift us to the top of the heap.
Empower us to get ahead of everybody else. Grant us to sit by you when you come
into your glory.”
And
the Lord says, “You don’t have a clue what you are saying.”
We
can question their motives. These were humble fishermen from the north country.
When Jesus walked by the sea and said, “Follow me,” they were ready to go. Mark
says they left their father Zebedee standing in the boat, and off they went. They
didn’t know where they were going, but we can assume they were glad to go
somewhere else. Moving on up . . .
When
Jesus was up north, he was really successful. Everything he did was wonderful.
They wanted to be part of that. He took on the powers of evil, and he won every
battle. James and John were on the winning team. They were glad to be part of
his “glory” – the Greek word is “doxa,” as in “doxology.” It’s a big, powerful,
extraordinary word. They could be famous, just like Jesus. Some of his power
could rub off on them.
The
lure of power, privilege, and status is still an attraction for those who would
follow Jesus. I see the preachers who build big glass churches and talk about
God as if they were best of friends. They learn to speak in dulcet tones and write
uplifting books, all so they might expand their reach. The cable channels ask
their advice on the latest issues of the day, and then pay an appropriate consultant
fee. Oh, Lord, give us some of your
glory!
Stop
by on a Monday and see the Christian junk mail that crosses my desk. You, too,
can have a bigger ministry, a better website, a wider reach, a deeper impact.
You can be so good that the Lord will grant you a good seat on his right or his
left. Let’s have some of that glory!
And
Jesus says, “You don’t even know what you are asking.”
Of
course they don’t. Immediately before they make this bold request, Jesus says, “I’m
going to Jerusalem and I’m going to die.” And Mark describes their response as “amazed”
and “afraid” (10:32-34). These are the same words Mark uses to describe the
people who find the tomb of Jesus is empty on Easter: they are "amazed"
and "afraid."
Just
as they were disturbed to hear on Easter that Jesus was once again on the
loose, James and John were disturbed to hear that he was first going to die. So
maybe their desire for status and power is an expression of their fear. After
all, if we sense our importance is slipping away, if we fear that we are out of
control, one response is to grab hold, and do whatever we can to advance
ourselves.
This
happens. You know it happens. I remember Christmas message of Pope France gave
last year to the inner circle of the Vatican. They were expecting to hear, as
they always have, how wonderful it is to be the leaders of the Roman church.
And the Pope said, “Like any body, we are exposed to sickness, malfunction and
infirmity. I would like to mention some of these illnesses and temptations that
weaken our service to the Lord.”
With
that, he began his diagnosis: excessive industriousness, the sickness of mental
and spiritual hardening, the ailment of rivalry and vainglory, deifying
leaders, spiritual Alzheimers, indifference to others, and (my favorite)
Funereal Face.[2] When he was done, a couple
of people clapped, probably out of habit. The rest, I think, were “amazed” and “afraid.”
I mean, who does the Pope think he is, calling church leaders on the carpet for
their arrogance?
Self-importance
seeps into our life in all kinds of ways. It’s in our culture. It’s in the air
we breathe. A friend in New York told me about going to a “recital” of vocal
students in his town. They didn’t sing very well, he said, but they had worked
on their stage presence. These were ten year olds, who had memorized the moves
of “The Voice,” “Dancing with the Stars,” “America’s Got Talent,” and all the
rest. It was glory, glory, glory, with all the requisite red sequin shimmy. The
message was clear: these kids weren’t only aiming for the stars; they were
aiming to be stars.
What
is the appeal of glory? Is it the hunger to be better than the people around
us? Do we want external affirmation because of some internal deficit? Do we
believe that if we get a bit of glory, we can be exempt from any suffering?
Jesus
is pretty clear with James and John: you will suffer, just like me, just like
anybody else. You will drink the cup that
I drink, his blood shed for us. You
will be baptized as he was baptized, with the sign of the cross. Nobody
gets a pass on such things, especially if they are following Jesus.
Here
is the secret, the great open secret: as we follow Jesus, and claim him as our
Teacher and Lord, the get-ahead values of the world are not going to matter. The
abundant life of God is not about more money, a bigger job, or more prestige
and power. It’s not about getting a fast new car so you can zoom by the
ordinary people and get ahead. No, it’s about finding our life’s purpose by
serving others and setting them free from whatever enslaves them.
Here,
at the end of this passage, Jesus talks about the purpose of his self-giving
death on the cross. It’s the only time he says it in the Gospel of Mark. He
gives his life as a “ransom” payment. He comes to set people free from the
powers of evil that want to kidnap us, from the powers of destruction that hold
us hostage. He gives his life to liberate people from the Devil and from
themselves. Jesus is a Servant, and that is his service.
And
for those who are invited to follow him – and those who choose to follow him – our
greatest purpose comes in serving others. We follow Christ by setting others
free from the ignorance and the suffering and the sickness that enslaves them. The
truly Christian life is never about us and our own advancement. It’s about
loving God so much that we then love our neighbors, and do what is best for
their well-being.
One
of the people who reflects on this is the late Dutch priest, Henri Nouwen. He
wrote a book called “The Selfless Way of Christ: Downward Mobility and the
Spiritual Life.” Here’s what he says:
“The way of the Christian leader is not
the way of upward mobility in which the world has invested so much, but the way
of downward mobility ending on the cross… It is not a leadership of power and
control, but a leadership of powerless and humility in which the suffering
servant of God, Jesus Christ, is made manifest.”[3]
For Father Nouwen, downward mobility was
not merely an idea. It was a life-giving practice of faith. After a career of teaching
at Notre Dame, Yale, and Harvard, he sensed the calling to become a chaplain at
Daybreak, a community of adults with mental and developmental disabilities in
Toronto. He struggled with his Ivy League ideas as he worked with people who
were unable to spell their own names, but their joyful spirits reflected the
joy of Jesus Christ.
He tells about an invitation to give
three lectures at an institute in Washington, D.C. His community at Daybreak
believed he should take along a resident for the event. After all, Jesus sent
out his disciples two by two. So, they said, “take Bill Van Buren. He can be
your assistant.” Henri was sensitive to Bill and his rather profound needs, but
he wondered how this was going to work.
They flew down to Washington, checked
into the hotel, and then went to the hall where Henri would speak. As the host
introduced Father Nouwen in glowing and effusive terms, Henri wondered how Bill
Van Buren would be able to assist. When Henri stood to the applause, his first
speech in a leather folder, Bill stood up with him, and stood behind Henri at
the podium.
Then something extraordinary happened.
As Henri finished page one of his speech, Bill stepped up, lifted the page, and
put it face down on a side table. Henri went on to page two, and then Bill took
the page when he was finished and put it face down on page one. He was the
assistant! Henri relaxed and the speech went on.
When he was done, people applauded, and
Bill said, “Can I say something too?” Henri froze and thought, “What’s he going
to say?” Bill stepped up and said, “I am very glad to be with you. Thank you
very much.”
There was more applause, and as they
returned to their speech, he turned to the priest and said, “How did you like my
speech?” Henri said, “Bill, it was very good.” Bill beamed and said, “We did it
together, didn’t we!” Yes they did.[4]
All of us are in this together. When it
comes to living the love of God, none of us need to get ahead, and all of us
are called to serve. Jesus says, “I came to serve; not to be served, but to
serve.”
Anybody who would follow him will do the same.
(c) William G. Carter. All rights reserved.
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