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Now they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was going before them; and they were amazed. And as they followed they were afraid. Then He took the twelve aside again and began to tell them the things that would happen to Him. "Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death and deliver Him to the Gentiles; and they will mock Him, and scourge Him, and spit on Him, and kill Him. And the third day He will rise again."
Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Him, saying, "Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask." And He said to them, "What do you want Me to do for you?" They said to Him, "Grant us that we may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on Your left, in Your glory." But Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?" They said to Him, "We are able." So Jesus said to them, "You will indeed drink the cup that I drink, and with the baptism I am baptized with you will be baptized; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared." And when the ten heard it, they began to be greatly displeased with James and John. But Jesus called them to Himself and said to them, "You know that those who are considered rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant. And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of 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 10:32-45
Yesterday, we read that as Jesus was going out on the road, one came running, knelt before Him, and asked Him, "Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?" So Jesus said to him, "Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery,' 'Do not murder,' 'Do not steal,' 'Do not bear false witness,' 'Do not defraud,' 'Honor your father and your mother.'" And he answered and said to Him, "Teacher, all these things have I kept from my youth." Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, "One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me." But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. Then Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, "How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!" And the disciples were astonished at His words. But Jesus answered again and said to them, "Children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." And they were greatly astonished, saying among themselves, "Who then can be saved?" But Jesus looked at them and said, "With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible." Then Peter began to say to Him, "See, we have left all and followed You." So Jesus answered and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel's, who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time -- houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions -- and in the age to come, eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first."
Now they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was going before them; and they were amazed. And as they followed they were afraid. Then He took the twelve aside again and began to tell them the things that would happen to Him. "Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death and deliver Him to the Gentiles; and they will mock Him, and scourge Him, and spit on Him, and kill Him. And the third day He will rise again." Heading toward Jerusalem, the disciples are amazed and afraid, because they know that hostility awaits. Far from reassuring them in a conventional sort of sense of denial, Jesus teaches them for the third time what is to happen at His Passion -- and this time, in more detail than before. But my study bible says that in fact these repeated predictions were intended to encourage and strengthen them: they will be prepared and forewarned, and understand also what Jesus is undertaking voluntarily. There is also the mysterious assurance that "on the third day He will rise again."
Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Him, saying, "Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask." And He said to them, "What do you want Me to do for you?" They said to Him, "Grant us that we may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on Your left, in Your glory." But Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?" They said to Him, "We are able." So Jesus said to them, "You will indeed drink the cup that I drink, and with the baptism I am baptized with you will be baptized; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared." Once again, the disciples engage in activity that is a kind of competition, with a "worldly" sense of power on display. James and John Zebedee, part of His inner circle (together with Peter), ask for places of highest honor in His Kingdom. The disciples seem to continue to assume that the story of His Passion and rising means that the Kingdom will come in all its fullness at His rise. Over the past several readings, we have discussed Jesus' teachings about power and greatness (beginning with Monday's reading, If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all). These discussions began with the dispute among the apostles as to who would be greatest in the Kingdom, and now James and John ask a similar question yet again. This time, however, Christ offers them an answer that is slightly more nuanced than before, indicating what kind of "baptism" is necessary for greatness in this Kingdom (James will be the first martyr among the Twelve, John will go for long years into exile unto old age and witness the great persecution of the Church) -- and also that it is not even His to give the positions they ask, but the Father.
And when the ten heard it, they began to be greatly displeased with James and John. But Jesus called them to Himself and said to them, "You know that those who are considered rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant. And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of 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." The rest of the disciples are (understandably) upset at what they hear. Jesus finally gives His most succinct and strong statement about the difference between the kind of power that is used in the world and the type of power He wishes to be a part of His Church and used in imitation of Himself. When Jesus speaks about the rulers over the Gentiles, He's indicating behaviors which are already scandalous to the Jews, but His definition of greatness will be a more powerful command than any of them yet understand. To give His life as a ransom "for many" is a translation of the Aramaic, in which the expression "for many" means "for all."
Over the course of this week, we have been in territory in which Jesus has taught about what it will be to be "great" in His Church, in His definition for them of what greatness is. We started on Monday with a similar subject of the disciples debating among themselves who would be greatest in His Kingdom. But from there Jesus went on to teach, in various settings, about marriage and its spiritual bond (and thereby the treatment of women), about children (even as an example of the attitude with which it is necessary to receive the Kingdom), but especially about the "little ones" -- those in the Church who are "poor in spirit," humble in their lives and status. We also received a reading about a rich young man who, in order to receive the eternal life he asked Jesus about, was taught that he must detach from his great wealth and possessions. These disciples, who will be the leaders of His Church, must be trained to accept not only the sacrifice Jesus is going to make for the sake of the gospel and the Kingdom in the world, but also their own places in taking up their own crosses and in being "baptized with Jesus' baptism." As leaders and those who will exercise authority, they must be prepared for the sacrifices that will be asked of them, "for all." Greatness, as Jesus defines it, is the capacity to be a servant -- and the desire to be first is the desire to be a slave to all. Let us keep in mind that what Jesus is teaching here isn't about ideas of sacrifice such as becoming a "doormat" to anybody who asks, or fulfilling the whims of anyone who wishes something from one of us. In fact, it's about serving His Kingdom, bringing the gospel message into the world, and living a life that is fearless in terms of making His commands our priority. In this way, one becomes a servant to all; it is the way of God's love that Jesus teaches. I think we often get encouraged to believe that to be a servant of all implies a kind of slavery to the whims of others, but this is the furthest thing from the truth that Jesus offers. It's the Kingdom that He is bringing into the world, the gospel message -- and in serving that Kingdom we can serve all. Perhaps for each one of us, what that means will differ depending upon how we each are called to serve. But it's important that we know about the discernment He teaches, the truth He teaches, the Way He teaches. Jesus' Way is the way of God's love, and the power He teaches us to use in all sorts of hierarchies and organizations, public and private -- even intimate -- is the power of love at work, and this is the truth He brings us. This is the truth He is teaching the disciples with His commands, but most powerfully with His life -- and His Passion: betrayal, condemnation, deliverance to the Gentiles, mocking, scourging, spitting, and killing. And on the third day, His rise, the Resurrection that teaches us truly who we are, what we need, and Who He is. This is not a prescription for suffering for suffering's sake, it's a promise of the Kingdom and the power to compel a loyalty that asks of us a kind of heroism that sets an example of love, of sacrifice, and the greatness and worth of this Kingdom and the life He offers, even a life unto abundance. It's what calls us to what is best for all of us, and for each of us.
