iBelin

Mark 10:32-45
32They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again he took the Twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him. 33″We are going up to Jerusalem,” he said, “and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, 34who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise.”
35Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.”
36″What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.
37They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”
38″You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”
39″We can,” they answered. Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, 40but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.”
41When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. 42Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant,44and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

How many times a day do you ask yourself or a friend a “want” question? What do you want for dinner? What do you want to do today? What do you want me to do? What do you want?

Throughout Mark’s Gospel, Jesus encounters people who want something from him. The men who lower their friend through the roof, want healing for their friend. The woman who had been sick for probably more years than Jairus’ daughter had been alive wanted to get close enough to touch Jesus. Jairus wanted to see his daughter healthy and whole again. The Canaanite mother, the deaf-mute man, the ever-present crowd that follows Jesus all only know of Jesus and come to Him.

But the request that falls from the lips of James and John, two of the people closest to Jesus and who should better than anybody else who Jesus is, is quite different. Jesus is just days away from the cross and he hears, “Master, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” Here’s what we want you to do for us. Jesus, we want greatness. We want authority and in fact, if we may be so bold, we are going to ask you for it.

Jesus is always ready to supply our needs and some of our wants, and within His will He wants us to ask for these things. But what if we included in the request for the supply of our needs this question: Jesus, what do you want me to do for you today? Or, “Jesus, how do you want me to serve my sisters and brothers?”
Let’s not lose sight of where true greatness lies. It is not in how well we seize authority or how well we are able to control other people. No, true greatness is only achieved when we emulate the greatest Servant of all. Jesus came to serve; let’s do likewise.

God of love and grace, as we draw closer and closer to the foot of the cross, we thank you for the gift of your Son. Your Son came to show us how to love and serve one another with gentleness, love and justice. Open our hearts and our hands. Re-establish our steps. Renew our understanding of servitude to you and to your people everywhere.

Minister Kymberly E. McNair
Antioch Baptist Church, Bedford Hills, NY

**During Lent and Holy Week, devotional writings will be posted by Facebook and Twitter friends who are praying and fasting together in a Daniel Fast. Read more about this “Journey to the Heart of God by clicking here.

Posted on: March 26th, 2010 in: LENT, Lent Devotional