The Request of James and John
THE SEVENTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY
35 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.” 36 And he said to them, “What is it you want me to do for you?” 37 And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” 38 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?” 39 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; 40 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.”
41 When the ten heard this, they began to be angry with James and John. 42 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. 43 But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. 45 For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.”
Power, Prestige and Position, where do they belong in a Christian’s vocabulary?
Today’s Gospel reading is all about these topics. James and John were trying to use their influence to get into the top positions in God’s kingdom and Jesus would have none of it. In fact, Jesus offers a concise description of the Roman political system and commands his followers to live very differently. In our society today, 2020, who are some of the people considered “great ones?” Perhaps politicians, entertainment celebrities, professional athletes, or entrepreneurs? Think to yourself for a second – I’m sure a name or two will come to mind. Are these “great ones” servants to anyone or anything other than their own ego? Jesus’s teaching was radical 2000 years ago, and it’s radical today. But Our Lord speaks clearly: it is not so among you. Whoever wishes to be first among those who follow Me must be slave of all.
What I like about the Bible is that it is so real. The leaders of the Early Church are shown in all their humanity - warts and all.
And in our Gospel reading we see them- once again getting it wrong. And yet it was on the back of these disciples, that Jesus chose to build his church.
That gives me heart. Because – even though I get it wrong – God doesn’t give up on me.
Imagine if Jesus had sent the resumes of the 12 apostles off to a management consultancy team for evaluation. I wonder what might have come back.
Perhaps an email like this:
Dear Rabbi Jesus:
Thank you for submitting the resumes of the 12 men you have picked for managerial positions in your new organization.
We have evaluated them against the norms required for “Senior Corporate Managers” and find that most of your nominees are lacking in background, educational and vocational aptitude for the type of bold, visionary enterprise you are undertaking.
Furthermore, they do not appear to have any concept of team and so we would suggest that you continue your search for persons with experience and proven capability. To the specifics:
Simon barJonah (who you also refer to as Peter) is emotionally unstable and given to fits of temper. He is not the sort of person you can rely on in a crisis to keep his cool.
His brother Andrew, and Philip too, seem to be followers and seem to have no leadership skills at all. When presented with a hypothetical scenario regarding the procurement and distribution of loaves and fishes, Andrew demonstrated a complete lack of vision.
James and John bar Zebedee place personal interest above company loyalty. Further they seem to have a temperamental flaw – I believe you described them as the “Sons of Thunder”. This puts a serious question mark about how they will react under pressure.
Thomas demonstrates a rather unhealthy questioning attitude that will tend to undermine morale.
We feel that it is our duty to inform you that Matthew has been blacklisted by the Judaean Better Business Bureau. His Google Reviews as an income tax consultant are abysmal.
Our background check on James barAlphaeus and Simon the Zealot (also known as Thaddeus) have revealed that they have radical ideological leanings. Simon the Zealot is closely associated with an extremist terrorist movement.
We wonder how much Nathaniel’s heart is in the mission of your ministry. Like Thomas he has an unhealthy questioning attitude and appears to be a negative influence.
There is only candidate who shows great potential. He is a man of ability and resourcefulness. He interacts well with people well, has a keen business mind, understands finance, and is decisive. He has contacts with influential people in high places and is highly motivated, ambitious, and responsible.
We recommend that you take Judas Iscariot on as your Chief Operating Officer.
Yours sincerely,
J. Barabbas
But actually this is the exact opposite of what God chose.
God’s ways are not man’s ways.
Conventional wisdom says that you should strive for position, prestige, and power.
We are all taught - from an early age - that it is a jungle out there and we have to strive to get ahead.
This is how James and John reacted in our Gospel reading this morning. And indeed how the remaining 10 also reacted.
To sit on Christ’s right hand and on his left was tantamount to asking to be the “power behind the throne” in God’s kingdom – with authority just behind that of Jesus. They wanted to use their friendship – and possibly there were related to Jesus – to secure the top spots for themselves.
But this is not the way God works. God is looking for servant leaders: Look what Jesus 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." Mk 10:42-45
Because service is the heart of Christian leadership.
And there may be a high cost connected to that. Jesus asked James and John "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. (Mk 10:38-39)
Jesus was clearly alluding to his own upcoming death on the Cross – and probably prophetically to James’ execution for the faith – the second Christian martyr recorded in the book of Acts (Acts 12:2)
If we want to see God’s kingdom spread in our community and in our country – we must be prepared to give our lives for it.
A few years ago, I read an inspiring book about the life of the Chinese House Church leader – Brother Yun. It is estimated that there are 60 million Chinese Christians in the House Church Movement. Yet what strikes me about Brother Yun’s story is his humility. He was prepared to suffer to fulfill God’s calling in his life. A real servant’s heart. After being imprisoned for his faith and Christian witness, he was exiled and has lived in Germany since the early 2000s
Can I commend the book to you: The Heavenly Man by Brother Yun and Paul Hathaway. It was awarded the "Christian Book of the Year" by the UK Christian Booksellers Convention in 2003. The title comes from the name by which Brother Yun was known amongst the house church networks. He gained that name from one night of interrogation when he would only answer "I am a Heavenly Man!", instead of revealing his true name, in order to protect other Christians from the secret police.
Jesus is the Servant–King. To the world that seems like an oxymoron. A king doesn’t serve – or does he. The challenge from the Gospel reading this morning is that as Christians we are called to be countercultural. In many parts of our country, “cultural Christianity” is well entrenched. We see Christian symbols on bumper stickers, on businesses, and even on cupcakes – all pointing to a Christian “culture.” But if cultural Christianity were actually the Christianity of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, my friend Thomas would not be sleeping in the open air on the streets of Waxahachie.
Ours is not to seek positions of influence and power. Our calling is to serve, with all of our gifts in the Church to which Jesus has called us. And Christian leaders are called not to be dictators but to serve even more.
Look again at what Jesus said:
…whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. (Mk 10:43-44)
If we, as Christians, seriously want to follow the Master, St. Paul gives us a challenge:
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death--even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Amen.
