Reading in Mark this morning and noticed how Jesus' teaching on service- while I've read it before- was always in response to something else happening, and not just some pithy teaching he was giving.
- Mark 9:33-36- the disciples are jockeying for 'cabinet' like positions in Jesus' kingdom and so when Jesus calls them on it, his reply isn't "shame on you" but rather "whoever wants to be first must take last place and be the servant of everyone else"
- Mark 10:17-31- Jesus is asked by a rich man how he can inherit eternal life and Jesus' eventual reply is by selling everything he has. He leaves disappointed and the disciples are stunned because if a rich guy isn't making it to heaven, then no one has a shot. Jesus concludes the whole upside-down encounter by saying "those who seem least important now will be the greatest then"
- Mark 10:35-45- here James and John ask to be Jesus' #1 and #2 right-hand men in his new kingdom- a pretty bold request. When the other 10 hear of it, you can just imagine the "unfair" comments coming from their mouths. Again, Jesus resets what his kingdom is about when he says "whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else"
Want to be great?
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