The Book of Mark #65 chapter 10:35-45
The Book of Mark
The Greatness of Being a Slave
Mark 10:35-45
 
Mark 10:35-45
 
Once again, we hear the Lord talking about the greatness of humility.  We heard it in chapter 9, verse 33.  We’ll hear again when we get to the Upper Room just before the arrest and crucifixion when Jesus will illustrate it by washing the feet of His disciples and telling them to follow His example.  And we see it hear in chapter 10. 
 
This is about the greatness of humility, the greatness of service and it is presented in vivid contrast to the ugliness of pride.  The bottom line in Scripture is that God hates pride and honors humility.
 
Any student of Scripture knows that because it is literally everywhere on the pages of Scripture.  It’s found over and over in the Proverbs.  You see it in the Psalms and Prophets.  It shows up in the book of Romans, 1 Timothy and James. 
 
We are told to put on humility, to be clothed with humility, and to walk in humility. We discover God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. 
 
That is because the defining sin of humanity is pride. All other sins feed pride. All temptations are rooted in pride.  The reason a temptation is a temptation is because you want to do it and pride makes sure we get what we deserve.
 
 
This is a very, deep-seated reality in human beings that goes all the way back to the original sin of Lucifer in Heaven. 
 
And that’s why our Lord is placing such emphasis on this particular part of the lesson plan.  These guys live closer to the Lord than anybody in human history.  They love Jesus, they love the truth, they believe in Him, they believe in His Kingdom, they are saved, they have been regenerated, the Holy Spirit is with them and they still struggle with pride, and apparently they keep failing the lesson because the Lord keeps repeating the material. 
 
It was not easy for them and it’s not easy for us either to learn humility.  So we ought to listen closely to what we see here before us in this text. 
 
It unfolds around two possible paths to greatness. The truth is there is only one path to greatness, but the text suggests two.  One is theoretical and one is actual.
 
And just for the sake of our study let’s call path number 1
 
1. The Path of Self-Promotion
 
The path of self-promotion is marked by three primary characteristics. 
 
First, it’s motivated by
 
  • selfish ambition
 
verse 35
 
Here we see James and John.  They are called “the sons of thunder”.  They are brash, bold men. It’s rather interesting that such men were in the inner circle of the Lord.  Along with Peter, they were the closest to Jesus. 
 
They were there at the Transfiguration.  They have been in on the private conversations.  And they are convinced they are above and beyond the rest of the men.  And now the time has come to make their move as they ask about privilege and rank in the coming Kingdom.
 
But it’s not just them. Matthew tells us their mother came with them.  We know they are the Sons of a man named Zebedee and Matthew 20:20 says momma came along for this request for position in the Kingdom of God.
 
Now why would you bring your mother? I mean, grow up and be a man!  Well it’s not just that they brought their mother, it’s who their mother was. When you study the crucifixion of Christ in the account of Matthew, Mark and John, you see three women at the cross.
 
You find Mary, the mother of our Lord, Mary Magdalene, and a third woman. The third woman who is at the cross is identified in three different ways. Matthew calls her the mother of the sons of Zebedee.  That is to her credit.  She hung in there all the way to the cross.  So we can safely assume her to be a woman of strong faith. 
 
Matthew calls her the mother of the sons of Zebedee.
Mark calls her Salome, so now we know her name.  And John calls her the sister of Jesus’ mother. So  their mother is Jesus’ aunt.
 
So what we have is a family deal. They’re playing the family card.  So on their resume they can put not only “present at the Transfiguration and in the inner circle of the Lord”, but Your mother is our mother’s sister. Come on Cuz’, That ought to count for something!
 
And it’s rather surprising, but she bought into it. She didn’t ask anything for herself, but like many mothers, she will find her fulfillment in the accolades of the kids!
 
And Matthew says she came in a reverential way hoping to influence the decision of Jesus regarding the request of her sons.  This is not just personal ambition, this is not a whimsy.  This is a family plot.  Everybody’s in on it and they’re going to gang up on Jesus and use the family card to get what they want. 
 
And notice the arrogance of the request:
 
Verse 35
 
They want the answer before they make the request.  Much like a kid beggin their parent to say “yes” before they know what they’re going to ask, James and John and Salome approach the Lord in that way! 
 
This is a blank check kind of request.  You just give us the go-ahead and we’ll fill in the details. 
 
 
So why do they ask that way?  Well, why do kids ask like that?  They know if they tell you what they want, you’ll say “no” so if they can spin it just right and put a little pressure on and have momma show up for a little extra pressure, maybe in an emotional moment you’ll say “yes”. 
 
So Jesus asks the logical, expected question. 
 
Verses 36-37
 
Isn’t that arrogant?  The Lord has been teaching and instructing them about humility and modeling it in His own life and they’re audacious enough to ask for the two places of rule directly under Him!  I don’t think they get it!
 
And it is certainly contrary to the Lord’s teaching to put others before yourselves!  What about the other apostles?  I guess they can just get in line after James and John!  Surely this was a part of the motivation that caused the Lord to tell them in the Upper Room,  “The world will know that you’re My disciples when you have love for one another.”
 
What an ugly, un-Christ-like attitude!  And it’s driven by this self-promoting ambition!  But that’s the way it is in the world.
 
There’s another feature of pride that rears its ugly head as well.  Selfish ambition is accompanied by
 
  • arrogant over-confidence
 
verse 37
 
 
Now in their defense, we do find evidence that they are convinced Jesus is the Messiah and the Kingdom and throne is His.  That’s some good theology and that had gone that far. 
 
And they are simply applying the world’s way of operation to the coming rule of the Messiah.  In ancient times kings elevated the people who were the very highest to their right and left hand. And that’s what they wanted.  They think they’re entitled to it. They’re worthy of it. And giving them the benefit of the doubt, this may have been their way of saying, “We will be true to you.  We are the most loyal supporters you’ve got.”
 
But notice how Jesus responds. 
 
Verse 38
 
Drinking the cup and being baptized are references to His sufferings and what Jesus is saying is, “You’re asking to be elevated in the Kingdom but do you understand that the reward of ruling is directly related to the amount of suffering you endure?”
 
That’s the principle here. You want glory; you don’t want suffering. When Jesus talked about His cross, they didn’t want to ask any questions about it. They didn’t want any more information.  They just wanted it to go away.
 
We hear that in Peter’s voice when he says, “Lord, that will never happen to you.”  They didn’t want anything to do with that. They didn’t want any suffering for Him. They didn’t want any suffering for them.   In fact, that was the farthest thing from their minds. Proof?
Verse 39
 
We are able. That is arrogant over-confidence.  It’s an over-estimation based on ignorance and pride. It assumes that it can accomplish anything.
 
What happens before the crucifixion is over? Matthew 26:56 says, “They all forsook Him and fled.” They couldn’t handle it. Here they wanted all the glory in the Kingdom but when it came time to proved they were worthy of the glory, they weren’t around for the fight. 
 
And characteristically, the Lord answers them in a very gentle way.
 
verses 39-40
 
That’s a prophecy.  Regarding the suffering, it would come.  James is the first of the Apostles to fall.  He had his head cut off.  John died a slow, lonely, disappointing death as an exile at the end of the century on the island of Patmos which was basically a prison island.
 
But even though the suffering would come, Jesus says, “The decision about authority in the kingdom is not up to Me, but to the Heavenly Father”. 
 
So who will be on the right hand and the left hand of Christ in the Kingdom? I have no idea. Maybe it will be James and John.  But I do know this:  it will be the ones for whom it is prepared by our Father. Who will be the highest and the most exalted, closest to the throne of Christ in His millennial glory? Only God knows. The glory seats are His to give.
But you can rest assured they are not reserved for the arrogant, confident, glory seekers who are always pushing themselves!
 
And lest we get too critical of Jmaes and John, notice
 
Verse 41
 
So why were they upset with James and John?  IT was because they got their first.  They weren’t spiritually offended.  They just thought they were getting left out and that’s where we find the third characteristic of self-promotion. 
 
In the world of self-promotion you selfish ambition, arrogant over-confidence and   
 
  • ugly competitiveness
 
In the sinful nature, there is a need to be recognized and honored above anyone else that will step on the neck of anybody that gets in the way.  And even after the continual time in the textbook with Jesus, we will find them still arguing about their greatness in the Upper Room.  They, like us, just had a hard time humbling themselves.
 
And again, the Lord is so kind.
 
verse 42
 
School is now in session.  It’s time to hit the books.  And in so many words, the Lord says, “Guys, before we move on to some things you don’t know, I’m going to go back and cover some things you do know. “
First, verse 42, you know how the world works.  You know how rulers and authority operates.  Arrogant, self-serving, dictatorial rulers push people around and get what they want.  That’s what they do. They lord it over people. They get to the top by climbing over everybody and expecting everybody to serve and honor them.  You know that’s how they are. 
 
But in contrast to that, verse 43, that’s not how it is to be among you.  So who is “you”?  He’s talking about God’s people, life in the Kingdom of God.
 
So now we come to
 
2.  The Path of Self-Denial
 
The world may work that way, but it doesn’t work in the Kingdom. The great are not those who climb and manipulate and abuse their way to the top.  In God’s kingdom, it’s just the opposite. 
 
Verse 43b
 
You want to be great in the kingdom?  Then here’s the path.  Be
 
  • a servant
 
Literally, be a deacon, a table-waiter.  Don’t be the person that everybody serves.  Instead, be the person who serves everybody. There’s a big difference between the two. 
 
Did you ever notice that?  The fancier the restaurant you go to, the bigger the gap between the people eating and the people serving.
 I go to Burger King and fit right in!  At Café Alley, I fit better with the hired help than the people at the tables!  Jesus says, “You be the server, not the one served.” You be the table waiter. That’s what it is to be a servant.  Give your life giving people what they need. Spend your life giving people what they need.
 
And it doesn’t end there. Not only are we to be a servant, we are to be
 
  • a slave
 
verse 44
 
So what’s the difference between a servant and a slave?  Slaves were inferior to servants. Servants did a job. Slaves were owned and totally controlled.
 
And Jesus is saying, “If you want to be great in the Kingdom, then consider everybody you come in contact with to be your master. Not only do you have the opportunity to serve, you have the obligation to serve.
 
And who’s the model for that?
 
 Verse 45
 
The greatest service and the greatest slavery was exhibited by Christ.  He didn’t come to be served. He’s not like other kings. He’s not like other rulers. He didn’t come like other kings to be served. He came to serve.
 
He didn’t come merely to be lord and master.  He came also be slave of His Father and do His Father’s will.  He’s the model.  That’s the pattern.
There is one final characteristic of the life of self-denial and that is
 
  • a sacrifice
 
Notice the end of verse 45
 
“He gave His life a ransom for many”.  The ransom mentioned there is referencing the price paid for the release of a slave.   Interesting, isn’t it?  He became a slave to free the slaves. 
 
That brings to the light the truth that He became one of us.  Jesus died a substitutionary death as a slave on behalf of slaves.  And notice, the ransom was paid for “many”.
 
So why does the word “many” appear?  It’s used to present the contrast.  One the one hand, we have the Son of Man.  In contrast to the One, there are the many.  One Son of Man pays the ransom for many.
 
And through that one life, we see the path to glory in God’s Kingdom.  It is through humble sacrifice, seeing yourself as a servant and a slave.  Our example is Christ as He was lifted up and exalted by His Father and given a name above every name and the names that come under Him in the glory to come will be the names of those who have served and sacrificed and are deemed by God to be the greatest in the kingdom of Heaven. 
 
Let’s pray.