The Fourth Sunday in Lent
March 26, 2017
Matthew 20:17-28
Destination: Calvary
Stop #4— A Mother’s Request
Now as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!” Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him. “What is it you want?” he asked. She said, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.” “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said to them. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?” “We can,” they answered. Jesus said to them, “You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.” When the ten heard about this, they were indignant with the two brothers. Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (NIV1984)
Dear fellow Lenten worshipers,
It pretty much goes without saying that a mother always wants the very best for her children. No matter how many times we may hear in the news that a mother has done something to harm her own children we are always shocked when something like that takes place— and rightly so. The bond between a mother and her child is one of the strongest bonds known to mankind. The bond between a mother and her child is a bond that will lead a mother to put her children and their needs ahead of herself and her own needs. For example, if there isn’t enough milk to go around the children get it first. If little Joey or little Sally needs shoes Mom will forgo something she needs and buy those shoes. Mom will stay up late and help with homework because she knows the importance of her child’s education. Mom will drive the children back and forth to practices and to work because she wants them to learn the importance of teamwork and responsibility. It just seems as though part and parcel of being a mother is to always want the very best for your children.
As we continue our Lenten journey on the train called Destination Calvary today we pull into Stop #4. At this stop we are given an opportunity to hear: A Mother’s Request. Today let’s see how this mother’s request leads us to examine and if necessary re-focus our lives.
As Matthew tells us in the opening verse of our text Jesus and His disciples were going up to Jerusalem. Jesus, of course, knew exactly what was going to happen to Him in Jerusalem. On two separate occasions Jesus had already told His disciples that once they reached Jerusalem He would be betrayed, crucified and then rise to life again on the third day. (See Matthew 16:21; 17:22-23) This is now the third time that Jesus explains to His disciples what is about to happen. Now, however, Jesus includes even more detail as He emphasizes that as the Son of Man He was going to Jerusalem so that He could suffer and die for the sins of all people.
In light of the fact that Jesus is predicting His own suffering and death the “favor” that the mother of James and John asks of Jesus might seem rather strange. Mom’s request to Jesus was, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.” Like many Christians right down to this very day the disciples mistakenly believed that Jesus was going to establish a powerful visible kingdom right here on this earth. In fact, even on the very day that Jesus ascended into heaven His disciples were still confused about this! As they stood with Jesus on the Mount of Ascension they asked Him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6) Misunderstanding the nature of Jesus’ kingdom and wanting only the best for her two boys, the mother of James and John asks Jesus to grant to her sons the two highest positions in the Lord’s kingdom— one at His right and the other at His left. In a very gentle way Jesus responds to this request by saying, “’You don’t know what you are asking…Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?’ ‘We can,’ they answered. Jesus said to them, ‘You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.’”
The “cup” that Jesus refers to here is the cup of suffering that He was about to endure both in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:39) as well as on the cross of Calvary’s hill. And while James and John did not yet fully understand what Jesus meant when He said to them, “You will indeed drink from my cup,” they would understand completely in the not too distant future. James would willingly drink from this cup when King Herod had him executed for faithfully proclaiming Jesus as this world’s only Savior from sin (See Acts 12:1-2). John would willingly drink from this cup as he was exiled to the island of Patmos “because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus” (Revelation 1:9). In the end Jesus did grant this mother’s request— just not in the way anyone had anticipated.
Now lest we think that James and John were the only disciples who had misguided dreams of power and authority Matthew goes on to tell us in our text, “When the ten heard about this, they were indignant with the two brothers.” On more than one occasion Jesus’ disciples had tussled for a higher position in the pecking order. On more than one occasion Jesus’ disciples had argued over which of them was the greatest. (See Mark 9:33-37; Luke 9:46-48; Luke 22:24) Once again showing His amazing patience Jesus gently explains to His disciples that greatness and power and prestige in the Lord’s kingdom are very different from the greatness and power and prestige of this world. The world’s definition of greatness, power and prestige is very often summed up in one word— “control.” From the world’s perspective the person who has control, the person who is “calling the shots,” the person who is telling other people what to do and how to do it, the person who has the ability to get other people to fulfill their wants, their needs and their desires— that is a “great” and “powerful” person! In the Lord’s kingdom greatness is also summed up in just one simple word. In God’s kingdom, however, that word is— service.
As we mentioned before, James and John together with all the other disciples still had a long ways to go before they learned what it means to be truly great in the kingdom of God. Once these men were led to understand that Jesus’ mission was never to establish a powerful visible kingdom here on this earth, once these men were led to understand that Jesus’ mission here on this earth was always to crush Satan’s head by shedding His holy precious blood to take away the sins of the world, once these men were led to understand that Jesus’ mission was and still is to establish His kingdom in our hearts so that as our King He might rule over us with His grace and mercy and forgiveness— then these men understood in their hearts, they confessed with their mouths and they revealed in their lives exactly what their Savior meant when He said, “Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Do we have people here in our congregation whom God Himself would consider to be “great”? Absolutely! But they are not necessarily the people who live in the biggest houses or drive the nicest cars or wear the best clothes or have the most money. The greatest people in our congregation, the greatest people in any Christian congregation are the people who regularly gaze upon the cross of Jesus Christ to see how God’s Son willingly served them and then humbly strive to serve others in His Name.
Are you among these great people? How about you? What about you? There is only one way to answer that question, my friends— and it is indeed a question that needs to be answered. To answer that question all you have to do is examine your own heart, examine your own life and see if you are more like James and John as we see them here in our text or if you are more like James and John when they truly became great in the kingdom of God. Would you love to have a position of power and prestige whether in the world or in the church? Would you love to have other people look up to you in admiration? Or are you actively striving to look for ways to humbly serve your Savior by humbly serving others?
I think it is important for all of us to realize and remember that when we were baptized in the name of the Triune God, when by the power of the Holy Spirit we were brought into God’s glorious kingdom of grace we were given at least one of the spiritual gift. There are no exceptions. There is no such thing as a “non-gifted Christian.” There is no one who can say, “There is nothing I can do.” Each and every one of you has been given certain spiritual gifts for a singular purpose: so that you might use those gifts to serve your Savior by serving others. The Lord makes this abundantly clear when He says in I Peter 4:10, “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.” The Lord also says in Romans 12:6-8, “If a man’s gift is …serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.”
I cannot tell you what spiritual gifts the good Lord has given to you. But, the Lord who has given you your gifts can and will help you to discover what gifts He has given you! How can you discover your gifts? Try them on for size! Take a portion of Scripture such as Romans 12 and put it someplace where you will see it on a regular basis. Perhaps you could make a copy of it and put it up on your refrigerator or make it a part of your daily Bible readings. Then one by one work your way through the spiritual gifts that God continues to give to His church. Each month take one of these spiritual gifts and prayerfully put it into practice in your life. You will be amazed and perhaps even pleasantly surprised when all of a sudden the Lord reveals your gift or gifts to you. Once you have discovered your gifts then use them! Use them in humble faithful service to your Savior God. Use them in humble faithful service to others.
The train that we are calling Destination Calvary pulled into Stop #4 this morning for at least two reasons, my friends. First and foremost, our train stopped here on our Lenten journey so that you would once again have the opportunity to lift up your eyes to the cross and remember how Jesus willingly served you by giving His life as a ransom for you. At the same time our train stopped here today so that by looking at this mother’s request you might be reminded of how you can humbly respond to what your Savior has done for you by striving to be great in His kingdom through a life of grateful service.
To God be the glory!
Amen