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JESUS’ SERVANT LEADERSHIP
JESUS’ SERVANT LEADERSHIP Mark 10:32-45 Key Verse: 10:45 “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” In this passage Jesus teaches what true greatness is, and how to be great. Everyone wants to be great. The root of the desire to be great is not bad. It is part of our God given humanity. As God told Abraham, “I will make your name great” (Gen 12:2), so he wants us to be great, not petty. The problem is that many people do not know what true greatness is. They only know the worldly greatness of the power hierarchy. They try to seize opportunities to climb the ladder of success. A few people succeed, but most people fail. Many are wounded, hurt and embittered. People are suffering in this hierarchical system. It seems as though there is no way out. But there is. In today’s passage Jesus shows us that anyone and everyone can become great. Let’s learn from Jesus. First, the request of James and John (32-41). They were on their way up to Jerusalem (32a). Jesus was well aware of his impending suffering and death. No one wants to suffer and die. But Jesus was resolute in going the way of the Messiah according to God’s will. Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him (32b). Jesus would be condemned by the Jewish leaders and be executed by Gentiles—that is crucified. Before his crucifixion, he would be mocked, spit on and flogged—that is beaten severely with a whip. As Jesus spoke of a serious event, what were the disciples thinking? James and John came to Jesus and said, “Teacher we want you to do for us whatever we ask” (35). They demanded as if Jesus owed them something. We might feel that they need to be sent to a North Korean training camp. But what did Jesus do? He said, “What do you want me to do for you?” (36) Despite their selfishness and immaturity, Jesus was ready to do whatever would be good for them. Spurred on by Jesus’ generosity, they quickly replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory” (37). Let’s try to understand James and John. As they approached Jerusalem, they became anxious. They expected Jesus to soon die and rise again and then establish his kingdom, appointing his cabinet members. They wanted to become the top leaders, because they were ambitious. But always, Peter was ahead of them. Peter seemed to be their only real rival for the top spot. They tried to defeat him, but they always lost. When Peter pleased Jesus by confessing him as the Messiah, they were not happy. But when Peter was rebuked just a few minutes later, they became very happy. They suffered from jealousy and had a competitive spirit. They thought that if Andrew had not brought Peter to Jesus, they would have been the top disciples. Realizing that they would not obtain the top positions based on their performance, they colluded with each other for the purpose of defeating Peter. This is not just their problem, but it is our problem too. Wherever we go, “Peter” is there. Some people try to escape from “Peter” by moving to another place. But they find “Peter” there too. Competition is not always bad; it stimulates us to produce the best result if we have a right motive to please God. But when practiced with selfish ambition, it becomes divisive and destructive. That is why Philippians 2:3 says, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit.” When Jesus heard James and John’s reply, he must have been surprised at their worldly desire and sneaky method. Yet he was still patient with them and had hope for them. Jesus wanted them to realize that there was a cost to having such a position. Jesus said, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?” (38). Here “the cup” refers to God’s wrath poured out against human sin (Jer 25:15; Lk 22:42). “Baptism” refers to his suffering and death. Jesus was willing to share his glory with them if they would also participate in his suffering. Completely misunderstanding Jesus, they said, “We can.” They were ready to do anything to get what they really wanted. Surprisingly, Jesus accepted their answer, saying, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with…” (39). As Jesus predicted, James became the first martyr among the Twelve (Ac 12:2). John lived the longest life among the Twelve and suffered a lot; he was even exiled on the island of Patmos for Christ (Rev 1:9). However, Jesus could not promise them seats at his right and left; that depended on God’s sovereign will (40). When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John (41). It was because they had the same desire for positions and felt usurped by James and John. This matter had begun to divide Jesus’ disciples and they were in danger of forming factions. Selfish ambition to become the greatest among Christian brothers and sisters always begets serious consequences: jealousy, strife, division, hatred, bitterness and dissension. It dishonors God and can destroy the Christian community. Second, Jesus teaches his disciples servant leadership (42-45). How did Jesus deal with this? Instead of being upset, Jesus used this as an opportunity to teach his disciples servant leadership. Jesus 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” (42). In the world, to become great means having a position of authority and exercising it from the top down. In order to do this, one needs a title or position with authority. Then and now, people see others as competitors and take advantage of their position for their own benefit. They are willing to trample on the people under them to advance their own position. So there is always a power struggle going on. In order to win this power struggle, people are ready to betray anyone. There are no real friendships. No one can be trusted. There is always tension, which leads to great stress, migraine headaches and heart palpitations. People have no peace, and can hardly sleep. The disciples knew this very well and blamed the Gentile rulers. Still, they were becoming just like them. Jesus said to them, “Not so with you” (43a). What does this mean? It means that their mindset, value system and lifestyle should be different from Gentile rulers. Jesus introduced a totally different concept of leadership in the Christian community. How should they be different? Jesus said, “Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all” (43-44). Jesus did not deny their desire to become great. He only taught them how to become truly great. The word “whoever” means this is a general principle which applies universally. It indicates that anyone willing to practice his teaching can become great. It is not limited to a few people as it is in the power hierarchy. Anyone and everyone can be great. The problem is how. Jesus said, “must be your servant” and “must be slave of all.” Here Jesus urges us to learn the attitude of a servant or a slave in order to become great. This was revolutionary. In Plato’s “Republic,” the ideal city founded by Socrates was characterized by four virtues: wisdom, courage, moderation and justice. Under Plato’s influence, those who wanted to be leaders tried to cultivate these virtues. At that time, servants and slaves were hardly regarded as human beings; they were living tools. It was unthinkable for one with the attitude of a servant or slave to be a leader. Servantship was not regarded as a virtue at all, but as a duty. But since Jesus introduced servantship as the most important virtue to become a leader, many have pursued it. High officials are often called “public servants.” Especially this is the most essential quality for a church leader. Hearing Jesus’ words must have shocked his disciples. As difficult as it was to hear, it is even harder to practice. There had never been an example, and they needed one. That is why Jesus pointed them to his own example. Let’s read verse 45. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” The word “even” is significant. As the messianic title “Son of Man” indicates, Jesus is God (Jn 1:1). He could be the exception to this teaching. But even Jesus became a servant. Therefore, there is no exception; anyone and everyone who wants to be great must learn this servantship. Servantship is grounded in humility. Humility is not just a means to attain a goal. Humility is neither temporary nor training for the next step. It is a mindset before God and the imitation of Christ on the most foundational level. So Apostle Paul urges believers: “In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus…” (Php 2:5). Jesus’ servant leadership began with how he saw himself. Though he is in very nature God, he did not think he should be equal with God. Rather, he gave up his rights and privileges as God, in an act of renunciation. Jesus set aside his power and glory and took on the weaknesses of human flesh. Even among human beings, Jesus became a servant, not a ruler. He said, “I am among you as one who serves” (Lk 22:27c). Jesus served his disciples, caring for them one by one, bearing all their weaknesses, and even washing their dirty feet (Jn 13:5). Afterward, Jesus said, “I have set you an example, that you should do as I have done for you” (Jn 13:15). In order to serve others as he did, Jesus denied the desire to be served. Everyone wants to be valued by others and to feel important, even though they are not. Everyone wants to be respected by others and to become somebody, even though they are nobody. It is a deeply rooted human desire. Though Jesus was worthy of all honor, glory and praise from all human beings (Rev 5:12), he denied this desire. Rather, he served others. Serving is not just doing menial acts for others, like a waiter at a dinner table. Serving is not just doing good deeds such as giving a gift or buying a meal. Serving is not a means to become great. Serving has a much deeper meaning; it is to be transformed by learning of Christ. Duane Elmer is an honorary Professor of International Studies at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. In his book, “Cross-Cultural Servanthood,” he describes the elements of serving: openness, acceptance, trust, learning and understanding. The process of serving is not static, but dynamic. These elements are interrelated in terms of serving. In order to serve someone, we need to open our hearts and welcome them so they may feel comfortable. We need to accept them as they are, even though they are quite different than us. Then they can feel that they are valued. We should build trust by respecting others as human beings made in God’s image. A sign of this trust is the sharing of something very personal. Regarding learning, we should not teach one-sidedly, but learn mutually. Learning from others signals humility and willingness to identify with them. Understanding comes as we learn from and with others. Without understanding we cannot serve others properly, but only irritate them. When all of these elements are present in our serving, we can say that we serve others truly. In order to serve mankind to the full measure, Jesus gave everything, even his own life, as a ransom for our sins. Jesus’ example of serving was the total sacrifice of himself. Jesus’ servantship has had a huge impact on the world. So many people have followed Jesus’ example and lived a truly great life. Take, for example, Abraham Lincoln. When he began his career as a lawyer, Edward Stanton opposed him in many ways. Once Stanton said, “We don’t need to go to Africa to see a gorilla. If we go to Springfield, Illinois we meet Gorilla Lincoln.” After Lincoln was elected president, Stanton continued to attack him, saying that his election was a “national disaster.” Everyone noticed that he was an enemy of Lincoln. When Lincoln formed his Cabinet, he appointed Stanton as Secretary of War, the most important position at that time of the Civil War. Lincoln’s aides strongly opposed this. Lincoln responded, “I don’t care if he despises me 100 times. I cannot find such a qualified person as him to overcome this crisis.” His aides responded, “Still, he is an enemy. We must get rid of him.” Lincoln said with a smile, “I also think so. We should get rid of our enemies from our hearts. When we practice Jesus’ words, ‘Love your enemy,’ we can make our enemies our friends. Then our enemy will be gone and we will earn a friend. We can kill two birds with one stone.” Stanton became a friend and coworker of Lincoln. He overcame many hardships in uniting America. Later, when Lincoln was killed, Stanton was more sorrowful than others and said at his funeral, “Here the greatest man has been laid.” |
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