Lenten Devotion for 29 March 2011 Anno Domini

Lenten Devotion for 29 March 2011 Anno Domini

32 And they were in the way going up to Jerusalem; and Jesus went before them: and they were amazed; and as they followed, they were afraid. And he took again the twelve, and began to tell them what things should happen unto him, 33 Saying, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be delivered unto the chief priests, and unto the scribes; and they shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles: 34 And they shall mock him, and shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him: and the third day he shall rise again. 35 And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, come unto him, saying, Master, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall desire. 36 And he said unto them, What would ye that I should do for you? 37 They said unto him, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory. 38 But Jesus said unto them, Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? 39 And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized: 40 But to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is not mine to give; but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared. 41 And when the ten heard it, they began to be much displeased with James and John. 42 But Jesus called them to him, and saith unto them, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. 43 But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: 44 And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. 45 For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. (Mark 10:32-45)

This, to me, is one of the saddest accounts given in the Gospel. Christ is fully aware of the humiliation and hurt that awaits Him in Jerusalem. He shares this knowledge, as He has done countless other times, with His Apostles. “Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be delivered unto the chief priests, and unto the scribes; and they shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles: 34 And they shall mock him, and shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him: and the third day he shall rise again.” The only explanation that I can imagine for the thoughtlessness and complacency of the Apostles to this warning of Christ can only lie in their unbelief. But this, too, seems implausible for they began to jostle for position in the glory of Christ. Christ’s mind is set upon His soon approaching death of redemption, yet the Apostles are focused on the glorious positions to which they may aspire. Instead of suffering at the dismal prospects of the suffering and death of One “who sticketh closer than a brother” these vain men are concerned about honor and prideful standing. Thanks be to the grace of God that this attitude among them did not persist after the Resurrection! There is a deep-seated lesson in this circumstance for us: we must learn how to suffer with Christ and drink from His Cup rather than seeking the honored seat at the banquet. The cross which we must take up daily is not one of prideful position, but one of dying to self and living for others. This is the Christian spirit and example.

Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? Though Christ has described the Cup from which He must drink, and has informed them of the bloody baptism He must suffer, He must have been hurt that they didn’t seem to understand or, worse, care, about it. One thing Christ knew: these men spoke out of false courage and abject ignorance. Such decisions of position and calling in glory are not established before our races are run, but after. “And they said unto him, We can.” Ignorance is brave and based on this rule, these men were most courageous. “Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized: 40 But to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is not mine to give; but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared.” It is certain that, though these men lack the courage to drink of the Cup of Christ and suffer the baptism with which He is to be baptized at the present moment, but they will surely acquire this courage and faith by the Grace of God following the Resurrection. We should learn from this example not to be overly sure of our courage and ability to endure persecution. It may be true that the Christian lacks, at sundry times, the conviction and grace to die for His Lord; but, when that day should come, we must trust the grace to be given by God to do so.

And when the ten heard it, they began to be much displeased with James and John. Envy and jealousy are the enemies of peace and good order. Contentiousness among the brethren will result, always, in much damage to the Body of Christ. “Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. 43 But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: 44 And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. 45 For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” The order of government in Heaven is not akin to that exercised by earthly powers. The Apostles are thinking with worldly ambition, but ambition is the opposite humility. In the Kingdom of Heaven those accounted the chiefest among many shall be that one who serves and ministers best as servant to all. Mankind has difficulty wrapping his mind around this concept. As a matter of fact, he cannot do so without the efficacious working of the Holy Spirit in his heart. If Christ is our minister in suffering such atrocious humiliation and death for us, are we less burdened to the same?

My father told me a story of a wealthy investment tycoon in New York City who had begun his working career as a shoe shine boy at the corner of Wall Street and Broad. He worked hard as a young boy and saved some back of his proceeds. Finally, he acquired a little extra in savings and, listening constantly to the freely offered discussion of brokers whose shoes he shined, he invested his money wisely and made more. He continued to invest until he no longer needed to shine shoes and finally became a powerful financial giant of Wall Street. After many years, an old rival friend of the man was passing by Wall Street and Broad. To his surprise, he saw the former shoe shine boy again shining shoes at his former location – except now, he was mature in age. The acquaintance stopped for a shoe shine perhaps more to embarrass his former rival than to get his shoes in order. He smiled and looked down at the old gentleman shining his shoes and said, “Well, Henry, I guess you finally lost it all, didn’t you?” to which the man shining shoes responded, “Not really, Sam. I simply come back to this shoe shine stand once a year and shine shoes.” “But, why?” asked Sam. “So that I may remember where I came from.” was the response.

Do you remember where YOU came from? Have you forgotten that you were a miserable and hopeless sinner before you came to receive the Lord who bled and died for you? Do you feel a burden for other lost sinners who have not the privilege of knowing Christ? We must never forget where we came from. All were dead in trespasses and sin before the Grace of God reached across the galaxies and across the ages down to a poor sinner’s heart and made that heart new!