Day 26: Winning by coming last
'Jesus called them over and said to them, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those in high positions act as tyrants over them. 43 But it is not so among you. On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you will be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first among you will be a slave to all. 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.”' Mark 10:42-44
A few weeks ago I found myself in the fiercest competition. It was all encompassing; it took all my strength, all my perseverance and it consumed all my thoughts. It was brutal. It was, of course, the Treat Fleet boys vs girls challenge. This stepping competition (which I had willingly taken part in) became more and more invested in as the week went on. My past work experience has taught me that you have to do something different to make you stand out from the competition, you have to go the extra mile to win. And believe me, the girls team did! We were constantly stepping, did walking workout videos, and found a way to keep stepping at laptops, stove tops and whatever else we had on that day.
We tried our best to be the best… and still lost (much to the joy of our male opponents). In Mark 10 we see two of Jesus’ disciples, James and John, trying to be the best and beat all the opposition, except here they are seeking the top spots with Jesus in his glory. The other disciples are easily drawn into the competition too, getting annoyed that James and John may have got an unfair head start. But Jesus, seeing their unhelpful quest, sets them straight by telling them:
“You will drink the cup I drink, and you will be baptised with the baptism I am baptised with. But to sit at my right or left is not mine to give; instead, it is for those for whom it has been prepared.” (v39-40)
He is saying ‘You want to be first? Well first you need to be ready to die… just like me’. Even though he has just told them again about his death, the disciples still haven’t quite realised what he means. The way has already been prepared because Jesus is going to take all their sin, die the death they deserved, and give them a new life, where they can be with God in his glory. The great thing is Jesus did that for us too; he has prepared a way for us if we repent and trust in him. No limited spaces and we don’t need to get there first for it’s not a competition. And since it’s not about what we do then we won’t try our best and still lose anyway, all of us can have a place in glory with him. So Jesus will die to make his disciples winners, that's part one of the plan. And then Jesus goes on to tell the disciples how they can become great. Now I know what you’re thinking, ah – that’s where the competition is, Jesus is going to give us the ‘stand out’ aspect and let us know how we can ‘go the extra mile’. And he does, but not in the way you’d expect:
“You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those in high positions act as tyrants over them. But it is not so among you. On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you will be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you will be a slave to all. 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.” (v42-45)
Jesus gives a clear instruction to become a servant to others, and a clear example of how to do that through his own life. We are called to try our best, not in competition with each other, but in sacrificing our lives to be more like Jesus in serving others. We are first by putting ourselves last. That means giving up our desires for the sake of others. It means getting uncomfortable so others can know God’s comfort. It means going the extra mile, doing all the hard work, and being willing to get none of the glory for it. All of this makes it a tough shift aiming for greatness in God’s kingdom, but because of what Jesus did for us, we know we won’t be losers.
Written by Dilly Harris
Passage for today: Mark 10:35-45
A thought to remember: To be great in the kingdom of God we need to be a servant to all.
A question to ask: Where might I be trying to be first by being great instead of being last by serving others.
A song to sing: All For Jesus