DIGGING DEEP NO. 929 – April 5, 2022 THE GREATEST IN THE KINGDOM Matthew 20:27-28

“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.” – Matthew 20:27-28

  It is natural to seek after and admire position and power. Winning, ending up on top, and gaining the admiration of others appeal to us. Jesus Christ, the King of creation, radically redefined true greatness as He entered a world addicted to power. In His kingdom, no one earns their status by their own contribution. The least is seen as the greatest. The servant outshines the ruler. In this great reversal, the first end up last, and the last, first. Jesus did not come to earth to be served but to serve. He humbly and resolutely set His course for Jerusalem and the cross. He came to offer Himself as a ransom for many. His entry into Jerusalem before a jubilant crowd on a simple donkey expressed a regal humility that few understood. Jesus called forth praise from the lips of children and infants and rejected the worship of people who used their power to oppress others. He deserved to reign but came to die. Jesus came to establish God’s kingdom and call His people to humble servanthood. In love, He asks no more of us than He gave Himself.

In Matthew 19:27, Peter had asked a question “What then will there be for us?” Jesus promised bountiful rewards to his disciples who had left everything to follow Him.

The 12 disciples were the first to be called and trained by Jesus. With this great privilege came great responsibility. To safeguard against pride, Jesus reminded them that their privileged calling did not elevate them above others. He told them, “But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.” matt. 19:30. To this day, those who first followed Jesus and built His church are respected, remembered, and honored. Church leaders and Christian teachers steward great influence. But Jesus made it clear that God looks at the heart. God requires and honors humility in His followers. The hardships of the Christian life are temporary. The rewards of the Christian life are eternal.

The Danger of Selfish Ambition –MATT 20:20-23

Each time Jesus mentioned the cross, the disciples’ response showed they did not understand the full reality of His mission. This time, two disciples accompanied their mother as she made a bold request of Jesus. James and John’s mother knelt before Jesus and asked Him to give her sons privileged positions in His kingdom. Jesus responded Matt.20:20-23. “You don’t know what you are asking. He spoke of “my cup.” Only Jesus could drink the full fury of God’s wrath against sin. Jesus assured James and John that they would indeed drink from His cup. The privilege of identifying with Christ means that believers are also called to suffer. However, God rewards those who share Christ’s sufferings. James and John drank of Jesus’ “cup” as they brought the good news of Jesus Christ to others. James was the first of the 12 to die for his Lord; John was the last. James was beheaded by  Herod Agrippa. In old age, John lived in exile on the island of Patmos. Jesus said that the positions to His right and left around His throne were His Father’s to assign.

The Standard of Spiritual Greatness –MATT 20:20-28

The Greatness of Serving Others –Matt 20:24-28 The bold request of the two brothers for seats of honor prompted an indignant response from the other 10 disciples. Their indignation was likely because they wanted chief seats in the kingdom! Jesus called them all together for a teachable moment. Jesus again explained true greatness. First, He offered a negative earthly example. Governmental officials exercise authority over their citizens, sometimes lording their power over people in prideful and oppressive ways. Next, Jesus defined greatness in His kingdom in an entirely different way. Whoever wants to become great must serve others. Jesus turned the concept and stigma of service on its head in a grand reversal: He Himself came to serve. He told His disciples, “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.” Jesus’ words are an allusion to Isaiah 53:12. Jesus’ followers today should join Him in the holy pursuit of self-sacrifice for the sake of serving others. We are to steward our energy, resources, and blessings in the service of others, rather than in self-service.

In His earthly ministry, Jesus served others and ultimately gave His very life as a ransom for sinners. To ransom someone is to liberate them from captivity by exchanging something of great value. Jesus offered His life to set us free from sin’s bondage. He paid the price for our liberty – a price we could never pay. In Jesus’ kingdom, true greatness is never achieved through popularity, position, or possessions. Rather, humble service is the prerequisite for greatness.

The personal benefits of following Jesus are many. He gives believers a joyful life purpose that far exceeds the passing pleasures of this world. Jesus also explained the costliness of commitment to His cause. He personally set the example of servanthood and sacrifice. He willingly went to the cross to accomplish for us what we could not do for ourselves. So it is no surprise that those who walk with Jesus must also embrace the path of self-sacrifice with greater hope in view. Jesus is worthy of our deepest love and deserves any sacrifice that following Him requires He said In Luke 9:23, No doubt we should relish the blessings and benefits of our position in Christ. But along with the blessings come real-life moments when we must choose His way and not our own. The sacrifices we make for Jesus’ sake flow from the depth of our love and devotion to Him. We love His will more than our plans. We value His pleasure more than we desire our own. We recognize and deny our self-centered agenda because we know Jesus has something for us that is ultimately so much better. Certainly, complete surrender to Jesus is costly. But more importantly, following Jesus is worth anything that obedience to Him demands. We become disillusioned if we do not understand that walking with Jesus is both wonderful and difficult at the same time. God uses suffering to mold our character and wean us from dependency on people or pleasures that can never satisfy. If we fail to understand the greater good God seeks in our lives, we equate an easy life with spiritual blessing. This is not what the Bible teaches. God loves us enough to expose our love affair with our own interests. He allows us to experience temporary pain for the sake of eternal gain. Dying to ourselves is painful but necessary. God brings the fruit of righteousness as we willingly die to ourselves. This is worth any cost.

CONCLUSION

In Philippians 2:7-8, the apostle Paul later explained that Jesus Christ, God Himself, did not use His divinity for His own advantage. “Rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.  For believers, Jesus set the supreme example of servant leadership and humility. He elevated the position of servant to something all believers can and should aspire to today.