This Week with the Word

The Uniform Lesson for September 28
Background & Commentary by Sam E. Stone

The four Gospels tell us many important things to help guide the Christian community. Today’s lesson highlights the principle of service, explaining what constitutes true greatness in the Lord’s eyes.

Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem for the last time. Coming from Galilee in the north, he resolutely set his face toward the Holy City. He knew all too well what awaited him there. Traveling on the east side of the Jordan, Jesus and his disciples were accompanied by throngs of other devout Jews en route to the Passover Feast (Exodus 23:17).

The Prediction of Suffering/Matthew 20:17-19

Verse 17. Now as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside. Although they were traveling south, they were going up in elevation. In order to talk privately with the 12, Jesus drew them apart from the other disciples and began to prepare them for what was coming.

Verses 18, 19. “We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law.” “On to Jerusalem!” the Savior directed. Jesus had predicted earlier that he would be betrayed and killed there (Matthew 16:21; 17:22). Now he becomes even more specific. “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!” In this announcement of his death, Jesus explains that it will be the Romans (Gentiles) who will actually carry out his execution. He even specified the method they would use—crucifixion. He also clearly predicted his resurrection.

The Places of Honor/Matthew 20:20-23

Verse 20. Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him. Salome was the mother of James and John and a sister of Mary, the mother of Jesus. Her sons probably asked her to join them in making the request, hoping that Jesus might be more inclined to honor her plea than theirs (compare Mark 10:35).

Verse 21. 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.” Previously Jesus had mentioned that the disciples would “sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (19:28). They took this quite literally and were eager to get the “best seats in the house”! This discussion about greatness seems to have continued even at the Last Supper (Luke 22:24).

Verse 22. Jesus said to them. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?” “We can,” they answered. The cup represented suffering and death (John 18:11). Jesus was asking, “Can you undergo what I will have to suffer?” They optimistically declared that they could.

Verse 23. 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.” As it turned out, James was slain with the sword by Herod (Acts 12:2) and John died some years later, exiled on a lonely island (Revelation 1:9).

The Plan of Service/Matthew 20:24-28

Verse 24. When the ten heard about this, they were indignant with the two brothers. They were evidently motivated by jealousy since Jesus addressed his rebuke to all of the apostles, not just James and John.

Verse 25. 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.” The disciples knew well how the pagans behaved and so do we. The world’s concept of greatness is like a pyramid, with the great ones standing at the peak on top. Below people are scrambling to reach a higher level where there are fewer equals and more subordinates. In God’s eyes, it is exactly the opposite—like an inverted pyramid. The nearer to the peak, the greater the burden, and the more people above who are being carried in love.

Verses 26, 27. “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.” There are “great ones” in God’s kingdom as with the pagans. In God’s sight, however, one does not become great by “lording it over” others, but by humility and willing service. The word servant is the one from which we get “deacon” (Philippians 1:1) or “minister” (1 Corinthians 3:5). Becoming like a slave and serving others is as foreign to the world’s thinking today as it was 2,000 years ago.

Verse 28. “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.” Here, as in everything else, Jesus should be our example. His death is described as a ransom—the price paid for a slave who was then set free by the one who bought him. Christ’s ransom is offered for all (1 Timothy 2:6), and becomes efficacious to as many as accept it (see Isaiah 53:12). Jesus is the perfect example of a servant. As the late Carlos P. Romulo put it, “We have a saying in the Philippines—‘The taller the bamboo grows, the lower it bends.’” That’s the way God sees it
too. |L

Sam E. Stone is the former editor of Christian Standard. He continues his writing and speaking ministry from his home in Cincinnati, Ohio.