Welcome And The Sharp Contrast

Mark 0:03

Hello everyone, this is Mark Davis, and I want to welcome you to the Gospel Explorations Podcast. Where we gather together each week to take time to explore God's Word to learn how we happen to live in this present age. In our last episode together, Jesus was teaching us through the parable of the laborers in the vineyard that God's kingdom does not operate according to our natural ideas of rank, reward, or deserving. Jesus highlighted for us the biblical truth that the first may be last and the last may be first. And today we're going to see that theme continuing. But now the contrast becomes even sharper because as Jesus is walking toward Jerusalem, he is fully aware that suffering, rejection, crucifixion, and resurrection are ahead of him. And yet at the same time, James and John are thinking about seats of honor. You see, Jesus is focusing on a cross and they're busy thinking about thrones. Jesus is preparing to give himself away, and they're quickly trying to figure out how they can improve their status. And this contrast sets the stage for the lesson that we're going to learn today in Matthew chapter 20. So look

Jesus Foretells Betrayal And Death

Mark 1:37

with me at verse number 17 of Matthew 20. And Jesus, going up to Jerusalem, took the twelve disciples apart in the way and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man shall be betrayed unto the chief priest and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn him to death, and they shall deliver him to the Gentiles, to mock and to scourge, and to crucify him, and the third day he shall rise again. Now, I don't know if you are paying attention or not, but that's pretty specific. Jesus is not speaking vaguely about having a difficult time in Jerusalem. He's telling them exactly what's coming. He would be betrayed, condemned, handed over to the Gentiles, mocked, scourged, and crucified, and yet on the third day would rise again. Jesus is not stumbling unknowingly toward the cross, he's walking deliberately towards it. And that matters because the cross was not an accident. It was not simply an unfortunate ending of a good teacher. Jesus knew what awaited him, and he kept going. He tells us that the Son of Man would be betrayed. Now there is a unique pain in betrayal. It's one thing to be opposed by an enemy, but it's something totally different to be wounded by someone close to you. And somewhere among those that were listening to Jesus was Judas. Jesus is talking about his own betrayal while the betrayer is standing nearby. Yet Jesus continues forward. And that tells us something about his commitment to the Father's will. Jesus didn't obey only when people treated him faithfully. He remained faithfully even when he knew there was someone close to him who would not. And that's definitely worth remembering. You see, sometimes obedience to God becomes harder because of what someone else has done. We've been disappointed or hurt. Maybe someone we trusted and failed us. But another person's unfaithfulness is not an excuse for our own. Jesus remained faithful even in the face of betrayal. Now notice what Jesus says. He says they shall condemn him to death and deliver him to the Gentiles. The religious leaders who are supposed to know the scriptures would condemn the one that the scriptures pointed toward. The leaders who were supposed to recognize the Messiah would reject him, and then they would turn him over to Rome. Jesus knew the sequence betrayal, condemnation, delivery to the Gentiles, mocking, scourging, crucifixion. And again, these aren't details that Jesus would simply manipulate in the moment. He's telling them beforehand what will happen.

God’s Sovereign Plan Through Sin

Mark 4:26

All of this points to the sovereignty of God over the events of the cross. You see, human beings would act sinfully. Judas was going to betray. The religious leaders were going to condemn. The Roman soldiers would mock and crucify him. Human responsibility here is fully present. And yet through it all, God's redemptive plan is moving forward. Now notice Jesus says that he's going to be delivered to be mocked and scourged and crucified. Sometimes we move over those words quickly because we already know the story. But Jesus knew what those words meant. Mockery meant humiliation, while scourging meant brutal physical suffering. And crucifixion meant shame, exposure, agony, and death. And Jesus knew what was ahead. And notice he says, We go up to Jerusalem. There is something incredibly powerful in that. You see, Jesus is not merely willing to suffer, he's committed to completing the work that the Father has given him and to obey to the very end. But don't miss his final words. He says, And the third day he shall rise again. Jesus rarely speaks of his death without speaking also of his resurrection. And this is because the cross is not the end. Suffering is not the final word. Death is not victory. Jesus knows the grave is coming, but he also knows the grave will not hold him. And yet, amazingly, the disciples do not seem to grasp it. Maybe they heard the words, but it just didn't fit into their expectations. Because they believe Jesus is the Messiah. And in their minds, the Messiah means kingdom. It means power and victory, rule and glory. And so when Jesus talks about humiliation and crucifixion, perhaps they assume that there must be some sort of symbolic meaning behind this that they don't understand. Because what Jesus is saying doesn't fit the Messiah that they expected. And sometimes we have the same exact problem. We can read God's word through the lens of what we expect Him to do. And when Scripture says something that doesn't fit our expectations, we can be tempted to explain it away rather than allow it to correct us. And that's exactly what makes what happens next almost startling. Immediately on the heels of Jesus talking about his suffering and crucifixion, Matthew pins these words.

A Bold Request For Top Seats

Mark 7:24

Now notice what Jesus says to her in verse 21. And he said unto her, What wilt thou? And she said unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit the one on thy right hand and the other on the left in thy kingdom. Jesus had just finished saying, I'm going to go to Jerusalem to be betrayed, condemned, mocked, scourged, and crucified. And the response we get is basically this Hey, Jesus, when you get your kingdom set up, could my boys have the best seats? It's almost painful to read. Jesus is talking about sacrifice and they're busy thinking about position. Jesus is describing his coming suffering, and they're thinking about prestige. Jesus is preparing to lay down his life, and they're busy wondering who's going to sit the closest to the throne. And yet, if we're honest, we may not be quite as different from them as we think. I mean, we may never literally ask Jesus for a throne, but we can still crave recognition. We want to be noticed. We want our contribution to be acknowledged. We want influence and title and position. We want people to know what we've done. And sometimes even our service for Christ can quietly become a pathway towards self-importance. We can say we want Jesus glorified while still caring deeply about where we appear in the picture. And that's what makes this passage so uncomfortable. The disciples aren't asking to abandon Jesus. They want to be near him. But they want their proximity to Jesus to increase their own status. And those two things are not the same. Notice what Jesus says here in verse number 22.

The Cup, The Cross, And Humility

Mark 9:13

Ye know not what you ask. Are you able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? And they say unto him, We are able. Jesus says to them, Ye know not what ye ask. And this may be one of the most important lines in this entire passage. They think they know what they're asking. They want honor in the kingdom, but they don't understand what the road to kingdom greatness looks like. So Jesus asks them this question Are you able to drink the cup that I'll drink and be baptized with the same baptism that I'll be baptized with? Now in scripture, a cup often symbolizes what God appoints someone to experience. And Jesus' cup is suffering. And the baptism here has a sense of being immersed or overwhelmed. In essence, Jesus is saying, You want to share my glory? Are you prepared to share in my suffering? And notice what James and John say. We are able. That answer comes quickly, probably too quickly. They have no idea what they're saying. And by the way, there's a lesson here too. We're often very confident about what we think that we can handle. Oh, I'll never do that. I'd never deny Christ. I can handle that. Oh, I would stay faithful in those circumstances. But Peter would soon say something similar and then deny Jesus. James and John say we are able, but when Jesus is arrested, the disciples scatter. Jesus understands them better than they understand themselves. And he understands us better than we understand ourselves too. That should produce humility in us. Our confidence should never ultimately be, I'm strong enough. It should be Christ is sufficient. Now notice Jesus says here in verse 23, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with. But to sit in my right hand and on my left is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father. In other words, Jesus is saying, You really are going to suffer for following me. Now James and John would face very different paths. James would become one of the first apostles to be recorded as being martyred. He was killed by Herod in Acts 12. John would live much longer, yet his suffering would look different. One would have to be ready to die early. The other would have to be ready to maintain faithfulness over a long lifetime. And that's important because faithfulness does not look exactly the same for every believer. For one person, faithfulness may involve dramatic sacrifice. And for another, it may involve decades of quiet endurance. One may be called to the altar while another is called to the plow. But the heart of discipleship is the same. It says, Lord, I am yours for either. You know, there's an old image of an ox standing between an altar and a plow with the words ready for either. And that's a beautiful picture of surrender. If God calls me to labor, I'll labor. If God calls me to sacrifice, I'll sacrifice. If he gives me a long life of service, I'll serve. If he asks something costly from me, I'll trust him. You see, because the goal isn't to choose our assignment, the goal is to belong entirely to Christ. And that is a much deeper form of greatness than getting the seat beside the throne. So Jesus continues. But to sit on my right hand and on my left is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father. Now, this statement reveals the remarkable submission of Jesus to the Father. Because Jesus is refusing to treat kingdom honor as something that he distributes according to human ambition. The Father has prepared those places. And again, that overturns the disciples' thinking. They're trying to secure their status, and Jesus is telling them, Your responsibility is faithfulness, and the Father will handle rank and reward. You know, that reality can free us from a lot. We don't have to position ourselves or compete. We don't have to manipulate recognition or make sure people know how valuable we are, because it is God who sees and knows. It is God who rewards, and our job is to simply follow. And I believe there's a larger lesson here as well. In Jesus' kingdom, the path to glory passes through the cross. The disciples wanted the crown without understanding the cross. They wanted the throne without the cup. They wanted status without suffering. But Jesus here is showing us a different path. Because before resurrection comes death, before exaltation comes humility, and before the crown comes the cross. And let us not forget that pattern does not apply only to Jesus. It shapes discipleship. I mean, Jesus had already told them if any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. We can't follow a crucified Savior while making self-promotion the goal of our lives. So

Heart-Check Questions And Closing Charge

Mark 14:40

the very question this passage puts before us is this What kind of greatness are we seeking? And do I want to be useful or noticed? Do I want Jesus to be glorified? Or do I just want a prominent place near him so some of his glory then can reflect on me? Or how about this one? Would I still serve if nobody knew? Would I obey if someone else received the recognition? Would I follow Christ if the road included sacrifice rather than success? And let's be honest, those are difficult questions, but they're good questions. Because kingdom greatness begins when our heart stops asking, where will I sit? And begins asking, Lord, where do you want me to serve? Jesus knew where the road to Jerusalem was leading. It was betrayal and condemnation, mockery, scourging, crucifixion, and ultimately resurrection. He willingly walked that road because it was the Father's will and because it was the path to our redemption. And James and John are still thinking about status, while Jesus is thinking about sacrifice. Eventually they would go on to learn that following Christ means being ready to share not only in his glory, but also in his suffering. So perhaps the prayer we need from this passage isn't Lord, make me important, but rather, Lord, make me faithful. God, make me ready for whatever you ask. Keep me from seeking the crown while avoiding the cross. And teach me to trust you with the place, the recognition, and the reward. Friends, I want to say thank you for joining me today on the Gospel Explorations podcast. I definitely want to challenge you to take some time this week to read again Matthew chapter 20, verses 17 through 23. Pay attention to the contrast between what Jesus is thinking about and what the disciples are thinking about. And as always, don't forget to check the show notes for reflection and study questions to help you continue exploring this passage even more. Until next time, grace and peace, friends. Thanks for listening. I hope that you've been both encouraged and challenged today. If you want to connect with us further, please be sure to check us out on the web at Gospelexplorations.com. We look forward to having you join us again next time.