Theological Commentary: Click Here
There is an
interesting contrast in the final two stories of this chapter. The mother of James and John comes to Jesus
and requests the highest positions of authority for them. Before condemning her, look at what is really
going on. A mother is looking out for
her sons. She’s looking out for them,
not for herself. That’s almost
commendable, right?
Unfortunately,
no. It’s not commendable. Jesus rebukes them. He then adds challenge onto them. He tells them that they will drink the cup
that Christ’s to drink without guarantee that they will sit at the right and
left hand of Christ. Instead, they should
focus on serving as Christ has come to serve.
How’s that for a reversal? Their
mom wants them to be granted positions of honor and they end up being told to
go out and serve. Thanks, mom.
The last story
of this chapter is almost the complete opposite. Jesus is walking through Jericho when a
couple of blind folks start crying out.
They are told to be quiet, but they cry out even louder. Jesus takes notice and asks what they want. They ask to be healed. They ask for something for themselves. Sounds selfish, right?
Fortunately,
no. Jesus doesn’t see it that way. Jesus has compassion. He heals them. Underneath the self-centered desire to be
healed, He senses hearts that want something to follow. He heals them and disciples are born. They follow Christ.
What does
this tell us? It tells us to stop
judging books by covers. It tells us
that external appearances seldom tell the whole story. It tells us that discipleship is a higher
goal to pursue than fame, reputation and standing.
It’s always neat
to see not just the points of individual stories but to gain insight from the
context of putting stories beside each other.
It shows how masterful storytellers in the ancient world truly
were. It shows the depth of wisdom found
within God.
Before
stopping, look at the opening text for this chapter. Here is the story of the laborers in the
vineyard. These laborers do unequal
work, but they all receive the reward that the master of the vineyard promised
for their work. Is it fair? From the human perspective, no. From the perspective of God, yes. They each get the reward they were
promised. Some worked harder, but they all
got the promise.
Remember
that this story preceded the two stories already talked about. That means that this story foreshadows the
other two. The workers focused on human
fairness – like the mother focused on human reward for her sons – are disappointed. Those workers who focused on the perspective
of God – like the blind guys who wanted sight but were willing to follow Christ – see the
reward.
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