What True Serving Looks Like
Truth Taught- Jesus is our Model to follow in all things pertaining to the Christian life
3 Passion predictions in Mark’s Gospel.
At each prediction there is immediately following the complete misunderstanding of the disciples and the teaching correction of Jesus. The pattern is Jesus announces a prediction of His death, they speak and are confused about the meaning and Jesus corrects them.
| Announcement of Jesus’ Death | Failure on the Part of the Disciples | Jesus Teaches on Discipleship |
| Jesus will suffer, be rejected, killed, and will rise after three days (8:31) | Peter rebukes Jesus (8:32–33) | Jesus commands them to deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow him (8:33–9:1) |
| Jesus will be delivered, killed, and will rise after three days (9:30–31) | The disciples do not understand the saying and are afraid to ask him about it (9:32) | Jesus teaches that the first must be last and that those who receive children in his name receive him (9:33–50) |
| Jesus will be delivered, condemned, mocked, flogged, killed, and will rise after three days (10:33–34) | James and John ask that they may sit next to Jesus in his glory (10:35–37) | Jesus teaches that, to be great, they must become servants; to be first, they must become slaves; and that he came to serve by giving his life as a ransom for many (10:38–45) |
Now this final Passion Prediction is the one with the most details
Please Stand:
Gracious and Glorious Father, this is Your word, all Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine and reproof, and instruction and correction in the way of righteousness, that the man of God might be thoroughly equipped unto every good work. So, Father we ask that You would equip us then to see Christ, to follow Christ and to serve others for Your glory…Amen.
Mark 10:32–45 (ESV)
32 And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them. And they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him, 33 saying, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles. 34 And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise.”
35 And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” 36 And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” 37 And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” 38 Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” 39 And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized, 40 but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.” 41 And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John. 42 And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 43 But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
1. Our Strong Savior Leading the Way (10:32-34)
32 And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them. And they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him, 33 saying, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles. 34 And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise.”
This section is a wonderful picture of our strong Savior leading His people. He will be crucified, not them. He will suffer at the hands of sinful men, not them. And yet, there He goes walking to Jerusalem with His eye on the cross and the Father’s will.
The disciples are amazed and afraid as they follow.
I believe this is the supreme picture of discipleship. The disciples had no real knowledge of the future. Jesus was telling them what was about to take place but even then, they had no real idea. The reason I say this is a real picture of discipleship is because beloved, we don’t have any idea of the future other than what Jesus has told us in His Word. We are called to follow Him and He leads us because He does know the future.
Jesus walks ahead of us. We follow. He knows where He’s taking us and we really have no idea where He leading us in this world but we don’t really need to know? I don’t think so. We don’t need to know everything if we know the One who is leading.
Jesus knows exactly what’s going to take place when He gets to Jerusalem. The OT speaks of these same events that our Lord mentions. They were prophesied about many centuries before they took place…
Psalm 22:1–8 (ESV)
1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?
2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer,
and by night, but I find no rest.
3 Yet you are holy,
enthroned on the praises of Israel.
4 In you our fathers trusted;
they trusted, and you delivered them.
5 To you they cried and were rescued;
in you they trusted and were not put to shame.
6 But I am a worm and not a man,
scorned by mankind and despised by the people.
7 All who see me mock me;
they make mouths at me; they wag their heads;
8 “He trusts in the Lord; let him deliver him;
let him rescue him, for he delights in him!”
Isaiah 50:6 (ESV)
6 I gave my back to those who strike,
and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard;
I hid not my face
from disgrace and spitting.
Acts 3:13–15 (ESV)
13 The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus, whom you delivered over and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release him. 14 But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, 15 and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses.
All this and more Jesus was subjected to. Then He was crucified. Died on the cross and was raised on the third day being vindicated by God.
Our Lord knew all this was waiting for Him in Jerusalem. We, no doubt, would have gone the opposite direction seeking to escape such a violent death our Lord leads the way…Beloved this is our Savior.
We will see at the end of this section exactly what our Lord’s suffering and death accomplishes for all His people.
45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
2. The Disciples Seek Their Own Glory (10:35-41)
35 And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” 36 And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” 37 And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” 38 Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” 39 And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized, 40 but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.” 41 And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John.
At each Passion Prediction the disciples don’t understand because the reality of what Jesus is going to do for them and for all of His people goes right over their head because they are not thinking about Jesus’ suffering and serving but are fixated on His later glory because that means glory for them.
Going to Jerusalem for the disciples means fame and honor for them. One commentator tells us it’s like they wanted Jesus to sign a blank check. They are self-serving and even somewhat hard-hearted toward Jesus, not encouraging Him or supporting Him in His darkest hour but just wanting something for themselves. That’s how people are what’s in it for me?
James Edwards writes, How easily worship and discipleship are blended with self-interest; or worse, self-interest is marked as worship and discipleship.
They really wanted their own glory. They wanted fame and honor and veiled it in service and discipleship. This is a trap be careful how you serve and check your motivation in serving. Are we seeking God’s glory or our own?
Let’s look briefly, I say briefly because it’s next week’s text, Lord willing.
Notice the contrast in one who is truly humble verses James and John…
Jesus asks the blind man the same exact question he asks James and John and notice that his request was made in humility…
Mark 10:46–52 (ESV)
46 And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” 50 And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. 51 And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” 52 And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.
So, Bartimaeus asked for faith to be healed…literally, let me recover my sight, whereas, James and John it was honor and glory.
James and John cannot drink the cup that has been assigned to Jesus alone. God’s wrath against the sin of mankind is called the cup of God’s wrath. Only Jesus can drink that cup. They will drink a cup of suffering themselves but only Jesus will suffer and die for His people.
3. Greatness Comes to Those Who Serve with Right Motives: God’s Glory and Man’s Good (10:42-45)
42 And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 43 But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Let’s notice that Jesus completely rejects the world’s mode of Kingdom Rule. He is the authority and we are the slaves. A slave has no claim to greatness. James and John must see that their request completely flies in the face of what the Kingdom of God really is all about.
In the secular world we are dominated by gentile authorities. We just saw April 15 come and go…Tax Day. Here’s how Tax Day works…you pay what they tell you to pay or else. I’m not complaining but I want to show you that those in authority in our world lord it over us.
They can make any new law they decide to make and now we are forced to obey or else.
This is one of the greatest contrasts in the Bible, the difference between worldly governments and God’s Kingdom. It’s the difference between power and service, it’s the difference between tyranny and serving.
How many politicians would seek office if their job was to go around seeking those who need help and actually serving them?
The disciples think the Kingdom is about their glory and power…
Look at the greatest person who ever lived, our Lord Jesus, He is also the greatest Servant.
45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
How did Jesus serve us? He gave His life to save us. By His death, our sin debt was paid in full. Beloved, listen there was no greater service ever accomplished. Our sin has been erased and by Jesus’ death we have also been given a righteousness like His.
What we are called to beloved is not a list of ethics to seek to uphold so that we can check off a list and pat ourselves on the back and think how holy we are. We are called to follow Jesus.
Jesus is the Model we must look to and seek to follow. Why does Jesus tell us to serve others with self-denial and our focus on God’s glory and their good? Because that’s what Jesus did.
We serve others the way Jesus did in the Gospels. We serve others because our Lord did it. If Jesus Christ, the Son of God can serve others and give His life as a ransom for many then we too must serve and that service is because Jesus served.
Why did Jesus die on the cross? He gave his life as a ransom for many.”
Jesus served us, we are the many, by being obedient unto death even death on a cross. He died to ransom us back to God. He died and shed His blood so that our sins could be forgiven. He died so that we could be in a right relationship with God.
Jesus died our death for us. The wrath of God was satisfied when Jesus bore our sins on the cross and God poured out His wrath on His Son. Even the OT, looking into the future, tells us by His stripes we are healed.
Ransom for many explains very briefly the truth of substitutionary atonement. Jesus died in our place. Jesus here, takes the place of the many. The many, of course being God’s elect.
What is a wonderful truth is that the disciples finally understood. It would not click with them until the resurrection and the days between that and the ascension but they finally got it.
Here’s what John (one of the disciples who wanted fame and honor) would later write…
1 John 3:16 (ESV)
16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.
We are to give and serve the brothers, our Church family in a sacrificial way.
So, we are called to a real and true discipleship. In that discipleship we serve with right motivation, not fame, fortune or even a pat on the back but we serve God for His glory and we help and serve others for their good.
True discipleship means following Jesus as He leads us. It means doing what He does. It means serving in the Spirit of giving of yourself not so that people will praise you but praise our Lord, Jesus.
Resources Used:
ESV Study Bible 3 Passion Prophecies
Mark by William Lane
Mark by James Edwards
Words of grace
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