Passage
James and John come up to Jesus and ask Him to do a personal
favor for them. Jesus asks them what it
is that they want. They tell Jesus that
they would like to sit at Jesus’ side in heaven – one on the right hand and one
on the left. Jesus tells them that they
don’t know what they are asking. Jesus
asks them if they are prepared to “drink the cup that He will drink” or be
baptized with the baptism that is being reserved for Him. They boasted that they were able. Jesus assures them that they will actually
drink from the cup that He drinks from.
But it is not Jesus’ place to determine who shall sit on His right or
His left.
Thoughts for Today
First Thought:
James and John ask
for a personal favor. Now, right there
we should realize that something has gone off track. We are supposed to focus on following God,
not getting God to follow us.
Spirituality works better when we wait and listen to God’s agenda rather
than striking out on our own agenda. Any
time we come to God and say, “Hey God, if you’ll just do this for me,” chances
are that somewhere along the line we’ve made a mistake. We should be watching for God’s action and
going where He’s already led us.
Why do you think so many people actually do relate to God in
an “Oh, God, give me” kind of mentality?
Why is it difficult to put aside our desires and seek God instead?
Second Thought:
The request of James and John absolutely demonstrates how
little they truly understood Jesus before He dies. Jesus just told them that He was going to
Jerusalem to die. In the very next
story, James and John ask Jesus to sit with Him in glory. They really didn’t grasp what Jesus was going
to Jerusalem to do at all! They were
more interested in their own status within the kingdom than the actual work of
the kingdom that God was doing through Jesus.
{Don’t forget that their father
was wealthy enough to own a fishing business with hired hands. James and John may have had a little social
“entitlement” edge to them.}
How is it that our own agendas keep us from truly hearing
God? How is it that our own
circumstances contribute to the problem? What can you do to help put yourself in a
place where you can truly hear what God is trying to say to you?
Third Thought:
Jesus speaks about drinking a cup and being baptized. In the Old Testament, the cup was usually a
symbol of God’s wrath. Quite literally,
Jesus is going to drink the cup of wrath that God has prepared for the
world. His crucifixion is about atoning
for the sin of the world. He will take
that sin upon Himself and die for it. As
for the baptism part, baptism literally is a dipping into something. It can also mean more than dipping –
submersion. After Jesus dies, we know
that He goes to the place of the dead and brings forth all of the dead people
who were waiting for the Messiah prior to His coming to earth. He will literally be dipped – even submerged!
– in death.
As for James and John, they will drink of this same
cup. They will also taste death and
taste persecution for the sake of the work that Jesus does among mankind. They may not quite have the full taste like
Jesus, but they will share in the experience.
What would it mean to you if Jesus were to appear and ask
you if you were ready to “drink from the same cup” that He drank from at the
crucifixion? How would you respond? How does one get ready for that?
Passage for Tomorrow: Mark 10:41-45
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