Festival of St. James, Apostle
Mark 10:35-45
35 James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came forward to [Jesus] and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” 36 And he said to them, “What is it you want me to do for you?” 37 And they said to him, “Appoint us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” 38 But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” 39 They replied, “We are able.” Then 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 appoint, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.”
41 When the ten heard this, they began to be angry with James and John. 42 So Jesus called them and said to them, “You know that among the gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. 43 But it is not so among you; instead, whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. 45 For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many.”
…to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to appoint, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.”
Won’t it be interesting when we get to heaven to see who God has chosen to sit at the right and left hand of Jesus. I guarantee that we’ll be surprised.
James and John’s hearts were in the right place. They loved Jesus and believed that he was the Messiah (which he is). Because of that, they wanted to be the best, darn disciples anyone had ever seen. They wanted to prove the depth of their love and devotion by being good enough to sit at the right and left hand of Jesus. Now I guarantee that if Jesus had said yes to their request, they would have immediately gotten into a fight about which of them would get to sit on his right hand.
What James and John didn’t yet understand is that God’s ways are not our ways. We know from Jesus that God values humility and service above bravado and accomplishment. But even that doesn’t give us enough information to determine who will be the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. If I had to guess, I’d say that the question won’t even matter because everyone is absolutely equal in the presence of God.
In this world, we strive for success according to the world’s standards. But never forget that the world’s standards stop at the end of the world…
Prayer: Lord Jesus: I want to be a good disciple and to demonstrate my devotion to you. Forgive me when I let that desire get in the way of truly serving you. AMEN