Tuesday, June 7

Tuesday

Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him.  “What is it you want?” he asked.  She said,  “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”  “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said to them.  “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?” “We can,” they answered.  Jesus said to them,  “You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.”     - Matthew 20:20-23

It is interesting to note that although it is their mother who does the official asking, Jesus directs His response to James & John.  Perhaps they put their mother up to it?  Perhaps it was her idea and this is just Jesus’ way of cutting right to the heart of the matter?

Look at the way that Jesus responds to the request of James and John (and their mother).  He tells them simply and directly that they do not know what they are asking.  I love this because it so clearly applies to the way many of us interact with Jesus today.  We make requests and ask Jesus for things in our prayers, and very often we do not receive what we asked for (at least not immediately or in the manner we expected).  What do we do?  How do we respond? 

Usually we respond with frustration, perhaps doubt and sometimes even bitterness.  How often do we stop to consider that perhaps Jesus knows something we don’t know and cannot know?  How often do we consider the possibility that we really don’t know what we are asking?  We do not have infinite knowledge and wisdom.  We do not see from an eternal perspective.  We cannot possibly grasp all of the implications of our requests and desires.  We have tiny 3 lb. human brains, and God is the all-wise, all-knowing creator of the universe!  Maybe, just maybe, we really don’t know what we are asking for sometimes.

C.S. Lewis wrote in his fascinating little book Letters to Malcom; Chiefly on Prayer – “If God had granted all of the silly requests I have made in my life, where should I be now?”

In the case of James and John, Jesus goes on to ask them a very important question.  He asks, “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?”  This image of drinking the cup in the Bible can mean either blessing or suffering, joy or sorrow.  In Jeremiah 49 we read about the cup of God’s judgment being poured out on the wicked.  In Psalm 23 David writes that his cup overflows with the goodness and mercy of God.  In Matthew 26:39 Jesus prays, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”  When Jesus asks James and John this question, He is clearly referring to the cup of suffering.  He knows what lies ahead for all of them, and He knows what it will cost them to follow Him.

James & John, being foolish and ignorant, actually respond to this question by saying “Sure we can Jesus, bring it on!”  Of course they (again) had no idea of the implications of their words.  Jesus tells them that they will indeed drink from his cup of suffering!  James would be the first of the disciples to be martyred for his faith in Jesus.  It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them.  He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword.  - Acts 12:1-2  John would be the only on of the 12 disciples who would die of natural causes, although Christian tradition tells us that the Roman emperor Domitian tried to have him boiled alive, and he was later exiled to a remote island for many years. 

No wonder Jesus said that they did not know what they were asking!  I have to believe that James and John and their Mommy would not have been quite so quick to ask Jesus for positions of honor in His kingdom if they knew what it was going to cost them.  How many of us would sign up for such a life?

In 1913 British explorer Ernest Shackleton ran the following ad in a London newspaper; "Men wanted for Hazardous Journey. Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in case of success."

How would an ad for disciple of Jesus Christ read?  “Wanted:  Individuals willing to labor long hours for no pay, willing to die to self, sacrifice for the good of others, endure opposition and even be thought a fool by friends and family members, able to be patient and joyful in hardship and trust completely in all circumstances.” 

Any takers?

Perhaps we should add that the retirement benefits are out of this world!  (pun intended)


Jeff Frazier