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Gospel: Matthew 20: 17-28
As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem,
he took the Twelve disciples aside by themselves,
and said to them on the way,
“Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem,
and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests
and the scribes,
and they will condemn him to death,
and hand him over to the Gentiles
to be mocked and scourged and crucified,
and he will be raised on the third day.”
Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee approached Jesus with her sons
and did him homage, wishing to ask him for something.
He said to her, “What do you wish?”
She answered him,
“Command that these two sons of mine sit,
one at your right and the other at your left, in your kingdom.”
Jesus said in reply,
“You do not know what you are asking.
Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?”
They said to him, “We can.”
He replied,
“My chalice you will indeed drink,
but to sit at my right and at my left,
this is not mine to give
but is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”
When the ten heard this,
they became indignant at the two brothers.
But Jesus summoned them and said,
“You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them,
and the great ones make their authority over them felt.
But it shall not be so among you.
Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.
Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve
and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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“To sit at my right and at my left, this is not mine to give.”
James and John have just heard back from Jesus regarding their attempt to guarantee themselves two special spots in his kingdom. They ask with ambition. They burn with desire for glory and power. They ask for a favor from the miracle worker.
And, in some way, they represent each of us.
We all know the power Jesus possesses. We’ve all asked him for a favor or two. “Lord, show me your power. Lord, break open this door. Lord, help me achieve my dreams. I promise to remember you on the way up!”
But Jesus says unequivocally that seats of power, honor, and prestige are not his to give.
What, then, can the Lord offer us?
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Only that which he calls his own.
He can offer us his heart, his sheep, and his example to follow.
Like bread nibbled to death by a starving crowd, the Lord was happiest and his truest self when he was feeding a hungry crowd, curing a leper dying in isolation, giving sight to a blind man desperate to see, forgiving people caught in sin, or raising a child back to life.
For Jesus, that is the Good Life.
Not a life filled with self-serving power, but a life of service. As he himself says, “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Although his impending crucifixion sounds like the most unimaginable, horrible news the disciples have ever heard, it will be the Lord’s moment of greatest glory as he feeds his disciples with his very Self, then pours himself out on the Cross.
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Today’s Gospel provides a strong word of caution to anyone who’s contemplating following Jesus Christ. While he cannot assure us of any earthly glory or power – or even authority in heaven – what is his to give is the grace to live a life of service.
Who’s ready to wash feet? To forgive enemies? To turn the other cheek? To heal in God’s name?
In the humbling, but deeply inspiring words of the prophet Samuel, may we say with fear and trembling, “Here I am, LORD, send me.”
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Image credits: (1) LinkedIn (2) Watchman on the Wall Ministries (3) Jesus Washing Peter’s Feet, Ford Madox Brown