Meditation: Who or what takes first place in your life? Selfish
ambition drives us to get ahead of others. The prophet Jeremiah complained
to God when others plotted to destroy him. Rather than plot his revenge,
he prayed for his enemies. When two of Jesus' disciples tried to get ahead,
Jesus did the unthinkable! He told them that the path to glory would be
through suffering and the cross. And he wedded authority with selfless-service
and with sacrifice – the willing offering of one's life for the sake of
another. Authority without sacrificial love is brutish and self-serving.
Jesus used stark language to explain what kind of sacrifice he had in mind.
His disciples must drink his cup if they expect to reign with him in his
kingdom. The cup he had in mind was a bitter one involving crucifixion.
What kind of cup does the Lord have in mind for us? For some disciples
such a cup entails physical suffering and the painful struggle of martyrdom.
But for many, it entails the long routine of the Christian life, with all
its daily sacrifices, disappointments, set-backs, struggles, and temptations.
A disciple must be ready to lay down his or her life in martyrdom and be
ready to lay it down each and every day in the little and big sacrifices
required. An early church father summed up Jesus' teaching with the expression:
to serve is to reign with Christ. We share in God's reign by laying down
our lives in humble service of one another as Jesus did for our sake. Are
you ready to lay down your life and to serve others as Jesus did?
On three different occasions the Gospels record that Jesus predicted
he would endure great suffering through betrayal, rejection, and the punishment
of a cruel death. The Jews resorted to stoning and the Romans to crucifixion
– the most painful and humiliating death they could devise for criminals
they wanted to eliminate. No wonder the apostles were greatly distressed
at such a prediction! If Jesus their Master were put to death, then they
would likely receive the same treatment by their enemies. Jesus called
himself the "Son of Man" because this was a common Jewish title for the
Messiah. Why must the Messiah be rejected and killed? Did not God promise
that his Anointed One would deliver his people from their oppression and
establish a kingdom of peace and justice? The prophet Isaiah had foretold
that it was God's will that the "Suffering Servant" make atonement for
sins through his suffering and death (Isaiah 53:5-12). Jesus paid the price
for our redemption with his blood. Slavery to sin is to want the wrong
things and to  be in bondage to destructive desires. The ransom Jesus
paid sets us free from the worst tyranny possible – the tyranny of sin
and the fear of death. Jesus' victory did not end with death but triumphed
over the tomb. Jesus defeated the powers of death through his resurrection.
Do you want the greatest freedom possible, the freedom to live as God truly
meant us to live as his sons and daughters?
"Lord Jesus, make me a servant of love for your kingdom, that I may
seek to serve rather than be served. Inflame my heart with love that I
may give generously and serve others joyfully for your sake."
This reflection is courtesy of Don Schwager (c) 2012, whose website is located at http://www.rc.net/wcc/readings