Matthew 20:17-28

“…and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave, just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.” - Matthew 20:27-28

How ironic! On the one hand, Jesus and the twelve disciples are going to Jerusalem and Jesus tells them that it is in Jerusalem where the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and scribes and be condemned to death. On the other hand, the mother of the sons of Zebedee asks Jesus that her two boys sit on his right and left hand in his kingdom. The others are angry with the two brothers for making such a request. Were they angry with them because they didn’t think about it first to ask Jesus? I’m thinking so. They weren’t angry because they thought that the two didn’t get what Jesus was all about. Jesus, after all, addresses all of them by saying, “Whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave.” None of them, in fact, “get it.” The Son of Man came to give his life to serve, not to be served, and to give his life as a ransom for many.

Dare I say that there are a lot of parents these days who are like the mother of the sons of Zebedee. They want the best for their sons and daughters and think that power and prestige is what is best for them. And so, their children are groomed to be the next Wayne Gretzky or Simone Biles. But all the while, true greatness, according to Jesus, comes in serving others and not be be served. True greatness comes through how we can give away our lives for the sake of others and not how many people do we need to step on to get to the top.

The things that are of value and lasting in this life have to do with our relationship with others and not through self-absorption. “You want to be great?” Jesus asks. “Give of yourself for the sake of the other. This is where true greatness lies.”

Let us pray: Lord Jesus, teach us how to truly live by the giving of ourselves for the sake of the other. Amen.