Becoming a Servant Church

Year B: Proper 24

It is no surprise that these words are commonly applied to ransoming/ redeeming from slavery, either of Israel (see Exodus 6:6; 15:13) or individuals (see Lev 19:20, 25:47-55). This is why “liberation” in English best captures the nuance. So then, a [ransom] is the cost/ price that liberates or releases someone or something (land can be redeemed in Lev 25) from some sort of bondage or debt. Once this happens it accomplishes or brings about the state of [liberation].

Andrew Remington Rillera, “Lamb of the Free” (2024, p.250)

Year B, Proper 24, October 20, 2024

First Reading: Isaiah 53:4-12

Psalm: Psalm 91:9-16

Second Reading: Hebrews 5:1-10

Gospel: Mark 10:35-45

Becoming a Servant Church

When I first read the gospel text for this Sunday, I thought I was reading the wrong passage. Just a few weeks ago, I preached a sermon called “Competition in Church Breeds Division.” In it, I pointed out how ridiculous it seemed that Jesus could tell his disciples he was about to die, only for his disciples to immediately fight about who is greater.

The juxtaposition of Jesus’s looming death and the disciples hubris stood out to me to such a degree that when I read today’s text, I just knew I had opened to the wrong chapter.

But no.

They did it twice.

They were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them; they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. He took the twelve aside again and began to tell them what was to happen to him, saying, “Look, 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; then they will hand him over to the gentiles; they will mock him and spit upon him and flog him and kill him, and after three days he will rise again.” James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came forward to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” And he said to them, “What is it you want me to do for you?” And they said to him, “Appoint us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” Mark 10:32–37

From my perspective, they were so caught up in the idea of a physical kingdom that they could see things no other way, even in the face of Jesus’s very blatant forewarning.

Thus, Paul could speak of the mystery of the Cross that is unintelligible to those who are immersed in “the wisdom of the world.”

Jesus offered two responses to their inquiry: (1) he told them that co-reigning in the kingdom would only come after much suffering, and (2) he told them that the specific positions are not his to give.

The other disciples were shocked that James and John would dare ask such a thing. So Jesus called them all together to set the record straight:

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. But it is not so among you; instead, whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many.” Mark 10:42-45

In other words, you guys need to stop fighting because this is not how the kingdom of God works anyway! It is the suffering servants that are leaders in the kingdom, not those who seek to rise to the top for their own advantage.

While it is easy to critique the disciples here, we need to remember that we are to put ourselves into their shoes. We can do this by asking, “What do we do with what authority/ power/ influence we have?”

Do we seek to be served or to serve?

In a congregation setting, do we ask “what can I do?” or “what do they need to be doing?” Do we try to always get our way? Do we refuse to participate when things don’t go our way? Do we walk out when there is the slightest disagreement?

All of these are examples of spiritual immaturity.

As Jesus said, “But it is not so among you…”

Jesus, of course, is the ultimate example of this kind of mindset.

As the text says, “For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

There is something really cool going on here that we don’t need to miss.

In the previous passage, Jesus just explained that they weren’t to rule over each other like the Gentiles. Instead, they needed to have a servant mindset and become “slave of all.”

The word for “servant” and “to serve” in these passages comes from the Greek word that is often transliterated “deacon” and translated “minister.” The word for “slave” is duolos, which is a common way for both Old and New Testament prophets to identify themselves.

So, what Jesus says is, “I came not to be served to but to be a serve and to give my life to overturn the ‘lord it over them’ attitudes that prevail in this present evil age.”

Ironically, this liberation calls us to be a willing duolos instead of forced servitude.

Here’s two passages from Paul to emphasize this.

In the first, Paul says that we are to subject ourselves to each other out of reverence for Christ. This affects every relationship from marriages to parenting to employment.

being subject to one another out of reverence for Christ. Ephesians 5:21

In the second passage, Paul beautifully demonstrates how we are to treat each other in Christ.

If, then, there is any comfort in Christ, any consolation from love, any partnership in the Spirit, any tender affection and sympathy, make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or empty conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,

who, though he existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, assuming human likeness. And being found in appearance as a human, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross. Philippians 2:1–8

What do we do with the influence we have?

Second Reading: With Loud Cries and Tears

The priest was more than just a sacrifice vending machine. He didn’t just work on an assembly line of goats, lambs, and bulls. Priests also served pastorally. They comforted, instructed, and corrected the people.

In Hebrews 5:2, the Hebrews writer says, “He is able to deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is subject to weakness…” (Hebrews 5:2).

In becoming our high priest, Jesus took on flesh so that he could identify with us in our weakness and deal gently with us. What did this look like?

The text goes on to say, “In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission” (Hebrews 5:7).

With loud cries and tears.

When I think of Jesus in the garden, I picture the “tears and sweat as blood,” but I don’t think of his cries being “loud.” I suppose my picture of “reverent submission” is of a more quiet, respectable Jesus who sheds a few tears but maintains his composure.

The picture offered by the Hebrews writer is far more real.

Have you ever screamed into your pillow? Ugly cried in the car? Flung yourself into your spouse’s arms and cried “I don’t know what to do!”?

Jesus has been there too and can sympathize with you. He knows how to deal gently with you and comfort you. As our perfect high priest, Jesus invites us into the holy place with him to be where he is—in the eternal presence of our loving Father.

Jesus’s cries were heard, but Jesus wasn’t saved from death before he died. He was saved from death after he died by being resurrected. Sometimes God may let us go through whatever it is we’re dealing with, but resurrection is on the other side.

For an extended version of this, please read my article in the Sand Mountain Reporter:

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Thanks so much for keeping up with this blog. If you have any suggestions, recommendations, or critiques, you can always comment here or reach out through my website: https://danielr.net.