Are We Able?

Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to him with her sons, and kneeling before him she asked him for something. And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:20-28 ESV)

What was the cup that Jesus was to drink and that he did drink? It was the cup of suffering. For he had just told his disciples that he was about to be delivered over to be mocked and flogged and crucified (put to death) but that he would be raised on the third day (vv. 17-19). But it wasn’t just suffering alone, but it was suffering an injustice, and it was suffering for a crime he did not commit, and it was taking upon himself, who was perfectly holy, the sins of the entire world so that our sins could die with him. 

Now he was not telling his disciples that they would die in the same way as he did and for the same exact purpose, for none of them were God, as he was, and not one of them was sinless, as he was, and not one of them had the power to be our sacrificial lamb on that cross to take away the sins of the entire world. Only Jesus could do that. But as his followers, we will be treated as he was treated, and we will be persecuted for righteousness’ sake, and some of us will die because we are spreading the gospel of Christ.

Now when they answered Jesus that they were able to drink the cup that he was about to drink, they did not really know what they were saying, for they didn’t really understand all that Jesus had been telling them about his upcoming crucifixion and his subsequent resurrection. So, I am not really sure what was in their minds when they so quickly responded with, “We are able.” And we may be guilty of that sometimes, too, thinking we are ready to lay down our lives for Christ and for his gospel when we may not be ready.

But if we are following the Lord with our lives, he said that we will suffer in like manner as he suffered. We will be hated and rejected, and cast aside as worthless, and mocked and laughed at and discarded as not worthy of other people’s time and affections and attention. And we will be falsely accused of what we did not do, and we will be called “crazy,” as he was, and some people might think we are of the devil and not of God, because they don’t really know God themselves, although they may think that they do.

Now Jesus was teaching his disciples a lesson in humility here, for some of them, or at least the mother of two of them thought that they were worthy to have the honor of sitting on the right and the left of the Lord in his heavenly kingdom. But that should not be our thinking. We should just be glad that our Lord will let us into his heaven and that he willingly suffered and died for us on that cross so that we can go free from our slavery to sin and so that, by his grace, we can serve the Lord Jesus with our lives.

But it wasn’t just the two disciples and their mother who needed to be taught humility. They all did, for the others were indignant at the two brothers who wanted to sit on either side of Jesus in his kingdom. And this lesson is for us all. For us to be great in the kingdom of God we must serve others, but not for rewards, but because we love God and we love our brothers and sisters in Christ and we love all people, and so we want to serve them, as Jesus loved us and gave his life up for us on that cross.

So, we do for others what is right and what is loving, even if they do not receive us in return, and even if they hate and reject us in return. Still we do for them as God would have us do and we serve them in like manner as Jesus served the people, not in surrender of his will to them, and not in compromise of truth and righteousness, but in doing the will of God and in sharing with them the message of the gospel and in dying for all of us so we can be free from sin and so we can serve him with our lives.

He Gives Purpose  

An Original Work / June 9, 2012

“Listen to Me when I’m calling to you.

Obey freely My word.

Follow Me in all of My ways.

Do all that I say.

Hear Me gently whisper to you

My will for your life and future.

Give all of your life and heart to

Follow Me always.”

Repent of your sins and worship Jesus.

He’s your Lord and Master.

He died for your sins so you could

Live with Him today.

He has a plan for your life and

He gives purpose and direction.

He gives meaning to your life,

So follow Him today.

“I love you so much I gave My life for

You to walk in My ways,

Living for Me each day as you

Bow to Me and pray.

Witness for Me of your love for Me and

Of My grace and mercy,

How I died to save you of your

Sins now and always.”

https://vimeo.com/119038798