God Power

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.” (Matthew 20:17-28)

These passages from Matthew are confusing, but Bishop Robert Barron gives and excellent explanation I provide below.

(begin) The mother of James and John asks Jesus on their behalf to place them in high places in his kingdom. There are four classic substitutes for God: wealth, pleasure, power, and honor.  The two brothers specifically want the last two.

Power is not, in itself, a bad thing.  Thomas Aquinas said that honor is the flag of virtue.  It’s a way of signaling to others something that’s worth noticing.

So then what’s the problem?  The problem is that they are asking for these two things in the wrong spirit.  The ego will want to use power not for God’s purposes or in the service of truth, beauty, and goodness, but for its own aggrandizement and defense.  When honor is sought for its own sake or in order to puff up the ego, it becomes dangerous as well.

What’s the way out? Jesus tells us: “Whoever wishes to be great among you must first be your slave.” When you serve others, when you become the least, you are accessing the power of God and seeking the honor of God. (end)

We must also give our lives as a ransom for many meaning we must serve others in the spirit of truth, beauty, and goodness.  That’s the power of God placed in our hands.

Deacon David Pierce