Perhaps the real title of the sermon should be second verse same as the first. In our scripture text, we find Jesus continuing to teach the disciples of the 1st century and of the 21st century about what it means to a follower of Jesus, a part of the Kingdom of God.
This week we are reminded of how even the disciples that walked with Jesus every day for several years had a difficult time understanding what it meant to be a follower. Today, James and John are asking to have a position of power in God’s kingdom.
They ask this right after Jesus has told them what he will soon be going through; what being a part of God’s Kingdom might mean. (In Mark, between the Gospel reading of 10/10 and this week’s Gospel reading, there is a third death prediction and it is very clear what will happen to Jesus—he will be flogged, spat upon and crucified.)
Even though James and John have just heard what will happen to Jesus, they ask for a position of power. Jesus reminds them that the understanding of who is the greatest in God’s Kingdom is different than what the world tells us. Jesus reminds them that to be great they must be servant to all and that the first shall be last and the last shall be first.
May the Spirit give us the strength to be a servant to all. We pray that the sermon feeds your soul. If you have any prayers or anything you would like to talk about, please email at pastor@stmatthews-elca.org.