On the Road to Greatness (Mark 10:32-45)

A Sermon Preached Sunday, July 18, 2010 at Hebron Baptist Church, Denham Springs, Louisiana by Pastor Joe Alain.

Scripture Reading: Mark 10:32-45

As a boy growing up in Northern Virginia, Steve Royster was confronted with a small but persistent mystery – a mystery that presented itself every time he used the phone. “Everyone always knew when I was calling just by the sound of my voice,” Royster says, “while I had no earthly idea who was on the phone when they called.” Royster has phonagnosia – or voice blindness – a rare and very strange disorder. Like everyone else, phonagnosics can tell from the sound of your voice if you’re male or female, young or old, upset or happy. They just have no idea of who you are. Apparently, the part of the brain that makes sense of whether or not the voice they are hearing has “personal relevance” is damaged.

1. The Desire for Greatness (10:35-41)
Based on the request that the disciples made of Jesus, it’s obvious that the disciples were hearing Jesus’ voice, but not recognizing the “personal relevance” of what He was really saying. There are some things that stand out about the disciples from this passage. We will look at three of them.
(1) The Disciples Were Dull of Hearing
It wasn’t that they did not know who Jesus was or that Jesus was not being clear, He was (see vv.32-34). This is the third time He has told them with great detail what He was about to experience. But this request reveals that the disciples were still looking for glory, for power, for positions in an earthly kingdom. The dullness of the disciple’s hearing amazes us. How could they be so dull of hearing? How could they make such a request when Jesus is so plainly telling them that . . .
The Cross Comes before the Crown (10:32-34)

We too often only hear what we want to hear, don’t we? Parents only know this too well. We say “don’t forget to take out the garbage,” and when it’s not done we say “did you not hear me?” Of course, they heard us but they practiced selective hearing. On the other hand, mention something that appeals to some desire that they have and their all ears. Maybe spiritual “phonagnosia” is more common than we might think.

James and John aren’t the only disciples thinking thoughts of power and glory, not the only disciples who are dull of hearing. “When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John” (v.41). Their probably a little upset that they had not come to Jesus first. So they try to come off sounding morally superior.

(2) The Disciples Were Ambitious. Ambition is not necessarily a bad thing, it’s good. Ambition just needs to be channeled properly. Sometimes we speak of the old Puritan work ethic – the idea that because all of life is to be lived under God and for God, we are to give God our best is founded in Scripture. There’s no special reward for lack of ambition, for slothfulness. Ambition is good it just needs to be holy ambition. Holy ambition will motivate a man or woman to be a man or woman of God, to be a loyal husband or wife, to be an honest employee or employer. Ambition is not the problem, it is how we go about pursuing our ambitions. Success is achieved when our motives our pure and when we have a heart of service.

(3) The Disciples Were Committed Followers of Jesus. They misunderstood Jesus’ mission, but you cannot doubt their commitment to the person of Jesus. They were willing to follow Jesus even if it meant sacrifice and suffering which it did. No one could accuse the disciples of being apathetic or complacent. They were willing to follow Jesus wherever He led them.

2. The Description of Greatness (10:42-45)
Jesus uses the rivalry playing out among the disciples as a teaching moment (vv.42-45). The disciples have forgotten that they are citizens of a new kingdom now, a kingdom where things are done differently. They are not of the world anymore, yet they are still acting as if they are. How do people rule in the world? The world has its CEO’s, executives, bosses, supervisors, and superiors. Leadership is from the top down. People with power rule over those who are lower on the ladder than they are. There is a pecking order that is followed in the world. The boss calls the shots. It’s mostly a top down model of leadership that easily can be corrupted and manipulated into a kind of Lordship over others. The disciples kind of like that model. They have given up their jobs, their families, everything to follow Jesus and they feel as if they deserve to be recognized and to be held as prominent. “We want what we have worked for, we want what we deserve.”

Jesus pulls out the rug from underneath them and deflates their plans of glory with the phrase found in verse 43, “Not so with you.” This should not be taken to mean that God cannot use business principles that are commonly found in the world. There are business and leadership principles that the world uses that are good, they are sound, they do not run contrary to biblical principles. People like John Maxwell have made a good living tapping into these business principles that are biblically sound. It’s not the principles, it’s the application of the principles that gets us into trouble. People are not numbers, not commodities, not only objects to improve our bottom line. The disciples are in love with the idea of recognition, self-promotion, with their own sense of importance and greatness and Jesus sees right through it.

Jesus proposes an alternate model of leadership (vv.43-45) – Servant leadership! Remember the Old Testament story of Rheboam, King Solomon’s son? When Solomon died Rheboam was in line to inherit the kingdom of Israel. However, because Rheboam did not follow the wisdom of his father’s elders, the kingdom split in two. The elders had simply advised Rheboam to lead the people by being a servant. Public service – what a concept! The only problem with this advice is that Rheboam had bought into the idea of the divine right of kings, which pretty much rules out the serving aspect of leadership. What Jesus proposed then and now is servant leadership. This is the model that is to prevail in the church of God. Service leads to success.

Challenges to Disciples Today
There are some challenges to disciples today that come out of this exchange between the disciples and Jesus.
1. Change How You Measure Success
How does God measure success? Whose standard are you following? Is success measured in how many people you are over? Or how many people you are impacting for God, for something positive? Is success measured by how much you have in the way of material things? Or the depth of your personal relationships? The problem for many of us is that we measure success based on what someone else has or does. Then, when we do not acquire what we feel we should or do what we think we should, we become frustrated and unfulfilled.

But just what is the measure of success? The measure of success for you is to look at what God has given to you in the way of talents, time, treasure. Then, ask yourself, “Am I being faithful to use what God has given to me?” (See Matthew 25:14-25). If God is going to measure my success based on what He has given to me and what He has asked me to do, then I better start considering my life in light of this reality.

2. Channel Your Ambitions toward Worthy Goals
Channel your ambitions into that which God has called you to do. In other words, you’ve got to answer the first question before you can know how to channel your ambitions. So find out what God has given to you and what He wants you to do. Then, begin to channel your ambitions toward fulfilling God’s good goals for your life. (See 1 Cor. 9:24; Phil. 3:14).

3. Chose to Follow Jesus Wherever He Leads
Being a follower of Jesus does not mean that we will always feel happy or be in a safe friendly environment. Following Jesus is not always safe and sterile. In fact, following Jesus will most likely disrupt your life. It might mean taking care of an aging parent when you would like to do something else. It might mean taking care of a sick child. It might mean that you have to put your dreams on hold to commit to some act of service that you know God wants you to do, so you serve God and you find joy in knowing that you are a committed follower of Jesus Christ.

This is what it means to be on the road to greatness. Let’s be sure we hear the voice of Jesus, follow His example and do what He says to do.

For His Glory!
Pastor Joe