Greatness Inverted
Introduction: The Greasy Pole
Every man, at some level, wants to be great. The desire for significance is woven into us by our Creator. But sin has twisted this desire into a grotesque and selfish ambition. Our world is defined by what the English politician Disraeli once called the "greasy pole" of politics. Men and women claw and scratch their way to the top, seeking power, prestige, and position. This is the operating system of the world, whether in Washington D.C., on Wall Street, or in the breakroom at your office. The fundamental rule is to get ahead, to be recognized, to be served.
We might be tempted to think that this is a problem for the pagans, for the Gentiles, for those outside the church. But the text before us this morning is a bucket of ice water thrown into the face of such pious delusions. The infection of selfish ambition is not just a worldly disease; it is a spiritual pandemic that finds a ready host in the hearts of God's own people. Here we have the disciples, men who walked with Jesus, who heard the Sermon on the Mount, who saw the miracles, and they are squabbling over who gets the corner office in the kingdom. They have just heard Jesus, for the third time, lay out the grim reality of His coming betrayal, torture, and crucifixion. And their response is to ask for a promotion.
This passage is a divine confrontation. Jesus takes this clumsy, tone deaf, and deeply sinful request and uses it as a black velvet backdrop against which He displays the diamond of true, Christian greatness. He shows us that the kingdom of God operates on a completely inverted set of principles. The world says, "Climb the ladder." Jesus says, "The way up is down." The world says, "Rule over others." Jesus says, "Become the slave of all." And He does not just teach this principle; He embodies it. He is the foundation upon which this upside down kingdom is built.
The Text
Then James and John, the two sons of Zebedee, came up to Jesus, saying to Him, "Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask of You." And He said to them, "What do you want Me to do for you?" And they said to Him, "Grant that we may sit, one on Your right and one on Your left, in Your glory." But Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?" And they said to Him, "We are able." And Jesus said to them, "The cup that I drink you shall drink; and you shall be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized. But to sit on My right or on My left, this is not Mine to give; but it is for those for whom it has been prepared."
And hearing this, the ten began to feel indignant with James and John. And calling them to Himself, Jesus said to them, "You know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them; and their great men exercise authority over them. But it is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant; and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."
(Mark 10:35-45 LSB)
A Tone-Deaf Request for Glory (vv. 35-37)
The scene opens with an astonishing display of spiritual cluelessness.
"Then James and John, the two sons of Zebedee, came up to Jesus, saying to Him, 'Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask of You.' And He said to them, 'What do you want Me to do for you?' And they said to Him, 'Grant that we may sit, one on Your right and one on Your left, in Your glory.'" (Mark 10:35-37)
James and John, part of the inner circle, approach Jesus with a request that is as bold as it is blind. They begin by asking for a blank check, which is always a tell-tale sign of a manipulative heart. "Do for us whatever we ask." Jesus, in His patience, pins them down. "What do you want?" Their answer reveals the depth of their ambition. They want the seats of highest honor, the positions of ultimate power and prestige, flanking Jesus on His throne. They are thinking about the coronation, the glory, the power.
But they have utterly failed to listen to what Jesus has just been saying. He has been speaking of betrayal, condemnation, mockery, and a bloody cross. They hear "kingdom," and they think of earthly pomp and circumstance. They are like soldiers who, hearing their general describe a desperate, bloody battle to come, interrupt him to ask about the design of the victory parade medals. Their ambition has made them deaf. They want the crown, but they have no interest in the cross that is required to obtain it. They see the destination, but they want to skip the journey entirely. This is the essence of all worldly ambition: maximum glory for minimum cost.
The Cup, the Baptism, and the Father's Prerogative (vv. 38-40)
Jesus's response is not a flat "no." It is a profound and sobering redirection. He changes the subject from the privileges of the throne to the price of the throne.
"But Jesus said to them, 'You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?' And they said to Him, 'We are able.'...But to sit on My right or on My left, this is not Mine to give; but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.'" (Mark 10:38-40)
"You do not know what you are asking." This is one of the most gracious rebukes in all of Scripture. He is telling them that their vision of glory is pathetically small and completely misinformed. The path to glory in His kingdom is not through political maneuvering but through profound suffering. He asks if they can drink His "cup," a potent Old Testament image for the outpouring of God's wrath against sin (Is. 51:17). He asks if they can undergo His "baptism," which means to be immersed, overwhelmed, and drowned in affliction.
With a breathtaking mixture of loyalty and ignorance, they declare, "We are able." They have no idea what they are promising. It is the bravado of men who have never been in a real fight. And yet, Jesus accepts their answer. He prophesies that they will indeed share in His suffering. And they did. James would be the first of the twelve to be martyred, beheaded by Herod (Acts 12:2). John would endure a long life of persecution, imprisonment, and exile on the island of Patmos. They would indeed drink the cup of suffering. But Jesus makes it clear that the final seating chart of heaven is not His to hand out as a political favor. Those positions are assigned by the sovereign decree of the Father. This is a sharp rebuke to their man-centered scheming. God's kingdom is not a democracy, and its honors are not for sale.
The Indignant Ten and the Great Inversion (vv. 41-44)
The private conversation now becomes a public lesson, because the other ten disciples reveal that they are suffering from the very same spiritual disease.
"And hearing this, the ten began to feel indignant with James and John. And calling them to Himself, Jesus said to them, 'You know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them... But it is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant...'" (Mark 10:41-43)
The other ten were not indignant because James and John were being worldly. They were indignant because James and John had tried to cut to the front of the line. Their anger was the anger of thwarted ambition. They were mad that they did not think of it first. Seeing the rot of pride now festering among all twelve, Jesus calls them together for one of the most revolutionary lessons on leadership ever given.
He establishes a stark antithesis, a black and white contrast between two systems. The Gentile system, the world's way, is "lording it over them." It is top-down, coercive power. It is about domination and control. This is the spirit of Pharaoh, of Nebuchadnezzar, of Caesar. But in the kingdom of God, this entire structure is turned on its head. "It is not this way among you." How is it among you? If you want to be great, you must become a servant. If you want to be first, you must become the slave of all. True authority is not seized; it is granted. It flows not to the one who puffs out his chest, but to the one who gets on his knees. Greatness is measured not by how many people serve you, but by how many people you serve.
The Ransom for Many (v. 45)
Jesus does not leave this as a free-floating ethical principle. He grounds it in the bedrock of His own identity and mission. He Himself is the ultimate example of this inverted greatness.
"For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45)
This is the gospel in miniature. He, the "Son of Man," a title of divine authority from Daniel 7, the rightful King of the universe, did not come to demand service. He came to render it. And what was the ultimate expression of His service? It was to "give His life a ransom for many."
Do not miss the power of that word, ransom. A ransom is a price paid to redeem a slave or a captive. We were the captives. We were enslaved to sin, death, and the devil. We were held in a bondage from which we could never free ourselves. The price for our freedom was a life, a perfect life. And Jesus, in the ultimate act of service, paid that price. He stood in our place, as our substitute, and gave His life for ours. He drank the cup of God's wrath that we deserved, so that we could be set free. His death was not a tragic accident; it was a substitutionary payment.
This is the logic of the gospel, and it is the fuel for all true Christian service. We do not serve in order to become great. We serve because the Great One became a servant for us. We serve because we have been ransomed. The cross is the ultimate destruction of all our prideful, self-serving ambition. How can you scheme for a throne when the King of Kings gave up His throne to hang on a tree for you? How can you demand to be served when your Master came to serve you by dying in your place?
Conclusion: The Way Down Is the Way Up
The desire in the hearts of James and John is a desire that lurks in all of our hearts. We want recognition. We want status. We want to be served. We want the glory without the cross. We are all, by nature, expert political climbers on the greasy pole of our own little kingdoms.
The only cure for this disease is a steady gaze at the cross of Jesus Christ. The gospel does not just tell us to be humble; it humbles us. It shows us a King who reigns from a cross, a Lord who leads by serving, and a God who achieves His greatest victory through the shame of sacrificial death. It is there, at the foot of the cross, that our selfish ambitions are crucified with Him.
The path to true greatness is the path of the servant, the path of the slave. It is the path of the husband who lays down his preferences for his wife, the mother who pours out her life for her children, the elder who shepherds the flock with humility, the Christian who seeks the good of his neighbor above his own. The way up is down. The way to lead is to serve. The way to live is to die. For the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many. This is our King. Let us follow Him.