Also a dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.”
(verses 24-27)
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The disciples are jockeying – intensely – for position. Only about a week previously, just before Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, James and John had confronted Jesus with a similar issue. Self-servingly, they asked him for prime positions (as perceived by them) in the Kingdom. They’d gotten it right that the kingdom is a certain, future reality. So, they wanted to work it for their own advantage, locking-in their own pre-eminence.
The other disciples, when they heard about it, were indignant, not on principle, but for fear of missing out. Why hadn’t they thought of it first? Ask and you will receive, right? What if those Sons of Thunder ended up squeezing them out?
Now, some four days after Jesus entered Jerusalem in triumph, all the disciples together raise the issue anew, squabbling, trying to outrank the others, each one striving to prove himself better than the rest.
Did they miss what had happened just earlier that very evening? Before the meal had even started? I’d have thought it would be unforgettably emblazoned on their minds. For Jesus, the Master, had knelt before each one, towel-wrapped, washing their dusty, grimy feet. One would think they’d remember.
But they didn’t. So, Jesus intervenes. He turns their whole discussion on its head, defusing all the rancour and competitive angst. My Kingdom’s not that way, he says. Kingdom greatness looks entirely different. Having position and status and authority is not what it’s about – rather, taking the lowly position of servant, indeed slave, that’s what counts.
The image of the foot-washing would, of course, shortly be eclipsed by the even weightier sighting of Jesus immobilized on the cross, serving each disciple (and all of us) by laying down his life.
Such service becomes the lifeblood of the Kingdom. Only on its basis are the gates of the Kingdom opened wide. Henceforth, acts of service are the marching orders for all who enter in.
So, be like the Jesus. He is among us “as one who serves.” So then, what Christ-like act will you engage in today? What temptation to recognition and status can you push aside, willingly stepping down to a lower position? What rights must you hold loosely in order to live Kingdom-mindedly? Whose grimy need will you take in hand, serving like Jesus?
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O dear Jesus, Lord of the Kingdom, please, please give me the opportunity today to be like you. Give me eyes to see it. And when it arises, however unexpected it may be, give me boldness to look less-than, to come down, to set-aside, and to serve. May this attitude be in me that also was, and is, in you.
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Eyes open:
Watch for a Christ-given opportunity to serve today, as a servant. Determine now you will embrace it when it comes, whether big or small.
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Ford Maddox Brown, Jesus Washing Peter's Feet, 1852-6, Tate (NO1394), digital image (c) Tate released under Creative Commons CC-BY-NC-ND (3.0 Unported)
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