Faithful Servants
Steve Murray
Matthew 20 : 20-28
The brothers James and John were called “Sons of Thunder” by Jesus. We cannot be certain of why this nickname was given. I like to imagine that Jesus had a sense of humour. Perhaps the nickname of “Sons of Thunder” was because of the zeal shown when James and John wanted to call down fire from heaven to punish on some Samaritan towns that did not accept Jesus (Mark 14 : 33).
The request was denied by Jesus. There is speculation that James and John may have been cousins of Jesus. They were the sons of Zebedee a Galilean fisherman and their mother was Salome. There is speculation that Salome was the sister of Mary the mother of Jesus. Salome administered to the circle of disciples during their ministry. James was probably the older brother simply because he was mentioned first when the 2 apostles were together. James and John and St Peter formed an inner circle of intimate disciples. They were close to Jesus.
James is thought to be the 1st apostle to be martyred in AD44 in Jerusalem (beheaded by Herod Agrippa (Acts 12: 2) whilst a loyal disciple of Jesus. James however like his brother could be rash and unthinking. There is a suggestion that James may have visited Spain before his martyrdom (but this comes from a 17th century Tradition) and also that the body of James was later brought to Santiago de Compostela, a shrine and pilgrimage site for modern day Christians.
There is a bit more information (and speculation) about John. He is thought to have lived to an old age. Mark’s gospel hints at John’s martyrdom but his death as a martyr is unknown clothed in uncertain mists of legend. John’s authoritative position in the church after the resurrection is shown by his visit with St Peter to Samaria to lay hands on new converts there. John’s symbol as an Evangelist is an eagle. According to Christian Tradition John is the author of the Gospel of John, the 3 letters (1 John, 2 John & 3 John) as well as possibly Revelation.
There remains to this day speculation as the actual identity of each and all of these works. John lived in Galilee probably in Bethsaida, was a fisherman like his father Zebedee, became a disciple of Jesus through John the Baptist (John 1:35) , was called as an apostle. He is mentioned as being present at the raising of Jairus's daughter, at the Transfiguration, at Gethsemane, helped Peter prepare Passover (Luke 22:8), lay close to Jesus breast at the last supper (John 13:25), was present at the trial of Jesus, was a witness to the crucifixion of Jesus (John 19 : 26& 27), recognised Jesus at the Sea of Galilee (John 21: 1-7) and was active with Peter in the Apostolic Church.
When the request is made to Jesus by Salome that her 2 sons sit on thrones on the left and right of Jesus, Jesus asks James and John directly “can you drink the cup of suffering that I am about to drink?” They reply of course we can. They wholly agreed with the request of their mother and possibly instigated the request. WHAT was the focus of James and John in making or agreeing with this request? I will come back to that later.
I want to tell you a story. The Tokyo Olympics are on. My fertile imagination centres on the fight for the Olympic Gold Medal in the Heavyweight Division of Boxing. In one corner sits MR WORLD supremely confident supported by the Rich and Famous. MR WORLD is obsessed by honour, recognition, domination and power . If he gives anything away there are always strings attached, a price to pay.
There is a huge crowd of supporters in his corner . In the opposite corner sits MR SERVANT supported only by a few poor scruffy individuals. He is humble, even submissive. When he gives anything away it is done freely and without expecting a return. He doesn’t look like a heavyweight boxer. In his corner are 12 friends who look as equally scruffy as he does. The bell rings and as expected MR WORLD dominates the 1st Round landing blow after blow with little resistance from MR SERVANT.
The crowd roars for the final blow, for victory. The 12 supporters of MR SERVANT bow their heads scared to look at what will certainly come next. Round 1 ends with MR WORLD well ahead on points. The bell rings and Round 2 begins. Surely this is the end of the fight. MR SERVANT delivers a single knockout blow to MR WORLD and the fight is indeed over. The audience is stunned at the result. The impossible has happened.
What am I trying to say ?
Simply there are 2 ways of doing things. Firstly there is the World’s way where Honour, Recognition, Wealth, Power, Prestige, even Domination are valued higher. Sure there is some giving but it comes with strings attached. The second way is that of GOD. It turns the World’s way upside down. It is about service, about servitude, about humility, about freely giving and not expecting anything in return. The world rewards those who put themselves at the top. The Kingdom of Christ however rewards those who put themselves at the bottom. In the ancient World Kings and Princes were at the top-most rung of society while slaves were at the very bottom most run of society.
The two brothers James and John had to learn the hard lesson that the greatest calling of a servant of JESUS CHRIST is to serve others. They cannot serve God if their focus is on the throne, on the rewards available in the Kingdom of Heaven . The rewards are there and they will be given to all true believers in the portions allocated by God the Father. If you look at the screen you will see on the right side the image of Jesus washing the feet of his disciples. I can just imagine how dusty and smelly those feet were after walking miles. Who wants to do this disgusting job? Who wants to be a servant? What is good about serving. The usual response is :- I don‘t have time for it., It is not my cup of tea.
We live in a world where people strive diligently for high positions of power and ;leadership and for fame and recognition. We live in a world where few people want to be servants. And if there are people who do serve, they serve only because of the prospect of personal gain in terms of money, honour power or recognition. That is the way things are done in this world of ours. It is considered demeaning to serve others, and it is considered foolish to serve for nothing.
BUT Jesus requires us to take a very different view of service as can be seen in today’s Gospel reading. In verse 27 WHOSOEVER WILL BE CHIEF AMOUNG YOU, LET HIM BE YOUR SERVANT. What makes us great in God’s Kingdom are the things that the world despises most like humility, weakness, giving, submission and selfless service. These are the things that matter most in Christ’s Kingdom. The World rewards those who put themselves at the top. But the Kingdom of Christ rewards those who put themselves at the bottom.
What should we do today? Is it better to sit on a comfortable ornate throne or is it better to serve, for example washing the dirty smelly feet of the 12 disciples? It is a hard choice. I used to bow to the demands placed on me by my Employers & the World. Today however I choose to serve God and love God with all my being.
May the Lord our God speak to each one of us and help each one of us to be faithful servants. Amen.