This week’s reading: Matthew 20:20-34
Hi Friends,
Contradictions, cups, conflicts and cures. This is where we find ourselves this week, my Friends, and as always, there is so much for us hungry students to learn! This week, we are in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 20, verses 20-34. First, we will get rid of the false notion that the Bible is “filled with contradictions,” by discussing the fact that different people will tell the same exact story, differently. Second, let us not judge James, John or their mom, but let’s seek to understand their hearts and perhaps learn from their mistake. Third, I will encourage each of us to do a little introspective analysis of how we, ourselves, behave in any groups, as we learn to become more and more like Jesus. And lastly, we will cheer the audacity of one, or is it two blind men (hee hee see my first point above), and we will talk about true healing. Wow that sounds like a lot, so let’s get into it, and start with these verses:
“Jesus called them together and said, ‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave – just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’” Mt 20:25-28 NIV
Contradictions, but no oppositions. In desperation to discredit God’s Word, there are many who claim that the Bible is filled with contradictions. But is it really? Have you ever witnessed something traumatic, like a car accident, and there were other people who saw the same exact thing? Did each of your stories have the same exact details? Of course not. Either the angle with which you each saw the event were different, or you focused on things that the other person just did not notice, right? Well this is exactly what is going on here too. As a matter of fact, this is why we have FOUR Gospels! Different points of view are going to tell the same exact story with their different points of view. We find these same events from our reading also recorded by Mark in his Gospel in chapter 10, verses 35 through 52. In addition, we find the story of the healing of the blind man in the Gospel of Luke9:35-43. I love reading the same incidents simultaneously because the Bible is not contradictory, it is complimentary. As we place each version next to one another we can get a bigger picture of what is going on. In our first story, Matthew talks about how the mother of James and John approaches Jesus with her sons, while Mark leaves her out completely. Without Matthew we miss the beautiful example of a loving mother, but without Mark we miss the brazenness of her sons. We need both accounts to get a better feel of what was going on. Two different people, two different views on the same exact story and a bigger understanding so we can learn more deeply. No disagreement. Again I say, two different people telling the same exact story differently. This is what we humans do. Then we have the blind man…or two blind men depending on which Gospel you are reading. Matthew says there were two, Mark and Luke only one, and Mark even names one of them as Bartimaeus. So does this mean there is a contradiction here? It breaks my heart to hear others be so quick to try everything, and anything, to invalidate Scripture. Can it possibly be, well I don’t know, maybe Peter knew Bartimaeus and named him as he recounted the event to Mark who wrote it down, while Luke was never told the blind man’s name and Matthew? He preferred to focus on the number of men instead of their names? I know I am making stuff up here, but it is plausible that since the Bible never tells us the details, that we do not need to know those details. The point to these stories right here is that Jesus heard the requests of the blind men and granted their desire, however He did not do so for the sons of Zebedee and their mother. And why? Following the Father’s Will was the most important thing to Jesus. Can we learn this? Because of His deep love for God the Father, God the Son would only, and always, do whatever He was commanded to do. As Jesus says, only the Father could grant position, but healing? This Jesus had the power and authority to do. My Friends, we must approach the Bible in reverence, trusting Scripture to be the Truth, because if even one part is wrong, then isn’t the entire thing wrong? (Jas 2:10) Where is the assurance of our Salvation if this is the case? No! The Bible IS Truth. Let us not be like this world that starts with their own ideas and calls them truth. Let’s start with the Truth and see the rest of life through the Bible’s viewpoint.
Cups to drink. The Old Testament often refers to the cup of God’s wrath as a symbol for the impending judgment for sin. So it is interesting that Jesus brings up this metaphor here as these bold, and naive, followers come to Jesus with their grand request. Since we are walking through the Gospel of Matthew this year, let’s bring the mother of these “Sons of Thunder” into our conversation and put Mark’s version to the side for right now. I don’t want us to miss this mom’s confidence in, and devotion to Jesus. She comes to Jesus and immediately she kneels down in His Presence. Doing so is her acknowledging Jesus as King. Yes, approaching Him to request such a huge petition shows she has courage, as well as a lot of nerve, but it also clearly reveals her Faith. We must give her some leeway here though because, after all, which mom wouldn’t want the best seat in the house for her children, right? Jesus had already proclaimed that these close Apostles of His would one day each “sit on 12 thrones, judging the 12 tribes of Israel” (remember Mt 19:28?), so it seems natural to think that she did not mean any disrespect in making such a presumptuous plea. Moms look out for their children. That is what we do. But what she, and James and John, did not yet realize is that Jesus was not here to do whatever He felt like doing, but only, and always to follow the Father’s Plan. Perhaps she, and her sons, needed to be reminded of the words that Jesus just shared with them: the first will be last and the last will be first. You see, if we try to lift ourselves up, especially into a position that the Father has not planned for us to have, then we will sense the fall and sense it hard. Pride always leads to problems. So Jesus here gently rebukes them. Turning away from the mother and towards her two ambitious boys, which as I mentioned above, Jesus had already nicknamed the “Sons of Thunder” most likely because of their roaring enthusiasm (see Mk 3:17 and Lk 9:54), Jesus continues though to work on their hearts. We humans always tend to think we can do something grand with no problem, until we have to do it, that is. And so Jesus asks, “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?” to which James and John do not even seem to miss a beat in responding, “Yes, yes we can!” (see Mt 20:22) Jesus patiently, and I am sure lovingly, looks at this trio and speaks truth into their lives. “You do not know what you are asking.” Have you ever been there? We think we want something or someone in our lives, we think we want to do this or that big thing, but only to regret it all in the end? There are many times when God will deny our request in order to protect us from ourselves and the potential negative outcome of getting what we asked for. But then there are situations when God let’s us learn the hard way. Either way, God’s goal is always the same: that we learn to love Him and others as we love ourselves. (Mt 22:36-40) Love. That is always the point and purpose to everything that happens. The more we learn to see the lessons of life through these lenses, the more we are able to truly live by “the most excellent way” of love. (see 1Co 12:31) What’s interesting is that these brother will eventually drink from this cup of suffering, but not the way they pictured it. God the Father has a plan for each human and only He gets to say the “how’s” of the way everything will work together. (Mt 20:23) The Father has already, and is currently still, preparing that place for each of us, whatever that may look like, and what we need to learn here is that, instead of telling God which position He should give us, we must simply and gratefully trust Him to place us where He sees will be the greatest blessing to us, and those around us. Yes, we should have the boldness of this trio and come to Jesus in awe and reverence and make our appeals, but then, we must trust His Plan is the best case scenario for our lives here, and then hereafter. The story stops here but I wonder about the state of their hearts afterwards. Did they drop it, trusting Jesus, or did they still think they should be elevated above their companions? Because wanting to lord over our companions is certainly not The Way.
Conflicts happen. It is after the rest of the crew learn what these Sons of Thunder have asked of Jesus, that potential division tries to trickle in. The truth is, when we humans are in any kind of group, there will always be a clash of personalities. One of the reasons I enjoy the series called “The Chosen” so much is that it shows us the possible arguments these men and women might have had as they learned to follow this amazing Teacher. People are going to disagree on things, but it is what we do with these disagreements that matters. Jesus seems to quickly calm the storm, as He always does, by bringing them together and teaching them a valuable lesson. Both versions of this same story say “Jesus called them together” as He spoke the words I quoted above. But I don’t want us to miss the power of being called together, as one, in a group centered on Jesus, the One who calls us. Recall we talked about being One Body under Christ last week? My Friends, if the Church does not come together now, then when? The issue is not whether we agree on every point, but on whether we are going to act like the rulers of the Gentiles who try to lord it over one another, or if we will allow Jesus to humble us so that we can be like Him. Listen again to the words of Jesus, “Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave – just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mt 20:26-28) Come to serve or to be served? Which do we really want? Is this life still about MMI or are we learning to surrender our agendas for the sake of love? I am not talking about compromising the Gospel; that must, and will stand. But we must…no, I must surrender my Pride every day, with every decision I make. Will we all agree on this much? Conflicts happen and they do because we want what we want, when and how we want it. But my Friends, that is our old, sinful, selfish nature. That is NOT who we are anymore. We belong to Jesus, thank God! We are New Creations in Him, praise God! And we can continue to be transformed into the Holy Image of Jesus, to the glory of God! We can, if we stop the conflicts outside of us by receiving the peace of Jesus inside of us. We do not have to agree on every detail. If it is a topic that neither gets us into Heaven nor keeps us out of Heaven, then agree to disagree, and choose to live a life that points to Jesus instead of MMI. Salvation by Grace through Faith cannot be compromised. But whether someone is baptized by full immersion or is sprinkled with water? Really? Must I remind us that the whole point is Jesus, not us? If we place our Faith in Him, if we believe in our hearts and confess with our lips, (Ro 10:9-10) then who really cares how wet we get in proclaiming we are His, right? Conflicts happen…but as we grow in Christ, I hope any internal conflicts will lessen, which will eventually, and automatically, translate into a corresponding external decrease in conflicts too. I love how we do not hear that the “indignant 10” continued to be bitter about the gall of these Sons of Thunder. They denied their hurt feelings, picked up their cross of suffering for the sake of righteousness and chose to follow the way of Jesus and love. Will we?
Cures for the blind. As I said above, Jesus continues on His way when He encounters two blind men. It is interesting to me that these who could not see with their eyes, did see with their hearts. They knew that Jesus was Who He claimed to be. The title “Lord,” showed that they knew Jesus had the power and dominion over their disease, and everything else. The term “Son of David” revealed they knew Jesus to be their long awaited Messiah. These blind men saw Jesus for Who He is…the religious, on the other hand, were blinded by their Pride. But that’s a conversation for another time. I love how each story, in Mathew, Mark and Luke, all say, after these blind men received their sight, they followed Jesus their Healer too. Oh please don’t miss that last part! They were healed then they followed Jesus! What good does it do any of us if we are cured of our illness, addiction, financial woes or whatever here, but then die forever after here?! Every time Jesus heals in the Bible…and still now…the point is to point us towards Salvation and following Him into the hereafter. Being cured of their physically blind eyes must have been amazing, but it was following Jesus that made the healing life transforming. Too many people seek the healing and not the Healer. And yes, we should ask the God Who still miraculously heals, but if that is our goal? If all we want is a comfortable life here? If we want the miracle, but not the Miracle Maker? Are you getting my point? Was the real miracle that these blind men could now see, or that their lives were completely changed because they followed Jesus thereafter? And while we don’t hear what happens to these men, can you imagine how many lives they must have bought to Christ? I know I have experienced so many miracles in my life, and a majority of them when my daughter, my Rebecca, went through the way too many crisis she went through. Yet the point is to point to Miracle Giver, not this world. It is because I grew so connected to our Lord through it all that, even though my Angel Pie is not with me here, I will continue to proclaim His love and goodness till He takes me to be with her someday. How dare we receive such miracles, but then NOT follow Jesus? These blind men showed their transformed hearts through their transformed lives as they followed our Lord, Son of David. May we do the same.
No more need to drink from that first cup. One last comment before we go, because Jesus drank the Cup of God’s Wrath, we no longer have to. Jesus became “the ransom for many” so we would be set free from the prison of sin and death. When we receive the cup of His Blood instead, we are protected from that eternal death sentence because we pass from death to life in Christ. (Jn 5:24) Think Passover here. (Ex 12) With Faith in the sacrifice of Jesus, we have become New Creations in Christ, (2Co 5:17), so now we do not need to drink from the cup with which He drank from. The costly price of death has been paid. (Ro 6:23) My Friends, if you have not yet drank from this cup of mercy and grace and love, won’t you do it today? Choose to be like these blind men and place your trust in Jesus, and may our Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us. I praise Him that I no longer have to worry about that cup when I leave here, and I cling to Him as I continue to work through any challenges I may yet face before I get there. And as I do, you know what I’m going to say! My life becomes more and more abundant! Want that? Then won’t you join me?
Until we meet again, keep lifting your eyes to God, He’s closer than you think.
<>< Peace, Diane
