In today’s Gospel, Jesus reminds His disciples that true greatness is not found in power, but in service. While James and John seek the highest places in the Kingdom, Christ invites them to understand that the path to glory is through humility and self-sacrifice for others. Through His own sacrifice, He shows us that real strength lies in service, faithfulness, and love.
James and John: They Didn’t Understand…
It is not easy to align ourselves with God’s perspective. It is not easy to grasp the teachings of Christ. This is evident in the actions of James and John, the sons of Zebedee, whose strange request we have just heard. They did not understand anything!
Jesus had just told them that He “will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn Him to death. They will hand Him over to the Gentiles, who will mock Him and spit on Him, flog Him and kill Him. Three days later He will rise.”
From all this, the two apostles seemed only to have heard the word “rise.” And even then, what do they truly understand? Hence their question: “Grant us to sit, one at Your right hand and one at Your left, in Your glory.”
The tragic fate their Master will suffer doesn’t seem to bother them much. James and John are thinking only of themselves, of their places in the Kingdom. They ask for the best seats: to be at the right and left of the Master! They want to be covered in honors, to satisfy their ambitions.
James and John have no idea of the path that leads to glory, and they forget that it is God alone who decides who sits where in His Kingdom.
The Other Apostles: They Didn’t Understand Either
The other apostles are, of course, indignant at the pretensions of the two brothers, but their indignation is motivated by nothing more than jealousy. They too have misunderstood the situation…
With admirable patience, Jesus once again explains to them what He has already told them many times, but which they find so difficult to grasp: the Kingdom of Heaven is something entirely different from earthly kingdoms. In earthly realms, authority and responsibility bring power and supremacy: “The rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them.”
But to become the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven, one must take a different path: “Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be the slave of all.”
Serve to Enter the Glory of God
This is the path, the path of Jesus: “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”
It is great, the servant who makes himself the slave of all, who understands the weaknesses of others, and who gives his life for others.
Let us admit that this is not something that comes naturally to us. On the contrary, it goes against our most habitual desires and reactions. Nonetheless, the lesson Jesus teaches His disciples is also addressed to all of us.
Each of us is called to serve, to drink from the cup of the Lord.
Certainly, it is not about seeking or enduring some spectacular martyrdom, but rather about being attentive to the frequent opportunities that daily life presents: prayer and work, joys and sufferings, bearing witness in all its forms.
It is in this daily faithfulness, in this constant effort renewed every day, in the fight against our selfishness, in the generosity of heart for our neighbor… that our service is to be accomplished, and ultimately our cross. And although sometimes heavy to carry, it remains a source of hope. For in His Sacrifice, Jesus has taken upon Himself the miseries and renunciations of all humanity; He has borne our pains and efforts; He has carried our sins and saved us.
Thus, by joining Jesus in His Passion and in the service of others, we are certain to walk with Him on the path to Salvation. Amen.
Biblical References
Is 53:10-11 / Heb 4:14-16 / Mk 10:35-45
Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark
James and John, the sons of Zebedee,
came to Jesus and said to him,
“Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.”
He replied, “What do you wish me to do for you?”
They answered him, “Grant that in your glory
we may sit one at your right and the other at your left.”
Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking.
Can you drink the cup that I drink
or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?”
They said to him, “We can.”
Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink, you will drink,
and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized;
but to sit at my right or at my left is not mine to give
but is for those for whom it has been prepared.”
When the ten heard this, they became indignant at James and John.
Jesus summoned them and said to them,
“You know that those who are recognized as rulers over the Gentiles
lord it over them, and their great ones make their authority over them felt.
But it shall not be so among you.
Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all.
For the Son of Man did not come to be served
but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
For today’s readings, refer to Vatican News.
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