Evensong 9/3/08

Matthew 20:17 Now as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, 18 "We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death 19 and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!" 20 Then the mother of Zebedee's sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him. 21 "What is it you want?" he asked. She said, "Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom." 22 "You don't know what you are asking," Jesus said to them. "Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?" "We can," they answered.23 Jesus said to them, "You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father." 24 When the ten heard about this, they were indignant with the two brothers. 25 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. 26 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave - 28 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." 29 As Jesus and his disciples were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed him. 30 Two blind men were sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was going by, they shouted, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!" 31 The crowd rebuked them and told them to be quiet, but they shouted all the louder, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!" 32 Jesus stopped and called them. "What do you want me to do for you?" he asked. 33 "Lord," they answered, "we want our sight." 34 Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes. Immediately they received their sight and followed him.

"If you don't ask you don't get". Common phrase today. Illustrated by James' and John's mum. May have some sympathies. Jesus was talking about his Kingdom. Expected an earthly messiah and earthly kingdom. Wanted best places for her sons.

There is a song called "O Lord, all the world belongs to you".

It refers to Jesus "turning the world upside down". One verse goes

"The world wants the wealth to live in state.

But you show a new way to be great.

Loving enemies too

And this loving with you

Is what's turning the world upside down."

Jesus' Kingdom turned the world and its values upside down. We see this in today's reading.

His kingdom would not be established by force, military might, but being subject to betrayal, injustice, suffering and crucifixion.

This King was not about lording it over others. Instead he was a slave, literally. A slave does the will of His master. Jesus did God's will and, in so doing, served people.

The disciples not understand. They wanted the best positions in the Kingdom without suffering. They wanted the crown without the cross. Jesus said, "This is not my way."

True greatness is about service. It is about following God's upside down ways, not popularity, not following the crowd.

You may wonder why Matthew chose to put the account of the healing of the blind men after this incident. If you did, you probably know the answer.

The disciples were spiritually blind. Even though this was the third and most graphic prediction that Jesus gave them of his forthcoming death they still hadn't grasped what would happen to Jesus, how His kingdom would be established.

In contrast the two blind men could see with clarity. They knew that Jesus really was the Messiah, the anointed one from God. They asked for his mercy by restoring their sight. They were probably beggars, on the road from Jericho to Jerusalem to gain as many gifts as possible as people passed by on the way to the Passover. Yet they were prepared to give up this life to fend for themselves by asking for their sight.

Did you notice that, in this reading Jesus asks two groups of people what they want? Firstly the Zebedee clan, then these two men. He is unsympathetic to James and John who should have known better after three years with Him. He grants the blind men what they want with compassion. They received their sight and they followed him. Perhaps to Jerusalem and, even to the cross.

We should not be blind to what true discipleship entails.

It involves service, obedience, humiliation at times, hard work, rejection - even by those with whom we are close.

But it is a road to a new, upside down Kingdom. Where there is love, joy, peace, life, justice and an end to betrayal, suffering, rejection, disease, sin and death.

PRAY