The Left and Right Side of Jesus

 Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, and kneeling before him, she asked a favor of him. And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Declare that these two sons of mine will sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.”  But Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.”  He said to them, “You will indeed drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left, this is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”

When the ten heard it, they were angry with the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them.  It will not be so among you; but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave; just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.”     Matthew 20.20-28

In Matthew 20.20-28, we find a most interesting story about Jesus and the disciples. The mother of James and John comes forward and asks Jesus to give her boys honored seats at the Heavenly Table. She would like them seated at his right and at his left, thank you very much. This is truly an absurd request, and I imagine that Jesus even chuckled a bit. He then addresses the sons and asks if they are ready for what those seats require. "Sure!" they answer with some bravado in their voices. I think Jesus might have smiled at that bravado before he responded. He tells them that they will indeed have to do what's necessary, yet God alone decides who gets preferred seating. 

                Here's where the story gets interesting. The other disciples get wind of what has happened, and they are none too pleased. Jesus hears all the grumbling and calls all of them together. He reminds them that the Gentile rulers get puffed up with a little power and like to make certain that the regular folks know how important they are. Jesus uses this "who's the favorite" crankiness of the disciples to illustrate a truth that they didn't fully understand then, and we don't fully understand yet today.

Jesus tells them that the only way to be "first" is to live one's life as "last". If they truly want to be at the head of the line for the Kingdom, they need to learn how to be servants of everyone else. Being the "greatest", being "number one", requires the sacrifice found only in serving others. Ah, but then Jesus gives them a twist. Jesus tells them they need to be like Him, the One who didn't come to be served but to be a servant and to be the payment, the ransom for those bound by Evil. 

Woah. The twelve may have nodded their heads, thinking or even saying, "Sure! We can be like you! We can certainly spend our lives walking in your footsteps doing miracles and giving up the "good life" for your mission!"  Of course, he had already told them what was going to happen to him, but they either didn't hear or didn't think it would end the way he said. Even when it all happens, some are willing to go TO the cross with Him, but not ONto the cross. Others of them just panic and run away. Before we scold these poor disciples, we must stop and examine ourselves. Jesus is also speaking to us, through his words to them. We are okay with going to the cross, standing at the foot of the cross, shaking our heads in sorrow and amazement at the sacrifice. Yet, most of us are unwilling to go "all the way"; unwilling to climb onto that cross and surrender our lives for the sake of others. When the going gets rough, we want to get away.

Surrendering our lives may take many different guises. Are you an athlete set to win the race and see another runner fall? Do you continue to win? Or do you go back, help the other runner to stand and together finish the race? That is surrendering your life. How about that expensive car you just "have" to buy because it will proclaim your status? Would you be willing to surrender your life, "your status" in order to help someone else? Are we willing to give up what we want so that others may have what they need? Are we willing to become volunteers in our community and surrender our lives to service? Are we willing to stand firm in the face of Evil and demand what is Good? That may mean climbing onto that cross. There are so many ways to surrender our lives to God, all understood through the practice of serving others and knowing that the service requires surrender of ourselves. Are we truly ready, asks Jesus, to follow wherever Jesus leads us?

Somehow, Christianity took a wrong turn along the way. We began to believe and to teach that claiming Jesus the Christ as our Lord and Savior is all that is necessary for our ticket to heaven. That is not, however, what Jesus taught. We are to love God, first and foremost. We are to love one another (Church, the Body of Christ). We are to love our neighbor (humanity) as we love ourselves. How we treat others is the key to our eternal life. Did we let folks go hungry and thirsty or did we feed them? Did we make sure everyone had a safe place to live? Did we make certain that folks had clothes to wear? Did we tend to them when they were sick or in prison? Did we give scraps and leftovers, or did we see ourselves in others and treat them as we treated ourselves? Were we willing not only to carry the cross, but also allow ourselves to die for the love of humanity, as Jesus did? That’s what Jesus’ teachings are telling us. How much are we willing to surrender out of love for God and humanity? That is the test of discipleship.  

Many years ago, I served on staff at an inner-city church. Each week the loving people in that congregation served lunch to anyone who would come. No eligibility tests were administered. Simply come and eat a meal together. The best dishes were used, no paper plates or plastic utensils; a wonderful meal was prepared with fresh food just as you might have gotten at home. No reservations were necessary. I watched as mix of business people, street people, elderly people, and parishioners sat together at round tables and talked. Staff members like me would sit and listen as we ate, to hear concerns or needs and see if there were ways to help meet them. Tables were filled with clothes, shoes, toiletries, and other items that might be needed by folks who couldn’t afford them. Abundance was prepared and many folks left with extra for another meal. At other times, and in other places, I observed “feeding the needy” or “feeding the homeless” in a very different manner. Paper plates. Plastic utensils, if necessary. Limits on servings, few if, any leftovers, eligibility checks, and signage that had long since lost its meaning in a community. The first example, for me, is what “doing for the least of these” – those who are in need. The second examples, for me, are what “doing the least for others” looks like. One is sacrificial living; the others require little sacrifice at all. One is following the teachings of Jesus; the others are the result of fearful and corrupted teachings that cause the Holy One to weep.

There is no preferred seating at the Heavenly Banquet. When a banquet is served, the very best of everything is used and served. Those first disciples didn’t fully understand, at the beginning, what it truly means to follow Jesus. They had no previous examples of discipleship with Jesus. We do not have that excuse. We have the evidences of 2,000 years as to how to follow or not follow Jesus, and the lessons he taught.

Jesus is emphatic that when we see others in need, we are really seeing Him. We must learn how to serve, we must be servants, we must learn to serve Jesus in others. It's not about winners or losers. It's not about part of us. Heaven is not a competition. The Kingdom of God is already here and not yet fully visible. Bringing the Kingdom requires all of us to live, to love and to serve one another, because we understand that Kingdom life, eternal life, is about sacrifice and service. The Kingdom of God is very near to us and we glimpse that Glory whenever we practice what Jesus taught. There is a world deeply in need of what we have in abundance. The Kingdom of Heaven is among us. We are the partners who allow it to be fully visible. Repeatedly, Jesus told the disciples these truths, and they – like we – didn’t understand. Once we “get” it, and then we live it, the Kingdom will at last be made manifest. We will all be seated together at the Heavenly Banquet Table and each of us will be seated next to Jesus. No one will have preferred seating, because every seat is important in the Kingdom of God. Together we will see God as God truly is. At last, as Jesus prayed, we will all be one.