A Serving Leadership Insight from the Life of Jesus Christ (Mark 10:35-40)

“Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. ‘Teacher,’ they said, ‘we want you to do for us whatever we ask.’ ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ he asked. They replied, ‘Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.’ ‘You don’t know what you are asking,’ Jesus said. ‘Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?’ ‘We can,’ they answered. Jesus said to them, ‘You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, 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.’” (Mark 10:35-40)

In Mark 10:35–40 James and John approached Jesus with a request to be seated at his right and left when he reigned in his kingdom. Their ambition had gotten the best of them. Desiring to share in his glory and power, they sought prominence over service. After informing them that they didn’t know what they were asking, Jesus had a question of his own: “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?” He wondered if they were prepared for the suffering that would accompany his own ascent to glory and power, for one does not gain power by grabbing it but by relinquishing it through suffering and death. Their response was naïve. They assumed that they knew, but even suffering does not necessarily guarantee one a position. It’s only for another to grant. Jesus served under his Father’s authority. Like him, we must not serve for personal gain but rather out of who we are. 

KEY QUESTIONS: When has ambition ever gotten the best of me? What is my primary motivation for leadership? Am I willing to suffer for what’s right regardless of the outcome? How can I help younger leaders purge their leadership motivation of self-interest?