Summary
The Server
Greatness in the kingdom of God is not measured by position, title, paycheck, or seat at the table. It is measured by stooping low. That is the lesson Jesus presses upon his disciples in Mark 10:35-45, and it forms the capstone of what the church is called to be: a people who serve because they have first been served by the Server himself.
The episode is striking for its timing. Jesus has just delivered a clear passion prediction—that he will be handed over, mocked, flogged, killed, and rise on the third day. The response of James and John is jarring: "Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you." They request the seats of honor at his right and his left. It is a profound misunderstanding of Christ's lordship, treating him as a butler who answers to human whims. Jesus answers with a question about the cup of suffering and the baptism of death. They claim they are able—and indeed, Acts 12:2 records James killed by the sword, and Revelation 1:9 shows John sharing in persecution. The other ten are angry, not in righteous indignation, but because they had not thought to ask first.
Into this tangle of pride and ambition, Jesus speaks the defining word: "Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many." Greatness is found in servanthood. There is no greater example than the Messiah who lays down his life on the cross, bearing our sin, paying the ransom price with his own blood. This is the substitutionary atonement—Christ taking our place to effect at-one-ment with God Almighty—validated by the empty tomb.
This shapes how Lutherans understand the gathering of the church on the Lord's Day. We call it a worship "service," and some of our brothers and sisters call it the Divine Service—a fitting name. The worship service is not primarily us assembling to serve God; it is God calling forth his church in order to serve us. When sins are confessed and absolution pronounced, God is serving. When the Word is read and proclaimed, God is serving—the pastor is simply the mailman delivering the mail. When the body and blood of Christ are given with bread and wine for the forgiveness of sins, God is serving. The Server, the Lord Jesus Christ, is present to give what we cannot manufacture: Word and Sacrament.
That is amazing grace. God commands his people to be present because he has something to give. And the Server, having served us, then brings forth servants. He sends us out across the street and around the world, into our Jerusalem, our Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth Acts 1:8. The pattern of Acts 6 shows the church organizing itself so that every gift is engaged in service—some at table, some in the Word—but all of it ultimately God's own work flowing through his people.
Scripture's call is consistent: turn from idols "to serve a living and true God" 1 Thessalonians 1:9; "worship the Lord your God and serve only him" Matthew 4:10; "be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord" Romans 12:11. Greatness is not standing tall but stooping low. The Server brings forth servants—and that is the heartbeat of the church's mission.
Video citations
- "Server" Nov 11, 2018 — Would you open your Bible, please, with me to the 10th chapter of the Gospel of Mark for our study today? These past several weeks, we have been studying in the sermon series entitled The Mission.…