In the tenth chapter of the Gospel of Mark , James and John , two disciples of Jesus , came with unusual request. “. When you enter into glory and reestablish God’s kingdom as the Messiah, please make sure you appoint us by your side. Give us central spots in your kingly cabinet. One of us as your right hand, and one as your left. In their views they earned the spots . They are entitled to it. They were the first one to follow Jesus. They dropped their lucrative jobs and joined the Jesus new movement and they should be rewarded.
Marcus Borg argues that based on what you believe God is like, there are two very different Christian messages. On the one hand, it’s bad news of a coming last judgment for which you’d better be ready, a religion of threat, anxiety, and self-preservation, or, on the other hand, a very different kind of news: good news of an invitation to trust God with your eternal destiny and to live life now in gratitude, love, and compassion.
There is a little of that in James’s and John’s request to Jesus to allow them seats of honor in the kingdom. They’re trying to use religion for their own advantage, their own self-aggrandizement now and in the hereafter. They are thinking like contemporary televangelists, the gospel of prosperity and success. Jesus tells them to forget about it; to become servants, to trust him with the outcome of their lives now and always.
Dr. Willy L Mafuta,
Senior Pastor,
Hopewell United Methodist Church, Hopewell, NJ 08525