What The Cross Creates

Introduction

We’ve approached a key unit in Mark’s gospel today. Mark 10:45 is, if you have any type of church background, is a familiar verse probably to many of us.

Mark 10:45 ESV

For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

One of our core values as a church here is taken from this verse: service.

Core Value:

“We believe service is the overflow of discipleship.”

Meaning, as our hearts are stirred to worship God for who He is, what he has done, and what has been accomplished for us through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, then one of the overflows of our praise, adoration and thankfulness is an attitude of service toward one another, and toward the world.

This is the attitude and the heart we see and have seen in Jesus himself throughout this gospel.

Mark’s pace of writing is quick and action-packed. The word, “immediately” is used over 40 times throughout Mark’s gospel. Jesus’ life is portrayed as busy and moving from one setting to another, accompanied by large crowds who are always pressing in on him, always asking things from him. Oftentimes we’ve read that Jesus and his disciples didn’t even have enough time to eat because there was much to do and people to care for.

Yet, not once do we see Jesus losing his temper on those in need who are asking things from him. Not once does Jesus blow up and scream at people to leave him alone. Not once do we see Jesus talking negatively about people behind their backs. Not once do we see Jesus look the other way when someone was hurting because he just didn’t have the time for them.

Jesus is portrayed in this gospel as the King of kings, but also as a servant. He is the servant-King.

And this passage that we’ve now arrived at is good summarization of that truth about the character and nature of Jesus.

But, it’s also a good summarization of who we now are called to be in Christ, who has ransomed us, bought us, purchased us with his very life. We’re a new people, with a new identity, a new purpose, a new mission, advancing a new kingdom, with a new mindset toward one another and toward the world. We’re servants, following the great servant-King. This is what the cross creates.

Do we see ourselves this way? Do we recognize this new reality, this new identity we now have in and through Christ? Titus 2:14 summarizes this for us quite well.

Titus 2:14

[Jesus] gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

This is what the cross creates. A new people, with a new mission, eager to do good for others. To serve.

So, let’s be shaped by this text today.

So, my outline is very simple today and I’ve already summarized it in my intro. Jesus ransoms a people from every nation who all share a new mission, a new kingdom, and a new mindset.

Let’s take a look at these in more detail.

Body

Follow along with me starting in verse 32.

Mark 10:32–34 ESV

And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them. And they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him, saying, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles. And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise.”

So, what we see the cross creating here is,

A new mission

This is the third and final time Jesus will speak of his impending suffering, death, and resurrection. And it’s the most detailed accounting that Mark gives. He speaks of his arrest, his trial, his handing over to the Romans for execution. He talks of how he’s going to suffer and how he’ll be treated. But then again, he speaks of his resurrection. “In three days he will rise.”

Now, it’s interesting to note Mark’s placement of each of these foretellings that Jesus gives of his death and resurrection. I say it’s interesting to note because Mark is trying to say something and show something important.

In Mark 8 we see Jesus’ first foretelling of his death and resurrection. Immediately after he speaks of these things to come Peter rebukes Jesus. Peter tells Jesus that he shouldn’t be saying these things. A king doesn’t suffer, king doesn’t die. A king rules and reigns. And Jesus rebukes Peter with that well-known line that nobody would ever want to hear Jesus say to us, “Get behind me Satan!”

In Mark 9 we see Jesus’ second foretelling of his death and resurrection. Immediately after this we see the disciples arguing amongst themselves about which of them will be the greatest. Jesus pulls them aside and says, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.”

Here we are now, Mark 10 and Jesus’ third foretelling of his death and resurrection. And what do we see taking place right after? James and John asking Jesus to make them the greatest in the kingdom. Now, we’ll get to Jesus response in a bit, but what were the disciples missing each time Jesus would speak of his death and resurrection?

They were misunderstanding the mission of Christ, and the mission he calls them to.

Peter’s rebuke of Jesus was because to Peter, a king doesn’t suffer. A king reigns and conquers his enemies. But he didn’t understand yet that Jesus’ reign and rule and conquering of his enemies, of sin, death, and Satan would come through suffering and death itself.

When the disciples argued amongst themselves about which of them would be the greatest, they misunderstood the nature of Christ’s kingdom, and they didn’t understand yet the mission Jesus was calling them to.

Jesus’ life was one of single-minded mission. In all of his teaching, through all of his miracles, he had one purpose, to advance the kingdom of God and that advancement could and would only come through his death and resurrection.

Even here, in these verses in front of us, notice the words Mark uses to show Jesus’ single-minded pursuit of heading toward the cross.

In verse 32 it says that Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, where he knew his arrest, trial, and execution would take place, but also notice where Jesus is along the way. Verse 32 says that Jesus was “Walking ahead of them.” What’s he doing?

He’s leading them there.

Jesus’ mission becomes our mission. Now, praise God, because of Christ we don’t need to endure the wrath of God that Jesus endured while on the cross. Jesus absorbed God’s wrath for sinful humanity. 2 Corinthians 5 says that Jesus was made to be sin so that in and through Christ, by faith we would become the righteousness of God. So, through faith in Jesus we are no longer under condemnation for our sin, Christ paid the debt, but we share a same mission.

Like Jesus, we are to take up our cross, meaning, just as Jesus died for the penalty of our sin, we die to ourselves, we deny ourselves and follow Jesus.

But what does this actually mean?

To deny in the New Testament means to intentionally disassociate, or to renounce a particular relationship with a person. And so, when Jesus speaks of self-denial, he’s saying that we need to disassociate from ourselves, it’s the intentional denial of self and seeking Jesus as primary. He comes first.

When Jesus speaks of taking up our cross, keep in mind that this was said before his crucifixion. Now, his death would bring more clarity to that statement, but it had to mean something as well to the disciples beforehand too.

I like how Christy Gambrell puts it. She says,

“Crucifixion was reserved specifically for offenders who had rebelled against authority. To “take up one’s cross” referred to the practice of forcing a condemned person to carry the cross beam to his execution site. This showed that although he had rebelled against authority, the condemned person was now so completely conquered that his last act in life would be to carry the instrument of his demise to the place of his death. It was a show of complete and utter submission.

A call to bear one’s cross as part of following Jesus, then, is a call to be as submitted to Christ as the condemned criminal was to his death.

Therefore, when Jesus calls for self-denial and cross-bearing, he’s claiming authority. Following Christ means disowning the self and giving allegiance to him instead. And it means giving him allegiance down to the very depths of our being.”

This is what Jesus calls us to. A new mission of self-denial and cross-bearing which shows Jesus as primary in our lives and deserving of all worship, honor, and glory.

Is this the mission you are a part of? Is Jesus primary in your life? Is Jesus exalted in your thoughts, your actions, your family, your work, your finances, your serving, your marriage, your home? He will take no less than all of it.

This is why, as we saw last week, the path toward life is narrow with few on it. Because not many are really willing to truly let go of their lives and give everything to Jesus.

We have softened Christ’s call and Christ’s mission and created a pseudo-Christianity that is not true Christianity, is not true discipleship. God help us to see and be shaped by His Word.

Secondly, the cross creates,

A New Kingdom

Look at verse 35.

Mark 10:35–41 ESV

And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized, but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.” And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John.

Jesus began his public ministry by saying,

Mark 1:15

“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

Since Mark 1 Jesus has been teaching about the kingdom and showing what the true kingdom of God is. Simply put, it’s God’s eternal reign, his rule, over God’s people which would be comprised of people from every nation, every tribe, every tongue. But also from Mark 1, God’s kingdom has been deeply misunderstood.

The Jewish people wanted an overthrow of Rome. They wanted a revolution. They wanted Caesar knocked off the throne and Jesus reigning instead over an earthly kingdom. So, every time Jesus would speak of the kingdom, this is where their minds went. They just didn’t understand yet.

And so, here we have James and John coming to Jesus with this kind of, audacious request. I mean, first just notice how they approach him, “Teacher, do for us whatever we ask of you.” “Give us the best seats in your kingdom.” Notice how they edge out the other disciples. Now James and John were part of the “inner circle” if you will. Oftentimes Jesus would take them aside to teach them. But notice who’s not there. Peter. They’re edging out Peter for the two coveted spots in the kingdom.

They wanted power, control, influence, recognition and this was worth them stepping over the other 10 disciples whom they had just spent the last three years with.

It’s probably why in verse 41 that when the other 10 disciples heard it, they were indignant. They were grieved, they were frustrated, they were angry. “Who does this?” “Who treats people this way?”

James and John saw Jesus alone as they were walking toward Jerusalem, toward Jesus’ execution which he had just told them about and instead of thinking through the implications of Jesus’ death and resurrection, they see an opportunity for them to be first and they jump on it.

Now, the disciples had the right to be angry, but I don’t believe they were righteously angry. I think they were mad that they hadn’t thought of asking Jesus for those coveted spots first. It’s why Jesus, as we’ll see in a minute takes them all aside and teaches them again about true greatness.

But James and John’s actions here show us something that we need to understand regarding the kingdom.

Like I said, they misunderstood what the kingdom of God was and how one entered it and how it would be attained and advanced.

They showed a misunderstanding of what it meant to follow Jesus.

They showed a misunderstanding of their own hearts and need for grace.

They showed a misunderstanding of what true greatness really was.

They wanted glory but didn’t understand where true glory would be found.

As Danny Akin puts it,

“At the time of our Lord’s greatest glory, there were indeed men on His right and left. They were not two apostles on thrones; they were two criminals on crosses!” - Danny Akin

The disciples didn’t understand how Jesus’ inauguration as King would take place. It would be through suffering. And so, Jesus, gentle in his response to James and John’s request, taught them what was about to come not only to Him, but also to them.

He speaks of “drinking the cup” and “being baptized.”

The cup is a common picture of the wrath of God in judgment.

Psalm 75:8

For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup with foaming wine, well mixed, and he pours out from it, and all the wicked of the earth shall drain it down to the dregs.

Isaiah 51:17

Wake yourself, wake yourself, stand up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his wrath, who have drunk to the dregs the bowl, the cup of staggering.

Jeremiah 25:15

Thus the Lord, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it.

The baptism that Jesus speaks of here refers to the overwhelming nature of God’s wrath that he’ll endure through his suffering and death.

Jesus understood this clearly. It’s why in the Garden of Gethsemane on the night he was arrested he prays for God to “Take this cup away from me, nevertheless, not what I will, but what you will.”

In Luke 12 Jesus speaks of this overwhelming baptism of suffering that awaits him.

Luke 12:50

I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished!

Jesus understood the nature of the kingdom of God. He knew how it would be advanced. He knew that his glory would come through his death.

James and John clearly didn’t, just yet. They would, but not yet.

James and John would suffer, Jesus predicts. James was the first of the apostles to be martyred. John suffered greatly under Rome and was exiled. There was coming a day when they would more clearly see that the path to glory, the advancement of the kingdom would come through suffering.

But what they needed to see in that moment was that Jesus’ kingdom is a new kind of kingdom. It’s not like the kingdom of the world. It’s not about fame, popularity, power, and control but one of humility, gentleness and servant hood.

As one author has said,

“The pathway to glory is always the pathway of suffering. Before the crown there is a cup of suffering. Before the blessings that flow there is a baptism that overwhelms and drowns.”

Lastly, the cross creates,

A New Mindset

Through faith in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus we become a new person, a new creation. We begin to think differently than the rest of the world as our minds and hearts come under the reign and rule of Christ and his kingdom. And as Jesus clearly reveals here, it’s a mindset of servanthood.

Verse 42.

Mark 10:42–45 ESV

And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Hear Jesus saying these words to them. “You know...” Do you hear him emphasizing those two words? “You know” how ungodly rulers lead and treat people. “You know” how those in authority abuse and mistreat those under them.

He’s saying, you’ve seen this abuse and mistreatment of people. You’ve experienced it yourself. So, don’t replicate the world, don’t be like the world. You know in your hearts it’s not right but yet, here you guys are arguing once again about who’s going to have the positions of power and authority and control in a kingdom that you don’t understand.

How often is that us? We experience slander, or gossip, or mistreatment from others. We feel the pain that comes from it, the heartache we feel when we’re mistreated, and we say in our hearts, “this isn’t right” and yet, what do we so often do? Look for ways to gossip, slander, or mistreat people ourselves. We do the very same things that we rail against when it happens to us.

Jesus is saying here, “Stop looking to the world.” “Stop modeling your lives after what you’ve experienced and seen in the world.” “You know it’s wrong and wicked .”

Instead, what’s Jesus do? He draws them to himself, the greatest example and model for our lives of how we are called to live in the kingdom of God as a new people with a new identity and a new mission.

In verse 43 he once again teaches something that he’s already taught in Mark 9. Don’t seek prominence in yourselves, but rather be humble and put others ahead of yourself. True greatness is found in serving. If you want to be first, then be last.

And Jesus is going to give them and us an enduring example that’s counter-cultural and life-giving.

Verse 45, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Jesus refers to himself as the “Son of Man.” There’s so much in this self-proclaimed title that Jesus claims. It’s a phrase that comes from the book of Daniel, chapter 7. In Daniel 7, the son of man is given dominion, and glory, and a kingdom. It says of him that all peoples, all nations, all languages would serve him. His kingdom is forever, it will never be destroyed.

This is true of Christ. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. His kingdom is forever, his reign is unrivaled, his rule unmatched. Of all beings in the universe, he is the one deserving of our subjugation. And yet, this great King came to serve us not to be served.

On the night he is arrested, he washes the dirty feet of the disciples and told them, “I’m giving you an example of service…go and do likewise.”

As disciples of Christ, followers of Jesus, we model him, not the world. Which means, like Jesus, we’re servants of one another. Christ has purchased us, bought us, redeemed us, ransomed us so that we would serve and be zealous for good works.

This means that as we gather here together we intentionally look for ways to care for one another even though we won’t personally benefit from it. Being a disciple of Jesus means that every covenant member of this local church should be actively serving and using their gifts to build up the body of Christ.

It means that we don’t seek out positions where we can have authority and control over others. In fact, those who demand to be put in places of leadership are the ones who should be removed from it. We don’t seek out higher offices because we want authority and prestige but rather to serve.

Our deacons in the church are referred to often as the leading servants of the church. Meaning, if you want to know what it looks like to serve, just look to them because they, by God’s grace are seeking to model servanthood.

As pastors, we’re referred to as servant-leaders. Meaning, that we lead the church by serving the body and caring for the body. The moment we drift from that is the moment we take our eyes of the gospel of Christ.

As Christ-followers, we seek greatness through self-denial and servanthood, just like Christ.

He has ransomed us, cleansed us, purified us, redeemed us, bought us through his own blood not so that we would then look like the world, but that we would look like Him. Brothers and sisters, let us serve one another.

(communion)