The Suffering Servant-King
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Text: Matthew 20:17-28
17 And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them, 18 “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death 19 and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.”
20 Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to him with her sons, and kneeling before him she asked him for something. 21 And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.”
22 Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” 23 He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”
24 And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. 25 But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.
26 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, 28 even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Main Point/FCF: The Kingdom of God flips our worldly expectations on their heads. Those who desire to be great in the Kingdom of God must model their lives after the King, who humbled himself as a suffering servant on behalf of his people.
Worldly kingdoms value title, status, and power.
Worldly kingdoms value title, status, and power.
20 Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to him with her sons, and kneeling before him she asked him for something. 21 And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.”
The right-hand and left-hand positions referred to here are the top positions of power in a kingdom.
Our natural bent is to approach Christianity as a quid pro quo. To view our sacrifices and service to God as meritorious and deserving of special status.
This attitude of “look what I’ve done for you, God!” is contrary to the gospel.
Worldly kingdoms honor donors and philanthropists with plaques and buildings named in their honor.
Business executives often rise to the top of their corporate ladder by pushing others down.
Politicians rise to power by exploiting people, compromising morality, and through immoral pragmatism.
The mottos of these people are “Whatever it takes,” “the ends justify the means,” the ‘worldly golden rule’ “He who has the gold makes the rules,” and “God helps those who help themselves.” But these are not biblical values, they’re worldly values.
25 But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.
These attitudes sneak into the church from time to time.
I’ve heard pastors tell of times when prominent members of the church have tried to leverage their influence or their giving to force something they want to see happen in the church. “If you don’t do this, I’ll take my tithes somewhere else.” Or, “I think based upon how much I’ve given to the church or how much I’ve done for the church, I deserve some say in this.” Or, “Pastor, I was here long before you came and I’ll be here long after you’re gone!” Well, don’t count on it! God has a way of dealing with those who come to the throne with an entitled attitude, just look at Ananias and Sapphira!
I’m thankful that since I’ve been here, I’ve heard no hint of such attitudes at Formosa. The fact is, our service, our giving, our sacrifices do not entitle us to status, power, or veto power in the Kingdom of God or the Church. But, we always have to be on our guard against such thinking, because this is exactly how the world operates.
The Kingdom of God, however, operates the other way around. If we want to know how the Kingdom of God operates, we look to Jesus as our example.
Our King is our example of a suffering servant.
Our King is our example of a suffering servant.
We’re coming up on the “Triumphal Entry” of Christ in chapter 21. What’s fascinating about this is that Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, as we’ll see next week, has striking similarities to how a conquering king in the ancient world would ride into a city. But, perhaps the most striking difference is that instead of striding in to his citadel and sitting on his throne, Jesus marches into his capital city and hands himself over to his enemies to be crucified.
And this wasn’t by chance. It was intentional.
17 And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them, 18 “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death 19 and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.”
Can you imagine the weight of knowing what was coming? Can you imagine the temptation Jesus must have felt to simply NOT enter Jerusalem? To simply appease the Pharisees and Sadducees and not provoke them?
This marks a significant turning point in the book of Matthew, as we’re going to see Jesus’ sermons get harsher and harsher, and his words to the Pharisees and Sadducees get more and more pointed and offensive.
The first thing he does as he enters the temple in ch. 21 is to make a scene. Up until this point, his primary enemies have been just the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law. But here, in the temple, Jesus intentionally provokes the Sadducees and begins to get the attention of the Romans. It’s as if he is trying to get himself killed.
And he knows that each time he does something like this, each time he preaches and calls out the Pharisees and Sadducees, he takes one step closer to the cross.
I can only imagine the temptation that Jesus must have faced to simply soften his words. To compromise on his God-given convictions.
Christ is our example of submission to the Father’s will.
Christ is our example of submission to the Father’s will.
Jesus knew the suffering he would have to endure for his words and actions. And yet, he knew that he had to go to the cross.
He submitted himself to the Father’s will, no matter the cost.
James and John were looking for ways to elevate their status and bring about what they wanted, their own will.
But Jesus rebukes them and reminds them that it is the Father’s will that determines who receives which positions in the Kingdom of God.
23 He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”
We have a tendency to compare ourselves with others and envy their positions and blessings. We see those with more money, more intelligence, better looks, better health, our dream job, our dream house and envy them.
But just as Christ ignored all of this and kept his focus on the cross and the Father’s will, we need to do so as well.
Besides this, with any blessing that we receive, there are challenges. Jesus asks them if they are able to “drink my cup.” But, they don’t understand what they’re asking for.
The ESV Study Bible Chapter 20
The cup in Scripture is symbolic of one’s divinely determined destiny, whether blessing (
Sometimes, as in Ps. 23:5-6, the cup is the cup of God’s blessings:
5 You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
forever.
But at other times, the cup represents God’s wrath and judgement:
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. 16 They shall drink and stagger and be crazed because of the sword that I am sending among them.”
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.
As we will see later in Matthew 26:39, Jesus’ “cup” was the cup of God’s wrath against sin; a cup of suffering and agony.
39 And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”
And, unfortunately for James and John, they did indeed ‘drink his cup.’ James became the first apostle to be martyred (Acts 12:2), and John lived out his days in persecution and exile on the remote island of Patmos.
Whatever we have in this life—our job, our family, our health, our status, our intelligence, our giftings, our bank account, our lot in life—is what has been prepared for us by our Father. It’s our cup. Don’t ask for someone else’s cup. You don’t know what is in it. It may look like it’s a lot more pleasant than yours, but you don’t know what’s at the bottom of that cup. Just as Christ willingly and intentionally submitted to the Father’s will and accepted his cup, so should we.
Christ is our example of suffering well.
Christ is our example of suffering well.
17 And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them, 18 “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death 19 and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.”
Everything that Jesus foretold came to pass. He was wrongfully accused, mocked, ridiculed, beaten, condemned, flogged, and crucified alongside criminals and murderers.
But Jesus suffered well.
7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
yet he opened not his mouth;
like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
Suffering has a way of revealing the selfishness and flaws in our character.
Do you know how or why gold or other precious metals are purified? A gold rock is valuable in itself, but it’s not terribly useful except as an expensive paperweight. The real value in gold is found in what it can become—jewelry or money. But, the problem is, gold can’t be used to make jewelry or coins until it’s refined and purified.
Naturally occurring gold usually has other elements present in it as well. Oftentimes iron, bits of dirt, rocks, and other contaminates are not visible to the naked eye, but are there nonetheless. The problem is that these little imperfections, if they’re not removed, can cause the gold to crack or break when it’s hammered into jewelry or coins. According to one gold refiner, as little as 0.2% of lead or bismuth or other contaminants can cause the gold to crack when it’s rolled out to make jewelry or coins. Unrefined gold cracks under stress.
So, before it can be used for anything, it has to be refined and purified. A refiner will take the gold and place it into a ceramic bowl called a crucible.
Then, he’ll put the crucible into a furnace and heat it up to about 1900 degrees Farenheit until the gold is completely melted.
Gold is denser than iron and most other metals and impurities, so those impurities float to the top and form a film called a “dross.” What might have looked like pure gold at first will now not look so pretty or pure anymore. The impurities will be obvious.
Then, the refiner will add compounds that will react with the impurities and he’ll hit it with a blowtorch for several minutes until all the impurities have a chance to react with the chemicals and stick to the sides of the crucible.
Finally, the gold is allowed to cool down and can be easily separated from the dross.
But the gold isn’t done yet. Now, it’s finally ready to be used for it’s purpose and fashioned into something even more valuable.
So, the jeweler can now hammer it and bend it and polish it into a beautiful piece of jewelry which will sell for much more than the value of the gold in that piece of jewelry.
Suffering is like getting refined in a crucible. When we are heated up until we melt down, all our impurities float to the top for everyone to see. And just when we think that surely the suffering is over, out comes the blowtorch and the chemicals. And when we’ve finally cooled off from the fire, out comes the hammer.
But our refiner doesn’t do all this because he is cruel or unloving. He does it because he is fashioning us into something infinitely more precious than just a chunk of unrefined gold.
Since each of us has dross—impurities that prevent us from being as useful to the Kingdom as we could be—suffering is a necessary part of spiritual growth in the life of a believer. You will never be purified until you are put through the fire.
6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Christ is our example in how to go through the furnace well. Even Christ himself was, in a sense, purified through his trials. Christ, of course, had no impurities, but his suffering provided the occasion for him to display his purity of character and be revealed to be perfect.
7 In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. 8 Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. 9 And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him...
Do you suffer well? If even Christ had to go through the refiner’s fire, then you and I certainly need to do so. But it is encouraging to know that the same one who is putting us through the fire has himself already been through it and will go through the fire with us. And, it is encouraging to know that he has a good purpose behind it.
Christ is our example of serving well.
Christ is our example of serving well.
26 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, 28 even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
If anyone was entitled to be served and not have to serve, it was Jesus, the King. And yet, time and time again, we see Jesus serving and humbling himself.
Even as he is marching into Jerusalem where he knows he’s going to be rejected, falsely accused, tortured, and murdered, he still found time to stop and take pity on two blind men along the way and heal them.
When we suffer, we have a tendency to withdraw from others and focus inward. To retreat from the front lines and nurse our wounds. But Christ was able to show empathy and compassion and patience even in his final moments.
34 And Jesus in pity touched their eyes, and immediately they recovered their sight and followed him.
Imagine that you knew you only had a week left to live before you suffered an agonizing death. I think many of us would fill that week with as much pleasure and comfort and distractions as we could possibly find. Most of us would not concern ourselves with the problems of others. After all, who could possibly be suffering more than what Jesus was about to endure?
And yet, that’s not what he did. He marched with his eyes focused on the cross, and yet never failed to notice those around him who were suffering. He took time to teach and preach and minister to others. He even spent time around those who hated him, giving them one last chance, so to speak.
He healed the blind, taught the ignorant, patiently endured the sinful, washed dirty feet, and forgave his murderers. That’s how Jesus spent his last week—serving.
5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Now, if we stopped here, and all we said was that Jesus is our example of submission, suffering, and service, that would be true enough. But, it would be an example we could never live up to. But the good news of the gospel is that Christ does more than just give us an example...
Our King enables us to follow his example.
Our King enables us to follow his example.
29 And as they went out of Jericho, a great crowd followed him. 30 And behold, there were two blind men sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was passing by, they cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!”
31 The crowd rebuked them, telling them to be silent, but they cried out all the more, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” 32 And stopping, Jesus called them and said, “What do you want me to do for you?”
33 They said to him, “Lord, let our eyes be opened.” 34 And Jesus in pity touched their eyes, and immediately they recovered their sight and followed him.
Those who are spiritually blind cannot follow Christ’s example.
Those who are spiritually blind cannot follow Christ’s example.
The disciples struggled so much for most of Jesus’ ministry because their eyes were not fully opened. They did not fully understand all that Jesus was saying and doing.
The same is true for all who have not experienced the new birth that comes through salvation. Christ’s example is simply out of reach. It’s a great ideal, but not something that you can actually carry out.
7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.
But...
When Christ gives us spiritual sight, we are able to follow him.
When Christ gives us spiritual sight, we are able to follow him.
33 They said to him, “Lord, let our eyes be opened.” 34 And Jesus in pity touched their eyes, and immediately they recovered their sight and followed him.
When suffering strikes, or our lot in life doesn’t match our expectations, or we tire of being a servant and being treated like a servant, what enables us to persevere is not “pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps” and just trying harder.
Christ enables us to live like him by indwelling us through the Holy Spirit.
9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
Conclusion:
New believers—find your example in Christ. Don’t look to be served, but get busy serving. Be prepared for suffering that will come. Christ wants to purify you, and to do that, he has to put you in the fire.
Tired believers—sometimes we go through seasons where it seems like as soon as we’re out of the furnace, we’re under the blow torch, and as soon as that’s done we’re getting pounded with a hammer. It’s not easy or fun to go through that, but God has a purpose in it all and he uses our suffering and our service to refine us into the image of Christ. Pray for strength. Read his word for encouragement. Rely upon the Lord.
Unbelievers—there is something beautiful and precious about the humble servitude of Jesus Christ. Perhaps last week you felt out of place as everyone wept and celebrated because you couldn’t quite understand what all the emotion was about. Maybe you have started to realize that you don’t have the joy in your heart that those around you have, and perhaps you don’t feel the strength of the Lord to persevere through the hard times. Christ is standing by willing to change all that. He asks you, “What do you want me to do for you?” And all you have to say is, “Lord, let my eyes be opened!” Do you want to truly see Christ?
Christ came “to give his life as a ransom for many.” All of us are born in captivity to sin and death. But Christ has paid the ransom with his own blood and he has staged the greatest rescue the world has ever seen. All you have to do is cry out to him for salvation.
