Mark: A Ransom for Many [Mark 10:32-45]

Mark: A Ransom for Many []

Stand for the reading of the word of God []

In 2004, John Piper wrote a book called, “The passion of Jesus Christ, 50 reasons why Jesus came to die.” In it there are 50 reasons why Jesus came to die with a brief exposition of those reasons. I usually pick it up each year around Easter time a read it again, but I recommend it if you have not read it to do so! Some of the reasons given are...

to absorb the wrath of God

to please His heavenly Father

to achieve His own resurrection from the dead

To show the wealth of God’s love and grace for sinners

to show His own love for us

for the forgiveness of sins

to give eternal life to all who believe on him

And the list goes on and on. There are at least three reasons that are particularly relevant to our text today.

to call us to follow his example of lowliness

to ransom people from every tribe, language, and people

to become a ransom for many

Mark chapter’s 8-10 are the most sustained and specific teaching on discipleship in the NT, filled with Jesus predicting his passion three times, foolish responses by the disciples, and lessons on discipleship, service, and spiritual greatness. Our Lord’s instruction reaches it’s climax in our text today in “for even the son of man did not come to be served but to serve, and give His life a ransom for many.” This is the key verse of Mark’s gospel, and the ultimate reason Jesus came. This verse gets to the heart of the gospel, and the pattern for all who would follow Jesus. We are sent to serve, even laying down our lives if God ordains it, just as He ordained if for His Son.

Our response to this gospel is what? We should be lowly, humble people ready and willing to serve. Or are we more like James and John in this section, status seeking and self-absorbed. Are we serving the Lord with a humble heart knowing it gives God glory or are we serving out of a since of duty with a grudge complaining the whole time about it??? Each of us will have to examine ourselves in this area…let’s unpack this loaded section. outline is in your bulletin.

Going up to Jerusalem []

Without any specifics, Mark locates Jesus and the disciples on the road going up to Jerusalem. Where we left off last in Mark, Jesus and his disciples were in Judea, making their way from the Jordan towards Jerusalem. Jerusalem is at a higher elevation from almost anywhere in Palestine, so where ever you are you’re going up to Jerusalem. All of the verbs in the first sentence describe action in progress, “they were going, Jesus was leading, they were following.” action packed verse.

It was customary for the ‘rabbi’ to walk out in front of his disciples, so this was not uncommon, but the destination and determination of heading to Jerusalem evokes the image of the powerful Savior who leads his people with purpose and direction, Jesus determined to do the Father’s will, destined to face death. The disciple’s response was amazement and fear, they were aware of the danger that they faced, yet amazed by Jesus willingness to face that danger.

Jesus recognizing their fear takes them aside for more instruction. While Jesus is willing to face his death and do the Father’s will, He’s aware the disciples are not ready for this, so he warns and instructs them again.

Verses 33,34 are the third prediction of Jesus’ passion to his disciples. even though this is the third time Jesus has told them this…they still don’t get it. Much like he did in 8:31 and 9:31 referring to himself as the Son of Man, this passion prediction is much more detailed then the others. Jesus words reflect texts like the mocking of the righteous sufferer; the suffering servant’s song; and the suffering and rejected one crushed for our iniquities. Jesus instructs his disciples in what’s to come.

Notice the human factor i.e. sinful humanities rejection of Christ. [read verses 33, 34] Eight specific aspects of Jesus’ passion and mission are laid out for us here.

Betrayed. We know Judas, one of his own disciples, would betray Jesus for money. Here Jesus points out who he would be betrayed too, handed over too the leaders of Judaism, they would be the ones who would condemn [Jewish leaders] Him to death and deliver Him to the Gentiles i.e. the Roman authorities to enforce the death penalty, which the Jews were not permitted to do at that time. betrayed, condemned, delivered.

They would mock him, [the Greek for mock, means to make sport of] the soldiers did this to Jesus, they played games with him, mocking him as king, they made sport of him in their brutal beating and scourging of him. Scourge means to whip or flog, this nearly always preceded Roman crucifixion and it sometimes caused death. [Whips and long sticks]

They spit on him, to spit on someone, usually in the face, was the ultimate sign of contempt and rejection, and I’d say it still is viewed in that manner. They would kill him, man would condemn and kill an innocent man, but this man would in three days take up his life again and rise from the dead.

Why is Jesus giving them all these details? He knows they are not going to get it, even as detailed as His predictions are, they miss it. So why bother? Jesus is making clear…God sovereignly and providentially has laid out the road Jesus will walk and the plan Jesus will accomplish. While God does use human means they ultimately carry out God’s plan…not man’s plan. Very important we get this.

It’s no different with us. God orchestrates the steps of our lives, down to the final detail, down to the very last breathe of life. There are no accidents with God, there are no surprises with God. Jesus is simply pointing that out to the disciples and to all who follow Jesus. This is reassuring to me. I may not know what’s around the corner, I know God’s does, and that’s reassuring.

Greatness is serving []

After this remarkable and detailed lesson on the passion of Jesus we see a presumptuous and ignorant request by James and John. James and John come to Jesus with what John Stott calls, “the most self-centered prayer ever” and asks Jesus, “teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask.” Stott calls it the most self-centered prayer ever because it’s in view of the cross. This presumptuous and ignorant request has come just after the cross of Christ is laid before them. That is the most vile contempt shown for God when the cross is in view and man says, “I want it my way.” It reveals their selfishness, their lack of understanding, their sinful nature. While Christ had promised the 12 apostles 12 thrones to sit on in the kingdom [] that wasn’t good enough…these two wanted the best seats in the house. We want to sit on your right and left hand…in the seat of honor. The arrogance of these two, the ignorance of these two. They have a wrong understanding of who they are and a misunderstanding of how God measures greatness don’t they?

Wasn’t that the mind of the rich young ruler we just encountered? A wrong and inflated idea of how he is and a misunderstanding of who God measures greatness. Stott said, and I believe he was right on, that “the spirit of James and John is alive and well today.” How many people today have a wrong idea of who they are? Friends you and I are sinners, though you may be a redeemed person living under the grace and mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ, you are a sinner by nature. The old man in us, that old nature, constantly rears it’s ugly head as we desire status, and seek for significance, and push for position. Even in the church today we’ve taken this desire for rise in the ranks and assimilated it into our lives.

When I meet other pastor’s or church leaders at various meetings or conferences the first thing they almost always ask when they find out I’m a pastor is, “how many people do you have in your church?” While I don’t believe there is malice intentionally in that question, there is still this sizing up that takes place, there is this ladder of success and numbers plays a part. But it’s not just there in leadership it’s there all throughout the church. Boasting about how many mission trips I’ve been on, how long I’ve worked with kids ministry, look at me and what I have done! To a new believer that communicates, you may be one of us but you have a long way to go before you can reach the ranks of me. This is not how we as believers are supposed to behave, that’s how the world acts, yet so many of us do…Lord have mercy on us.

James and John also have a misplaced self-confidence [read v.38-40]. Jesus question, “are you able to...” was designed to get a negative response, the answer was no we are not able to…but because of their misplaced self-confidence they answered, yes we can! So what is Jesus referring to here? What cup and what baptism???

In the OT the “cup” was often used as a metaphor for God’s divine judgment and wrath on sin and wrongdoing. Individuals, groups of people, even whole nations were made to drink the cup, as it were, of God’s judgment. The cup Jesus is referring to here is not a cup you would want to drink from…the cup of God’s wrath. So what about the baptism??? [Baptizo] the Greek form of baptism means immersed or flooded or overwhelmed with. When used together the picture is to be immersed, flooded, overwhelmed with the cup of God’s wrath.

Jesus knew the divine plan of the Father yet still struggled with the weight of it, in the Garden of Gethsemane he prayed, “let this cup pass from me…nevertheless thy will be done.” Jesus said in , “I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how it overwhelms Me until it is finished!” The cross was a divine appointment with God’s wrath and judgment.

James and John’s all-too-quick answer made plainly clear, they had no idea what they were saying. While James and John, in fact no one, could drink the cup Christ would drink upon the cross... Only Christ could do that... Jesus did affirm those who serve Jesus and suffer for His sake are indirectly participating in His passion: not for the forgiveness of sins but for the spreading of the gospel and building of the church [] James would be the first apostle to be martyred [] and John would be sentenced to exile on the isle of Patmos. What James and John failed to see at this time was before a crown there was a cup of suffering, before the blessing there is a baptism that overwhelms and drowns. That’s a lesson we need to be ready to learn, if our Lord didn’t escape suffering why do we think we will?

When the 10 heard James and John’s request they became angry. We see in verse 41, man’s jealousy. I bet the 10 are angry, not because they understood everything Jesus was teaching, but because they didn’t think of asking for it first. I want that seat, those two beat me to the punch. This too is far to common in the church today. How often do you get upset when you don’t get the recognition you think you deserve? Be honest with yourself. If you get upset and bent out of shape because you’re not getting recognized enough…you may have a James and John spirit. What James and John and the rest of the disciples needed to learn, what you and I need to learn is...

True greatness is serving. [v.42-44] as believers we must say no to the ways of the world. The lost world is driven by selfish ambition and a lust for power and position. They dominate and exercise power over others. in the world, the more important you are, the more are the people who serve you. But not so with you, Jesus says... in Jesus economy the more important you are, the more people you serve. Jesus says you want to be great…do something great for God serve others…you want to please and honor God with your life? Become a diakonos [servant] become a doulos [slave]. i.e. become a table waiter, a household servant, become a slave. Such a person will have the mind of Christ, esteeming others better than himself, not giving attention to their own interest, but to the interest of others []

You ever heard the saying, “The Lord takes care of those who take care of themselves.”??? That is an absolutely wrong statement…and there is just enough truth in it to deceive us and enough heresy to derail us. That’s the world’s thinking.

Jesus turns the philosophy of the world on it’s head, greatness is in serving, to be first is to be last??? To many this makes no senses at all, and even to the believer it’s a battle daily to deny self, we may ask the question…Why??? Because Jesus is our example.

The heart of the gospel []

Jesus gets to the heart of the gospel, he has told us he will die now he tells us why. Jesus makes a promise no other religious leader in the world has made or could ever make. The Son of man came to serve you and me not just as our example but as our ransom! Verse 45 is one of the most important verse in Mark and in all the bible for that matter, because it is the heart of the gospel.

The Son of Man: The Son of Man is Jesus favorite self-designated titles and is used almost exclusively by Him. The title appears 69 times in the synoptics and 12 times in the Gospel of John. Here in , Jesus weds the title Son of Man, which is a title used in of the Son of Man coming out of heaven whom God crowns sovereign over the world, Jesus weds the title with the suffering servant which redefines the concept of the Messiah. Later in , Jesus weds the title to and the King/priest portrait of Messiah pointing to His resurrection and ascension. While the Jews of Jesus day had a clear understanding of the portrait of the Messiah from , they had a hard time grasping what Jesus was doing by redefining, that the son of man came to serve.

The heart of the gospel is, the son of God, who existed eternally with the Father as the radiance of God’s glory and the exact expression of His nature, taking on human form [] It’s about the coming of Jesus in whom all the fullness of deity was pleased to dwell and in the coming of the fullness of time was born in lowly manner, lived a simple life, served others, and gave his life as a ransom for many. If he serves, we must serve, if he gives we must give, if he stoops down, we must stoop down!

Christian service exists only to draw attention to Him, to our crucified Lord who gave himself a ransom for us. Jesus came to give his life-no one takes it, he gave it. Jesus did not have to die despite God’s love. He died because of God’s love. The cross is the self-substitution of God for sinful humanity.

This is what theologians call the “wonderful exchange” Ransom means to deliver by purchase. It means payment required to release someone from punishment or slavery. You and I needed a ransom because we had all gladly and willingly sold ourselves into the bondage of slavery to sin. When Jesus purchased us…our slave masters-sin, death, hell, and satan had to set us free!

says,

English Standard Version Chapter 1

knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 21 who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

English Standard Version Chapter 1

knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 21 who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

English Standard Version Chapter 1

knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 21 who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

Ransom speaks of Jesus’ substitutionary atonement, His sacrificial death on the cross purchased the release from bondage to sin, death, and hell to all those who would believe…this is the greatest news the world has ever known. The invitation is simple…follow Jesus, the One who gave His life a ransom for many.