As I said before, be suspicious of any breaks that appear in your English text of the Bible. In neither Hebrew nor Greek were there breaks in the oldest manuscripts. Papyrus, velum, and paper were too precious to leave blank spaces. The text went on to the end of the line and even cut a word in two if the line didn’t end with a full word. So, any breaks between words or paragraphs or stories are purely the work of later publishers who had the space to separate and put in their own headings.
This is an important point because it inspires us to look for various links and connections between the stories than we might otherwise. Matthew, as an editor of the materials he had gathered, was a gifted writer, and we should not miss how he weaves themes through his text.
So, note that Matthew provides bookends (verse 19: 30 on one end and verse 20: 16 on the other) for the Parable of the Landowner. In addition, the second bookend, verse 20: 16, is a helpful segue (transition) to the next story that Matthew tells. So, we will begin with that verse because it carries along the theme of service in the kingdom.
20: 16-19. “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.” While Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside by themselves and said to them on the way, “Look, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death; then they will hand him over to the gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and on the third day he will be raised.”
Where are we in the story? I noted back in Chapter 19 that Jesus was leading the disciples along the traditional route taken by observant Jews from Galilee to Jerusalem; that is, they crossed the Jordan to stay in Jewish country thereby avoiding Samaria, walked south until they were parallel to Jerusalem, then re-crossed the Jordan at Jericho (see verse 20: 29). From there it is an uphill walk to the city. That is where we are geographically in the story.
Now, it has been clear since they left Capernaum that they were going to Jerusalem. The high holiday of Passover is coming, and it should be celebrated by observant Jews in Jerusalem. So, why does Jesus stop to emphasize the point?
One reason; the same reason that your teacher kept trying to teach you history by coming at the lessons from a different angle. For example, the Constitution established three separate but equal seats of power: The Executive Branch, The Legislative Branch, and the Judicial Branch. These act as checks and balances on each other, and no one has more power than the other. Just like many Americans seem to have missed that history lesson, when Jesus explained how power works in the kingdom, the disciples just didn’t get it!
It becomes apparent that there is still much confusion about why they are going to Jerusalem in the first place. In fact, this is the third time that Jesus takes a moment to try to disabuse the disciples of false conspiracy theories.
First: 16: 21. “From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”
What was the disciples' response to this declaration? Peter rebuked Jesus, “God forbid it, Lord!” Jesus responded with his famous statement: “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.”
Second: 17: 22-23. “As they were gathering in Galilee, Jesus said to them, ‘The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised.”
What was the disciples' response that time? “And they were greatly distressed.” (17: 23). That’s it. Nothing more is recorded. But, soon, Peter comes back without another question that reveals their true concern: “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” (18: 1). That is where the child came in.
Now, in today’s passage, for the third time Jesus tries to get through to them. “Here is why we are going to Jerusalem,” Jesus says, perhaps in desperation. With a little more detail, he warns them about what is going to happen in Jerusalem. We are not talking about greatness as the world conceives it; but rather greatness as it is ranked in the kingdom of heaven. If Jesus is the great Messiah, then greatness is measured by suffering and death. The Messiah does not become great by subjecting and killing others, but by submitting and being killed himself. How does that work? Does it also apply to us? Do the disciples get it this time?
20: 20-23. Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, and kneeling before him, she asked a favor of him. And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Declare that these two sons of mine will sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” But Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” He said to them, “You will indeed drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left, this is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”
Welp! No, they don’t get it at all. They couldn’t be more off track. How about us? Do we get it, or are we about as wrong as we could be about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ, aka, a Christian?
The disciples got their answer earlier when Peter asked what their rewards would be. Jesus said then that “you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel,” not to mention receiving “a hundredfold” more than what they had lost, plus one more thing: they “will inherit eternal life” (19: 28-29). Apparently, that’s not enough for some; festering ambition is not easily satisfied.
Thrones are not enough; James and John want the most honored seats. Jesus says that they have no idea what they are asking. Why? Because they are still upside down in their thinking about how honor works in the kingdom of heaven. He asks if they can drink the cup that he will drink, but they probably think about a celebratory glass of wine. No. In Scripture (the Old Testament for Jesus and the disciples), God’s cup is a cup of wrath.
Psalm 75: 7-8: “it is God who executes judgment, putting down one and lifting up another. For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup with foaming wine, well mixed; he will pour a draught from it, and all the wicked of the earth shall drain it down to the dregs.”
Isaiah 51: 17: “Rouse yourself, rouse yourself! Stand up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk at the hand of the LORD the cup of his wrath, who have drunk to the dregs the cup of staggering.”
That is why, in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus asks in prayer “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me.” It is not a cup that James or John will want to drink either, though they thoughtlessly claim that they are able. However, after their failure of nerve at the crucifixion, and the power of the resurrection, they do recover themselves. James actually is the first to be martyred; beheaded in Jerusalem (Acts 12: 2), and by contrast John is traditionally thought to be the only one to die a natural death of old age, though in exile on the isle of Patmos.
20: 24-28. When the ten heard it, they were angry with the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. It will not be so among you, but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave, just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many.”
You can tell by the maneuvering that this topic is more important to the disciples than whatever Jesus is saying about his reasons for going up to Jerusalem. Once more, Jesus has to quell the dissension in the group.
Jesus explains two models of leadership that the disciples could follow. First, there is the earthly model whose expression they can see in history (pharaoh, kings, emperors) and in person (current Roman rule). In this model, the proverb proves true: “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely (Lord Acton, 1834-1902). Jesus agrees that earthly leaders tend to lord it over others, and the greater they pretend to be, the more they act like tyrants or dictators. This happens even in the church, and not just the Catholic church with a pope. Evangelical Christianity in America tends to want to wield power, and some leaders are drawn to those who promise it to them. This is particularly true of those who call themselves Christian Nationalists.
But, it is not to be so among you, Jesus said to the disciples, and to us. Leaders, the first and the great, in the Christian church, are to be servants of all, even the slaves of all, much as we dislike that term. The first term is diakonos, from which we get ‘deacon’. The second term is nearly a synonym; doulos which also means ‘servant, but leans more toward ‘slave’. Paul calls himself a doulos Christou Iesou, “a slave of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle” (Romans 1:1). So, the apostles knew the position that they were in, at least that first generation knew. Some later generations seem to have lost the plot.
Never can Christian leaders, proper Christian leaders, act any differently because their own leader, their model of leadership, is Jesus who came not to be served by others, but to serve others. How any so-called Christian leader can think that they should be able to wield power like a secular leader, I will never understand. The lesson of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings; You cannot wield evil power for good purposes, it will corrupt you.
Is this last story in the chapter connected to the rest of the chapter?
20: 29-34. As they were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed him. There were two blind men sitting by the roadside. When they heard that Jesus was passing by, they shouted, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” The crowd sternly ordered them to be quiet, but they shouted even more loudly, “Have mercy on us, Lord, Son of David!” Jesus stood still and called them, saying, “What do you want me to do for you?” They said to him, “Lord, let our eyes be opened.” Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes. Immediately they regained their sight and followed him.
You bet your bippy this is connected. It is another way to make the same point or Matthew would not have chosen to include it here. The gospel writers had choices, you know, more material than they could use (See Luke 1: 1-4; John 20: 30-31) . So, why this story?
How many disciples came to Jesus to ask for something? Two. How many blind men? Two. What did Jesus ask the disciples (indirectly)? “What do you want?” What did Jesus ask the two blind men? “What do you want me to do for you?” What did the two disciples need? To have their eyes opened. What did the blind men need? To have their eyes opened. What was the result of both encounters? They regained their sight and followed Jesus. One story resonates with the other.
What are the takeaways about leaders in the kingdom of heaven? First, they are humble (they lord it over no one). Second, they live a life of service to others (not a life with others serving them). Third, they are prepared to suffer (rather than throw others under the bus). Finally, instead of making others pay for their sins, they are prepared to pay the price, that is, to offer their lives to ransom even repeat offenders from their sins (forgive them 7 times 70 times). Only Jesus can do that? Yes, but Jesus is our model; he says so in this passage. Basically: “You are to be a humble servant leader (a shepherd) because I am a humble servant leader sacrificing myself for my followers (my flock).