The Kingdom’s Costly Ways

The Kingdom’s Costly Ways

Read: Mark 10:35-40

“You don’t know what you are asking.”

Mark 10:38

“He who seeks not the Cross of Christ seeks not the glory of Christ.”

—St. John of the Cross

IN WORD James and John asked Jesus for a favor—a huge favor. They wanted to sit next to His throne in the kingdom. Were they envisioning a heavenly kingdom? Or reigning from Jerusalem independently of Rome? Either way, they were out of line. They were ready for the benefits of the kingdom but had not yet counted the cost. And they had miscalculated the type of rule this King would have.

Jesus clarified things for them. His is a kingdom that begins with death, and the way up the kingdom’s ladder is the humility of service. James and John had somehow missed Jesus’ three earlier attempts to warn them of His impending execution (one each in Mark 8, 9, and 10). They had not fully understood that following Jesus implies a cross—literal or figurative—that all disciples must carry. No wonder they didn’t know what they were asking. They knew neither the events on which this kingdom would be founded nor the principles on which it would be run. We can look on their request in hindsight and chuckle; but it would not have been beyond us to have asked the very same thing.

IN DEED In truth, it is still not beyond us to ask Jesus inappropriate things. It isn’t that we don’t understand His message or His authority. Like James and John, we prefer to focus on the fullness of the finished kingdom rather than the processes that usher it in. We forget the warfare being waged and try to implement the spoils of victory now. We bypass the nature of servants on our way to the privilege of sons.

When we pray, Jesus must sometimes tell us, too: “You don’t know what you are asking.” We have a distorted picture of the kingdom. It does, in fact, include reigning with Jesus in authority, power, and victory. But the foundation being laid includes humble service and crosses. Let your prayers reflect this reality. Love the benefits, but know the costs. Ask with the awareness that God may lead you in costly ways.