I awakened this morning with the same thought pattern as yesterday…
It’s March 2nd. How might lives change if I let this date forever become a reminder that I am called to march second?
Mark 10:32 begins with a visual that is forever a call to our positioning this side of heaven. Jesus & his disciples are making their final trek to Jerusalem, for not long after, Jesus would be betrayed, arrested, beaten & crucified for the sins of the world.
What’s most notable about this verse is that He is walking AHEAD of the disciples. It doesn’t say why, but the very next sentence says that the disciples follow in awe & the people following behind them are overwhelmed with fear.
Every step He takes on the uphill climb to Jerusalem is taken with a resolute following of the Father’s will. He knows the suffering that lay ahead, but He does not hesitate or waiver. In fact, He pulls the disciples aside & tells them the specific details of the bitter cup of suffering He is about to drink.
Somehow the disciples hijack the conversation & make it about themselves, essentially asking which of them will be favored in heaven.
Unlike the rulers of our day, the economy of heaven seems upside down & backwards. Jesus reminds them yet again that if any want to become first, they must FIRST become a slave of all! And if we are going to follow in Jesus’s footsteps, we need remember where they led: He gave up His life for the ransom of many! Will we?
Marching when God FIRST calls will always require us to march in 2nd place. Its not glamorous nor does it usually bring accolades & notoriety…at least not this side of heaven😉
Following Jesus will involve suffering & sacrifice, but the return on investment is far beyond anything we can fathom or imagine! I don’t know about you, but some days I let my mind wander into the heavenly realm & wonder what sort of life eternal might result from seeds sown in suffering?🤗
Father, give us ears to hear your call & feet to follow first. Remind us of the nature of Your Kingdom’s economy. It sometimes doesn’t make sense, but Holy Spirit, help us to choose 2nd place of serving so we might become 1st place in the apple of our Father’s eye 💝
LEVITICUS 25:47-27:13
MARK 10:32-52
PSALM 45:1-17
PROVERBS 10:22
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