I; it has to be me
Anyone who wants to be great among you must be your servant and anyone who wants to be first among you must be slave.
Matthew 20: 26-27
The interaction between Jesus and His followers is one that many persons look at with some level of uneasiness. Was it wrong for the sons of Zebedee and their mother to be ambitious? Even after hearing about the condemnation to death and crucifixion, was it not insensitive of the Zebedees to go forward with their request? Perhaps, they had known that it was one thing to be king over a powerful desert city but quite another to live as someone else's vassal. Service to them was alien. It was not a mark of authenticity.
To be great is to serve or stated differently, service is greatness. This teaching is contradictory to those who would prefer power in solitude than service in the public square. Jesus did not call for something difficult; if you want to lead, kindly be of the disposition to be led as well. If you believe in the group, do know that it will not always be you. It should not be a situation of me first. St Augustine says that if we wish to rise, we have to begin by descending.
It is already mid-week. We can push on in the conviction that if we fail to stay close to the biddings of the Lord, we should fight harder, for it is worse never to have tried for success. Our success is to serve others.
A reflection written by Anthony Zabbey O.S.A., Priest of St Augustine's Hammersmith, London
Follow the Order of Saint Augustine (O.S.A.), Province of England and Scotland
Thank you! 90 people prayed
1 comment
Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer everyone. Col 4:6