Can You Drink the Cup?

Matthew 20:17–34

Jesus is on the road to Jerusalem.

He tells his disciples plainly what is waiting for him there: betrayal, condemnation, mockery, flogging, crucifixion—and resurrection.

He is going up to Jerusalem, but the way up is sometimes down.

It is down into service. Down into compassion. Down into surrender. Down into the costly love that refuses to grasp for power.

And immediately after Jesus tells them this, James and John come seeking the best seats in the kingdom.

They want one at his right hand and one at his left.

They are posturing and negotiating. They still seem to imagine that Jesus is going to march into Jerusalem, take over, and need a couple of trusted associates to help him run things.

We understand that impulse.

You can still visit old Bruton Parish Church in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia, where a guide will point out pews once rented by prominent families. They bought the best seats, and no one else could sit there.

Even after formal pew rentals disappeared, many churches had unwritten rules. A newcomer might make a grave mistake by sitting in Sister Jones’s seat.

We like our places. We like recognition. We like titles, labels, honors, and influence. We may not ask for a throne beside Jesus, but we may still want to be noticed, deferred to, and treated as important.

Jesus says to James and John, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?”

They answer quickly, “We are able.”

But they do not yet understand the cup.

The cup is not a casual inconvenience. It is not just a bad day. It is Jesus’ faithful obedience to the Father, even when that obedience leads through suffering and the cross.

We do not redeem the world. Jesus alone gives his life as a ransom for many. But when we follow him, we discover that love has a cost. Service has a cost. Faithfulness has a cost.

We do not choose all the circumstances of our service. We do not get to arrange the recognition. We do not get to control the assignment.

We are simply called to follow.

Then Jesus says something that ought to be written over every church, every ministry, every leadership team, and every human relationship:

“It shall not be so among you.”

The rulers of the world lord their authority over people. They use power to control, intimidate, and make themselves important.

But it shall not be so among you.

Whoever would be great among you must be your servant.

Jesus does not tell us never to desire greatness. He tells us what greatness is.

Greatness is not getting the best seat.

Greatness is serving from whatever seat God gives you.

Greatness is using your gifts, your influence, your title, and your opportunities for the good of others.

Greatness is refusing to build your identity on applause.

And then Jesus shows us what he means.

As he leaves Jericho, two blind men sitting at the roadside begin crying out: “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!”

The crowd tells them to be quiet. They are an interruption. They are slowing things down. They are too loud, too needy, too inconvenient.

But Jesus stops.

The One who is on his way to Jerusalem stops for two men at the roadside.

That is servant leadership.

It knows where it is going, but it does not run over people on the way.

Jesus asks them, “What do you want me to do for you?”

Earlier, the disciples had wanted places of honor. Now the blind men answer, “Lord, let our eyes be opened.”

One request seeks prominence.

The other seeks mercy.

And Jesus has compassion. He touches their eyes. They receive their sight, and Matthew tells us, “They followed him.”

That is the prayer for us.

Lord, do not merely give us a place. Open our eyes.

Teach us to see the people we might otherwise silence or hurry past.

Teach us to serve without needing credit.

Teach us to drink whatever cup faithfulness requires.

Teach us to follow you.

Because in the kingdom of God, we do not drink the cup to earn the best seat.

We lay aside our demand for the best seat so that we may follow the Servant King.

Amen.

Go deeper.

Are we seeking the best seat—or asking Jesus to open our eyes?

A reflection on the cup, servant leadership, and following Jesus in Matthew 20:17–34:
https://tomsims.substack.com/p/can-you-drink-the-cup

#Matthew20 #FollowJesus