Somehow we are wired to seek power; Jesus has all power and seeks those who relinquish power. In the early paragraphs of this chapter little children are accepted while the actions of adults are spurned and rich men are stumped while poor people are embraced. Yet James and John still wanted power. Obviously the indignation of the other apostles was not due to their lack of seeking power but due to jealousy; otherwise, Jesus would not have stopped to teach them again.
Perhaps the greatest irony is that all this occurs as the king of the world is marching to surrender himself to his enemies. There is no scene that conveys a greater lack of power than that of the accused and abused Jesus who refuses to fight back. On his way to surrender, his disciples audaciously play power games.
Two thousand years later, we do not have it down either. Often church leaders are those who have success in business, who "get things done by running over others" or who have higher degrees. Success and education are good things but were never meant by Jesus to be the goal of life nor the reason for promoting someone to leadership in the kingdom. What would the church look like today with child-hearted, economically unsuccessful leaders whose first reaction was to surrender rather than fight back?
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Today I read out of 2 Timothy that the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. I remember thinking that power was such a strange word to use, because we often take advantage of what power means.
Power is not meant to be domineering, but is meant to be partnered with love and our own self-discipline in order to live life boldly. Being bold and being overbearing are two very different things. Thanks Gary.
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