Servant Song

The Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost

October 20, 2024

Mark 10:32-45

 “Servant Song”

As we all know, the presidential election is now just over two weeks away on November 5. As Christian citizens of our nation, I encourage each and every one of us to participate in the election process and cast our ballots. It goes without saying that it’s very easy to become cynical and negative about the whole political process, but it is our responsibility and our duty to take part in electing those who govern. Before Election Day, there will be a flurry of campaign rallies and speeches as each candidate pledges to lead our nation. Popular music and songs are often used in such events, but there has been pushback from the composers and singers of these songs who do not want their music tied to this or that candidate. The fear of musical artists is that a particular song of theirs will become identified with a particular candidate, or that they themselves will be seen to support a candidate because of unauthorized use of their music. All of this gets into the realm of what is authorized use vs. unauthorized use of music. When it comes to candidates seeking public office, one song they would do well to study is the Servant Song. Whether or not we’re running for public office, we would all do well to study the Servant Song. What’s that? We hear about the promise of this in today’s Old Testament lesson (Isaiah 53:4-12), and we hear of its fulfillment in today’s Gospel lesson (Mark 10:32-45). “Servant Song” is the theme for today’s message. May the Lord’s rich and abundant blessing rest upon the preaching, the hearing, and the living of his Word for Jesus’ sake.

Truth be told, it’s not just one Servant Song, but four of them. These are the Servant Songs of Isaiah, and they are found Isaiah 42:1-4; Isaiah 49:1–6; Isaiah 50:4–11; and Isaiah 52:13-53:12). The last of these is what we hear in today’s Old Testament lesson (Isaiah 53:4-12). Until this final Servant Song, the identity of that Servant seems a little uncertain. But with these final verses, there is no question that this Suffering Servant is Jesus, who “was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). Each year on Good Friday, the most solemn day of the Christian year, we hear this passage from Isaiah in worship, reminding us that Jesus came to fulfill all that was written of him in the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms (Luke 24:44). Jesus, the Son of God, is that Suffering Servant. The Servant Song is all about Jesus. What was foretold and prophesied by Isaiah is now being fulfilled in Jesus.

Today’s Gospel lesson begins with Jesus telling his disciples that he would suffer, die and rise again (Mark 10:32-34). Jesus is steadily making his way toward Jerusalem and everything that awaits him there. Twice before in the preceding chapters (Mark 8:31-32; 9:30-32), Jesus told his disciples the same thing. Each time that Jesus shared he would be rejected, suffer, die and rise again, the response of the disciples is confusion. Each time, we see this three-fold pattern of Jesus’ prediction, followed by the disciples’ confusion, which ends with Jesus’ clarification. The disciples didn’t understand. They don’t get it, and truth be told, had we been there, we wouldn’t have gotten it, either. The confusion here in this third and final Passion prediction comes with the request that James and John have for Jesus. It’s a bold – even brazen – request. Instead of joining in Jesus’ Servant Song, they are jockeying for position – the best seats in the house – in Jesus’ kingdom.

The other disciples were “indignant” at James and John (Mark 10:41). Why? Were they offended and upset because of how off-base this request was? More likely, they were indignant because they didn’t think of it first. And that’s how it works in the world we live in, right? You have to be one step ahead of everybody else. The early bird catches the worm. They were upset that they missed this opportunity to ask for themselves. Everything was coming off the rails here. “Time out,” Jesus said, as he called all of the disciples together for a teachable moment to clarify what his kingdom was and is all about. In this world, if you’re the one on top, you’ve got the power. You get to tell others what to do. You can use that power however you want to use it, even to dominate, threaten, and control others. That’s not what Jesus’ kingdom looks like. “Whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all” (Mark 10:43b-44). That is an upside-down kingdom if ever there was one! But it is only through this upside-down kingdom of Jesus that everything gets turned right-side-up.

Jesus doesn’t just sing the Servant Song here. He came to live that Servant song. He himself became the living embodiment and fulfillment of the Servant Song. Jesus doesn’t just talk the talk; he walks the walk. Jesus walked the way of the cross as that final verse in today’s Gospel tells us: “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). Jesus breaks the cycle of our need to be first and best at the expense of others. Jesus came not to be served, but to serve. The original word here for serve (διακονέω) is where we get our word deacon or deaconess. Originally, the word meant to wait tables; to serve or minister to. This is what Jesus came to do, not just for James, John, and the other disciples. Jesus came to do this for you and me; for people everywhere. On the night when he was betrayed, Jesus demonstrated this by washing the disciples’ feet, something only a servant would do (John 13:1ff.). Taking on the form of a servant, Jesus came to serve us; to minister to us. He came to offer himself in our place as the atoning sacrifice for all of our sin.

We are living with a deal of fear at this present moment in time. Fear diminishes life in so many ways, but as the Word of God tells us: “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear” (1 John 4:18). No matter what may happen in the world or in our lives, our future is secure. We know who we are because we know Whose we are. We know where we are headed from this life to life eternal. As today’s Epistle lesson (Hebrews 4:1016) said so beautifully, this is all through our great High Priest, Jesus the Son of God, who fulfilled the Servant Song and has become our Servant King. Therefore, “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). Amen.