THE ENEMY WE FACE MIGHT BE SURPRISING

BIBLE PASSAGE:
“But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking.
Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized
with the baptism with which I am baptized?”
(Mark 10:38)

MEDITATION:
A phrase in an old cartoon was, “We have met the enemy and he is us!”
The struggles and failures so many people experience
have as their root nothing other than self.
Self-focus clashes with the Lord’s kingdom agenda.

Jesus gave the agenda:
“We are going up to Jerusalem,” he said, “and the Son of Man
will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law.
They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles,
who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him.
Three days later he will rise.” (Mark 10:33-34)
He spoke of His upcoming betrayal, condemnation,
mocking, death and resurrection.

But where was the focus of His disciples?
Having heard His agenda, James and John made a request
to sit on either side of Jesus in His glory.
Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him.
“Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.”
“What do you want me to do for you?” he asked. They replied,
“Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”
(Mark 10:35-37)
The clashing of agendas occurred as they shifted focus
from Christ’s passion, to their desired positions of honor.

Just as the selfish request in Numbers 32 affected the nation as a whole,
this request affected the disciples as a group.
Look at how the other disciples reacted to the request by James and John:
“When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John.”
(Mark 10:41)

Jesus had to call them together
to calm them down and explain what is most important.
“Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded
as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise
authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great
among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave
of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to
give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:42-45)

James tells us how our selfishness can cause all kinds of problems.
“What causes fights and quarrels among you?
Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?” (James 4:1)

Unfortunately, many well-meaning believers are still battling selfishness.
They may not admit it, but if they are honest with themselves, they know it’s true.
Choose to focus on the Lord’s heavenly agenda and take the focus off yourself.

ACTION:
AESOP: “No act of kindness (no matter how small) is ever wasted”.

Learn to value the needs of others as more important than your own needs.
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit.
Rather, in humility value others above yourselves” (Philippians 2:3)
Learn to live for others, as Christ did.

When is the last time you did something special
for someone else with no expectations, or strings attached?
How often do you encourage others
(including those in leadership positions at your church)?

What are you living for? To go to heaven, right?
Then we need to have the attitudes and focus in our lives today
that we would expect those in heaven to have.
It won’t happen by doing nothing, we have to be proactive in changing
our focus from ‘self’ to ‘others’, and from the ‘world’ to ‘heaven’.
Maybe you will have an opportunity
to put someone else’s needs ahead of your own today.

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, forgive me for any selfishness in my own life.
Forgive me for considering myself before others, or disregarding
their needs altogether. Forgive me for allowing my selfishness to
cause my disobedience to Your commands. Teach me the joy of
considering and attending to the needs of others. Help me to develop
the attitudes and characteristics in my own life that I assume the
ones in heaven already have. Remind me that heaven is my destination
and that I should make the necessary adjustments in life today that will
prepare me for my heavenly home.”

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