Special Seats

N.T.#237 "Special Seats"

Feb. 2, 2024 

Matthew 20-Part 3

LET IT GLOW

Do we sometimes think we deserve special treatment or privileges? Then we are not alone. So did two of Jesus' disciples. Read on.

Really guys, here we go again. This time James and John were the instigators and originators of the request their mother made of Jesus. (I didn't realize Salome was Mary's sister, the two sons of Zebedee. That made James and John to be Jesus' cousins.) They put their mother up to asking Jesus to grant that they sit on the right and left in Jesus' kingdom. However, it was not a position for Jesus to grant. His kingdom was not of this world. God already had it planned out, anyway. they just did not understand as of yet.

What was Jesus' answer?

• First, James and John didn't know what they were asking. They didn't get it.
• Could they drink from the cup He was about to drink and be baptized with the baptism He was? Jesus was going to suffer greatly, beaten and hung on a cross to die.
• They were able was their answer. They know not what they say.

James was the first of the 12 disciples to lose his life in martyrdom when King Herod had him put to death with a sword. (Acts 12:2) Then about 60 years later John was sent in exile to toe island of Patmos. John previously lived through persecution, imprisonment, torture, and almost boiled alive in oil. Yes, James and John had suffering to ahead of them because they were servants of Jesus, the Mesiah.

Do we sometimes get sidetracked and think we've had enough suffering for the kingdom work? Are we ready to get our rewards in heaven today? Do we think we are deserving of better treatment?  

LET IT GROW

In Luke 18:31, Jesus said they were going up to Jerusalem to fulfill what the prophets foretold. Have we gone to our own city with the purpose of fulfilling God's purpose and not our own? What seems a failure from man's standpoint was a tremendous triumph from God's because His purpose is never man's purpose. 

If we think we are failing in doing God's will, maybe you actually are. We tend to evaluate according to the world's standards, not God's. Witnessing to the lost, to our family, showing love and serving others is a great accomplishment.

LET IT GO 

Help us stay faithful to Your will for our life.

Glory to God in the highest.