After they arrived at Capernaum and settled in a house, Jesus asked his disciples, “What were you discussing out on the road?” But they didn’t answer, because they had been arguing about which of them was the greatest. He sat down, called the twelve disciples over to him, and said, “Whoever wants to be first must take last place and be the servant of everyone else.”
Then he put a little child among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, “Anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes not only me but also my Father who sent me.”
Last to first
I don’t know a lot about being last in life. I was in the top 10% of my graduating class. My last name was in the middle of the alphabet, I was normally picked in the middle of the group in gym class, I was second born of 5 children. My real experience of being last came at church dinners. Maybe it was because all the Jones boys ate too much to let us go first, but every pot luck meal at church we were the last ones to eat. Normally the only pieces of ham left were some scraps and the good bowl of Mac-n-cheese was already scraped dry.
Eating last at church taught me a valuable lesson about humility and service. Not only did we eat last, we stayed until everything was cleaned up and back to normal. Being last on these few occasions was hardly a sacrifice. There was always enough food we never went away hungry, but there was always a little twinge of jealousy at the neighbors kids who were always first in line and ate large helpings of the food that would be gone by time we went through the line.
That jealousy was kept me from being last at times. I wanted to be the first in my class; I wanted to be the one people noticed. And so I worked hard, and people did notice and I was given accolades and awards, but to what end? Graciously for me, God used those church fellowship meals to remind me that some people get the scraps every day. Some people are always last.
Jesus calls me to be one of those people. To see myself not as over and above the “least of these” or even to have pity on the ones who are last. He does not call me to give them a place in line; Jesus calls me to become the last in line. He calls me to go to the end of the line so they are no longer last, I am. This is radical discipleship that I don’t find very comfortable. I confess I need to hear the words of Jesus. There are too many days I still want to be first.
Jesus, I confess to you my pride that drives me to be successful in order to hear people praise me. I confess I want to be first too often. Help me to find strength to be last and to discover the joy of service without recognition. - Dan Jones
Mike has an extended medical procedure this morning and will post again tomorrow.
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