Jesus and the Job Descrption

Mark 10:35-45; Hebrews 5:1-10

     My first paying job other than babysitting was at a neighborhood daycare center down the street from my house. My job was to arrive at 7:30am and wash the breakfast dishes. Plates sticky with pancake syrup were tossed in hot, soapy water and rinsed, then rinsed again in bleach water. Washing pots and bowls on the days the children ate oatmeal scarred me for life. It was grody to the max - I was practically gagging! It was the mid-80s. What was your first paying job? Turn to your neighbor and tell them your first paid job experience.

     Raise your hand if you’ve ever worked as… a dishwasher; in a restaurant; in a grocery store; in any other retail; mowing lawns; been a paper boy/girl; been a camp counselor; after-school program; maybe a tutor; lifeguard; library; agriculture - plowing or picking;

     Jesus probably worked in Joseph’s carpenter shop before he became an itinerant preacher and healer. It was after his baptism by John and stint in the wilderness that he gave up his carpentry career and set out on the road preaching and teaching. He knew he needed some co-workers, so he began recruiting others to come with him. He convinced Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John to leave their paying jobs as fishermen. Maybe they worked some on the side wherever Jesus led them. We know they counted on the hospitality of strangers and friends when they entered a town. Jesus gained popularity pretty fast as he helped and healed and fed crowds of people. He and his followers were most likely popular guests.

     After a couple of years working together, Jesus predicted that the gig would be up soon for him. He would be removed as their leader and they would have to keep the business going without him. But they didn’t want to do this without him. He was the business, the brand, the creative director, the visionary.

     James and John want to be CFO and COO. They want to be his right-hand man and left-hand man. They don’t want their CEO to be forced to vacate his position as Jesus is predicting again. He is trying to prepare them for what is to come.

     The verses just prior to the ones we heard today are in the lectionary gap, which is unfortunate, Steve Garnaas-Holmes writes, because they reveal more about the disciples’ state of mind.

“They were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them; they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. He took the twelve aside again and began to tell them what was to happen to him.” The disciples are beginning to get that sinking feeling that Jesus is speaking literally, that people in power are going to stop him with deadly force—and they themselves will be in danger. They’re terrified. And how do they cope? They escape into fantasies of [power and] domination. “Grant us to sit beside you in glory.” They don’t sound arrogant (he argues); they sound scared. [1]

     Anxiety will force you back into familiar habits even if they’re bad for you.

After three years on the job, just like Jesus said they would, the religious leaders tried to put him out of business. He was arrested, put on trial, and put to death. His followers thought he was the mastermind of a movement to overthrow the corrupt government. They believed Jesus was going to really change things – top down!

     And that’s where they were wrong. He was never going to overthrow the Roman Empire. He might turn the synagogue on its ear, but He was never going to rule from a throne or board room. (And) HE was never confused or unclear about this. He knew his role. He stated it in various ways you probably remember:

I have come not for the righteous but for sinners.

I have come not to abolish the law but to fulfill it.

He came to disrupt the status quo.

I have come that you may have life and have it to the full.

He traveled town to town preaching, teaching, healing because he said, that is why I have come!

I have come into the world so the blind will see…

I have come to do the will of the One who sent me.

Jesus was clear on his role, his mission. He was not confused. The disciples sure were. And some Christians today seem to be as well.

When you hear Christian movements talk about taking over school boards and city councils; and legislators who want to force public schools to teach the Bible or courts of law to preside under the Ten Commandments – that seems like a top-down strategy for imposing Christian beliefs. Isn’t that what Jesus is talking about when he says to the disciples in Mark, “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. (10: 42-43a) Not so with you.

     So, how is it supposed to be with us? Whoever wants to become great, Jesus said, must be a servant. And in order to be first, you must be a slave of all. He didn’t ask them to do anything he wasn’t willing to do himself.

     Let’s take a detour for a moment out of Mark’s gospel and into Hebrews that we heard read earlier. These two passages pair together nicely like a good cheese and wine. :) This passage in Hebrews explains that after the cross, Jesus came back with a new job title –the great High Priest

Here’s the job description. The duties of the great High Priest shall include but not be limited to:

●       Mediates between the people and God;

●       Stands in the gap between heaven and earth;

●       Offers himself as the ultimate sacrifice; and source of salvation;

●       Compassionate toward people

●       Sympathetic to the weaknesses of humans

●       Capable of deep empathy

●       Possesses uncommon strength and personal fortitude

●       Willing to offer sorrow-drenched prayers for himself and all of broken humanity.[2]

Those seeking recognition, power and influence need not apply.

     Jesus is the right person for the job. Over-qualified in every way. Jesus is the kind of High Priest who carries our deepest sorrows and most honest prayers to the very throne room of heaven.[3] God in human flesh. He was the imprint of the eternal God in the world.The disciples, like us at times, struggle with an all-powerful God who permits suffering, even submitting to it himself as Jesus did.

Great is Thy faithfulness, we sing. On Christ the Solid Rock I stand!, we exclaim. Yes, we claim these assurances, this power made perfect… not in the cross, but in his resurrection. Jesus overcame death. Therein is his power! The Light of the World overcame all the darkness heaped on him. And in the power of the resurrection, we, too, can have hope. There is as much power in a solid rock kind of God as there is in the unwavering companionship of a suffering God.

Like the disciples who want to jump ahead to the seating chart in eternity, when we’re struggling, we think ahead to when it will all be better. They weren’t arrogant. They were human.

 “There, but for the grace of God, go I.” We do all we can to avoid uncertainty, don’t we? All other ground is sinking sand. We want solid, concrete certainties to build our faith upon.

     Jesus reminded them of the job description for being a Disciple. They will drink the cup he drinks and share in his baptism meaning they will go through difficult trials on this road of blessing and calling. This road of discipleship is one of blessing, calling, and difficulty. Of this you can be certain!

What is our job description as modern followers of Jesus, as the church?

     Many years ago, Baptist preacher, Carlyle Marney wrote a book called, Priests to Each Other. In it, he asked about the job description of pastors. Were their roles best defined by power or servanthood?  And then he turned the question to those in the church, will we each companion one another on this road of blessing, calling and trial? We cannot priest ourselves; we must be priests to one another. Fellow travelers. Turn to the back of your worship order and read with me what is printed there: “Since God's call to salvation is simultaneously a call to mission, every follower of Jesus Christ is a minister. Each member of WHBC is, therefore, a serving minister.”   

     The priestly job we are called to by Jesus is not to be part of a hierarchy where the better we are at the job, the more power we will have, the more minions at our disposal. No. The better we are at this priestly job, the more tired our feet will be, the more callous our hands will be, the fuller our hearts will be, the more authentic relationships we will have. Priests to each other. Each member is a minister in this community and beyond. That’s the job description.

[1] Garnaas-Holmes, Steve https://unfoldinglight.net/2009/12/01/ot-29-pe-20-october-17-2021/

[2] Long, Thomas Interpretation Hebrews

[3] ibid.