The Road to Greatness. Wednesday 8th Week Ordinary Time

Breakfast With Word. Wednesday 8th Week Ordinary Time

The Road to Greatness

Mark 10:32-45

 

 

The road to greatness is a road many want to enter. It is a road many cherish to walk on. To walk on this road, there are also the tools to wander on this journey. 

 

 

 Sometimes, to achieve the end purpose many people take a shortcut to it. We forget that the road to greatness is also not without suffering, persecutions, difficulties and the willingness to sacrifice.

 

To ply on this road, anything can happen to you along the way but the most important of it is where you are going. 

 

 

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The Gospel of today.

 

 

In the gospel of today, as Jesus journeys to Jerusalem, He takes His apostles aside and explains to them the type of fate that is awaiting Him. 

 

 

Jesus speaks of His coming death and resurrection and how He is to be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes. At Jerusalem, He would suffer condemnation, mockery and death. But after three days, He will resurrect. 

 

The disciples could not understand Him. They were thinking of an earthly kingdom and political dominion where Jesus would unleash mayhem on their enemies.

 

This is the reason James and John came to Him requesting to occupy the positions of His left and right.

 

 Other gospels reported that it was their mother who made the request (Matthew 20:17-28) but Mark says it is James and John.

 

Jesus blasts them that they do not know what they are asking.‘Jesus asks them ‘Can you drink the cup that I must drink, or baptise with the baptism with which I must be baptised?’ 

 

By using the words ‘cup’ and ‘baptism’ as symbols of the condemnation, suffering and death awaiting Him, Jesus shows them that He must suffer and die before His triumph and glory. 

 

Therefore, to resurrect, Jesus has to face trials, persecutions and condemnation. These are just part of His destiny. 

 

They are part of the things that await Him on His road to glory. Hence, He tells them He is going to resurrect, which is an example of greatness but before this, He will encounter a series of challenges along the way. 

 

In essence, Jesus teaches that the road to greatness is not easy. On this road, you must encounter a lot of things that may even seem challenging and as if this is not the reason you are here. But there is always an end. And the end could be more glorious than the journey. 

 

Secondly, Jesus here teaches us that Christianity is not only about glory, breakthrough, testimony and open doors.

 

At some points in life, we will experience heartbreaks, challenges, persecutions from within and outside. Therefore, our glorious existence is not of this world but of the world to come. 

 

Therefore, when you suffer persecutions and hatred from people because of the gospel or because of your faith, do not worry.

 

When you feel God has abandoned you, still keep your faith in God. Always know that the road is not easy and will never be easy.

 

 Always understand that the journey must be challenging and do not forget at last that our end is not in this world but in the world to come. That is where our greatness lies.

 

The road to greatness in the life of any Christian is not in how many houses and cars he has but to be with God. Therefore our greatness as Christians is to be a saint. Worldly troubles should not take this away from us. 

 

When We want to Be Great.

 

In the eagerness to be ahead of others, James and John came with a worldly request. They want to be the first.

 

Maybe, they forget when Jesus told Peter to feed His lamb and sheep. They didn’t bother that Jesus has already told Peter that on this rock He shall build His church.

Maybe they want to override Him and others. This created a lot of problems among the disciples.

In the same vein, because of the bid to be a leader, to be the one to be worshipped, or that people will begin to see us as gods, we make serious mistakes.

 

Because we want to be great, many families have been thrown into turmoil and indefinite quarrels. Because of the desire to occupy the whole earth, and be the one to be issuing orders, we have created more problems for ourselves. 

 

Today, many nations like Nigeria are totally in a mess because a set of people want to be the ones in charge till eternity.

 

Where do we go from here? From this gospel, the implication is that wherever there is selfishness, greediness and materialistic tendencies, there is always a problem. 

 

2.Secondly, when we want to be great, we seek to take the shortcuts like James and John. The result today was more trouble and disunity among the disciples. Always know that there is no shortcut to greatness.

 

 Anyone who wants to go through the shortcuts must be prepared also to face the consequences. 

 

To ply on the road to greatness, always be prepared to go through the phases before the glorious part of it. There is a journey to every end, we have to go through the journey, rather than making an unjust leap to the end. 

 

3.Finally, Jesus tells the disciples that anyone who truly wants to be great must be willing to serve others. For the Son of Man, himself did not come to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many. 

 

 Therefore, to be the first is not the desire to show people that we are in charge. It is not intimidating and killing those we are to protect but the willingness to serve. 

 

 

“Ransom” is a term they use for the price they pay to set slaves, prisoners and people free. This is especially for slaves who cannot free themselves. 

 

So, Jesus came to be our ransom. He paid the price that sets us free. Therefore we have to also live by setting people free from poverty and problems and not killing them. People elect you in political positions to serve and save souls and not the other way round. 

 

4. Also as Christians, our call is to save souls and touch lives. Any other thing apart from this is not from God. Let us get it right. 

 

If we can keep to this, then there will be heaven on earth. Imagine a world where everyone loves each other and helps one another. Imagine a family that binds themselves in love.

 

Such a place will be like heaven, But we neglect these things to pursue shadows. Therefore, the road to greatness lies in our hands. 

 

 

May God help us to understand His mysteries and May He also continue to show us His love. Amen