Mark 9:35 “And he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all.”
Did you know that I could divide the readership this morning by simply taking a genuine, sincere poll? How about Ford versus Chevy, or Mac versus PC? These questions can be silly, but they are calculated to produce contention. But we are “spiritual” sometimes, and dispute about such things as the greatest preacher, the greatest church, the greatest school, etc. Such was the case with the disciples in Mark chapter 9. Verse 34 tells the cause which they had disputed over: “Who should be the greatest.” The Lord Jesus had an opinion on the matter, and He taught his disciples an important lesson. The same lesson is important for us today. Our working together will be fragile if we are focused on comparing.
The disciples disputed over it, but the question of “who should be the greatest” was the wrong question. And two thousand years later, we still do not get the question right, either. Our nature has not changed. The disciples “held their peace” when confronted by the Lord because they did not want to admit to such shameful and foolish questioning. But they did not need to admit it because the Lord already knew.
The cause of “who should be the greatest” and the affirmation of it-that is, whatever the answer may be-always brings competition. Competition is not always a bad thing, but it does not belong in your church or in your heart. It truly is the wrong question, and the consequences are never good.
The Lord begins his answer to the disciples in verse 35 with the words “if any man.” Every person desires to be first. How do I know that is true? Because I want to be first! This is a battle you face every morning-yourself first or others first.
The disciples learned that the surest test of serving Christ is serving kids. Why? Because you do not get anything out of it, and you rarely get a thank you. Serving kids means serving people who cannot return the favor. You can be assured that God does know and He will repay (verse 37), and you cannot do any better than that or be any greater.