Lectionary Reflections
by Various Authors

The Three Poison Pills of Position, Prestige, and Power
Sermon Starter

Mark 10:35-45

During the American Revolution a man in civilian clothes rode past a group of soldiers 
repairing a small defensive barrier. Their leader was shouting instructions, 
but making no attempt to help them. Asked why by the rider, he retorted with great dignity, 
"Sir, I am a corporal!" The stranger apologized, dismounted, and proceeded 
to help the exhausted soldiers. The job done, he turned to the corporal and said, 
"Corporal, next time you have a job like this and not enough men to do it, 
go to your commander-in-chief, and I will come and help you again." 
With that George Washington got back on horse and rode off. 

Where did Washington learn such leadership skills? I have no doubt 
he learned them here. In these words of Jesus: Whoever wants to become great 
among you must be your servant. The young corporal had these words 
modeled to him from the man at the top. The disciples, likewise, 
receive from their leader a picture of servant hood. 

And it is high time they start imitating their leader. It is now five days 
before Jesus' crucifixion. Four days before his betrayal and trial. 
One day before the clearing of the temple. A few hours before the Triumphal Entry. 
If the Disciples are going to start appropriating Jesus' teachings in their life 
it ought to be now. But it doesn't happen. Moments before the most crucial events 
in their life they are a bickering, petty, bad-tempered quarrelsome lot. 
We need to learn from this not-so-flattering moment in the life of the disciples. 

How is it that critical moments can be so close at hand and we are off wondering 
what's in it for me? It has to do with the three poison pills of: 

 Position 
 Prestige 
 And Power




While I was in seminary, I volunteered with Chicago's Night Ministry, 
an effort to reach the people who worked in the night and who would never darken a church door. 
Mainly we worked with both male and female prostitutes, not in an effort to argue them out 
of their business but a work aimed at building relationships with them and caring for them. 
One night when I was working on the Health Outreach Bus, we were visited by a transexual prostitute. 
She'd been recently diagnosed with AIDS. On that afternoon her son, 
whom she'd fathered before her operations, had been stuck by a car and was in pretty serious condition. 
Needs to say she was in a pretty bad place spiritually and mentally. She asked me, 
"why does God allow such a thing to happen?" Before I could answer she gave me 
one of the most reasonable explanations to the question of theodicy I've heard, 
not a perfect one by any means, but under her circumstances it was a surprisingly good one. 
She said, "maybe God allows evil so we can have a sense of call to fight against it." 
Then seeing the expression on my face, which likely reflected her pain, she reached out, 
pinched my cheek - with all of the force of her original gender, and said, "don't worry sweetly, it'll be okay." 

To me it was not only a reasonable approach to an unanswerable question 
but an incredible affirmation of faith. "Don't worry, it'll be okay." Despite her circumstances, 
which would have flattened most of us, she still believed that somehow in God, things would be okay.



Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu was born August 26, 1910, in Macedonia. 
Her father was a businessman and Agnes, though a Christian 
living in a predominately Muslim country, lived a comfortable life. 
Her father died when she was 9, and she was raised by her mother, 
a deeply religious woman. Agnes' mother and sisters faithfully attended 
church daily and prayed regularly.

At age 12, Agnes began to feel the call to serve God with her life. 
When she approached her priest, he told her she would know it was a call 
if she felt really happy by the idea that God might call her to serve him. 
At 18, after assisting at several religious retreats, she knew: God was calling her to serve.

On Assumption Day, 1928, Agnes left her home to join the Sisters of Our Lady 
of Loreto, who were very active in India. There she adopted the name of Mother Teresa. 
She eventually ended up in Calcutta, where she lived among and served the poorest of the poor.

On September 5, 1997, Mother Teresa died. She had literally given herself wholeheartedly, 
freely, and unconditionally, to the service of the poor, for the love of Jesus.



In February 2001, John Oros spoke to an audience at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary 
about his experience as a church leader in Romania during the Communist era:

"During communism, many of us preached and people came at the end of a service, 
and they said, 'I have decided to become a Christian.'

We told them, 'It is good that you want to become a Christian, 
but we would like to tell you that there is a price to be paid. 
Why don't you reconsider what you want to do, because many things 
can happen to you. You can lose, and you can lose big.'

A high percentage of these people chose to take part in a three-month catechism class. 
At the end of this period, many participants declared their desire to be baptized. 
Typically, I would respond, 'It is really nice that you want to become a Christian, 
but when you give your testimony there will be informers here who will jot down your name. 
Tomorrow the problems will start. Count the cost. Christianity is not easy. It's not cheap. 
You can be demoted. You can lose your job. You can lose your friends. 
You can lose your neighbors. You can lose your kids who are climbing the social ladder. 
You can lose even your life.'

Let me tell you my joy when we looked into their eyes, and their eyes were in tears, 
and they told us, 'If I lose everything but my personal relationship with my Lord Jesus Christ, 
it is still worth it.' "



This morning I’m thinking of two books I read over the summer. One was a biography of Albert Speer. 
Speer was a young architect in pre-World War II Germany, a promising, creative man 
who happened to fall in with Hitler early on. Although he did not share the Nazi ideology, 
he became Hitler and Goering’s architect and ultimately the man responsible for industrial production 
for all of Nazi Germany at the critical point in World War II. His talents were used for dark purposes 
and his life was twisted by the fact that he was overcome by the desire to be “at the top”. 
Of course that’s a simplification but not far off i think. Speer spent decades in Spandau prison 
as a war criminal. What a sad loss for a man who only wanted to sit at the right hand of power.

The other is “Chasing Daylight” by Gene and Corinne Kelly. Gene Kelly was CEO of KPMG 
when he was diagnosed with brain cancer and given a few months to live. It begins with his reaction 
to this diagnosis and moves through his death and her reflections on this last moment of life 
when he learned to live as servant life. Well worth reading, not only for this sermon 
but as a remarkable work in general. He  set aside his pursuit of power and sought a kind of servanthood.



Everybody Wants to Be Somebody
 
Everybody wants to be somebody. Since the dawn of history, human beings have been trying 
to move up the scale of importance. The clincher used by the serpent to tempt Adam and Eve 
was "when you eat of [the tree of good and evil], your eyes will be opened, 
and you will be like God, knowing good and evil" (Gen. 3:5). Henri Nouwen says that ever since then, 
we have been tempted to replace love with power. "The long painful history of the church 
is the history of people ever and again tempted to choose power over love, control over the cross, 
being a leader over being led." This is a theme running through the Bible, through human history 
and through our own psyche.
 
(by Kenneth L. Carder from The Glory of Christian Leadership, The Christian Century, p. 869)


 
One Positive Thing
 
"There are many negative things that can be said about James and John," writes William Barclay. 
"They were nakedly ambitious and proud: they wanted, and believed they deserved, 
places of honor in Jesus' kingdom. They were ignorant and insensitive: 
their request for places of honor came right after Jesus had told of His coming suffering and death. 
But there's one positive thing you can say about James and John: they believed in Jesus. 
Here was a poor, homeless, persecuted carpenter and yet James and John 
believed Jesus was a king. They believed that He would conquer the power structure of Rome."  
Even their crude ambition reflected their faith in Christ.
 
(by William Barclay from The Gospel of Mark, pp. 254 - 255)



Looking for an EZ Pass
 
On many of our nation’s toll roads, rather than stopping at a toll-booth to toss some change 
in a hopper, you can now purchase a transponder, sometimes called an EZ-Pass, 
and zip through in the left lanes without even slowing down to the acceptable speed limit. 
Instead of cash, tickets and paper receipts, it’s a microchip tag placed on your windshield 
containing pertinent data which eases your way. Your data is quickly read by a tollbooth 
electronic antenna as your car zooms on through. It automatically deducts your appropriate toll tax. 
This computerized collection system then sends a monthly statement to your home 
with tallies of times and places for your records. EZ-Pass is like a debit card for your car, 
only quicker. No more stopping at the tollgate, the narrow gate.
 
Jesus says, I am the narrow gate. There’s no quick way in. There’s no shortcut. 
If he wasn’t the Christ himself already, he’d be the perfect patron saint of tollgates.
 
Sometimes it seems that everybody wants the easy way to the front of the line, a quick way to glory 
and fast track to success. Including James and John, the brothers Zebedee, 
who want front-row seats numbering two and three. Put yourself in their shoes for a moment 
and see if you can identify with their self-centeredness. These guys gave up everything 
to follow Jesus. They followed Jesus when nobody knew him. They followed Jesus 
before his miracles. Now that he was popular, James and John were feeling the swell of fame. 
After all, they were Jesus’ best friends, his disciples! So we can understand 
why two of them came to Jesus with their request.
 
(by David Beckett from EZ-Pass)



Why Do We Seek?
 
A simple test of character is the question: "Why?" Why does the candidate 
seek the power a political position holds? Why does the actor seek fame 
in Hollywood or on Broadway? Why does the business person seek wealth 
or the climb up the corporate ladder? Why does the person of faith seek a position of ministry?
 
There is nothing intrinsically wrong with ambition in any of these fields. 
In fact, most people use ambition to better themselves and their surroundings. 
But the question must be asked: why do they seek? Do they want to wealth and fame 
and power for themselves alone? Or do they want to use these ambitions 
for the greater good? These were the questions Jesus asked his followers 
when the subject of ambition raised its head among the Apostles.
 
(by Larry Broding from The Glory of Christian Leadership)



 
Others
 
In just a few short weeks we will begin to see people in uniforms 
in shopping malls ringing bells collecting donations for the poor. 
They are doing the work of the Salvation Army.

In 1878, when the Salvation Army was really beginning to make its mark, 
men and women from all over the world began to enlist. A man who had once dreamed 
of becoming a bishop in another denomination crossed the Atlantic from America to England 
to enlist in the Salvation Army instead. His name was Samuel Brengle. 
Brengle left a fine pastorate to join William Booth's Army. 
At first General Booth accepted his services reluctantly and grudgingly. 
Booth said to Brengle, "You've been your own boss too long." 
So in order to instill humility in Brengle, he made him work 
by cleaning the boots of other trainees.

Discouraged, Brengle said to himself, "Have I followed my own fancy across the Atlantic 
in order to black boots?" Then, as in a vision, he saw Jesus bending over the feet of rough, 
uneducated fishermen. "Lord," he whispered, "you washed their feet; I will black their shoes."

Samuel Brengle went on to establish the Salvation Army in America. 
At the time of his death, the Salvation Army was thriving in both the United States and in Canada. 
Just before his death Brengle sent out a short memo to all of his top leaders. 
This memo had one single word written on it: "Others".
 
(by King Duncan from Collected Sermons, www.Sermons.com)
 

 
I Hate To Leave This Church
 
A Methodist pastor once wrote about power and politics in his denomination. 
Methodist preachers, he notes, are under the care of a bishop. Bishops, in turn, 
are Methodist preachers who are elected by fellow Methodist preachers 
after an extensive campaign for the office in which the candidate tries not to be caught campaigning. 
As he observes, It is a long-standing Methodist tradition that bishops must not appear 
to have sought their office and, once elected, the new bishop must make a public declaration 
that "I didn't seek this office and I didn't want it but, once the Lord calls" ... 
Methodist preachers take all of this with a grain of salt, the same way Baptist congregations 
have learned to be somewhat skeptical when one of their preachers moves 
on to a better church claiming, "I hate to leave this church and I would rather stay here, 
but the Lord calls." Baptists note that the Lord rarely calls someone out of one church 
into another church unless that church has a higher salary. Methodists have likewise noted 
that there have been few preachers who, once they are elected bishop, turn the job down.
 
"Teacher, we want you to put us on your right and on your left. But keep it quiet. 
Don't make it too obvious. Others may become offended that we asked first." 
By telling us this story, Mark knows what you and I know: we are prone to the same desire 
for privilege and protected status. We want a Jesus who will give us what we want, 
a Lord who can shower a little power on us, a Savior who can make us better than we are.
 
(by William G. Carter from No Box Seats in the Kingdom, CSS Publishing)
 

 
 What's in It for Me?
 
A number of years ago, a small book appeared for ministers. Titled The Penguin Principles, 
it attempted to help naive clergy get a handle on the people of their congregations. 
Most of the material in the book was written with tongue in cheek, so it has some truth in it. 
According to the book, the first principle of church life goes like this: 
"Despite the pious things we say, at any given time, less than five percent of any group 
in the church is operating with purely Christian motivation. 
The other 95 percent is asking, 'What's in it for me?'"
 
(by William G. Carter from No Box Seats in the Kingdom, CSS Publishing)


 
The Pharisee's asked: What's wrong with divorce?
Jesus replied: It might be legal but it is not moral to treat your wife 
as property and force her into prostitution due to your dismissing her 
in divorce with no way to provide for herself.
 
The disciples asked: What is it about this realm of God that keeps bucking 
the status quo and our cultural norms.
Jesus replied: Receiving a child saying that to receive the realm 
it must be received like you were a child; as an insignificant, powerless, 
and having no place in the world.
 
The rich one asked: What must I do to inherit eternal life?
Jesus replied: above following all the commandments you must leave 
behind anything that gets in the way of your relationship with God and all others.
 
James and John asked: Well since we have left everything behind to follow, 
there must be a reward in this somewhere for us?
Jesus replied: Your reward is your serving of others in God's will, 
that is the relationship realm I have been called to...accepted for myself...
have modeled for you...will die for...and command unto you.
 
The way God's realm turns the world upside down is the baptism 
we are part of me and are made of, and is a challenging 
and often difficult cup to drink.
 

 
There is no place where earth’s sorrows
Are more felt than up in heaven;
There is no place where earth’s failings
Have such kindly judgment given.
—Frederick Faber (1814-1863)



In 1981, the Chicago Bears football team drafted Mike Singletary from Baylor University. 
He was known for his tackling and playmaking ability and his hard tackles propelled him 
to the National Football Hall-of-Fame. During his college days at Baylor, his intensity was so great 
that he broke 16 of his helmets causing the equipment staff to always keep three of his helmets 
around for every game. Mike went on to be a Pro-Bowl player ten years during his twelve year 
professional career. Now retired, Mike said:

"The first thing in my life by far and the reason I do everything is my love for Jesus Christ. 
Number two is my family -- being there for them and making sure I'm not missing time 
that I can't get back. Number three is my work, speaking to corporations about teamwork, 
leadership, and cultural diversity and trying to help people come together.

I don't care where I'm at or what I'm doing, the thing I want to do now in my life is make a difference 
and serve with a capital S. Serve in my home. Serve in my relationship with my wife. 
And serve my fellow man . For me, it's a matter of "What am I doing to make a difference? 
What am I doing except making money." There are a lot of people out there who are hurting."



Caring Service and Its Impact

A room-service waiter at a Marriott hotel learned that the sister of a guest had just died. 
The waiter, named Charles, bought a sympathy card, had hotel staff members sign it, 
and gave it to the distraught guest with a piece of hot apple pie.

"Mr. Marriott," the guest later wrote to the president of Marriott Hotels, "I'll never meet you. 
And I don't need to meet you. Because I met Charles. I know what you stand for. ... 
I want to assure you that as long as I live, I will stay at your hotels. 
And I will tell my friends to stay at your hotels."

(by Roger Dow and Susan Cook from Turned On Harper Business, 1996)



Power

On May 18, 1980, Mount St. Helens in the Cascade Range of Washington exploded 
with what is probably the most visible indication of the power of nature that the modern world 
has ever seen. At 8:32 A.M. the explosion ripped 1,300 feet off the mountain, 
with a force of ten million tons of TNT, or roughly equal to five hundred Hiroshimas. 
Sixty people were killed, most by a blast of 300-degree heat traveling at two hundred miles an hour. 
Some were killed as far as sixteen miles away.

The blast also leveled 150-foot Douglas firs, as far as seventeen miles away. 
A total of 3.2 billion board-feet of lumber were destroyed, 
enough to build 200,000 three-bedroom homes.

(by Michael P. Green from Illustrations for Biblical Preaching, p. 269)



George Bernard Shaw was once asked in what generation he would have preferred to live. 
The witty Irishman replied: "The age of Napoleon, because then there was only one man who thought he was Napoleon."

(by G. Curtis Jones from 1000 Illustrations for Preaching and Teaching, p. 291)



Power Verses Service

Alexander, Caesar, and Hannibal conquered the world but had no friends....
Jesus founded his empire upon love, and at this hour millions would die for him.... 
He has won the hearts of men, a task a conqueror cannot do."

(by Napoleon)



A well-dressed European woman was on safari in Africa. The group stopped briefly 
at a hospital for lepers. The heat was intense, the flies buzzing. She noticed a nurse bending down 
in the dirt, tending to the pus-filled sores of a leper.

With disdain the woman remarked, "Why, I wouldn't do that for all the money in the world!"

The nurse quietly replied, "Neither would I."

(by Donald L. Deffner from Seasonal Illustrations,  p. 130)



Service

"I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know: the only ones among you 
who will be really happy are those who have sought and found a way to serve."

(by Albert Schweitzer)



My List of Stories & Illustrations on Sunday's Gospel: Request of James & 
John - Mark 10.35-45

1 The Emperor's New Clothes, Fairy Tale by Hans Christian Anderson. (1837). 
Movie starring Danny Kaye, singing 'The King's New Clothes.' Book of 
Knowledge iv,1332-35

2 James & John, twin brothers, sons of Zebddee. James killed with the sword 
by Herod Agrippa (Acts 12.2) John, leader in Jerusalem Church; according to 
Papias was martyred; according to Eusebius was one of two Johns in Ephesus
Matthew puts the blame on their mother, Salome, for requesting the best 
seats in the Kingdom.

3 'Not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your 
country.' - President Kennedy

4 'Ich dein" Motto of Prince of Wales, 'I serve.'

5 Diakonos, deacons/ministers appointed to serve tables (Acts 6.1-6)

6 AOTS 'As One That Serves" name of Men's Club in United Church of Canada

7 Breath Prayer: What do you want? What do I want to ask God for?

8 'The fruit of prayer is faith. The fruit of faith is love. The fruit of 
love is service. The fruit of service is peace.' - Bl Teresa of Calcutta who 
served the poorest of the poor, the sick & dying

9 The kingdoms of the earth go by, 
In purple & in gold.
They rise, they triumph & they die,
And all their tale is told.
One Kingdom only is divine,
One banner triumphs still,
Its King a servant & its sign
A gibbet on a hill. 
- Godfrey Bradby

10 'For you, I am a bishop, but with you, I am a Christian. The first is an 
office accepted, the second a grace received. One a danger, the other 
safety. If, then I am to be placed over you, I shall, as the Lord commanded, 
be more completely your servant.' 
- St Augustine of Hippo

11. Ransom, e.g., Richard the Lionheart during the Crasades.

(Compiled by Francis Chisholm)



Jimmy Carter's Effectiveness

Talk show host John Calloway interviewed the editor of The Christian Century. 
Calloway asked James Wall, "What do you think made Jimmy Carter so effective as an international negotiator?" 
Wall replied, "Carter has the prestige and experience of the presidency without the political baggage. 
Furthermore, he is able to draw on his personal, deeply held religious belief that in talking with another person, 
one must be sensitive to the other's perspective."

Calloway responded, "You are really saying that it is the one without power who really has power."

That is closer to what Christ taught, that power is sometimes manifested in weakness, 
in giving oneself to others. Authentic greatness is redefined to mean serving instead of being served, 
using the power of love rather than seeking power and control. In the kingdom of God, 
we do not attain prominence by getting our bids in first, or by elbowing our way to the front. 
Prominence comes as we serve others with humility.

(by Katherine Fagerburg from Redefining Greatness)