“Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.” (Mark 9:35)
On the road to Capernaum the disciples argued about who was greatest. Jesus sat down, called the Twelve, and turned their ranking upside down. In his kingdom, greatness is measured by a towel and a basin, by noticing the person everyone else walks past. The King who would give his life as a ransom showed his people what reigning looks like: kneeling low and lifting others up. A church shaped by this King stops climbing over one another and looks for the next person to serve. That is how the world recognizes whose people we are.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, King and Servant, free us from wanting to be first. Teach us to serve gladly where you place us, and make our church known by its love. Amen.
