Power

Hey Jesus, who's first? Who gets the seat beside you? Where is your power? When will you invoke your Kingdom? Jesus crests a hill and a group of people are pretty revved about power! A political Kingdom is cresting a hill on a colt. At least that's what they are thinking. Could it be that Jesus is invoking the 'power' of God and Rome will be overthrown. Will we be first? Will we be powerful? Will we establish our reign on this earth? Bring the power....

Jesus did. He washed the feet of His disciples. He fed them. He told them of sacrifice... passion... the giving of body and blood. He talked of the least being first. He talked about submission to one another. He talked about selflessness. He talked of true power, found in true servitude. He talked about sacrifice. He talked about laying down our lives. He talked about laying down His own. Then, He did it.

He ventured from hill of waving palm branches to a meal of friendship, love, and a sharing of the future to a garden of submission of will. Jesus, with blood dripping from His brow, simply said to God the Father, it's not about my will or my power or my place or my rule. It's about Your will. Jesus submitted to God's will. He submitted to the cross. He submitted to true power.... giving His life away for the freedom of multitudes.

Jesus demonstrated power by willfully being nailed to a cross. By bearing the sins of the world. By breathing His last breath (for a moment) as He bore our sin. Power. Yeah, on a hill a man personified power.

What if the Kingdom of God, in its pure form, is through weakness and vulnerability, sacrifice and love? What if all other 'kingdoms' are trite and petty? What if the hope of mankind... my hope... your hope lies in this paradox of power: the way of Christ is truly prolific through scandalous weakness; the only way to be powerful is through remarkable vulnerability; to live is to die; the way to success is by submission.

If true, then our small thrones and our minute kingdoms pale. Our grasps for temporal power are truly a joke. Our jockey for position and to be 'right' are, at best, humorous and potentially lethal.

Matthew 26.40-41.... I truly believe that these are fulcrum verses. Jesus looks at a few who desperately wanted to serve Him. He said, the place of power..... real power.... world changing power is found in awakening to the will, direction, and passion for my Father. Can you not stay awake long enough to truly discover His heart? Can we? Will we? The Kingdom of God is near. Seek His Kingdom and not your own!

Power.... Ironically, the power found in the Kingdom of God is antithetical to almost every construct of power in our vision and vocabulary. Perhaps God is pretty well aware that His ways and ours don't always mesh. Perhaps that's why we desperately need to spend an hour with God....depths of time with Him. Let's go after Him.

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For the Glory,
Mark