“A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. And he said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise Lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors. But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves. For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves. “You are those who have stayed with me in my trials, and I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”Luke 22:24-30 ESV
As I read these words on Thursday of Holy week, there was a tug on my heart. Against the backdrop of the blind brokenness of humanity, the Lord’s grace overwhelmed me as I considered His abundant grace and mercy toward me every single day.
Consider the setting. Luke gives us a glimpse of a scene from the Last Supper. Jesus has spoken clearly and intimately to His disciples about His coming suffering. As He shares the wine, He tells them He will not drink it again until the consummation of the Kingdom and He connects the bread and wine to His body, His blood, and His sacrifice.
And then He tells them that one at the table will betray Him.
What do the disciples do?
Do they express compassion or concern? Do they ask questions to understand more of what He is about to face?
No.
They speculate about who would betray Him. And then,unbelievably, the conversation shifts into a dispute, as they argue about who among them would be regarded as the greatest in the Kingdom.
It was a scramble for status.
And my goodness—my heart felt convicted.
Don’t I do this?
Maybe it’s more subtle. Maybe I don’t even speak it out loud.
But in moments where I feel less than, threatened or overlooked, how quickly my heart can move toward comparison.
Toward self-justifying thoughts.
Toward proving and protecting my image through self-glorifying words.
My focus can so easily shift to self. To measure my worth. To defend my place.
And in doing so, I too can become callous—missing what Jesus has for me, overlooking His heart as I overlook the hearts of others.
I can be just like the disciples.
But Jesus… always full of grace.
He doesn’t rebuke them harshly or disqualify them. He simply says, “Not so with you” as He reframes everything they’ve known about greatness and leadership.
In His Kingdom, greatness looks radically different. The greatest is not the one who exalts himself, but the one who humbly serves others.
The leader, in this Kingdom, reveals Himself as the one who serves.
But that’s not all.
Jesus does something that should strike us in this. After gently issuing a gracious course correction, He encourages the disciples and reassures them of their standing in Him.
He acknowledges that they have stayed with Him in His trials. He doesn’t dismiss them, even though their hearts are still so imperfect. And He promises them a place in His Kingdom where they will, not just be with Him, but will share in what He has been given.
What grace.
He speaks here, not to their resume, but to their identity. He acknowledges who they are in Him — and fills them with hope
And, He does the same for us.
This should leave us in awe of our Lord Jesus.
Oh, that we would trade our proving and our self protection for praise of Him.
Oh, that our lives would be consumed with recognition of His glory instead of fighting for our own.
And oh, that we would seek, with gratitude, the worship of our Lord Jesus in all situations.
He is worthy.
My favorite song for the Easter season – Thank you Jesus for the Blood