Last of All

Mark 9:35. The disciples have been arguing on the road about which of them is the greatest. When Jesus asks what they were discussing, they say nothing. He sits down, calls the Twelve, and says that anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.

He sits down first. In that world a teacher sat to give formal instruction. This is not an offhand remark. It is a lesson he intends them to remember.

Nothing in the sentence forbids wanting to be first. Jesus assumes the desire and redirects it. The road to the front runs through the back. It is measured not by how many people serve you but by how many you serve.

On a Sunday, when many of us gather with others who believe, this verse is worth carrying into the building. The question is not where you rank in the room. It is who in the room you can serve before you leave.