Words of Jesus Podcast - Opposites in the Kingdom of God

Episode Date: September 6, 2024

There is persecution, not honor, in Christianity for those who follow Jesus. Jesus came to serve, not to be served. The ambition and hierarchy of the church is an anathema to Christ. One is your Teacher, even Christ. To begin the path to salvation, "Believe Jesus is who He says He is." ***87: Jesus Replies To The Request Of John And JamesMatthew 20:20-28; Mark 10:35-45Two of Jesus’ disciples, John and James, the sons of Zebedee, came to him, saying:            “Master, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever weshall desire.”            Jesus answered:            “What would ye that I should do for you?”            James and John replied:            “Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory.”            Jesus answered them, saying:            “Ye know not what ye ask. Can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? And be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?”            The two disciples replied:            “We can.”            Jesus said to them:            “Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with. But to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father.”            The other ten disciples were displeased with James and John, because of this request. But Jesus called them all to him and said:            “Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister; and whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.”***88: Jesus Heals Blind BartimaeusMatthew 9:27-31, 20:29-34; Mark 10:46-52; Luke 18:35-43As Jesus and his followers left Jericho, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat at the side of the road, begging.            Hearing the multitude going by, Bartimaeus inquired why the crowd had assembled. He was told that Jesus of Nazareth was passing.            So Bartimaeus raised his voice and cried out:            “Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.”            Many rebuked him and told him to keep quiet, but he cried out even louder:             “Thou son of David, have mercy on me.”            Jesus stopped and asked that Bartimaeus be brought to him. The blind man arose from the ground and went toward Jesus when some sympathetic persons had said to him:            “Be of good comfort. Rise. He...

Think Red Ink Ministries presents the Words of Jesus series with Don C. Harris. Hello my friends and welcome once again to the Words of Jesus program. I'm Don Harris, your host, and I am pleased to be able to bring you these shows as often as your station broadcasts them. Speaking of which, I would love for you to write to the station that is broadcasting these shows. I'm going to tell you, it takes a program manager, especially of a Christian radio or television station, it really takes a fella or a gal or whoever happens to be in charge, and it takes a certain amount of intestinal fortitude to allow such a show as this,

because we've got no standard axes to grind here. Actually, what we're doing is we're trying to bring the words of Christ back into Christianity, and a lot of times they do go crosswise with common understandings and the way people believe and things like that. So it takes a brave soul. And I want them to know that I appreciate it. And I would love for you to let them know that you appreciate it as well. So would you do that for me?

Would you let your station know that they are appreciated for their stand in this area? You know, it's really kind of an odd thing in Christian broadcasting. They are what I call gatekeepers out there that are real concerned about everything everybody says. They feel like they're responsible for everything everyone says. But, you know, as Americans, we understand free speech. But in Christianity, it's like, no, you're just going to have to preach the same old stuff we've heard all of our life. And just keep saying it over and over and over again. And, you know, that's just, it it's not me it's not me at all and if if the

lord uh reveals something to me from the scriptures um you know i just i just have to do it and i i i know that it goes crosswise and and those of you that have uh you know the confidence and and the relationship with god that you should have, you don't feel threats about things like this, but there are a lot of people that do. I'm not here to threaten anybody or to try to even change what they believe. I just want to show you as well as I can understand what Jesus said and try to honestly and logically apply it to Christianity. If it goes crosswise, you know, sorry about that,

but that's exactly what we have to do. And anyway, I appreciate you being a part of this broadcast, and please let your broadcaster know that you appreciate them as well. We're talking from chapter 87 of our book now. Jesus replies to the requests of John and James. Two of Jesus' disciples, John and James, the sons of Zebedee, came to him saying, Master, we would that thou shouldest do for us

whatsoever we desire. Now, that's a really odd way of saying this, and you shouldn't let it throw you. They weren't really saying, we want you to do whatever we say. It sounds that way, and that may be a lot of Christians' attitude, but the truth is they're just saying there's something you we want you to do for us that's all very innocent not demanding at all the sentence sounds demanding but and i i don't see that in it in what's being said here

and and and the reason i don't is because the way way Jesus answered them. You know, who the heck do you think you are to tell me what to do? No, he didn't say that. He said, what do you want, guys? What is it that you want me to do for you? You see, it was very, there was nothing escalated about this. There was nothing selfish about this. He said, there's something we want you to do for us. He says, what is that?

Well, James and John replied, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left, in glory. Wow, that's really quite a request you got going there, buddy. I think that this was a fleshly desire on their part. Well, of course it was. But I really feel like that this was more in the political realm of Jesus' purpose on the earth than it was the spiritual realm. I don't think anybody is saying, you know, if you're going to sit at the right hand of God,

then I want to sit in God's seat. You know, my brother can sit in the other seat, but I want to sit where the Lord sits. No, no, no, that's not what they're saying at all they really believed that and there was a um you remember uh simon zelotes his name was zelotes because he was known as uh simon the zealot and there are some people who are um zealots for Zion. They're zealots for the establishment of Israel being a nation. They were back then. They are today. And so I believe this was a political request. I believe that when they considered that Jesus very well could be king of Israel,

that they wanted to be in his cabinet. And I can understand that request, but wow, they must have been a lot closer to him than even I can imagine to have asked something like this and far enough away from him to not understand that this was kind of a silly request um i shouldn't say silly but it was it was not a request that was going to be granted i assure you jesus uh answered them saying you don't know what you're asking yeah boy i wonder how many times he said that to us when we pray he says can you drink of the cup

that i drink of and be baptized with the baptism i am baptized with um i want you to notice that here you have again the picture of this um this water of baptism um and it's something that is pulled into us internally. The cup that I drink and the baptism I am baptized with. This is a picture of this persecution and many times baptism has to do with persecution. There's a baptism by fire. There are baptisms of persecution.

And the reason that they're using the word baptism, it's unfortunate that there's translation situation here that kind of forces the use of the word. But this is saying that this persecution is something that is taken into it's not only on the outside of us but it's something that's brought into us symbolized by this cup that i drink this is the water in and the water outside this is the persecution within and the persecution outside and he's telling them that there is a baptism that he is going to be baptized with that these two disciples simply do not understand

in order to to be essentially like christ or in his cabinet or in his uh in his domain um within his uh uh his uh friendship within his um realm of of power uh it's going to require something that they are not aware of he says you don't know what you're asking the two disciples didn't learn a thing from what jesus said and answered okay i added that part the two disciples replied we can that doesn't surprise me at all i think a lot of people feel like they can deal with the baptism of death they feel like they can deal with these things but truth is they can't jesus said to them ye shall indeed drink of my cup and be baptized with the baptism i am baptized with these things are going to come on you and i don't know and hardly care whether you think that you can or not but uh these things are

going to be bad that they will eventually they will take your life uh the persecution is going to be as much as you're going to be able to bear. And he said, but you have to understand that the reward that I will receive when I enter the holiest of holies, when I enter the place where our Father God, Yehovah, is that it's going to be given to me. However, what you're asking me to give you is not mine to give here you have another scripture that separates and actually stratifies the godhead

it's very common when when people are talking or teaching on the Trinity that they will use a term like co-equal. It's one of the things I have a huge concern about and take great umbrage to because you never ever find Jesus saying, you know, whatever I want, that's what the Father will do. You find it the other way around many times. It's not really what I do. It's what the Father does. I see him do it, therefore I get involved. Jesus had no problem at all with putting himself into a subjective category of his father leaving his father inside of his own realm of power and jesus actually receiving from god whatever power he that he has jesus said this is not mine to give well whose is it well it's our father yehovahhovah, Jehovah God. This is within His power, not mine.

And again, this is just a verbal stratification of the Father being in a place of superiority over Christ. I don't know why that is so difficult for people to see or to accept, but it's pretty obvious that Jesus was under this impression. He says, this is not mine to give, but it shall be given unto them for whom it is prepared of my father. He is not telling us that there are people that have been chosen he's not telling us people that have not been chosen he's not telling us anything other than the fact that should these seats exist they may not be yours they may be somebody else's perhaps the father will do exactly what you're

saying i don't know, but it is His. Jesus said this a lot. As a matter of fact, when they talked about end times, and, you know, when are you going to come? What's the sign of your coming and the end of all things? He says, you know, these things are in the mind of, in the power of the Father. They're not mine.

I don't know when these things are going to happen. The Father only. Another verbal stratification here. This is Jesus subjecting himself to that ultimate head in the Godhead, the Father. Then he said that the other the disciples said that or showed that they were displeased um the other disciples i'm sorry showed that they were displeased with james and john because of this request i understand that i understand that i don't know if that was because hey you

know why didn't i think of that or because i'm i'm so much better than these people uh or you know they were appalled at the very reason that i'm appalled here in the 20th century of saying you know how could you even ask such a thing as that i know that i wouldn't but you know we we go through different times in our life when we feel like that we're closer than we really are sometimes we feel like we're farther away than we really are and we really just shouldn't rely on those feelings. And in these cases and things such as this, what's wrong with just backing away and letting the Father do His work,

let Jesus do His work, and we just do what we're told? The other ten disciples were displeased with James and John because of this request, but Jesus called them all to him, called all the disciples to him, and said, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and their great ones exercise authority upon them now i i feel the need to explain this i sometimes the language is clumsy he's saying that in the in the areas of the ruling gentiles here's the way they do business. They have these, as I'm calling them now, stratifications. They have this rank and file that they operate under. And that is that you

may have a guy that is over you, but he has somebody that is over him. And perhaps he has somebody that is over him and somebody else that is over him all right on up to uh you know the one who has none over him but he's he's saying that this is the way gentiles do business now it is important that you understand that jesus is not giving this as an example of the way things should be he's not saying that uh okay here's the way that i you know i expect my my church to be organized you know i want you to have peons and drudges and people who you just do what they're told you know the servant class the laity if you will and i you know the people that are you know they're struggling to get along and that kind of thing and then you've got people that have been

in the church a long time you know we'll we'll call those elders over the elders we're going to have people who you know elected uh these elders into these offices of authority we're going to call those deacons and then we're going to have those deacons and then we're going to have bishops and overseers and we're going to have uh you know a district uh uh bishops and cardinal bishops and we're going to have you know uh popes and you know all these these names and titles this is the way i want you to i want you to organize my church no he's not saying that at all he's saying that he's actually um pointing out the fact that this is the way gentiles do business uh that is not the way we're going to do business he makes that very clear as

a matter of fact he says um that there he says you know, that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over the Gentiles. And they're great ones. Now, great ones happens to be the perfect translation of the word rabbi. Another great translation of the word rabbi is reverend this is a great one this is one to be revered it's what reverend means and so he's saying that we have these people who are revered and they are over the ones that are over you but now he's he's he's there's a conjunction here that are putting these two thoughts together and because he uses the word but this is a

contrasting conjunction this is not an end this is not he's saying that what is following this word is the opposite of what you may be thinking. I don't mean, I'm not trying to talk down to you or trying to enunciate like you're an idiot. I just want you to know that this is very, very clear here. And I'm afraid that sometimes we read over these things and because it's in elizabethan english or because you've heard it before or because the preacher just preached on this a couple of weeks ago you have this tendency to just kind of push through the scriptures and you're doing your bible reading but all these words mean things. And so he says, but, and this is so huge,

but so shall it not be. But so, so what? He's saying, I just explained how we have tiers of power and authority. We have rank and file. That. So, in that manner, in that way, in that way, so it shall not be among you. But whosoever will be great among you

shall be your minister, or he should pursue being your minister and whosoever among you will be chiefest shall be servant of all for even the son of man came not to be ministered unto but to minister and to give his life a ransom for many. Do you want to know how you get to the top? You crawl and scratch and claw your way to the bottom. Here's another example of Jesus saying, it's not the way you think it is every time he's talking

about the kingdom of God every time he's talking about spiritual things he has to use these ideas to get across to people it's not the way you think it is now you guys here that are all mad at these two for wanting to be great, if they were wanting to become great, then they would be ministers to you, and you probably wouldn't have a problem with it. But what you're against is the same thing I'm against, and that's just socially promoting people and putting them into places of authority that frankly they don't deserve how do

we deserve that place of where people desire to minister to you as a great one you minister to other people so how do you get to the top clawing and scratching your way to the bottom wash feet that's why he told us this is this is what i expect you to do wash ye one another's feet if you do that you're going to experience uh promotion all right chapter 88 uh jesus heals blind bartimaeus. As Jesus and his followers left Jericho, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat at the side of the road begging. Hearing the multitude going by, Bartimaeus inquired why the crowd had assembled. He was told that Jesus of

Nazareth was passing by. So Bartimaeus raised his voice and cried out, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me. Many rebuked him and told him to keep quiet. But he cried out even louder, thou son of david have mercy on me you have to understand that when he was calling him the son of david this was no this was no light title this was i know that the messiah was to be the son of david he was calling him messiah he was calling be the son of David. He was calling him Messiah. He was calling him the anointed one of God,

the one sent to the earth to save us. This was a confession on his part and a request. It's really a beautiful thing. And it's very touching. Jesus stopped and asked Bartimaeus to be brought to him. The blind man arose from the ground and went toward Jesus when some sympathetic persons had said to him, Be of good comfort. Rise, he calleth for thee.

Jesus asked Bartimaeus, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? I'm always amazed at the questions of Jesus. I'm always amazed that I've never caught him asking a rhetorical question. I've never heard him ask a question that really didn't require an answer or that he was just asking to make some effect or something like that. Every time he asked a question, frankly, it was because he wanted an answer.

He wanted to know exactly where bartimaeus was in his affliction you realize you can be in an affliction and like it there do you know there's some people that are proud of their afflictions it gives them some kind of notoriety hey this man was called blind bartimaeus what did they call him after this he'd lost his notoriety and you might say well you know that's uh that's a heck of a trade let me tell you something there's a lot of people that are not the least bit interested in losing their particular malady that makes them noteworthy makes them notorious and makes them makes uh makes them famous it makes them different than other people sometimes it gives them an excuse not to do anything well i can't do that because i

i can't do that because i and you know that i have this condition and i can't and it uh it facilitates i'm sorry but it facilitates laziness in some cases. Some people are proud of their wheelchairs. I know that's hard to believe, but man, we do some really dumb things. Jesus wanted to make sure he knew who he was dealing with here. Bartimaeus, what is it that you want me to do for you? You're asking a blind man what you, the son of God that has the capability of bringing about a miracle, you're really asking him what he wants you to do? The blind man replied, Lord, that I might receive my sight.

Jesus said to him, go thy way. My faith has made thee whole. Faith in what? Faith in what? Jesus didn't say, eyes be opened. He didn't anoint him with oil. He didn't rub him on the top of the head. He didn't pray over him or smack him in the forehead and make him fall over.

Nothing happened here. He just said, go on about your life. You're healed. And your faith has made you whole. Faith in what? It's all encompassed in. It's enshrouded in, it's in that sentence. Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me. His confession that Jesus Christ was the son of David was his confession that I believe that you are who you say you are.

You want to know what believing in Jesus is all about? You want to play games with believing in Jesus or on Jesus or any of the rest of these things that nobody actually knows the definition of? Bartimaeus can tell you. You got to believe that he is who he says he is he's the son of God

that should come into the world and save us from our sins immediately his sight was restored he glorified God and followed after Jesus the people when they saw this miracle

praised God of course they did this is a wonderful day and Bartimaeus he was now I guess he's sighted Bartimaeus he's gonna have to get a new name but he doesn't mind because You can see. All right. Time's gone. We'll see you next time. Think Red Ink, my friend. Bye-bye. You've been listening to Don C. Harris of Think Red Ink Ministries. Email don at thinkredink.com. That's thinkredink.com. Join us again for the next episode in the Words of Jesus series. you