The Way of JesusSample

The King We Needed

A kingdom is a people ruled by a king. Jesus has been announcing and inviting people into His Kingdom. In other words, He’s the King. He isn’t necessarily the king everyone wanted, but He is the King we all needed. Meaning, He didn’t act super “kingly” in the ways we would expect. He never lived in a palace—He was essentially homeless. He never fought in a military battle to free His people from their Roman oppressors. He repeatedly called out the Jewish religious leaders. The only crown that was ever placed on His head was a crown of thorns. This very different kingdom has a very different king. A king who did not come into His power by using and abusing others, but by service and self-sacrifice. 

Jesus Himself points out this contrast when James and John request places of honor beside Him.

Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Matthew 20:25-28 NIV

Jesus is built differently, and He introduced a very different kind of kingdom. Compared to the kingdoms of this world, where the strong rule over the weak, kings lead with self-serving decrees, and people with power oppress those less fortunate, Jesus’ Kingdom is upside-down and backwards. It’s a kingdom where the greatest serve the least, the King leads with sacrificial love, and those with power use it for the good of others. 

Jesus is not the kind of king who sends His people to die for Him. He’s the kind of king who willingly sacrificed Himself for His people. See, Jesus knew where He was heading all along. He knew His crowning moment would be the cross. And it wasn’t a secret! Jesus predicted His own death multiple times. 

The most dramatic response to that prediction probably came from Peter. In Matthew 17, Jesus Jesus does a little pulse check, asking His disciples for the word on the streets. Who do people say that I am? The group replies with some of the ideas they’ve heard: a reincarnated John the Baptist, or maybe Elijah the prophet, or perhaps one of the other famous prophets of old. 

Then Jesus makes it personal: 

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Matthew 16:15-16 NIV

“Messiah” is a title that means anointed or chosen one. So here, Peter answers correctly about Jesus’ identity, but just a few verses later, he reveals his attachment to his own definition of what these words really mean. See, Peter, like so many others, had hopes for who the Messiah would be and what He’d accomplish. And it was probably attached to the popular image of a conquering king who would free the Jewish people from Roman authority. But Jesus had something so much more in mind. And to accomplish it, He would have to die. Hearing this rocks Peter’s world. How could Jesus conquer anything if He was dead? “No, no, that’s impossible,” he corrects, “you aren’t going to be killed!” Here’s what Jesus says: 

… “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” Matthew 16:23 NIV

So, Peter gets called out. But why? What Jesus is saying is that Peter’s way of thinking was in opposition to where He was heading. And that’s a big deal. Peter was thinking small and selfishly, limited by what he wanted Jesus to be. 

How often do we get caught in the same mentality? How often do we end up cutting and pasting until we get this version of Jesus and His teachings that is so far from what He actually said and who He really is? This is not okay! And trusting a version of Jesus that is so much less than who He really is—it’s a letdown. 

How can we choose to trust the story Jesus is telling—and follow where He’s going, even when it doesn’t make sense? See, James and John could have been on Jesus’ right and left in His glory. But Jesus’ crowning moment was His crucifixion—that was the moment He entered His glory. And who was at His side? Not James and John, but two criminals. The disciples may not have been ready yet to follow Him that far. But are we? 

“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” Matthew 16:24-25 NIV

This is the way of Jesus. 

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