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Mark 9 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
We all know the greatest commandment according to Jesus. Here’s a refresher… “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other command greater than these.” These are found in Mark 12. Here in Mark 9, Jesus sets the stage to practically live out those commands.
Sitting down, He called the twelve and *said to them, “If anyone wants to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.”
Mark 9:35 NASB
Self-denial is the precondition for following after Jesus. Jesus hinted at this in the previous chapter.
And He summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.
Mark 8:34 NASB
Denying self is a once-and-for-all mindset. Sometimes we equate self-denial in our spiritual lives as “passing by the desserts during the holiday season.” Jesus is not speaking of a haphazard self-restriction done occasionally in order to appease God. He is commanding a total denial of self. Of course, we can’t just flip a magically switch when we meet Jesus. The commitment He is describing is a perspective change with regard to our outlook. Every day we have opportunities to serve ourselves or deny ourselves. When we view life through the lens of “the first shall be last,” we begin to make changes in behavior that illustrate our trust in Jesus’ Kingdom.
Simply put, Jesus is not saying “Don’t forget to find a way to deny yourself today.” That would imply that by default we are fixed on ourselves, and serving others is an addition to our life. This is why Jesus says “pick up your cross and follow Me.” You leave your old self and old desires in the grave. The old version of you that loved to serve yourself has been buried with Jesus and now you share in His resurrection power.
“From the human point of view, we are losing ourselves, but from the divine perspective, we are finding ourselves. When we live for Christ, we become more like Him, and this brings out our own unique individuality.”
Warren Wiersbe
Yes, that might mean giving up possessions, but it is so much more than that. It’s everything. Our desire for success, our prejudices, our political ideologies, our insecurities, our financial futures, and yes, possibly even our family. This doesn’t mean we never see or do any of these things again. It just means we do not hold any of them in higher regard than our relationship with Christ.
The only way we can understand this lofty idea is to first understand that in God’s kingdom, the first is last and the last is first. Jesus was describing Himself with that statement. He is the greatest, and He become the lowest. Jesus holds the highest honor for those who take the lowly position of a servant in His Name. Are we really living like that? Are we even thinking about it?
Jesus, help us to lower ourselves in order to serve others in Your Name.