The temptation of power

Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to him with her sons, and kneeling before him she asked him for something. And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20: 20-28)

Although Jesus is divine in nature, He made Himself a servant for our salvation. In God’s logic, power is not something used to dominate other men and satisfy the thirst for excelling as an end but is a means used in the service of one's neighbour, so that others can also understand the grandeur of Christ’s Blood shed on the Cross. The apostles also struggled to understand the power expressed in the service of others. Let us pray that the Lord will help us never to fall into the temptation of power (even small forms of power) which not aimed at serving others, but at one's own glory.