Helicopter Parenting
Okay, that's a stretch, but why did their mom do the asking?
It really is an adventure in missing the point.
Jesus has just explained (again!) that the Son of Man will be handed over, condemned, mocked, flogged, and crucified. You might expect a stunned silence, or at least some questions about what this means. Instead, James’ and John’s mother steps forward to ask if her sons can sit at Jesus’ right and left in his kingdom.
In her defense, many scholars note that mothers in the ancient world were often advocates for their sons’ advancement. But still, this request isn’t just poorly timed, it’s the wrong question altogether.
The disciples’ expectation was not of a kingdom in the clouds, but of Jesus taking over in the here and now, replacing the powers that be with a new rule. Mrs. Zebedee is picturing her boys seated in positions of honor, perhaps like trusted generals beside a victorious king.
But Jesus’ kingship will not be like the kings of old - Saul, David, Solomon - nor like the Caesars who dominate their present age. His victory will come not through conquest, but through self-giving. As he explains to them all at the close of the passage, this King has come not to be served but to serve—and to give his life as a ransom for many.
Matthew 20:17-28
As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the Twelve aside by themselves on the road. He told them, “Look, we are going up to Jerusalem. The Human One will be handed over to the chief priests and legal experts. They will condemn him to death. They will hand him over to the Gentiles to be ridiculed, tortured, and crucified. But he will be raised on the third day.”
Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus along with her sons. Bowing before him, she asked a favor of him.
“What do you want?” he asked.
She responded, “Say that these two sons of mine will sit, one on your right hand and one on your left, in your kingdom.”
Jesus replied, “You don’t know what you’re asking! Can you drink from the cup that I’m about to drink from?”
They said to him, “We can.”
He said to them, “You will drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left hand isn’t mine to give. It belongs to those for whom my Father prepared it.”
Now when the other ten disciples heard about this, they became angry with the two brothers. But Jesus called them over and said, “You know that those who rule the Gentiles show off their authority over them and their high-ranking officials order them around. But that’s not the way it will be with you. Whoever wants to be great among you will be your servant. Whoever wants to be first among you will be your slave— just as the Human One didn’t come to be served but rather to serve and to give his life to liberate many people.”
Psalm 37:5-7
Commit your way to the Lord! Trust him! He will act and will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, your justice like high noon. Be still before the Lord, and wait for him. Don’t get upset when someone gets ahead—someone who invents evil schemes.
Prayer (from N.T. Wright)
God,
We’re a mixed bunch. Some of us are tired, some excited, some of us anxious, some bored. You know us better than we know ourselves. Take us as we are, and make us what you want us to be. Give us courage where we are afraid, patience where we are restless, and love where we’ve closed our hearts.
Keep us going when the road is rough, and surprise us with glimpses of your kingdom
around unexpected corners.
By your Spirit & in Christ,
Amen.