The Law of the New Kingdom

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The time of the Passover was drawing near, and again Jesus turned toward Jerusalem. In His heart was the peace of perfect oneness with the Father’s will, and with eager steps He pressed on toward the place of sacrifice. But a sense of mystery, of doubt and fear, fell upon the disciples. The Saviour «went before them: and they were amazed; and as they followed, they were afraid.»

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Again Christ called the twelve about Him, and with greater definiteness than ever before, He opened to them His betrayal and sufferings. «Behold,» He said, «we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. For He shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: and they shall scourge Him, and put Him to death: and the third day He shall rise again. And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.»

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Had they not just before proclaimed everywhere, «The kingdom of heaven is at hand»? Had not Christ Himself promised that many should sit down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of God? Had He not promised to all who had left aught for His sake a hundredfold in this life, and a part in His kingdom? And had He not given to the twelve the special promise of positions of high honor in His kingdom,—to sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel? Even now He had said that all things written in the prophets concerning Him should be fulfilled. And had not the prophets foretold the glory of the Messiah’s reign? In the light of these thoughts, His words in regard to betrayal, persecution, and death seemed vague and shadowy. Whatever difficulties might intervene, they believed that the kingdom was soon to be established.

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John, the son of Zebedee, had been one of the first two disciples who had followed Jesus. He and his brother James had been among the first group who had left all for His service. Gladly they had forsaken home and friends that they might be with Him; they had walked and talked with Him; they had been with Him in the privacy of the home, and in the public assemblies. He had quieted their fears, delivered them from danger, relieved their sufferings, comforted their grief, and with patience and tenderness had taught them, till their hearts seemed linked with His, and in the ardor of their love they longed to be nearest to Him in His kingdom. At every possible opportunity, John took his place next the Saviour, and James longed to be honored with as close connection with Him.

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Their mother was a follower of Christ, and had ministered to Him freely of her substance. With a mother’s love and ambition for her sons, she coveted for them the most honored place in the new kingdom. For this she encouraged them to make request.

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Together the mother and her sons came to Jesus, asking that He would grant a petition on which their hearts were set.

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«What would ye that I should do for you?» He questioned.

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The mother answered, «Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on Thy right hand, and the other on the left, in Thy kingdom.»

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Jesus bears tenderly with them, not rebuking their selfishness in seeking preference above their brethren. He reads their hearts, He knows the depth of their attachment to Him. Their love is not a mere human affection; though defiled by the earthliness of its human channel, it is an outflowing from the fountain of His own redeeming love. He will not rebuke, but deepen and purify. He said, «Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?» They recall His mysterious words, pointing to trial and suffering, yet answer confidently, «We are able.» They would count it highest honor to prove their loyalty by sharing all that is to befall their Lord.

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«Ye shall drink indeed of My cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with,» He said; before Him a cross instead of a throne, two malefactors His companions at His right hand and His left. John and James were to share with their Master in suffering; the one, first of the brethren to perish with the sword; the other, longest of all to endure toil, and reproach, and persecution.

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«But to sit on My right hand, and on My left,» He continued, «is not Mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of My Father.» In the kingdom of God, position is not gained through favoritism. It is not earned, nor is it received through an arbitrary bestowal. It is the result of character. The crown and the throne are the tokens of a condition attained; they are the tokens of self-conquest through our Lord Jesus Christ.

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Long afterward, when the disciple had been brought into sympathy with Christ through the fellowship of His sufferings, the Lord revealed to John what is the condition of nearness in His kingdom. «To him that overcometh,» Christ said, «will I grant to sit with Me in My throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with My Father in His throne.» «Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of My God, . . . and I will write upon him My new name.» Rev. 3:21, 12. So Paul the apostle wrote, «I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me at that day.» 2 Tim. 4:6-8.

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The one who stands nearest to Christ will be he who on earth has drunk most deeply of the spirit of His self-sacrificing love,—love that «vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, . . . seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil» (1 Cor. 13:4, 5),—love that moves the disciple, as it moved our Lord, to give all, to live and labor and sacrifice, even unto death, for the saving of humanity. This spirit was made manifest in the life of Paul. He said, «For to me to live is Christ;» for his life revealed Christ to men; «and to die is gain,»—gain to Christ; death itself would make manifest the power of His grace, and gather souls to Him. «Christ shall be magnified in my body,» he said, «whether it be by life or by death.» Phil. 1:21, 20.

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When the ten heard of the request of James and John, they were much displeased. The highest place in the kingdom was just what every one of them was seeking for himself, and they were angry that the two disciples had gained a seeming advantage over them.

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Again the strife as to which should be greatest seemed about to be renewed, when Jesus, calling them to Him, said to the indignant disciples, «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.»

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In the kingdoms of the world, position meant self-aggrandizement. The people were supposed to exist for the benefit of the ruling classes. Influence, wealth, education, were so many means of gaining control of the masses for the use of the leaders. The higher classes were to think, decide, enjoy, and rule; the lower were to obey and serve. Religion, like all things else, was a matter of authority. The people were expected to believe and practice as their superiors directed. The right of man as man, to think and act for himself, was wholly unrecognized.

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Christ was establishing a kingdom on different principles. He called men, not to authority, but to service, the strong to bear the infirmities of the weak. Power, position, talent, education, placed their possessor under the greater obligation to serve his fellows. To even the lowliest of Christ’s disciples it is said, «All things are for your sakes.» 2 Cor. 4:15.

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«The Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for many.» Among His disciples Christ was in every sense a caretaker, a burden bearer. He shared their poverty, He practiced self-denial on their account, He went before them to smooth the more difficult places, and soon He would consummate His work on earth by laying down His life. The principle on which Christ acted is to actuate the members of the church which is His body. The plan and ground of salvation is love. In the kingdom of Christ those are greatest who follow the example He has given, and act as shepherds of His flock.

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The words of Paul reveal the true dignity and honor of the Christian life: «Though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all,» «not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved.» 1 Cor. 9:19; 10:33.

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In matters of conscience the soul must be left untrammeled. No one is to control another’s mind, to judge for another, or to prescribe his duty. God gives to every soul freedom to think, and to follow his own convictions. «Every one of us shall give account of himself to God.» No one has a right to merge his own individuality in that of another. In all matters where principle is involved, «let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.» Rom. 14:12, 5. In Christ’s kingdom there is no lordly oppression, no compulsion of manner. The angels of heaven do not come to the earth to rule, and to exact homage, but as messengers of mercy, to co-operate with men in uplifting humanity.

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The principles and the very words of the Saviour’s teaching, in their divine beauty, dwelt in the memory of the beloved disciple. To his latest days the burden of John’s testimony to the churches was, «This is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.» «Hereby perceive we the love of God, because He laid down His life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.» 1 John 3:11, 16.

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This was the spirit that pervaded the early church. After the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, «the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that aught of the things which he possessed was his own.» «Neither was there any among them that lacked.» «And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.» Acts 4:32, 34, 33.