A Not-So-Subtle Ambition

January 18, 2025

Scripture Passage: Matthew 20:20-23


 

Initiate

A video introduction using illustrations, personal stories, metaphors, or active learning examples to begin the discussion.

 

 


 

Interact

After the video, prompts are supplied for thinking and sharing with others personal perception and experience. This opening activity prompts participants to think about and relate to the topic, and to share with others. 

 

 

If you had to use one of the following sayings as your motto for life, which would you choose? Why?

1. "The greater the struggle, the greater the triumph." 

2. "You have to go through the fire to come out as gold." 

3. "Smooth seas never made a skilled sailor." 

4. "Every rose has its thorns." 

5. "After the storm comes the calm." 

6. "No rain, no flowers." 

7. "The seed must die to grow." 

8. "Champions are made in the off-season." 

9. "Every virtuoso was once a beginner who never gave up." 

If you were a parent, would you want your child to experience the challenges described in these sayings, or would you rather hope for them to receive blessings or great gifts with less struggle? What is the common theme running through these sayings?


 

Insight

The Bible discussion begins with a careful reading of the whole passage, either from your own Bibles, or from the provided images below.

Then participants are to ask:

  1. What is going on in this passage of Scripture?
  2. What are the key words and phrases? Highlight them.
  3. Why do you think this passage is included in the Bible?
  4. What does it contribute to our “knowing Christ” and “living in Christ”?

 

Read Matthew 20:20-23:

A Mother’s Request

20 Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him.

21 “What is it you want?” he asked.

She said, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”

22 “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said to them. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?”

“We can,” they answered.

23 Jesus said to them, “You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.”

 

 

Download PDF of Matthew 20:20-23

Parents naturally desire success and honor for their children and feel hurt when they are overlooked or misunderstood. They believe this reflects their love and pride. This is evident in the mother of James and John, who asked Jesus for positions of glory for her sons. However, she misunderstood the nature of Jesus’ kingdom. She didn’t understand that it was not about worldly power but spiritual transformation—a kingdom of grace, overcoming sin and death through sacrifice. Ask yourself: "How does what I want for my life and what God wants for me line up or differ?"

The "cup" Jesus mentioned in His prayer in Gethsemane, represents the suffering and sacrifice He alone would endure. Despite asking for the cup to pass, He submitted to God’s will (Mark 14:36; Luke 22:42), accepting His role in humanity's redemption. Paul explains this in 2 Corinthians 5:21, highlighting Jesus' unique atonement for sin. 

James and John, though committed, were not meant to bear this cup. Their role was to witness, lead, and share His message. Believers today, likewise, are called to embrace grace, fulfill God’s will, and trust in Christ’s sacrifice, even without fully understanding the cost of their "yes." What does it mean to say "yes" to God without fully knowing what it will entail, and how can we trust Him in uncertainty?


Insight Out

A parting video clip with a personal invitation to apply the message to “knowing Christ” and “living in Christ” in the coming week.

 

 

Connect With Us