I Call Shotgun
Today we continue on Jesus’ journey. We have followed this journey from Capernaum where the disciples were arguing who was the greatest, through Judea and the encounter with the rich man, and now we’re on our way to Jerusalem. It’s at this point that James and John come up with what they consider to be a pretty good idea.
They’ve been brainstorming cause there’s a lot of time to think when you’re walking miles from here to there. James says, “Hey John, you know, there will be twelve seats in heaven for the twelve of us, so let’s ask for the best seats in the house.” (Matthew’s Gospel) Of course John agrees, thinking if we don’t ask I’m sure Peter will, or one of the others. So they call “Shotgun”!
You’ve done that as a kid haven’t you, or you have kids that have done that. I remember Saturday was a big day when I was a kid. That was the day we left to the farm to go “up town”. Naturally we all wanted to sit in the front seat. Of course that was back in the days of no seat belts, metal dashboards, and no airbags. But we would call “shotgun”!
And we would argue amongst ourselves about who called it first. I called it! No, I did! I called it yesterday! Well, I called it when we got home last week! We would all fight for the seat of honor.
This attitude of being first, or having honor or the prestige of a title still haunts us today. Who is the greatest? We want the seats of honor on the right and the left.
We don’t like taking the backseat to anyone. You and your luggage are in a line that winds toward the ticket agent at the airport. And then a VIP, or a rich person who’s paid more money or something, or someone who knows someone else, gets to go to the front of the line, bypassing all the other schmucks who’ve been waiting their turn.
Maybe there is no line but you still can’t pass because of the rules. Some places of business have this little machine that has little tabs with numbers on them that you pull and when they call your number you get waited on. I’ve seen times where someone had number 43. The sign on the wall says serving #38. You’re the only customer in the store but you can’t get service until they run through #’s 39, 40, 41, & 42.
It’s frustrating. You’re the only customer in the store. Why can’t they just wait on you without going through all the numbers? Well, it may take a few seconds but you will get waited on. James and John don’t want to wait, either.
They go right up to Jesus and say, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask.” Did you hear those two key words? WE WANT. WE. WANT. WE WANT you to do for us whatever we ask. And therein lies the problem.
They look at Jesus and his power and come up to him whispering some self-serving request. The disciples are just like us all, sneaking around, asking special privileges from God, seeking our own agenda, wanting God to help our team win.
Now, we need to understand this passage in its context. The disciples have been stuck on this issue since way back in Mark 9:33. They’re getting close to Jerusalem now. Jesus is coming closer to his death, a fact that he reminds them of repeatedly. He’s been verbally attacked by the Pharisees, talked about greatness with a child on his lap, and watched the rich ruler turn away. And still the disciples are whining about who is the greatest. Does that surprise us? I doubt it. We, as current disciples, still play these games of power and prestige. It’s all about me, me, me.
“Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” What a way to ask for something! Kids ask like that, too. “Would you do something for me?” Come to think of it, I know some adults who ask like that. As a parent, I hope you know better than to say yes without first asking what it is they want.
Jesus asked, “What is it you want me to do for you?” What do you want? Man, that is a loaded question. Ask any kid and you’ll get 5, 10, 15 answers like that. That’s like asking, “If you could have anything in the world, what would it be?” A loaded question!
But Jesus asks it. “Well, Me and James here were thinkin’ we’d like to sit at your left and right in your glory.” I love Jesus’ answer. “You don’t know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?” “We can,” they answered. Silly, naïve schmucks.
When I think of someone being on Jesus’ left and right, I think of the thieves on the crosses to the left and right at Jesus’ crucifixion. So when Jesus asks them about the cup and baptism, he’s asking them if they can go through what he is going to go through. They think they can and Jesus says, “Man, you guys don’t know what you’re getting yourselves into.”
All they’re thinking about is the prestige and honor, not the sacrifice, trials, and hardship that comes with it. I can relate to that.
I had a good job at a company, with a good boss and pretty good pay and benefits. I learned of a position at another company. And I wanted that position. I wanted to be the “Plant Manager” of that company. I wanted the business card that said, “John Beehler, Plant Manager”. I wanted the big bucks that the position offered. I wanted that title and the big private office that came with it.
I wanted. I wanted. I wanted. Jesus said, “You don’t know what you are asking.” And I didn’t. I didn’t think about the hardship and grief that I also got. Just like James and John, it was all about me.
I called “shotgun”. I wanted the seat of honor. I wanted the prestige of, when people asked me what I did, I could say, “I’m the plant manager at Viking Products.” And I was glad to say that……for a few months. Then I slowly began to realize that all that “prestige”, the big office, and the money wasn’t worth all the garbage I had to put up with.
So in December, after 7 months of this, I called my old boss up and asked him if he had any openings. I wasn’t looking for my old job, I was looking for any job. And, surprise, he had an opening. It was as an inventory clerk, less pay and lower level than what I was doing when I left. But I was happy.
I had called “shotgun”. I was in the front seat when I hit the metal dashboard. At least it knocked some sense into me. Now I know to be careful what you ask for. God just may give it to you.
But that’s not the end of the story with James and John. No, they went to Jesus on the side, behind the others backs. And, of course, they were busted, just like when they were arguing about who is the greatest.
We all know how quickly jealousy breaks out when a small group seems to have acquired a privilege that others couldn’t share or didn’t know about. We read in verse 41, “When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John.”
Scripture doesn’t say why they became indignant. It could be they were indignant because the audacity of the request. “I can’t believe they asked for the best seats.” I lean toward maybe they were upset because James and John had called “shotgun” first.
So, In response to all of this, Jesus calls all the disciples together and explains how life among them is to be lived. “Whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant.” And he further qualifies his teaching by the example of his own person and work. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
John Brodie, former quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, and was being used by his football team to hold the ball for the kicker. A sports reporter asked him why a million-dollar player like him should have to hold the ball for field goals and extra points after the touchdown. "Well," said Brodie, "if I didn’t, it would fall over."
Brodie understood that his value to the team was BEING THERE for the team. It was in “holding the ball so it didn’t fall over.” It was in “doing what needed to be done, so team could succeed..” That’s the type of person Jesus is looking for.
The true test of discipleship is found in the challenge to follow Jesus in his selfless suffering on behalf of others. Greatness, from God’s point of view, is found in godlike graciousness, generosity, and service, not in achieving positions of privilege and power that win the accolades of human culture.
The disciples, and unfortunately we, too, have an entirely different agenda. Jesus speaks of His Cross and we think of ourselves. Somehow, the message never seems to sink in. We’ve called “shotgun”. We’re riding in the front seat, enjoying the view. But just like the disciples, we’re blind. The greatest sacrifice was described to them and is described to us and we’ve all missed the point.
The point Jesus is trying to make is that God calls us to give our lives in order to help others. This is what ministry is all about. We are not here to be served; we are here to serve. I hope that, if you’re still calling “shotgun”, that someday soon you, too, will hit the metal dashboard and learn that it isn’t our agenda that we need to follow, but God’s.
Mark 10:35-45 10/19/03
