Verse from Mark

“耶稣坐下，叫十二个门徒来，说：「若有人愿意作首先的，他必作众人末后的，作众人的用人。」”

马可福音 9:35 

“Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.””

Mark 9:35 

Mark 9 is an action-packed chapter in our second gospel account. The chapter opens with the transfiguration of Jesus (vv. 1–13), where Peter, James, and John witness the glory of Christ and the voice of the Father while seeing Moses and Elijah join Jesus on the mountain to discuss His coming death and resurrection. 

Then, after descending the mountain and entering the valley below, the Lord of light is confronted by the power of darkness—from which He rescues a demon-possessed boy (vv. 14–29). 

After Jesus reminds the disciples of His coming death and resurrection (vv. 3–32), the disciples argue about which of them will have the highest place in the kingdom. This discussion of greatness initiates Jesus’s call to servanthood. After hearing how their Master would sacrifice Himself for them, they must be reminded that they too were called to lay themselves down for the benefit of others.

 Our natural inclination is to put self first. How might you intentionally look to serve someone today?