1. A Request Jesus Couldn’t Grant
Introduction
In our prayers we sometimes request something of God which He cannot grant to us.
a. Not necessarily because it is beyond His power to do so, but –
b. Because it is not according to the will of God, John 5:14 – “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.”

2. 2. We might ask God to save an individual without his
2. We might ask God to save an individual without his believing in Jesus, but such would not be in harmony with the revealed will of God, John 8:24 – “Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.”
3. Two of Jesus’ disciples, James and John, once made a request of Jesus which He could not grant to them.
a. What they wanted was not according to the will of God.

3. b. It was God’s will that what they wanted for
b. It was God’s will that what they wanted for themselves was reserved for someone else.
4. Mark 10:35-40 – “Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Him, saying, ‘Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask.’ And He said to them, ‘What do you want Me to do for you?’ They said to Him, ‘Grant us that we may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on Your left, in Your glory.’ But Jesus said to them, ‘You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?’ They said

4. To Him, ‘We are able. ’ So Jesus said to them,
To Him, ‘We are able.’ So Jesus said to them, ‘You will indeed drink the cup that I drink, and with the baptism I am baptized with you will be baptized; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared.’”
a. James and John were asking for a privilege which would favor them over the other dis- ciples.
b. As a result, the other disciples, hearing of the request, were greatly displeased with them.

5. c. Jesus had just mentioned to them that when
c. Jesus had just mentioned to them that when they were to arrive in Jerusalem He would be betrayed, condemned to die, delivered up to the Romans for that purpose, mocked, scourged, spat upon and then killed.
d. But He added that on the third day He would be raised from the dead.
e. James and John were, no doubt, expecting that, in His resurrection, He would finally come into His kingdom.
(1) They were expecting, however, a ma terial, physical kingdom.

6. (2) And that, in such a kingdom, Jesus
(2) And that, in such a kingdom, Jesus would lead the Jews in a revolt against the Romans, drive them out of Pales tine, and restore the sovereignty of the Jewish state.
(3) And, at such a glorious moment, when Jesus would be seated on David’s throne in Jerusalem, they wanted to bask in His glory by being seated, one on the right and the other on the left hand of Jesus.
(4) Note the phrase, “in Your glory.”

7. What Was Jesus Talking About?
f. James and John were badly mistaken about the nature of Jesus’ kingdom and about His “glory.”
What Was Jesus Talking About?
When was Jesus glorified?
Several answers might be given:
a. At His birth, Luke 2:14 –
b. At His baptism, Luke 2:22 –
c. At His transfiguration, Matt. 17:1,2 –
d. At His ascension into heaven, Acts 1:

8. 3. But, especially, when He died on the cross.
a. John 12:16,23 – “His disciples did not under- stand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about Him and that they had done these things to Him … But
Jesus answered them, saying, ‘The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified.”
b. John 13:31 – “So, when he had gone out, Jesus said, ‘Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in Him.”

9. c. Heb. 2:9 – “But we see Jesus, who was made
c. Heb. 2:9 – “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by he grace of God, might taste of death for everyone.”
4. Now, notice Jesus’ answer to the request of James and John: “You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” (Mark 10:38)
a. What was Jesus talking about?

10. b. His reference was to his death on the cross in
b. His reference was to his death on the cross in which He would be immersed (baptized) in terrible pain and suffering.
c. They did not realize they were asking to be crucified with Jesus at His right and left hand.
d. Jesus could not grant them that “privilege” in His glory (death), but promised them that they ultimately would also be immersed in such suffering.
e. Jesus could not grant to them this “privilege” because it was reserved for someone else.

11. f. Notice the words of Jesus: “…but to sit on My
f. Notice the words of Jesus: “…but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared” (Mark 10:40).
5. Now, notice what Mark tells us in Mark 15:27 – “With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left.”
a. In His death Jesus was glorified, and two thieves were crucified with Him, one on His right hand and one on His left.
b. The two thieves were “those for whom it has been prepared” (Mark 10:40).

12. c. Had James and John known what being on
c. Had James and John known what being on the left and right hand of Jesus in His glory, they would not have asked for it!
6. Now, let’s notice what Jesus said: “You know that those who are considered rulers over the Gen- tiles lord it over them, and their great ones exer- cise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant. And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:42-45).

13. a. This was a rebuke to James and John for
a. This was a rebuke to James and John for wanting to obtain glory in the wrong way.
b. They wanted the kind of glory that civil rulers in high places have.
c. Real glory, however, is not received by being in positions of honor or power.
d. But it is received as the consequence of a life of service and sacrifice.
(1) Jesus did not come to be served.
(2) But He came to serve and to offer His life as a sacrifice for many.

14. 7. If we wish to have real glory with Jesus it will have
7. If we wish to have real glory with Jesus it will have to be on the basis of our service and sacrifice.
a. Notice what Jesus said in Mark 8:34-36 – “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?”
b. “Saving life” now is achieving glory by power and position.

15. c. “Losing” life is for a person to devote his life to
c. “Losing” life is for a person to devote his life to service and sacrifice, so that he will have glory with Jesus in heaven.
d. A person who chooses to have his glory now by power and position will lose everything in the end; it’s a poor bargain!

16. 8. A life of service and sacrifice, which is what disci-
8. A life of service and sacrifice, which is what disci- pleship is all about, is described in three ways:
a. Self-denial, Gal. 2:20 – “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
b. Cross-bearing (the willingness to endure the problems and difficulties in life that come upon us because we have chosen to follow Jesus).
(1) It is a cross we are to “take up.”

17. (2) It is also a cross we can “put down” by
(2) It is also a cross we can “put down” by ending our service to Jesus.
c. Following the Leader, John 12:26 – “If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also.”
9. Jesus called on James and John to follow Him all the way to the cross.
a. In his efforts to harass the church, King Herod put James to death, Acts 12:1,2.
b. John was exiled to the island of Patmos “for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus,” Rev. 1:9.

18. 10. We, too, are called on to follow Jesus in a life of
10. We, too, are called on to follow Jesus in a life of service and sacrifice in order that we may participate in His glory in heaven.
a. Have you followed Jesus in your obedience to the gospel? He wants you to:
(1) Believe in Him as the Son of God
(2) Repent of all your sins
(3) Confess Him before men
(4) Be baptized for the remission your sins.
b. Are you following Jesus in a life of service and sacrifice?