Jesus was not whom most people expected. Mark’s Gospel paints a portrait of Jesus that looks more like a servant than the redeemer God’s people had anticipated for hundreds of years.

But we know that God’s ways are often not our ways. The Gospels record that, according to God’s plan, the second Person of the Trinity became a man, Jesus, and lived among people. They were able to observe His actions and hear His teaching. While many regarded Jesus as the long-anticipated Savior of Israel, they also hoped He would be the one who would drive the Romans from their land and restore their kingdom. This would be a glorious future, and they hoped their lives would change for the better as their leader ascended to power. But Jesus had a different mission, one that embodied service and, finally, the ultimate sacrifice.

In the Gospels, Jesus taught these values to His disciples and followers. When it became clear that two of His disciples, James and John, were thinking of themselves and not of Jesus’ mission, He corrected them. While they may have been used to powerful leaders who held their authority over others, they were to live differently (v. 42). Jesus was modeling a different way, using His power to serve others. Greatness in God’s kingdom would be achieved by serving those in need (v. 43).

By invoking the title Son of Man for Himself, Jesus drew a connection to the book of Daniel where the second Person of the Trinity appeared as a man and received power, authority, and a kingdom (Dan. 7:13–14). Jesus was saying that even the God-Man did not come to use power for Himself, but for those He came to serve. His ultimate service would be to give His life, so that many would be saved from their sins.

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