Commentaries:
<< Matthew 20:25 Matthew 20:27 >>
Matthew 20:20-28
Here, the disciples show they understood what Christ was doing, but they immediately let the idea of such awesome power go to their heads by vying for the very top positions. Christ explains that His disciples must use authority in a godly fashion, not for self-aggrandizement as the Gentiles had used it.
Staff
Who Are the 'Guests at the Wedding'?Related Topics: Abuse of Authority | Authority | Competition | Competitive Spirit | Competitiveness | Gentile Leadership | Leadership | Leadership, God's Pattern of | Lording it over Others | Positions of Authority | Power Corrupts | Power, Abuse of | Self Aggrandizement | Servant Attitude | Servant Leadership | Tyrannical Leadership
Matthew 20:25-28
Meekness, a tolerant, yielding spirit, represents having the right of way but not insisting on it. Jesus Christ sets the tone of this approach in His discussion with the sons of Zebedee and the other disciples. Many have looked upon meekness, lowliness of spirit, or the willingness to yield, with suspicion and perhaps even loathing. Meekness—or its common perception—may seem too much like weakness, wimpiness, or timidity.
Some have taken Matthew 7:29 out of context to sanction a pompous, brittle, authoritarian approach, stating Jesus "taught . . . as one who had authority, and not as the scribes." Such people assume that this gives license to higher decibels and dogmatic manhandling of the audience, but they seriously misunderstand its intended meaning. Jesus could speak with authority because He possessed an unlimited reservoir of experience. He personified the Word of God, while the scribes and Pharisees could only quibble about the bits and pieces they had studied. Even though Jesus spoke with authority, the Gospels show His manner to be peaceable and yielding in most situations.
David F. Maas
Servant Leadership: Practical MeeknessRelated Topics: Humility | Lowliness | Lowliness of Heart | Lowliness of Mind | Lowliness of Spirit | Meekness | Meekness of Christ | Meekness, Practical | Peace | Peace Maker | Peace Making | Poor in Spirit | Poor of Spirit | Practicality of Meekness | Servant Leadership | Timidity | Yieldedness | Yielding to God | Yielding to God's WillOther Forerunner Commentary entries containing Matthew 20:26:
Proverbs 28:2
Matthew 13:33
Matthew 20:24
Luke 13:21
1 Corinthians 12:27-29
Colossians 3:12
<< Matthew 20:25 Matthew 20:27 >>
Join 135,000+ readers
A Verse and a Thought, Every Morning
The Berean delivers one scripture and a short, insightful commentary to your inbox each day — a starting point for reflection and study.