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March 20, 2019“You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?”
Mama is doing what she thinks is best for her boys. If Jesus is who he says he is and all the stories about his teaching authority and miracles are true, then he's a man with a future – a rising star who will elevate those closest to him. Her request is not particularly unusual. Loyalty deserves to be rewarded. And Jesus will need allies in his kingdom. He's just told them all that awaits him in Jerusalem. Betrayal. Arrest. Torture. And death. To survive all that he'll need the Sons of Thunder on his right and his left.
Now, we might wonder if mama's boys were actually listening to Jesus' prophecy of his Passion. Maybe they think that Jesus will die in Jerusalem as he prophesies and then they will inherit his throne. Or maybe they think that Jesus' prophecy is wrong and that he will establish a worldly kingdom where they will be princes. Regardless of what they might think, Jesus knows that they don't get it, so he says, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?” They respond, “We can.” Is this answer foolish? Ambitious? Hopeful?
When we ask Jesus to drink from his chalice do we know what we are asking? He's told us again and again that following him can result in persecution and death. The world abhors truth, mercy, forgiveness, and hope. It sees faith as a kind of superstition. And prayer is just magical-thinking. Drinking from Christ's chalice is an on-going commitment to thrive in sacrificial love. Lent is our chance to scrape away foolishness, ambition, and pride, and re-vow ourselves to drinking from Christ's chalice, knowing precisely why we drink.
