Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Tư Tuần thứ 8 TN - Mark 10:32-45 ,

Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Tư Tuần thứ 8 TN - Mark 10:32-45 ,
Tin Mừng hôm nay cho chúng ta thấy là những suy nghĩ của Thiên Chúa không giống như những suy nghĩ của con người chúng ta. Những cách làm việc của Ngài cũng không giống như những cách làm việc của chúng ta. Hai tông đồ Giacôbê và Gioan, Xin Chúa cho ho được giữ chức vụ quan trọng khi Ngài thiết lập vương quốc thiên sai của Ngài nhưng Họ không thể hiểu nổi bản chất của Chúa Giêsu. Vì vậy, Đức Giêsu bảo họ rõ ràng là môn đệ của ngài, họ phải sẵn sàng để chịu những đau khổ, ngược đãi thay vì để trở thành những người quan trọng trong xã hội trần thế.
Chúa Giêsu không trách mắng hai người tông đồ Giacôbê và Gioan và cũng không trách những người phàn nàn về hai tông đồ kia. Nhưng thay vào đó, Chúa nói với họ biết rằng con đường dẫn đến sự vinh quang vĩ đại là con đường nhỏ hẹp. và nếu họ muốn làm lớn trong nước trời , họ phải trở nên như người đầy tớ, trở nên con người hèn mọn, nhỏ bé trong xã hội trần thế này. Và sau cùng họ sẽ hiểu những gì Chúa Giêsu đã nói, Bởi vì họ sẽ tôn vinh Thiên Chúa bằng cách chết cho Ngài, và họ sẽ phải chết tử đạo trong tương lai. Các môn đệ phải uống chén của Ngài, nếu họ mong muốn cùng Ngài đồng trị trong vương quốc của Ngài. Chén uống của Ngài nhất định là một chén đắng cay,  liên quan đến việc là họ phải chịu đau khổ, chịu đóng đinh.
            Những loại Chén nào mà Chúa đã dự định cho chúng ta trong ý muốn của Ngài?  Với một số môn đệ, một chén như vậy đòi hỏi những đau khổ về thể xác và sự đau đớn cho cuộc tử vì đạo. Nhưng đối với nhiều người như chúng ta,  đòi hỏi các thói quen lâu dài trong cuộc sống Kitô hữu của chúng ta, với tất cả những sự hy sinh  về  những: thất vọng, chán nản, phấn đấu, và cám dỗ của mình. Là môn đệ của Chúa, chúng ta phải biết sẵn sàng hy sinh mạng sống chính mình cho sự tồn tại và phát triển việc rao giảng Tin Mùng của Chúa Kitô đến với mội người, Chúng ta phải sẵn sàng để từ bỏ cuộc sống của chúng ta mỗi ngày trong những việc hy sinh nhỏ hay lớn tuy theo nhu cầu. Một trong các giáo phụ tiên khởi của thế kỷ đầu tiên đã tóm lược lời dạy của Chúa Giêsu với các biểu hiện: để phục vụ là thống trị với Chúa Kitô. Chúng ta chia sẻ trong triều đại của Thiên Chúa bằng cách là từ bỏ chính cuộc sống của chúng ta trong khiêm tốn phục vụ như Chúa Giêsu đã làm vì lợi ích của chúng ta. Chúng ta có sẵn sàng và dám hy sinh mạng sống của chính mình để phục vụ người khác như Chúa Giêsu đã làm?
 
Meditation:
Was Jesus a pessimist or a stark realist? On three different occasions the Gospels record that Jesus predicted he would endure great suffering through betrayal, rejection, and the punishment of a cruel death. The Jews resorted to stoning and the Romans to crucifixion – the most painful and humiliating death they could devise for criminals they wanted to eliminate. No wonder the apostles were greatly distressed at such a prediction! If Jesus their Master were put to death, then they would likely receive the same treatment by their enemies. Jesus called himself the “Son of Man” because this was a common Jewish title for the Messiah.  Why must the Messiah be rejected and killed? Did not God promise that his Anointed One would deliver his people from their oppression and establish a kingdom of peace and justice? The prophet Isaiah had foretold that it was God’s will that the “Suffering Servant” make atonement for sins through his suffering and death (Isaiah 53:5-12). Jesus paid the price for our redemption with his blood. Slavery to sin is to want the wrong things and to be in bondage to destructive desires. The ransom Jesus paid sets us free from the worst tyranny possible – the tyranny of sin and the fear of death. Jesus’ victory did not end with death but triumphed over the tomb. Jesus defeated the powers of death through his resurrection. Do you want the greatest freedom possible, the freedom to live as God truly meant us to live as his sons and daughters?
            Jesus did the unthinkable! He wedded authority with selfless service and with loving sacrifice. Authority without sacrificial love is brutish and self-serving. Jesus also used stark language to explain what kind of sacrifice he had in mind. His disciples must drink his cup if they expect to reign with him in his kingdom. The cup he had in mind was a bitter one involving crucifixion. What kind of cup does the Lord have in mind for us? For some disciples such a cup entails physical suffering and the painful struggle of martyrdom. But for many, it entails the long routine of the Christian life, with all its daily sacrifices, disappointments, set-backs, struggles, and temptations. A disciple must be ready to lay down his or her life in martyrdom and be ready to lay it down each and every day in the little and big sacrifices required. An early church father summed up Jesus' teaching with the expression: to serve is to reign with Christ. We share in God's reign by laying down our lives in humble service as Jesus did for our sake. Are you willing to lay down your life and to serve others as Jesus did?
            “Lord Jesus, your death brought life and freedom. Make me a servant of your love, that I may seek to serve rather than be served.”
 
Wednesday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time
Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Jesus and said to him, ‘Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” He replied, ‘What do you wish me to do for you?” They answered him, “Grant that in your glory we may sit one at your right and the other at your left.” Mark 10:35–37
James and John were feeling quite bold. Their boldness may have come, in part, from the fact that they had become very familiar with the goodness of Jesus. He was unlike any other, and His genuineness was very evident to them. Therefore, they allowed themselves to slip into the trap of taking Jesus’ goodness for granted by seeking a selfish favor from our Lord. Jesus’ response is gentle and thoughtful, and, in the end, James and John are somewhat humbled by their attempt to obtain this selfish favor when the other disciples become “indignant” at their request.
Jesus summarizes His response to these disciples this way: “…whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all.” Jesus, of course, was especially speaking about Himself. He was the greatest and the first among them. And for that reason, Jesus humbled Himself as their servant and the “slave of all.” Normally, the idea of being a slave has very negative connotations. Slavery is an abuse of the dignity of another. It’s a way of discarding the dignity of the person. But, nonetheless, Jesus says that the ideal way to be truly great is to become a slave of all.
When literal slavery is imposed upon another, this is a grave abuse. But there is another form of holy slavery of which Jesus is speaking. For Jesus, a holy slavery is one in which we give ourselves to another in a sacrificial way out of love. And this is what Jesus did to perfection. His death on the Cross was a true physical death. It was a sacrifice of His earthly life, but it was done freely and for the purpose of setting others free. In referring to Himself, Jesus explains His holy “slavery” when He says, “For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Jesus’ greatness is first found in the simple fact that He is God. But His greatness is made most manifest in His human nature when He gives His life “as a ransom for many.” It is the Cross that becomes the greatest act of loving service ever known. The fruit of His selfless sacrifice is the salvation of all who turn to Him. Thus, Jesus turns slavery and death into the greatest act of love ever known.
Reflect, today, upon your own calling to live a life of holy slavery. How is God calling you to sacrificially give yourself to others out of love? From a purely human point of view, the idea of sacrifice, servitude and even holy slavery is hard to comprehend. But when we use Jesus as the model, it becomes much clearer. Look for ways in which you can give yourself to others selflessly and know that the more you can imitate our Lord in this holy endeavor, the greater your life will be.
Lord of all holiness, Your greatness was made manifest in Your human nature by Your act of perfect servitude when You freely chose to die for the sins of those who turn to You for redemption. You humbled Yourself, taking on the form of a slave, so that all could be set free. Help me to always trust in Your great love and to continually open myself to the gift of redemption You offer. Jesus, I trust in You.
 
Wednesday in 8^th week of Ordinary Time 2024
Opening Prayer: Lord God, I contemplate today the mystery of redemption. You prepared our redemption from the beginning and promised that your Son would one day crush the head of the ancient serpent and redeem us, as our brother, from the debt of sin. May I be thankful today for so great a Redeemer!
Encountering the Word of God
1. The Third Passion Prediction: Mark’s Gospel is the shortest of the four Gospels. If space was an issue, why would he include three passion predictions instead of one? Apart from the fact that Jesus himself prophesied his passion three times on the way to Jerusalem, each prophecy provokes different reactions and becomes a teaching opportunity. When Jesus predicts his passion the first time, Peter takes him aside and tries to convince him not to go through with it (Mark 8:31-33). Jesus rebukes Peter and then invites his disciples to follow him and take up their cross. When Jesus predicted his passion the second time, the disciples were reduced to silence, did not understand, and were afraid to ask Jesus about his upcoming passion (Mark 9:30-32). In private, they discussed who was the greatest among them. And Jesus takes the opportunity to teach them about the true greatness of humility, service, and love. When Jesus predicts his passion the third time in a very detailed way, two of Jesus’ disciples eagerly seek places beside Jesus in his coming kingdom and promise to drink the chalice of passion with Jesus. The three passion prophecies show the journey of faith of the disciples: from opposition to not understanding to seeking to suffer with Christ.
2. Drinking the Chalice of Christ: The Old Testament uses the image of drinking from a chalice to depict either the blessing that God offers the faithful (Psalm 16:5; 23:5; 116:13) or the misery that God compels the unfaithful to drink (Psalm 75:8; Isaiah 51:17-22; Jeremiah 49:12; Ezekiel 23:31-34). Jesus speaks of the latter. And although Jesus himself is innocent and pure, he will consume the cup that was filled for sinners (Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament, 85). He asks his disciples to be willing to share in his redemptive suffering. By referring to the cup, Jesus is also alluding to the Eucharistic cup of his blood (Mark 14:23-24): drinking the cup and being baptized into Jesus’ passion becomes the source of salvation to all who receive it (Healy, The Gospel of Mark, 213). The sacraments of Baptism and the Eucharist are the way Jesus’ disciples can share in his future glory (Healy, The Gospel of Mark, 213). The sons of Zebedee, James and John, declare that they are willing to suffer with Jesus. Jesus clarifies that they will suffer but that assigning the glory seats belongs to the Father. James and John will exercise leadership in the Church. Jesus cautions them that they should not “imitate the pomp and tyranny of Gentile rulers (10:42) but the humility and service he has been modeling for them during his ministry (10:45; John 13:14-15)” (Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament, 85).
3. We Were Ransomed: Jesus concludes his third passion prediction referring to a ransom (lytron) that he will pay. In his First Letter, Peter also speaks about being ransomed or redeemed. Peter contrasts being ransomed with money and being ransomed with the Blood of Christ. The old Law of Moses established that a kinsman was obligated to redeem you if you fell into debt and slavery and lost your ancestral land (Leviticus 25:47-49). “As a divine Father, God became the ‘Redeemer’ of Israel (Isaiah 41:14; 54:5), who ransomed his beloved son from Egypt (Exodus 4:22-23; Deuteronomy 7:8)” (Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament, p. 85). As our redeemer, Jesus is the kinsman who redeems us, not from monetary debt, but from the debt of sin. He pays the price of our ransom. He is the Lamb of God, whose blood was shed on the Cross, who takes away the sins of the world. Having been purified, we are called to love our brothers and sisters with a pure heart. We are born again through the living Word of God.
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, you set your face like flint to go to Jerusalem and redeem us through the shedding of your blood. We deserved death because we broke the covenant with God. You did not abandon us to our fate and took upon yourself our debt. You paid the price of our redemption and established the New and Eternal Covenant that we now enjoy.
Living the Word of God: Am I willing to share in Jesus’ redemptive suffering? Am I thankful for what Jesus suffered as our redeemer or do I complain and bemoan the little pains and annoyances of daily