Next we'll look at Mark 10:42-45. The immediate context is the rather bold request by James and John that they be accorded the privilege of sitting on the right and left hand of the glorified Christ--positions of supreme prestige and power. The other ten disciples, naturally, grumble about this display of arrogance, more than likely because they hadn't thought to ask first. Jesus' response, following an observation that the disciples didn't really know what it was they were asking and that the desired positions weren't up for grabs, was to teach a lesson about relationships in the kingdom by drawing a contrast to the way that pagans exercise authority over others.
What is Jesus’ comment about the relationship of pagan rulers to those under them? That pagan rulers "lord it over" their subjects. They take full advantage of the trappings of power. They live in the high style, frequently justifying it as "appropriate" to the eminence and prestige of the office they occupy. But Jesus holds these rulers up as a negative example. How does he contrast leadership relationships in the kingdom/church? Greatness in the kingdom of God is not defined by power, wealth, influence, living life high on the hog. Rather, greatness in the kingdom is other-centered, a life of service. And the greatest example was set by the Lord himself, who "did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many" (verse 45).
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