The Way of the Cross: Servant Leadership and Sacrifice

The cross is more than the icon worn around a neck. The cross stands for faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior, but it also points to the lifestyle that comes from following him. First century Christians knew crucifixion was not pretty or symbolic. It was brutal, public, shameful, and it told everybody exactly what Rome did to people who went against its way.

Jesus calls people out of the way of self and into the way of the cross. The way of self asks, “How do I get to the top? How do I get what I want? How do I become important?” The way of the cross goes completely against that grain. Jesus went to the cross to save sinners, and those born again by God receive power to follow him in laying down their lives for others.

God’s power does not only look like miracles, demons fleeing, or sick people being healed. God’s power can look like Corrie ten Boom extending her hand to forgive the guard who had participated in the suffering and death of her family. Forgiveness is not an emotion. Forgiveness is an act of the will. Christ gives strength when a person can only take that first wooden, mechanical step of obedience.

Jesus makes clear that denying self and taking up a cross cannot save anybody. Salvation belongs entirely to God. No person can birth themselves spiritually, raise themselves from death to life, or earn forgiveness through serving, praying, or sacrifice. God saves those who repent and believe, and the new birth produces a new kind of life.

James and John reveal the old way in a painfully embarrassing moment. Jesus is walking to Jerusalem to give his life as a ransom for many, while the disciples are walking to Jerusalem dreaming about power, riches, glory, and being number one and two. They are heading to the same place, but in completely different directions. Jesus is going to love others first. The disciples are going to love self first.

Jesus answers their ambition with words that turn the world upside down: “Not so with you.” Gentile rulers lord power over people, but greatness in Christ’s kingdom looks like being a servant. First place looks like becoming slave of all. The Son of Man, the everlasting King with all authority, glory, and sovereign power, did not come to be served but to serve and give his life.

Christ’s invitation remains daily: repent, believe, deny self, take up the cross, forgive, love enemies, and follow the Servant King. The Holy Spirit supplies the power for every step of faith.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. The cross goes against self [06:14] The way of the cross confronts the constant pull toward self protection, self promotion, and self satisfaction. Jesus does not merely offer a better version of the old life. Jesus calls his people into a life where loving God and loving others comes before getting ahead. That way will often feel like it is going against the grain because it is. [06:14]
• 2. Forgiveness is an act of faith [09:04] Forgiveness does not wait for the heart to feel warm or safe. Corrie ten Boom’s extended hand showed that obedience can begin before emotion catches up. Christ meets believers in that costly act and supplies what natural strength cannot produce. The power of God often appears when somebody chooses mercy while still carrying real pain. [09:04]
• 3. Salvation belongs entirely to God [11:20] Denying self does not earn new birth, and serving others does not purchase forgiveness. God raises dead sinners to life through repentance and faith in Christ. The changed life is not the price of salvation but the fruit of it. New creatures begin to do new things because God’s Spirit is at work within them. [11:20]
• 4. Greatness means becoming a servant [22:35] Jesus does not condemn the desire for greatness. Jesus completely redefines it. Kingdom greatness is not found at the front of the line being served, but in staying back until others have been cared for. A servant of God becomes costly to self precisely because Christ’s own life was costly for sinners. [22:35]
• 5. The Servant King gave his life [25:02] The Son of Man possesses everlasting dominion, glory, and sovereign power, yet he came to serve. Jesus was not trapped by the cross or defeated by it. He marched to Jerusalem and gave his life as a ransom for many. His people follow him not to earn his love, but because his love has already laid itself down for them.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [00:30] - An Embarrassing Wedding Moment
• [01:41] - James and John’s Embarrassing Request
• [03:35] - What the Cross Represents
• [04:14] - The First Century Reality of Crucifixion
• [06:14] - The Cross Goes Against Self
• [07:56] - Corrie ten Boom and Forgiveness
• [10:39] - Salvation Is God’s Work
• [12:10] - Deny Self and Follow Jesus
• [15:30] - The Disciples Head to Jerusalem
• [19:38] - James and John Ask for Glory
• [21:34] - Not So With You
• [22:35] - Greatness Through Servanthood
• [24:24] - The Servant King Gives His Life
• [28:29] - Invitation to Repent and Follow

Bible Reading

Mark 10:35-45
And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” [19:38]

Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized, but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.” [21:34]

And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John. And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you.” [22:35]

“But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” [25:02]

Mark 8:34
And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” [10:43] [12:10]

Matthew 6:14-15
“For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” [09:04]

Daniel 7:13-14
I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. [24:24]

Observation questions

1. What do James and John ask Jesus for, and what does their request show they expect from Jesus’ coming glory? [19:38]
2. What is the difference between the way Gentile rulers use authority and the way Jesus tells His followers to use influence and position? [21:34]
3. In Mark 10:43-45, what words does Jesus use to define greatness and being first in His kingdom? [22:35]
4. What does Jesus say the Son of Man came to do, even though Daniel 7 describes the Son of Man as receiving everlasting dominion, glory, and power? [25:02]

Interpretation questions

1. James and John are walking with Jesus toward Jerusalem, but they are focused on status while Jesus is moving toward suffering and sacrifice. What are some ways believers can be close to Jesus outwardly while still chasing self, recognition, comfort, or control inwardly? [16:49]
2. Jesus says, “It shall not be so among you.” How does this sentence challenge the normal way people seek power in families, workplaces, friendships, and churches? [21:34]
3. If salvation belongs entirely to God, what is the difference between trying to earn God’s acceptance through sacrifice and responding to God’s grace through a changed life? [11:20]
4. Forgiveness is described as an act of the will, even when the heart is still cold and wounded. What might faithful forgiveness look like when trust has been broken and emotions have not yet caught up? [09:20]

Application questions

1. Where is the way of self showing up most strongly right now—in a desire to be noticed, to get one’s own way, to protect comfort, or to be in control? What could denying self look like in one specific situation this week? [06:14]
2. Jesus calls His people to take up the cross daily, not only in one dramatic moment. What daily choice at home, work, school, or church would look more like following Jesus than following personal desires? [14:44]
3. Is there a person toward whom forgiveness feels impossible or deeply costly? Without pretending the hurt was small, what might be the first honest step of obedience—perhaps prayer, releasing revenge, a conversation, or extending mercy with wise boundaries? [09:24]
4. Jesus says greatness means serving others. Who is normally overlooked, left with the hard work, or waiting at the “back of the line” in your everyday life? How could you serve that person in a practical way? [22:39]
5. The Son of Man has all authority and yet came to serve and give His life as a ransom for many. How does Jesus’ example change the way you use whatever authority, resources, skills, or influence God has given you? [25:02]
6. What is one “cross” you may be resisting because it costs too much—letting go of money, pride, bitterness, comfort, a personal plan, or the need to be right? How can you ask Jesus for help to take one real step of faith? [13:49]
7. New life from God produces a new way of living. Where have you seen God already changing your desires or actions, and where do you need the Holy Spirit’s power to help you love God and others more faithfully? [15:12]