Honor Those the World Leaves Behind

What do you want on your tombstone? That question reaches past Tombstone Pizza commercials and cemetery epitaphs into the deeper question of legacy. The desire to leave things better for the next generation, to set big goals, climb ladders, and make an impact is natural. Ambition itself is not the problem. The question is, what is fueling it?

Mark 10 places that question on the road to Jerusalem. Jesus is leading the way with a weight on Him that leaves the disciples astonished and the crowd afraid. Christ knows exactly what is ahead: betrayal, suffering, execution, and the giving of His life as a ransom for many. James and John see that something big is coming, and they shoot their shot. They ask for the seats at Jesus’ right and left in His glory.

Jesus does not rebuke their ambition. Christ confronts their blindness. The cup and baptism they want to share are not symbols of easy power or a big house in the sky. The cup leads through suffering. The baptism leads through death. James and John want honor, but they do not yet understand the kind of King Jesus is or the kind of kingdom He brings.

Jesus then turns the world’s whole ladder upside down: “Not so with you.” Gentile rulers lord power over people, but greatness in God’s kingdom comes through being a servant. First place comes through becoming slave of all. Christ grounds that kingdom reality in Himself, because the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and give His life as a ransom for many.

Mark immediately puts Bartimaeus beside James and John. Jesus asks both parties the exact same question: “What do you want me to do for you?” James and John are spiritually blind while Bartimaeus is physically blind. The disciples, fresh off being told to serve everybody, try to silence and dismiss the beggar. Bartimaeus is unclean, isolated, pushed to the margins, and treated as though he is beyond redemption. Yet Bartimaeus, “son of honor,” receives honor from Jesus while the honored disciples chase it for themselves.

Honor in God’s kingdom is not achieved by climbing ladders. Honor is found by serving those the world leaves behind. The legacy that matters is not the seat somebody held, the money somebody made, or the accomplishments etched into stone. Christ calls His people to be remembered for loving the forgotten, seeing the invisible, and honoring those everybody else dishonors.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Ambition needs the right fuel [25:25] Ambition is not automatically selfish or worldly. Jesus does not shame James and John merely for wanting something significant. The heart of the matter is whether ambition seeks a place of honor for self or seeks to honor people others have pushed aside. [25:25]
• 2. Jesus reverses the world’s ladder [16:36] The world treats authority as the ability to get others to serve personal goals. Christ defines greatness as becoming a servant and even a slave of all. Kingdom leadership is not less costly than worldly leadership, but it spends its strength for different people and a different glory. [16:36]
• 3. Spiritual blindness misses the forgotten [19:43] James, John, and the other disciples can see Jesus walking toward Jerusalem, yet they fail to see the man crying beside the road. Bartimaeus cannot see physically, but he recognizes the Son of David and calls for mercy. Spiritual sight becomes clear when Christ’s people recognize the dignity of those society treats as interruptions. [19:43]
• 4. Honor the people others dishonor [22:58] Bartimaeus, the “son of honor,” had been left in the gutter by the very culture that cared about honor. Jesus stops, calls him forward, listens to him, and restores him. Christ’s kingdom gives honor not according to status, cleanliness, usefulness, or social approval, but according to His mercy. [22:58]
• 5. A faithful legacy may look wasted [27:37] Julius Hickerson’s death appeared to confirm that he had thrown away a successful life for strangers. God used the Bible recovered from his plane wreck to bring tribes and villages to faith in Christ. A life given to Jesus may not look impressive in the moment, but Christ alone sees what faithful service produces.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [01:04] - What Do You Want on Your Tombstone?
• [04:01] - The Question of Legacy
• [05:32] - Is Ambition Wrong?
• [07:19] - Jesus Sets His Face Toward Jerusalem
• [10:14] - James and John Ask for Honor
• [12:31] - Thrones, Glory, and Misunderstood Expectations
• [16:36] - Not So With You
• [17:48] - Bartimaeus Calls for Mercy
• [19:19] - The Same Question for Blind Men
• [22:19] - Bartimaeus, Son of Honor
• [24:29] - Serving Those the World Leaves Behind
• [26:03] - The Legacy of Dr. Julius Hickerson
• [29:36] - What Will Be Written on the Tombstone?

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.' 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.' 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. 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.” [10:54]

Mark 10:46-52
“And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, 'Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!' And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, 'Son of David, have mercy on me!' And Jesus stopped and said, 'Call him.' And they called the blind man, saying to him, 'Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.' And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. And Jesus said to him, 'What do you want me to do for you?' And the blind man said to him, 'Rabbi, let me recover my sight.' And Jesus said to him, 'Go your way; your faith has made you well.' And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.” [18:02]

Matthew 19:28
“Jesus said to them, 'Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” [12:58]

Observation questions

1. What do James and John ask Jesus to do for them, and what does their request show they expect from His kingdom? [10:54]
2. How does Jesus describe the difference between Gentile rulers and greatness in God’s kingdom? [16:29]
3. What repeated question does Jesus ask both James and John and Bartimaeus, and how are their answers different? [19:10]
4. How do the crowd and disciples respond to Bartimaeus before Jesus calls him forward, and how does Jesus respond differently? [18:14]

Interpretation questions

1. Jesus does not simply shame James and John for wanting something significant. Why does He focus instead on their inability to understand the cup and baptism connected to His glory? [15:15]
2. What does it mean that Jesus defines greatness as becoming a servant and being willing to be “slave of all”? What kinds of power and leadership does that challenge today? [16:38]
3. Why might Mark place Bartimaeus’ story immediately after Jesus teaches about servanthood? What does the disciples’ treatment of Bartimaeus reveal about their spiritual blindness? [20:15]
4. Bartimaeus is called the “son of honor,” even though society had pushed him aside. How does Jesus’ attention to him show what honor looks like in God’s kingdom? [22:32]

Application questions

1. Ambition is not automatically wrong, but its fuel matters. Where is there a desire in someone’s life for recognition, influence, achievement, or security? How might that desire be redirected toward honoring Christ and serving others? [25:12]
2. Who are the people in this community whom others may treat as interruptions, burdens, invisible, or unimportant? What might it look like to stop, listen, and treat them with the dignity Jesus gave Bartimaeus? [24:40]
3. The disciples had just heard Jesus’ call to serve, yet they still tried to silence Bartimaeus. When is it easiest to overlook people’s needs because they are inconvenient, uncomfortable, or outside familiar circles? [20:15]
4. What “ladder” is most tempting to climb for a sense of worth—career, comfort, reputation, ministry recognition, possessions, or something else? How could serving someone with little ability to repay change that pursuit? [25:00]
5. A faithful life can look wasted by the world’s standards before its fruit is visible. Is there a costly act of obedience, service, or generosity that feels unnoticed or unproductive right now? How does Christ’s example encourage faithfulness without needing immediate results? [27:37]