Meandering through Mark | Wk 10

Don't Miss the Mark | Amy Nicholson | 23 Mar 2025

James and John didn’t get it. They "missed the mark." They were after power and authority alongside the Messiah, who they expected would deliver Israel from Roman rule. God's plan was so much bigger, and unfolding in a most unexpected way. Staying small-minded makes us miss God's big plans. Don't miss the mark, make your plans big, because God has big plans!

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35 Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.” 36 “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked. 37 They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.” 38 “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”

39 “We can,” they answered.

Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, 40 but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.”

41 When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. 42 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Mark 10: 35-45 (NIV)

1. Partnership not Position

God isn’t interested in Titles or positions of power. He is looking for hearts willing to serve as He served. If He was interested in power and position He wouldn’t have gone to the cross.  Instead, He called a tax collector and a handful of young fishermen to be His Disciples.

His invitation to follow Him still remains the same today. Not to gain but to give. 

He invites us to partner with Him and all of Heaven to reach a lost and lonely world and call them into community and relationship with Him, the lover of their souls. 

We find our purpose in God’s kingdom when we let go of power and position and take hold of God’s invitation to partner with Him in His redemptive plan on earth.

As you learn more and more how God works, you will learn how to do your work. We pray that you’ll have the strength to stick it out over the long haul—not the grim strength of gritting your teeth but the glory-strength God gives. It is strength that endures the unendurable and spills over into joy, thanking the Father who makes us strong enough to take part in everything bright and beautiful that he has for us. Col 1 :12 (MSG)

2.  Trajectory and not a Target.

James and John thought they were bang on target - Jesus was going to become King and they would have “it made”, they had “arrived”, and they were about to be the greatest thing since sliced bread! They completely missed the mark: None of us ever “make it” in the kingdom - none of us will ever “arrive”.  The goal is not a place - One day when I get to Heaven all my problems will be good. The goal is not position: "One day when I become a Pastor/life group leader/ fill in the blank, then I'll be the real deal." The goal is a person and His name is Jesus.  When we choose to receive the free gift of salvation we are then on a trajectory that will last all eternity… who we become on earth is important as we step into eternity. We are not suddenly going to become someone else in Heaven. Do you like the person you are becoming?   As we walk in relationship with Jesus we become more like Him, it’s not a target, but a trajectory. What do we take with us into eternity? Who we have become & who we have included.

3. Our view determines our vision.

James and John had a human view - that being a very small view - of what it meant for Jesus to become King.  Meanwhile, Jesus had an eternal view of what it meant to be King.

They couldn’t see that God’s plan extended far beyond the Israelites, far beyond their lives, far-reaching into eternity past and future. They could only see what was right in front of them. The bigger our view, the bigger our vision. Jesus had a bigger view of how His life fit into the grand narrative of scripture and the purpose God had for His life here on earth. 

What’s your view like?

• Do you see God as someone to solve your problems? How do you know? Maybe you only pray when you have a problem

• Or do you see God as eternal, immortal, supreme, powerful, magnificent.

• Do you see God as angry or scary or far removed?

• Or do you see God as compassionate & kind. A Father who loves you and calls you into a bigger story.

Our view determines our vision. We need to have a correct view of who God is so that we can get a vision for our lives that is bigger than us.  If we want to get the right view of who God is, we only need to look at Jesus, He reveals God’s heart to us.

We look at this Son and see the God who cannot be seen. We look at this Son and see God’s original purpose in everything created. For everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible, rank after rank after rank of angels—everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him. He was there before any of it came into existence and holds it all together right up to this moment. And when it comes to the church, he organizes and holds it together, like a head does a body.

 He was supreme in the beginning and—leading the resurrection parade—he is supreme in the end. From beginning to end he’s there, towering far above everything, everyone. So spacious is he, so expansive, that everything of God finds its proper place in him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe—people and things, animals and atoms—get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of his death, his blood that poured down from the cross. Col 1:15-20 (MSG) 

IF GOD IS YOUR PARTNER - MAKE YOUR PLANS BIG

4. Renew rebuild restore

Isaiah 61:4 They will rebuild the ancient ruins

    and restore the places long devastated;

they will renew the ruined cities

    that have been devastated for generations.

Renew mindsets - Repentance - change the way that we think

We're aiming to get 80% of the church into a Life Group - the best place for renewing minds!

Restore relationships - Between God and people & between people and people through preaching and applying the Gospel that brings unity!

Rebuild - The city - The mandate of the church is to use our God-given authority to make the city prosper. Let’s leave it better than we found it. Our Life Groups will be mobilizing - watch this space!

This is not about "works". We do not have to do anything to earn God’s favour, we already have His favour!  This is an invitation to partner with Heaven to make a significant difference on Earth in our short time here. We are unapologetically going to be making room for more. More of Jesus is our lives, in our community, and in our city. He must increase and we must decrease.

Here is something I wrote about where we are going as a Church:

When I close my eyes and open my heart, I see a church alive with possibilities.

I see a church that shines as a beacon of light to a lost and lonely world.

I see people filled with hope—so much hope that no building can contain them.

I see a church deeply inspired by the life and legacy of Jesus, where individuals bring their brokenness to Him, trusting that He restores their souls.

I see a resilient church, standing strong in its mission to push back darkness and bring God’s kingdom nearer.

I see an intentional church, where people sit in the presence of God, restored through relationship with Him, healed, whole, and filled with purpose.

I see a church on a mission, calling those who feel beyond healing into God’s redemptive plan, leading them from brokenness to wholeness.

I see a whole-hearted community, connected to the true vine, where minds are renewed, souls refreshed, and individuals restored to purpose.

I see a committed church, rebuilding ancient ruins—people who, like Nehemiah, say: “I’m doing a great work and I can’t come down.”

I see a church with a vision to inspire others to follow Jesus and restoring them to true identity, freedom, and purpose.

I see FREE Church.

Next steps for you:

• Join (or find out about starting) a Life Group

• Buy a T-shirt and make a significant splash in the city R130

• Invite everyone you know to church or Life Group

Jesus has SO MUCH MORE for you!

What we do on earth matters in Heaven, and Heaven is closer than you think.