When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John.
- Mark 10:41

Jesus had twelve disciples. Two of them – James and John – asked for special positions in Jesus’ “cabinet” (as we saw on Monday). The other ten were furious. Why?

Maybe they were offended that James and John thought they deserved the positions of power. The ten could have thought that they or their friends were more deserving.

Maybe the ten were experiencing the frustration of “Why didn’t I think of that first?” They may have known they weren’t the most qualified (let’s be honest, none of the disciples had your typical sit-in-positions-of-power backgrounds), but they may have realized that there’s a special advantage that sometimes comes with being first to the door.

Maybe they were indignant because James and John broke some important cultural rule. Every community has unwritten rules about how you’re supposed to talk with a leader. Some, like ours, are fairly informal. Others are not. Maybe James and John’s request was the sort of thing that just wasn’t supposed to be done in their community.

Whatever the reason, the ten got super-grumpy when they heard about James and John’s request.

When do you find yourself feeling grumpy about the way other people talk to or about God? What do those feelings reveal to you about what’s going on in your heart and in your own relationship with God?