What’s in the Cup?
The message today is based on the portion of scripture found in Mark 10:32-45.
Jesus Predicts His Death a Third Time
32 They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again, he took the Twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him. 33 “We are going up to Jerusalem,” he said, “and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise.”
The Request of James and John
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.”
Prayer: God, as we look upon your Holy scripture, let your Spirit illuminate and bring life to the words that are read and spoken. May each ear be open to hear and each heart be ready to receive the message that you have prepared for Canton Assembly today. In Jesus’ name, amen.
The title of today’s message is, “What’s in the Cup?”. As we saw, James and John were asking Jesus for something very special, “Allow us to sit at Your right and Your left in Your glory.”
Before Jesus answered them directly, he asked them a question. “Are you able to drink the cup I drink or to be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?” Mark 10:38
In the account in Matthew He asks them, “Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” Matthew 20:22.
Today we are going to look in God’s word to gain a deeper understanding of what it takes and what it means to share the cup that Jesus is referring to. We are going to look at three different cups that represent the seasons in our lives in order to prepare ourselves to answer the question, “Can I drink the cup that Jesus drinks?”.
We are all on our own journey with the Lord. None of us have arrived yet, and it is only by His grace that we are able to spend eternity in Heaven. As believers what is our goal? If we don’t know the goal, we will not recognize it when we attain it.
Is it a moment in the presence? Is it a month of services that end with the altars full? Is it a year that ends with the church so on fire and full that’s it’s busting at the seams with people? I submit to you that although all of these experiences are moves of the Spirit, they are not the end of the journey.
God uses these powerful moments of intimacy with him to plant a seed. But the intention of that seed is to establish a covenant with His people that will sustain us through not only the mountaintop moments, but also the valleys. Seed that will result in daily living that will shine the light of Jesus into a world of darkness. It is the light of Jesus that changes hearts and saves the lost.
The Lord gave me the illustration of 3 cups to share with you today that represent where we are in our faith journey. The Solo Cup, the Dirty Cup and the Covenant Cup.
The Cup that we have all drank from at one time or another is what I call the Solo Cup!
1) Solo Cup
Toby Keith Song Lyrics:
Red solo cup I fill you up
Let's have a party let's have a party
I love you red solo cup I lift you up
Proceed to party proceed to party
Now I really love how your easy to stack
But I really hate how your easy to crack
Look at the characteristics of the Red Solo Cup. They are known for being disposable, cheap because they are of lower quality than glass. They crack easily. Their characteristic red color is great for concealing the drinking contents.
This reminds of me my life before Christ. There were nights when I thought that I was really having a great time! Just like that Toby Keith song. “Proceed to party”, but ultimately, the result of drinking from this cup left me feeling ashamed and empty. Even in the book of Hebrews 11:25, Paul acknowledged that sin was pleasurable, but fleeting.
Although I tried to convey a carefree lifestyle, deep down, I knew I was far from God. The cup I was drinking from was a life that was a cheap representation of what God had planned for me. My heart was dark and I didn’t want the contents exposed because they were ugly. Contents of shame, guilt, pride and bitterness.
In that condition, I couldn’t share in the cup of Jesus. I wasn’t prepared and I wasn’t worthy.
Praise God, He sent Jesus into the midst of my mess to set me free and bring me life!
Ephesians 2:1-5 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
If you find yourself in this stage of life today, I promise you that you will reach a point when the sin you are enjoying will no longer bring pleasure, but will bring pain. Today can be the day that you experience the full life that Jesus has for you, the life that invites you to share His cup.
2) The Dirty Cup
This cup is different from the Solo cup because when we are drinking from the Solo Cup, God isn’t even on our radar. This is a dangerous place to be but living a life with the Dirty Cup is every bit as dangerous, possibly even more so.
This cup refers to those believers who have received the gospel but are trying to manipulate it by looking godly on the outside while inwardly hanging onto the desires of the flesh.
Jesus’s warning : Seven Woes to the Teachers of the Law and the Pharisees, Matthew 23:25-26
25 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.”
Lk 11:39 Then the Lord said to him, “Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.
Jesus condemned the Pharisees and religious leaders for outwardly appearing upright and holy but inwardly remaining full of corruption and greed.
Sadly, there are those who bear the name Christian today whose lives are flowing from a dirty cup. If your life is flowing from an unrepentant heart, coated with hidden sin, then it will be impossible to fulfill the plans of God.
Living our Christianity merely as a show for others is like washing only the outside of the cup. When we are clean on the inside, our outside cleanliness won’t be a sham.
Those who are drinking from this cup will not share in the cup of Jesus.
Matthew 23:15 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are.”
Although Scripture is very clear about the eternal destination of those who are drinking from the dirty cup, like the Pharisees, God is still a just and fair God. If you have been living this lifestyle, thinking that you can drink from the cup that looks clean, but is filthy inside there is still a way to restore your relationship with God.
Look at Saul, who later became Paul. He was a Pharisee. Outwardly, he was held in high esteem, but inwardly, his heart was full of hatred and murder and he was destroying God’s people.
Acts 9:15-16 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”
The road to right relationship with God begins with repentance, transparency and a true understanding of what it means to drink from the cup.
3) The Cup of Covenant
Luke 22:20 at the last supper, In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
This cup represents communion and the shed blood of Jesus. It represents promise, victory, healing and redemption.
But it represents so much more than that!
This cup is reserved for those who are walking intimately with Jesus because it is only through knowing Jesus intimately that we can truly drink from His cup.
As we look at the cup of covenant that Jesus was referring to in His conversation with James and John, it is important that we pause to see the timing of their request to have seats of honor in glory.
Mark 10:32-34 32 They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again, he took the Twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him. 33 “We are going up to Jerusalem,” he said, “and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise.”
Jesus had just told them of what was to happen to Him. He was going to be condemned to death, mocked, flogged and killed, and three days later He would raise from the dead.
Immediately after this, they ask about having the best seats.
Sometimes, we can be so caught up in the mountaintop experience, that we conveniently overlook the valleys that are part of sharing in the Lord’s cup. We glaze over the warnings or words related to suffering and proclaim, “God, whatever it takes, do it!” without fully considering the implications of what we are asking.
There is nothing wrong with these proclamations. I believe that God is pleased when we make these statements with pure hearts.
However, we must be prepared to answer the question, “Are you able to drink the cup I am about to drink?”
Allow me to remind you what the cup looks like, found in Luke 22:42-44 “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” 43 An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. 44 And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.
Luke 9:62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
Luke 14:26-27 26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. 27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
So when Jesus asks, “Are you able to drink the cup I am about to drink?”, it’s not a question of judgment, as much as it is a question of preparation. It’s a question He asks of His true disciples. Because a true disciple has walked with Him, they have received the revelation of who He is. Those He offers to share in His cup are those that He not only loves (because we know that Jesus loves everyone), but those who have gone through the fire. They are not perfect, but they understand that the source of their power, faith and very existence comes from nothing but the blood of Jesus.
You see, God provides signs and wonders and miracles in order to testify of who He is. To increase faith. If you read the account of Jesus’ life found in John, you will see a pattern; Jesus performed miracles and people took notice, Jesus healed the sick and the crowd grew. Jesus told the woman at the well everything about her life and the whole town showed up to meet Him. But then, when the crowds grew very large, they began to ask questions that they didn’t like the answer to. They wanted signs, like when manna came from heaven in Moses’ day. But Jesus told them that He was the bread of life and that in order to have eternal life, they would eat of His flesh. People started getting uncomfortable and John 6:66 tells us that 66 From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.
67 “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve.
68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”
These are the disciples that Jesus allows to drink from His cup. They’ve experienced the mountaintops, the signs and wonders, along with the hard things and have not turned away.
To these disciples, when He asks, “Can you drink from the cup I drink from?” and they say “We can.”, He knows that they can. You and I can. His answer to us today is still, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with he baptism I am baptized with.”
Both James and John did suffer. We are told in Acts 2:2 that James died as a martyr and in Revelation 1:9 we learn that John was forced to live in exile. It is easy to say we will endure anything for Christ, but if we are honest with ourselves, we rarely can endure even a minor trial without complaining.
As we fully embrace the cup, with its suffering and victory, with its trials and redemptive power, then we are worthy to be called Christ’s disciples.
Out of this cup, the cup of the new covenant, flows our relationship and our very life’s purpose. It is from this cup that we are commissioned to go and make disciples of all nations with the guarantee that Jesus is always with us.
Matthew 28:19-20 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
So, as we close today, allow me to ask you again, “What’s in your cup?”
If your life’s purpose is flowing from the solo cup, it will crack from the pressure of life and not have a lasting effect for the Kingdom of God.
If your life’s purpose flows from the dirty cup, it will be tainted with the sins in your heart and will actually be more effective in leading people to hell, then heaven.
But, if it flows from the covenant cup of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, then you will see eternal fruit, not only from the mountaintop moments, but from your daily life and even through your suffering.
Your cup will not look like anyone else’s. Our cup is Heart Prague. Yours may be related to your marriage, your health, your workplace. Even though all our cups are different, in order to have a Kingdom impact they must all flow from the covenant cup of Jesus.
Today He is asking you to embrace the cup. Can you drink from the cup that Jesus drank from? The answer is between you and God today.
