Jesus came not to be served but to serve (Mark 10:45). A relationship, any relationship, based on serving another affects the power dynamic. Changing the relationship from “What is in it for me?” to “What is in it for us”?

There is a term called “holding space for people” (Plett, 2015). Have you heard of it? Holding space for another basically means offering unconditional support and letting go of judgement and control. Holding space for another means we are willing to come alongside another person in whatever journey they are on without judging them or making them feel inadequate, without trying to fix them or trying to impact the outcome. Holding space.

Jesus holds space for James and John. Jesus lets James and John, the sons of Zebedee, take the lead. Jesus does not take the command-and-control role of an army general and pander to their desire to simply do what they are told. And so, he asks of them: “What is it you want me to do for you?” (Mark 10:36). Holding space.

James and John take a huge risk, one that Jesus invites them to take. James and John become vulnerable to Jesus. Jesus wants them to be honest. And they are.

And when we take the risk of holding space for another, when we take the risk of being honest and vulnerable sometimes the answer to our questioning and its consequences do not make us feel good and may even create more problems, as it did for James and John. Now the other disciples are upset with them. So, Jesus takes a great risk with them. And with us.

Why does Jesus act this way? He is, after all, the Son of Man. Why, of all people, does he come to serve?

Because Jesus has faith in them. And Jesus has faith in us. Jesus perceives something far beneath the surface of our ego thrashing about that is holy and good.

The question is, will we accept Jesus’ answers to our questions? Will we accept the sometimes-difficult journey of growth and maturity, which includes making mistakes? And, will we trust Jesus who has more faith in us than we do in ourselves?

One thing Jesus will not do: Jesus will not pander to our childish cravings for immediate gratification. Jesus will not pander to our childish compulsions to be told. Rather, Jesus waits for us to take the risk, to declare what we want, to be open and honest and vulnerable with our deepest desires and secrets of the heart, to be willing to take that difficult first step on our journey of transformation to new life in Christ.

When you came in this morning, did you notice the two-story stone house on the corner just beside the parking lot to the church? This house used to belong to Faith Lutheran Church. It was the parsonage, where among other purposes, pastors and their families lived since the 1960s till 2004 when the church sold it to its current owners Anya and Mihailo. Last April, their house was designated a City of Ottawa Heritage Building.

Anya recently told me the story of the last pastor who lived in the parsonage with his family, Pastor Bill Riekert. Shortly before he died, he visited Anya and Mihailo after they had renovated most of the house.

When Pastor Riekert stood at the base of the staircase in their main room and looked up, he paused and surveyed all the original woodwork. And he said in awe: “Was all this here the whole time!?”

You see, until Anya and Mihailo renovated, what covered the floors, the walls and staircase railings was a whole lot of wall-to-wall carpet and paint. The paint and carpets covered up what lay underneath. He couldn’t believe the beauty of the original structure and woodwork of the floors, walls and staircase that had lain there hidden underneath since the house was built over a hundred years ago.

In the book of Hebrews, we read that “Every High Priest chosen from among mortals is put in charge of things pertaining to God on their behalf” (Hebrews 5:1). But, the writer goes on to say, “one does not presume to take this honour, but takes it only when called by God” (5:4). When we hold space for another, and indeed with God, we do not presume to be in charge. We do not presume to know it all, and what is best for the other as if we are the one to judge ultimately these questions.

Instead, we listen for God. We listen to each other. And in all humility we trust this: That someone else sees in you what you may not see in yourself. We trust that someone else can hone-in on something we have neglected to appreciate buried deep within us, even for a very long time, covered up by the trappings of ego. We trust that whatever needs to be uncovered and exposed—good and bad—is held in loving embrace by God in Jesus Christ who gave his life for us. Jesus holds space for us, to be who we are, openly and honestly, so we can hold space for another.

And Jesus waits. Waits for us to commit to this journey of growth which is long, sometimes tiresome, often difficult but will ultimately lead to new life and indescribable joy. That is the promise of faith in Jesus.

References:

Plett, H. (2015, March 11). What it means to ‘hold space’ for people, plus eight tips on how to do it well. Heather Plett. https://heatherplett.com/2015/03/hold-space/