James and John were not the only ones with a problem; the other disciples were angry with them because they too wanted a high position. Competition for status among peers was important in their culture (v. 24; see Derrett 1973:54; Malina 1993:133). But the world's models for status differ from those in God's kingdom; because honor ultimately belongs to God alone, we should humble ourselves and serve, allowing God to exalt us. Rank in the day of judgment (5:19) will confound many of our expectations (18:4; 23:11): it will expose the pride of many who are respected in today's church, while conversely, God's revelation of the lives of many humble and unknown servants of Christ will bring him much honor.

Jesus argues his point by means of both negative and positive example. Negatively, one should not be like the pagans (20:25; compare 5:47; 6:7; 18:17). Not only those in Jesus' day but all the tyrants and empires of history confirm his point: absolute power always corrupts precisely because the desire for power over others, to whatever extent we may achieve it, shows that we ourselves are slaves to self-centeredness.

Positively, Jesus himself was a suffering servant who laid down his life for us (compare Jn 13:13-15, 31-35). This is a typical Jewish "how much more" argument: if our Master was a servant, how much more should we humble ourselves! Matthew sees in this an allusion to the suffering servant of Isaiah (Mt 12:18), particularly in offering his "soul" or "life" as "a ransom" or redemption price on behalf of "many" ("the many"; Is 53:10-12; compare Mt 26:28; Rom 5:15; see Cullmann 1959:64-65; pace Hooker 1959:74-79).

The language here is that of substitutionary atonement (see especially Morris 1965:34; Gundry 1982:404; compare Ladd 1974b:187-88). As in Philippians 2:1-11, however, the Evangelists treat us to this summary of Jesus' mission not to rehearse the doctrine of salvation but to provide an active model for Christian living. To what extent would Jesus serve? Fulfilling the servant's mission, he would lay down his life on behalf of his people; of disciples he expects no less.