Christ the Servant and the Ransom
W.F. Adeney Matthew 20:28 Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered to, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. The immediate application of these words is to confirm the previous assertion of the nature of true greatness in the kingdom of heaven. But they are so intensely significant that they claim our attention on their own account. I. CHRIST THE SERVANT. This startling conjunction of titles is suggested even in the Old Testament, in the latter part of Isaiah. Jesus realizes the singular prophecy in deeper humility and self-denial. In the prophet the Messiah is the "Servant of the Lord." In the life of Jesus we see him as this, but also as the Servant of man. Consider the negative and Positive aspects of this wonderful fact. 1. Its negative aspect. Christ did not come to be ministered unto. He did not ask for a prince's courtly rights; he did not expect them. He came in lowly guise. Although a few obscure friends delighted to give him the means of support in their gratitude, the great world's ministry of honour was never his. 2. Its positive aspect. Jesus came to minister. Service was an object of his life, not an accident that came upon him with surprise. He speaks of his coming into the world as though this had been deliberately fixed and the service of man part of its great purpose. Here we see the humility, the unselfishness, the love, and the practical spirit of our Lord. In this ministry (1) he deserves our adoring gratitude; (2) he invites our trustful confidence, - for it is on our behalf; and (3) he is the example for our diligent imitation. II. CHRIST THE RANSOM. Here is a great thought flashing out of the darkness that broods over the cross. Previously, Jesus had spoken of his approaching death; now he suddenly reveals the purpose of it. It was more than a necessity resulting from faithful living, more than a martyrdom. It was the paying of a ransom. 1. The price paid. Jesus gave his life. He came for the express purpose of doing so. One object of his birth was that he might be able to die. It is to be observed that our attention is always directed more to the fact of Christ's death than to the pain he suffered - to his cross rather than to his Passion, though doubtless both were of value in the great redeeming work. "The wages of sin is death." Jesus tasted death forevery man. He gave all he could give - his very life blood. 2. The liberty effected. Men ransom from captivity. What was the captivity from which Christ brought liberty? Origen and other Fathers regarded it as bondage to Satan, and they thought the ransom was actually paid to the devil. This is a coarse way of regarding a great truth. The ransom could not have been paid to the devil, because Christ fought the prince of evil as a deadly foe; he did not bargain with the fiend.]But he came to deliver from the power of Satan, i.e. from sin, and that object involved his death. He died to save us from sin. We must not press the analogy of the ransom further. 3. The people freed. The ransom is for "many." It is a harsh, ungenerous criticism that would fix on the apparent limitation of the word "many" - many rather than all. There is no such antithesis here. The many saved are contrasted with the one Saviour. His life blood is so valuable a ransom that it purchases, not the liberation of one or two captives of sin only, but a large multitude - the host of the redeemed. - W.F.A. Parallel Verses KJV: Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. WEB: even as the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."