Have you ever made something from scratch—a cake, a meal, a table? There is something special about the words “I baked this cake from scratch,” “It’s a family recipe,” or “This is a hand-crafted solid-oak table.” You could have bought the cake from the store, ordered the same meal for delivery, or bought a table from a manufacturer. Still, you gave your time and effort to make it yourself.

    God made a savior from scratch. God could have popped into Jerusalem and declared, “Everyone is saved!” Or even had a full-grown man formed out of the dust ride into Jerusalem and get crucified. The gospels would be a lot shorter if this were how God worked. However, all those details about Jesus before the Holy Week accounts tell us something important about God and what He wants us to learn from Jesus.

    In Sunday’s gospel reading, you can almost see Jesus rolling his eyes at the disciples’ lack of understanding. James and John act like teenagers in a school cafeteria, trying to reserve the best seats next to the coolest kid.

    But Jesus tells them, “You do not know what you are asking.” Jesus shares with them the key to being his followers: it’s not about being first, coolest, or at the top of the hierarchy. It’s about serving.

    The cake is special because it was crafted carefully with love for someone special. The meal is delicious because it is cooked with a family recipe passed down from generation to generation through relationships. Jesus is who he is because he built relationships with the disciples and those he met. He sat with the woman at the well, held little children, and went fishing with his friends. Loving relationships led him to the cross to make salvation from scratch.

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