“God sent his own Son to buy humanity back from their slavery to the fears and shame of the world of thorns. Only a powerful man filled with authority could effectively model for other men the way to regain a relationship with God. Perhaps Jesus had to suffer a shameful death in order to convince that he really, really meant it when he said that Christians are not to “lord it over” people and that refusing to compete for honor and authority over others is not a shame but rather the heart of a redeemed life.”
Carrie Miles, “The Redemption of Love,” BrazosPress 2006