V.I.P.s of the Church

Well, as I indicated, we are
in a transition. We have completed our study in
the book of Hebrews. I was terrifically invigorated
by that study, and we are praying for direction where The Lord
might have us to go in the meantime, but for the sake of our meeting
today I selected a passage that I’d like you to turn to and I’ll
just warn you ahead of time We’re gonna do a lot of flipping a
lot of flipping primarily in the Gospels But I’d like you
to turn to Luke chapter 22 Luke chapter 22 because today I want
to talk about the VIPs of the church and And I know what you’re
thinking, even as I say that, because it’s hard to even utter
the VIPs of the church. People might naturally think
of somebody bearing a title, whether it’s elder or pastor
or the deacons or some other title. It’s been curious to watch
kind of the development of titles in the church, how the church
is so often taken titles from the business world, CEO and what
have you. You might think And you’re right to almost bristle
at the notion that there are VIPs in the church. And yet,
as I would like to suggest to you, I believe that even Jesus
himself acknowledges that there are VIPs, very important persons,
in the church. But it’s not what we think. It’s
not the most important family in the church, the biggest givers
of the church. It’s not the ones with the most
family members as part of a church. It’s not the ones that bear a
title. We’ll find out who they are momentarily. But the bottom line is the VIPs
in the church are servants. They’re servants. And there are
a lot of obstacles to being a servant in the church. And that is something that Jesus
himself sought to remedy, to take away the obstacles that
are there prohibiting and preventing someone from serving in the church. The biggest obstacle to being
a servant in the church is not a lack of time. Everyone has
been given a measure of time. Everyone has the same amount
of time, God-given opportunity to serve their brothers and sisters
in Christ in the church. The obstacle to becoming a servant
in the church is not a lack of time. Nor is it a lack of training. Some people might think that
until they go to seminary, until they bear some degree, until
they’ve at least had some developmental training, instruction in the
ministry of the church, that they are absolved from serving. That’s not the case. The biggest obstacle to becoming
a servant in the church is not a lack of training, nor is it
a lack of opportunity. I’ve actually heard people say,
there just isn’t anything for me to do. I can’t find anything
to do in the church. And we know that that’s not true.
If you were to come to me on any day, I could give you a dozen
things that need to be done in and around the church. And so
the biggest obstacle to becoming a servant in the church is not
a lack of opportunity, nor is it a lack of knowledge.
I’ll point this out later in the morning. But some people
actually have the ability to see a need and to ignore it. A lack of knowledge, knowing
what to do, knowing what needs to be done is not the biggest
problem. That’s not the biggest obstacle.
Nor is it a lack of needs. They look about and they say
that nobody really needs my help. Those things are not the biggest
obstacle to serving in the church. A lack of training, a lack of
opportunity, a lack of knowledge, a lack of need. Some people even make the excuse
that I would help if I only had some
help. That I can’t serve alone. That’s not the biggest obstacle.
It’s not the biggest obstacle to being a servant in the church.
Nor is the biggest obstacle a lack of authority. It’s not my job.
I don’t have the title. I’m not a deacon. I’m not the
leader of that particular ministry. That is not the biggest obstacle
to becoming a servant in the church. Nor, and this one is so frequent,
nor is it a matter of not having been asked. Nobody asked me. I would have helped. I was there.
I was available. Nobody asked. Those aren’t the biggest obstacles
to becoming a servant in the church, training and need and
help and authority. The biggest obstacle to becoming
a servant of others in the church is pride. It’s pride. Thomas Reid, Puritan in his book,
The Christian Experience, said, the leaven of pride is not wholly
eradicated, even in the bosom of the most humble Christian.
There are seasons when it works with painful violence and then
the darkness of our minds and the deadness of our hearts indicate
that the Holy Spirit is grieved and that Satan has gained advantage
over us. Spiritual pride is a subtle evil. It slides into our prayers and
entwines itself about our praise. It spoils our best duties and
creates that fondness for human approbation, which puffs up the
heart and steals it away from God. The biggest obstacle to
serving in the church is pride. And on a solemn occasion. When
this should have been the last thing that Jesus had to address
among his most ardent supporters. His apostles. We find Christ
and his apostles in the upper room. You know what they’re there
for. They’re there to enjoy the last
supper, complete with the institution of the Lord’s table and Jesus
himself ultimately taking the occasion to wash his disciples
dirty feet. In the midst of that, there is
the prediction and ultimately the identification of the betrayer,
Judas himself. And so a more solemn and sacred
moment we can hardly conceive. Jesus is preparing for the cross. His friends, his dearest friends
are with him. But it’s a setting that as Luke
captures it, he presents it in gripping detail. Luke chapter
22. And if you would, verses 24 through
27. And there arose also a dispute
among them as to which one of them was regarded to be the greatest. And he said to them, the kings
of the Gentiles lorded over them, and those who have authority
over them are called benefactors. But it is not this way with you.
But the one who is greatest among you must become like the youngest
and the leader like the servant. For who is greater, the one who
reclines at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines
at the table? But I am among you as the one
who serves. Jesus is talking there about
greatness in the church. He’s talking about the VIPs of
the church. He’s talking about those who,
as observed by others, not the least of which is God himself,
are truly the greatest in the church. And I know that those
words may even still sound absurd in your ears. Pray that by the
time we get to the end today, that you would at least be able
to acknowledge that indeed there is such a thing as a VIP in the
church. There are those who in the church
are held to be the greatest because Jesus Christ himself said so. Look back, if you would, at verse
24, where we just want to get our bearings on the cause of
this dispute. Look at verse 24 once again.
There arose also a dispute among them as to which one of them
was regarded as the greatest. Now, this is not the first time
that this ugly subject has raised its head. When Luke records here
that there also arose a dispute, it really is a bit of an understatement. This was an ongoing thing with
the apostles. This is a subject that had come
up again and again in his ministry, the argument really just constantly
smoldered under the surface of the social network of the apostles. I would suggest to you that it
was constant bickering among them as to who was the greatest. I told you we were going to move
around a lot today. Keep your finger there in Luke
22 and flip over to the Gospel of Mark. Now, all three of the
synoptic writers record this particular passage, which means
that it was poignant to them. It was a significant moment. But I want to take Mark’s occasion
and from time to time, I’ll intersperse thoughts from both of the other
writers, Mark and Luke. And I would begin by doing so
because Luke says that an argument started among them as they were
traveling as to which of them might be the greatest. I mean,
do we note the sordidness of this ugly argument? Probably
elbowing each other on the way as they walked down the path,
right? Matthew records. that they actually verbalize
this to Jesus. Who then is the greatest in the
kingdom of heaven? But Mark’s account brings us
right in, right into the discussion itself. Look at verse 33. Mark chapter 9, verse 33, they
came to Capernaum. And when he was in the house,
he began to question them, what were you discussing on the way? This almost strikes me for those
of you who remember Columbo. He would ask a question that
he already knew the answer to and absolutely Jesus knew the
answer to the question. It’s not like Jesus was having
to be informed. Jesus knew exactly what they
were engaged in. He knew exactly what the discussion
was as we’ll see as this unfolds. What were you discussing along
the way? But note the hypocrisy. Here
they were in the background, needling each other on the road
as they walked. And yet suddenly when asked about
it, look at verse 34, they kept silent. And perhaps, you know,
like we would do, they rolled their eyes in the direction of
their buddy who actually broached the subject. They kept silent for on the way
they had discussed with one another which one was the greatest. Matthew
and Luke have already told us this. Mark so naturally drops
it in. In Luke’s gospel, he adds another
little note here. But Jesus, knowing what they
were thinking in their heart, he didn’t have to ask. He didn’t
have to be informed. There was no openness to be added
to in Jesus heart and mind. He knew. He knew their hearts,
he knew the wickedness that was prevalent among them. Look at
verse 35. Where Jesus begins to instruct
these his closest friends. Sitting down, he called the twelve
and said to them, if anyone wants to be first, he should be last
of all and servant of all. Taking a child, he set him before
them, and taking him in his arms, he said to them, Whoever receives
one child like this in my name receives me. And whoever receives
me does not receive me, but him who sent me.” And so Jesus takes
occasion on this really uncomfortable topic. where his own friends are jockeying
for position only hours now before his arrest, days before his resurrection
to glory, and they want to know who’s going to be in charge.
They’re jockeying for position. William Ames has a description of pride that
really paints the picture of these men on this occasion. William Ames said, pride is an
inordinate affection for one’s own excellence. We see ourselves
in the most beautiful light. We see our giftedness. We see
how God could and should use us. Pride is an inordinate affection
for one’s own excellence. This affection for one’s own
excellence is called boasting when it’s directed toward the
good things we have. Directed toward the things which
we pretend to have, it’s called arrogance. It seeks fame and
esteem of others, it’s called vainglory. If it’s concerned
for dignity, it’s called ambition. If it undertakes matters beyond
our strength, it’s called presumption. Well, the apostles on this occasion
could account for almost every one of those. It wasn’t theirs
to take. And so this wasn’t the first
time that this subject had come up. So back, if you would, to Luke
chapter 22. And back to verse 24. There arose
also a dispute. The flavor of this word dispute
indicates a preparedness, even an eagerness to verbally contend
with someone, to argue or to bicker or to dispute. And as
I said, not only did this occur much earlier, I believe this
was an ongoing dispute. But why did this argument come
up now? Some suggest that this dispute
came about because the apostles, as I suggested, were jockeying
position as they sat down at the Passover table. Maybe they didn’t get the right
seat. or somebody forgot to pass one of the elements to them,
they felt slighted. Think of how morbid an idea this
is, that Jesus Christ, their savior and friend, is just hours
now from going to the cross, and here the best thing that
these men can think of to do is to bicker about personal privilege
and honors. Some even believe that this argument
could have been precipitated by the discussion about who was
the traitor. That would really get things
stirred up, wouldn’t it? It’s possible, but that would
be a difficult segue here. Still another explains that the
cause simmered just below the surface constantly. And we see
that. And that sounds most plausible.
In other words, the dispute, the one that we just read about
in Mark’s gospel, recorded actually in all three of the synoptic
gospels, actually occurs in the context just following the Mount
of Transfiguration. I mean, can you imagine this
transition? They had just come down, three
of them, from the Mount of Transfiguration. And on this occasion, maybe it
was even the three of them that prompted the discussion. Well,
we got to go to the top of the mountain. You didn’t. Well, it’s hard to even imagine
such a thing, isn’t it? and now in the midst of the upper
room, in the midst of supper, foot washing and all, they’re
jockeying for position. It’s unthinkable. These men, hand chosen, out of
the same stock as you and I, no better, no worse, they were
thirsty with ambition and often loosening the grip on their relationship
with the Lord in order to grasp at some earthly or material desire. It’s just sickening. As James would tell it, what
is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? The pleasures
waging war in their members. And given the greater context
the Lord’s procession to the cross, the final dinner, solemn
occasion with the Savior, the incomparable example of having
Him wash their feet, made this bickering all the more tasteless
and altogether inappropriate. When this subject came up the
first time, when the thoughts spilled over into a brief discussion,
which Jesus seemed to open and shut, That discussion was perceived
by the Lord and immediately addressed. Here the discussion is resumed
with much more acrimony. Look at it again, verse 24, there
arose a dispute among them. This was their fight. This was
their argument. Jesus didn’t suggest it. He certainly
didn’t endorse such dialogue. The greater people, the greater
measure of the disciples didn’t suggest it. Boy, we’ve got to
find a leader because Jesus is leaving. The people didn’t propose
such unseemly thoughts. This was their internal affair
among the apostles. And it was generated by and limited
to the 12. We’ve always been extremely hard
on Judas, and rightly so. But this sinful skirmish involves
far more than just Judas. This verbal battle occurred among
a significant number of the apostles, if not the entire group. the very closest followers of
Jesus himself. Look at it again. There arose
a dispute among them as to which one of them was regarded the
greatest. Do we notice this? Look down
at it. There isn’t even a question about
whether one of them might be fitted for the highest honor. The only question was who? How elitist to think that greatness
was in any sense limited to that little band of 12 followers and
never crossed their mind that there might be someone out of
their tiny little circle who could approach true greatness.
The greatness that surpassed even their own. glance at the sentence again,
there arose a dispute among them as to which one of them was regarded
the greatest. He wasn’t truly and objectively
better than everyone else, but he was considered so. The sentence
almost gets uglier by the word, doesn’t it? This was a subjective
greatness, nothing more. This wasn’t an objective, observable
greatness, a greatness that everyone would see and recognize, but merely one that was regarded
as such. In whose eyes? Was it merely
in the fellowship of the apostles that one would be regarded as
greater than others? Would it be the larger body of
the soon to be fledgling church that looked and said, oh, there
is our leader, without a doubt? Or are they actually suggesting
that one person could arrive at such a standing that God himself
would see him as supreme? It’s an ugly thought. There arose
a dispute among them as to which one was regarded to be the greatest. What they wondered, essentially,
was who was going to be the pope-like figure? Who was going to lead
this thing once Jesus had gone? It was an entirely crass and
rude line of thinking, let alone the gall to actually discuss
it. It’s not so much that others
were entirely unimportant, but that there certainly must be
one to qualify as president, the leader, the CEO of this operation. That’s how they thought. The problem was, if there were
no clear-cut, unanimous favorite, there were going to be multiple
someones who desired such an office. There was going to be
a battle. We better get busy. Perhaps some
politicking, perhaps some dirty tricks, some kind of mischaracterization
of this other candidate prior to the election. Well, we saw
already that this was not the first time that Jesus’ closest
followers had stumbled into this faulty and self-centered debate,
nor was this episode the only other occasion. The sad reality
was that this was a recurring argument among the apostles,
and an even sadder reality is that this bickering dissension
was not, is not isolated to the 12 apostles. It’s in you and
I as well. J.C. Ryle writing about this
indicts every single one of us when he says this. The sin before
us is a very old one. Ambition, self-esteem, self-conceit
lie deep at the bottom of all men’s hearts and often at the
hearts where they are least suspected. Thousands fancy that they are
humble who cannot bear to see an equal honored more favorably
than themselves. Few indeed can be found who rejoice
heartily in a neighbor’s promotion. The quantity of envy and jealousy
in the world is a glaring proof of the prevalence of pride. Men
would not envy a brother’s advancement if they had not a secret thought
that their own merit was greater than his. Check your hearts. Pride is there. And it was this sin precisely
that was in Paul’s mind when he exhorted the Philippians.
The Philippians, sweet, joyful, Generous Philippians. Paul says, do nothing. Philippians
2, 3, do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit. But with humility
of mind, regard one another as more important than yourselves.
Why would Paul have to say this to the sweet Philippian church? Unless they too were infected
with the same malady of pride common to us all. Well, that’s the reason for the dispute,
the reason they were bickering. Look at the nature of this argument,
verse 25, where Jesus begins to move towards
an answer. He said to them, the kings of
the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who have authority
over them are called benefactors. Now, I told you that this whole
line of thinking, remember we’ve seen it, is a recurring theme
with Jesus and his friends. We’ve looked at two such incidents
already. But Jesus was constantly on the
watch to teach, to take opportunity, to instruct his disciples’ hearts. And these words here in Luke
are really an echo of something that Jesus said on an earlier
occasion. Once again, if you would please
turn to Matthew chapter 20. Matthew chapter 20. This occasion is indirect teaching. The others were direct. They
were in response to what the apostles were saying or doing.
They were direct opportunities for Jesus to correct them. This
one is indirect. This one, this one is even more
shocking. Then the mother, pardon me, chapter
20, verse 20 of Matthew, then the mother of the sons of Zebedee
came to Jesus with her sons, bowing down and making request
of him. Mothers, they have such good
intentions. And he, that is Jesus, said to
her, what do you wish? She said to him, command that
in your kingdom these two sons of mine may sit, one on your
right and one on your left. Here we go again. But Jesus answered, you do not
know what you’re asking. Are you able to drink the cup
that I’m about to drink? And the boys answered. They were
ready. They said to him, we are able. He said to them, my cup you shall
drink. But to sit on my right and my
left, this is not mine to give. But it is for those who have
been prepared by my father. And hearing this, the 10 became
indignant with the two brothers. But Jesus called to them and
said, you know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over
them. And their great men exercise
authority over them. It is not this way among you.
But whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your
servant and whoever wishes to be first among you should be
your slave. Just as the son of man did not come to be served,
but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. That’s the foundation of what
Jesus says in Luke 22. Would you go back there, please?
Let’s look at these two phrases very briefly. The kings of the
Gentiles lord it over them. OK, so what is Jesus referring
to here? It’s the pride in the arrogance
that is so often associated with leadership. They tend to lord
it over those who believe they believe are beneath them. They
don’t miss an opportunity, whether through power or pomp. to make
others feel every bit inferior to what they believe is their
inherent inborn greatness. They tend to puff up and strut
and dominate. This sinful attitude of heart,
which inevitably rises to the surface in arrogant deeds, is
at its core unchristian. We shouldn’t even label such
behavior as leadership. And so this ungodly rulership
is usually accomplished by intimidation and manipulation. Peter says
it has no place in the church. First Peter five, three, nor
yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but
proving to be examples to the flock. Of course, pastors and
elders are authorities in the church, as we’ve only recently
been reminded. Remember Hebrews 13, 17? But these leaders are not to
be brutes. They’re not to be arrogant or
harsh or heavy-handed. They’re not to be tyrants. The
word carries the significance, as one characterized it, of any
kind of autocratic, oppressive, intimidating leadership. The
Bible often speaks of such arrogance, men like deatrophies who loves
to be first among them. They only want their own way
and they will not relent until they get it. Look at the sentence
again, the kings of the Gentiles lorded over them and those who
have authority over them are called benefactors. This word literally means doers
of good. These are do-gooders. But please
don’t miss this. This title, benefactors, is not
spoken of here necessarily as an earned title of respect, as
if everyone who knew them knew them to be so magnanimous and
generous benefactors in that sense. Godless rulers often inscribed
this title, referring, of course, to themselves as doers of good,
along with their image on the coins of the nation. Do we see the arrogance of such
conduct that they wanted everyone else to look up to them in gratitude
for rendering their grand service of leadership and benevolence?
One historian noted the arrogance of such rulers who looked for
fame and honor, and if they didn’t get it, they extorted it forcibly. And it’s no different than today,
is it? Where the most powerful one is
often seen as benevolent dictator, a benefactor. One who literally
returns a portion of the people’s money and really believes that
he’s doing good. It’s not his to begin with. He
acquired it through the harsh taxation of the common people. Jesus says to his apostles, look,
you’re acting like worldly leaders. That ought not be so. And so he provides for us three
quick correctives. They’re all right there in verse
26. It is not this way with you, but the one who is the greatest
among you, you must be like the youngest and the leader like
the servant. You want to be a VIP in the church?
It is possible. Jesus said there are greatest
in the church, and he gives to us three indispensable features
of a Christian who would be great. Do you want to be great? It’s
not a sin to desire that. Look at verse 26, it is not this
way with you. Christians are supposed to be
different. They’re not supposed to be like those petty, greedy
tyrants. Their lives reflect the great
transformation that has begun in them by God himself. And because
of this, Christian greatness is not recognized in power wielded
over others. Real greatness, as God defines
it, is not the great exercise of authoritarian power over people,
but rather humble and selfless service to others in need. True leadership is not about
privileges, but responsibilities and the care and assistance of
our brothers. The one who genuinely does good is the true benefactor
He is a humble Christian brother who loves and serves others. Jesus said, can’t be this way
with you. You can’t be like those earthly
rulers. One Puritan put it this way.
Usefulness in the world and in the church requires a humble
readiness to do anything and to put our hands to any work
A cheerful willingness to fill any post, however lowly, and
discharge any office, however unpleasant. If we can only promote
happiness and holiness on Earth, these are the true tests of Christian
greatness. The hero in Christ’s army is
not the man who has rank and title and dignity and chariots
and horsemen and 50 men to run before him. It is the man who
looks not on his own things, but on the things of others.
It is the man who is kind to all, tender to all, thoughtful
to all. And with a hand to help all,
and a heart to feel for all. If we would be great, we must
be unpretentious. We must be unpretentious. That’s
the first thing that Jesus says. But there are three indispensable
features for a Christian who would be great. We must be unpretentious
and we must be humble. Look again at verse 26. It’s
a simple sentence. It is not this way with you,
but the one who is the greatest among you must become like the
youngest. In Luke’s treatment of the same passage
that we looked at in Mark 9. Luke 9 says that Jesus,
knowing that they were thinking in their heart, took a child and stood him by his side. Jesus
calls his troubled but beloved apostles to himself for an intimate
meeting, a tender, poignant, powerful moment. And I believe that these men
could now look back on that scene recorded for us there in Luke
nine, and it would immediately brought to mind, oh, this lesson
again. They would well remember that
Jesus had taken a child, a little boy, cradled him in his arms
as a living illustration of that to which he would call them. Jesus teaching on the precious
value of children, Christ took. And promoted the value of child
likeness. The innocence and trustfulness
of children, the privileged ministry to children as he would implore
them on another occasion. Let the children alone. Do not
hinder them from coming to me. He speaks later of the receptiveness
of childlike faith. Luke 10, 21. I praise you, O
Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things
from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. In Luke 17, he spoke of the severe
warning of harming a child. It would be better for him if
a millstone were hung around his neck. Jesus wasn’t saying here that
all children as such are somehow without sin. We all know that
to be untrue. What Jesus is pointing to is
the sweet innocence, the dependent trustfulness of a little one. We can observe their tenderness
and affectionate-ness. We can learn from this and emulate
this, Jesus says. These childlike attitudes, this
childlike demeanor, they are to be cultivated even by mature
believers. In fact, mature believers will
manifest these things. As we saw in that same post-transfiguration
skirmish as Matthew recorded it, he provides some statements
that the other writers omit. Listen to this. In Matthew 18,
verse 3, he says, Converted? Well, that’s the language of
salvation. And unless there is a distinctively
childlike character about our spiritual lives, conversion is
doubtful. Selfish ambition, the harsh treatment
of others in order to get our way is not the mark of a genuine
believer. These sinful attitudes and behaviors
must be repented of. Grace must be applied. The spirit
himself must so work in our hearts that we begin to manifest childlike
gentleness. Or the beautiful little characterization
that one shepherd provided, the favorable qualities of simplicity,
frankness, obedience, unpretentiousness, humility, trustfulness. These are Christ’s words. Unless
you are converted and become like children, you will not enter
the kingdom of heaven. He’s not urging us to become
childish. Part of God’s desired development
of children is to train the childish thinking and behavior, temper
tantrums, selfishness, and rudeness. The goal is to train those things
out of the child. Now what Jesus is urging here
is we can not only observe some beneficial traits in children,
those traits should be emulated as well. Humble. and gentle trustfulness in an
absolute dependence on God himself. I told you there were three indispensable
features of a Christian who would be great. To be a VIP in the
church, we must be unpretentious, we must be humble. We must be
servant minded. Look again at verse 26. It’s
all there. It is not this way with you,
but the one who is greatest among you must become like the youngest
and the leader like the servant. For a Christian to become truly
great in the church, they must be a servant. They must serve
others, not themselves. And to do this, they must be
unpretentious and humble and servant minded. The word here,
incidentally, is the same word from which we get our word for
the office of deacon. The word just means servant. That’s what such men are in the
church. They are noble, humble, gracious
servants of Christ. Jesus Christ himself was the
suffering servant prophesied in Isaiah 53. He naturally extolled
the character quality of servanthood himself. On Mark’s account of
that distasteful scene we observed earlier, where the mother of
the sons of Zebedee came and proposed that very uncomfortable
demand, command that in your kingdom these two sons of mine
sit, one on your right and one on your left. While Mark records
a nearly identical episode, if it’s not the same exact occasion,
then this sordid request happened twice. Either way, Mark’s gospel attributes
the motive for this request, not to the overzealous mother,
but to James and John themselves. Turn and very briefly to Mark
chapter 10. Mark chapter 10. I forewarned
you we were going to flip around a lot. We’re almost done. Mark
chapter 10. Watch this. James and John, verse
35, James and John, the two sons of Zebedee came up to Jesus. saying, Teacher, we want you
to do for us whatever we ask of you. They were charismatics. I’m kidding. The bottom line here that I wanted
you to see that it was James and John, that was their heart
attitude. Their mom just filled the void. She just stepped in
the way and asked what they were thinking in their heart already.
Back if you would. to Luke 22, so Jesus had not
extolled servant-mindedness of himself merely. He hadn’t said
this just of himself, that even the Son of Man did not come to
be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for
many. That’s the conclusion of that section in the Gospel of
Mark, the very theme of that gospel. But Christ repeatedly
commands the development of servant mindedness of his disciples.
Matthew 20, verse 26. It is not this way among you,
but whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant. Matthew 23, the greatest among
you shall be your servant. Mark 9, if anyone wants to be
first, he must be last of all and servant of all. I remember
one of the first sermons I ever heard, I don’t remember who preached
it, only the sermon title. The poor guy, if this was truly
an original title, he should have copyrighted it because I
looked recently, it’s all over the internet and it’s attributed
to all kinds of different people. Anyway, the title was simple,
The Way Up Is Down. Isn’t that catchy? Maybe you’ve heard that title
before. It’s nothing new, really. The way of glorification, exaltation,
is selflessness and humility. That’s the basic thought of that
title. Whoever should get the credit for it. But whoever wants
to take credit for that creative little title is going to have
to wrangle for artistic license with Jesus himself. Because it’s
Jesus that gave us that principle again and again and again. Matthew
23, 12 confronting the arrogance of the Pharisees. Whoever exalts
himself shall be humbled. And whoever humbles himself shall
be exalted. Luke 14, 11, the conclusion of
the parable of the guests taking the seat of honor presumptuously.
Remember that parable? Everyone who exalts himself will
be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. Luke
18, 14, the conclusion of the parable of the Pharisee and the
publican. Remember that? I tell you that
this man went to his house justified rather than the other, for everyone
who exalts himself will be humbled. but he who humbles himself will
be exalted. James and Peter, obviously, sitting
at Jesus’ feet, learned this lesson well because they both
quote the same principle. James 4.10, 1 Peter 5.6. The whole equation is a conundrum,
a paradox. And whoever coined the phrase
said it well. The way up is down. Ambition,
the desire to be truly great, to please and honor the Lord
is not an evil desire. It’s the means. To achieve such,
one must humble himself or beginning begin to humble herself and be
willing to be lowly, be willing to serve above being served. A childlike heart of humility
will be seen and an eager desire to practically care for others,
not for pay necessarily or exclusively, and certainly not for acknowledgement. Although the church is not wrong
to provide either remuneration or recognition on occasion, true
servant-mindedness is that attitude of heart that selflessly puts
others’ needs and wants far ahead of their own. John Gill, Spurgeon’s
predecessors, put it this way. Pride and vanity shall be checked.
An ambitious view shall be frustrated. Instead of being first, he shall
be last. Instead of having superior reverence
and respect, he shall be debased, treated with neglect and contempt.
Instead of being the master of others, he will be the servant
of all. At the outset, I spoke of the
occasion of this eruption. What a sordid occasion. When
Jesus had just provided the most incredible example that really
has ever been provided. They’re in the upper room. They’re
in the midst of their meal. And as John records it, during
supper, The devil, having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot,
the son of Simon, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the father
had given all things into his hands and that he had come forth
from God and was going back to God, rose from supper, laid aside
his garments and taking a towel, he girded himself about. Then
he poured water into the basin and began to wash the disciples
feet. As we’ve noted before in our
consideration of that passage, service is by nature inconvenient. This was in the midst of the
Last Supper. And he knelt down on his knees
and washed his disciples’ feet. Are we above that? The other thing that we observe
from that passage is service is inclusive even of our enemies.
Do you realize that Judas is still there in the room? Judas
is still there at the table. Jesus washed Judas’ feet when
he had already sold out his savior. Service is responsible, or pardon
me, responsive to opportunities. Do you realize that these feet
would have been directly behind the head of their brother as
they all reclined around a table? They all would have been painfully
aware of the dirtiness of their brother’s feet, and yet not one
of them took the opportunity. Nobody offered to help Jesus.
Nobody offered to pitch in, grab a towel. And the most amazing thing of
all, no one reciprocated. Service is often a self-humbling
sacrifice. It’s not supposed to be reciprocal. It’s not often going to be reciprocal.
Jesus washed his disciples’ feet and sat down and not one of the
12 reciprocated. If we would be VIPs in the church,
if we would be truly great, As Christ defines greatness, we
must be unpretentious and humble and servant minded. Let’s humble
ourselves before him. Our merciful king, we pause in the quietness of
our hearts to examine not only our service,
but our idea of greatness. And Lord, we do pray for your
grace to be found faithful in this examination process, that
as you have shown us what true greatness is, we would examine
ourselves in light of that and see how we measure up. Lord God, grant us the grace
And we know that if we are not believers, if we still hold fast
to some pride, Lord, we cannot possibly be found
to be the greatest in the church. Bring us to repentance, bring
us to faith in Christ and infuse us with your grace that we might
serve our brothers. that it might one day be said
of us that we were really and truly great. We thank you, Lord. We ask your
blessing on our day. It’s in Jesus’ name that we pray.
Amen.