Northside Church - Sydney
Finding You In Community Week 3: Greatness 101
You're listening to another great message from Northside Community Church. We started a new series beginning of June. It's simply entitled finding community with a big 'you' meaning finding you in community. Where do you fit in? What's your role in this church? If you're part of this church family, how are you going to contribute? How are you contributing to the overall mission of this church? First week we looked at worship and the importance of being together regularly in worship, praising God and the solidarity that expresses the unity that expresses last week. We looked at doing life together, the importance of connection groups and being together in that setting for the strength and for support and for encouragement. Today it's the whole thing of service and not surprisingly with that reading from Mark chapter 9. So we're really asking the question, what does it take to be a really effective Northside member, finding your place, finding you in community, in the community of faith? Let us join together in prayer, shall we? Well Father God we thank you for the opportunity to have a fresh look at what it means to be part of the body of Christ here at Northside. What it means to find our place in this community so that we're playing our part in the ongoing mission of this church which is building the community, this community of faith in order to serve our community out there in the world. So Lord, in these remaining moments, thank you for the fact that you will be speaking to us. You will be guiding us and we thank you in anticipation for this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. You know friends it's passages like this, like this one from Mark chapter 9 which really strengthened my belief in the Bible as the inspired Word of God. Passages like this because any thought that the gospel writers got together, you know, in a secret room somewhere and decided to cook up a story that portrayed them as spiritual superheroes and made sure they had all the different parts of the story in place and all uniform. It's not like that. I mean here's where they've written stuff which is not actually puts them in a bad light, puts the disciples in a poor light, Mark has been prepared to record this and so these verses prove that these guys were writing about real events, events that happened even though they are shown, showing the disciples to be in a not so favorable light. When these guys were writing they had no idea that ultimately their words would become part of Holy Scripture inspired by the Holy Spirit, but they wrote down what they saw and what they felt. I mean this is an embarrassing moment for the disciples. It really is. This is one of those moments when people are sprung talking about something they shouldn't be talking about. In one of the other gospels they blame mum. This is mum's fault. Mum says, you know, Jesus can you work at that my sons sit one on your right, one on your left, you know, and that's what gets to the disciples into a big argument. But in Mark's Gospel it's the disciples themselves. They kind of leave mum out of it. But look how embarrassing this incident is. Here's the scene. Jesus and his disciples have been travelling toward Capernaum. They've arrived. Capernaum is a little town on the edge of Lake Galilee. And so Jesus wants to know what's been going on. I mean he knows, but it's a test. He was the all-knowing Jesus, but he asked the question, so guys what was happening back there? There's 33 and 34. This is how it goes. What were you arguing about on the road? There's Jesus' question. A modern-day equivalent would be a group of workers around the water cooler, you know, or in the lunchroom chatting in a fairly animated way, rubbishing the boss, carrying down the company and all of a sudden the boss rolls up. Have you been there sort of... If the boss is very embarrassing, the whole thing goes silent, you know, and you realise that maybe they were talking about you. Well, while that doesn't happen here, I was just wondering if you, as a boss, might know about it. Never happened to me. Not in this beautiful working environment. So, you know, silence just descends and here's what happens. They would not answer him because on the road they've been arguing about who was the greatest. Now, friends, I don't know about you, but it's almost unimaginable to me that these guys having been with Jesus now for a couple of years, having seen him in all sorts of settings, having worked with him, having walked with him, having seen him minister, having seen his humility, his gentleness, his self-effacing ways of responding to people, it just strikes me as amazing, having seen all that, that they would be arguing about power, position, prestige and influence after all they'd seen. This is embarrassing, very embarrassing, and they knew it. And so Jesus, who was perfectly within his right at that time to sort of give them a bit of a clip under the ear and really get stuck into them for missing the point, he chooses another pathway. He sits them down. And he makes a statement which would distinguish Christianity for all time from other world religions. And that statement comes in verse 35. Jesus sat down, called the twelve disciples and said to them, "Whoever wants to be first must place himself last of all and be the servant of all." Now, that's radical. That's really in its purest form. That's unique to Christianity. I mean, it's provocative. Now, that's controversial. It's against our natural wiring as people. I mean, we want to be served. We want to be at the front of a queue. We want to be first in line. That's how we are in our natural state. Why is that? Because we think that's where we'll feel the best. That's where we'll be the most fulfilled. That's where we'll be the most satisfied. That's the spot where we'll feel great. But look closely. Jesus is not dismissives of our desire to experience those elements of personal achievement and well-being. He just offers another way. He doesn't negate that that's how we feel. He just offers another way. I mean, he says, "Whoever wants to be first, he acknowledges that that's deep down what we want to be." But he then announces this radical off the wall way to achieve that. And he talks about being the servant of all. So now we've got something to work with right here. How in the world can being a servant prove to be or how can that provide us with a quality of life, a richness of life, a satisfaction level of life that literally makes me feel fulfilled? How can that be? I mean, that's what Jesus is saying. That's the question. What's so great about being a servant? That's the bottom line question. What's so great about being a servant? To put it simply, one of the advantages of being a humble servant, most people would say, "You know what? That doesn't sound very appealing to me. That does not sound very appealing." But Jesus says, "It's the key to greatness." So we've got to listen to him. We've got to take, we've got to unpack this a little bit because Jesus has said it. Let's do so in the, particularly in the context of the body of Christ. Let's share a few insights. Firstly, servanthood is more than being on a roster. Praise God for those of you who are on rosters, who serve so beautifully, so faithfully every Sunday and many of you during the week, we need you. In fact, I've got to tell you, we need more of you. We really do. We need more people right now with these two services, particularly, ready to step into positions of serving. The need is quite desperate. But Jesus is talking about more than just serving on a roster. You see, he's saying that servanthood is an attitude of heart and mind born out of a deep sense of love and gratitude. Servanthood is not so much about what we do. It's about who we are. It's not about weakness. It's about strength. It's not about being walked over. It's about walking tall. That's servanthood. In the Church of Jesus Christ, we talk about people with a servant heart. And if you've been around the churches for long enough, you meet lots of people with a servant heart. Let's stack some of them here at Northside. And over the years, I've made some observations about people who have a servant heart. And I want to share some of those with you now. Generally speaking with some exceptions, I've found that people with a servant heart are generally the most contented in the Church. They are the least likely to be difficult and obstinate. I mean, I haven't met any of those here at Northside anyway, but in other churches out there, they're the ones who seem confident, self-assured. These servant heart people rarely exhibit signs of social desperation as though they're needing to be needed and that's why they're serving. So people take notice. That happens occasionally, but not too often. People are always trying to please others. That does happen occasionally. In fact, more often than not, these servant heart people are people who enjoy a high level of popularity just because of who they are. People draw inspiration from them and from their example. And more often than not, they are leaders in other spheres apart from the Church. They're also leaders within other areas of the community, maybe even in business and so on. But they've got a servant heart. And so it seems from my observations, the words of Jesus are absolutely true. If you desire to be great, you must be the servant of all. Now, of course, it's not a matter of setting out to be great by becoming a servant. It's rather a matter of being a person of service, of care, of compassion, of integrity, and in that process you become great. I must understand what comes first. So friends, you see, when we have a servant heart, every area of our life potentially is affected. Every area, if you've got a servant heart, because a servant heart is a giving heart. A servant heart is always looking for ways to provide a win-win. A servant heart tries to put itself in the place, in the shoes of somebody else. And so in the spirit of God implants a servant heart in my life and in your life, it can affect every area of life. It can affect how we treat our spouse. That's the first thing. It can affect how you treat your children and your grandchildren. It can affect how you respond to challenges. It can have an effect on your level of confidence in life. It can even affect how you drive. If it's something you need to take notice of, if you've got a servant heart, it can affect the way you drive. Why? Because by the grace of God, when we develop a servant heart, it's no longer all about us. We start to become acutely aware of other people, their needs, why they might be acting in the way they're acting. We become aware of their preferences, their desires, and we take these more seriously than ever. And look on the surface, it sounds really hard. And look in many senses it is. This requires a regenerative work of the Holy Spirit to really come through in its purest form. It's not easy. It sounds alien to our natural inclination. And it is. It even sounds a bit weak, a bit demeaning. But according to Jesus and born out of my real life experience, and that of many of you, it really is the key to greatness. And that's what Jesus said. Now, there's something interesting. There's something, I don't know if you picked it. There's something very interesting about this passage. It's a little puzzling, actually. Right in the midst of talking about the irrefutable link between servanthood and greatness, Jesus, it seems like for a moment he's almost distracted. He sees a little boy, and he calls a little boy in. And here in verses, it's in verses 30, 35 or 36 and 37. Listen to this, many took a child and made him stand in front of them. He put his arms around him, and he said to them, "Whoever welcomes in my name, one of these children welcomes me." Serves me. And whoever welcomes me, serves me, welcomes not only me, but also the one who sent me. Now, it's a little bit out of context. I think, well, what does this kid got to do with it? What does a child have to do with greatness and with servanthood? What's the link? Friends, I've had a chance to think about this, and I think there is a link. Here it is. Jesus placed a child before them, because children provide a powerful example of what it means to serve with selfless abandon. Not children themselves, by the way, but those who care for children. Now, I'm talking to parents. Is there something every parent should be able to identify with if you're from a healthy family? Let me qualify that. If you're from a healthy and balanced family, and if you really love your kids, you've got to qualify that. Would you not agree, if you're from that sort of background, if that's who you are, would you not agree that parenting is in a very real sense all about serving? Like, it's all about serving. I mean, when they're babies, you're serving as their round-the-clock 24-hour carer. Oh, you might give them to other people for a little while, but if there's a problem, you get the call. It's your responsibility. You're serving as the 24-hour carer. When they're toddlers, you're serving as their full-time guide and protector. He's watching after them. They've got others, of course, but you are the main one who looks out. And when they're young children, you're serving as their teacher, teaching them the road rules. What happens if you put your hand on the stove, all that sort of thing? You're an encourager. You're serving as a supporter. And then, of course, during the adolescent years, service takes on many forms, usually in terms of finance, handing out money, certainly in terms of transport, driving them everywhere. You're serving in the area of advocacy. Yes. That was my son. I'm sorry. You know what? You're serving as emotional support, conflict resolution, and you're using it right in the center of the conflict, but that's part of your service. And then, of course, just when you think the need to be a servant is over and off your hands, that's when some of your best work as a servant starts to take place. You find yourself serving as a confidant, as a financial advisor, as a marriage counselor, as an accommodation provider, short-term or long-term, your place, usually. So this is what Jesus is saying. Look, servanthood, having a servant heart is one way, one way of looking at the role of parenting. It's one way of explaining it. And the short-term rewards are very few. Whereas the list of responsibilities and tasks is massive. Why do we do it? Why do we do it? Because we love those kids with whom we've been entrusted. We're so grateful to God for the gift of these little lives who've been given to us. So Jesus seems to be saying, "Within the Kingdom of God, there are parallels between the selfless devotion of a parent toward their child and the devotion of a believer toward the church, toward other people, and ultimately toward the world itself." It's an attitude. It's a decision. It's a result of a heart that's been touched by the Holy Spirit. This is some of the... where the Spirit does some of His best regenerative work because it's so alien to how we're naturally-wide. Friends, look, I don't know. All I know is this. There is no greater privilege or pleasure than to serve than to serve, really serve, in the cause of Jesus Christ. And in a church like Northside, we see evidence of servant heart all the time. The question arises, are you actively involved in service? Or will you still regard yourself as kind of like sitting on the sideline just observing? Can I as lovingly as I can urge you to get into the service mode, to put on the mantle of the servant. Some of the roles may seem quite menial and mundane, but every task undertaken contributes to our overall effectiveness. Talk to us, fill out a card. Let's have... let's get some conversation happening. Our ultimate example, of course, in servanthood is Jesus Christ himself. There is no other that even comes close. And when describing our Lord's amazing gift of love, in dying for our sins on the cross, Paul says in Philippians chapter two, look out for one another's interests, not just for your own. The attitude you should have, there it is. The attitude you should have is the one Christ Jesus had. And then he goes on to talk about his sacrifice, his humility and his servanthood. If you've got a servant heart, so many of you have, praise God for that, it's making you into the kind of person he intends you to be. If you're yet to develop a servant heart, can I urge you to pray into this? Because there's nothing more liberating than to put it all on the line for Jesus Christ and to get involved in serving, it'll build you into the greatness that he intends for you. He said it, if you want to be great, if you want to be fulfilled, if you want to make an impact, and we all want to make an impact, don't we? If you want to really make your mark in the world, see things in a different perspective, be a servant. Don't be trampled on, don't be walked over, it's got nothing to do with that. It's all about strength, it's all about knowing how to manage those situations, but it's all about having an inclination to serve right there deep within your heart and soul.