Being God's Servant
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· 113 viewsTo help believers to understand what Jesus taught His disciples about the meaning of being the greatest in God’s kingdom by being God’s servant.
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BEING GOD’S SERVANT
BEING GOD’S SERVANT
MATTHEW 20-24-28
25 But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them. 26 “It is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, 27 and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave; 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
AIM
To help believers to understand what Jesus taught His disciples about the meaning of being the greatest in God’s kingdom by being God’s servant.
INTRODUCTION
Let’s take a few moments to set the stage for today’s message. First of all, Mark records the story a little differently than Matthew. Mark never mentions the mother of James and John with this story.
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.” 36 And He said to them, “What do you want Me to do for you?” 37 They said to Him, “Grant that we may sit, one on Your right and one on Your left, in Your glory.”
Mark 10:
Matthew teaches us the mother of James and John was the one who approached Jesus with the question about hers sons.
20 Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to Jesus with her sons, bowing down and making a request of Him. 21 And He 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.” 22 But Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They said to Him, “We are able.” 23 He said to them, “My cup you shall drink; but to sit on My right and on My left, this is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by My Father.” 24 And hearing this, the ten became indignant with the two brothers.
Matthew 20:20-24
Perhaps the disciples were reacting to some previous words spoken by the Lord Jesus which are recorded in the nineteenth chapter of Matthew. They may have taken very seriously what Jesus said about the disciples sitting “upon twelve thrones.
James was the first disciple to drink from the martyr’s cup.
2 And he had James the brother of John put to death with a sword.
Acts
20 Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to Jesus with her sons, bowing down and making a request of Him. 21 And He 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.” 22 But Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They said to Him, “We are able.” 23 He said to them, “My cup you shall drink; but to sit on My right and on My left, this is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by My Father.” 24 And hearing this, the ten became indignant with the two brothers.
28 And Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
The thinking of James, John and Salome created some problems, but it gave Jesus a wonderful opportunity to teach them and all of us how true greatness comes from being God’s servant.
THE MISUNDERSTANDING IN BEING GOD’S SERVANT
24 And hearing this, the ten became indignant with the two brothers. 25 But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them.
Warren Wiersbe had some interesting thoughts about Salome’s request for her two sons when he wrote,
Matthew 20:
In the unbelieving world, it is assumed that power and authority define greatness.
Warren Wiersbe had some interesting thoughts about Salome’s request for her two sons when he wrote,
Warren Wiersbe had some interesting thoughts about Salome’s request for her two sons when he wrote,
The Bible Exposition Commentary Chapter Seventeen: The King’s Demands (Matthew 19:16–20:34)
there were several things wrong with their request. To begin with, it was born in ignorance. “Ye know not what ye ask,” Jesus replied. Little did Salome realize that the path to the throne is a difficult one. James was the first of the disciples to be martyred, and John had to endure hard days on the Isle of Patmos. These three believers wanted their will, not God’s will, and they wanted it their way.
The Bible Exposition Commentary Chapter Seventeen: The King’s Demands (Matthew 19:16–20:34)
But there were several things wrong with their request. To begin with, it was born in ignorance. “Ye know not what ye ask,” Jesus replied. Little did Salome realize that the path to the throne is a difficult one. James was the first of the disciples to be martyred, and John had to endure hard days on the Isle of Patmos. These three believers wanted their will, not God’s will, and they wanted it their way.
These two brothers did drink from the cup of suffering for the Lord Jesus. James was the first disciple to drink from the martyr’s cup.
James was the first disciple to drink from the martyr’s cup.
2 And he had James the brother of John put to death with a sword.
John drank from the cup of suffering when he was exiled on the Isle of Patmos.
9 I, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.
We are sure they failed to understand the suffering about which Jesus taught just prior to mentioning the ten thrones.
Matthew 20:17-19
17 As Jesus was about to go up to Jerusalem, He took the twelve disciples aside by themselves, and on the way He said to them, 18 “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem; and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn Him to death, 19 and will hand Him over to the Gentiles to mock and scourge and crucify Him, and on the third day He will be raised up.”
Many believers want a crown without a cross. In Christian life, the cross always comes before a crown.
DISPLEASURE
RESENTMENT
ANGER
THE MISUNDERSTANDING IN BEING GOD’S SERVANT
24 And hearing this, the ten became indignant with the two brothers. 25 But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them.
24 And hearing this, the ten became indignant with the two brothers.
Holman New Testament Commentary: Matthew F. The King Corrects Lingering Misconceptions about Kingdom Greatness (20:20–28)
In the unbelieving world, it is assumed that power and authority define greatness.
THE ERROR OF THE WORLD
The Bible Exposition Commentary Chapter Seventeen: The King’s Demands (Matthew 19:16–20:34)
Another factor was their lack of heavenly direction. They were thinking like the world: James and John wanted to “lord it over” the other disciples the way the unsaved Gentile rulers lorded it over their subjects. Their request was fleshly (sensual), because they were selfishly asking for glory for themselves, not for the Lord. No doubt they felt relieved that they had gotten to Jesus with this request before Peter did!
Being God’s servant is often misunderstood by those who choose to follow Jesus.
DESIRE
DEFINING GREATNESS
THE MINISTRY OF BEING GOD’S SERVANT
26 “It is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, 27 and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave;
Matthew 20:26-27
Jesus did not condemn their desire to become great. He redirected their thinking about how to become great. Each of us should want to be the best we can be and the greatest we can be for the glory of God, but our thinking needs to be in line with God’s Word.
Holman New Testament Commentary: Matthew F. The King Corrects Lingering Misconceptions about Kingdom Greatness (20:20–28)
The person who is truly great, by heaven’s definition, is the one who chooses an attitude of submission to others in the family of believers.
It is interesting to know Jesus used a little child to teach who “is the in the kingdom of heaven.”
It is interesting to know Jesus used a little child to teach who “is the in the kingdom of heaven.”
1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and said, “Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 And He called a child to Himself and set him before them, 3 and said, “Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 “Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 “And whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me; 6 but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.
THE EXAMPLE
Most children are willing to humble themselves to serve others, especially their parents.
DELIBERATE
Jesus taught His disciples the way to become great is through humility and the willingness to serve others. No believer should consider service to others as degrading. The Lord is honored when we are helping others bear their burdens.
2 Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ. 3 For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another.
Galatians 6:2-
We are also taught to never be discouraged or grow weary with the results of serving others.
9 Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary. 10 So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.
Galatians 6:
God will always honor the service of His people. Many of our rewards for service will be received after our departure from this world when we stand in the presence of Jesus. This should motivate us to take advantage of the opportunities we have and continue serving all people, “especially those who are of the household of faith.”
The ministry of being God’s servant is considered great in the mind of God.
THE MODEL OF BEING GOD’S SERVANT
28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
Jesus offered Himself and His all sufficient, sacrificial, substitutionary, atoning work as a model of being God’s servant. Jesus was also the model servant during the entirety of His earthly ministry. What greater servant model could any of us provide who would be greater than Jesus?
CONCLUSION
Have you misunderstood the meaning of being God’s servant? Are you involved in the ministry of being God’s servant? Are you following the Model of being God’s servant? God is always looking for people who are willing to serve Him by serving others. He wants you to be great, but He wants you to be great His way.
25 But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them. 26 “It is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, 27 and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave; 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
Matthew 20:2
Prepared for First Baptist Church Oakdale - September 17, 2017