Serving as Jesus Served

Walk Like Jesus  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  42:07
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Introduction:

There’s a clever young guy named Somebody Else. There’s nothing this guy can’t do. He’s busy from morning to way late at night just substituting for you.
You’re asked to do this or you’re asked to do that and what is your ready reply? Get Somebody Else to do that job; he’ll do it much better than I.
So much to do in this weary old world—so much and workers are few. Somebody Else, all weary and worn, is still substituting for you.
The next time you’re asked to do something worthwhile, just give this ready reply: “If Somebody Else can give time and support, my goodness, so can I.”
Stop giving Somebody Else your job. Become a servant and watch what God will do for you, because He can also do it through you. You will discover it really is more blessed to give than to receive. What kind of servant are you?
One aspect of the life of Christ that is often given attention but still seemingly neglected is the aspect of his service
Service was the heart of all of the things that Jesus did
He could not please the Father without serving
He could not be great as we know him, without serving
Jesus served, it was literally the foundation to the life that He lived that resulted in the redemption of sinful man
And the obvious correlation to walking as Jesus walked is the correlation of service
Those who claim to be followers of Christ can not follow him apart from service
To not serve, but to claim to follow Jesus is akin to claiming to fly and not having wings
It isn’t plausible
I would submit this morning that there is a relationship between serving and greatness
Not because it sounds good, but because it is what we see Jesus teach
To be a servant is to be great, and to be great is to be a servant
The are two sides of the same coin
All followers of Christ are called to serve, not in the same capacity, but to serve
And this call to service as a follower of Jesus comes on the heels of a request by two of Jesus closest companions James and John

Jesus’ Dialogue with the two (vs.35-40)

Explanation
Mark 10:35–40 ESV
35 And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “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 And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” 38 Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” 39 And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized, 40 but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.”

Jesus’ Dialogue with the two (vs.35-40)

Dig into the selected text:
The dialogue begins with a request by James and John
To be great
To sit in the seat at the right hand and the left hand of Jesus was to sit in a seat of authority and power
It was a seat of significance
Their request is significant too if you think about it and it is revealing of their hearts, isn’t it?
These two men are trying to beat the other men to the punch of acquiring the power of sit at the right and left of Jesus
They are concerned with their role and their significance in the events that were set to unfold
And so they seek Jesus’ approval to be the primary ones who serve side by side with him
Jesus responds to the two
“You do not know what you are asking”
And then he poses a couple of questions to them pertaining to their request
Jesus knew what they didn’t know
That He was not there to set up an earthly kingdom but to be a sacrifice for the purpose of redeeming sinful man
The cup he was to drink was the wrath of God when he was baptized under the judgment of God
In the OT the picture that being under water revealed was that of being surrounded by calamity and destruction
And for Christ the calamity that he was set to face was bearing the burden of God’s wrath in his sufferings and eventual death
The dialogue continues as the two insist that they are able to do just as Jesus does
They are ready to fight alongside Jesus in the battle aren’t they
Only they don’t get the reality of the situation, Jesus was not setting up an earthly Kingdom
He was establishing a spiritual kingdom through His life, death, and resurrection
The dialogue ends with Jesus answering their question
So after all that, Jesus tells the two men that not only will they suffer a similar fate as He does, but that the request to be seated at the right and left hand of Jesus is not for Jesus to grant
But what is interesting about these two particular men asking this question and Jesus responding by telling them that they will suffer is not only did they suffer as Christ told them, but just a fact about it is James was the first martyr for Christ and John was the last apostle to die after being tortured and left for dead on the island of patmos
Illustration
Illustrate your point:
Selfishness is the opposite of greatness
No selfish person can be great in the kingdom of God
If the kingdom of God is being built up by people who like James and John are more concerned with their own greatness than the greatness of Christ or others, then God’s Kingdom is not being built
Today, in the church we must understand what is at stake
The church today can not function if it is being built by individuals who like James and John pursue their own greatness or that pursue nothing at all
What best equips the church to reach the lost? Serving others
What best enables the church to grow those who make up the body? Serving others
We must seek not our own good and glory, but others

Jesus’ Dialogue with the twelve (vs.41-44)

Explanation
Mark 10:41–44 ESV
41 And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John. 42 And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 43 But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all.

Jesus’ Dialogue with the twelve (vs.41-44)

Dig into the selected text:
Jesus senses the rising disunity among the 12 and seizes the opportunity to jump in and teach the disciples about true greatness
And he actually does so from a negative example
The example of what greatness is according to the world, or another way to put it is that he teaches was greatness is not
Jesus teaches on true greatness
Gentile Model
Ruler
A Position of leadership
Title does not make one a leader
Lord Over
A Position of power
Giving orders does not make one a leader
Those who are great
A Position of Prestige is leadership
Fame does not make one a leader
Exercise Authority
A Position of Privilege is leadership
Having rank does not make one a leader
Jesus Exhorts the Disciples
“It shall not be so among you”
Jesus teaches on true greatness
“Whoever would be great among you must be your servant”
Servant-diakanos
one who voluntarily renders useful service to others
“Whoever would be first among you must be slave of all”
Slave-doulos
one who forfeits his own rights in order to serve any and all
Illustration
Illustrate your point:
Jesus very clearly calls his disciples to not think of greatness in terms of how the world defines it, but instead gives them something better
In fact, Jesus tells these men that those in the world who believe that they are great based on their own understanding, in fact are not great at all as it pertains to God’s Kingdom
For the disciples then, and for followers today, there is no room in the Christian life to not serve others
Every believer is called to the stewardship of service
In will not look the same for every believer, but there is no excuse for anyone to not serve in the Kingdom of God
And this isn’t just because of what Jesus taught, it is also because of what Jesus exemplified

Jesus’ Example (vs.45)

Explanation
Mark 10:45 ESV
45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Jesus’ Example (vs.45)

Dig into the selected text:
There is no discussion when it comes to the greatness of Christ
He truly was great and is great
And in his greatness, he was a servant
He set an example to be followed of service and sacrifice
Jesus is the greatest in the Kingdom of God
Consider the reality that He was the only One who was able to do what man needed more than anything else
The magnitude of his service is unmeasurable
The stakes were high and the transaction was paying the high price of redeeming sinful man, appeasing the wrath of God, through his sacrificial death
Had Christ not come to serve, we would still be dead in our sins and trespasses
We would still be enemies of God
Illustration
Illustrate your point:
There is a chance this morning that we look at the sacrifice of Christ and think “Of course he did that, he’s God”
But God’s Word is clear that He chose to willingly serve at the expense of himself
It was literally why He came
And if we are willing to be honest this morning, many of us have a salvation that looks more like “Somebody else can do it” than “Send me I’ll go”
The obvious question is what if Christ functioned that way? Somebody else can redeem sinful man, not they couldn’t
And maybe, just maybe there is an area of service where if you don’t heed to call to serve as Christ has served then it won’t get done
We may be tempted to think this morning, my service to Christ and others isn’t like his was because it isn’t life or death as it was with Jesus and redeeming sinful man
But what if it is? What if availing ourselves to God in whatever capacity necessary leads to the salvation of even one soul
Would you do it? But how do you know Pastor J that my service will lead to someone’s salvation?
I don’t know it, but I do know that not serving surely isn’t leading to anyone’s salvation

Application:

This conversation started with a request for greatness from two of Jesus followers and it culminated with the highest of challenges, to live for the benefit of others
To willingly give of ourselves for the sake of the Gospel and other people
You may be tempted today to settle for less than greatness in the Kingdom of God, you may think I don’t need to be great, I just need to get there
False humility is a great tool of the devil
Notice that there was no in between when Jesus spoke to his disciples
Not, some will serve and be great, some will not serve and be less great, so pick which is you
Jesus said, the Kingdom of God functions differently and those who serve are great
And if you don’t want to be great in God’s Kingdom, I am not sure you fully understand the magnitude of Christ’s service to you
You can spend the entirety of your life serving and not fully repay Christ, and that is why it is a good thing that we don’t have to repay Christ
But out of devotion and love for what He has done, we serve
It is the natural response of a grateful heart

Conclusion:

Serve as Christ Served

Don’t strive to be great, strive to be faithful
You can’t be faithful without serving
So serve as Christ served; willingly, humbly, sacrificially, obediently, for the betterment of others
Serve as Christ served
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