The Servant-King
--Jeremiah 23:1-6
Kings, Queens, Presidents, Governors, priests, and pastors are called to be good role models before their people. Unfortunately that was never the case with any of the kings of the Northern Kingdom of Israel and with many of the kings of Judah as well. Our passage of Scripture this morning follows the surrender of Jerusalem under King Jehoiachin to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon in 597 B. C.
In II Kings 24 we learn all we need to know about King Jehoiachin. He was only eighteen when he became King of Judah and reigned only for three months. The Bible tells us that he was one of the evil kings of Judah. When Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem, Jehoiachin not personally surrendered to him but also gave his mother, his servants, his officers, and his palace officials to the King of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar carried away with him 10,000 captives which included all the artisans and smiths. Only the poorest citizens of Jerusalem were left behind. Therefore, God pronounced a curse on Jehoiachin in Jeremiah 22:30 just prior to the beginning of our passage of Scripture for this morning:
Thus says the LORD:
Record this man as childless,
a man who shall not succeed in his days;
for none of his offspring shall succeed
in sitting on the throne of David,
and ruling again in Judah.
Kings of Israel and Judah are often called shepherds. Jehoiachin and many of his
peers were poor shepherds who “scattered God’s flock of both Israel and Judah,
drove them away, and did not attend to them.” They did not set a godly example
before their people; they led their nations into sin, and thus both the Northern and Southern Kingdoms were led into captivity.
Contrast the poor example of King Jehoiachin with that of the British Royal Family during World War II. King George Vi and his wife Queen Elizabeth remained in Buckingham Palace throughout the War rather than fleeing to the countryside for safety. During the German Blitzkrieg of London from September 1940 through May of 1941 Buckingham Palace received nine direct hits from German bombs. During that time 1/3 of London was destroyed by enemy bombs, but King George and Queen Elizabeth kept visiting the many areas of the city hardest hit proving to the citizens of London that their leaders loved them. The King also made visits to his troops in North Africa and France during the heat of the War [SOURCE: “The British Royal Family During the War” as posted on http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk?Homework/war/royalfamily.htm].
George and Elizabeth’s daughter, now Queen Elizabeth II, voluntarily enlisted in the Army and became a military truck driver before the end of the War. To date she is the only female member of the Royal Family ever to serve on active duty. There is even a famous picture of Princess Elizabeth changing a tire on her military truck [SOURCE: “Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom: Military Career” as posted on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_II_of_the_United_Kingdom].
Today, as we come to the close of another Liturgical Year in the Church, we celebrate Christ the King Sunday. As next Sunday is the beginning of Advent, we remember that the Wisemen affirmed that Jesus was “born King of the Jews.” Paul calls our Lord “The King Eternal; in John 1:49, Nathaniel worships Jesus saying, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel.” The Book of Revelation names Him “Ruler of the Kings of the Earth,” “King of the Ages,” and “King of kings and Lord of lords.”
King George and Queen Elizabeth and then Princess Elizabeth set the example of being great leaders of and role models for their people by being servants. The Rev. Dr. John C. Maxwell is an honored pastor in the Wesleyan Church Dr. Maxwell and founder of two world renowned companies EQUIP and INJOY. Every year Dr. Maxwell is in demand not only to train leaders in evangelical Churches across denominational lines but also in Fortune 500 companies, international government leaders, and other such diverse groups as the United States Military Academy at West Point and the National Football League. He trains not only Christian leaders but business executives worldwide and “was named the World’s Told Leadership Guru by Leadership gurus.net.” [SOURCE: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_C._Maxwell].
Dr Maxwell, if not the original one to coin the phrase, certainly is a leading advocate and teacher in the principles of servant-leadership. Now we might consider that term an oxymoron; after all, when we think of leaders, normally such worlds come to our minds as prestige and power. The word servant conjures up such images in our minds as inferiority and slavery.
The neat thing about the appeal of Dr. Maxwell is the fact that he has discovered all of his leadership principles in the Bible and in the prime example of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ who became “The Servant-King.” Jesus is our greatest example in leadership, because just as He reminded His apostles, He still reminds us in Luke 22:25-27, ““The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those in authority over them are called benefactors. But not so with you; rather the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.”
In becoming mentor to the world’s business leaders Dr. Maxwell has inspired many of them to follow the example of Jesus in servant leadership. As the Head of His Church, Jesus also is our example for leadership in our ministry for His Kingdom whether we are clergy or laity, for Peter reminds us so well in I Peter 2:21, “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps.”
The King of the Universe left His throne in heaven to live among us as “one who serves,” and we as His disciples, His chosen leaders in His Church, are to “follow in His steps.” Servant leadership is not an oxymoron; the words are not contradictory to one another; they are two sides of the same coin. If King Jehoiachin and his evil predecessors in Judah and Israel had been servant leaders, history would have been totally different, for they would not have “scattered God’s flock or driven them away, because they would have attended to them well.” The problem with too many local Churches today is that the leadership in both the pulpit and the pews follow more
in the steps of Jehoiachin and his predecessors than they do in the steps of the Servant-King.
The best picture we have of Jesus in a servant’s role is on the night of the Last Supper when He washed His disciples’ feet. We can almost hear Jesus speak personally to us as He did in John 13 to the Twelve and say, “You call me Teacher and Lord—and you are right, for that is what I am. So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you.”
Paul paints the picture of our Servant-King this way in Philippians 2:5-8: “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,
“who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
“but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
“he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death—
even death on a cross.
Servant leaders are not powerful and proud but humble as Jesus was humble. The King of the Universe during His ministry here never lived in a palace. He was born in a stable; grew up in a humble carpenter shop in Nazareth; and had “nowhere to lay his head [Matthew 8:20].”
A servant is one who helps others, one who ministers to their needs, and one who serves out of devotion. Our calling as servant leaders is to reach out and help those who are in need by the power of the Holy Spirit, in the Name of our Servant-King Jesus, and for the glory of our Heavenly Father.
In obedient surrender to the Holy Spirit we do as Jesus instructs us in Matthew 25: “We feed those who are physically and spiritually hungry, give water to those who are physically and spiritually thirsty, offer hospitality to the stranger.” Let’s stop there for just a moment. The stranger is anyone who is different than I am. The stranger is a person of a different race, color, or creed. The stranger is one of the nearly 100 people in our city and county that are homeless this winter, the ones we see pushing their shopping cart or riding their bicycle around town.
By the power of the Holy Spirit, in the Name of Jesus, for the glory of God our Father we “cloth the naked and visit those who are sick and in prison.” We do it all in love because we are devoted to Jesus Christ and in meeting the needs of those who hurt and are in pain, we minister to our Servant-King Himself.
Servant leaders following in the steps of Jesus are people who are willing to make sacrifices, to give up things they value greatly in order to advance the kingdom of God “on earth as it is in heaven.” The Holy Spirit may lead us to sacrifice some comfort, convenience, desire, luxury, pleasure, or want that we truly treasure. Servant leaders are willing to obey the Holy Spirit to the same degree as the Apostle Paul who could honestly testify in II Corinthians 6:3-5, “We are putting no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, but as SERVANTS OF GOD we have commended ourselves in every way: through great endurance, in affliction, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger. . . .” By the power of the Holy Spirit at work in us, in the Name of Jesus Christ, for the glory of our Heavenly Father, as servant leaders we endure afflictions, hardships, calamities, labors, sleepless nights, hunger, whatever hardships may stand in our way, for the advancement of the Kingdom of God because we are devoted to Jesus Christ.
As we journey towards Christmas and into the New Year, let us all follow in the steps of our Servant-King Jesus, not just for a Season but for a lifetime. By His Spirit may we truly be humble, servant leaders. It is recorded that Mother Teresa once said: “I belong to Jesus. He must have the right to use me without consulting me” [SOURCE: http://www.acts17-11.com/servant.html]. This is the spirit of true servant leaders. Let us always remember that because we belong to Jesus, He “has the right to use us without consulting us.” May we continually live by that motto as we follow Christ, our Servant-King.
