Matthew 23:1-12 ‘Words of Wisdom’
1. In my study I have a pin-board on the wall, with notes of things I need to do (and should have done!) and with schedules for meetings, preaching rotas, lists of lectionary readings – and most importantly (amongst all the day-to-day things) my ‘Words of Wisdom’ gallery.
2. My ‘Words of Wisdom’ gallery comprises a selection of cards, some with printed images and verses, others with poems or items of short prose. They’re there to help me focus, to inspire me, and to remind me that, amid all the mundane day-to-day paperwork and administration and organisation associated with ministry, I am first and foremost a person called to share my faith, my faith in the reality of God’s love for all people, in what I ‘preach’ and pray at church, and in the way I live my life (and encourage others to live theirs) 24 / 7.
3. So it is that, having sat down at my computer, in the spirit of prayer and reflection on God’s love for all people, I begin to prepare for Sunday morning’s sermon, focussing upon the Gospel Matthew 23:1-12. And looking at my pin-board one little pale-blue card ‘jumps out’! A little pale blue card, which various pin-holes show it has been there some time and moved from place to place quite a bit. And what words of wisdom in the three verses of that little poem, which today, more than ever before, seem so relevant! (I’m afraid I do not know the author’s name or details, but I give them thanks for it).
4. ‘LESS THAN THE LEAST’ (based on Ephesians 3 verse 8)
“It isn’t to very special people
That God entrusts the spreading of the Good News.
Ordinary people are the very people
That God wants to use.
“Least of all the saints
Paul considered himself to be.
God wants to use ordinary people
Like you and me.
“What a tremendous comfort that is!
There is hope for us all.
The extra-special person he cannot use;
Only those who consider themselves small.”
5. And we remember that Jesus said, “The greatest among you will be your servant. All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.” (23:12 NRSV)
6. It is true, also, what Jesus says in verse 8, “You are all students.” As students of Jesus, the ‘Greatest of all Servants’, what does he teach us through these verses of Matthew today?
7. To begin with, perhaps the words of Jesus we hear from Matthew today prompts us to think of the people that lead our country and our churches! In the world of politics (in the UK) we certainly find the ‘top’ people having the title ‘minister’ or ‘servant’: we have the PRIME minister and CIVIL servants. Politicians often like to think of themselves as PUBLIC servants. In the church, the ‘clergy’ are often called ministers and referred to as ‘servants’. But in the political world (regardless of country) and in the church (regardless of denomination), somewhere along the way, a great deal of prestige and status has been acquired / attached to those that have leadership roles.
8. Yes, we do not have to look very far to find politicians who have taken prestige and status to heart, who just love all the trappings and power that comes with their title! Maybe we have known clergy / church leaders who act very much the same, with an air of superiority and self-importance, thinking themselves better to and different from the ‘common people’ they work and live among!
9. Jesus has a strong message for such leaders – in politics, but especially in the church. “Do not let yourself be called rabbi or teacher” he says, and points directly to the religious leaders of his day and how they ‘dressed to impress’, how they wanted everyone to know how different, how superior, how ‘holier than thou’ they were! By contrast, Jesus says, the greatest among you must be your servant.
10. On the face of it, Jesus’ words about his disciples not allowing themselves be called ‘rabbi’ may seem to have nothing to do with us as church. But the word ‘rabbi’ means (literally) ‘my great one’, very close (I am told!) to the root meaning of reverend (‘worthy of reverence’). Either way, neither title seems to have much to do with being the humble servant Jesus speaks of! What about the title ‘teacher’? In the early church, teachers were called ‘doctor’, as many teachers of higher education are today. Do we know any church leaders with the title ‘Reverend Doctor’? Does this title mean to embrace both our equivalent of ‘rabbi’ and ‘teacher’ that Jesus says his disciples should reject? What about ‘Very Reverend’; ‘Right Reverend’; or ‘Most Reverend’? Or even ‘The Very Reverend Doctor’? All seems to speak (for us today) about getting further and further away from the humble servant Jesus tells his disciples they should strive to be.
11. Now, before we think that Jesus’ teaching is as a licence to poke fun at the offices of the church, we should try to understand what his words meant to the early church that Matthews Gospel addressed, and what they mean for us today.
12. First, and to begin with, I don’t think Jesus was saying there should be no teachers or leaders in the church. Rather, that they should be SERVANTS of the church. They should be seen and heard, through their words and their actions, to serve the church and, through the church (Christ’s body), to serve all people. (Indeed, it is the calling of the whole church (the whole people of God) to be ‘servant’.) All in all then, when Jesus talks of rejecting the title ‘rabbi’ or ‘teacher’, I think he does so to warn against the all-too human disposition for people to be prone to over-inflated egos!
13. Second, there is a vital aspect of the role of servant that Jesus highlights, which is perhaps the MOST vital role of the servant church, and of servant disciples within it. By implication, and in contrast to the scribes and Pharisees (who ‘tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others’ – and do nothing to help), the servant church is to offer FREEDOM, liberation. For the scribes’ and Pharisees’ INTERPRETATION of the Law made life impossible to live, with all the rules and regulations governing every aspect of life
14. The Servant Church (and the church’s servants – all the faithful people) is to offer freedom. Not freedom to do / say whatever / whenever one wants! No! Freedom that comes through faith – living and speaking the faith. Jesus said, "If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31 -32 NRSV). Jesus is ‘The way and the TRUTH and the life’ (John 14:6). [But how many people do you know who have been given ‘heavy burdens’ by the church, because of its INTERPRETATION of the gospels? People who have been told they’re unworthy, sinful, being punished by God – and this as a reason for their being ill … ] NO, Jesus came to FREE us from sin; to LIBERATE us from evil, to make us worthy – by our faith in him and by our living / sharing that faith – as servants of Christ Jesus.
15. In a nutshell: the church (all Christian people) is to be SERVANT. The SERVANT CHURCH that offers the way to FREEDOM in faith in Christ Jesus. Those that are truly Christ’s disciples (servants) will know the TRUTH, and that truth will set people FREE. Being a way, a channel of the truth of Christ, bringing FREEDOM in faith in Christ Jesus - that is the aim of the servant church.
16. One final thing. A dictionary definition of servant is: one ‘Providing help in some manner’ (wiktionary.org/wiki/servant). But, as opposed to a ‘slave’, a servant recives compensation for their labours. Jesus says that that compensation for being a servant is to be ‘great’. Indeed, the servant will be the greatest! But not ‘great’ in the ‘worldly’ way that the scribes and Pharisees thought they were. Rather, ‘great’ in the Kingdom of God. Jesus said that ‘Whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven’ (Matthew 5:19). And we all know what the greatest commandment is – it’s all about love. Love of God, and love of our neighbour – love that exercises every aspect of our being – our hearts, mind and soul and strength.
17. Jesus was – and is – the greatest servant. Through him, God gave everything for us. There is the example for us to emulate. The example of loving, liberating servanthood. Thanks be to God. Amen
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Disclaimer: I have been privileged to share with God’s people, for more than ten years since my Ordination, many, many sermons and Bible studies. As so often, preachers ‘absorb’ words and other insights without knowing or remembering their original source. If any of the above seems somehow ‘familiar’, please accept my humble apologies – I have not wittingly reproduced any writing as my own that should be otherwise acknowledged.
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