One of the songs we sang today is “Make Me a Servant.” I pray that that is our prayer. “Lord, make me a servant today.” Last time I preached, we saw that serving is a high calling. We are to lead different from this world. Jesus told us that, though the world seeks power leadership, we are to seek servant-leadership. “Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant”.[1] We are to serve in order to lead. We lead by serving. We are called to be servant-leaders.
Now what does a servant-leader look like? What should come to our mind when we think of servant-leaders? I believe there are at least seven habits or practices of a highly effective servant leader. I came up with these seven habits when I sought to identify what qualities should be seen in a member of our church. There are so many qualities mentioned in the Bible. We have to admit we can’t develop all of them in our lives. We can get so overwhelmed we don’t even know where to start. When the core of the English Worship came up with our mission statement, we also came up with seven key result areas so we can measure how we are fulfilling our mission. These key result areas gave us ideas on what qualities we want to develop in a member of Makati Gospel Church. Based on those key result areas, I came up with the acrostic S-E-R-V-A-N-T. As we go through each habit, let us rate ourselves 1 to 10, 1 being the lowest and 10 being the highest.
The first habit is SERVES the Lord. We see here a person who serves the needs of others with all his heart. Philippians 2:4 describes this person: “Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” He makes the most of his time, talents and treasures in serving the Lord through serving others.
When we talk about serving the Lord, we are talking about “full-time” service. But I am not just talking about resigning from your present job and becoming a pastor. If that’s the leading of the Lord for you, fine. But that’s not what I am talking about. I believe all of us are called to “full-time” service because we are all “full-time” Christians in our present spheres of influence, where we are right now. Colossians 3:23 command us, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men”. Note the word “whatever.” Whether you are a CEO, a manager, a supervisor, or one of the employees, you serve the Lord by excelling in your work. I was sad when a businessman-friend told me he had to fire a Christian because he was not performing well. In fact, he even told me that it seems it is not a guarantee that you can trust a person to do his job well just because he is a believer. That should change. It is my dream that you would even receive a model employee of the year award. So, rate yourselves 1 to 10 on this habit.
The second habit is EMPOWERS others. We see here a person who intentionally helps others to grow in their faith to the point that they would build others also. 2 Timothy 2:2 tells us, “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.” In the corporate world, this is called “mentoring” or “coaching.” Of course, before you can mentor somebody, you have to find a mentor yourself. A mentor is basically a trusted friend or counselor who is usually one who has more experience.[2] In a company, a newcomer is paired with a more experienced employee to set an example to him and give advice as needed as he moves up the corporate ladder.
We need to find godly, more experienced people who would help us grow spiritually. Titus 2:3 to 5 give us an example: “Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.” Mentors keep us accountable and challenge us to go beyond ourselves. I have my mentors like Rev. Philip Tarroja and Rev. Clem Guillermo who helped me a lot in my ministry as a pastor. Now you don’t have to be way ahead before you mentor somebody. You just have to be a step ahead. You don’t even have to be older than the person you are mentoring. We can also have peer-to-peer mentoring. Is there such a person in your life? Other than rating yourself 1 to 10, do you already have a mentor? If you don’t have one, find one. If you think you already can, do you have somebody to mentor? I personally mentor some people inside and even outside the church in preaching.
The third habit is REACHES the seekers. She is a person who strategically shares the Gospel with seekers in her sphere of influence through words and works. First Peter 3:15 commands us, “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect”. Have you ever led somebody to put his or her trust in the Lord for salvation?
Now, when we think of evangelism, we usually think of actually sharing the Gospel as in opening a Four Spiritual Laws booklet. Some of us enjoy doing that. There are excellent trainings available for us if we want to learn how to share the Gospel to others. I personally believe every believer has to learn at least one Gospel presentation. But, there are times, we have to admit, we find it hard to start a conversation about spiritual matters.
There’s more to evangelism than presenting the Gospel. We can partner together to reach people for the Lord. We can do the “Invest and Invite” strategy.[3] You do what we find hard to do. Invite your friends and relatives. We can’t do that for you. They don’t know us. They know you. So, invest yourself in developing meaningful relationships with them with the intent to invite them to an event like our English Worship Service or our Youth or Couples’ Saturday Fellowship where we expose them to the Good News. Then we do what you find hard to do. We share the Gospel to them. That’s our “Invest and Invite” partnership. We don’t have to know everything. We don’t have to know all the answers to their questions. We just have to be there for them. We just have to know them more. Of course, that doesn’t mean we do all the talking. We provide you a message discussion guide every Sunday. After the worship service, invite your friend for lunch and then use the discussion guide to talk to your friend about what he heard here in our service. You can also help us in following them up. You can call or text them and invite them again to our worship service. If your friend needs counseling, connect your friend to one of people in the care team. Write the name of the person you would do the “Invest and Invite” strategy. So, what’s your rating on this habit?
The fourth habit is VALUES the Word. Here’s a person who consistently grows in obeying the Bible in his daily life and ministry. John 8:31 to 32 tell us, “To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’” Note that we are His disciples not when we know a lot about His Word. We are really His disciples when we hold on His teachings. When we obey His Word then and only then we will know the truth. When we obey the truth then and only then the truth sets us free. Knowing the truth has to do with obedience, not just with understanding it. I have always taught you that God gave us His Word to change our lives, not just to increase our knowledge. God gave us the Bible for transformation, not just information.
One area where we can gauge if we really value the Word is when we make decisions. It’s not as simple as asking, “What does the Bible say about this or that issue?” We tend to assume that if we can’t find a verse about it, then we can do it. But the Bible does not work like a fortune cookie. It is not as simple as asking, “Is there a verse that talks about my problem?” The Bible teaches us to ask, “What is the wise thing to do?” We are to value the Word. Again, rate yourselves 1 to 10 on this habit.
The fifth habit is ADORES God in worship. He is a person who faithfully participates in the corporate worship of God. Like David, he declares, “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’”[4] He makes worship time with the Lord and with the brethren a priority. One of the Ten Commandments is, “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God.”[5] Now, because the Lord Jesus rose from the dead on a Sunday, we now reserve Sunday as a day of worship instead of Saturday. But the principle of the Sabbath commandment still holds true. We are to set apart a day of worship. We always excuse ourselves when we are absent, “The Lord will understand.” I just wonder how come it is always the Lord Who have to adjust and not us, Who have to understand and not us? I know that there are some occasions that we need to be absent in the worship service. But, if we are honest with ourselves, we can always find such an occasion to miss the worship service. All of us need a vacation. But keep in mind that the Lord is more interested in our character than in our comfort.
I’m glad there are some of you here who went to the extent of not opening their store on a Sunday to honor the Lord’s Day. I even heard of a dear sister who told her boss that she can’t work on Sundays at the risk of her promotion. Let me clarify that those are personal convictions. I believe God will honor your commitments. I will not judge those of you who have to conduct business on a Sunday. We have to personally settle those issues with God. Ultimately, our public worship is a reflection of our private worship. We are to live lives of worship, growing in our love for God more and more. So, how do we rate ourselves on this habit?
The sixth habit is NETWORKS with believers. Here’s a person who actively builds relationships with fellow believers through mutual encouragement in the context of a small group. Hebrews 10:24-25 tell us, “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” Such encouraging one another happens more effectively in the context of a small group.
We ask you to join a small group of up to 12 people where we can discuss how we can apply what we are learning and where we can be held accountable. That is the reason why we provide a message discussion guide every Sunday. You can agree to meet with two other people, have a meal or coffee together, share concerns, pray for one another, and discuss our action plans in response to the message. Our couples’ fellowship for example watches the “I Promise” video series by Gary Smalley every Saturday and then break into groups to share their thoughts. If you and your spouse are also available on Tuesday nights, around 8PM, I just started a couples’ small group in Binondo. Just approach me after the service if you are interested. So, do you already have a small group? If you don’t have one, then you can only rate yourself zero. But if you do have one, rate your involvement from 1 to 10.
The last habit is THRIVES in prayer. We see here a person who regularly devotes time to prayer in personal and group settings. James 5:16 commands us, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” When our Lord Jesus cleansed the Temple, He said, “My house shall be called a house of prayer”.[6] Yes, we have so many activities going on in our church. But, I just wonder, if the Lord visits us, will He see us as a house of prayer?
We invite you to plug in. We have a prayer meeting here in the church building every Tuesday night at 6PM and every Sunday morning at 930AM after the worship service and before our Sunday school. We also hold special prayer events. I pray that most, if not all, of us will be involved in the prayer life of our church. Again, our corporate prayer is a reflection of our private prayer. Do you see prayer as a burden or a blessing? A task rather than a thrill? An obligation rather than a passion? So, how do we rate ourselves?
Now, look at the seven habits. Which is your weakest habit? Let us ask ourselves, “What can we do to strengthen this weak habit? What can we do in the next 30 days to work on this area?” In the next months, we will look at a habit per month. Every message will be geared towards a particular habit. It is our prayer that all of us will become a highly effective servant leader. Let us pray…
[1]Mark 10:42-43. All Bible verses are from the New International Version, unless otherwise noted.
[2]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mentor
[3]Thanks to Andy Stanley for this evangelistic strategy. For more info, read “Can We Do That?” a book he co-authored with Ed Young.
[4]Psalm 122:1
[5]Exodus 20:8-10.
[6]Matthew 22:13
