MORE LIKE GREAT SERVICE
(All my sermons use illustrations for www.sermoncentral.com and the scripture is NIV unless otherwise noted. )
In a popular televison commercial for a large insurance company that claims you can name your own price, the customer asks, “But will I still get good service?” The reply is “uh, more like great service.” Now, if your like me, you can truly see that service in the world we live in, is NOT what it used to be. Good service is difficult to find. Our world is all about SELF, we are told to bathe in self-indulgence, self expression, and self-celebration. So pamper yourself, indulge yourself, promote yourself. But Jesus tells us DENY yourself. When was the last time you heard a commercial say: “Go ahead. Deny yourself and have the time of your life.” But that is exactly what the Bible tells us to do. Scripture is different from what we are told in the world.
The least are the greatest (Luke 9:48)
The last will be first (Mark 9:35)
Consider others better than ourselves (PHP 2:3)
& Honor others above ourselves (ROMANS 12:10)
The truth is, that we were called to provide GREAT service, and not worry so much about how we are being served. So many people come to church and wonder what the church is going to do for them, THEY FAIL TO UNDERSTAND, you are the church. God calls us to serve one another, not sit back and be served. This morning I am going to reflect on 7 aspects of a good servant, please follow along.
# 1. A TRUE SERVANT IS RESPECTFUL of his boss, our master Jesus Christ John 12:26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.
PRAYER
God has a use for everyone one of us here this morning. Each of us has a task to do, a path to follow, and a Master who is watching us, guiding us, and leading us. A true servant must understand that they are blind to what they should do, we must FOLLOW, Jesus. We show Jesus RESPECT, by following and not by trying to take the lead. Jesus tells us plainly, if we FOLLOW, then God will HONOR us.
One author puts it this way:
Just up the road from my home is a field, with two horses in it. From a distance, each looks like every other horse. But if you stop your car, or are walking by, you will notice something quite amazing. Looking into the eyes of one horse will disclose that he is blind. His owner has chosen not to have him put down, but has made a good home for him. This alone is amazing.
If nearby and listening, you will hear the sound of a bell. Looking around for the source of the sound, you will see that it comes from the smaller horse in the field.
Attached to her halter is a small bell. It lets her blind friend know where she is, so he can follow her. As you stand and watch these two friends, you’ll see how she is always checking on him, and that he will listen for her bell and then slowly walk
to where she is, trusting that she will not lead him astray. When she returns to the shelter of the barn each evening, she stops occasionally and looks back, making sure her friend isn’t too far behind to hear the bell.
Like the owner of these two horses, God does not throw us away just because we are not perfect or because we have problems or challenges. He watches over us and even brings others into our lives to help us when we are in need. Sometimes we are the blind horse being guided by the little ringing bell of those who God places in our lives. Other times we are the guide horse, helping others see.
So first a True Servant must show RESPECT, then:
#2 A TRUE SERVANT MUST REALIZE, A servant should see other people through the eyes of Jesus.
Luke 8:42-46 As Jesus was on his way, the crowds almost crushed him. 43 And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years, but no one could heal her. 44 She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped. 45 "Who touched me?" Jesus asked. When they all denied it, Peter said, "Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you." 46 But Jesus said, "Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me."
Do we as God’s tools, as a servant of God and Jesus, see other people through the compassionate, searching eyes of Jesus, or are we oblivious of the needs of people because we just don’t look? Even in the crowd, Jesus saw a need. A true servant strives to realize the needs of those around him. It may not always be obvious, but I guarantee if we strive to realize we will become the servants that God wants us to be. The story is told of an elderly woman named Norena, who lived in southern Florida. When a hurricane hit that area, her home was one of many that was severely damaged. Norena received an insurance settlement, and the repair work began. However, when the money ran out, so did the contractor, leaving an unfinished home with no electricity. Norena lived in her dark, unfinished home - without power - for fifteen (15) years. You see, my brothers and sisters, the astonishing part of this story is that the hurricane was not Katrina but Andrew - a hurricane which struck in 1992. She had no heat in her home when the winter chills settled over southern Florida. She had no air conditioning when the mercury climbed into the 90’s and the humidity clung to 100 percent. She did not have one hot shower. Without money to finish the repairs, Norena just got by with a small lamp and a single burner.
Her neighbors did not seem to notice the absence of power in her home. Acting on a tip, one day, the mayor of the Miami-Dade area got involved. It only took a few hours of work by electrical contractor, Kent Crook, to return power to Norena’s house. CBS News reported that Norena planned to let the water get really hot, and then take her first "bubble bath" in a decade and a half. "It’s hard to describe having [the electricity]...to switch on," Norena told reporters, "It’s overwhelming."
How many needs are there, just in our community that we are not doing anything about. Some may say, “Well, if a person has needs they should let us know about it” BUT, we live in a prideful world. We need to strive to realize.
RESPECT, REALIZE, &
# 3. A TRUE SERVANT MUST BE READY, being available at all times, knowing that there are ample opportunities and we must be ready to serve, WHEN - Matt 25:37-40 "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' 40 "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
This tends to be a true test of or Servanthood, so many of us claim to be ready to serve, and yet, when an opportunity comes up, we fail to take advantage of it.
Max Lucado tells this story:
The top of Mount Everest isn’t know for its’ hospitality. Climbers call the realm above 26,000 feet “the death zone.” Temperatures hover below zero. Sudden blizzards stir blinding snow. The atmosphere is oxygen starved. Corpses dot the mountain top . A British climber had died ten days prior to Dan Mazur’s attempt at the summit. Forty climbers who could have helped chose not to do so. They passed him on the way to their summit. Everest can be so cruel. Still, Dan Mazur felt lucky. He and his two colleagues were within eyesight of the top. Years of planning. Six weeks of climbing, and now at 7:30 am, May 25th 2006, the air was still, morning sun brilliant, energy and hopes high.
That’s when a flash of color caught Mazur’s eye: a bit of yellow fabric on the ridge-top. He first though it was a tent. He soon saw it was a person, a man precariously perched on an 8,000 foot razor edged rock. His gloves were off, jacket unzipped, hands exposed, chest bare. Oxygen depravation can swell the brain and stir hallucinations. Mazur knew this man had no idea where he was, so he walked toward him and called out. “Can you tell me your name?” “Yes,” the man answered, sounding pleased. “I can, my name is Lincoln Hall” Mazur was shocked. He recognized the name. Twelve hours earlier he’d heard the news on the radio: Lincoln Hall is dead on the mountain. His team has left his body on the slope.”
And yet, after spending the night in 20 below chill and oxygen-stingy air, Lincoln Hall was still alive. Mazur was face to face with a miracle. He was also face to face with a choice. A rescue attempt had profound risks. The descent was already treacherous, even more so with the dead weight of a dying man. Besides, how long would Hall survive? No one knew. The three climbers might sacrifice their quest for the summit for nothing. They had to choose: Abandon their dream, what they really wanted, or abandon service to a dying man.
They chose to abandon their dream and desires in order to serve. Lincoln Hall survived the trip down Mount Everest. Thanks to a willing servant, he lived to be reunited with his wife and sons in New Zealand. A televison reporter asked Lincoln’s wife what she thought of the rescuers, the men who surrendered their summit to save her husband’s life. She tried to answer, but the words stuck in her throat. After several moments and with tear filled eyes, she offered, “Well, there’s one amazing human being. And the other men with him. The world needs people like that.”
May we be numbered among them. May we be the servants that say, “I can give up my desires to serve those in need.” This scripture we are looking at here:
Matt 25:35-36 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' You notice Jesus says they saw a need and did something about it? Are you READY, or do you place other things in front of service? A TRUE SERVANT will jump at the opportunity to serve and place their needs second, knowing that God will reward the good and faithful servant.
A man dropped into a bank on business and found the customer service clerk chatting on the phone, discussing new restaurants with her friend. After three minutes of exchanging dark glances with the man, she told her caller, “Hold a minute - -I’m being interrupted by a customer.”
We must have RESPECT for our master, REALIZE the needs of those around us, be READY to serve when God shows us the opportunity and:
# 4 A TRUE SERVANT IS RECEPTIVE, This means showing acceptance of others, it means understanding that all people are precious in God’s sight. This same scripture we just looked at said, THESE LEAST BROTHERS of mine. God does not want a servant that is looking for the “right” kind of people or needs to serve.
Tony Compolla tells this story : There is a true story of a boy who suffered under the Nazis during WWII. This Jewish boy was living in a small Polish village when he and all the other Jews in the vicinity where rounded up by Nazi SS troops and sentenced to death. This boy joined his neighbors in digging a shallow ditch for their graves. Then they were lined up against a wall and machine-gunned. Their corpse fell into the shallow grave and the Nazis covered their crumpled bodies with dirt. But none of the bullets hit this little boy. His naked body was splattered with the blood of his parents. And when they fell into the ditch he pretended to be dead and fell on top of them. The thin covering of dirt was so thin that it didn’t prevent the air from getting to him so that he could breath. Several hours later when darkness fell this 10-year-old boy clawed his way out of the shallow grave. With blood and dirt caked to his little body he made his way to the nearest house. And he begged for help. Recognizing him as one of the Jewish boys marked for death by the SS the woman who answered the door screamed at him to go away, and slammed the door. He was turned away at the next house as well as the one after that. In each case the unwillingness to get into trouble with the SS overpowered any feeling of compassion. Dirty, blooded and shivering the little boy went from one house to the next begging for someone to help him. Then something inside him guided him to say something very strange for a Jewish boy to say. When the next family who responded to his timid knocking they heard him cry, “don’t you recognize me? I’m the Jesus you say you love.” After a poignant pause the woman who stood in the door way swept him into her arms and kissed him. From that day on that family cared for the boy as if he were one of their own.
Matt 25:40 `I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’
A true servant shows RESPECT, can REALIZE needs, is READY to serve, is RECEPTIVE of God’s children and:
# 5 A TRUE SERVANT MUST RESIDE, We are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. We are in the world but we are not of the world. In order to serve we must RESIDE with the world. So many time people are not willing to serve because they are not comfortable in the areas that service needs to be. I mean, I have heard people say; “well I will serve God, but I am not leaving the country.” Or “I will serve the church, BUT, not if we are going to that part of town.”
A true servant of God’s understand what Jesus told us in Matthew 5:14-16 “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. If we are true servants, our light will shine as a hope beacon for the lost, and that can not be hidden. We must RESIDE in the world, not be of the world, but live in it. We cannot isolate ourselves from others, we must GO into all the world, starting with our community, and show the Love of God in practical ways. How much time do we spend in front of our televisions? How much time do we spend in our community searching for the needy and the poor? To RESIDE means to get involved with those that are in need of Jesus and His love. To be active outside of these four walls, to GO out and serve!! This is so vital to serving as God would have us serve. Many churches across our country are not being blessed because they are looking inward, at the needs they have, instead of looking outward at the needs of the community and the lost. They have lost the fire of outreach. The longer a congregation exists, the more concerned it tends to become with self-preservation - and the less concerned it is with the needs outside the building, in the community. Time, effort and money go to the needs of those already in the church and less focus on the needs of the lost. We are the LIGHT of the world, let’s take our light into the darkness of our community and serve the people.
A servant must have RESPECT, REALIZE the need, be READY to serve, RECEPTIVE of those in need, RESIDE with the people that need to see God love and they must:
# 6 A TRUE SERVANT WILL RELINQUISH, Mark 10:21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
There was a Pastor, who after the usual Sunday Evening Hymns, stood up, walked over to the pulpit and, before he gave his sermon for the evening, briefly introduced a guest minister who was in service that evening. In the introduction, the Pastor told the congregation that the guest minister was one of his dearest childhood friends and that he wanted him to have a few moments to greet the church and share whatever he felt would be appropriate for the service. With that, an elderly man stepped up to the pulpit and began to speak.
"A father, His son, and a friend of his were sailing off of the Pacific Coast," He began, "When a fast approaching storm blocked any attempt to get back to shore. The waves were so high, that even though the father was an experienced sailor, he could not keep the boat upright and the three were swept into the ocean as the boat capsized.
The old man hesitated for a moment, making eye contact with two teenagers who were, for the first time since the service began, looking somewhat interested in his story. The aged minister continued with his story, "Grabbing a rescue line, the father had to make the most excruciating decision of his life: to which boy he would throw the other end of the lifeline. He only had seconds to make the decision. The father knew that his son was a Christian and he also knew that his son’s friend was not. The agony of his decision could not be matched by the torrent of waves. "As the father yelled out, ‘I love you son!’ He threw out the lifeline to his son’s friend.
By the time the father had pulled the friend back to the capsized boat, his son had disappeared beneath the raging swells into the black of the night. His body was never recovered." By this time, the two teenagers were sitting up straight in the pew, anxiously waiting for the next words to come out of the old minister’s mouth. "The father," he continued knew his son would step into eternity with Jesus and could not bear the thought of his son’s friend stepping into eternity without Jesus.
Therefore, he sacrificed his son to save his son’s friend… With that the old man turned and sat back down in his chair as silence filled the room. The Pastor again walked slowly to the pulpit and delivered a brief sermon… Within minutes after the service ended, the two teenagers were at the old man’s side.
"That was a nice story," Politely stated the boys, "But I don’t think it was realistic for a father to give up his son’s life in hopes that the other boy would become a Christian." "Well, you’ve got a point there," the old man replied glancing down at the worn Bible. A big smile broadened his narrow face, he once again looked up at the boys and said, "It sure isn’t realistic, is it? But I’m standing today to tell you that the story gives me a glimpse of what it must have been like for God to give up His only son for me. You see… I was the father and your Pastor was my son’s friend."
The question we must ask ourselves is simply: Am I willing to give up EVERYTHING to serve my Lord and Master? God wants all of us, not a part. Are we willing to RELINQUISH all that we have to serve Him. ARE WE WILLING? Jesus tells us, GIVE it all and you will HAVE it all in heaven. This takes faith in God and His Word and should inspire to serve with our whole heart knowing that treasure in Heaven, where neither rust nor moth can destroy is far better then the instant gratification of the here and now.
So a Servant is RESPECTFUL, REALIZE, READY, RECEPTIVE, RESIDE, RELINQUISH and finally
# 7 A TRUE SERVANT MUST REFLECT
A good servant knows WHY he or she serves. They understand WHY they go out of their ways looking for the needs of others and doing their best to meet those needs. They are not looking for what they can get out of a situation, but what they can do to serve the one they love.
Luke 9:23-25 Then he said to all, "Anyone who wants to follow me must put aside his own desires and conveniences and carry his cross with him every day and keep close to me! 24 Whoever loses his life for my sake will save it, but whoever insists on keeping his life will lose it; 25 and what profit is there in gaining the whole world when it means forfeiting one's self?
True REFLECTION shows us that if we serve Jesus we save our lives, if we follow Him John 12:26 tells us a servant follows Jesus, and this scripture if we follow Him, showing RESPECT, REALIZING needs, be READY to serve, RECEPTIVE to all of God’s people, RESIDING where the people with needs are, RELINQUISHING our lives to Him, and REFLECTING on why we serve:
24 Whoever loses his life for my sake will save it, but whoever insists on keeping his life will lose it; 25 and what profit is there in gaining the whole world when it means forfeiting one's self?
We can save our lives by following Jesus in serving the lost. Are you willing?
This morning as the ladies come forward, we offer an invitation time # 354 “Into My Heart” I ask you simply, ARE YOU READY TO SERVED rather then being served?
INVITATION
