Series: How to Improve your serve?
Illustration:
Racquet ball and hit a few racquet balls into the audience! Give away 5 dollar Dunken Donut cards to those who catch them!
Over the years I have played tennis with Kathy off and on, but I really loved playing racquetball! I learned from others that the key to winning in this game was all in the serve! So, I got coaching and lessons to improve my racquet ball serve and it worked I improved my serve and I ended up winning my league – got a trophy and everything! The key to improving my serve was actually hard and simple - I played in tournaments, got coaching, went to the court and practiced a lot! I even became good friends with Wes Hamilton who at the time was an all-pro offensive line man for the Minnesota Vikings. He was really good at the game and we went to church together so he and I played together a lot – He even signed my ordination papers – trust me when you play against a pro-football player long enough you will improve and yes I did eventually beat him!
Introduction:
Jesus had an awesome serve – It was miraculous and powerful and he hit the ball with divine power smoking it past all who even tried to return His serve! His serve defeated the great deceiver and won back from Seoul a host of people.
Quote Swindoll:
He states, “Listen as He declares His primary reason for coming: “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many (Mark 10:45). No mumbo jumbo. Just straight -from-the shoulder admission. He came to serve and to give. It makes sense, then to say that God desires the same for us” (Page 18).
He adds, “Maybe you’ve never before stopped to consider that God is committed to one major objective in the lives of all His people: to conform us to “the image of the His Son.” We need to blow the dust off that timeless goal” (Page 18)
We need to improve our serves today – Jesus was the greatest server od all time!
Why improve our serve today? Because our Covid world has caused even more and more people to disconnect from each other – it has caused Churches and organizations to lose people who are willing to serve others like never before. Our impersonal world is causing more distance than ever – we have the highest rate of suicide ever – highest rate of mental health problems, depression, hopelessness and so I see the need is greater than ever to start serving again. We need to be the church and be like Jesus by choosing to improve our serve by serving others: More than ever before we need to commit to work on improving our serve in the following areas:
1. We need to improve our serve with God!
2. We need to improve our serve in our community!
3. We need to improve our serve in the workplace!
4. We need to improve our serve in church and in other ministries!
5. We need to improve our serve in our families!
Scripture Texts:
Philippines 2:4-8 (NIV)
4Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.5Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: 6Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!
Romans 12:1 -2 (CEV)
1Dear friends, God is good. So, I beg you to offer your bodies to him as a living sacrifice, pure and pleasing. That’s the most sensible way to serve God. 2Don’t be like the people of this world, but let God change the way you think. Then you will know how to do everything that is good and pleasing to him.
Thesis: As Christians we are called to be servants! Yes, I said the “s” word “servants” – for many this term seems to imply to some – a slave, a person lacking self-esteem, someone of lower class, a person crushed in spirit, a person with low self-worth. But Jesus (The Great I Am) came to serve and so should we.
T.S. – Lets explore How we are to improve our serve for the Lord!
Sermon 1: We need to improve our serve for God!
Scripture Text:
Matthew 20:25-28:
A Mother’s Request
20Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him.
21“What is it you want?” he asked. She said, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”
22“You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said to them. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?” “We can,” they answered.
23Jesus said to them, “You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.”
24When the ten heard about this, they were indignant with the two brothers.
25Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them.
26Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant,
27and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—
28just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Introduction:
Jesus showed and taught us that we should be servant-leaders! Yes, I know some of you think this is a contradiction, but Jesus’ role modeled this concept of living and leading to us. His example should empower and encourage us to follow His leading and we should seek to serve where God has planted us. The world needs us to improve our serves today! If we want a better world, workplace, community, church and family then we need to make the decision to serve others – like Jesus did!
Mark Batterson in His book “All In” states this about the problem with our current society and many in the church:
“Most of us spend most of our lives accumulating the wrong things. We’ve bought into the consumerist lie that more is more. We mistakenly think that the more we give, the less we’ll have. But in God’s upside-down economy, our logic is backward. You ultimately lose whatever you keep and you ultimately keep whatever you lose for the cause of Christ. I think of a little rhyme that doubled as a playground rule when I was a kid: finders keepers, losers weepers. It’s the exact opposite in God’s kingdom: finders weepers, losers keepers.” Batterson, Mark. All In (p. 27). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
He makes another great quote: “Don’t accumulate possessions. Accumulate experiences! Batterson, Mark. All In (p. 30). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Think about that – experiences are way more valuable and meaningful than things! The way you get meaningful experiences in life is by serving others!
Quote Batterson: “When you look back on your life, the greatest moments will be the moments when you went all in (and served God).” Batterson, Mark. All In (p. 20). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Let’s look at a person from the Old Testament who went all in to serve God and to serve one of God’s prophets.
I. The servant leader Elisha – He wanted experiences not possessions!
a. I Kings 19:19-21:
i. The Call of Elisha:
1. 19 So Elijah went from there and found Elisha son of Shaphat. He was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen, and he himself was driving the twelfth pair. Elijah went up to him and threw his cloak around him. 20 Elisha then left his oxen and ran after Elijah. “Let me kiss my father and mother good-by,” he said, “and then I will come with you.” “Go back,” Elijah replied. “What have I done to you?” 21 So Elisha left him and went back. He took his yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He burned the plowing equipment to cook the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out to follow Elijah and became his attendant.
a. Hebrew word means - “attendant” in NIV - in the NASB the word is “ministered” and the word is also rendered “served.” In Youngs literal translation of the Bible.
i. In the International Bible Encyclopedia, it states this: He became Elijah’s servant; and we have but one statement describing their relationship (2 Ki 3:11): he “poured water on the hands of Elijah.”
ii. Think about what Elisha did here?
2. Illustration: On February 19, 1519, the Spanish explorer Hernán Cortés set sail for Mexico with an entourage of 11 ships, 13 horses, 110 sailors, and 553 soldiers. The indigenous population upon his arrival was approximately five million. From a purely mathematical standpoint, the odds were stacked against him by a ratio of 7,541 to 1. Two previous expeditions had failed to even establish a settlement in the New World, yet Cortés conquered much of the South American continent. What Cortés is reported to have done after landing is an epic tale of mythic proportions. He issued an order that turned his mission into an all-or-nothing proposition: Burn the ships! As his crew watched their fleet of ships burn and sink, they came to terms with the fact that retreat was not an option. And if you can compartmentalize the moral conundrum of colonization, there is a lesson to be learned. Nine times out of ten, failure is resorting to Plan B when Plan A gets too risky, too costly, or too difficult. That’s why most people are living their Plan B. They didn’t burn the ships. Plan A people don’t have a Plan B. It’s Plan A or bust. They would rather crash and burn going after their God-ordained dreams than succeed at something else. There are moments in life when we need to burn the ships to our past. We do so by making a defining decision that will eliminate the possibility of sailing back to the old world we left behind. From Batterson, Mark. All In (pp. 51-52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
a. Mark notes, “That is precisely what Elisha did when he turned his plowing equipment into kindling and barbequed his oxen. It was his last supper. He said good-bye to his old life by throwing a party for his friends. They shared a meal and shared stories into the early-morning hours. But it was the bonfire that made it the most meaningful and memorable night of his life because it symbolized the old Elisha. It was the last day of his old life and the first day of his new life.”
i. Batterson, Mark. All In (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
3. The action of burning his plow and having a Bar-B-Que by Elisha was a huge statement of faith:
a. Mark notes, “Burning the plowing equipment was Elisha’s way of burning the ships. He couldn’t go back to his old way of life because he destroyed the time machine that would take him back. It was the end of Elisha the farmer. It was the beginning of Elisha the prophet.”
i. From Batterson, Mark. All In (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
b. Mark also notes, “Elisha didn’t need to burn his plowing equipment to follow Elijah, but it made a statement. More specifically, it was a statement of faith. There was no turning back. If his prophetic apprenticeship with Elijah didn’t pan out, he had no place else to turn.”
i. From Batterson, Mark. All In (p. 53). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
ii. Application: Wow – that’s crazy – Elisha left no room for retreat – He was all in with God and with serving – yes washing the hands of Elijah the prophet – by the way God knew Elijah needed his encouragement and help.
1. Elisha did away with possessions to serve God and saw how the Kingdom of God could change the world!
a. Elijah needed what Elisha had to finish the task – God knew it – Elisha knew it – Elijah knew it!
i. Recall what Elijah said when Elisha ran after him and said let me go back say good bye to mom and dad then I will be back. I will even burn my stuff then I will come with you and serve you!
ii. Elijah said – “What have I done!” – now Elisha has jumped into the fire with me!
iii. Elijah has been through the mill and he knows Elisha is in for the same!
iv. Serving God by the way is not easy – Jesus said it would not be easy! He said it would be really hard and he was clear about this act of serving being a sacrifice!
2. Jesus taught we were to:
a. Die to ourselves – pick up the cross daily and follow Him – this is what Elisha did.
i. Leadership isn’t about making our names known. It’s about making God’s name known!
ii. You don’t get the credit or the glory!
b. Jesus tells us to humble ourselves and live lives with integrity – Elisha did this.
i. We are called to serve like Jesus did in John 13 when He washed the disciple’s feet – this is a great example for us to see and understand!
ii. Jesus role-modeled no pride – did you here that!
1. When we take pride in what God does we set ourselves up for a big fall!
iii. Having integrity will cost us – at work – with others but it’s an essential part of being a servant leader for the Kingdom of Heaven!
c. What would you have done if Jesus said, “Go sell everything you have and follow me!” Jesus said this to the rich young ruler – but he could not do it!
i. His possessions owned him and he gave up the chance to hang out with Jesus and be a apart of some amazing miracles and have some amazing experiences!
ii. By the way we don’t even know his name!
iii. But we know the names of others – Jesus followers:
1. Peter, Paul, James, John, Mary, Martha – millions of others!
d. Jesus said the world would hate his followers like they did him – but He was with them and their lives would make a difference – so would there sacrifices.
i. Mark challenges us: “When did we start believing that God wants to send us to safe places to do easy things? That faithfulness is holding the fort? That playing it safe is safe? That there is any greater privilege than sacrifice? That radical is anything but normal? Jesus didn’t die to keep us safe. He died to make us dangerous. Faithfulness is not holding the fort. It’s storming the gates of hell. The will of God is not an insurance plan. It’s a daring plan. The complete surrender of your life to the cause of Christ isn’t radical. It’s normal. It’s time to quit living as if the purpose of life is to arrive safely at death. It’s time to go all in and all out for the All in All.
1. From Batterson, Mark. All In (pp. 13-14). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
ii. MArk also reminds us what happened to Jesus disciples:
1. In AD 44, King Herod ordered that James the Greater be thrust through with a sword. He was the first of the apostles to be martyred. And so the bloodbath began. Luke was hung by the neck from an olive tree in Greece. Doubting Thomas was pierced with a pine spear, tortured with red-hot plates, and burned alive in India. In AD 54, the proconsul of Hierapolis had Philip tortured and crucified because his wife converted to Christianity while listening to Philip preach. Philip continued to preach while on the cross. Matthew was stabbed in the back in Ethiopia. Bartholomew was flogged to death in Armenia. James the Just was thrown off the southeast pinnacle of the temple in Jerusalem. After surviving the one-hundred-foot fall, he was clubbed to death by a mob. Simon the Zealot was crucified by a governor of Syria in AD 74. Judas Thaddeus was beaten to death with sticks in Mesopotamia. Matthias, who replaced Judas Iscariot, was stoned to death and then beheaded. And Peter was crucified upside down at his own request. John the Beloved is the only disciple to die of natural causes, but that’s only because he survived his own execution. When a cauldron of boiling oil could not kill John, Emperor Diocletian exiled him to the island of Patmos, where he lived until his death in AD 95.
a. From Batterson, Mark. All In (pp. 23-24). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
b. So how many have just decided in their minds – Pastor Mike I am out of the game of serving – it’s dangerous – I am not going to serve God and give up my life – literally! You just convinced me it costs too much to serve God!
i. Quote: “Change is hard because people overestimate the value of what they have—and underestimate the value of what they may gain by giving that up.” —JAMES BELASCO AND RALPH STAYER from Chand, Samuel R. . Leadership Pain (pp. 82-83). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
ii. I have said this before – You will never be able to out give God. Ever!
II. The cost of being a servant leader is costly to us personally but it is worth far more than gold – cars – and things!
a. Let’s look at Elisha again – was it worth it for this man?
i. Quote: “To love what you do and feel that it matters—how could anything be more fun?” —Katherine Graham from Chand, Samuel R. . Leadership Pain (p. 119). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
1. He loved serving Elijah and God – do you love what you do? Because of his faithfulness to both - God blessed him with a double anointing which by the way he asked for when Elijah was going home! God granted his request!
a. Elisha helped change a nation and countless other Bible students over the years!
b. His servant leadership has impacted millions for the Kingdom!
2. He also got to do miracles! For God! As a matter fact twice as many as Elijah!
a. Miracles in the Career of Elisha:
• 1) Parting of the Jordan (2Ki 2:14)
• 2) Healing of the waters (2Ki 2:21)
• 3) Curse of the she bears (2Ki 2:24)
• 4) Filling of the valley with water (2Ki 3:17)
• 5) Deception of the Moabites with the valley of blood (2Ki 3:22)
• 6) Miracle of the vessels of oil (2Ki 4:4)
• 7) Prophecy that the Shunammite woman would have a son (2Ki 4:16)
• 8) Resurrection of the Shunammite's son (2Ki 4:34)
• 9) Healing of the gourds (2Ki 4:41)
• 10) Miracle of the bread (2Ki 4:43)
• 11) Healing of Naaman (2Ki 5:14)
• 12) Perception of Gehazi's transgression (2Ki 5:26)
• 13) Cursing Gehazi with leprosy (2Ki 5:27)
• 14) Floating of the axe head (2Ki 6:6)
• 15) Prophecy of the Syrian battle plans (2Ki 6:9)
• 16) Vision of the chariots (2Ki 6:17)
• 17) Smiting the Syrian army with blindness (2Ki 6:18)
• 18) Restoring the sight of the Syrian army (2Ki 6:20)
• 19) Prophecy of the end of the great famine (2Ki 7:1)
• 20) Prophecy that the scoffing nobleman would see, but not partake of, the abundance (2Ki 7:2)
• 21) Deception of the Syrians with the sound of chariots (2Ki 7:6)
• 22) Prophecy of the seven-year famine (2Ki 8:1)
• 23) Prophecy of Benhadad's untimely death (2Ki 8:10)
• 24) Prophecy of Hazael's cruelty to Israel (2Ki 8:12)
• 25) Prophecy that Jehu would smite the house of Ahab (2Ki 9:7)
• 26) Prophecy that Joash would smite the Syrians at Aphek (2Ki 13:17)
• 27) Prophecy that Joash would smite Syria thrice but not consume it (2Ki 13:19)
• 28) Resurrection of the man touched by his bones (2Ki 13:21)
3. He anointed two kings, Jehu and Hazael, King of Damascus. He also showed the common people that God was concerned with their individual lives and was present among them. He helped many people who were in distress.
a. Both Elijah and Elisha parted the Jordan River. As Moses “healed” the waters of Marah (Exodus 15:22-26), so Elisha healed the waters of the spring at Jericho. Elisha is one of a line of men whom God used to save His people. It was through Elisha that God spared Jehoshaphat and the kings of Israel and Edom, along with their armies. We hear it from the lips of the servant of Jehoram, as well as from the king of Judah—“the Word of the LORD is with Elisha” (2 Kings 3:11-12).
b. Elisha impacted a nation for God and help deliver many people from the bondage of Baal worship and total destruction of the nation of Israel!
c. Quote: “A life isn’t significant except for its impact on other lives. —JACKIE ROBINSON from Chand, Samuel R. . Leadership Pain (pp. 104-105). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
4. Elisha is still reaping the rewards in Heaven for his servant leadership for the Kingdom of God.
a. Things he did around 3,000 years ago are still paying off great dividends!
b. Quote: “You and I live in an age when only a rare minority of individuals desire to spend their lives in pursuit of objectives which are bigger than they are. In our age, for most people, when they die it will be as though they never lived. —Rusty Rustenbach, Giving Yourself Away from Chand, Samuel R. . Leadership Pain (p. 123). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
ii. Elisha did experience pain while being a servant leader for God but he pressed through the pain and sufferring:
1. Quote: “You will never understand pleasure without pain.” —T. D. JAKES from Chand, Samuel R. . Leadership Pain (p. 149). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
2. Story: Dean Karnazes is an ultramarathon man. He ran fifty marathons on fifty consecutive days. He ran 350 miles in three days, without stopping and without sleep. He has run the Badwater Marathon seven times, which begins in Death Valley and finishes 135 miles later halfway up Mount Whitney. In an interview for Outside magazine, he shared his view of American culture: Western culture has things a little backwards right now. We think that if we had every comfort available to us, we’d be happy. We equate comfort with happiness. And now we’re so comfortable we’re miserable. There’s no struggle in our lives. No sense of adventure. We get in a car, we get in an elevator, it all comes easy. What I’ve found is that I’m never more alive than when I’m pushing and I’m in pain, and I’m struggling for high achievement, and in that struggle I think there’s a magic.” From Chand, Samuel R. . Leadership Pain (p. 157). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
a. Leadership expert Michael Hyatt reflected on Karnazes’s life and drew three conclusions about why we should embrace discomfort and pain:
i. Comfort is overrated. It doesn’t lead to happiness. It makes us lazy—and forgetful. It often leads to self-absorption, boredom, and discontent.
ii. Discomfort can be a catalyst for growth. It makes us yearn for something more. It forces us to change, stretch, and adapt.
iii. Discomfort is often a sign we’re making progress. You’ve heard the expression, “no pain, no gain.” It’s true! When you push yourself to grow, you will experience discomfort.
1. From Chand, Samuel R. . Leadership Pain (p. 157). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
3. Elisha endured pain as a servant – as a servant leader – he dealt with threats to his life – but in the end he did what God told Him to do and he heard, “Well done Good and faithful servant.” He also helped to preserve a society from crashing and burning from sin and idol worship!
b. Chand says this about pain “Pain teaches us 5 crucial lessons”:
i. We Are Weaker, More Self-Absorbed, and More Fragile Than We Ever Imagined!
ii. Actually, We Don’t Have a Clue What God Is Up To!
iii. We Become More Grateful!
iv. We Find God to Be Beautiful Instead of Just Useful!
v. We Become More Tender, More Understanding, and More Compassionate!
1. From Chand, Samuel R. . Leadership Pain (p. 158-160). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
c. Chand makes a great statement which is the premise of His book Leadership Pain:
i. “You’ll grow only to the threshold of your pain.”
1. He adds: “Do you want to be a better leader? Raise the threshold of your pain. Do you want your church to grow? Do you want your business to reach higher goals? Reluctance to face pain is your greatest limitation. There is no growth without change, no change without loss, and no loss without pain.”
a. Chand, Samuel R. . Leadership Pain (p. 15). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
ii. Serving will bring rewards and some pain but it is the best way to grow and make a difference in our society – it’s the way Jesus changed the world and impacted the world. He told us to do the same!
Conclusion:
What do we need to know from this message?
Answer: As Christians we are all called to be servants! Yes, I said the “s” word “servants” – for many this term seems to imply – a slave, a person lacking self-esteem, someone of lower class, a person crushed in spirit, a person with low self-worth. But Jesus (The Great I Am) came to serve and not to be served and so should we. He actually commanded us to follow His lead!
Why do we need to know this?
Answer: We need to get rid of the misperceptions about serving. Jesus instructed us to serve each other and do it for the Kingdom of God. He role-modeled it for us so we should never think serving others is beneath us when Jesus himself came to serve! The Great I AM was the greatest server of all time!
What do we need to do?
Answer: We need to serve God, serve our community, serve our workplace, serve the church, and serve our families. We need to lose the self-centered mindsets that keep us from serving and take the same mindset as Jesus had. Die to ourselves and serve!
Why do we need to do this?
Answer: This act will change the world – change lives – change families, churches and communities! Serving is the greatest thing you can do for Jesus and His Kingdom.
