1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,667 2 00:00:05,667 --> 00:00:20,667 [music] 3 00:00:45,292 --> 00:00:48,000 The music is so dramatic. 4 00:00:48,000 --> 00:00:51,000 The Seattle Times recently said we're building an empire, 5 00:00:51,000 --> 00:00:55,292 and it kind of has that sort of Storm Trooper soundtrack to it. 6 00:00:55,292 --> 00:00:57,583 [imitating dramatic music] 7 00:00:57,583 --> 00:01:00,875 I'm actually in a pretty good mood, so I'll tell you a story. 8 00:01:00,875 --> 00:01:03,583 I've got three sons, small, medium, and large, 9 00:01:03,583 --> 00:01:06,750 and they all play baseball, which means I get to spend 10 00:01:06,750 --> 00:01:08,750 a lot of time at Little League practice 11 00:01:08,750 --> 00:01:10,167 and Little League games, 12 00:01:10,167 --> 00:01:12,667 and I get to have, you know, chats and conversations 13 00:01:12,667 --> 00:01:14,042 with the parents and such. 14 00:01:14,042 --> 00:01:15,458 And invariably they all ask, 15 00:01:15,458 --> 00:01:17,667 "Oh, so what do you do for a living?" 16 00:01:17,667 --> 00:01:20,458 And recently I had one of those conversations with a gal 17 00:01:20,458 --> 00:01:22,458 who works actually in politics, really nice lady, 18 00:01:22,458 --> 00:01:26,375 and she helps with political campaigns and with various bills 19 00:01:26,375 --> 00:01:29,292 that come up for vote and such. 20 00:01:29,292 --> 00:01:31,167 And she was telling me about her job, 21 00:01:31,167 --> 00:01:32,958 and then she inevitably asked the question, 22 00:01:32,958 --> 00:01:34,333 "So what do you do?" 23 00:01:34,333 --> 00:01:35,875 And I was like, "Ah, man." 24 00:01:35,875 --> 00:01:38,583 That's usually the conversation-killing question. 25 00:01:38,583 --> 00:01:40,000 Pastor, right? 26 00:01:40,000 --> 00:01:42,333 Kind of say it like I'm sneezing, like, "Pastor." 27 00:01:42,333 --> 00:01:44,667 I said pastor, and that did not dissuade her. 28 00:01:44,667 --> 00:01:48,875 She proceeded to continue to ask questions, which is very rare. 29 00:01:48,875 --> 00:01:50,667 Usually as soon as I say pastor, 30 00:01:50,667 --> 00:01:52,667 they fake like they got a phone call. 31 00:01:52,667 --> 00:01:54,375 Like, "Oh, I got to take this. 32 00:01:54,375 --> 00:01:55,792 Goodbye forever." 33 00:01:55,792 --> 00:01:57,167 And they walk away. 34 00:01:57,167 --> 00:01:58,583 But she didn't do that. 35 00:01:58,583 --> 00:02:02,000 She actually said, "Oh, so what church are you a pastor at?" 36 00:02:02,000 --> 00:02:05,000 And usually when that happens, I feel like one of the defenders 37 00:02:05,000 --> 00:02:07,333 in a soccer free kick. 38 00:02:07,333 --> 00:02:08,750 Like, I just am like, 39 00:02:08,750 --> 00:02:13,292 "Well, you know, I'm the pastor at Mars Hill." 40 00:02:13,292 --> 00:02:15,000 Just expecting to get it. 41 00:02:15,000 --> 00:02:18,000 And she said, "Oh, well I've heard about your church." 42 00:02:18,000 --> 00:02:20,875 And she didn't go for her handgun, she didn't, 43 00:02:20,875 --> 00:02:22,875 you know, get a crazy look. 44 00:02:22,875 --> 00:02:25,375 And I thought, "Well, this might not be too bad." 45 00:02:25,375 --> 00:02:27,375 So she asked some questions about the church 46 00:02:27,375 --> 00:02:29,167 and we had a really interesting conversation. 47 00:02:29,167 --> 00:02:31,875 She asked, "Well, you guys are a pretty big church, right?" 48 00:02:31,875 --> 00:02:33,583 I said, "Well, we've got some people. 49 00:02:33,583 --> 00:02:35,000 God's been good to us." 50 00:02:35,000 --> 00:02:37,500 She said, "But I heard you guys don't all meet 51 00:02:37,500 --> 00:02:38,875 in one big building." 52 00:02:38,875 --> 00:02:40,292 I said, "No, we don't. 53 00:02:40,292 --> 00:02:42,500 "We got to meet in all kinds of buildings 54 00:02:42,500 --> 00:02:43,875 all over the place." 55 00:02:43,875 --> 00:02:46,375 And she said, "Well, don't you want a big building?" 56 00:02:46,375 --> 00:02:48,875 I said, "Yeah, if you've got one, we'll take it." 57 00:02:48,875 --> 00:02:50,375 I'm not opposed to big buildings. 58 00:02:50,375 --> 00:02:52,875 I said, "But it's just never opened up for us. 59 00:02:52,875 --> 00:02:54,375 "We pursued some opportunities, you know. 60 00:02:54,375 --> 00:02:56,875 "That's just never happened for us so we spread around 61 00:02:56,875 --> 00:02:59,583 "and it seems to work good 'cause we can get out 62 00:02:59,583 --> 00:03:01,083 "into various communities 63 00:03:01,083 --> 00:03:02,583 and serve and love those communities." 64 00:03:02,583 --> 00:03:05,083 And she said, "Well, don't you want a big building?" 65 00:03:05,083 --> 00:03:06,667 I said, "I don't know, why?" 66 00:03:06,667 --> 00:03:09,375 She said, "Well then, that could be a tribute, a monument. 67 00:03:09,375 --> 00:03:10,875 "Then when you're dead some day, 68 00:03:10,875 --> 00:03:13,083 that can be there in your legacy and honor." 69 00:03:13,083 --> 00:03:15,292 I said, "Yeah, that's not really a motivating factor 70 00:03:15,292 --> 00:03:16,667 for people at Mars Hill." 71 00:03:16,667 --> 00:03:18,875 She said, "Well, you know, if you're a politician, 72 00:03:18,875 --> 00:03:21,083 "you leave something like a bridge or a monument 73 00:03:21,083 --> 00:03:23,375 "or a statue or a building or a school, 74 00:03:23,375 --> 00:03:26,667 "and you fight for it and you raise the money for it 75 00:03:26,667 --> 00:03:29,458 "and you open it and you put your name on it 76 00:03:29,458 --> 00:03:32,458 and it's a monument that lives in your memory." 77 00:03:32,458 --> 00:03:35,167 I said, "Yeah, I don't think the people at Mars Hill 78 00:03:35,167 --> 00:03:36,583 would go for that." 79 00:03:36,583 --> 00:03:39,375 Like, a space needle of me, you know? 80 00:03:39,375 --> 00:03:40,792 I don't think so. 81 00:03:40,792 --> 00:03:44,500 I said, "If I said, hey, I want to build a monument to my glory 82 00:03:44,500 --> 00:03:47,167 and we took an offering," I said, "no one would give. 83 00:03:47,167 --> 00:03:48,833 Not even my wife." 84 00:03:48,833 --> 00:03:50,333 No one would give to that. 85 00:03:50,333 --> 00:03:52,042 So I tried to explain to her. 86 00:03:52,042 --> 00:03:54,500 I said, "Well, you know, for us as Christians, 87 00:03:54,500 --> 00:03:56,250 "this is kind of how it works. 88 00:03:56,250 --> 00:03:58,375 "Like, it's not about us, it's about Jesus. 89 00:03:58,375 --> 00:04:00,333 "And if we're going to leave anything, 90 00:04:00,333 --> 00:04:01,833 "we're not opposed to real estate, 91 00:04:01,833 --> 00:04:05,083 "but what we really want to leave is people who love Jesus 92 00:04:05,083 --> 00:04:07,875 "and love each other and their lives are changed. 93 00:04:07,875 --> 00:04:09,875 "And if we're going to leave any legacy, 94 00:04:09,875 --> 00:04:12,667 it's just people who met Jesus and their lives were changed." 95 00:04:12,667 --> 00:04:14,875 She said, "Well, people then won't talk about you 96 00:04:14,875 --> 00:04:16,292 when you're gone." 97 00:04:16,292 --> 00:04:18,583 I said, "Well, I hope my kids remember me. 98 00:04:18,583 --> 00:04:21,667 "Beyond that, you know, it doesn't matter whether or not 99 00:04:21,667 --> 00:04:24,667 "people remember a particular leader years down the road. 100 00:04:24,667 --> 00:04:28,667 If they're talking about Jesus, then the leader did his job." 101 00:04:28,667 --> 00:04:31,292 That's really the whole point of Christianity. 102 00:04:31,292 --> 00:04:34,667 I said--so it's not this way, but I said, "In your world, 103 00:04:34,667 --> 00:04:38,750 "it would be like saying Jesus is kind of like the leader 104 00:04:38,750 --> 00:04:43,875 "and the job of the church is to simply be the one 105 00:04:43,875 --> 00:04:45,542 "running the campaign. 106 00:04:45,542 --> 00:04:47,500 "Getting the word out and letting everybody know 107 00:04:47,500 --> 00:04:49,500 about who the leader is." 108 00:04:49,500 --> 00:04:51,500 I said, "For us, we're not the leader." 109 00:04:51,500 --> 00:04:53,458 I said, "For example, the last presidential elections, 110 00:04:53,458 --> 00:04:56,542 "I don't know who the campaign manager was for each candidate. 111 00:04:56,542 --> 00:04:58,542 "And if we were still talking about them, 112 00:04:58,542 --> 00:05:00,375 they probably didn't do a good job." 113 00:05:00,375 --> 00:05:03,375 Instead, their job was to get the name out of the leader. 114 00:05:03,375 --> 00:05:06,167 And I said, "As a church, it's kind of like that, 115 00:05:06,167 --> 00:05:07,542 "to use your job. 116 00:05:07,542 --> 00:05:09,958 Our job is to tell people about Jesus." 117 00:05:09,958 --> 00:05:11,583 And I tell you that story not to say, 118 00:05:11,583 --> 00:05:13,000 "See, Mark nailed it again. 119 00:05:13,000 --> 00:05:15,000 He always nails it." 120 00:05:15,000 --> 00:05:16,375 'Cause I don't. 121 00:05:16,375 --> 00:05:19,375 But to say that it was just one of those really curious 122 00:05:19,375 --> 00:05:21,875 conversations--and the woman was very nice and it was actually 123 00:05:21,875 --> 00:05:25,167 a very helpful conversation--but it shows the difference between 124 00:05:25,167 --> 00:05:28,792 what I'll call worldly views of greatness and leadership, 125 00:05:28,792 --> 00:05:32,375 and godly views of greatness and leadership. 126 00:05:32,375 --> 00:05:34,958 There's a real different approach, 127 00:05:34,958 --> 00:05:38,083 biblically speaking versus culturally speaking, 128 00:05:38,083 --> 00:05:40,875 as to how we perceive and pursue greatness, 129 00:05:40,875 --> 00:05:44,042 and the motivation that drives leaders forward. 130 00:05:44,042 --> 00:05:46,875 And what the world really needs is more godly leaders, 131 00:05:46,875 --> 00:05:49,875 not just more leaders, but godly leaders. 132 00:05:49,875 --> 00:05:52,875 And the section in Luke today that we're going to be studying, 133 00:05:52,875 --> 00:05:54,875 is Jesus having a conversation with his leaders, 134 00:05:54,875 --> 00:05:56,292 his twelve disciples. 135 00:05:56,292 --> 00:05:59,000 So this is Christianity 1.0. 136 00:05:59,000 --> 00:06:00,500 Alright, this is the beginning. 137 00:06:00,500 --> 00:06:03,292 And these are going to be the leaders who then set 138 00:06:03,292 --> 00:06:06,667 the precedent and pattern for Christianity all the way up 139 00:06:06,667 --> 00:06:08,375 until our present day. 140 00:06:08,375 --> 00:06:10,583 And so Jesus knows he's going to die, rise, 141 00:06:10,583 --> 00:06:13,167 ascend back into heaven within weeks, 142 00:06:13,167 --> 00:06:15,500 and he's going to hand off, through the power 143 00:06:15,500 --> 00:06:17,958 of the Holy Spirit working through these leaders, 144 00:06:17,958 --> 00:06:21,667 the forward progress of the Kingdom of God on earth. 145 00:06:21,667 --> 00:06:24,375 And so he's going to have a discussion with them about 146 00:06:24,375 --> 00:06:27,958 greatness and leadership and how it is to be done in a way 147 00:06:27,958 --> 00:06:30,167 that is godly and not worldly. 148 00:06:30,167 --> 00:06:34,500 And so if you've got a Bible you could turn to Luke 22:24-30, 149 00:06:34,500 --> 00:06:37,000 where we look at Jesus and true greatness. 150 00:06:37,000 --> 00:06:38,583 And if you're new, it's like, 151 00:06:38,583 --> 00:06:41,750 "Why are we in the middle of Luke or the end of Luke?" 152 00:06:41,750 --> 00:06:45,542 This is our 90th sermon in Luke. 153 00:06:45,542 --> 00:06:47,667 Ninetieth. Ninetieth. 154 00:06:47,667 --> 00:06:50,667 So we've been in this book for a few years. 155 00:06:50,667 --> 00:06:53,875 And our view is that God wrote a book and we love it 156 00:06:53,875 --> 00:06:56,875 and so we want to study it, so that's what we're doing. 157 00:06:56,875 --> 00:07:00,292 It will culminate with the 100th sermon 158 00:07:00,292 --> 00:07:02,000 right around the time of Thanksgiving, 159 00:07:02,000 --> 00:07:06,083 and it'll take, in total, 100 sermons to go through Luke. 160 00:07:06,083 --> 00:07:10,667 And this week we get to hear the stupidest argument 161 00:07:10,667 --> 00:07:13,000 in the history of the world. 162 00:07:13,000 --> 00:07:16,167 That's pretty fantastic. 163 00:07:16,167 --> 00:07:18,667 It's the stupidest argument in the history of the world, 164 00:07:18,667 --> 00:07:21,667 and it's an argument that they already had in Luke 9, 165 00:07:21,667 --> 00:07:23,375 but they're going to have it again. 166 00:07:23,375 --> 00:07:25,167 They have it in the other gospels, 167 00:07:25,167 --> 00:07:26,875 it's an argument that they keep having, 168 00:07:26,875 --> 00:07:28,875 and that is about who is the greatest. 169 00:07:28,875 --> 00:07:32,292 And so we read in Luke 22:24, 170 00:07:32,292 --> 00:07:34,458 "A dispute also arose among them," 171 00:07:34,458 --> 00:07:36,250 the twelve disciples of Jesus, 172 00:07:36,250 --> 00:07:39,250 "as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest." 173 00:07:39,250 --> 00:07:41,250 Do see where this is the stupidest argument 174 00:07:41,250 --> 00:07:42,750 in the history of the world? 175 00:07:42,750 --> 00:07:46,792 There are 13 guys, 12 disciples, and 1 Jesus. 176 00:07:46,792 --> 00:07:48,750 And the argument among the twelve is, 177 00:07:48,750 --> 00:07:52,583 "Which one of us is the greatest?" 178 00:07:52,583 --> 00:07:55,083 That's a stupid argument, right? 179 00:07:55,083 --> 00:07:57,167 Were I Jesus, in that moment, 180 00:07:57,167 --> 00:07:59,875 I would use it for comedy and shame. 181 00:07:59,875 --> 00:08:01,750 That's what I would use it for. 182 00:08:01,750 --> 00:08:04,250 I would say something like, "Well, that's a good question. 183 00:08:04,250 --> 00:08:06,458 "Alright, on the count of three everybody whose mom 184 00:08:06,458 --> 00:08:07,958 "was a virgin, raise your hand. 185 00:08:07,958 --> 00:08:09,333 "One, two, three! 186 00:08:09,333 --> 00:08:11,333 "Ha ha, just me, alright. 187 00:08:11,333 --> 00:08:12,750 "Round two. 188 00:08:12,750 --> 00:08:15,083 "Alright, on the count of three everybody who created 189 00:08:15,083 --> 00:08:17,333 "the universe raise your hand. 190 00:08:17,333 --> 00:08:18,750 "One, two, three. 191 00:08:18,750 --> 00:08:20,167 "Ha ha, me again! 192 00:08:20,167 --> 00:08:21,583 "And, round three. 193 00:08:21,583 --> 00:08:23,375 "I'm going water skiing without a boat. 194 00:08:23,375 --> 00:08:24,792 Who's with me?" 195 00:08:24,792 --> 00:08:27,792 Right, like... 196 00:08:27,792 --> 00:08:31,292 It's pretty obvious who's the greatest. 197 00:08:31,292 --> 00:08:32,667 Well, it's Jesus. 198 00:08:32,667 --> 00:08:35,333 I mean, you don't even have to be smart to go, 199 00:08:35,333 --> 00:08:38,042 "I think Jesus is better." 200 00:08:38,042 --> 00:08:42,292 You don't even have to be a Christian to figure that out. 201 00:08:42,292 --> 00:08:46,292 They're having this argument and they keep having this argument. 202 00:08:46,292 --> 00:08:49,167 And you know it's interesting, we keep having this argument. 203 00:08:49,167 --> 00:08:52,000 Jesus said in the end of Matthew's gospel, 204 00:08:52,000 --> 00:08:54,750 "I'll be with you always, to the end of the age." 205 00:08:54,750 --> 00:08:57,250 So the truth is, Jesus, even though he's in heaven, 206 00:08:57,250 --> 00:09:00,167 he is to some degree with us wherever we go. 207 00:09:00,167 --> 00:09:02,500 But we have the same stupid argument, don't we? 208 00:09:02,500 --> 00:09:04,667 "I'm better than you." "No, I'm better than you." 209 00:09:04,667 --> 00:09:06,167 "I could have done that better." 210 00:09:06,167 --> 00:09:07,583 "That was stupid." 211 00:09:07,583 --> 00:09:09,292 We jockey in position among one another, 212 00:09:09,292 --> 00:09:11,500 rather than looking to Jesus saying he's the greatest 213 00:09:11,500 --> 00:09:13,583 and we need to learn from him. 214 00:09:13,583 --> 00:09:15,375 Now, here's what I find curious. 215 00:09:15,375 --> 00:09:19,500 Jesus never rebukes them for desiring greatness. 216 00:09:19,500 --> 00:09:22,000 He never says, "How dare you. What a horrendous pursuit. 217 00:09:22,000 --> 00:09:23,583 "I'm so ashamed of you. 218 00:09:23,583 --> 00:09:26,500 Don't you know any better?" 219 00:09:26,500 --> 00:09:30,792 He doesn't rebuke their desire for greatness; he redirects it. 220 00:09:30,792 --> 00:09:34,375 He never rebukes them; he always redirects them. 221 00:09:34,375 --> 00:09:37,792 And so what this means is we need to redeem 222 00:09:37,792 --> 00:09:39,458 the pursuit of greatness. 223 00:09:39,458 --> 00:09:42,167 And if you're new to Mars Hill, there are three categories 224 00:09:42,167 --> 00:09:44,667 that we tend to work in and filter everything through, 225 00:09:44,667 --> 00:09:47,000 whether it's money or sex or power or greatness 226 00:09:47,000 --> 00:09:50,333 or leadership: receive, reject, redeem. 227 00:09:50,333 --> 00:09:52,667 Can we receive this? 228 00:09:52,667 --> 00:09:54,583 Must we reject this? 229 00:09:54,583 --> 00:09:56,875 Or should we redeem this? 230 00:09:56,875 --> 00:09:58,875 And here what Jesus is going to do, 231 00:09:58,875 --> 00:10:01,167 he's going to redeem greatness and leadership. 232 00:10:01,167 --> 00:10:04,000 He's going to redeem greatness and leadership. 233 00:10:04,000 --> 00:10:08,458 He's going to show us what greatness truly is, 234 00:10:08,458 --> 00:10:12,500 and he's going to teach us how leaders should truly lead. 235 00:10:12,500 --> 00:10:15,000 And this is important because every one of us 236 00:10:15,000 --> 00:10:16,667 is a leader of someone. 237 00:10:16,667 --> 00:10:19,875 Some of you are formal leaders, you have titles and offices. 238 00:10:19,875 --> 00:10:21,792 Some of you are informal leaders, 239 00:10:21,792 --> 00:10:24,458 people just come to you for advice and seek council. 240 00:10:24,458 --> 00:10:27,583 Some of you have big influence, a lot of people look to you. 241 00:10:27,583 --> 00:10:29,292 Some of you have little influence 242 00:10:29,292 --> 00:10:30,667 and it's a smaller circle. 243 00:10:30,667 --> 00:10:34,458 All the way down to parents, who are leaders of their children. 244 00:10:34,458 --> 00:10:36,458 And let me ask you this question: 245 00:10:36,458 --> 00:10:39,083 Do you want to be great? 246 00:10:39,083 --> 00:10:41,042 It's a hard question, isn't it? 247 00:10:41,042 --> 00:10:43,542 Some of you, in your mind, you're thinking, "Yes!" 248 00:10:43,542 --> 00:10:46,500 Okay, you're probably proud, selfish, and arrogant. 249 00:10:46,500 --> 00:10:48,875 "Yeah, I want to be great!" 250 00:10:48,875 --> 00:10:50,667 And then some of you say, "No!" 251 00:10:50,667 --> 00:10:52,250 And I would ask you, 252 00:10:52,250 --> 00:10:54,750 "You don't want to have a great walk with God? 253 00:10:54,750 --> 00:10:56,750 "You don't want to have a great marriage? 254 00:10:56,750 --> 00:10:58,500 "You don't want to raise great kids? 255 00:10:58,500 --> 00:11:00,750 "You don't want to participate in a great church 256 00:11:00,750 --> 00:11:02,292 or help build a great company?" 257 00:11:02,292 --> 00:11:03,667 You say, "Well yeah, I do." 258 00:11:03,667 --> 00:11:05,083 It's hard, isn't it? 259 00:11:05,083 --> 00:11:07,292 Because if we receive leadership as the world does, 260 00:11:07,292 --> 00:11:09,292 if we receive greatness as the world does, 261 00:11:09,292 --> 00:11:12,167 we're probably going to be arrogant and selfish and proud. 262 00:11:12,167 --> 00:11:13,875 And if we reject it, well then 263 00:11:13,875 --> 00:11:16,875 we're not going to really help people. 264 00:11:16,875 --> 00:11:19,083 So what do we do? 265 00:11:19,083 --> 00:11:22,000 And Jesus, he redirects them. 266 00:11:22,000 --> 00:11:25,958 He redeems the ideas of greatness. 267 00:11:25,958 --> 00:11:29,250 Some of you need to aspire to more. 268 00:11:29,250 --> 00:11:32,458 Some of you, in the false name of humility, 269 00:11:32,458 --> 00:11:36,083 have not tried your hardest, have not done your best, 270 00:11:36,083 --> 00:11:39,583 have not presented yourself for leadership in your school 271 00:11:39,583 --> 00:11:41,000 or in your church 272 00:11:41,000 --> 00:11:43,667 or in your place of employment or in your community. 273 00:11:43,667 --> 00:11:46,667 And some of you say, "Well, I just want to be humble." 274 00:11:46,667 --> 00:11:48,292 No, you want to be helpful. 275 00:11:48,292 --> 00:11:50,750 And to be helpful means you need to pursue greatness. 276 00:11:50,750 --> 00:11:53,500 You need to be the best version of yourself, 277 00:11:53,500 --> 00:11:55,542 by the grace of God, you can be. 278 00:11:55,542 --> 00:11:57,875 You need to maximize your skills, talents, 279 00:11:57,875 --> 00:12:00,792 and abilities so that you might help as many people 280 00:12:00,792 --> 00:12:02,750 as well as possible. 281 00:12:02,750 --> 00:12:05,583 But we always need to be careful that we pursue greatness 282 00:12:05,583 --> 00:12:08,667 in a way that is godly and not worldly. 283 00:12:08,667 --> 00:12:12,292 So again, point number two, he says not just to seek greatness, 284 00:12:12,292 --> 00:12:16,667 but to seek godly greatness as opposed to worldly greatness. 285 00:12:16,667 --> 00:12:20,667 Luke 22:25-27, "He said to them, 'The kings of the Gentiles,'" 286 00:12:20,667 --> 00:12:24,500 right, the non-believing leaders, 287 00:12:24,500 --> 00:12:27,583 "exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them 288 00:12:27,583 --> 00:12:29,667 "are called benefactors. 289 00:12:29,667 --> 00:12:32,292 But not so with you." 290 00:12:32,292 --> 00:12:35,500 He's distinguishing godly and worldly greatness. 291 00:12:35,500 --> 00:12:38,083 "Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest," 292 00:12:38,083 --> 00:12:41,792 that's the lowliest position, and let the leader as-- 293 00:12:41,792 --> 00:12:44,583 "and the leader," rather, "as one who serves. 294 00:12:44,583 --> 00:12:46,750 "For who is the greater, one who reclines at table 295 00:12:46,750 --> 00:12:48,167 "or one who serves? 296 00:12:48,167 --> 00:12:50,375 "Is it not the one who reclines at table? 297 00:12:50,375 --> 00:12:54,500 But I am among you as the one who serves." 298 00:12:54,500 --> 00:12:57,667 So he's saying, alright, aspire to greatness, 299 00:12:57,667 --> 00:13:01,792 and inasmuch as you're able, lead. 300 00:13:01,792 --> 00:13:06,667 But not in a way that is worldly; in a way that is godly. 301 00:13:06,667 --> 00:13:08,167 And here's how he redeems it. 302 00:13:08,167 --> 00:13:11,875 First he tells us to reject worldly views of greatness 303 00:13:11,875 --> 00:13:13,375 and leadership. 304 00:13:13,375 --> 00:13:15,583 And what he says is worldly views of greatness 305 00:13:15,583 --> 00:13:18,792 and leadership, it's all about the leader. 306 00:13:18,792 --> 00:13:20,500 You lord it over people. 307 00:13:20,500 --> 00:13:23,083 You intimidate, boss, bully. 308 00:13:23,083 --> 00:13:24,792 You're mean, cruel, harsh. 309 00:13:24,792 --> 00:13:29,167 They exist to honor you, to obey you, to tend to you, 310 00:13:29,167 --> 00:13:30,875 to serve you. 311 00:13:30,875 --> 00:13:35,500 To use theological language, to worship you. 312 00:13:35,500 --> 00:13:37,167 And you are the center. 313 00:13:37,167 --> 00:13:38,875 It's all about you. 314 00:13:38,875 --> 00:13:41,083 And then you can become a benefactor, he says, 315 00:13:41,083 --> 00:13:42,583 which means you're rich and powerful. 316 00:13:42,583 --> 00:13:46,042 And you can confer on people wealth and power. 317 00:13:46,042 --> 00:13:48,667 But they need to beg you, they need to grovel, 318 00:13:48,667 --> 00:13:52,167 they need to ask, they need to deserve it. 319 00:13:52,167 --> 00:13:54,958 And that's how you control people. 320 00:13:54,958 --> 00:13:57,000 Now what's interesting is some things never change. 321 00:13:57,000 --> 00:14:00,083 This is still how the world works. 322 00:14:00,083 --> 00:14:03,792 And Jesus says, "Not like that." 323 00:14:03,792 --> 00:14:06,167 This doesn't mean you shouldn't be a leader. 324 00:14:06,167 --> 00:14:08,583 If God should give you an opportunity to lead 325 00:14:08,583 --> 00:14:11,750 in a big or small capacity, pursue it. 326 00:14:11,750 --> 00:14:14,292 But not like that. 327 00:14:14,292 --> 00:14:17,292 Jesus says, "I have a godly way for you to do that, 328 00:14:17,292 --> 00:14:19,500 not a worldly way for you to do that." 329 00:14:19,500 --> 00:14:21,500 Because see, one of the attributes of God 330 00:14:21,500 --> 00:14:22,875 is that God is great. 331 00:14:22,875 --> 00:14:26,500 And we want to mirror or reflect the greatness of God by pursuing 332 00:14:26,500 --> 00:14:31,875 greatness in a way that reflects the character of God, 333 00:14:31,875 --> 00:14:35,292 not the culture of the world. 334 00:14:35,292 --> 00:14:38,667 Now, here's how our world works--it's just like 335 00:14:38,667 --> 00:14:40,667 the days of Jesus. 336 00:14:40,667 --> 00:14:43,875 The goal is to make as much money and have as much power 337 00:14:43,875 --> 00:14:47,792 as you possibly can so that everyone would serve you 338 00:14:47,792 --> 00:14:51,292 and you wouldn't have to serve them, right? 339 00:14:51,292 --> 00:14:52,833 Right? 340 00:14:52,833 --> 00:14:54,375 This is how our economy works. 341 00:14:54,375 --> 00:14:56,292 There's a guy, James Gilmore, for example. 342 00:14:56,292 --> 00:14:58,792 He wrote a cool little book called "The Experience Economy." 343 00:14:58,792 --> 00:15:00,250 He's a business leader. 344 00:15:00,250 --> 00:15:01,667 He's also an evangelical Christian. 345 00:15:01,667 --> 00:15:03,167 He's become something of a friend. 346 00:15:03,167 --> 00:15:04,542 He's a really great guy. 347 00:15:04,542 --> 00:15:07,042 And he says we've had a transition in our economy. 348 00:15:07,042 --> 00:15:09,542 There was a day that most people worked with commodities-- 349 00:15:09,542 --> 00:15:12,167 these are natural resources from the earth like, you know, 350 00:15:12,167 --> 00:15:13,542 you want lumber? 351 00:15:13,542 --> 00:15:16,083 There's a tree, go cut it down and make lumber. 352 00:15:16,083 --> 00:15:17,500 You want coffee? 353 00:15:17,500 --> 00:15:19,500 Grow some beans, harvest the beans, you know, 354 00:15:19,500 --> 00:15:22,958 go ahead and then also grind the beans and make yourself 355 00:15:22,958 --> 00:15:26,083 a cup of coffee, but you've got a lot of work to do. 356 00:15:26,083 --> 00:15:27,875 And then it transitioned from a commodities- 357 00:15:27,875 --> 00:15:29,458 to a goods-based economy. 358 00:15:29,458 --> 00:15:32,458 Now you can go to the lumberyard and buy your lumber. 359 00:15:32,458 --> 00:15:34,667 You can go and buy your coffee beans wholesale 360 00:15:34,667 --> 00:15:37,042 and grind them yourself, or even buy it pre-ground. 361 00:15:37,042 --> 00:15:38,667 And he said what happened then 362 00:15:38,667 --> 00:15:41,250 is we shifted to a service economy. 363 00:15:41,250 --> 00:15:43,833 So today, the majority of people who are employed 364 00:15:43,833 --> 00:15:46,375 are employed in the service sector. 365 00:15:46,375 --> 00:15:48,833 And that is that somebody takes the commodity, 366 00:15:48,833 --> 00:15:52,167 turns it into a good, that then turns it into a service 367 00:15:52,167 --> 00:15:54,667 so that you can be served. 368 00:15:54,667 --> 00:15:57,667 And the goal is to make enough money and have enough power 369 00:15:57,667 --> 00:15:59,458 that you have a lot of servants. 370 00:15:59,458 --> 00:16:01,583 Sometimes these are people who work for you, 371 00:16:01,583 --> 00:16:04,833 and sometimes these are people that you temporarily employ. 372 00:16:04,833 --> 00:16:06,542 I'll give you some examples. 373 00:16:06,542 --> 00:16:08,167 Baristas. 374 00:16:08,167 --> 00:16:10,167 Alright, I think "barista" is the Greek word 375 00:16:10,167 --> 00:16:12,250 for "punching bag," right? 376 00:16:12,250 --> 00:16:14,958 What happens is, people walk into a coffee shop, 377 00:16:14,958 --> 00:16:17,375 people who otherwise have no power, 378 00:16:17,375 --> 00:16:21,000 all of a sudden they are king and lord. 379 00:16:21,000 --> 00:16:25,167 And they treat the barista like some right-less slave. 380 00:16:25,167 --> 00:16:26,583 It's amazing. 381 00:16:26,583 --> 00:16:29,750 Have you ever been to a coffee shop and just listen to how 382 00:16:29,750 --> 00:16:31,167 people treat the barista? 383 00:16:31,167 --> 00:16:33,167 They just make demands. 384 00:16:33,167 --> 00:16:35,583 Crazy demands. 385 00:16:35,583 --> 00:16:39,375 And if those demands are not perfect--"I said 97 degrees! 386 00:16:39,375 --> 00:16:41,000 This is 96!" 387 00:16:41,000 --> 00:16:43,167 Like, you brought a thermometer? 388 00:16:43,167 --> 00:16:46,667 What kind of weird mocha Pharisee are you? 389 00:16:46,667 --> 00:16:50,167 You--wow! 390 00:16:50,167 --> 00:16:52,375 "It's too much whip, it's too much foam." 391 00:16:52,375 --> 00:16:53,792 I'll whip your foam. 392 00:16:53,792 --> 00:16:55,792 Like, hey! 393 00:16:55,792 --> 00:16:57,583 It's amazing. 394 00:16:57,583 --> 00:16:59,292 "Go get your manager!" 395 00:16:59,292 --> 00:17:03,375 Which is, "Now wrath will come from on high because he 396 00:17:03,375 --> 00:17:06,167 who must be obeyed has not been obeyed." 397 00:17:06,167 --> 00:17:09,000 And they get loud and they make a scene about it. 398 00:17:09,000 --> 00:17:10,375 Unbelievable. 399 00:17:10,375 --> 00:17:12,042 Jesus says not like that. 400 00:17:12,042 --> 00:17:15,042 Have you ever been to a bank and just see how people 401 00:17:15,042 --> 00:17:16,458 talk to the teller? 402 00:17:16,458 --> 00:17:17,833 It's unconscionable. 403 00:17:17,833 --> 00:17:19,250 "You stole my money!" 404 00:17:19,250 --> 00:17:21,792 Obviously he didn't, otherwise he would not be working 405 00:17:21,792 --> 00:17:24,000 at the bank. 406 00:17:24,000 --> 00:17:27,250 He would be on vacation not getting yelled at. 407 00:17:27,250 --> 00:17:31,750 And my favorite is the ticket counter at the airlines. 408 00:17:31,750 --> 00:17:34,583 There should be an IQ test before you can get in 409 00:17:34,583 --> 00:17:36,292 the line at the airport. 410 00:17:36,292 --> 00:17:37,667 There should be. 411 00:17:37,667 --> 00:17:39,500 People come up-- I mean, it's amazing. 412 00:17:39,500 --> 00:17:41,167 "Where's my airplane?" 413 00:17:41,167 --> 00:17:44,000 You know, and the guy's like, "I went to community college. 414 00:17:44,000 --> 00:17:45,833 "There's not a string on the plane. 415 00:17:45,833 --> 00:17:48,167 "I can't just bring it down here for you. 416 00:17:48,167 --> 00:17:49,583 I don't know." 417 00:17:49,583 --> 00:17:51,875 My favorite is when people walk in they're like, 418 00:17:51,875 --> 00:17:53,292 "Where's my luggage?" 419 00:17:53,292 --> 00:17:56,667 You know, the guy's just looking at him like, "I wasn't in it. 420 00:17:56,667 --> 00:17:58,042 "I don't know. 421 00:17:58,042 --> 00:17:59,792 I don't know where your luggage is." 422 00:17:59,792 --> 00:18:01,292 "You stole my luggage!" 423 00:18:01,292 --> 00:18:03,000 "Yes, I had to have your underwear. 424 00:18:03,000 --> 00:18:04,375 I had to have it." 425 00:18:04,375 --> 00:18:06,167 But see, this is how it happens. 426 00:18:06,167 --> 00:18:08,167 And some of us have real powerful positions, 427 00:18:08,167 --> 00:18:10,667 some of us don't, but occasionally we get to be 428 00:18:10,667 --> 00:18:15,000 a powerful position person, meaning someone's our servant 429 00:18:15,000 --> 00:18:18,375 and man, we are going to give them decrees, 430 00:18:18,375 --> 00:18:20,583 we are going to lord it over them, 431 00:18:20,583 --> 00:18:22,875 we are going to make it hard for them. 432 00:18:22,875 --> 00:18:24,750 We're going to give orders to them. 433 00:18:24,750 --> 00:18:26,458 And Jesus says, "Not like that. 434 00:18:26,458 --> 00:18:28,667 "Not like that. 435 00:18:28,667 --> 00:18:31,792 Be a leader, pursue greatness, but not like that." 436 00:18:31,792 --> 00:18:33,250 And Jesus, himself, 437 00:18:33,250 --> 00:18:36,250 is the quintessential perfect example. 438 00:18:36,250 --> 00:18:37,875 He says elsewhere in the Bible, 439 00:18:37,875 --> 00:18:42,042 "I did not come to be served, 440 00:18:42,042 --> 00:18:44,167 but to serve." 441 00:18:44,167 --> 00:18:45,667 Wow. 442 00:18:45,667 --> 00:18:47,667 That's different. 443 00:18:47,667 --> 00:18:50,667 You don't hear a lot of people saying that 444 00:18:50,667 --> 00:18:53,500 who are rich and powerful. 445 00:18:53,500 --> 00:18:57,667 "I didn't come to be served, I came to serve." 446 00:18:57,667 --> 00:19:00,583 I mean, that's counter-cultural. 447 00:19:00,583 --> 00:19:03,167 That's kingdom language. 448 00:19:03,167 --> 00:19:06,292 That's not a God we invented. That God would be humble-- 449 00:19:06,292 --> 00:19:09,167 I mean, Jesus comes to the earth humbly. 450 00:19:09,167 --> 00:19:12,000 He's not born into a rich family, but a poor family. 451 00:19:12,000 --> 00:19:14,000 Not a big city, but a rural town. 452 00:19:14,000 --> 00:19:16,292 He grows up in obscurity, working as a carpenter 453 00:19:16,292 --> 00:19:18,667 with his dad for 30 years. 454 00:19:18,667 --> 00:19:20,292 That's humble. 455 00:19:20,292 --> 00:19:24,042 It's not a sin to make money, it's not a sin to have a title, 456 00:19:24,042 --> 00:19:26,792 it's not a sin to be in authority, but Jesus says, 457 00:19:26,792 --> 00:19:28,958 "Don't achieve that status in a worldly way. 458 00:19:28,958 --> 00:19:31,167 "And if you do achieve that status, 459 00:19:31,167 --> 00:19:33,583 "don't behave in a worldly way. 460 00:19:33,583 --> 00:19:36,167 "Pursue that status in a godly way, 461 00:19:36,167 --> 00:19:37,792 "and if you achieve that status, 462 00:19:37,792 --> 00:19:40,292 continue to operate in a godly way." 463 00:19:40,292 --> 00:19:47,083 And here's the big idea: Greatness is simply service. 464 00:19:47,083 --> 00:19:50,292 Greatness is simply service. 465 00:19:50,292 --> 00:19:53,667 And so Jesus says, you know, if you look at it and let's say 466 00:19:53,667 --> 00:19:58,292 there's a table and a meal and everyone's feasting and eating. 467 00:19:58,292 --> 00:20:01,375 Say you go to a really nice restaurant and the banquet room 468 00:20:01,375 --> 00:20:05,292 is reserved, to use the image that Jesus uses. 469 00:20:05,292 --> 00:20:07,167 You say, "Wow, look at all those people 470 00:20:07,167 --> 00:20:08,792 at this really nice restaurant." 471 00:20:08,792 --> 00:20:10,292 And they're sitting down. 472 00:20:10,292 --> 00:20:12,292 And all the servants and all the waiters 473 00:20:12,292 --> 00:20:14,292 and all the waitresses are waiting on them. 474 00:20:14,292 --> 00:20:17,500 You and I would look at that and say, "Those are great people." 475 00:20:17,500 --> 00:20:21,000 And Jesus says, "The waiter, the waitress, 476 00:20:21,000 --> 00:20:23,667 "if they're humbly serving to the glory of God, 477 00:20:23,667 --> 00:20:25,792 they are great." 478 00:20:25,792 --> 00:20:29,167 What they're doing is an act of worship. 479 00:20:29,167 --> 00:20:31,000 It is honoring. 480 00:20:31,000 --> 00:20:33,292 And Jesus said, "I came to the earth, 481 00:20:33,292 --> 00:20:36,500 not to sit at the table, but to be the waiter." 482 00:20:36,500 --> 00:20:38,750 See, this should affect practically, I'm telling you, 483 00:20:38,750 --> 00:20:42,000 this should even affect how we treat people when we go out 484 00:20:42,000 --> 00:20:45,375 to eat, when we employ them, when we deal with 485 00:20:45,375 --> 00:20:48,375 customer service opportunities. 486 00:20:48,375 --> 00:20:52,500 It means we shouldn't treat them like slaves and we're lords. 487 00:20:52,500 --> 00:20:55,250 We should treat them as image-bearers of God 488 00:20:55,250 --> 00:20:56,750 and we're servants. 489 00:20:56,750 --> 00:20:59,583 Even if they are serving us, we want to serve them 490 00:20:59,583 --> 00:21:01,875 with our attitude and our disposition, 491 00:21:01,875 --> 00:21:06,000 with our generosity and with our kindness. 492 00:21:06,000 --> 00:21:07,875 So Jesus says, "You know what? 493 00:21:07,875 --> 00:21:11,083 I'm not like the other leaders." 494 00:21:11,083 --> 00:21:12,792 And he's not. 495 00:21:12,792 --> 00:21:14,250 He's not. 496 00:21:14,250 --> 00:21:16,875 Now, for some of you, this is really new 497 00:21:16,875 --> 00:21:19,250 because you're new to Christianity. 498 00:21:19,250 --> 00:21:22,250 And it's going to take you a long time to learn this. 499 00:21:22,250 --> 00:21:24,750 And the truth is, even if you've been a Christian 500 00:21:24,750 --> 00:21:26,167 for a long time, 501 00:21:26,167 --> 00:21:28,167 we need to continually relearn this, because everything 502 00:21:28,167 --> 00:21:30,667 in our pride and our sinful nature and our culture 503 00:21:30,667 --> 00:21:36,083 propels us to be anything and everything but a servant. 504 00:21:36,083 --> 00:21:37,875 And Jesus says no, that's the essence, 505 00:21:37,875 --> 00:21:40,333 that is the essence of greatness. 506 00:21:40,333 --> 00:21:43,833 So, I put together a little list of questions for you. 507 00:21:43,833 --> 00:21:46,167 I want you to think about these, ponder these. 508 00:21:46,167 --> 00:21:47,542 We'll post these. 509 00:21:47,542 --> 00:21:50,042 You can discuss these with your family, friends, roommates, 510 00:21:50,042 --> 00:21:52,167 your Community Group. 511 00:21:52,167 --> 00:21:56,833 Want to think a little bit about godly greatness. 512 00:21:56,833 --> 00:22:00,375 So, number one, do you welcome Jesus to serve you? 513 00:22:00,375 --> 00:22:02,500 Now, this is really important. 514 00:22:02,500 --> 00:22:06,667 Don't make the mistake that so many people do and simply see 515 00:22:06,667 --> 00:22:10,667 Jesus as a great example but not a great God and Savior. 516 00:22:10,667 --> 00:22:13,167 What some people do, they'll look at Jesus and say, 517 00:22:13,167 --> 00:22:14,583 "He really served. 518 00:22:14,583 --> 00:22:17,083 I want to serve so I can be like Jesus." 519 00:22:17,083 --> 00:22:21,000 That's not a bad desire, but in and of itself it is-- 520 00:22:21,000 --> 00:22:23,500 it's a hopeless desire. 521 00:22:23,500 --> 00:22:26,375 Because see, you and I are sinners 522 00:22:26,375 --> 00:22:29,250 and Jesus came to serve us. 523 00:22:29,250 --> 00:22:33,250 And unless we allow Jesus to serve us, 524 00:22:33,250 --> 00:22:37,667 we can't truly serve God and we can't truly serve others, 525 00:22:37,667 --> 00:22:40,000 not in the way that Jesus serves us. 526 00:22:40,000 --> 00:22:42,167 So first things first, before you serve 527 00:22:42,167 --> 00:22:45,250 you must be served by Jesus. 528 00:22:45,250 --> 00:22:47,792 He served us by making the heavens and the earth. 529 00:22:47,792 --> 00:22:50,792 He served us by humbly entering into the creation he made 530 00:22:50,792 --> 00:22:53,875 as a human being to identify with us. 531 00:22:53,875 --> 00:22:56,292 He humbly served by living without sin. 532 00:22:56,292 --> 00:22:59,167 He humbly served by dying on the cross, 533 00:22:59,167 --> 00:23:02,000 paying the penalty for our sins. 534 00:23:02,000 --> 00:23:05,542 He humbly served by raising to conquer Satan, sin, death, hell, 535 00:23:05,542 --> 00:23:07,292 and the wrath of God. 536 00:23:07,292 --> 00:23:10,292 He humbly serves by giving salvation, giving grace, 537 00:23:10,292 --> 00:23:14,667 giving love, giving mercy, giving eternal life. 538 00:23:14,667 --> 00:23:16,583 Jesus loves to serve. 539 00:23:16,583 --> 00:23:20,667 Jesus just wasn't a servant, now he has ascended into heaven, 540 00:23:20,667 --> 00:23:23,667 he's King of kings, Lord of lords, he's in glory, 541 00:23:23,667 --> 00:23:26,292 he's the same yesterday, today, and forever. 542 00:23:26,292 --> 00:23:31,250 I have good news for you: He still delights in serving. 543 00:23:31,250 --> 00:23:32,792 He does. 544 00:23:32,792 --> 00:23:35,500 And so if you come to Jesus, he'll serve you. 545 00:23:35,500 --> 00:23:38,000 And for those of you who are not Christians, say, 546 00:23:38,000 --> 00:23:39,375 "Where do I begin?" 547 00:23:39,375 --> 00:23:40,792 Jesus serves you. 548 00:23:40,792 --> 00:23:42,875 That's where Christianity begins. 549 00:23:42,875 --> 00:23:44,667 For those of you who are Christians, 550 00:23:44,667 --> 00:23:47,042 you know that Jesus serves you, but sometimes, friends, 551 00:23:47,042 --> 00:23:48,458 you're going to feel bad. 552 00:23:48,458 --> 00:23:51,458 You're going to say, "I've made a mess of this, I've sinned, 553 00:23:51,458 --> 00:23:53,458 "I made a mistake, I did it wrong, 554 00:23:53,458 --> 00:23:55,583 I'm embarrassed of how my life is." 555 00:23:55,583 --> 00:23:57,792 And what we try and do 556 00:23:57,792 --> 00:24:00,583 is get our life cleaned up and figured out 557 00:24:00,583 --> 00:24:03,792 so that we can come back to church and come back to Jesus 558 00:24:03,792 --> 00:24:05,667 and present our life. 559 00:24:05,667 --> 00:24:10,667 And that grieves Jesus because Jesus would say to you, 560 00:24:10,667 --> 00:24:14,042 "I want to serve. I like to serve. 561 00:24:14,042 --> 00:24:16,333 "I'm here to serve. 562 00:24:16,333 --> 00:24:18,083 "You're suffering? Come to me. 563 00:24:18,083 --> 00:24:19,583 "You're sinning? Come to me. 564 00:24:19,583 --> 00:24:22,167 "You're struggling? Come to me. 565 00:24:22,167 --> 00:24:24,458 I like to serve." 566 00:24:24,458 --> 00:24:26,667 You need to know this about Jesus. 567 00:24:26,667 --> 00:24:29,875 He delights in serving you, and when you come to him and say, 568 00:24:29,875 --> 00:24:33,042 "I need your help, I need your wisdom, your forgiveness. 569 00:24:33,042 --> 00:24:34,958 "I need your empowerment. 570 00:24:34,958 --> 00:24:37,292 I need your people." 571 00:24:37,292 --> 00:24:43,250 Jesus says, "I know. And I love you. 572 00:24:43,250 --> 00:24:46,000 And I like to serve." 573 00:24:46,000 --> 00:24:50,583 The heart of God is a heart of service and humility. 574 00:24:50,583 --> 00:24:56,000 The heart of God is a heart of service and humility. 575 00:24:56,000 --> 00:24:57,958 Jesus is never too busy for you 576 00:24:57,958 --> 00:25:00,667 and there's nothing he can't handle. 577 00:25:00,667 --> 00:25:03,292 See, I'll give you my perspective. 578 00:25:03,292 --> 00:25:05,083 I'm a dad. I've got five kids. 579 00:25:05,083 --> 00:25:06,792 I love my kids. 580 00:25:06,792 --> 00:25:09,500 I would never look at one of my kids and say, 581 00:25:09,500 --> 00:25:11,000 "Stuff's a mess in your life. 582 00:25:11,000 --> 00:25:12,375 "Figure it out. 583 00:25:12,375 --> 00:25:14,750 "When you get it together, come and show me 584 00:25:14,750 --> 00:25:16,750 so that I can be proud of you." 585 00:25:16,750 --> 00:25:18,167 I would never say that. 586 00:25:18,167 --> 00:25:23,083 I would tell my kids, "When it's the worst, run to me. 587 00:25:23,083 --> 00:25:25,333 "I want to help. I love you. 588 00:25:25,333 --> 00:25:28,500 "I'm here for you. I delight in you. 589 00:25:28,500 --> 00:25:32,792 "It's not a burden for me because of my affection for you. 590 00:25:32,792 --> 00:25:35,667 "Let me help! 591 00:25:35,667 --> 00:25:39,083 You need help and I want to help." 592 00:25:39,083 --> 00:25:41,083 That's the heart of God. 593 00:25:41,083 --> 00:25:43,375 So I don't know what you're struggling with, friend. 594 00:25:43,375 --> 00:25:44,875 I don't know what you're carrying. 595 00:25:44,875 --> 00:25:47,667 I don't know where you're hurting. 596 00:25:47,667 --> 00:25:49,250 Bring it to Jesus. 597 00:25:49,250 --> 00:25:51,750 Let him serve you. 598 00:25:51,750 --> 00:25:53,500 He wants to serve you. 599 00:25:53,500 --> 00:25:55,583 He likes to serve you. 600 00:25:55,583 --> 00:25:57,542 And you know what? 601 00:25:57,542 --> 00:26:02,167 Jesus doesn't regret serving any of us. 602 00:26:02,167 --> 00:26:05,667 He's not bitter about it, he's not frustrated by it. 603 00:26:05,667 --> 00:26:12,167 His heart is a heart of love and he loves to help. 604 00:26:12,167 --> 00:26:14,583 And so let him serve you. 605 00:26:14,583 --> 00:26:17,083 That's where it all begins. 606 00:26:17,083 --> 00:26:20,792 And as we allow Jesus to serve us, he gives us a new nature. 607 00:26:20,792 --> 00:26:22,583 He renews our mind. 608 00:26:22,583 --> 00:26:25,458 He gives us the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. 609 00:26:25,458 --> 00:26:27,458 We then get new desires where we say, 610 00:26:27,458 --> 00:26:31,042 "Man, Jesus serves me so humbly and well. 611 00:26:31,042 --> 00:26:34,833 "I want to learn how to serve others like Jesus served me. 612 00:26:34,833 --> 00:26:37,750 "Not so that God will love me, but because he already does. 613 00:26:37,750 --> 00:26:42,333 "Not because I have to, because I love Jesus and I get to. 614 00:26:42,333 --> 00:26:44,875 "Not so that other people would be impressed with me, 615 00:26:44,875 --> 00:26:50,167 but so that other people would experience his love through me." 616 00:26:50,167 --> 00:26:53,875 It all starts with being served by Jesus. 617 00:26:53,875 --> 00:26:56,875 Number two, do you humbly allow others to serve you? 618 00:26:56,875 --> 00:26:58,750 Now, some of you are this way. 619 00:26:58,750 --> 00:27:02,167 You say, "I like to serve; I don't like to be served." 620 00:27:02,167 --> 00:27:04,000 And so you're hard to serve. 621 00:27:04,000 --> 00:27:06,167 People say, "Oh, let me do that for you." 622 00:27:06,167 --> 00:27:07,875 "No, no, no, no, I got it." 623 00:27:07,875 --> 00:27:09,458 "Let me buy that for you." 624 00:27:09,458 --> 00:27:11,458 "No, no, no, no, I'll pay for it." 625 00:27:11,458 --> 00:27:13,000 Or they do something for you 626 00:27:13,000 --> 00:27:15,167 and then you have to do something for them. 627 00:27:15,167 --> 00:27:16,583 You can't just receive. 628 00:27:16,583 --> 00:27:19,583 They give something to you, you have to give something to them. 629 00:27:19,583 --> 00:27:24,667 One of the ways we serve is by allowing others to serve us. 630 00:27:24,667 --> 00:27:29,667 True or false: In his life, did Jesus allow others to serve him? 631 00:27:29,667 --> 00:27:32,042 He allowed others to serve him. 632 00:27:32,042 --> 00:27:34,875 His friends Mary, Martha, Lazarus, 633 00:27:34,875 --> 00:27:38,333 two sisters and a brother, he was often at their home. 634 00:27:38,333 --> 00:27:40,750 He would let them take care of him. 635 00:27:40,750 --> 00:27:44,083 They'd give him a place to sleep, they'd cook him a meal. 636 00:27:44,083 --> 00:27:50,083 He allowed them to serve him. 637 00:27:50,083 --> 00:27:54,833 Jesus did serve others, he did serve them humbly, 638 00:27:54,833 --> 00:27:57,083 but he allowed others to serve him, as well. 639 00:27:57,083 --> 00:27:59,083 Some of you are hard to married to, 640 00:27:59,083 --> 00:28:00,667 for a whole bunch of reasons. 641 00:28:00,667 --> 00:28:05,333 But one might be you project that you don't need anything, 642 00:28:05,333 --> 00:28:09,167 that you can take care of everything. 643 00:28:09,167 --> 00:28:12,542 The truth is, you're robbing your spouse of an opportunity 644 00:28:12,542 --> 00:28:15,167 to serve you, right? 645 00:28:15,167 --> 00:28:16,667 Some parents are like this. 646 00:28:16,667 --> 00:28:19,792 They do everything for the kids, they don't teach the kids to do 647 00:28:19,792 --> 00:28:21,167 anything for anybody else. 648 00:28:21,167 --> 00:28:22,667 That's how you get spoiled kids. 649 00:28:22,667 --> 00:28:27,292 Not just kids who are spoiled, but kids who are acting spoiled. 650 00:28:27,292 --> 00:28:29,083 Do you allow others to serve you? 651 00:28:29,083 --> 00:28:31,458 You know, you're going to see it coming up, 652 00:28:31,458 --> 00:28:33,167 but before he goes to the cross, 653 00:28:33,167 --> 00:28:35,792 Jesus allows a woman to serve him. 654 00:28:35,792 --> 00:28:39,083 She's a woman who comes to him, repenting of her sin, 655 00:28:39,083 --> 00:28:42,292 broken-hearted, she brings all of this perfume. 656 00:28:42,292 --> 00:28:44,167 Very expensive. 657 00:28:44,167 --> 00:28:46,875 She breaks it and she pours it over him. 658 00:28:46,875 --> 00:28:49,750 And all the disciples and those who are present, they say, 659 00:28:49,750 --> 00:28:55,000 "That's too much, that's too lavish, that's too expensive." 660 00:28:55,000 --> 00:28:57,375 And Jesus says, "I receive it. 661 00:28:57,375 --> 00:29:01,667 "I receive this generous gift and this deep expression 662 00:29:01,667 --> 00:29:05,292 "of sadness and sorrow over sin. 663 00:29:05,292 --> 00:29:08,500 "This woman wants to serve, 664 00:29:08,500 --> 00:29:12,000 I'm going to allow her to serve." 665 00:29:12,000 --> 00:29:14,458 It's great. 666 00:29:14,458 --> 00:29:18,167 See, that was a healing, cleansing moment for her. 667 00:29:18,167 --> 00:29:21,167 And Jesus welcomed that and he received that. 668 00:29:21,167 --> 00:29:24,167 That was a generous moment for her, but he welcomed that. 669 00:29:24,167 --> 00:29:26,000 He received that. 670 00:29:26,000 --> 00:29:28,500 And then he went to the cross and he died. 671 00:29:28,500 --> 00:29:31,000 And I believe that because of the amount of perfume 672 00:29:31,000 --> 00:29:32,375 that was upon him, 673 00:29:32,375 --> 00:29:35,042 the scent in the nostrils of Jesus was the gift 674 00:29:35,042 --> 00:29:38,375 from the repentant woman who was generous to him 675 00:29:38,375 --> 00:29:40,583 as he would have smelled that perfume 676 00:29:40,583 --> 00:29:43,792 as it was upon his skin. 677 00:29:43,792 --> 00:29:47,250 He allowed her to serve him. 678 00:29:47,250 --> 00:29:50,333 As well, Jesus humbly served others. 679 00:29:50,333 --> 00:29:53,083 There's an occasion in the Bible where he takes the position 680 00:29:53,083 --> 00:29:54,583 of a servant or slave. 681 00:29:54,583 --> 00:29:57,583 They'd been walking on the road and, if you know the story, 682 00:29:57,583 --> 00:30:00,292 the roads are dirt and people tread on them and animals 683 00:30:00,292 --> 00:30:03,292 and there's feces and junk and mud and it's gross. 684 00:30:03,292 --> 00:30:06,667 And you wear sandals and it gets in your feet and under your toes 685 00:30:06,667 --> 00:30:08,542 and it's really nasty. 686 00:30:08,542 --> 00:30:10,958 And when you'd come into someone's home what they 687 00:30:10,958 --> 00:30:13,792 would do as an act of hospitality is clean your feet. 688 00:30:13,792 --> 00:30:17,542 Not them, but rather their servant or slave. 689 00:30:17,542 --> 00:30:20,583 There's an occasion in the Bible where Jesus is eating with his 690 00:30:20,583 --> 00:30:26,375 disciples and others and no one volunteers to clean the feet. 691 00:30:26,375 --> 00:30:28,000 So what does Jesus do? 692 00:30:28,000 --> 00:30:30,083 Gets a basin of water and a towel, 693 00:30:30,083 --> 00:30:33,083 and he starts cleaning his disciples' feet. 694 00:30:33,083 --> 00:30:39,542 God is cleaning the feet of his disciples. 695 00:30:39,542 --> 00:30:45,500 So Jesus does serve, and he allows others to serve him. 696 00:30:45,500 --> 00:30:47,875 Do you allow others to serve you? 697 00:30:47,875 --> 00:30:50,667 Because a servant is not just one who serves, 698 00:30:50,667 --> 00:30:53,667 but allows others to serve them. 699 00:30:53,667 --> 00:30:55,500 Imagine if I told Grace, my wife, 700 00:30:55,500 --> 00:30:58,667 who has the spiritual gift of service, "I don't need anything. 701 00:30:58,667 --> 00:31:01,000 "You can't do anything for me. 702 00:31:01,000 --> 00:31:05,292 There's no place in my life for you to make a contribution." 703 00:31:05,292 --> 00:31:07,583 It would destroy her. 704 00:31:07,583 --> 00:31:09,792 Number three, do you humbly serve others 705 00:31:09,792 --> 00:31:12,750 with selfless motives? 706 00:31:12,750 --> 00:31:14,375 With selfless motives? 707 00:31:14,375 --> 00:31:17,792 Now the truth is, we never have entirely pure motives, right? 708 00:31:17,792 --> 00:31:20,875 But when you serve, is it, "I'm going to get a promotion! 709 00:31:20,875 --> 00:31:22,667 "I'm going to get a raise! 710 00:31:22,667 --> 00:31:25,667 "I'm going to get a boyfriend! I'm going to get a girlfriend! 711 00:31:25,667 --> 00:31:28,667 "I'm going to get a husband! I'm going to get a wife! 712 00:31:28,667 --> 00:31:30,167 "I'm going to get a trophy! 713 00:31:30,167 --> 00:31:32,167 "I'm going to get some sort of award! 714 00:31:32,167 --> 00:31:33,583 "I'm going to get recognition! 715 00:31:33,583 --> 00:31:35,333 "I'm going to get a thank-you card! 716 00:31:35,333 --> 00:31:37,083 I'm going to get an 'atta boy'!" 717 00:31:37,083 --> 00:31:40,167 If it's only for that, that's not the heart of a servant. 718 00:31:40,167 --> 00:31:42,167 It's not bad to get a "thank you," 719 00:31:42,167 --> 00:31:43,958 it's not bad to get a promotion, 720 00:31:43,958 --> 00:31:45,958 it's not bad to get an "atta boy." 721 00:31:45,958 --> 00:31:47,958 But if that's what you're in it for, 722 00:31:47,958 --> 00:31:49,958 you're not having the attitude of a servant. 723 00:31:49,958 --> 00:31:52,583 And you can tell because when those things don't happen, 724 00:31:52,583 --> 00:31:55,500 do you stop serving and/or do you get bitter? 725 00:31:55,500 --> 00:31:57,167 "They didn't even say thank you! 726 00:31:57,167 --> 00:32:00,083 "They didn't even send a thank-you card! 727 00:32:00,083 --> 00:32:02,667 "They didn't even notice that I did that! 728 00:32:02,667 --> 00:32:04,167 "I've been doing that forever 729 00:32:04,167 --> 00:32:06,583 and they've never even recognized it!" 730 00:32:06,583 --> 00:32:11,875 Ah, so it's about you and your glory and you're not 731 00:32:11,875 --> 00:32:16,792 being glorified and so now your wrath is coming. 732 00:32:18,833 --> 00:32:22,667 There will be times that people, quite frankly, 733 00:32:22,667 --> 00:32:25,667 should have said thank you, and they won't. 734 00:32:25,667 --> 00:32:29,750 Or they should acknowledge your contribution, and they don't. 735 00:32:29,750 --> 00:32:32,958 And those are opportunities for the essence of our character, 736 00:32:32,958 --> 00:32:34,958 our true heart, to be revealed. 737 00:32:34,958 --> 00:32:38,458 Do I say, "Well, that's okay, I love the Lord and I love people 738 00:32:38,458 --> 00:32:40,958 and I'm trying to honor the Lord and help people," 739 00:32:40,958 --> 00:32:43,667 or do we become sad or bitter or angry or frustrated 740 00:32:43,667 --> 00:32:47,375 or do we quit? 741 00:32:47,375 --> 00:32:50,583 That's why sometimes people struggle with serving 742 00:32:50,583 --> 00:32:54,500 because there's no pay in it, there's no remuneration. 743 00:32:54,500 --> 00:32:58,000 I think that's even part of the situation that causes 744 00:32:58,000 --> 00:33:00,375 churches to struggle. 745 00:33:00,375 --> 00:33:02,958 People say, "I get paid to do my job, 746 00:33:02,958 --> 00:33:06,458 "but I'm not volunteering any of my time in an unpaid capacity 747 00:33:06,458 --> 00:33:08,250 "because what do I get from it? 748 00:33:08,250 --> 00:33:10,083 There's no remuneration." 749 00:33:10,083 --> 00:33:12,792 There are other people that have the attitude of a servant 750 00:33:12,792 --> 00:33:14,333 and they say, "You know what? 751 00:33:14,333 --> 00:33:16,833 "Love Jesus, love his people, love the city I'm in, 752 00:33:16,833 --> 00:33:19,333 "I want to make a difference, I want to help, 753 00:33:19,333 --> 00:33:22,000 "so I'm going to give a certain percentage of my money, 754 00:33:22,000 --> 00:33:25,667 my time, my skill set, for the Kingdom of God." 755 00:33:25,667 --> 00:33:28,833 And this is where the motivation for the Christian is not 756 00:33:28,833 --> 00:33:32,167 the compensation, but the affection. 757 00:33:32,167 --> 00:33:34,750 Say, "Whether it pays or doesn't pay, I love Jesus, 758 00:33:34,750 --> 00:33:38,375 "I love people, I want to make a difference. 759 00:33:38,375 --> 00:33:40,250 I want to make a difference." 760 00:33:40,250 --> 00:33:44,750 This is why even a ministry like ours is really different 761 00:33:44,750 --> 00:33:46,167 than a job. 762 00:33:46,167 --> 00:33:49,167 How many of you, if you went to work tomorrow, let's say, 763 00:33:49,167 --> 00:33:52,292 and your boss said, "I have bad news and I have good news." 764 00:33:52,292 --> 00:33:54,500 You say, "Okay, give me the bad news first." 765 00:33:54,500 --> 00:33:56,000 "We cannot afford to pay you." 766 00:33:56,000 --> 00:33:57,375 "Okay, what's the good news?" 767 00:33:57,375 --> 00:34:00,833 "You can still have your job." 768 00:34:00,833 --> 00:34:04,167 You'd say, "No thanks." 769 00:34:04,167 --> 00:34:08,000 But if you love Jesus and you love his people and God's placed 770 00:34:08,000 --> 00:34:10,375 a desire to help some people on your heart, 771 00:34:10,375 --> 00:34:13,667 you walk into the church and you say, "I want to help. 772 00:34:13,667 --> 00:34:15,500 Give me a place to help." 773 00:34:15,500 --> 00:34:17,000 Alright. 774 00:34:17,000 --> 00:34:19,500 People don't do this for corporations, right? 775 00:34:19,500 --> 00:34:21,458 How many of you? You run a company. 776 00:34:21,458 --> 00:34:23,792 There's not a lot of people coming in saying, 777 00:34:23,792 --> 00:34:27,083 "I have 10 hours a week I'd like to give." 778 00:34:27,083 --> 00:34:31,458 Because what compels the Christian is affection 779 00:34:31,458 --> 00:34:34,583 for God and affection for people, 780 00:34:34,583 --> 00:34:38,667 not just compensation for work that is done. 781 00:34:38,667 --> 00:34:42,333 It's not a sin to make money, it's not a sin to be a leader, 782 00:34:42,333 --> 00:34:45,292 it's not a sin to have a position of authority. 783 00:34:45,292 --> 00:34:48,167 But Jesus wants to know why? 784 00:34:48,167 --> 00:34:52,000 What's the deep underlying root motivation? 785 00:34:52,000 --> 00:34:54,792 Number four, are you willing to do menial tasks? 786 00:34:54,792 --> 00:34:57,667 And what's interesting here is Jesus uses the word "servant" 787 00:34:57,667 --> 00:34:59,083 and "serving." 788 00:34:59,083 --> 00:35:01,667 It's the same root word in the Greek text that 789 00:35:01,667 --> 00:35:03,875 the New Testament was originally written in, for "deacon." 790 00:35:03,875 --> 00:35:06,083 These are male and female leaders in our church. 791 00:35:06,083 --> 00:35:08,292 They lead by serving. 792 00:35:08,292 --> 00:35:11,667 Menial tasks, simple takes, humble tasks. 793 00:35:11,667 --> 00:35:14,667 That's where you know if you're a servant, right? 794 00:35:14,667 --> 00:35:18,500 If it's public and if it's praise-worthy and if it's 795 00:35:18,500 --> 00:35:20,500 a big deal, it's not so hard. 796 00:35:20,500 --> 00:35:23,667 The menial stuff, right, Mom? 797 00:35:23,667 --> 00:35:26,167 How many moms are in the house? 798 00:35:26,167 --> 00:35:31,875 Part of the job of a mom is to do the menial tasks, right? 799 00:35:31,875 --> 00:35:34,833 And sometimes this means it's outside of your spiritual gift. 800 00:35:34,833 --> 00:35:37,500 Sometimes God does give us spiritual gifts, 801 00:35:37,500 --> 00:35:40,000 innate capacities to do things, but sometimes that gives us 802 00:35:40,000 --> 00:35:43,000 an excuse to not do things that we don't want to do. 803 00:35:43,000 --> 00:35:44,667 "Well, that's not my gift." 804 00:35:44,667 --> 00:35:48,667 I've never met a mom who says, "My gift is poop-cleaning. 805 00:35:48,667 --> 00:35:50,083 "That's my gift. 806 00:35:50,083 --> 00:35:52,792 "And now this child has provided this amazing opportunity for my 807 00:35:52,792 --> 00:35:56,542 "gift to be fully utilized 30 or 40 times a day. 808 00:35:56,542 --> 00:35:59,167 It's fascinating." 809 00:35:59,167 --> 00:36:00,667 You know what a mom does? 810 00:36:00,667 --> 00:36:05,583 A mom does--a good mom does whatever needs to be done. 811 00:36:05,583 --> 00:36:10,500 Wipe the nose, clean the diaper, burp the kid, feed the kid, 812 00:36:10,500 --> 00:36:12,958 change the kid, get puked on by the kid, 813 00:36:12,958 --> 00:36:14,500 repeat the whole process. 814 00:36:14,500 --> 00:36:16,167 That's what a mom does. 815 00:36:16,167 --> 00:36:18,083 Three in the morning, she gets up. 816 00:36:18,083 --> 00:36:23,458 She doesn't say, "Hello, I work 9-5, it's 3 A.M." 817 00:36:23,458 --> 00:36:25,750 A mom does whatever needs to be done. 818 00:36:25,750 --> 00:36:28,333 The essence of motherhood is the essence of service. 819 00:36:28,333 --> 00:36:31,250 And here he is saying that God's people should all aspire 820 00:36:31,250 --> 00:36:32,958 to the heart of a deacon. 821 00:36:32,958 --> 00:36:34,750 That's a servant. Menial tasks. 822 00:36:34,750 --> 00:36:36,167 And I'll tell you what. 823 00:36:36,167 --> 00:36:39,292 For me this is convicting 'cause I feel like I tend to do 824 00:36:39,292 --> 00:36:40,792 pretty good at the big stuff. 825 00:36:40,792 --> 00:36:43,292 I pay the bills and take care of the family 826 00:36:43,292 --> 00:36:45,583 and look after everybody and keep everything organized. 827 00:36:45,583 --> 00:36:47,833 It's the little daily menial decisions 828 00:36:47,833 --> 00:36:50,667 that sometimes I fail at. 829 00:36:50,667 --> 00:36:54,292 Like yesterday, I'll give you an example. 830 00:36:54,292 --> 00:36:56,375 Traveled this weekend, got home, 831 00:36:56,375 --> 00:36:58,833 and it was really sunny and nice out yesterday. 832 00:36:58,833 --> 00:37:01,958 And so I was laying out on a hammock. 833 00:37:01,958 --> 00:37:04,792 It was wonderful. 834 00:37:04,792 --> 00:37:07,083 And Gideon, my 5-year-old son comes up, 835 00:37:07,083 --> 00:37:10,167 "Hey Dad, want to play Legos?" 836 00:37:10,167 --> 00:37:13,167 "Uh..." 837 00:37:14,583 --> 00:37:18,000 'Cause see, he's 5, so he's really into Legos. 838 00:37:18,000 --> 00:37:22,375 I'm 40, I'm really into hammocks, right? 839 00:37:22,375 --> 00:37:26,792 So we have a real dilemma 'cause I would need to get off 840 00:37:26,792 --> 00:37:30,375 the hammock to do the Legos. 841 00:37:30,375 --> 00:37:33,042 Those are the points where I struggle. 842 00:37:33,042 --> 00:37:34,792 If he came to me and said, 843 00:37:34,792 --> 00:37:36,667 "Dad, help me with a theological question. 844 00:37:36,667 --> 00:37:38,500 Dad, help me to find a career." 845 00:37:38,500 --> 00:37:40,000 Yes! 846 00:37:40,000 --> 00:37:44,667 "Get off the hammock..." 847 00:37:44,667 --> 00:37:46,292 "I'm preaching tomorrow so I will, 848 00:37:46,292 --> 00:37:49,875 but normally I don't know if I would." 849 00:37:49,875 --> 00:37:52,042 That's the heart of hypocrisy in me. 850 00:37:52,042 --> 00:37:55,292 Sometimes it's the menial stuff. 851 00:37:55,292 --> 00:37:59,167 Number five, are you lazy or disorganized? 852 00:37:59,167 --> 00:38:00,792 You say, "I don't know." 853 00:38:00,792 --> 00:38:03,458 Then the answer is yes. 854 00:38:03,458 --> 00:38:06,958 I hate to break it to you. 855 00:38:06,958 --> 00:38:10,292 If you're lazy, you're not going to be a good servant, right? 856 00:38:10,292 --> 00:38:11,750 You're just not. 857 00:38:11,750 --> 00:38:13,583 'Cause you're not going to inconvenience yourself 858 00:38:13,583 --> 00:38:15,083 and go the extra mile. 859 00:38:15,083 --> 00:38:18,083 And if you're disorganized, you may be serving a lot of people 860 00:38:18,083 --> 00:38:19,500 but not very effectively. 861 00:38:19,500 --> 00:38:21,500 You may be doing a lot of things, 862 00:38:21,500 --> 00:38:23,000 but maybe not the right things. 863 00:38:23,000 --> 00:38:25,167 Your priorities are out of order. 864 00:38:25,167 --> 00:38:29,000 One way you can serve better is by not being lazy, 865 00:38:29,000 --> 00:38:32,292 repenting of that if it's a sin for you, and getting organized. 866 00:38:32,292 --> 00:38:35,292 "Okay God, who am I and what am I supposed to do 867 00:38:35,292 --> 00:38:37,792 "and where do you want me to focus my energies? 868 00:38:37,792 --> 00:38:39,583 And let me put first things first." 869 00:38:39,583 --> 00:38:43,833 Number six, is your life marked more by giving or getting? 870 00:38:43,833 --> 00:38:46,542 Giving and getting, this is really important 871 00:38:46,542 --> 00:38:48,750 because for most people it's all about getting. 872 00:38:48,750 --> 00:38:52,292 Are you consumed and primarily motivated by what you get? 873 00:38:52,292 --> 00:38:56,500 Praise, money, power, possessions? 874 00:38:56,500 --> 00:38:58,583 That motivates you, that's what you're thinking about, 875 00:38:58,583 --> 00:39:01,375 that's what you're consumed by, and if you don't get it 876 00:39:01,375 --> 00:39:03,167 you're devastated. 877 00:39:03,167 --> 00:39:05,875 Or are you primarily motivated by giving? 878 00:39:05,875 --> 00:39:08,542 "I can give my money to this person or this cause. 879 00:39:08,542 --> 00:39:09,958 "I can help these people. 880 00:39:09,958 --> 00:39:12,333 I could serve in these ways." 881 00:39:12,333 --> 00:39:13,875 What gets you happiest? 882 00:39:13,875 --> 00:39:15,583 What motivates you most? 883 00:39:15,583 --> 00:39:18,667 What devastates you and why? 884 00:39:18,667 --> 00:39:20,500 I'll give you one simple example. 885 00:39:20,500 --> 00:39:23,542 I was talking to a ministry leader from another church 886 00:39:23,542 --> 00:39:26,292 recently, and I won't name the church or the leader 887 00:39:26,292 --> 00:39:27,875 'cause they didn't want that. 888 00:39:27,875 --> 00:39:30,167 I said to them, in a conversation, I asked, 889 00:39:30,167 --> 00:39:32,500 "So what's got you most excited lately? 890 00:39:32,500 --> 00:39:34,167 "Tell me the coolest thing that's happened 891 00:39:34,167 --> 00:39:36,292 or what you're most encouraged by." 892 00:39:36,292 --> 00:39:38,000 He said, "It's not a big deal. 893 00:39:38,000 --> 00:39:40,667 "I don't want to talk about it. It's kind of personal." 894 00:39:40,667 --> 00:39:42,667 I said, "No, tell me a good story." 895 00:39:42,667 --> 00:39:45,458 He said, "Well, I've always wanted a certain kind of car 896 00:39:45,458 --> 00:39:46,833 "and I finally got it. 897 00:39:46,833 --> 00:39:48,875 "Like this vehicle I wanted. 898 00:39:48,875 --> 00:39:52,292 "And I was driving it and I was enjoying it and I've had it 899 00:39:52,292 --> 00:39:55,292 "for awhile, then I felt like God talked to me and said, 900 00:39:55,292 --> 00:39:58,083 'You know that person--'" I think it was a single mom, 901 00:39:58,083 --> 00:39:59,583 if I remember the story correct. 902 00:39:59,583 --> 00:40:03,083 "'She really needs a car and I want you to give her your car.'" 903 00:40:03,083 --> 00:40:06,167 And he said, "I was bummed, like, how about, like, 904 00:40:06,167 --> 00:40:10,250 "I could get a junky car or we maybe have an old or I could 905 00:40:10,250 --> 00:40:13,250 "find somebody who's throwing away a car and I could give it 906 00:40:13,250 --> 00:40:15,583 to the single mom to the glory of God." 907 00:40:15,583 --> 00:40:20,750 And the Holy Spirit just impressed on him, "No, give." 908 00:40:20,750 --> 00:40:22,583 So he said, "That's what I did. 909 00:40:22,583 --> 00:40:25,583 "I drove the car to the house and I signed the title 910 00:40:25,583 --> 00:40:27,083 and I handed her the keys." 911 00:40:27,083 --> 00:40:31,083 And he said, "To see her joy and the joy of her child," he said, 912 00:40:31,083 --> 00:40:34,375 "That's the happiest I've been in years." 913 00:40:34,375 --> 00:40:36,000 Jesus says it this way, 914 00:40:36,000 --> 00:40:41,000 "It's more blessed to give than receive." 915 00:40:41,000 --> 00:40:44,667 Is it a sin to have a car? Is it a sin to make money? 916 00:40:44,667 --> 00:40:46,042 No, it's not. 917 00:40:46,042 --> 00:40:48,375 But there's joy in sharing, there's joy in giving. 918 00:40:48,375 --> 00:40:49,792 There just is. 919 00:40:49,792 --> 00:40:52,083 That's why some of the most miserable people are 920 00:40:52,083 --> 00:40:53,792 some of the most greedy people. 921 00:40:53,792 --> 00:40:55,583 And some of the most joyful people 922 00:40:55,583 --> 00:40:58,750 are some of the most generous people. 923 00:40:58,750 --> 00:41:00,292 Do you love to give? 924 00:41:00,292 --> 00:41:05,083 See, the Bible says that God so loved the world he gave. 925 00:41:07,042 --> 00:41:10,083 See, it's an act of love to give. 926 00:41:10,083 --> 00:41:15,833 You parents, on Christmas, are you happiest opening your gift 927 00:41:15,833 --> 00:41:18,750 or watching your kids open their gifts? 928 00:41:18,750 --> 00:41:20,375 It's easy, right? 929 00:41:20,375 --> 00:41:22,292 Oh yeah, when they open their gifts 930 00:41:22,292 --> 00:41:23,750 that's way more interesting. 931 00:41:23,750 --> 00:41:29,167 Grandparents, on Christmas, your happiest moment, is it, 932 00:41:29,167 --> 00:41:30,958 "I got to open my gift!" 933 00:41:30,958 --> 00:41:34,375 Or, "I got to watch the grandkids open their gifts"? 934 00:41:34,375 --> 00:41:36,667 See, a servant has the heart of God. 935 00:41:36,667 --> 00:41:38,250 A servant delights to give. 936 00:41:38,250 --> 00:41:41,042 A servant finds joy not just in what they get, 937 00:41:41,042 --> 00:41:44,375 but watching others get. 938 00:41:44,375 --> 00:41:48,167 That's the heart of generosity. 939 00:41:48,167 --> 00:41:50,875 Number seven, would you rather achieve a status 940 00:41:50,875 --> 00:41:53,667 or make a difference? 941 00:41:53,667 --> 00:41:55,583 Achieve a status or make a difference? 942 00:41:55,583 --> 00:41:57,667 It's not a sin to become a leader, 943 00:41:57,667 --> 00:42:00,583 to be called the president or the pastor of something, 944 00:42:00,583 --> 00:42:04,000 or the CEO or the CFO or whatever it is. 945 00:42:04,000 --> 00:42:08,167 It's not a sin, but there's something more important 946 00:42:08,167 --> 00:42:11,292 than achieving a status, and that's making a difference. 947 00:42:11,292 --> 00:42:13,792 See, during his earthly life, Jesus never held 948 00:42:13,792 --> 00:42:16,500 a political office, he was never the head of a company, 949 00:42:16,500 --> 00:42:19,750 he never ran any official organization, 950 00:42:19,750 --> 00:42:23,750 he never achieved or accomplished a particular degree 951 00:42:23,750 --> 00:42:26,083 from a noteworthy institution. 952 00:42:26,083 --> 00:42:29,083 He didn't achieve a status, but you know what he did? 953 00:42:29,083 --> 00:42:31,500 He made a difference. 954 00:42:31,500 --> 00:42:34,292 Has he made a difference in your life? 955 00:42:34,292 --> 00:42:36,875 Still making a difference, right? 956 00:42:36,875 --> 00:42:39,167 Ascended in heaven right now he's making a difference 957 00:42:39,167 --> 00:42:40,750 in your life and mine. 958 00:42:40,750 --> 00:42:46,000 Jesus has made the biggest difference in my life, by far. 959 00:42:46,000 --> 00:42:49,792 And you and I, Jesus, I think he would encourage us as we're 960 00:42:49,792 --> 00:42:53,167 thinking about a worldly and a godly way to pursue greatness 961 00:42:53,167 --> 00:42:57,667 and leadership and influence, he'd say if it's all about your 962 00:42:57,667 --> 00:43:01,042 status and what you put on your resume and your title and where 963 00:43:01,042 --> 00:43:04,000 you're at on the org chart, you're probably going to end up 964 00:43:04,000 --> 00:43:05,583 in the wrong place. 965 00:43:05,583 --> 00:43:09,667 If it's all about making a difference, helping people, 966 00:43:09,667 --> 00:43:12,000 making an impact in their life, 967 00:43:12,000 --> 00:43:14,083 you may or may not get the title. 968 00:43:14,083 --> 00:43:17,542 You may or may not be in a certain place on the org chart. 969 00:43:17,542 --> 00:43:19,542 But who cares? 970 00:43:19,542 --> 00:43:26,375 At Mars Hill, there are thousands of servants. 971 00:43:26,375 --> 00:43:30,667 They may not achieve a status, you may not know their name, 972 00:43:30,667 --> 00:43:34,292 but they make a difference, right? 973 00:43:34,292 --> 00:43:36,667 I'll tell you the group that comes to mind: 974 00:43:36,667 --> 00:43:38,333 the Community Group leaders. 975 00:43:38,333 --> 00:43:40,833 Do you know, if you're not in a Community Group, 976 00:43:40,833 --> 00:43:43,167 we have Community Groups, you should get in one. 977 00:43:43,167 --> 00:43:44,583 There's about 500 Community Groups. 978 00:43:44,583 --> 00:43:46,500 Now, to become a Community Group leader, 979 00:43:46,500 --> 00:43:49,500 as one example of servants in Mars Hill who make a difference, 980 00:43:49,500 --> 00:43:52,667 they have to become a member of the church, which takes a while, 981 00:43:52,667 --> 00:43:55,167 and then they have to apprentice under a Group leader 982 00:43:55,167 --> 00:43:58,000 as a volunteer, and then they have to open their home, 983 00:43:58,000 --> 00:44:00,875 they have to open their fridge, they have to open their 984 00:44:00,875 --> 00:44:03,667 schedule, they have to open their heart and open their life 985 00:44:03,667 --> 00:44:05,667 and open their wallet and welcome people in. 986 00:44:05,667 --> 00:44:07,542 Some of them they don't even like. 987 00:44:07,542 --> 00:44:09,875 They love them, but it's hard to like them. 988 00:44:09,875 --> 00:44:12,167 And they welcome in their neighbors and Christians 989 00:44:12,167 --> 00:44:13,667 and non-Christians. 990 00:44:13,667 --> 00:44:16,000 And when people are hurting they pray for them. 991 00:44:16,000 --> 00:44:18,375 And when people are in the hospital they visit them. 992 00:44:18,375 --> 00:44:21,667 And when the mom is pregnant, they throw a shower for her. 993 00:44:21,667 --> 00:44:24,958 And when the baby is born, they bring meals to her. 994 00:44:24,958 --> 00:44:27,875 And as there are needs they give generously and they help 995 00:44:27,875 --> 00:44:31,375 and they care and they serve and they pour out hours every week. 996 00:44:31,375 --> 00:44:32,958 And you know what? 997 00:44:32,958 --> 00:44:35,667 They do it 'cause they love people. 998 00:44:35,667 --> 00:44:38,583 They do it because they have the heart of Jesus. 999 00:44:38,583 --> 00:44:41,667 They do it because they want to make a difference. 1000 00:44:41,667 --> 00:44:44,667 There are other places they could put their time and their 1001 00:44:44,667 --> 00:44:47,750 money and their ability, maybe even in a place where they 1002 00:44:47,750 --> 00:44:49,500 could have a title and a position. 1003 00:44:49,500 --> 00:44:52,667 But what they decide is, "I want to make a difference. 1004 00:44:52,667 --> 00:44:54,750 I want to help somebody." 1005 00:44:54,750 --> 00:44:56,750 And they get to see people become Christians 1006 00:44:56,750 --> 00:44:58,167 on their couch. 1007 00:44:58,167 --> 00:45:00,167 They get to see lives changed. 1008 00:45:00,167 --> 00:45:04,792 They get to see people maturing in Christ. 1009 00:45:04,792 --> 00:45:08,083 We could do a better job as a church 1010 00:45:08,083 --> 00:45:11,667 of just simply saying thank you, right? 1011 00:45:11,667 --> 00:45:14,667 We want to seek greatness; we want to seek godly greatness. 1012 00:45:14,667 --> 00:45:17,167 And when we see those who are seeking godly greatness, 1013 00:45:17,167 --> 00:45:20,458 here's what I would encourage us all to grow in the habit 1014 00:45:20,458 --> 00:45:22,667 of doing: saying thanks. 1015 00:45:22,667 --> 00:45:24,833 Otherwise what happens is we have a worldly mindset 1016 00:45:24,833 --> 00:45:26,250 when it comes to church. 1017 00:45:26,250 --> 00:45:31,292 We walk in and we don't remember all these people are servants. 1018 00:45:31,292 --> 00:45:33,083 They're brothers and sisters. 1019 00:45:33,083 --> 00:45:35,375 Hardly any of them are paid. 1020 00:45:35,375 --> 00:45:37,667 They're all just doing this 'cause they love me 1021 00:45:37,667 --> 00:45:40,375 and they love us and they love our city. 1022 00:45:40,375 --> 00:45:42,833 And so we can't even walk into church saying, 1023 00:45:42,833 --> 00:45:45,500 "Well, I don't feel like that was up to par. 1024 00:45:45,500 --> 00:45:47,542 I don't like the way I was served." 1025 00:45:47,542 --> 00:45:49,333 It was free! 1026 00:45:49,333 --> 00:45:52,042 For free it was incredible! 1027 00:45:52,042 --> 00:45:53,458 Right? 1028 00:45:53,458 --> 00:45:54,875 It was incredible. 1029 00:45:54,875 --> 00:45:56,875 So on your way out, thank the greeters, 1030 00:45:56,875 --> 00:45:58,750 thank the people at the info desk. 1031 00:45:58,750 --> 00:46:01,167 If you've got kids, hey, thank the security guard, 1032 00:46:01,167 --> 00:46:03,000 thank the Sunday School workers. 1033 00:46:03,000 --> 00:46:04,792 If you go to a Community Group, 1034 00:46:04,792 --> 00:46:06,167 thank the leader. 1035 00:46:06,167 --> 00:46:08,000 Thank the band. Thank everybody. 1036 00:46:08,000 --> 00:46:09,500 We can encourage. 1037 00:46:09,500 --> 00:46:13,042 And for those of you who are here and you're serving, 1038 00:46:13,042 --> 00:46:18,167 I want you to hear from the heart of Jesus, "Thank you." 1039 00:46:18,167 --> 00:46:20,500 Be encouraged. 1040 00:46:20,500 --> 00:46:24,000 And Jesus tells us one motivating factor to maintain 1041 00:46:24,000 --> 00:46:27,167 our encouragement as servants, 1042 00:46:27,167 --> 00:46:31,167 and that is to seek eternal greatness. 1043 00:46:31,167 --> 00:46:33,042 Eternal greatness. 1044 00:46:33,042 --> 00:46:36,042 Luke 22:28-30, "You are those who have stayed with me in my 1045 00:46:36,042 --> 00:46:39,250 "trials, and I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, 1046 00:46:39,250 --> 00:46:42,792 "a kingdom, that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom 1047 00:46:42,792 --> 00:46:45,292 and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel." 1048 00:46:45,292 --> 00:46:47,000 Here's what Jesus is saying. 1049 00:46:47,000 --> 00:46:50,333 This life is not all there is to your life. 1050 00:46:50,333 --> 00:46:53,333 We need to think in a godly way, not a worldly way. 1051 00:46:53,333 --> 00:46:57,500 That being I need to be all I can be and get all I can get 1052 00:46:57,500 --> 00:47:01,500 and do all I can do and receive my glory so that in this life 1053 00:47:01,500 --> 00:47:04,167 I can sit on my little throne. 1054 00:47:04,167 --> 00:47:07,583 Maybe it's just a corner office or it's a comfy chair at 1055 00:47:07,583 --> 00:47:11,083 your house, whatever your throne is, the goal is not to sit 1056 00:47:11,083 --> 00:47:15,500 on a throne in this life; the goal is to wait, 1057 00:47:15,500 --> 00:47:19,583 to wait for the seat that Jesus would assign us in the kingdom. 1058 00:47:19,583 --> 00:47:22,167 That's what he's saying. 1059 00:47:22,167 --> 00:47:25,083 He's saying, "You're going to die and then you're going to 1060 00:47:25,083 --> 00:47:28,375 rise and you're going to enter into an eternal kingdom." 1061 00:47:28,375 --> 00:47:31,167 And that kingdom is going to be like a huge feast. 1062 00:47:31,167 --> 00:47:32,875 Do you like to feast? 1063 00:47:32,875 --> 00:47:34,583 Do you like a nice dinner party? 1064 00:47:34,583 --> 00:47:36,958 You like it when somebody else pays for it? 1065 00:47:36,958 --> 00:47:38,667 That's called the kingdom of God. 1066 00:47:38,667 --> 00:47:41,958 And Jesus is going to have this huge feast and all the saints 1067 00:47:41,958 --> 00:47:46,167 from all the nations and all the tribes and all the tongues 1068 00:47:46,167 --> 00:47:48,875 from all the ages will gather together and feast. 1069 00:47:48,875 --> 00:47:51,875 You know who's going to be at the head of the table? 1070 00:47:51,875 --> 00:47:53,292 Jesus. 1071 00:47:53,292 --> 00:47:55,792 This stupid argument will be better: which one of us 1072 00:47:55,792 --> 00:47:57,167 gets the big chair? 1073 00:47:57,167 --> 00:47:59,667 Um, the resurrected guy. That's his seat, right? 1074 00:47:59,667 --> 00:48:02,583 And then Jesus will assign to each of us a seat 1075 00:48:02,583 --> 00:48:05,250 at his proverbial table for the kingdom banquet. 1076 00:48:05,250 --> 00:48:07,458 Some of you are going to sit in thrones, 1077 00:48:07,458 --> 00:48:09,458 some of you will sit down the table, 1078 00:48:09,458 --> 00:48:11,667 some of you will be at the kiddie table. 1079 00:48:11,667 --> 00:48:13,875 I don't know where the seating chart is going, 1080 00:48:13,875 --> 00:48:15,292 but here's what I know. 1081 00:48:15,292 --> 00:48:17,667 Wherever we sit with Jesus is better than anywhere 1082 00:48:17,667 --> 00:48:19,042 we sit without him. 1083 00:48:19,042 --> 00:48:20,458 I know that for sure. 1084 00:48:20,458 --> 00:48:22,875 You can sit on a throne on this earth, 1085 00:48:22,875 --> 00:48:27,375 and if it's not to the glory of God in friendship with Jesus, 1086 00:48:27,375 --> 00:48:31,167 it pales in comparison to whatever seat he would give you 1087 00:48:31,167 --> 00:48:34,583 in his eternal kingdom at his eternal feast. 1088 00:48:34,583 --> 00:48:37,750 And Jesus is saying, "Have the long view of things. 1089 00:48:37,750 --> 00:48:39,375 "Be humble. 1090 00:48:39,375 --> 00:48:42,000 "Pursue humility, by the grace of God. 1091 00:48:42,000 --> 00:48:44,667 "Take on the attitude of a servant. 1092 00:48:44,667 --> 00:48:46,250 "Make a difference. 1093 00:48:46,250 --> 00:48:47,667 "Help some people. 1094 00:48:47,667 --> 00:48:50,792 And then when you stand before me, I'll tell you how you did." 1095 00:48:50,792 --> 00:48:54,500 And let me say this, for those of you who are serving. 1096 00:48:54,500 --> 00:48:58,083 People may not say thanks; you may not get the acknowledgement 1097 00:48:58,083 --> 00:49:00,500 that, quite frankly, would even just be encouraging 1098 00:49:00,500 --> 00:49:01,875 in this life. 1099 00:49:01,875 --> 00:49:04,500 But there will be a day when you will die, 1100 00:49:04,500 --> 00:49:06,333 you'll stand before Jesus. 1101 00:49:06,333 --> 00:49:10,083 The Bible says you'll see him face-to-face. 1102 00:49:10,083 --> 00:49:12,083 You're going to see love in his eyes. 1103 00:49:12,083 --> 00:49:14,375 You're going to see a smile on his face. 1104 00:49:14,375 --> 00:49:16,333 A smile on the face of Jesus. 1105 00:49:16,333 --> 00:49:18,750 And if he says this, while putting his hand 1106 00:49:18,750 --> 00:49:24,458 on your shoulder, "Well done, good and faithful servant," 1107 00:49:24,458 --> 00:49:28,583 won't that really be the only thing that matters? 1108 00:49:28,583 --> 00:49:32,375 Jesus said good job. 1109 00:49:34,375 --> 00:49:36,167 I mean, just--I'll be honest with you, 1110 00:49:36,167 --> 00:49:42,542 just thinking about that day I'm emotionally choked up. 1111 00:49:42,542 --> 00:49:45,292 I want that for you. 1112 00:49:45,292 --> 00:49:48,542 I want that to be the best day of all. 1113 00:49:48,542 --> 00:49:52,000 Jesus may say, "They didn't say thanks and it didn't go like 1114 00:49:52,000 --> 00:49:55,000 "perhaps it should have had things worked out justly, 1115 00:49:55,000 --> 00:49:58,167 "but well done, good and faithful servant. 1116 00:49:58,167 --> 00:50:00,167 "Welcome to my kingdom. 1117 00:50:00,167 --> 00:50:02,375 "I have a seat here for you. 1118 00:50:02,375 --> 00:50:04,958 "You're going to receive eternal rewards. 1119 00:50:04,958 --> 00:50:06,792 "I love you. 1120 00:50:06,792 --> 00:50:11,583 "I was glad to serve you, and I was glad to serve with you. 1121 00:50:11,583 --> 00:50:14,292 Thank you." 1122 00:50:14,292 --> 00:50:18,583 I promise, you won't regret pouring your life out 1123 00:50:18,583 --> 00:50:21,042 to the glory of God and good of others. 1124 00:50:21,042 --> 00:50:22,583 'Cause here's the truth. 1125 00:50:22,583 --> 00:50:25,583 When we live a life that glorifies God and is good 1126 00:50:25,583 --> 00:50:28,875 for others, we receive joy in this life and eternal rewards 1127 00:50:28,875 --> 00:50:30,792 in the life to come. 1128 00:50:30,792 --> 00:50:32,875 Everybody wins. 1129 00:50:32,875 --> 00:50:37,292 So in closing, let me give you a simple little exercise. 1130 00:50:37,292 --> 00:50:40,375 You can do this for yourself, you can do this if you're 1131 00:50:40,375 --> 00:50:42,500 married with your spouse, or with your roommates 1132 00:50:42,500 --> 00:50:44,875 if you're single, or with your Community Group, 1133 00:50:44,875 --> 00:50:46,542 or with your children. 1134 00:50:46,542 --> 00:50:49,875 There is a continuum from selfish to servant, right? 1135 00:50:49,875 --> 00:50:52,375 So we'll start way over here at zero. 1136 00:50:52,375 --> 00:50:54,167 You're really selfish. 1137 00:50:54,167 --> 00:50:56,292 It's always only about you. 1138 00:50:56,292 --> 00:50:58,375 Whether it's your spouse or your friends, 1139 00:50:58,375 --> 00:51:00,667 they're going to eat what you want to eat, 1140 00:51:00,667 --> 00:51:02,875 they're going to go where you want to go, 1141 00:51:02,875 --> 00:51:05,083 they're going to do what you want to do, 1142 00:51:05,083 --> 00:51:07,375 they're going to watch what you want to watch 1143 00:51:07,375 --> 00:51:08,875 because you always get your way. 1144 00:51:08,875 --> 00:51:10,500 You're selfish. 1145 00:51:10,500 --> 00:51:14,500 And then there's a continuum over to servant. 1146 00:51:14,500 --> 00:51:18,292 You give, you contribute, you consider others, 1147 00:51:18,292 --> 00:51:21,292 you try to make their life blessed. 1148 00:51:21,292 --> 00:51:24,333 We all live somewhere on this continuum. 1149 00:51:24,333 --> 00:51:26,375 So here's what I want you to do. 1150 00:51:26,375 --> 00:51:29,083 Think about it in particular categories 'cause the truth is 1151 00:51:29,083 --> 00:51:31,167 some of us are selfish in one category 1152 00:51:31,167 --> 00:51:33,458 and servants in another, right? 1153 00:51:33,458 --> 00:51:35,167 Right? 1154 00:51:35,167 --> 00:51:40,167 So, number one, how about, if you're married, with your spouse. 1155 00:51:40,167 --> 00:51:43,000 Would you say, yeah, I'm more toward the selfish 1156 00:51:43,000 --> 00:51:45,083 or more toward the servant? 1157 00:51:45,083 --> 00:51:50,042 And here's the dangerous assignment: ask your spouse. 1158 00:51:50,042 --> 00:51:56,375 And spouse, don't use this as a nuclear opportunity, 1159 00:51:56,375 --> 00:52:00,583 okay, to declare, "Negative 37!" 1160 00:52:00,583 --> 00:52:02,375 Right? 1161 00:52:02,375 --> 00:52:04,458 "Ah, I finally got to say it." 1162 00:52:04,458 --> 00:52:08,542 Don't do that, right? 1163 00:52:08,542 --> 00:52:13,458 Don't condemn them, but invite them 1164 00:52:13,458 --> 00:52:17,375 from selfish to servant in your marriage. 1165 00:52:17,375 --> 00:52:20,042 How about if you're a parent with your children? 1166 00:52:20,042 --> 00:52:22,000 Selfish to servant. 1167 00:52:22,000 --> 00:52:23,500 Where would you rate yourself 1168 00:52:23,500 --> 00:52:26,000 and where would your children rate you? 1169 00:52:26,000 --> 00:52:29,333 Recently did this with Grace and the kids. 1170 00:52:29,333 --> 00:52:32,083 Category number three: what about your friends? 1171 00:52:32,083 --> 00:52:34,167 Not all your acquaintances, but your close friends. 1172 00:52:34,167 --> 00:52:36,750 Would they say you're just really selfish? 1173 00:52:36,750 --> 00:52:38,500 "I call you, you don't call me. 1174 00:52:38,500 --> 00:52:41,500 "I take care of you, you don't take care of me. 1175 00:52:41,500 --> 00:52:44,667 "We all have to work around your schedule and do what you like 1176 00:52:44,667 --> 00:52:46,875 'cause you're bossy and inconsiderate." 1177 00:52:46,875 --> 00:52:49,667 Or would they say, "You're helpful, you're encouraging, 1178 00:52:49,667 --> 00:52:52,042 "you're generous, I'm blessed to know you, 1179 00:52:52,042 --> 00:52:54,500 thanks for being a good friend"? 1180 00:52:54,500 --> 00:52:59,167 Category number four: your church, Mars Hill. 1181 00:52:59,167 --> 00:53:01,792 Would you say, "I'm selfish. 1182 00:53:01,792 --> 00:53:04,875 "I don't give, I don't serve, I don't participate. 1183 00:53:04,875 --> 00:53:07,167 "I download the free stuff from the Internet, 1184 00:53:07,167 --> 00:53:10,375 "I might show up to the class, I'm glad that somebody cleaned 1185 00:53:10,375 --> 00:53:13,750 "the building and ran the sound and I'm glad you guys are open 1186 00:53:13,750 --> 00:53:16,667 "so that I could show up whenever I feel like it, 1187 00:53:16,667 --> 00:53:18,042 "but I'm not giving anything. 1188 00:53:18,042 --> 00:53:19,542 I'm a taker, not a giver." 1189 00:53:19,542 --> 00:53:22,667 Or would you say, "Inasmuch as I'm able, by the grace of God, 1190 00:53:22,667 --> 00:53:25,083 "I do feel like I'm a servant. 1191 00:53:25,083 --> 00:53:27,833 I do care and I do give and I am participating." 1192 00:53:27,833 --> 00:53:30,083 And I'll tell you what happens. 1193 00:53:30,083 --> 00:53:36,750 The most faithful people sometimes condemn themselves. 1194 00:53:36,750 --> 00:53:39,583 I've seen some of the most faithful servants, 1195 00:53:39,583 --> 00:53:42,583 "I don't think I do enough, I don't think I give enough." 1196 00:53:42,583 --> 00:53:45,375 Let me just tell you, if you're serving and you're giving, 1197 00:53:45,375 --> 00:53:46,833 don't condemn yourself. 1198 00:53:46,833 --> 00:53:49,083 Yeah, we could always do better, but praise God. 1199 00:53:49,083 --> 00:53:50,833 Look at the fruit of your labor. 1200 00:53:50,833 --> 00:53:52,250 And we love you. 1201 00:53:52,250 --> 00:53:54,875 And on behalf of Jesus, I want to say thank you. 1202 00:53:54,875 --> 00:53:56,292 Be encouraged. 1203 00:53:56,292 --> 00:53:59,500 And for those of you who are not, this is not a condemnation, 1204 00:53:59,500 --> 00:54:00,958 but an invitation. 1205 00:54:00,958 --> 00:54:03,167 This is not, "Look what you've failed to do!" 1206 00:54:03,167 --> 00:54:06,292 It's saying, "Look in the grace of God what you could do." 1207 00:54:06,292 --> 00:54:09,458 I don't want this to be guilt; I want this to be glorious. 1208 00:54:09,458 --> 00:54:12,375 Number five, how about your place of work? 1209 00:54:12,375 --> 00:54:14,167 Selfish? 1210 00:54:14,167 --> 00:54:16,375 You're like, "Look, I don't volunteer for anything. 1211 00:54:16,375 --> 00:54:17,958 "I try to hide. 1212 00:54:17,958 --> 00:54:20,542 I'm really good at Solitaire." 1213 00:54:20,542 --> 00:54:22,833 Or servant, "I want to get my work done, 1214 00:54:22,833 --> 00:54:25,167 "I want to help them get their work done, 1215 00:54:25,167 --> 00:54:27,958 "I'm looking for ways to make the company better, you know, 1216 00:54:27,958 --> 00:54:31,292 "if there's an opportunity in the grace of God, 1217 00:54:31,292 --> 00:54:35,167 "I want to humbly serve and do the best I can to make this 1218 00:54:35,167 --> 00:54:37,167 a great company." 1219 00:54:37,167 --> 00:54:39,542 And number six, how about school? 1220 00:54:39,542 --> 00:54:41,167 Some of you are students. 1221 00:54:41,167 --> 00:54:42,542 School's back in session. 1222 00:54:42,542 --> 00:54:44,958 For the younger students--I've even talked to my kids 1223 00:54:44,958 --> 00:54:47,375 about this, "Hey, school's starting now, 1224 00:54:47,375 --> 00:54:48,958 "find ways to serve your teacher. 1225 00:54:48,958 --> 00:54:50,583 "Find ways to help out. 1226 00:54:50,583 --> 00:54:53,333 "Hey, when you go to recess, the new kids always feel 1227 00:54:53,333 --> 00:54:54,750 "a little left out. 1228 00:54:54,750 --> 00:54:57,167 "Serve them, be the servant, welcome them, include them, 1229 00:54:57,167 --> 00:54:59,667 "you know, help them find their way around the school. 1230 00:54:59,667 --> 00:55:01,375 Be a servant." 1231 00:55:01,375 --> 00:55:03,042 Same thing in college, right? 1232 00:55:03,042 --> 00:55:04,667 There's lots of opportunities to serve. 1233 00:55:04,667 --> 00:55:07,167 Some of them are formal, some of them are informal. 1234 00:55:07,167 --> 00:55:08,667 "You're hurting, you're struggling, you're broke, 1235 00:55:08,667 --> 00:55:12,833 I love you, Jesus loves you, what can I do to help?" 1236 00:55:12,833 --> 00:55:15,167 Where would you rank yourself? 1237 00:55:15,167 --> 00:55:17,792 And lastly, with your neighbors. 1238 00:55:17,792 --> 00:55:19,875 Those who live in proximity to you. 1239 00:55:19,875 --> 00:55:21,875 Would they say, "Man, you're selfish. 1240 00:55:21,875 --> 00:55:24,875 You don't talk to us, you don't know us, you're not involved." 1241 00:55:24,875 --> 00:55:27,000 Or would they say, "You're friendly, you're available, 1242 00:55:27,000 --> 00:55:30,542 "you're generous, you care, you're kind, 1243 00:55:30,542 --> 00:55:33,875 you bring the love of Christ to our block"? 1244 00:55:33,875 --> 00:55:37,167 And the truth is, we're all selfish in some areas 1245 00:55:37,167 --> 00:55:38,542 and servants in others. 1246 00:55:38,542 --> 00:55:41,875 So I've seen people who they are servants to their family, 1247 00:55:41,875 --> 00:55:45,167 but they're selfish toward everyone and everything else. 1248 00:55:45,167 --> 00:55:48,750 I've seen people who serve everyone except for their spouse 1249 00:55:48,750 --> 00:55:51,000 or their children. 1250 00:55:51,000 --> 00:55:54,667 And in the grace of God, I want to invite you to receive some 1251 00:55:54,667 --> 00:55:59,292 correction from the Holy Spirit and those you live life with. 1252 00:55:59,292 --> 00:56:02,000 Again, not to walk out of here condemned, like, 1253 00:56:02,000 --> 00:56:04,167 "Man, I have a lot of work to do," 1254 00:56:04,167 --> 00:56:06,667 but to walk out of here compelled. 1255 00:56:06,667 --> 00:56:08,792 "Jesus serves me. 1256 00:56:08,792 --> 00:56:11,583 "I need Jesus to serve me and change my heart 1257 00:56:11,583 --> 00:56:15,000 "and change my attitude so that by the grace of God 1258 00:56:15,000 --> 00:56:17,292 "I might be a giver, not a taker. 1259 00:56:17,292 --> 00:56:22,167 I might be one who makes a difference and helps others." 1260 00:56:22,167 --> 00:56:24,500 My job is to teach the Bible. 1261 00:56:24,500 --> 00:56:27,042 Your job is to respond to Jesus. 1262 00:56:27,042 --> 00:56:29,250 I really love you, Mars Hill. 1263 00:56:29,250 --> 00:56:33,833 We are in a season where things are going good. 1264 00:56:33,833 --> 00:56:36,000 We're in the threshold of the fall, 1265 00:56:36,000 --> 00:56:37,667 which is our growth period. 1266 00:56:37,667 --> 00:56:39,542 Lots of new people coming. 1267 00:56:39,542 --> 00:56:42,542 And then in January I do believe in the grace of God, 1268 00:56:42,542 --> 00:56:45,042 next year will be the biggest year we've ever had. 1269 00:56:45,042 --> 00:56:46,458 And here's what I want. 1270 00:56:46,458 --> 00:56:48,958 I don't want a bunch of volunteers to be recruited 1271 00:56:48,958 --> 00:56:50,333 through guilt. 1272 00:56:50,333 --> 00:56:53,750 I want to invite a bunch of servants to get in on the action 1273 00:56:53,750 --> 00:56:56,333 and make a difference; to see people meet Jesus; 1274 00:56:56,333 --> 00:56:58,375 to see lives get changed. 1275 00:56:58,375 --> 00:57:01,083 For those of you that are already doing it, thank you. 1276 00:57:01,083 --> 00:57:04,500 And for those who are not, welcome. 1277 00:57:04,500 --> 00:57:08,500 Father God, thank you so much that your heart is a heart 1278 00:57:08,500 --> 00:57:12,875 of generosity and service and humility and love. 1279 00:57:12,875 --> 00:57:17,583 Lord Jesus, thank you that you are the servant, the humble, 1280 00:57:17,583 --> 00:57:20,000 suffering servant. 1281 00:57:20,000 --> 00:57:22,083 Jesus, that our God would be a servant, 1282 00:57:22,083 --> 00:57:25,875 that's a remarkable, remarkable truth. 1283 00:57:25,875 --> 00:57:28,000 Some of us have heard that many times, 1284 00:57:28,000 --> 00:57:30,500 but perhaps we haven't fully felt the impact 1285 00:57:30,500 --> 00:57:33,083 of that great truth. 1286 00:57:33,083 --> 00:57:36,458 Jesus, I want to say thank you for serving me. 1287 00:57:36,458 --> 00:57:38,958 You keep serving me. 1288 00:57:38,958 --> 00:57:40,875 Thank you for serving Mars Hill. 1289 00:57:40,875 --> 00:57:42,833 You keep serving us. 1290 00:57:42,833 --> 00:57:45,500 Jesus, thank you for changing the hearts of people from 1291 00:57:45,500 --> 00:57:49,667 selfish to servant so they can serve their spouse and their 1292 00:57:49,667 --> 00:57:53,667 kids and their church and their community and their neighbors, 1293 00:57:53,667 --> 00:57:59,292 and take the opportunities that you give to make a difference. 1294 00:57:59,292 --> 00:58:03,500 Holy Spirit, please encourage those people who are serving. 1295 00:58:03,500 --> 00:58:07,583 Please encourage those people who have the heart of a servant. 1296 00:58:07,583 --> 00:58:12,500 And, Holy Spirit, please--please compel those who are selfish 1297 00:58:12,500 --> 00:58:15,542 to consider that maybe some of their loneliness, 1298 00:58:15,542 --> 00:58:19,500 and maybe some of their misery and some of their discouragement 1299 00:58:19,500 --> 00:58:22,792 is due to the fact that they're simply living contrary to 1300 00:58:22,792 --> 00:58:24,875 the way that they were made; 1301 00:58:24,875 --> 00:58:27,875 that they're not reflecting the God of the Bible. 1302 00:58:27,875 --> 00:58:32,292 Holy Spirit, I pray that this would not be a condemnation for 1303 00:58:32,292 --> 00:58:37,167 them, but an invitation for them to be served by Jesus 1304 00:58:37,167 --> 00:58:40,750 and to serve with Jesus and to serve like Jesus, 1305 00:58:40,750 --> 00:58:43,167 in whose name we pray, amen.