Great Servants

There is an image that the world has of the way Christians are to be. If you ask the world about Christians, depending upon their background, you will find that the people of the world have one of two opinions about Christians.

One group of people believe that all Christians are nasty, hypocritical people who complain and judge other people’s sins while having their own set of sins. Christians are the people who want to stop other people from having fun. And this mindset is promoted by certain classic books and teachings, such as “The Scarlet Letter”, stories about the Puritans of early Massachusetts, as well as more modern movies and television shows, such as the movie “Footloose” where a preacher has convinced a town that dancing is evil, or newer television series like The Handmaid’s Tale where pastors are the instruments of oppression. Saundra and I have noticed that in almost any British mystery that has a Christian character, the Christian will be discovered to be the criminal at the end – or at least psychotic. It’s even more certain than guessing that the butler did it. One might think that there are people today in the movie and TV industry who have a vendetta against Christians.

But, thankfully, there are other people in the world around us who think that Christians are ordinary people who try their best to extra nice to other people, who are the people who arrive at your door with trays of lasagna and ham when you’re sick, who drive older people to doctor’s appointments, who freely build wheelchair ramps on the homes of elderly people who can’t climb steps. To these people in the world, they understand that Christians have flaws, but, unlike most people around us, the Christians are trying to improve and don’t stand defiantly shaking their fists at their neighbors.

And then, there is what the Christian people of the world believe.

Those who are new to Christianity are often prone to believe that the original twelve disciples were particularly holy men who were so much better than average that it was natural that Jesus would call them to “follow Him”. But, a realistic look at these men reminds us that until called, Levi was a corrupt tax collector, Nathaniel doubted that anyone good could come from Nazareth (the home town of Jesus), Simon was a Zealot – part of a group of men who wanted the Romans to leave Israel and were willing to stab the Romans in back alleys to do so. Thomas would not believe the other disciples when they told Him they’d seen Jesus alive after His crucifixion. And, of course, Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus to His enemies, while the blessed Apostle Peter denied even knowing Jesus three times in public.

So, no, the original disciples were not especially saintly men. In fact, they were pretty average.

But they were trying to become better. They were committed to following Jesus and His teachings. And they learned from watching Him and listening to Him, from eating with Him and walking with Him. And so they improved.

But they had a long way to go and it took them years to become holy. Just like us today.

In this story written down by the Apostle Mark in today’s reading from Mark Chapter Ten, James and John come to Jesus. Mark reminds us that they were the sons of Zebedee, a net fisherman from the Lake of Galilee. They had grown up helping on the fishing boat, but they had also received a solid training in the Hebrew Bible – and John, in particular, wrote very well in the Greek of the time. Jesus gave them the nickname, “the sons of Thunder”, perhaps because they were loud or angry.

Anyway, this particular day, they were walking from the River Jordan toward Jerusalem. James and John come to Jesus. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.”

36 “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.

37 They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”

They were, in effect, asking to be seated in the two best places in the throne room beside Jesus. They wanted the power and the prestige that goes with those seats. In effect, they wanted to be the prime ministers of the King. Jesus did not get angry, nor did He shut them down, but you can almost see Jesus shaking his head sadly as two of His favorite students were asking to be promoted over the others.

38 “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”

For Jesus knew that this would be a cup of death and a baptism of blood. But the two brothers didn’t understand.

39 “We can,” they answered.

Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, 

Jesus could foresee the future, and knew that the two brothers would be executed one day. He continued,

40 but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.”

Beside Jesus, there will be two others in places of honor. But who will they be? Will they be Moses and Elijah? Or will they be David and Solomon. Or perhaps the two witness of Revelation? This is one of those things in the Bible we won’t know until we are with Christ.

But this discussion was not a discussion between just the three J’s – Jesus, James, and John. The other ten disciples were listening in and they were getting hot at the arrogance of James and John.

41 When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. 42 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

And so the idea of leadership was changed forever.

We all have certain models of leadership which we learn at early ages. There is the leadership of Mom and Dad, who must be obeyed or we are picked up off the ground and placed where we should be. We have no choice in the matter – Mom and Dad are so much bigger than we are, that we must do what they say.

Then, there is the elementary school teacher, who TELLS us what to do. And we must do what she says, or we will suffer consequences. Once again, her leadership is based mainly on a physical superiority to us – what choice do we have? Our parents may have a choice whether or not we have this teacher in leadership over us, but we do not have that choice.

If we go into the armed services, we continue with this leadership model. The drill instructor at basic training has a simple model of leadership – do what he wants done NOW or face the consequences. And so many people, particularly men, have grown up with a command and control type of leadership model. And this continues into the business world, because so many men have learned this type of leadership, and many of them become supervisors and managers.

We learn from our parents, our teachers, our drill instructors, our supervisors – that you either are the leader or you follow the commands of the leader. If the leader needs a soda or a cup of coffee, the leader asks for it and someone gets it for the leader. All the people in the organization serve the leader – at least, that is what it seems like. And in ancient times it wasn’t much different, except the punishments for not serving the leader were much harsher.

Climbing the organization meant more people who would serve you, your orders were obeyed by more people, your wants and needs coming before the needs of more and more people. In the Roman Empire, a man was noticed for good soldiering and put in charge of a hundred men. He then used that group of a hundred men to get him put in charge of a 5000-man legion. then, they might serve him when he chose to fight to become Emperor, and if he won the battles and the war, then the entire Empire would serve him with luxuries, fine food and slaves until the next would-be Emperor had him assassinated. But the man at the top lived like a guest at a five-star hotel while he was at the top.

But then came Jesus, and he flipped the organizational chart upside down. Jesus puts the newest, weakest Christian at the top and the increasingly mature Christians at the bottom, with Jesus Himself holding up the entire structure. “whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. “

And this idea began to filter down, as more and more Christians moved into positions of leadership in the world. The man who served his people was able to get more productive work out of his team than the man who insisted the team serve him.

George Washington was known for his Christian leadership style. There is a classic painting, “Prayer at Valley Forge”. The General is not painted sitting high on his horse – no, the painting shows George Washington, head bowed, hat off beside him, hands clasped in prayer, taking a knee in the snow, his horse standing unmounted beside him. The entire painting shows humility. It was about this time that Washington was pleading with the Continental Congress, not for great weapons, but for pay for his soldiers, for food for them, for fresh food, for blankets, and other things to ensure that they could survive the winter without sickness. There was no battle coming up that he was praying for – except the battle against the cold and hunger. Washington’s prayer was the service of a great Christian leader for his soldiers. It was what one man could do for another. 

Because of the Christian influence on our leaders, in World War II, the greatest of American soldiers, rather than lead the invasion of Europe from England, General of the Army George C Marshall stayed in America to organize the material and organization support for the soldiers. He served the soldiers and generals rather than commanded them.

Today, we learn leadership from the coach, who has a different style of leadership than the elementary school teacher and the drill instructor. The coach teaches us how to become great ourselves, both individually and as a team. The good coach isn’t telling us every step of the play, but is teaching us to think on the run, not ordering us to work out, but showing us how to work out, not treating us like marching soldiers or servants – but serving us by helping us become greater than the coach is. And this would not be possible without the change of what leadership is that Jesus gave His disciples in this one, short teaching.

Today, there is a tremendous dispute about what the purpose of the modern church is. One group believes the purpose of the church is to march and enact positive change in the world through protests, through political action, even through revolution, through the exercise of political power. I have seen these people on both sides of the political spectrum, from the far left to the far right, and I have concluded that most of the leaders of this idea simply want the position and power to push people around. For them, the church is simply a political power base.

Another group believes that the purpose of the church is to take care of the poor in society through a series of missions – soup kitchens, clothing closets, rent assistance, literacy campaigns, and treatment programs. I have met many of these people, and find that while many of these people are genuinely concerned about the people they are serving, many more of these leaders are more concerned about the numbers than they are the people, for they will organize their material giveaways carefully, yet rarely talk with the people they serve, and then speak of them as “them”, as though the people they serve are a different species, not really people at all. These leaders are uncomfortable when the people they give goods and services to return to church services.

Still another group believes that the purpose of the church is lead people to a declaration of belief in Jesus, possibly to baptism. And once again, many people in leadership of these groups often behave as though they are putting notches on their belts, one for each soul saved – and then after the declaration of faith, after the baptism, little is done to help the New Christian move to a higher level. For they now attend church, the pews are a bit fuller, and the weekly collection is a bit stronger, but the baby Christians stay baby Christians.

But another group, myself among them, believes that the purpose of the church is to make disciples and followers of Jesus, who will then lead other people to become disciples and follower of Jesus, and thus the world will be changed and people will find a better life in this world and then eternal life in the next. Belief and baptism are an important part of this, taking care of struggling people is an important strategy in this, ensuring reasonable laws is also important, but we must keep the “main thing” the main thing. We are to go to all types of people, baptize them, and teach them everything Jesus has commanded – including this very idea that they are then to go to all types of people, baptizing them, and teach the next generation everything that Jesus has commanded. The cycle goes on and on because the task of the church is the creation, the development, and the nurture of disciples. It is through an ever increasing number of disciples that ministry is accomplished in the world.

Notice that there are three aspects to this discipling process.

First, we each go into the world, speaking to all types of people about the love of God the Father and Jesus, who is God the Son and gave His life in our place. We help people to rethink their attitude toward God, turning from a belief that God is out to “Get Them” and turning toward a belief that God wants a good, loving relationship with each of us, like Jesus, God the Father wants to serve us, to help us succeed, to put us on a path which will lead us to having wonderful, beautiful souls.

After a person turns to Jesus, accepting that God loves them, then we are to lead the person to baptism, where each person is cleansed of sin, a first step toward obeying God instead of fighting God. Baptism is the first step taken in faith which will lead to a new disciple, the creation of a new disciple out of a person who is in rebellion to God.

And then, it is up to us to develop this new disciple. Many ideas and behaviors must be taught – ideas like turning the other cheek, forgiving others, understanding that Jesus’ death and resurrection affects each of us in a deep way, learning to give grace to others just as grace has been given to us, the meaning of Holy Communion, the need to be trustworthy, as well as the humble pride that belongs to a child of God, a pride that we belong to God’s family yet a humbleness that knows that this is not of our doing, but God’s and so we are no better than our criminal neighbor for it has been God’s decision that has put us where we are and God’s choice that keeps our neighbor in prison. We must be taught that all people, including ourselves have sinned and fallen short of the glory that is God’s, but that because of Christ, we can share in that Glory because of God’s generosity, and so we must develop our own generosity toward others. And so, the disciple is developed.

And then, the disciple must be nurtured and begin to help discover and develop other disciples, becoming an apostle who proclaims the Gospel, a teacher who develops other disciples, and a mature Christian disciple who leads in the church and in the world.

You have known these people. Many have transferred to the Church of Heaven in the past few years. And so, it is time for new leaders.

I realize that for many of us, it seems that the problems of the world are overwhelming. COVID, drug addictions, politics, wars, rising prices, cultural changes frighten us. We often feel overwhelmed, so pastor, why should we take on a new role in our lives, the role of being Christian leaders? Perhaps you don’t even feel like you’ve learned the basics of Christianity – you feel overwhelmed with the world around you today and the problems of life.

Being overwhelmed by problems is a spiritual problem in itself. It is the result of a deadly sin - no, it is rarely the sin of sloth, because the slothful rarely feel overwhelmed. Very few truly lazy people feel overwhelmed, because people don’t come to the lazy with problems to be solved – other people know if we are lazy – or not. There’s even an old saying, “If you need something done, find a busy man who will take on the project.” For the lazy, slothful man is never busy – but the busy man knows how to accomplish much.

No, being overwhelmed by problems is a spiritual problem, but it is not the problem of sloth, of laziness. Instead, it is the sin of pride. "I" must be involved in all of these events/actions/problems. "I" must fix all these problems. "I" am in charge. "I" can't handle it all!. Only "I" can do it the right way. And so the prideful feel overwhelmed because everything depends on the “I”. We have so much to do!

Yet, the reality is that we each have limited abilities and time. God has placed each of us Christians on the earth in a particular place and time to accomplish a particular set of tasks. As the newest Christian, we have been sent to be a leader in the world. Remember that we are to be “salt of the earth”? Remember that Jesus said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. ⁴³ Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, ⁴⁴ and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.”

As a Christian we are to serve others. We are to lead by this great, wonderful example of serving others, loving others without condition, usually without pay, without power, without glory. But this is the way to greatness in Jesus’ Kingdom. To serve others and serve them well.

And the greatest service we can each do for others is to help them become disciples of Jesus, for each disciple of Jesus gains eternal life, which is better than having a turkey at Thanksgiving, a ham at Christmas, a new car, or even a jazzed up 4-wheel drive pickup. We lead them to Christ through our service. That is what it means to be a leader in this world, a Christian leader. And Christ would love to see each one of us pick up that cross and lead our own procession of disciples that we have created, developed, and nurtured because we listened to the Holy Spirit and followed the Word of God.

But suddenly, do you feel overwhelmed again? Don’t let the sin of pride overcome us, keeping us from following Christ because we don’t think we can do it all. For we don’t have to do it all – we let the Holy Spirit accomplish the hard work, and we focus on the priorities of Christ.

Our focus as a Christian leader must be to set priorities - keeping the "main thing" the "main thing". And in ministry, the creation, the development and the nurture of disciples is the "main thing". And how do we develop people? By giving them responsibility for solving problems, (including the development of people!).

I once knew a wise manager when I worked in industry. When someone complained about how another department was messing up, or a product or service was messed up, it seems like within a month or so, the complainer found themselves appointed in charge of the problem department, product, or service. Many problems were solved in that way - including the problem of complainers...Let others solve the problems - and if they "fail", they will learn and develop as Christian leaders. And that is what Jesus wants. He wants each of us to fail enough that we will become successful Christian leaders with an entire train of disciples learning from each of us.

So, a year ago I asked you to write down a list of a dozen names and begin praying for them regularly, people who needed to be introduced to Christ. Once a week or a month, you were asked to speak with them about something you about Jesus or God or Holy Spirit. How’s it going? Have you been faithful to these people? If so, keep it up. If not, begin again and see how things go this year.

Amen!