Servant Leadership

 

Job 38:1-7
Mark 10: 35-45

Did anyone else cringe a little when you heard James and John ask to sit on the right and left side of Jesus in his glory? It takes a lot of arrogance and vanity to ask such a question right after Jesus just finished predicting his death for the third time. These are not things we normally associate with the disciples. Such human failings are often associated with the Pharisees and the Sadducees who were the natural bad guys in the New Testament. But the truth is that every one of us is tempted to look out for ourselves rather than for others.

John Calvin once said that this passage is a bright mirror of human vanity because it shows that holiness and zeal are often accompanied by ambition or some other vice of the flesh so that followers of Christ often have a different objective than what they should have. This problem is as old as time. Many leaders often seek their own agenda and glory rather than seeking to help others.

It happens everywhere and in every country. Those who we would uphold as bright, shining examples of how to behave often have hidden motives and purposes. Just yesterday I was reading a story about Tim Tebow that made this quite clear. Whatever you may think of the young man, he has become a bit of a symbol for some Christians because of the way he clearly states his Christian views despite the many who would make fun of him.

Many people have lifted him up as an ideal Christian. Yesterday, as I was reading the news I saw a story that stated Tim Tebow is trade marking his Tebow move of bowing on one knee as well as the word. He states that he does this so no one will use it incorrectly, but what will really result is that anyone that uses the move or the word in promotions will have to pay Tim Tebow royalties off their commission. Mr. Tebow may want the public to think he does this to make sure the Tebow move will be used respectfully, but it is easy to see the benefits he will gain by doing this as well.

James and John are also leaders, they have been by Jesus’ side from the very beginning, and they were even the first ones called by Jesus to follow him. It would seem that they  would have the most knowledge and insight into what Jesus is talking about when he mentions dying and suffering for the third time, so it remains inexplicable that right after Jesus finishes speaking they make this extraordinary request of him.

What is James and John’s motivation behind their request? Is it just about glory and honor as the other ten disciples think and so they begin to argue and squabble with each other? Or do James and John truly understand what Jesus is speaking of and they are so afraid that they are seeking security by asking to be at his right and left in glory? Maybe they really do know what is coming next and they are afraid, and in their fear they seek the promise of a secure future. James and John may not be just power hungry; instead maybe they are acting on their fears.

But in their haste to secure their future, whether it is through greed or fear, they miss a vital piece of information. Jesus’ moment of glory comes when he hangs on a cross with a criminal on either side of him. Jesus reminds his disciples that, all who would desire to be first in the Kingdom must be last. He reminds them that leadership is not about having power over others, but it is about serving those who are beneath you. Jesus’ vision of leadership is all about helping others.

We gain positions of power so that we may help others to also be powerful. We gain money so that we may give it away. We gain possessions so that we might have something to give to our guests when they come to visit us. These things are not to make us feel like kings, but so that we may let others feel honored and respected. This is not the way the world thinks.

If we are honest, it is not the way WE think.

There are many people in the United States that consider themselves Christians and are appalled at the idea of giving what we have earned to someone else. We call it socialism and communism which are scary words in a capitalist society. Capitalism is about pulling yourself up by the bootstraps and earning what you have on your own. No handouts are needed because everyone gets the chance to help themselves.

Except, that isn’t true, is it?

If capitalism worked the way it should, every person in America should have a job, and healthcare, and a decent home as long as they are willing to work for it. That is the way it is supposed to be. But it seems like in every nation, no matter their religion or government, there are poor people and rich people and those that are in between. As Christians, do we ignore the faulty logic of capitalism or do we realize there is a reason Jesus told the rich, young ruler to sell all of his possessions and take up his cross? Possessions often make us slaves to consumerism. We become possessed by the things we buy and give them power over us.

I have to have the nice car and the expensive house. I have to have more clothes than I can wear in a week and twenty pairs of shoes to match them with. I have to have the jewelry and go on expensive vacations. Why? Because I earned it by working hard. Because then everyone will know that I work hard because they will see the rewards I have reaped.

But Jesus tells us it is not about that. Leadership is not about the fancy things, it is about giving it away. It is about serving those who do not have what we do. In our vanity and ambition we forget that none of these things truly make us happy. Yes, they are nice to have but as long as you have food in your belly every night and clothes enough to cover your back – do all the extras really make you happy or do they put chains on you?

Jesus is reminding the disciples and any who would follow him that we cannot pin our happiness and salvation on mere humans or their ability to have many possessions. What makes a leader, what makes a person a Christian is their ability to be cautious, self-reflective, and their ability to have compassion on those they are leading. Jesus is reminding the church that it also needs to remember it is not about how many people fill the pews or how much money we pull in every month but about how many people we have brought to Christ and how many people we have helped. There were only twelve disciples and yet Christianity has about 2 billion followers today. It is not about the numbers or the power or the prettiness of the church. It is about our willingness to serve rather than be served.

If we come to church expecting things, we are here for the wrong reason. Church is the place where we worship God, become closer as a community, and where we learn to serve and help others. It is not to be used to further our own agendas and power. It is not meant to satisfy our need for recognition and adoration. Church is where we learn the true meaning of discipleship and leadership and how we are called to put aside our own desires so we may look after others.

Jesus shows us how in his willingness to die on a cross, beside two criminals so that we may all have a chance at eternal life. Jesus makes us a promise that he is willing to uphold. Jesus’ words correspond to his actions. He walks away from his family, his home, and allows himself to be torn away from God through his death on the cross. Jesus sacrifices everything to lead us to safety. He emptied himself so that we may be filled with the Holy Spirit.

That is leadership. It is what Jesus calls us to do if we are to be true followers. We sing the song “Each one, Reach One” today and it says, “If we follow after Christ we all can lead one to the Savior and together we can tell the world that Jesus is the way, if we each one, reach one.” We follow Jesus by leading people to Him. We will lead people to Jesus by trying to serve each other instead of seeking fame and glory and honor. We will lead people to Jesus when we remember to love people instead of possessions.

Amen.

Is Jesus Enough?

Job 2: 1-10
Hebrews: 1:1-4, 2:5-12

 Please raise your hand if you think you’ve experienced a blessing from God in your life. Now, I want you to think about those blessings. Perhaps you have always had good health, or a loving spouse, or you were given children during your life. Perhaps your blessing is your job and the ability to keep a roof over your head and food in your belly. Perhaps your blessing is that someone far away is fighting for you and your freedom. That someone is willing to sacrifice their well-being, giving up parts of their body, their mental and emotional well-being as well as their lives for all of us here today. Perhaps your blessing is a good education and the ability to provide the same for your family. Perhaps your blessing is the sanitation workers who are willing to clean up your garbage and other things so we have a safe, clean environment. Perhaps your blessing is the sun that continues to shine every day and the grass that continues to grow despite the billions of people who never think about these things as blessings at all.

And then there are the personal blessings, the ones that affect only you. That time God’s voice stopped you from cheating on your spouse. That time when you braked quickly enough not to hit that child in the street. That time you managed to ignore temptation and not take advantage of an easy situation. That time when you persisted in getting a second opinion because you knew there was something wrong and the next doctor discovers cancer in its beginning stages.

These are our blessings. We acknowledge they come from God. They make us feel warm inside and help to strengthen our faith in God’s goodness and mercy. We preach about Good News because we have experienced goodness and love. But now, I want you to imagine all of those blessings never happened or were stripped away from you like Job.

 Everything you hold dear and precious in your life; everything that has made your life worth living is gone. Your children, and grandchildren, and spouse are dead. Your home and business are gone, taken from you by others. Now, even your health is gone and so you sit homeless, on an ash heap, sores covering your body while your friends ask what you did to anger God. Surely someone who is suffering so much has done something to receive such curses upon their life. But you look around, you look inside yourself and you know – you did nothing so bad as to merit such a harsh punishment as you have received. You have been cursed and you have no idea WHY.

How do you feel about God now?

There was a woman I knew in seminary who was a devout Christian. She loved Jesus so much. She had dedicated her existence to furthering the Gospel and helping others. At 27 she was diagnosed with cancer. A rare form that is severely painful. While still fighting it, she found out she was pregnant and lost the baby to the chemo and radiation treatments she had started before knowing she was pregnant. She finally got the cancer into remission and was just putting her life on track when at 31 she went to the doctor for a routine checkup and was told that her bones had a disease that weakened them and eventually she’d be in a wheelchair and then she’d die from this disease. Her husband couldn’t take it and so he left her.

Five more years she spent fighting this disease, while continuing to attend church, to pray to God and help others - still a dedicated Christian. I met her as she was dying from the disease. I remember her looking at me from behind the oxygen mask, wasted away and pale, and she lifted it away for a second and said, “Why? What have I done to deserve this?”

The truth of her story, the truth in Job’s story is that we don’t always suffer because we deserve to - sometimes bad things; horrible, awful things happen to the best people in the world. There is nothing we can do to shield ourselves from the awful situations of this world. However, how we respond to these things tells us more about our belief and faith in God than how we react during the good times.

Can you still praise God when no blessings flow? Will you still believe in God if God only ever promises you Eternal Life and no other blessings? Is it enough to know that God sent His Son to die for you on the Cross so that you might live in the Kingdom of Heaven, if while on earth you suffer torment equal to Hell?

This passage we read today is one most people like to skip right over. These are not easy questions to answer for any of us. We can all point to a moment in our life when things were AWFUL and doubts about God came to the surface. We all struggle with our faith in the bad times. If all we ever had were bad moments, would we believe in God? Would we believe in the promises, would we believe in the sacrifice Jesus Christ made for us?

Whether you believe in Jesus or not – there are going to be bad times. There is going to be pain. Sometimes we try to say that if we lead a good life then good things will come to us. We tell each other that if we love others we will be loved. If we care for others we will be cared for. We tell ourselves that God loves us so much that Jesus will save us from every disaster and pitfall. But the truth is that sometimes we don’t get saved from the pain and hurt. Belief in Jesus Christ does not equal a life free from torment.

And once we realize that, then what? Will you still believe in God if tomorrow you are stripped from every blessing you have but the promise of eternal salvation? It’s the only assurance Jesus gives us in our life. “Believe in me and I will bring you Eternal life.” Jesus does tell us that we will suffer just as he suffered. We ignore that truth too often. Jesus does not promise us roses and rainbows. He promises eternal salvation in heaven, and he promises torment on earth.

This passage cuts through the flowers we would lay around the cross to hide the blood, sweat, and tears. This passage takes away the gilding, the cloth that drapes the altar which is a place of sacrifice; it takes away the pretty stained glass windows that depict serene pictures of love and Jesus. It takes away all that is pretty and good and leaves us with the barren truth.

Job sits on the ash heap, sores covering his tired and shell shocked body. His children freshly buried in graves, his home and farm destroyed. His wife comes to him as he scratches at his sores and she says, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!”

She says to him, there is no point in saying nice things about God. There is no point in silently remaining faithful when God has stripped you bare of everything that was yours to love. Curse God and end this agony, let your body die so that your torment will end!

And Job replies, “Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” Job makes a point we often forget about with our rosy outlook on the Resurrected Jesus. For Jesus to live, he had to die. For Jesus to save us, he had to suffer a horrible death and separation from God. Jesus’ faith was as tested as ours is tested.

We can respond by continuing our faithful, quiet belief in God, or we can curse God and die. God promises us one thing, and as long as you believe in Him, you will receive that promise. You will be given salvation.

Is that enough for you?

Amen.