What a blessing. What a blessing indeed.
And what a joy last week's service was.
Would you agree if you were able to be here for the baptisms?
And if you were with us, you hopefully remember that we
discussed briefly about the greatness of God.
The greatness of God. Not in a complete or exhaustive
way, of course. We just skim the surface of His
supremacy as we meditated on the God, the God, the God of all
comfort. But even though we're returning
back to Mark, we can still keep that theme in mind because we
will continue to behold the greatness of God, the glories of
God in the person of Jesus Christ and the Lord Jesus
Christ. Where we're at today who just
finished teaching His disciples about the necessity of depending
on God through prayer, exercising your faith in that
privilege of supplication is now going to continue to give His
attention to these disciples and teach them more very important
things. In fact, what we're going to see
is these interactions. These intimate interactions
become more common as Jesus increasingly distances himself
from public ministry in order to disciple His own in preparation
for His near departure. That's what the Lord is doing as
he is now ready to make way to Jerusalem in order to do what He
came to do for the world and the text that we're going to read
today. I've read it over and over this
week, and the one dominant thought that came to mind and
warmed my heart was the obvious observation of the strong and
enduring patience of Jesus. You just look here and you
realize, and you're going to realize that I hope today, the
the considerate and the careful and the constant patience of
Christ as he coaches his disciples.
You know why that's comforting? It's comforting because the
attitude that the Lord has toward His 12 here is the
attitude that you can expect for yourself as you follow Him, and
the example that Jesus presents us in dealing with his 12
disciples who were very slow in understanding things, very
stubborn even in their slowness. Christ presents us a model, lest
we succumb to the temptation of becoming wearied by the slowness
and the dullness of others around us.
And so my prayer is that you would leave with that impression
in your soul just to be swept up by the steadfastness of Christ,
and more than that, to also be impressed by the very truths
that he is patiently trying to instill in the hearts and minds
of His 12 disciples. And so we're going to read today
in Mark Chapter 9, beginning in verse 30.
And if you want to take anything away from this message today, it
is this How to be great in God's Kingdom, how to be great in
God's Kingdom. Jesus is going to qualify what
true greatness is in His Kingdom.
And these disciples were very, very much excited and invested
in their greatness. And we're going to see how the
Lord teaches them about that. Let's look at verse 30.
They went on from there and passed through Galilee.
And he did not want anyone to know, For he was teaching his
disciples, saying to them, the Son of Man is going to be
delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him.
And when he is killed after three days, he will rise.
But they did not understand the saying, and we're afraid to ask
him. And they came to Capernaum, And
when he was in the house, he asked them, what were you
discussing on the way. But they kept silent, for on the
way they had argued with one another about who was the
greatest, And he sat down and called the 12.
And he said to them, if anyone would be first, he must be last
of all and servant of all. And he took a child, and put him
in the midst of them. And taking him in his arms, he
said to them, Whoever receives one such child in my name
receives me, and whoever receives me receives not me but
him who sent me. Let's pray.
It is our sincere prayer, O Lord, that the Holy Spirit would
help us today. Help us Lord, be who you want us
to be. Help everyone here to see Jesus.
We want to see Jesus in Jesus name.
Amen. This is now the second time, the
second time that Jesus in great detail and emphasis turns to his
disciples and tells him about his coming death.
He wants him to know what's about to happen and so this is
the second time. It won't be the last time, and
the details are very similar to the initial moment that he had
introduced this to them. But what's amazing is how Luke,
who parallels the same account, gives an extra detail of Jesus
teaching of what we just read in the opening verses of this
message. So turn with me, Luke Chapter 9,
very quickly and look here at verse 44 and Luke 944 and notice
what the physician by the Spirit adds that is rich with
instruction. Luke 944.
Here's how Jesus opens this teaching.
The same teaching that we just read.
Let these words sink into your ears.
The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men.
That phrase is profound. Let these words sink into your
ears. You know when a preacher says
pay careful attention. Listen to what I'm about to say.
That's what Jesus is doing here. But what does this mean exactly?
To let the words of Christ to sink into one's ears implies
that we are to take his words and to set them in a certain
way, to put them in a certain place.
The charge that He is making here is that when you hear what
Christ has to say, you must be careful to assess it, and you
must be careful to evaluate it. Unfortunately, what tends to
happen, and God forbid that it is happening as I'm speaking
now, that the words of Jesus skip over our ears like a rock
on a calm face of water instead of sinking deep within.
And what this tells me here is that you and I have the
responsibility to let the words of Jesus sink into our ears.
And what that essentially implies is that if we're going
to truly benefit from the words of Christ, you and I have a duty
to receive His words cautiously, and to receive it attentively.
Revelation does not come to those who are in a rush.
Yeah, we want everything in a rush.
Revelation doesn't come to those who are hasty.
Revelation doesn't come to those who do not have the discipline
to shoo away distractions. True reward when it comes to
insights concerning the Spirit, concerning our faith, comes to
those who make an effort to let the words of Christ sink into
your ears. You know what it means to have
the words of Christ sink into your ears.
It means you have to think about the words of Christ for them to
sink. You have to think, and you have
to think about what you got to think about its meaning.
You got to think about how that truth that you just heard, the
truth that you're about to hear this afternoon, How does that
truth relate to other truths that I know?
How does this truth either confirm or deny other things
that I believe wholeheartedly? What are the applications of
this truth? What?
What is it that Jesus is saying here in Mark 930 down?
What does this mean for me? What are the implications of
that truth? That's how you let the words of
Christ sink into your ears. It's to audibly, in a sense,
chew on the words of Jesus. Did the disciples do that this
time? Did they let the words of Christ
sink into their ears? We're going to find out if
that's true, but one thing that is for certain at this point is
that their reaction to Jesus teaching about his death and
resurrection was much different than the initial interaction
they had with it. You remember what happened early
in Mark chapter 8 when Jesus, after Peter had that amazing
revelation of Christ being the Messiah, Jesus being the Christ,
and Jesus from there goes on to elaborate about what it means
for him to be Messiah that he's going to also suffer.
What does Peter do? He foolishly rebukes him.
But this time there is no hostile reaction, right?
There is no retaliation. There is no argument.
There is no debate. What you and I read here in
verse 32 is quite interesting, but they did not understand the
saying and were afraid to ask him.
They're afraid to ask him. Afraid of what?
Why are they fearful? Could it be that in asking
questions follow up inquiries that they would prove their
ignorance? Further, could it be that
including Peter, maybe more Peter than anybody else?
In asking a question, they might receive another rebuke?
Or could it be that this was a defense mechanism?
And then in refusing to ask further clarification, they're
essentially not wanting what Jesus said to be true.
In other words, they don't want to entertain what Jesus just
taught because they don't want to confirm what he just said to
actually be what he said it would be.
I believe that these disciples are very uncomfortable to pursue
this further because they don't want to be proven wrong, and
that makes sense, doesn't it? Because they had a perception of
the Messiah so ingrained that they were so stuck on.
And here's Jesus now presenting a different picture of the fate
of this Messiah. Not interested.
And they were fearful, they were distressed, they were disturbed
by this. And so they just wanted to
cancel it. They wanted to remain in
ignorance, gladly. And I looked at it and I thought
to myself, you know, there are many today who are experiencing
spiritual paralysis for the very same reason that these disciples
are, and maybe that's you today. Ask yourself this question.
Do you refuse to put yourself on the path of an honest
investigation of your belief system because you have adhered
to something for so long and those beliefs have shaped your
convictions and your outlook for years?
Have you ever, have you ever been confronted by a a truth
claim and its veracity demanded you to abandon something that
you've believed? The worldview that you've had
since as early as you can remember, Something that's
almost intrinsic to your reality, A reality that you have
cozied up to and has provided a sense of security because of
familiarity. And whenever anybody or an idea
or a sermon or a conversation or a blog or an article or even
your own reading of the scriptures has challenged that
belief, you you defend it. You defend it because it would
cost you too much to believe. It what you see here is the
disciples doing just that. And I'm not just speaking about
those with alien beliefs. That's even true for those who
are within Christendom, people who have held on to certain
doctrines and traditions, maybe even generationally.
And they see something that's so clear in the word of God, they
heard it expounded to them, and they just they they are afraid
to embrace it. And perhaps there are some
people who, in embracing that, know that they will forfeit a
membership in some denominational club or some
circle or some arena of fellowship where your friends
and family are supremely loyal to.
In some sense, the fear that the disciples are experiencing here
is not just out of ignorance. It's a stubbornness within their
ignorance. They want to hold on to what
they believe to be true about the Messiah.
They don't want to let it go and listen to me very carefully.
There's some people who will not pursue truth, who will not
accept truth for one simple reason.
They don't want it to be true. They don't want it to be true.
I can't tell you that now, Peter.
If you people who are in different expressions of
Christianity and you present the Bible to them, you've probably
had those conversations and the Bible has no authority because
they're comfortable where they're at.
That goes for traditions within evangelicalism.
That goes for secondary and other kind of doctrines within
those who are Protestants. Even if you and I want to know
what it means to be in truth, if you want to know how you can be
protected from any form of deception, here's what you and I
have to endeavor to do. It's very simple.
Love the truth. Love the truth.
What a Paul prophesied concerning the last days that
there's going to be a strong deception that's going to
permeate the earth and it will capture those who do one thing,
who refuse to love the truth, Who refuse to love the truth,
and if that's true negatively, then see it positively.
That if you love the truth, if you want the truth, no matter
what, if you want to be in the light as much as possible, then
you have created for yourself a shield from great deception.
Love the truth no matter what it means for you, no matter what it
will demand from you, no matter if it shakes your world.
I'd rather be in the truth than anything else.
These disciples, at this point in their walk with the Lord,
can't really embrace that, and it might be frustrating.
But let your frustration be met with comfort, because you see
the patience of the Lord with these men.
How profoundly touching that Jesus, in more than one attempt,
tries to get this across. And Jesus the one who's never
spoken a lie, There's no deceit found in his mouth.
Everything that he has ever said was purely and perfectly true.
And these guys don't want to embrace it.
They don't want to accept it. And what does the Lord do isn't
kick him to the curb and say, you know what you guys are.
You guys are exhausting. He endures.
He sits down and he brings them close.
What a master, what a friend. And yes, he is giving us another
reason to adore him, but he's also giving us an example.
Because you and I, even as believers who have the truth and
love the truth and pursue the truth, are also called to a
level of forbearance and steadfastness with others who
are wrestling with what to believe with.
One of the most challenging verses about that is a found in
Second Timothy 4/2, where Paul tells Timothy how to be a
preacher. Preach the Word in season and
out of season. That's important for us to
understand. No matter how crazy politics get
right, no matter what conspiracies are out there in
season, out of season, what must the church do?
Preach the Word. The Word.
Preach the Word. Yes, give biblical answers and
clarification to current events, but don't let the substance of
what you have to see say be void of the Word.
And then he goes on to say how the Word should be preached, and
he says at the end of it with complete patience and teaching.
Why would Paul have to tell Timothy with complete patience?
You know why. Because people don't get it
right away. As fiery as you might preach it,
as simple and as slow as you might deliver it.
You need patience. Timothy believers, we need
patience too. You need patience with your
children. You need patience with your
spouse. You need patience with your
cousin. You need patience with your Co
workers because of the heart is is a very stubborn thing.
The word can overcome it. But there is a realistic
application to that and how we be changed by the word of God.
And so these disciples are afraid.
Notice what happens here. If you are moved by the patience
of the Lord, at this moment, only gets better and it gets
more impressive. In verse 33.
And they came to Capernaum. So they left Galilee.
Now they're going to Capernaum. They found themselves in a home,
and it's believed to be Peter's house.
He lived in Capernaum. They enter into this home and
Jesus turns to his 12 companions and he asked them the question.
Hey guys, what were you talking about?
On the way we know this about Jesus, right?
Jesus is not ignorant here. He's not in the dark.
He's not asking for information. He knows very well what they
were talking about. And if you have any doubt about
that, then let me read to you Luke 9, the same passage that we
read from earlier in verse 47. Notice what Luke says about
Jesus in this moment. And Luke 947.
But Jesus, knowing the reasoning of their hearts, he already
knows. He even just know what they're
saying with their lips. He knows what's in their hearts.
Knowing the reasoning of their hearts took a child and put him
by his side. And so the Lord is aware He's
just giving the invitation to his disciples to come into the
light and to be honest with him. And so Jesus asked them what
were you discussing on the way? And the the the reaction of the
disciples is quite telling Verse 34.
But they kept silence, for on the way they had argued with one
another about who was the greatest.
So the Lord looks, and he says, hey, boys, from Galilee to here.
What were you guys arguing about?
What were you guys discussing? And the air was sucked out of
the room, and these disciples just stood still.
Why? Why were they signed?
Because they're embarrassed. This was a shameful silence.
So shameful that they didn't want to even open up about it.
And there is a shining jewel tucked into that one little
truth. Just just this, this one
historical brief moment. You see something that is
universal and timeless. Notice the reaction of disciples
right when they clued in that Jesus was aware of their
conversation. Their attitude about the very
thing that they were discussing completely changed.
In other words, when they were among themselves and they
thought perhaps they were at a distance with Christ, and from
Christ, they were passionate about who was the greatest.
They were very much consumed and even combative about who is
going to be of greatest prestige and status in the coming
Kingdom. And when Jesus found out, or
actually is about to let him know as well, that he found out,
the very thing that they were so bold and courageous for is now
something that they're shrinking in shame about.
You know what that means? Here's what that means.
The awareness of Christ changed the attitude of these disciples.
And when you and I believe that Jesus Christ, pay very close
attention, let these words sink into your ears.
When you and I live with the acknowledgement that Jesus
Christ's presence in our lives is uninterrupted and persistent
and knowledgeable, that's going to change us.
That's going to change you. Yeah, How you talk, what you
watch, what you listen to, what you converse, how you search,
how you treat those things will be gloriously altered when you
and I make the effort to believe.
Like the Psalmist who said you search out my path and my lying
down, and are acquainted with all of my ways, do you see what
the active presence of Jesus did to these disciples when they did
not acknowledge His presence, and probably didn't even believe
that He was aware? They were fighting with each
other when Jesus asked What were you guys doing?
Do you want to know steadfastness in your
sanctification? I'll give you a simple dare I
say Sunday school like principle and application.
Here it is. Whatever you do, ask Jesus if he
likes it. That's it.
Ask Jesus if he would be pleased with it.
You will know growth. You will know strength.
You will know a level of integrity and commitment.
Just ask the Lord, Lord, do you delight in this?
Brothers and sisters, please be holy.
Be holy. See Christ in a relational way.
Love him in everything that you do.
Honor him. He's acquainted with your ways.
For some people, that's a very fearful thought.
That's unfortunate for me. It's a reminder that I have a
love relationship with the Savior, and though I may not
perceive with my eyes or with my touch or with my ears, I believe
that he sees and knows. And that's enough for me to say.
Lord, every step that I take, I want you to be happy.
A lot of believers would get free from a lot of trouble if
they live like that. But unfortunately, Jesus to some
is just a doctrine. He's just a theology.
No. He's a friend and he's close and
he can be commune with and he can communicate with you.
The acknowledgement of the presence of Christ altered
something in these disciples. It would do us good to
acknowledge Christ as well. He's worthy.
They had argued with one another about who was the greatest.
This almost seems comical. Who does that?
When was the last time you had a lunch with friends or family?
Talk about who's the best? Best at what?
Greatest at what? Well, it makes more sense when
you understand what these disciples lived for.
They abandoned everything to follow this Messiah because this
leader, this rabbi, showed great promising signs that he was
indeed the conquering Messiah that they were awaiting.
And they on top of that know not only do we believe that this is
the Messiah, we believe that we are the chosen ones.
We are the closest ones to this Messiah.
And so you can imagine, right? Here's this king, his coming
Kingdom. We're closest to him, but
there's twelve of us. And so let's determine here who
is going to win the best seat, the greatest authority, to be
the closest associate, to know the greatest accolades and
privilege and status in this Kingdom.
That is what they're debating about.
And if you need proof of that, look at Mark 1036, just the
chapter later, because unfortunately this is not the
only time they're going to have this debate in Mark 103637.
A couple of men, the brothers James and John, thought, you
know, why are we going to debate about this?
Let's just go straight to the source.
And so they go to Jesus. And they asked him for something
in verse 36. And he said to them, what do you
want me to do for you in verse 37?
And they said to him, grant us to sit one at your right hand
and one of your left in your glory.
So this is this is what's in their hearts.
Lord, when you come, give us the best seats in the House.
Give us the most glistening chairs, the heaviest crowns, and
Jesus perceives this. And what makes it even more
unpleasant is back in Mark nine when they are having this
debate. They did it immediately after
they learned about Jesus dying. They did it immediately after
Jesus told him about his humiliation.
I, the Messiah, I'm going to die.
I'm going to suffer. Yes, I'm going to rise, but I'm
going to be handed over to evil men.
And they were afraid to ask. They didn't understand.
They didn't let the words of Christ sing into their ears.
And then they make their way to Capernaum.
And here's what they're talking about.
I'm going to. I'm going to win it.
I'm going to get it. He loves me more than you.
He invited me to that event. He didn't invite you to that
event. How do you do that after you
hear Jesus open his heart about his passion and be very careful
criticizing these disciples? Because in my desire to
criticize them, I realize that what they are doing here is
often what happens to believers from Sunday to Monday, right?
A truth is given that is undeniably applicable and it
almost becomes totally irrelevant by the evening.
What a painful reminder of these disciples of how quickly we can
lose sight of Christ and become so self absorbed.
We can hear profound truths about His service, His humility,
His glory, his commands, and like these followers of his make
it about us and be so consumed with ourselves by Monday
morning. How does that happen?
You know what most people would say?
Human nature. It's human nature.
OK, listen, I know human nature. We can't blame everything on
human nature. OK?
You know why? Because you are a new creation,
that's why. It's human nature.
I know it's human nature, but what are we?
Are we stuck here? That's it.
So, OK, let's just blame everything on human nature.
No, I'll tell you why these disciples did this.
Because they didn't let the words of Christ sink into their
ears. That's it.
This amnesia is a symptom of our unwillingness to take the words
of Christ seriously. And unfortunately, this is not
going to be the first time that it's going to happen, because
this is really the symptom, the fruit of a root.
And that root is pride, and that root of pride will not be
immediately removed. And if you read carefully, the
pride in the disciples here in this verse is actually showing
the very effects of pride in the same verse.
Look back at verse 34. But they kept silent.
For on the way they had argued with one another about who was
the greatest. They had argued with one
another. Here's the lesson for us from
this one verse. Pride will always produce
disunity. Pride will always produce
disunity. Pride will make brothers and
partners into enemies. And here's the lesson for us as
a church family. If followers of Christ within a
community are driven by self exaltation, then strife and
division is just around the corner.
It's just around the corner, guaranteed.
That's not a prophecy. When I sense my heart justifying
self promotion, self importance, my needs and my desire above all
else, the satisfaction of my dreams and my goals at the
expense of others, what we see here is is bound to happen,
whether that's your friend group or whether that's a
congregation. And it's it's devastating to
even think about that. The enemy only needs a heart
that thinks of self above all else to do damage to a body of
people. And as devastating as I thought
is, it's especially devastating here because you are talking
about the 12 apostles who are going to be used to lay the
foundation of the Church. And already they're they're
getting at each other's necks, arguing about this stuff.
And so the Lord obviously knows the danger of this.
And so he's going to address it immediately, which is good
practice for all of us, because you and I should the moment we,
we sense our hearts being inflamed, bloating in this area
of pride, go to war with it right away, just kill it in its
seed form. And one of the darts that you
can use to shoot against this very ugly thing is the very
truth that Jesus is about to present here.
And what is that truth? Well, let's see it Verse 35.
He sat down and called the 12 and he said to them, if anyone
would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.
Here's the Lord. He understands the threat of
this pride because the deterioration of relationship is
destined to take place when any party is poisoned by pride.
And so the Lord wants to now remove that pride.
He wants to suck it out, and it's going to only happen
through the force of a truth that comes from him.
And here's the truth that he brings to the disciples.
You want to be great. You want to pursue greatness in
my Kingdom. Let me show you how the king
qualifies greatness. Let me explain to you what you
must do in terms of your ambition to be significant in my
world. And he says two things.
If anyone would be first, he must be one last of all, two,
servant of all. And you can't separate those two
things. Really.
What does it mean to be last of all?
What does it mean for Jesus that you must be last of all?
Well, it's simple. Your pursuit for prominence and
praise is totally forsaken. You're not looking for first
place. You're not looking to be the
primary object of people's respect and love and
appreciation. That's not what you're doing.
You want to be first in my Kingdom, seek to be last, seek
to do something with no expectation of something in
return. Be last the same way in last
place. I mean, these days you give
rewards for everybody, even those in last place.
There was a time where if you were last, you didn't get
anything. Now everybody gets something.
You're in last place. What happens in last place?
Well, you don't get to step on the highest platform and you
don't get the shiniest medal. Be last.
You want to be great. Look for last place.
This is so countercultural. And on top of that, don't just
be last place. Be a servant.
Now, he could have said be a servant.
And our hearts are so clever. We know what we can even do with
that and make it about ourselves.
No, he says. Be servant of all of all.
And he's going to explain what he means by that.
And I'll give you a heads up. What he means by being servant
of all is just really emphasizing what I just said.
Seek to serve people, including the people that can't give
anything in return. Church, This is incredible.
This is what Jesus measures as greatness in the Kingdom.
What comes to your mind when you think of spiritual greatness?
Revivalist. Those who have a supernatural
ability to expound and explain scriptures, profound prayer
life. The missionary who has seen
miracle be worked through their hands.
The author, the conference. What's greatness and
spirituality according to Christ?
You know what it is being a servant of all that challenges
us, isn't it? That's the point.
And the Lord loves to use illustrations to get his point
across, so he's going to use a very real illustration.
Here he is in a home, most likely Peter's home, and he
finds a child, maybe one of Peter's children, and we're told
that he brings this child into his arms and he sets this child
in front of the disciples. And now he qualifies what he
means by being last of all and servant of all.
Verse 36 And he took a child and put him in the midst of them.
And taking him in his arms he said to them, Whoever receives
one such child in my name receives me, and whoever
receives me receives not me, but him who sent me.
What is the Lord trying to say here?
So he brings this child as analogy.
He brings this child as again an illustration and think about
children. They can be overlooked in so
many ways, in so many ways. Yes, they can be cared for, but
they can also be overlooked because we look at children and
we think, well, they don't offer much in terms of conversation,
at least serious conversation. They don't offer much in terms
of participation and significant functions.
And all of us are aware that the nature of a child is weak and
dependent. And so when we have a certain
responsibility to invest in those children, there is nothing
that crosses our mind. I hope that you're going to
expect some return on this investment.
They have nothing to give back. They are so vulnerable and needy
that at that stage in their life they can only take and they need
what you have to offer. And what Jesus is saying here is
not if you want to be great, it means be a servant.
So then, you know, serve in the Sunday school ministry with the
kids. That's not what he's saying.
It can include, yes, looking after children, absolutely.
But again, this is an analogy. The vulnerability of a child,
the status of a child, The lack of power and significance,
worldly speaking, in a child. It can also be understood for
some of the children of God that there are some believers who are
also like that they haven't accomplished much.
They don't have an impressive resume.
They don't have significant intelligence or education.
They're not famous. More than that, they might not
have even the most impressive personality.
And what the Lord is saying is this.
To embrace this child is a representation of our call, to
be willing to embrace and receive the lowliest among the
children of God. Those who again don't have any
achievements, those again who in a crowd, they tend to disappear,
not stand out when they walk into a room, when Jesus speaking
on being a servant of all, He wants us to understand that
these are the people that I want you to serve.
These are the kinds of people that I want you to give
intentional attention to. Come on, church, what do we
want? We want to be great in the
Kingdom of God, right? Well, this is what it looks
like. And so the main point of the
Lord is this. You, as a servant of all, if you
want to actually make that of your ambition, then you'll be
willing to give your attention to those who have no affluence,
no status. I'm talking about the shy one.
I'm talking about the poorly dressed one.
I'm talking about the one who doesn't have anything to give
you. Do you know why?
Because this is how evil our hearts are, man.
Our hearts are so corrupt that we are willing to go above and
beyond. But we tend to make our targets
clear, right? I'll go above and beyond.
I'll make extra time. I'll do certain things because
so and so might give me an opportunity.
I can see a potential partnership here.
They have something that I can see maybe, maybe they can open
up my world that they're very known that maybe there's
networking that's available through them.
Or it can be as simple as this person really entertains me.
And so they have something to offer.
And so we determine where our service goes, where our
attention and our attendance will be targeted towards those
who might be able to give something back.
That's not what it means to be a servant of all.
That's why Jesus brings a child. He says I want you to look after
these ones and my Kingdom and when I see you going after these
ones, then you will be great in my Kingdom.
And he. He gives extra motivation just
in case that wasn't enough. He says what whoever receives
one such child in my name receives who me receives me.
I remember I told you earlier that if there's anything that
would straighten us, it's to acknowledge the presence of
Christ in all things, right? In all ways and all activities
in all places. And here's another thing to add
now, if you want to now go beyond that and achieve
greatness, see Jesus in everyone.
More importantly, how you and I go about treating those who seem
insignificant or unimpressive is actually how we treat Christ
according to Jesus. That's what he said.
When you receive someone like this, you're actually receiving
me. Lord, open our eyes to see as
you see. Open our eyes to see how you
want us to see. You actually receive me, and you
go to Matthew 18. He elaborates on what that
means. Because this is the exciting
part, right? I mean, you're telling me, Lord,
that if I, if I look after these ones, if I, if I give time to
these ones, if I serve these ones, I'm actually serving you.
Yes. And then there's actually a
warning with that same truth. Let me give it to you.
In Matthew 18, verse five, whoever receives one such child
in my name receives me. That's what we just heard.
But look at this in verse 6. But whoever causes one of these
little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him
to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to
be drowned in the depths of the sea.
The analogy of children for those in the Kingdom of God is
still continuing here. He's not just speaking about
little children physically, He's speaking about little children
spiritually. Those in my church who are
humble, those who might in my church who are weak, who are
vulnerable. And this is the warning, because
this is how closely associated the children of God are to God
himself. If anybody intentionally
persuades one of these little children that belong to God into
sin and away from the will of God, it's better to suffer a
horrific death. Not my words.
I'm just the messenger. I'm just giving the message.
That's what Jesus says. To to be in a conniving and
manipulative way. Pulling somebody away from their
walk with the Lord is dangerous. It's really dangerous.
And this needs to be heralded for wolves who come into the
church, because they know that they can take advantage of
Christians who have been called to love and sacrifice and to
give people a chance. That's why Jesus gives this kind
of strong warning, because there are those who don't care.
And instead of being moved to repentance through the light and
love of God's people, they see it as an opportunity to take
advantage, to satisfy themselves.
And Jesus says it's better to take a giant rock.
Tie it around your neck, jump. Off a bridge into the heart of
the ocean than to do that. Why?
Because that Christian is God's child, and that Christian
doesn't just belong Jesus. Jesus lives in him.
Jesus lives in her. Thank God for the gift of
repentance that no matter what we've done, we can come to him
and he is willing to forgive and cleanse us and wash us.
He's even willing to receive a false teacher who was broken
about their false teaching and all the damage that they've done
to the Kingdom of God. He is willing even to receive
such a one. That is the mercy of God and the
patience of God even for sinners, not just his disciples.
I'm challenged today, challenged early this morning, because like
the disciples, we can hear something that's be moved by it,
but return to that same way of thinking that true greatness
looks like this and true greatness looks like that.
You know what Jesus saying? You know what true greatness is
to me? You taking two hours of your
time during the week to call somebody from the church who has
difficulty interacting with others because of insecurities
and having lunch with them. That's true greatness If you
willing to go above and beyond for the one who struggles in
different ways, it may seem like a burden or may seem like they
draw strength away from you. Don't give anything in return,
that person when you I do even something small, that's
greatness to me. Isn't that?
Isn't that amazing? So I don't have to go to
seminary? No, you don't have to go to
seminary for different reasons. So I don't have to be this order
and this eloquent, passionate presenter.
No, Just be a servant of all. Will the disciples get it?
No. But we can learn from that.
We can get it. We can let the words of Christ
sink into our ears. I hope more than anything else,
this would motivate you to realize that goal of
acknowledgement and commendation from Christ is just before you.
You can reach out, and it's right there.
You don't need the following. You don't need the channel.
You don't need the accolades. You just we need to find some
people to serve. Lord, we thank you that all of
us can achieve this no matter who we are.
Thank you for the reminder, Father.
Thank you, Lord, that you desire us to put what we believe into
action. Help us do that.
We pray that the words of Christ would sink into our ears and may
that birth in us a fresh motivation to say, I want to
serve, I want to serve God's people.
Lord, show me who to serve. Show me how to how to be, who
you want me to be. And Lord, we just ask that even
today this, this church, if it would be competitive in
anything, it would be a competitive church in the place
of service. Not for self exaltation, not to
be the most liked and the most popular, but to be last place.
Would you help us engrave that ambition in our hearts, and
would it get into our blood and maybe lived out with your power?
Lord, we thank you for being so patient with the disciples.
Indeed, you are patient with us. Even if we we don't get it, you
will still fight for us. Sit with us and teach us.
Help us for leaving this place to live with a growing sense of
your immediate presence. We want to walk with you in this
life. We want to know communion with
you in the most intimate way possible.
In Jesus name, we pray. Amen.
Let's stand and worship the Lord
together.