Devotional Materials. Week Commencing Sunday 25th September 2022
Call to worship
‘The Lord heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds’ Psalm 147:3
‘Serve one another in love’ Galatians 5:3
Our first hymn speaks so powerfully of the Lord’s love towards us:
Hymn
‘Praise to the Lord’ MP 564 (Piano)
Joachim Neander
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXhxbEjfxxc
Opening Prayer
O Lord we see your wonderful power in Creation- You are indeed the King of Creation.
And we recognise it was by your power that You raised Christ from the dead.
Thank you for your power and love. You are our ‘health and salvation’. Praise You for all your generosity towards us and all your provision. All of which speaks eloquently of Your goodness.
Confession. We ask your forgiveness for the times we have failed You. When we have not cared enough for You. When we have not cared enough about one another. When we have not cared enough about your world. In your great mercy forgive us. Please give us the will and the power in the Spirit of Jesus, now and always. Amen.
Hymns
‘Praise the Lord all you nations, extol Him all you peoples. For great is his love towards us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures for ever. Praise the Lord.’ Psalm 117.
‘Who paints the sky into glorious day?’ 1128 (Guitar and violin)
Stuart Townend
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHvbGXYLrc8
‘Majesty’ MP 454 (Guitar and violin)
Jack Hayford
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Zontyn2TjE
‘Father God, I wonder…’ MP 128 (Guitar and violin)
Ian Smale
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gID9KHc2CBE
Prayers
O Lord we have been thinking about your goodness, power and love. We thank and praise You for the way You have sustained us and how You have served us. You call us to serve, to offer ourselves to You and so serve You and one another.
We thank you for all those who serve us in our church. We thank you for all the Deacons and the time and energy they give in serving us. We thank you for the variety of church groups and organisations and those who staff them. All these show your love and give support to others who have various needs. We also serve others by teaching your Word thereby nourishing the soul and renewing the mind. We pray for our services here and other churches in Angmering- St Margarets and Immanuel, and indeed churches across the nation where your Word is taught.
We praise the Lord for Queen Elizabeth’s Christian witness and we will pray that, as people across the world have reflected on her life and legacy, that the Queen’s faith in Jesus will spark faith in others. We will also pray that the Lord will continue to raise up leaders like Queen Elizabeth to be salt and light throughout the world. For King Charles to know God’s comfort as he mourns, and to seek God's wisdom as he starts his reign:
Father God, we thank You for the life of Your daughter Queen Elizabeth. We are grateful for her dedicated service and for the hope she brought to so many. May the seeds of her testimony have a plentiful harvest, and may reflection upon her life lead others to Jesus. Bless and equip King Charles III so that, as Defender of the Faith, he may reign in line with heaven, doing everything in his power to strengthen the church in the UK and around the world. And we pray that the new Prime Minister- Liz Truss- and her cabinet will govern wisely and use their influence to defend Christian freedom around the world. Amen.
Let us pray for the sick and for those who suffer, for all in the nursing homes and hospices of our parish, and for those who are housebound. We remember all who are sick, among them (quiet to pray for individuals, including Polly, Betty Margaret, Kevin, Val and Joan)
Comfort and heal all those who suffer in body, mind, or spirit; give them courage and hope in their troubles; and bring them the joy of your salvation.
Lord, in your mercy we ask these things. Amen”
Reading. Mark 10:35-45
James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came forward to him and said to him, "Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you." And he said to them, "What is it you want me to do for you?" And they said to him, "Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory." But Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?" They replied, "We are able." Then Jesus said to them, "The cup that I drink you will drink; and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared." When the ten heard this, they began to be angry with James and John. So Jesus called them and said to them, "You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many."
Hymn
‘From heaven you came’ MP 162 (Piano)
Graham Kendrick
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-YMoLZbQRU
Sermon. ‘Not to be served but to serve.’
Text ‘Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. 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’
Here was the reason Jesus came to us- to serve and to give. Jesus served His disciples, He served all those who listened to His teachings and He served in deed. Performing mighty miracles where He used His power to serve others such as His turning a few loaves and fishes into a banquet that fed 5000 people, and through His healing miracles, opened the eyes of the blind, healed lepers and even raised the dead.
But ultimately we see Christ’s serving of us through the cross. There He took the punishment for our sins, so we can be forgiven and justified before God- brought back into a relationship with Him. His life was the ransom paid to set us free.
The story is told of an evangelist who was driving through a small town, he was stopped by a policeman and charged with speeding. The evangelist admitted his quilt, but was told by the officer that he would have to appear in court.
The judge asked, "Guilty, or not guilty?"
When man pleaded guilty, the judge replied, "That will be £10 -- a pound for every mile you went over the limit."
Suddenly the judge recognized the minister. "You have violated the law," he said. "The fine must be paid -- but I am going to pay it for you." He took a ten pound note from his own wallet, attached it to the ticket, and then took the evangelist out and bought him a steak dinner!
"That," said the evangelist later, "is how God treats repentant sinners!" (Progress Magazine, December 14, 1992)
Every one of us, including evangelists and pastors, are sinners in need of God’s grace. We have violated God’s Moral Law in many ways. None of us can pay our own sin debt, but God in His grace has paid that debt. Jesus when He hung on the cross paid the ransom price for us.
His paying the ransom price on our behalf is the ultimate act of service. God serving us in our need. The basis of reality is not a blind indifferent evolutionary process hostile to man which pictures the strongest surviving through their preying on the weak. Rather the basis of reality is the gracious love of God that gives of itself even toward us rebellious sinners. The way God has served us in Christ is the template/example for all forms of service.
Jesus approach is in direct contrast to the world. Jesus says “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them’ (42b). That’s the way the world works. In Jesus day there were Caesars and Herods and Governors and other pompous authorities happy to dictate to others, and mould them into their own image. Even the Pharisees and Sadducees used religion as a lever to control others. These tendencies are very much with us today.
The Archbishop of Canterbury made the point well during his address at the Queen’s funeral
“People of loving service are rare in any walk of life. Leaders of loving service are still rarer. But in all cases those who serve will be loved and remembered when those who cling to power and privileges are long forgotten.”
We can be tempted to think the way of ‘lording it over others’ is the way it should be in the church. But Jesus is categoric ‘Not so with you.’- ‘Not so with you’. Instead, whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant…’ (43)
As God’s family we are one body of people. We are called to be servants, each serving the other. There’s no room for celebrity syndrome in the church; making stars out of leaders or people with certain gifts. There is only one Head of the body- Jesus Christ.
Colossians 1:15-18 describes His Supremacy in these words:
“He is The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.’
No human being dare take that position. As pastor here, my job is not to direct you to me, but to Him. Not to come in my own name, but His. To speak about, explain and defend what He has said, the Word of God, not to give you ideas of my own. He is the One who is Omniscient above every human being. He is all knowing. We are limited and finite. We serve Him best of all when we encourage each other to trust Him and trust what He says. That is where true authority- His authority- is found.
The Lord calls us to follow Him and to be His servants. He is at work by His Spirit to bring this about in our lives:
Romans 8:28, 29 states “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God; to those who are called according to His purpose’ And what is that purpose He works out for us who love Him- through the encouragements and set backs of life? “For those whom he foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of his Son.”
God’s purpose is to make us like Jesus. To ‘conform us to the image of his Son’ That means God is engaged in building into His people the same serving and giving qualities that characterise His Son.
Let’s think further about qualities associated with servanthood and how these can be applied to our lives.
Compassion
A servant is one who is moved with compassion. This involves having a strong emotional- even physical response at the distress and suffering of another person.
Compassion characterised the earthly ministry of Jesus. Matthew 14:14 states “When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick
Jesus’ teaching in the Be attitudes includes ‘Blessed are those who mourn.’ The idea here includes compassion. It can be para phrased ‘How blessed- happy are those who care intensely for the hurts and sorrow and losses of others…’ Compassion.
Compassion means to ‘suffer with’ in Latin, and its equivalent and in the Greek is translated ‘sympathy.’ Even in Jesus’ own sufferings, His first thought was for others: the women who followed Him to the cross, His mother devastated at was happening to Him. Jesus even thought of the dying thief crucified next to Him. All commanded His thought and compassion.
The inner motive for service comes from compassion.
‘Open Doors’ are one of several Christian groups who ‘suffer with’ and ‘care intensely for’ persecuted Christians around the world. Their web site states “Every day, millions of Christians risk their lives to follow Jesus. In more than 60 countries, Open Doors supports them by supplying Bibles, providing emergency relief and helping persecuted believers stand strong for the long-term. In the UK and Ireland, Open Doors helps the church to pray, give and speak out for those who share our faith but not our freedom.”
‘Christian Concern’ among others, are now defending Christians persecuted in this Country
We never thought we would see Christians being sacked in our country merely for expressing Christian beliefs outside work, but that is now happening here.
This year Maureen Martin, a woman campaigning to become a mayor in London, was fired from her job because she told voters in an election leaflet that she believed marriage is between one man and one woman. She was accused of gross misconduct and sacked after one of the UK’s largest housing associations, London & Quadrant Housing Trust (L&Q), claimed her campaign pledge to promote natural marriage was “discriminatory” and would offend gay and trans people. Before her sacking, Maureen had worked for L&Q as a housing manager for 13 years with an unblemished record and had good relationships with LGBT colleagues and service users.
Maureen Martin says “I was devastated, but also sadly not surprised that L&Q would treat me in this way. I have a right to express my own Christian beliefs in my own private time and should not be required to self-censor valid beliefs on marriage… It was a general statement I made and I am quite within my right to make it. We either have freedom of speech in the UK, or we do not. We must have the freedom to disagree with each other without it resulting in people having their lives torn apart.
‘Open doors’, ‘Christian Concern’ and other such groups are worthy of our support because they show compassion in serving those who are unjustly treated.
Reassuringly the risen, ascended Christ continues to show us His compassion. He intercedes for us as our Great High Priest. For the Lord Jesus is not less approachable or less compassionate than when He walked the earth. Hebrews 4: 15, 16 tells us “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” Again, that word ‘sympathise’ is not detached pity. Rather in our pain, Jesus is pained; in our suffering, He feels the suffering as His own, in the sense that His heart is deeply drawn into our distress. Thomas Goodwin puts it like this “Christ is inclined from His own heart and affections to give…to help and relieve…and He is inwardly moved during our sufferings and trials with a sense and fellow feeling of them.”
Compassion is not a ‘given’ in the world. In pagan culture compassion to the needy was often regarded as foolish. Similarly there is no room for compassion in The Hindu concept of a hierarchical society where Brahmins are at the top and ‘untouchables’ at the bottom.
In contrast, as Sharon James writes “the followers of Christ have been at the forefront of efforts to relieve suffering and need. The West has a tradition of philanthropy and a culture of giving and sharing that is unmatched in any other civilisation in history. Today whether or not we were brought up in Christian homes, we have been brought up in a culture that has been shaped by the Christian world view. We take for granted that ‘compassion’ is a good thing. But that assumption is not fundamental to cultures which have not been impacted by Christianity” (‘How Christianity transformed the World’)
The other hall mark of service I wish to speak about this morning is
Courage
Jesus perfectly exemplified courageous compassion and service.
Every page of the Gospels we see it. He touched the lepers in the process of healing them, He spoke to the Samaritan woman at the well. He accepts the hospitality of a tax collector and dines with disreputable sinners. He does this though He knows others will judge Him for it.
We see the same courage that takes Him to the cross. He died voluntarily. At various point He could have evaded the cross, but He chose to go there in order to purchase our Salvation.
It took an amazing courage to hold Him on that course
‘A man there died at Calvary
Above all others brave
His fellow man He saved and blessed
Himself, He scorned the shame.’
And it will take courage to be committed to one another. Because there is a cost involved in mutual commitment and service. In 2 Corinthians 8 Paul presses the Corinthians to continue to give to a financial Cause. They had begun a year before. He writes “Last year you were the first not only to give but also to have the desire to do so. Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it, may be matched by your completion of it.” (2 Corinthians 8:10b, 11).
It takes courage to be committed to one another, to say ‘no’ to our own fear of involvement. It’s relatively easy to begin something with enthusiasm, but it takes courage, commitment and determination to serve one another in a Christ like way.
Charles Swindoll in his book “Improving Your Serve” writes there is a ‘dark side’ to service, which will require courage. He cites 2 Corinthians 4:8, 9 “we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing, persecuted; but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed. From these verses Swindoll identifies four common struggles Christian servants face:
‘Affliction’. The idea here of pressure, the stress brought on by difficult circumstances or antagonistic people. ‘Confusion’; being perplexed, the idea of being without a way or at a loss. ‘Persecution’- intimidated by others. ‘Rejection’ that is ‘struck down’ or shoved aside, cast off, knocked down. Though you are faithful to Christ on occasion you will be unjustly thrown aside or rejected. So the Christian servant will need courage to go on serving God and his/her brothers and sisters in Christ at such times.
Swindoll gives two truths to hold on to, truths that helped him when he faced unfair suffering, merely for serving the Lord.
“The first truth to claim when enduring the consequences of suffering is “Nothing touches me that has not passed through the hands of my heavenly Father.’ (Repeat). Whatever occurs. God has sovereignly surveyed and approved. We may not know why (we may never know why), but we do know our pain is no accident to Him who guides our lives. He is, in no way, surprised by it at all. Before it ever touches us, it passes through Him.
The second truth Swindoll describes is this: “Everything I endure is designed to prepare me for serving others more effectively. Everything” (Repeat)
“Since my heavenly father is committed to shaping me into the image of His Son, He knows the ultimate value of this painful experience. It is a necessary part of the preparation process. It is being used to empty our hands of our own resources, our own sufficiency, and turn us back to him- the faithful Provider.”
Another factor to bear in mind, that keeps us courageously serving the Lord and one another- is the end in view.
The servant’s reward.
Referring to 1 Corinthians 3:14, the Day when the quality of each person’s work is tested, and when the real rewards are given out, Swindoll writes “We humans are impressed with size and volume and noise and numbers. It is easy to forget that God’s eye is always on motive, authenticity, the real truth beneath the surface, never the external slash. When He rewards servants, it will be based on quality- which means everybody has an equal opportunity to receive a reward. The dear older lady who prays will be rewarded as much as the evangelist who preaches to thousands. The quiet, faithful friend who assists another in need will be rewarded as much as the strong natural leader whose gifts are more visible. A cool cup of water given to a hurting soul, bruised with adversity, will be rewarded as much as an act of sacrifice on the mission field. God our faithful Lord, promises to reward the quality of our work in service of Him.”
Compassion and courage are the hallmarks of servanthood. In practice they are often found together
The ‘Parable of the Good Samaritan’ reveals an obvious compassion on the part of the Samaritan. The Samaritan cares for the beaten man- a man who would naturally be his enemy- the Jews and Samaritans hated each other- but this Samaritan takes pity on the beaten Jew- goes to him, bandages his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Puts the man on his own donkey, brings him to an inn and takes care of him for the rest of the day (Luke 10:34, 35). The next day we are told he pays the innkeeper to look after the man, and is willing to reimburse the innkeeper for any added expense when he returns.
These actions are motivated by compassion, but also courage. How did the Samaritan know the robbers were not still hiding away ready to pounce on him? Or that that the injured man was not a decoy with bandits in waiting. The Priest and Levite who passed by lacked compassion and courage.
We have all been watching documentaries about the late Queen’s life recently haven’t we. Her life of service has been well marked. The Queen had this mix of compassion and courage. In the 1970’s. Queen Elizabeth had taken to walking and greeting the crowds who had come to see her wherever she went. She was due to visit Northern Ireland however the IRA had stepped up its violent campaign, and threatened the Palace that this Royal visit must not take place. But the Queen was not intimidated. She completed her visit and walked among the crowds in plain sight, as was her custom. Indeed the Queen visited Northern Ireland twenty two times during her reign. Courage.
Conclusion
The Archbishop in his funeral address said of Queen Elizabeth “Her late Majesty famously declared on a 21st birthday broadcast that her whole life would be dedicated to serving the nation and Commonwealth. Rarely has such a promise been so well kept! Few leaders receive the outpouring of love that we have seen…” The Archbishop went on to say “In 1953 the Queen began her coronation with silent prayer, just there at the High Altar. Her allegiance to God was given before any person gave allegiance to her. Her service to so many people in this nation, the Commonwealth and the world, had its foundation in her following Christ – God himself – who said that He “came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
God has served us in Christ, and, like the late Queen we show our gratitude by giving ourselves up to His service.
“In your relationships with one another, have the same mind set as Christ Jesus who being in very nature God did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant” (Philippians 2: 6,7b)
Hymn
‘The King of love my shepherd is’ MP 649 (Piano)
Henry Williams Baker
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fO-57y575jc
Blessing
Go in peace, be very courageous, hold on to what is good, do not return evil for evil, strengthen the faint hearted, support the weak, help the afflicted, honour all people, love and serve the Lord.
David Barnes 22/9/2022