Being a Servant of God
20060827by Manuel Mariano
Introduction
We have been learning together in the last two Sundays that God calls us all to experience Him. The use of the word 'experience' is deliberate; it conjures up in our minds something that engages our whole being; all our senses. We are called to be actively immersed into God.
Miguel and Dip-Dip
Miguel loves to do 'dip-dip' - which is what my family calls it when you dip a biscuit into a hot drink of Milo and then quickly slurp the whole biscuit before it breaks off. I'm we've all done something like this before.
Immersion into God
Well when I said "immersed into God" I mean that we are to be like the biscuit dipped into Milo .... and then left there. Left to the point where we can no longer tell any difference between our will and God's supreme will; between Jesus' character and our character. Where we live with Him, for Him and in Him, moment by moment, breath by breath.
That is the extent and magnitude of how we experience God.
Main Verse - John 12:26
What I want to share with you today is centered around John 12:26. In this verse Jesus says:
NIV:"Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me."
I want to share how this command helps us in immersing ourselves in the experience of God. How do we experience God through serving Jesus?
Opening Prayer
Pray for God's leading during the talk, for open hearts, ready to receive.
Passage - John 12:20-26
To get the context of this verse, let's read John 12:20-26 - NIV:
20-Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the Feast.
21-They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. "Sir," they said, "we would like to see Jesus."
22-Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.
23-Jesus replied, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
24-I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.
25-The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
26-Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.
Experiencing God through Serving Him
A Christian is a Servant of God
A Christian is a Servant of God because a Christian is modelled after Jesus. The apostle Paul said that our attitude should be the same as Jesus - who made himself nothing, taking the nature of a servant and humbled himself even to death on the cross (Phil 2:5-8).
And it pleased God to let us experience Him through this servant-master relationship, which is different from the way we understand such a relationship in the world.
The Servant-Master Relationship in the world
When we talk about the servant-master relationship in the world - we see that the servant's role is to do what the master cannot do, or chooses not to do.
There is no obligation for the master to share his reasons for his command to the servant; and there isn't necessarily a close relationship between the master and the servant. Even if a master is a benevolent master, there is still a hard line that separates the master's position from the servant's position.
The Servant-Master relationship with God
It's different when you are a servant of God. God shares his heart and his intention when we read the bible.
We can know from reading the bible that God is a just God, and at the same time a loving God. His perfect justice condemns sin; and His perfect love provides a rescue from sin through Jesus.
The bible tells us too that there is no hard line separating us from God. In John 17 (17:22-23) This is what Jesus says in His prayer to the Father: "I have given them (Jesus' followers) the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me."
And Jesus our master is not commanding us to do something that he chooses not to do, or cannot do. He Himself was a Servant who gave Himself for others and for God. There is nothing that he commands that He Himself has not undergone in greater magnitude.
Finally this servant-master relationship is starkly different from the seculiar definition because Jesus is not aloof from those who serve Him. Instead He promised in Matthew 28:20 that He would be with them always, to the very end of the age.
Context
In the passage we read, we see Jesus and his disciples arriving in Jerusalem for the Passover Feast. Jesus is now only 5 days away from being arrested by His enemies, condemned, beaten, then nailed to the cross in the most gruesome capital punishment imaginable.
The Jewish leaders had set in motion measures to finally put an end to this upstart Rabbi from Nazareth (John 11:45-57). They tried to stone Him at least twice before, and because of this Jesus and his disciples had to escape across the Jordan (John 10). The Jews were instructed to report if they saw Jesus in Jerusalem so He could be arrested.
His disciples knew the threats and were understandably alarmed when Jesus told them they were returning to Judea. They asked "Rabbi, a short while ago the Jews tried to to stone you, and yet you are going back?" (John 11:8)
It is with the shadow of this impending suffering and crucifixion that Jesus says in John 12:26, "Whoever serves me must follow me..."
The weird answer to the Greeks' request
When I first read this passage, it seemed to me that there was a chunk of verse missing between verse 22 and verse 23. I couldn't see the connection between the two.
In verse 22 and prior, Andrew and Phillip come to Jesus to pass on the request from the Greeks who wanted to "see" Jesus.
Then in verse 23, Jesus talks about how it was now time for the Son of Man (Jesus himself) to be glorified. What happened to the Greeks and their request?
The missing word - "and"
When I checked other more literal translations of the Bible like the English Standard Version (ESV) or Young's Literal Translation (YLT), or the New American Standard Bible (NASB) - I found that in fact verse 22 and 23 are directly connected.
There is a word at the start of verse 23 that is missing in the NIV, but present in the other translations. And that word is "and".
In both the NASB and ESV therefore, verse 23 reads "And Jesus answered them..."
Therefore what Jesus says from verse 23 onwards pertained to the request of the Greeks through Andrew and Phillip. And what was that request again? They said, "we would like to see Jesus".
A word on the different translations
Now I'm not really here to talk today about why there are many different translations of the bible. Perhaps we can ask Pastor Ray to schedule a talk dealing with the authority and the authenticity of the bible at a later time.
However I do want to explain what I meant by a 'literal translation' of the bible.
The bibles of today, in general, tend to fall somewhere between a paraphrased translation, or a literal translation. The NIV and the Good News bible for example tend more towards paraphrasing - the aim is to clarify meaning and make it easier to read.
The ESV, the NASB and ASV lean more towards literal translation where they attempt to stick as accurately as possible to the grammar and sense of the original Hebrew and Greek texts, while at the same time clarifying meaning.
There are advantages and disadvantages for either type of translation - but the message of the bible is unchanged.
A paraphrased translation sometimes misses out on specific nuances and deliberate mangling of words in the original text. The 'mangling' of the words was necessary for writers like Paul because there was nothing in their vocabulary that could accurately describe the spiritual concepts that they were talking about.
For example, in John 3:16 it is written in the NIV "... whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life". But according to theologian Dr. Bill Mounce who was the professor of New Testament and Director of the Greek Program at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, the literal Greek translation actually reads "...whoever believes into Him shall not perish".
This is bad greek grammar, but awesome theology because the Apostle John is saying that it is not enough to "believe in Jesus" because even the devils believe Jesus and are afraid of Him. The kind of belief required is believing into Jesus where everything - everything a believer values or puts their trust in - everything is poured into, and surrendered in favour of, believing in Jesus so that this belief is all-encompassing.
"We would like to see Jesus"
"We would like to see Jesus".
In a profound way, when Christians worship or spend time reading their bibles, that is exactly what they are seeking - to see Jesus. To spend time with Him. To be quiet and to hear what He wants to say.
In the way Jesus answered the request from verse 23 onwards, we see that there is more to the request than the Greeks than merely wanting to observe Jesus from a distance. The implied questions in their minds were "What must I do to be saved? What must I do to have eternal life? What must I do to be in Your Kingdom?"
Jesus' Glory through Death
To this request Jesus answers, "So you wish to see me? You wish to serve me? You are right to want to serve me and be identified with me - because my hour of glory is here. The hour is now. This hour is why I came."
But then Jesus says that His hour of glory is fulfilled through death. He is the "kernel of wheat" that bears fruit only if it dies.
He says "I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds."
A seed has but one and only one purpose, doesn't it? To grow into a plant and produce even more seeds, and by consequence more plants. But for a seed to accomplish this purpose it must fall to the ground and die. In the same way, Jesus is saying that unless He dies, His purpose will not be fulfilled.
A Person to be Adored
My Misunderstanding of Calvary
While preparing for this message, I found myself examining how I first understood or more acurately, misunderstood Jesus' sacrifice on the cross.
I was in High School when I first really heard of why Jesus died on the cross, and why He is worthy of my love and affection.
Perhaps because I wasn't listening properly to my cathecism classes, or perhaps because it wasn't clarified to me, from then and for a long time afterwards I loved Jesus not for anything He did for me, but because I felt He died for no reason.
Yes I believed He was God - but I believed that He had come to Earth on a mission to tell us that He loved us, and wanted us back - but the tragedy is that no one wanted to listen, but instead decided to kill Him.
I loved Him because I believed I understood what He was trying to teach us, and yet He was unjustly executed by an ignorant generation.
Therefore when I looked at Jesus' second coming, to me it was my chance tell Him that I at least valued Him and wanted to hear more. I would deal with Him, I thought, more justly than the previous generation.
The Truth of Calvary
Now there's nothing wrong in seeing the injustice done to Jesus, and to feel grieved at what happened in Calvary. You see we have in us the image of God that calls us to act justly and to abhor injustice. That's what the prophet Micah says (Micah 6:7-9).
But now I know that the person who hung on the cross at Calvary was not a victim deserving my admiration; but a willing Saviour deserving my adoration.
The bible tells us in Isaiah 53:
(v10) Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him (Jesus) and cause him to suffer... the LORD makes [c] his life a guilt offering,
Why?
to be pierced for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; to take on the punishment that brought us peace, and by whose wounds we are healed.
He did not waiver
The most amazing thing about what happened is that He knew all along His life was meant to end at Calvary. But He did not waiver from it.
In v27-28 Jesus says ""Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? 'Father, save me from this hour'? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!"
"...Follow Me."
Even as Jesus says his glory comes through His death, He says, "Whoever serves me must follow me."
This is not just following behind Jesus going the same general direction, but to completely imitate Him.
If we today are serious about serving Jesus, we must follow Him - walk where He walked. More clearly, we are called to die with Him. To hate the life we have in this world, the life that is a servant of the world, and to become a servant of Jesus instead.
Today people still say, "We wish to see Jesus". People are still seeking to meet with Him. What is God's instrument to show them Jesus?
In 2 Corinthians (4:10-12) we learn that it is the believers, in their daily dying that Jesus is shown to the world.
Following Jesus - A Hard Thing to Do
That is what a Christian, a disciple of Jesus, is called to do. To die daily. Jesus says (Luke 9:23) "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.
Clarifying what is meant by "Dying"
But what is meant by this dying daily? Aren't the believers, as Paul says, crucified with Christ and no longer live but Christ lives in them? Does this mean we become a Christian all over again? Does this mean we have to daily "win" back our salvation?
NO. if you are a Christian, you have alread died. In Colossians 3:3 we read: "For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God." As Paul puts it in Galatians 2:20: "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."
When you become a Christian, something magnificent and decisive happens once and for all time. Your old self that rebelled against God - that self died with Jesus on the cross when you come by grace, through Faith to accept Jesus as your Lord and Saviour.
Therefore the dying to self that is talked about here, is living daily no longer relying or depending on ourselves, but living moment by moment relying only in Jesus. This is a life-long experience of becoming in practice what we are in our position with God. God declared us innocent because of what Jesus did on the cross. Now therefore we practice daily living an innocent life, in the power of the Holy Spirit.
A Hard life
And this is hard to do, isn't it? Jesus knew this. (Matthew 7:14) Jesus said, "The gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those who find it are few." It is hard to die. It is hard to hate your life in this world. It is hard to follow Jesus on the road that leads to the cross. It is hard to take the role of a servant when the world only values power.
What does dying to ourselves look like
What does dying to ourselves look like?
God made put us all in different positions in life; and He did not give us the same talent or ability to serve Him.
(1 Corinthians 12:4-6) The bible says that "There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men."
Dying to self may mean giving up a promising career and its rewards, and work for God instead as a missionary, or a poorly-paid pastor. It may be giving up your time to encourage another person - to disciple, to teach, to pray with; It may be to abandon safety in silence by speaking out boldly against injustice and speaking for the victims, the poor, the needy; to fight for those who cannot fight for themselves. It could be to abandon your own fears and doubts and step up to serve in ministries in the church to which you bring nothing but the certainty that God has called you there.
Jesus calls His servants to live out the two greatest commandments - “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and Love your neighbor as yourself.’ (Matthew 22:36-40).
Dying to self means living for God first, and then living for others second. Now, because the first commandment calls you to love God with all that you are and have, then the love you have for others and yourself would be drawn from the same all-encompassing love you have for God. You would love others and yourself as God would have you love others and yourself. And in such a love, God is the center, and you are not in the picture at all.
Following Jesus - A Glorious Thing to do
Following Jesus is a hard thing to do, but John 12 also tells us that following Jesus is a glorious thing to do. We mustn't focus soley on the sacrifice because we miss out on the power and the freedom that comes with serving Jesus.
Yes like the kernel of wheat we must fall to the ground and die - but we will bear much fruit! This dying is not in vain.
Yes we must hate our lives in this world, but we gain eternal life instead.
Yes we must follow Him to Calvary, but Jesus says "where I am my servant also will be." Jesus used the same phrase in John 14, and there he meant heaven: "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am." If we follow Him to Calvary we will be with Him in Heaven.
Yes we must become His Servants. In fact the greek word used is DOULOS, which means 'slave'. But what does the Father do to Jesus' servants? "My Father will honor the one who serves me."
What we give up for Christ in serving Him, He will give back to us again with glory.
Challenge
If we today do not have a relationship with Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour, and we are repelled by the idea of losing our "personal freedom" because we become a Servant of God as a Christian - consider that if we are not serving God, we are serving the world. Our ambition may be enslaving us; other people's expectation may be enslaving us. Our very idea of freedom itself may be enslaving us because it doesn't allow us to consider freedom in Jesus Christ.
The bible says that we are created in God's image, and for fellowship with Him. We will not find true joy unless we find our true purpose. And you know what? Our Creator knows our purpose more than anyone else does. We either serve the World or serve God. It is not an easy life to live to serve God, but it is a significant life. I invite you not leave today without seriously examining what has been said here, and to not delay.
For those today who have a relationship with Jesus, soberly ask ourselves the question: is there something that is hindering my fruitfulness of Christ—something that keeps me from seeing him and showing him—something that I need to die to?
Closing Prayer
Is there something God is calling me to die to that I might experience more fully my position in Christ; that I might see Christ more clearly and show him more compellingly?
Am I striving against my very nature as a Christian by trying to keep alive something God sentenced to death when I became a Christian?
Are my weaknesses as a father or a husband or a witness owing to something that needs to die in me—some old habit, some secret sin, some root of pride, some fear of looking silly, some desperate need for approval, some desire for wealth?
Lord show us what it is; and we will obey the word and put it to death by the Spirit (Romans 8:13).
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