Giving His Life As A Ransom For Many

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Today's Gospel reading is from the Gospel according to Mark, chapters 9 and 10.

Mark 9 · chapter mention

They came to Capernaum.

When he was in the house, he asked them,

What were you arguing about on the road?

But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest.

Sitting down, Jesus called the twelve and said,

Anyone who wants to be the first must be the very last and servant of all.

They were on their way up to Jerusalem with Jesus leading the way,

and the disciples were astonished while those who followed were afraid.

Again, he took the twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him.

We are going up to Jerusalem, he said,

and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law.

They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles,

who will mock him and spit on him, flog him, and kill him.

Three days later, he will rise.

Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him.

Teacher, they said, we want you to do for us whatever we ask.

What do you want me to do for you, he asked.

They replied,

Let one of us sit at your right hand and the other at your left in glory.

You don't know what you're asking, Jesus said.

Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?

We can, they answered.

Jesus said to them,

You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with.

But to sit at my right or my left is not for me to grant.

These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.

When the ten heard about this, they became very indignant with James and John.

Jesus called them together and said,

You know that those who were regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lorded over them,

and their high officials exercise authority over them.

Not so with you.

Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant.

And whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.

For even the son of man did not come to be served,

come to be served, but to serve,

and to give his life as a ransom for many.

Then they came to Jericho.

As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd,

were leaving the city,

a blind man, Bartimaeus, which means son of Timaeus,

was sitting by the roadside begging.

When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth,

he began to shout,

Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me.

Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet,

but he shouted all the more,

Son of David, have mercy on me.

Jesus stopped and said,

Call him.

So they called the blind man,

Cheer up, on your feet, he's calling you.

Throwing his cloak aside,

he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.

What do you want me to do for you?

Jesus asked him.

The blind man said,

Rabbi, I want to see.

Go, said Jesus,

your faith has healed you.

Immediately he received his sight

and followed Jesus along the road.

This is the gospel of the Lord.

Good morning, Christ Church.

As we are drawing closer to Easter,

we only have a few weeks left in the gospel of Mark.

And what we're going to talk about today

is of,

it's a vital subject

of great importance

with far-reaching implications

in every sphere of our lives,

our homes,

our churches,

our workplaces,

our society as a whole.

And if as individual people

and as a collective community,

we can embrace the essence of this text

and by the power of the Holy Spirit

and the grace of God

begin to live it out together,

many, many people would come to see

the light and the life

and the love of Jesus Christ

in us

to such a degree

that they'd be compelled

to consider

why our lives are so radically different

than everyone else's.

Why we are a counterculture,

an alternative society,

a city within the city,

defying the prevailing social norms

and values of our time.

I want to remind you

before we get into the text

of the larger context

in the Gospel of Mark,

if you're paying attention

to the literary structure,

Mark has written this Gospel

as a three-act play.

And we looked at Act 1

where Jesus is in Galilee

and He's demonstrating

His authority and His power

in the first eight chapters

of this Gospel.

And then you come to Act 2,

which is Jesus on the way

to Jerusalem,

and He's taking His disciples

on this journey

in order to teach them

about His cross

and to re-educate them

about the kingdom of God

in light of the cross.

And then in Act 3,

we come to Jerusalem,

the final days leading up

to Jesus' cross,

and that's the last chapters,

chapters 11 through 16.

But here we are

in this middle portion,

Act 2 of this Gospel,

chapters 8, 9, and 10,

where Jesus gives us

these three prophecies

of His passion,

these three predictions

of His coming cross.

And Jesus solemnly repeats

these prophecies

about His cross three times

so that His disciples

can know that what's going

to happen to Him

is not going to take Him

by surprise.

And in fact,

this third prediction

is the most elaborate

and most detailed.

It says in verse 33,

it says,

we're going to Jerusalem.

The Son of Man

is going to be delivered

over to the chief priests

and the teachers of the law,

that is,

the Jewish authorities.

And they will condemn Him

to death

and they'll hand Him

over to the Gentile authorities

who will mock Him,

spit on Him,

flog Him,

and kill Him.

And in three days later,

He will rise.

Now, you would think

with such a prophecy

that the disciples

would be in a state

of reflection

and a prayer.

And yet,

this prophecy

is followed

by this request,

this incredible request

by James and John

for positions

of privilege

and power.

And then we have

Jesus' brilliant response,

which is capped off

by verse 45,

which is really

the key verse

in our entire gospel.

And so that's where

I'd like to focus

our attention

as we begin

there in verse 45.

And my whole message

today is this,

that Jesus came

to serve

and to create

a counterculture

of servants.

That Jesus came

to serve

and create

a counterculture

of servants.

And I want to talk

first about

how Jesus came

to serve.

He says that

in verse 45.

He says,

For even the Son of Man

did not come

to be served,

but to serve.

And the choice

of that word

that the Son of Man

has come

is a strong giveaway

that Jesus existed

before He was born.

That He's come

into the world.

And why has He come

into the world?

Well, a major part

of our identity formation

is to get clear

on who we are not.

And to be able to say

who we are not.

And I'm not this,

so I'm not going

to do this,

that, or the other.

And Jesus knows

who He's not.

Jesus has not

come to be served.

And that assumes

that He has every right

to expect to be honored

and served,

but He's not come

to seek that.

To be served

is the default mode

of the human heart.

There's a part of us

and every single one

of us that says,

I'm here to be served.

Serve me.

Give to me.

My will be done.

I'll be the superior.

You be my inferior.

I'll be the center.

You be the circumference.

The reason Jesus came

is because the only way

this world could be put

right again

is for there to be

a new human being

with a new kind of heart

that's operating

in a new kind of way.

And this is why

the New Testament

calls Jesus

the new Adam.

And tells us

why it's so important

to get out of

the old Adam

and to live your life

here under the new Adam.

Because Jesus,

the new Adam,

He's not infected.

by this disease

that says,

serve me.

My rights.

My privileges.

My power.

My status.

I want to be the greatest.

I want to be the first.

What's so incredibly

attractive about Jesus

is that He's radically

free of these things.

Jesus comes and He says,

even though I have a right

to be served

and to be honored

and to enjoy

all the privileges

of the Son of God,

I've not come

to exercise

my rights

and my privileges.

In fact,

what I've come to do

is surrender them.

I've come to lay them down

in a cause

greater than myself

and my rights.

So Jesus knows

who He's not.

I've not come

to be served,

but Jesus also knows

who He is.

He's very,

He's quite clear

on His identity

and His mission.

And He says,

in verse 45,

He says,

the Son of Man

did not come

to be served,

but to serve

and to give His life

as a ransom for many.

He has no doubt

about what He's come to do.

He says,

I've come to serve,

to be a diakoneo,

which is where we get

the word deacon

or the diaconate.

It just means a servant.

It literally means

a table waiter.

And a table waiter

is someone who comes

to meet your needs

and clean up your mess.

And Jesus says,

that's what I've come

to do.

I've come to serve.

All of His acts of mercy,

all of His acts of healing,

His acts of teaching

are to be seen

in light of this one

great purpose.

I've come to serve.

And what is Jesus'

greatest act of service?

He defines it.

He says,

I've come to give my life

as a ransom for many.

Jesus' death

is not incidental

to His identity

and His mission,

but it's quite central.

The death of Jesus

is not an accident.

It's not a tragic

waste of life

at the end

of a great career.

Unlike most deaths

that we read about

in biographies

and headlines,

Jesus went to His death

willingly

and quite deliberately.

He says in John

John 10:17

chapter 10,

verse 17,

the reason

my Father loves me

is that I lay down

my life

only to take it up again.

No one takes it from me,

but I lay it down

of my own accord.

I have authority

to lay it down

and authority

to take it up again.

Jesus' greatest act

of service

is giving over

His life

to God the Father

in His death

on the cross.

And why was it necessary

for Him to do so?

Well, Jesus tells us

not only that

He will die,

but He tells us

why He will do so.

And He says,

it's because we need

to be ransomed.

We, all of us,

every single one of us

need to be ransomed.

Right?

the plight of humanity

is that we are held

in captivity.

And if you go back

to the earliest part

of the Gospel,

Mark chapter 2,

Mark 2 · chapter mention

these friends,

they bring their

paralyzed friend

to Jesus

and they lay Him down

before Jesus.

And what does Jesus

say to this man?

He says,

Son,

your greatest problem

is a material problem.

It's a physical problem.

No, He says,

Son,

your sins are forgiven.

And then He goes on

and deals with His material

and physical problem.

He heals His infirmity

and His paralysis.

But He says,

Sons,

your sins are forgiven.

The very next chapter

in Mark chapter 3,

Mark 3 · chapter mention

Jesus describes His mission

and what does He say?

He says,

No one can enter

the strong man's house

without first tying him up.

Then He can plunder

the strong man's house.

And when Jesus says that,

He's painting for us

a picture of a kidnapping.

And this strong man

who's kidnapped us

and tied us up

and put us in the basement

of His house

in this kind of hostage situation.

And what Jesus is saying to us

is that you are held captive

internally by sin,

which leads to death.

And you're held captive externally

by these dark powers of evil.

And that's kind of a question

for us this morning.

Do we believe this diagnosis,

Jesus' diagnosis

of the human condition,

that we are in a spiritual

and a moral bondage

from which we cannot

extricate ourselves?

We're prisoners

in need of a ransom.

And Jesus not only talks

about the plight

from which we need

to be ransomed,

but He also talks about

the price with which

we need to be ransomed.

He leaves us in no doubt

about the price.

He says,

we need such a huge

sacrificial payment

that would not only match

the value of our personhood,

but it would also procure

our freedom.

And Jesus says,

the only price,

the only payment

that will work

in this situation

is me,

myself.

It's only if I give my life,

only if I die,

only if I shed my blood

that you could possibly hope

to be ransomed.

And this is what sets Jesus

apart really from

the founders

of all the other religions

because each of them came,

if you study them,

each of them came

to live.

Each of them came

to set an example.

They came to give

their teachings,

but Jesus says,

I came to die.

I came to give

not just teachings,

I came to give my life.

And how does Jesus say

he's going to carry out

this ransom?

Well, he says,

I'm going to do it

for the many.

And that word for

means instead of

or in place of

the many.

I'm going to be

a substitutionary sacrifice

for the many.

Now, when I think about

all of my favorite films

about kidnapping

and hostage situations

and ransoming,

am I the only one

that likes these films?

I think of Air Force One

with Harrison Ford

as the president

of the United States

and his aircraft,

his plane is taken captive

by terrorists.

Or there's this great movie

called Taken

where Liam Neeson

is this ex-CIA operative

and his daughter

has been snatched away

by human traffickers.

Or a more recent film,

Captain Phillips,

where Tom Hanks

is the captain

and his ship

and his whole crew

has been overtaken

by these pirates.

And, you know,

in every single one

of these films,

how are the prisoners

set free?

How do those hostages

end up making it home safe

if they make it home safe

at all?

Well, in every single film,

many, many people

have to die.

I mean,

Liam Neeson's like

killing a lot of people.

Many people

are shedding

their blood.

But this is what makes

the drama of Jesus

so very different

because he says

instead of the many people

dying for the ransom

of one,

he says it's going to be

the one for the many.

One person

will die

to ransom

the many.

And I love,

if you'll just turn with me

back to verse 32.

I love this verse.

It says,

they were on their way

up to Jerusalem

with Jesus leading the way

and the disciples

were astonished

while those who followed

were afraid.

And where exactly

is Jesus leading them?

Here is almighty God himself

come in the flesh.

He stepped out of eternity

and into time

and he's striding ahead

with purpose

to Jerusalem.

He's on a determined march

to his cross

to voluntarily

give his life

to be a ransom

for those who are

in captivity.

One substituted

in the place

of the many.

Out ahead

leading everybody

to the cross.

And Jesus says here

in this exchange

with James and John,

he asks them this question

in verse 38.

He says,

can you drink the cup

that I drink?

Can you drink the cup

that I drink?

And in Hebrew scriptures,

the cup is representative

of the just judgment

of God upon human evil.

The cup is the wrath

and the condemnation

of God on sin.

And when Jesus says,

can you drink the cup

that I'm going to drink?

He's saying,

I'm going to make the payment.

I'm going to pay the price

by drinking that cup.

He says,

I'll be condemned

so you don't have to be.

I'll take on the wrath

of God,

the judgment of God

on human evil

upon myself

so that you can be free

from this condemnation.

He says,

that's the payment.

That's the ransom

that you could never pay

but that I'll pay

on your behalf

for your freedom.

So friends,

do you know

that this is why

Jesus came?

He came to serve you

in this way.

Do you know

that He served you

in this way?

Without faith

in His ransom

for you,

you're still enslaved.

You're still a prisoner.

Without putting your trust

in Jesus

who gave His life

for you,

you're still in bondage

and in captivity

to sin

and death

and to evil.

And so I want to ask you today,

what in the world

is keeping you

from giving yourself

to this one

who came to give Himself

for you

and came to serve you.

Jesus came

to serve.

But it's not just

that He came to serve.

Jesus came to serve

and to create

a counterculture

of servants.

This is the end game

of His service.

Jesus came to create

a counterculture

of servants.

What Jesus accomplished

on His cross

was utterly unique.

Only His life

as the Son of God

could be

the ransom

for us.

And so this prophecy

is very much

about Himself,

but it's also

a prophecy

that becomes

a pattern

for us.

It's the mold

into which

our lives

are to be formed.

And perhaps you notice

in this text

and perhaps

when you look around

at the church

in North America,

have you ever noticed

that the life

of Jesus' disciples

doesn't always reflect

the life

of Jesus Himself?

Has anyone

noticed this?

Do you know anything

about the church today?

That the life

of Jesus' disciples

does not always reflect

the life

of Jesus Himself.

And when you look

at verse 35,

it says,

Then James and John,

the sons of Zebedee,

came to Him

and they said,

Teacher,

we want you to do

whatever we ask.

Very often we address

Jesus as our teacher,

but we've not yet

assimilated into our lives

the major focus

of His teaching.

And this story

makes abundantly clear

that the sons of Zebedee

and the Son of Man

are in this

irreconcilable contradiction

with one another.

The sons of Zebedee

are seeking after

power and glory

and thrones.

Right?

And the Son of Man

is seeking after

humility and service

and the cross.

And we too

are faced with this choice

between these two

radically different

alternative value systems

and lifestyles.

And we've got to decide

what kind of people

we're going to be.

And to what degree

are we willing

to adjust our lives

to the pattern

and the practices

of Jesus.

And we've got to make

three key choices.

And the first choice

is we've got to choose

between self-seeking

and self-sacrifice.

If we're going to be

disciples of Jesus

we've got to choose

between self-seeking

and self-sacrifice.

They say to Jesus

we want you to do for us

whatever we ask.

Now what kind of prayer

is that?

We want you to do

whatever we ask.

That is a terrible prayer.

It is actually

the exact opposite

of true prayer.

True prayer says

Lord your name

be hallowed.

Your kingdom come.

Your will be done.

Not my will

but your will be done.

But James and John

are somehow determined

to bend God's will

to their own will.

We want you to do for us

whatever it is

that we ask.

But Jesus

being full of grace

he works with

his self-seeking disciples

and he says to them

in verse 36

what do you want me

to do for you?

And they replied

let one of us

sit at your right

and the other

at your left

in your glory.

They think

when the kingdom

of God comes

our Messiah

is going to

rout the Romans

and he's going to

set up a new

administration

in the royal palace

and at that moment

like there always is

in these moments

in history

there's going to be

a scramble

for the best seats.

And you're probably aware

that the Caesars

in that time

they set their

victorious generals

on either side

of their royal throne.

And so they're

thinking to themselves

well we need to

kind of get on this.

We need to compete.

We need to

get at the front

of the line.

We need to make

advance reservations

so that we can

rule there

with Jesus.

And Jesus says

to them in verse 38

you don't know

what you're asking.

And that must be

how he responds

to so many

of my prayers.

Jonathan

you have no clue

what you're asking.

Yours is the way

of self-seeking

but mine is the way

of self-sacrifice.

Jesus emptied himself

of all of his heavenly glory

to take on human flesh

and throughout his life

he humbled himself

he never sought

his own glory.

In fact for the sake

of God

and for the welfare

of other people

he chose

the self-sacrifice

of his cross

from the very beginning.

And he's saying to us

you

my disciples

must choose

between

self-seeking

for your own glory

and your own honor

and self-sacrifice

for the glory of God

and the honor

of other people.

That's just a basic

choice you've got to make.

A choice between

self-seeking

and self-sacrifice.

But the second choice

that we've got to make

is a choice

we've got to choose

between power

and service.

The church

as a whole

and Christians

as individuals

need to choose

between power

and service.

They say in verse 37

let one of us

sit at your right

and the other

at your left

in your glory.

Basically they're saying

Jesus forget Peter.

Forget about Peter.

We know you've made him

the number one.

We know that he's

our lead disciple

but

forget about him.

We want to rule

on thrones

next to you.

We want the top places

in your cabinet.

We want to be

your prime minister

and your chief of staff.

Give us these seats

of authority

so that we can enjoy

all the connections

and all the status

and all the influence

and all the power

with you Jesus.

And it says in verse 41

that when the ten

heard about this

they became indignant

with James and John.

This includes Peter.

They're all full of fury

because they've been

outsmarted.

They're full of fear

because they've been

beaten to the punch.

All of them

every single one

of Jesus' twelve disciples

are hungry for power

because the lust

for power

is so intoxicating.

And we see this

everywhere

in our public life

don't we?

We see it

in our professions.

We see it

in our politics.

Somehow this lust

for power

even enters

into our places

of worship.

And Jesus says

I'm calling you

my disciples

to a different way.

He says in verse 42

Jesus called them together

you know that those

who are regarded

as rulers

of the Gentiles

lord it over them

and their high officials

exercise authority

over them.

Now we have to say

that the exercise

of good authority

the good exercise

of authority

is something that

God intends for us

and we see that

in Genesis 1 and 2

where God puts Adam

and Eve

in the Garden of Eden

and he tells them

to rule over it.

He tells them

to exercise their authority

over it by caring

for it and cultivating

and that's a good thing.

That's what human beings

are for.

But we see very quickly

in Genesis chapter 3

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

that Adam and Eve

begin to misuse

their authority

and begin to control

and domineer

over one another

and by Genesis 4

that authority

is not just being misused

it's being abused

and the descendants

of Adam and Eve

are dehumanizing

and killing each other

they're coercing

and overpowering

each other

and this is what

Jesus has in mind.

He's thinking about

how all of this

has gotten baked

into the systems

and the structures

of power

in the Roman Empire

this empire

that's organized

hierarchically

with different levels

of power

and privilege

from Caesar

and the Senate

at the top

down to the peasants

and the slaves

at the bottom

and Jesus looks

at all that

and he says

not so with you.

In fact

Jesus will take

those slaves

at the very bottom

and he turns

that kingdom

upside down

and he says

in verse 43

not so with you

instead whoever

wants to become

great among you

must be your servant

and whoever

wants to be first

must be slave

of all.

Do you want to be

great?

Do you want to be

first?

Jesus says.

He says

I came not to

grab hold of power

I came to give

power away.

I came not to

wield power

over people

like Caesar

but I came to

show you the power

of relinquishing

your power

to serve other

people.

And Jesus is saying

do you want to be

great?

Do you want to be

first among

my disciples?

Then try on

these labels

for size.

Be a diakonos

and a doulos.

We already saw

that the word

diakonos means

be a table waiter

who is there

to meet the needs

of other people

and clean up

their messes.

But then

what is a doulos?

A doulos

is a slave.

Is that how

any of you

identify yourself

as a slave?

In our late

modern western

culture of

self-expressive

individualism

we're all searching

for these identity

markers so that

we can say

who we

uniquely are

in this me

culture

so that I

can tell you

the truth

about myself.

Right?

But how many

of us

define ourselves

as a slave

of Jesus Christ?

Listen to

Romans chapter

Romans 1:1

1 verse 1.

This is the

greatest letter

in the New

Testament and

it opens with

these words.

He says Paul

a slave

a doulos

of Christ Jesus

called to be

an apostle

and set apart

for the gospel

of God.

How does Paul

identify himself?

What does he say

is the first

and the most

important thing

that you need

to know about

him?

He's a slave

and that's what

a Christian is.

This transcends

all other

identity markers

that you

willingly

surrendered

yourself

to the lordship

of Jesus Christ

and if you don't

identify yourself

as a slave

of Jesus

you need to

ask yourself

am I really

even a Christian?

Paul says

in 2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4

he says

for what we

preach is not

ourselves

but Jesus Christ

as Lord

and ourselves

as your slaves

for Jesus'

sake.

So if we

measure

greatness

by how much

of a slave

you are

well how great

are we?

How great

are we?

The third

choice we have

to make

is not just

a choice

between self

seeking

and self

sacrifice

and a choice

between power

and service

but we also

need to choose

between security

and suffering.

We need to

choose between

security and

suffering and

Jesus says

to James and

John

he says in

verse 38

you don't know

what you're

asking

can you drink

the cup I

drink or be

baptized with

the baptism

I'm baptized

with and they

say we can

and again

they didn't

know what

Jesus was

talking about

they thought

that Jesus

cup was

the wine

that they'd

be drinking

at the

messianic

banquet in

the kingdom

of God

and they

thought that

Jesus'

baptism were

like those

luxurious

pre-banquet

baths that

King Herod was

known to enjoy

before a good

feast

and they're

excited about

all of this

they're excited

about the

security and the

comfort that

they're going

to enjoy when

Jesus becomes

king

and Jesus

says to them

in verse 39

you will drink

the cup I

drink and be

baptized with

the baptism I

am baptized

with

he's saying

James and

John you will

have your own

little cups

not of wine

but of

suffering

and you will

have your own

smaller baptisms

not these

luxuriant

baths

but little

baptisms of

persecution

salvation

and what's

amazing to me

and what gives

me such hope

is that

God changes

these men

in such a

radical way

these disciples

who are

self-seeking

and power

hungry

and security

focused

they become

so transformed

by the

crucifixion

and the

resurrection

of Jesus

Christ

that they

actually begin

to identify

themselves

as slaves

of Jesus

and James

James will

go on to

serve Jesus

to the point

where he

loses his

head

at the

orders of

King Herod

Antipas

which we

read about

in Acts

Acts 12 · chapter mention

chapter 12

and John

will go on

to serve

Jesus to the

point where

he's exiled

in the

isle of

Patmos

under the

reign of

emperor

Domitian

which we

read about

in Revelation

Revelation 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1

and for

these men

their voluntary

loss of

security

and their

willing embrace

of suffering

became for

them a

joyful

participation

in the

very sufferings

of their

servant king

Jesus

and they

counted it

great joy

to be

considered

worthy

to suffer

with Jesus

and so

friends

you might

not suffer

beheading

you might

not suffer

exile

but if you're

going to be

a disciple

you are

called to

be conformed

to the

image

of the

suffering

servant

Jesus

and you've

got to

make that

choice

now

how does

this apply

we're out

of time

and I hope

the Holy

Spirit has

been applying

this to you

as I've

been preaching

but I do

want to

make a few

specific points

of application

and the first

thing

is I want

you to think

about your

body

your body

because as

Jesus came

to serve

and create

this counterculture

of servants

he wants us

to be thinking

differently

about ourselves

the Apostle

Paul says

in 1 Corinthians

6

you are not

your own

you were bought

at a price

therefore honor

God with your

bodies

a Christian

is a purchased

person

which means

that

you're no longer

free to do

with your body

and your time

and your energy

whatever you

want to do

you've been

saved to serve

and the first

place we begin

to do that

is just with

our body

second thing

I want you

to think about

is the church

when we gather

together on Sundays

when you gather

midweek

in our homes

as we go

are we praying

Lord who do you

want me to serve

and how do you

want me to serve

them

how can I

pray for them

encourage them

listen to them

carry their burdens

how do you want me

to serve them

how can I

show up today

with this attitude

that says

at your service

I've not come here

today to be served

but to serve

and if you don't

have a way

to do that

I encourage you

to find a ministry

team

get involved

in a community

group

find other people

ask God

to put people

on your heart

and begin

to serve them

the third thing

I want us to think

about is our homes

and our workplaces

as you think about

your spouse

or your roommates

or your parents

whomever you live

with

and you think

about your boss

and the people

you manage

and your clients

it's so easy

for us to say

you know

I'll serve you

if and to the degree

that you serve me

and really that's

the way of the world

isn't it

I'll serve you

if and to the degree

that you serve me

but the way of Christ

is to say

you know

I'm going to serve

you

and I'm going to

lay myself down

in sacrificial

self-giving

for you

regardless of

whether you serve

me or not

because that's

the way

Jesus served me

the fourth thing

I want to say

as I close

is I'd like to

apply this

to our politics

it's clear

that the church

in North America

has been following

the way

of our Caesars

and if you

are someone

who's known

more for your politics

than you are

for your religion

it's very likely

that you've turned

your politics

into your religion

and if you're new

at Christ

I just want to say

we are part

of the exhausted

majority

this congregation

is center left

center right

but whatever

it doesn't matter

we're just weary

of polarization

we're weary

of partisanship

and we love

that sign

in 2020

that said

any functioning adult

we just

want that bumper sticker

we want that sign

and I'm tempted

to say

that we are called

as a church

to charitable

sober minded

moderation

in these things

in these political things

but what I want to say

beyond that today

is that we are actually

called

not to advocate

for this version

or that version

of the United States

this red version

or this blue version

of America

but what we're called

to do as a church

is to bear witness

to a different kingdom

altogether

the church

is called

to be a sign

and an instrument

and a foretaste

of this subversive

cross shaped

upside down

kingdom of God

in which

the greatest

people among us

and the first people

among us

are the people

who act like servants

and like slaves

and to the degree

that the church

is living that out

we might have

some hope

to be salt

in the earth

and light

to the world

so Jesus

has called us

right

he's come

to serve us

and he's calling us

to be

a counterculture

of servants

and may he give us

the grace

and the power

to do that very thing

in the name of the Father

Son and Holy Spirit

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen