Serve One Another | Pastor Jason Mick

Open your Bibles with me to Philippians chapter 2, and as you're going there, I'd also like to extend a welcome to all of you who are joining us online today, whether you're traveling, you're at home, in a hospital, or perhaps even in one of our correctional facilities.

Philippians 2 · chapter mention

Church family, can we just extend the warmth of the room into our online audience today?

Grateful that you're here with us.

If you're jumping in, this is our second week in our series called One Another.

Last week, our youth pastor Montega did a phenomenal job of kicking us off with love one another.

So I'd encourage you to go check that out on YouTube.

Uh, phenomenal message.

But today is week two of our series in our one another series.

Have you ever noticed that every single one of us loves to be served?

Like you love being served.

No shame in that.

We all love being served.

But we also notice that we don't just naturally desire to serve other people.

Now, in various places spaces and various places, some of us, I would dare say, would never complain if someone holds a door open for us.

Like I don't think we'd complain if someone has the joy to open a door.

I don't think anyone complains whenever someone makes coffee for us or for the team, for the staff.

I don't think anybody complains when someone's holding an umbrella in a rainstorm or greeting outside in the heat.

I don't think anybody complains or looks at anyone who just changed a diaper and said, Well, why didn't you let me change that?

I don't think so.

If you remember when you were a kid, or perhaps you've been around kids, you remember or realize that nobody had to teach you to be selfish.

You and I arrived in this world with a PhD in self-preservation and selfishness.

Before we start pointing fingers, let's just be honest.

Our default setting is self and entitlement.

Our flesh will naturally think, well, what do I want?

What's best for me?

What do I get out of it?

How does this benefit me and what do I deserve?

Allow me to make the case for that individuals, families, and even churches are the most healthiest when people move from merely attending to actively participating in the mission of God.

Which explains why we have to be cautious, cautious as followers of Jesus Christ, not to have more spectators than servants.

More people asking, how can I help advance God's kingdom instead of what can others and what can the church do for me?

As you're taking notes today, the title of the sermon is Serve One Another.

Serve one another.

And Paul knew that, and that's why he points the church of Philippi and he points us even today to Jesus.

You see, Paul is writing to a church that loved Jesus, but like every church, they were battling the same thing we battle: self, pride, entitlement, the tendency to just drift inward.

If we notice what Paul doesn't do, he doesn't jump off in this epistle giving just techniques, he doesn't give a volunteer recruitment spiel.

He doesn't even lead with guilt.

From a prison cell in Rome, Paul serves the church of Philippi with a letter of encouragement and truth, and he points them and he points us today to Jesus.

He points them and us to Jesus because the answer to selfishness isn't trying harder, the answer is seeing Christ more clearly, and here's why.

Grateful people don't have to be guilted into serving.

We simply respond to grace, and that's exactly where Paul begins.

Philippians chapter 2, beginning in verse 1.

Philippians 2 · chapter mention

This is known as the attitude of Christ.

So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.

Let each of you look not only to his own interest, but also to the interest of others.

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grass, but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that the name of Jesus, every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

As you're taking notes this morning, I want to encourage you to write down this first key point that kingdom people think differently.

Our attitude is different.

And as we exegete the first few verses here in chapter two, notice that Paul begins with a series of realities.

That if there is any encouragement in Christ, and if any comfort from love, if any participation of spirit, if any affection and sympathy, Paul is not questioning whether these things are true.

He is predisposing that they are.

Consider this thought process.

Since you have encouragement in Christ, since you have comfort from his love, since you have fellowship with his spirit.

In other words, because the gospel has transformed you and me, there should be evidence that transfer in the transportation and how we treat others.

Well, then Paul says, Complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.

Paul is centering us not on ourselves, but focusing us on the person of Christ Jesus.

Church, we are more united by and in Jesus Christ.

Well, Paul then begins going deeper.

He says, Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.

Paul gives us encouragement.

He reminds us of the unity in Christ, not ourselves.

And then he says, humility.

And Paul isn't calling us to think poorly about ourselves, he's calling us to stop making ourselves the center of the story.

Look at verse 4.

Let each of you look not only to his own interest, but also to the interest of others.

Paul isn't saying ignore your personal responsibilities.

Heavens no.

He's saying stop living as though you're the only person that matters.

Pride asks, what can others do for me?

Humility asks, what can I do for others?

And this is where serving begins.

The heart and the mind before the hands.

It's not with our schedules, but with our mindset.

And before Jesus changes how we serve, where we serve, when we serve, he first transforms our mindsets and how we think.

Because serving doesn't begin with our hands, it begins with our hearts.

So Paul doesn't simply tell us what to do because we know Christianity and following Jesus is not behavior modification, it's heart transformation.

And it's a transformation through Christ in us.

If Paul was after rallying the church of Philippi and rallying followers of Jesus just to serve more and be more and just be more humble, what you and I would do is that we would try harder for a few days and fail.

When our wives, husbands say, Honey, it'd be great if you did this, and we did said thing, we're like, Yeah, I'm gonna do it.

A week later, our wives are looking at us going, what happened to that?

It's not a try harder solution.

Paul shows us Jesus, and this is why it changes everything.

Point number two is you're taking notes.

Because kingdom people follow a different king, they follow a different king.

We follow a different king, and so Paul has fixed our eyes on Jesus, and now we see this king who's different in a position of authority, and he takes one of the most beautiful descriptions of Jesus in all of Scripture, and what we read here in verses five through eight is a is foundational.

Look at verse five.

If we're gonna serve one another, we must first see the servant king.

Paul begins by saying, who, though he was in the form of God, this means this means Jesus possessed the very nature of God.

He wasn't merely godlike, he was fully God and fully man, the worship of heaven and everything belongs to him, and yet Paul says he did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped.

There has only been one person in all of human history who had every right to be served, and his name is Jesus, not us.

Every throne belongs to him, every angel worships him, everything belongs to him, and yet he came not to be served, but to serve.

And that is what makes Philippians 2 so magnificent.

The idea is that not that Jesus gives up being God, he never ceased being God.

Rather, he refused to make his divine privileges or use his divine privileges for his own advantage.

Think about the contrast for a moment.

Sinful people with sinful flesh and selfish tendencies, our story of humanity is often a story of entitlement.

We think we're owed more recognition, appreciation, comfort, convenience, and respect.

And we spend our lives asking, What do I deserve?

But Paul points us to the only one who actually deserved everything and the one who demanded nothing.

He humbled himself.

The story of Jesus is a story of descent from heaven to earth, from glory to humility, from king to servant, from life to death.

What did Jesus demand of us?

Our lives.

Surrender.

Every phrase that Paul uses takes us one step lower, one step deeper.

He said he emptied himself, taking the form of a servant.

The one who deserved to be served became the one who served.

The king traded the throne for a tau and he kept getting lower.

And Montega walked us through that last week in John chapter 13 in our love one another message.

John 13 · chapter mention

Before Jesus picked up the cross, he picked up the Tao.

Before he bore the weight of your sin and my sin on the cross, he was kneeling beside sinners.

And before he wore a crown of thorns, he wrapped himself in the clothing of the servant.

Jesus didn't pretend to be a servant.

Serving wasn't simply something Jesus did.

It's who he is.

He is the suffering servant.

Jesus said himself in Mark chapter 10, verse 45.

Mark 10:45

For even the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many.

Have you ever asked why?

Why in the world would Jesus Christ, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, do this?

Love.

Love.

For sinners like you and for me, He took your place and my place.

He took our punishment and his blood was shed for us.

What do we deserve?

Nothing, but yet Jesus gives us everything.

He serves us.

If serving was beneath Jesus, none of us would have a savior.

And since serving was never beneath Jesus, he's our example why serving can never be beneath us.

He said, Being born in the likeness of men, God wrapped himself in flesh without surrendering his deity.

He remained fully God while becoming fully man.

Majesty wrapped in humility.

And he still kept descending.

Paul authored, he said, and being found in human form, he humbled himself.

Nobody humbled Jesus.

Rome did not humble Jesus.

The Pharisees and the crowds, they were not the ones who humbled Jesus.

Jesus humbled himself.

Every step was voluntary, intentional, and motivated by love.

And then Paul reaches the lowest point here.

Not merely an inconvenience, not just suffering, death.

Says by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

And my friends, the cross is not a cute symbol that we just wear around a necklace.

The cross is a symbol of death.

The Romans used it to shame and to humiliate people.

And on the cross, Jesus took your place and my place.

Why do kingdom people think differently?

Why do kingdom people serve a different king?

Well, when we truly see Christ like this serving king, serving stops feeling like an obligation and starts becoming a privilege.

Because grateful people become joyful servants.

Nobody has to convince someone who has been rescued to love the rescuer.

Nobody should have to convince us.

Since we have been brought from death to life to love our rescuer and redeemer.

Everything that you have belongs to the Lord, and everything that we have is grace.

Grateful people don't have to be guilted into serving, they simply respond to grace.

It's the difference between get to and have to.

Why?

Because I'm thankful that this is my church.

It's not just that church, but this is my church.

I get to because now I'm not going to say, well, somebody else will do it.

No, now I get to take care of that.

It's not putting it else, it's not putting it on someone else, it's owning it.

It's a joyful response.

And one of the greatest enemies of serving isn't laziness, it's the recognition for it.

Will people see me pick up that trash?

I'm not gonna do it if I don't get credit for it.

But maybe just maybe the moment that service becomes about recognition, it stops being service and begins being selfishness.

And can I remind us all today that serving doesn't servants don't live for the applause of many, we live for the approval of one, and his name is Jesus.

Which leads us to point number three.

That Jesus, the one who descended to the lowest place, is about to be exalted in the highest place.

Paul wrote, Therefore, therefore, God has exalt highly exalted him.

And the world crowned him with thorns, and the father crowned him with glory.

The world gave him a cross, and God gave him the name above every name.

And Paul says, at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow.

Rich and poor, powerful and powerless, every knee, every tongue, every person, everyone will confess Jesus Christ is Lord.

This should carry weight both personally and missionally, my friends.

Church family, hear me.

Praise God.

If you're in the sound of my voice today, you've been given a gift.

The breath in your lungs is a gift.

The beating of your heart is a gift from God.

It was not promised or guaranteed.

Eternity for the believer, the eternity for those of us in Christ does not begin on the day that we draw our last breath.

All of eternity has been written on our hearts, and the only person who can fulfill it is Christ Jesus Himself.

And for those of us who put our faith in Christ Jesus, the day of eternity with Christ begins on the day that we bend our knee and confess with our tongue that Jesus Christ is Lord.

If you have done that, praise God.

Praise God.

But I also want to remind us something that should impact us missionally.

Because we also know that the day of the Lord is drawing near, that Jesus Christ is returning.

And every single one of us, if we have not yet done that moment of confessing that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior on this side of eternity, when we do draw our last breath on this side, it will be too late to spend forever and eternity with God.

So personally, it carries weight.

Missionally, it drives us forward to love.

People well to love one another, to serve one another.

And this is why we know the end game and we serve because we want to see as many people bend their knee and confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior on this side of eternity.

Church, family, that's why we hear we are here.

When Paul says Lord, this is not just a religious title.

He's master, he's ruler, authority.

We we might even put this in kid terminology.

He's the boss.

Some of us proclaim Jesus as Savior.

Thank you, Lord Jesus.

You save me from my sin.

You save me to a relationship.

I got my get out of hell jail free car thing.

But I'm not gonna live as if you're Lord.

I trust you for the forgiveness of my sins, but how dare you, Lord, impede on my life?

Confessing Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior means both surrender for the need of your salvation, but to surrender in every aspect of your life.

And you and I are terrible gods.

We mess everything up.

And you say, Well, I don't.

We call that pride, we call that sin.

We're terrible at calling the shots.

He's the boss, which means he has the right to direct every aspect of our lives.

So the question is no longer, should I serve?

The question becomes, since Jesus is Lord, he's boss, what area of my life is exempt from his lordship?

It's a rhetorical question because you already know the answer.

Nothing.

Nothing is exempt.

Your time, talent, and treasures, everything belongs to him.

Serving is not primarily a volunteer issue.

It's a lordship issue.

It's not a volunteer issue.

It's a lordship issue.

It's not circumstantial.

It's not someone else can, someone else will.

It's God, despite these things, I want to see you clearly.

You provide the example, you lead me, you guide me.

I'm gonna trust in you, and I want you to transform the way that I think, not how the world wants me to think.

And God, I'm gonna trust you here.

And so the question now becomes is not whether Jesus is Lord, the question is, is he Lord of you?

Whenever Jesus captures the heart, he eventually changes the hand.

So what does picking up the towel actually look like?

Maybe if some of you are thinking, I don't even know what I have to offer.

Well, Peter addresses that question in 1 Peter chapter 4, verse 10.

1 Peter 4:10

Peter writes, as each of those of us who are in Christ has received a gift, it's a spiritual gift, use it.

Highlight, circle, underline, use it.

And what's this the title of today's sermon?

Serve one another.

Use the gift that God has given to you to steward as God's stewards of God's very grace.

Did you notice that?

We receive a gift that God gives, we use it for one another, and we steward it because of God's grace.

Everything that we've been given time, talent, treasures, fill in the blank is grace.

So how do we respond?

If you're in Christ, you've been gifted.

And some gifts are visible, some are hidden, but none of them are accidental.

Every believer has received grace meant to flow through you to someone else.

And God never asks us to serve in our own strength, but to lean on Him.

I want to provide a little bit of a roadmap.

We do believe here at United City that every single one of us has a next step.

Not everyone's in the same place, but everyone has a next step.

As you're taking notes, step number one, pray.

Well, when we pray, we look at Jesus and we remember who he is and what he has done.

Everything that we just read in Philippians chapter two and talk about, we're gonna pray.

We're not gonna just play, uh pray superficially.

We're gonna pray looking at Jesus and we're gonna ask him to remind us of who he is and what he's done.

We're not gonna pray, hey Lord, would you have me serve where it's the easiest?

Jesus, would you have me serve where it's the most convenient?

Jesus, would you allow me to serve if it's not gonna cost me much?

God, would you only allow me to serve if it's the most visible?

No.

Lord, where do you want me to serve?

Ask Him.

Would you be willing to ask the Lord a bold prayer?

And then are you gonna be ready and responsive when he gives you a bold response?

Number two, complete growth track.

Like, what's growth track?

Every Sunday morning at 10 a.m.

in our growth track room during this hour.

It's okay if you miss worship at 10 o'clock to go to the growth track for four weeks, come to 8:30 or 11:30.

We'd love to have you one of the other services for a little bit.

Go to growth track.

Why is that?

Go discover who we are as a church.

Understand what we believe, why we believe it, why we function.

Because every single person who serves here at United City Church has gone through growth track, which means there is unity, which Paul talked about.

There's alignment, there's encouragement.

And we want everyone of the same mind, the same attitude that we serve not to please men, but we serve out of an overflow of what God is doing in and through us.

So it brings unity and alignment and encouragement.

Number three, take action.

Peter said, use it.

Take action.

Let's get in the game.

You know, I think all of us on some level, we're all coachable.

I'd like to think we are.

I'm gonna go and just speak that in to you.

We're all coachable, we all listen.

And can I tell you, if a coach tells you to work on your crossover, but all you do is just dribble with your right hand, did you put into practice what the coach told you to do?

No.

The word of God is telling us to use it, and maybe that means greeting because you've got the gift of hospitality.

Some of you are really good looking people and you got amazing smiles.

Tell people.

Let the joy of the Lord shine through you.

Physically, do you know what a smile does to us chemically?

It raises the endorphins.

Someone may never say a word if you have to smile, and you're like, huh.

But you got a gift of hospitality.

Perhaps you could be the person who shows up early and you make the coffee, and nobody ever knows who you are, but they're thankful for you.

I see hundreds of y'all drinking all that coffee.

You don't have a clue who makes it, but you're like, great, it's free, and I'm here.

And you're thankful for the people who showed up, and they're out there right now making fresh stuff for you, too.

Visible or behind the scenes, every act of service matters to God.

And I am so grateful for the serving culture we have and are growing here at United City.

And I'm grateful for the countless servants, the hundreds of servants at UC who step up consistently to overflow what God is doing through them.

And I'm thinking about Everly Posey, who makes the coffee and helps us find seats and greets.

I'm thinking about Greg Harris and the senior adults who spend hours each week doing background work for all of our ministries.

I'm thinking about Melinda Sawyer.

Comes up on Mondays to knock out some kids' ministry items.

Busy mom with a busy schedule finds time.

For Christina Smith and Aubrey Clover and Jen Alters, getting students checked in for youth and behind-the-scenes operations.

For my guy Xavier Hawthorne, his name is X, typically he's over here to my left, your right, with a smile on his face, making sure we don't trip over these steps.

But he's such a blessing to the production team and our young adult service, and even like people like Helen Kelly, who's back here making sure that all the slides are running and that I stay on time.

You should say, Amen for her.

Church family, there are there are countless people, hundreds of people.

And I'm not trying to put them on a pedestal, and trust me, if we had time and a whole sermon to go through the Rolodex of people on serve team, I can give you countless examples of faithful saints who love Jesus and who love you, and that's why they serve.

That's why they serve.

And I'm so thankful for you guys who serve, heaven sees what most people never will.

So take action.

So when we say scan the QR code, use a tap tag.

Do it.

Whenever a staff person or a life group leader or a serve team member calls you or texts you, don't ghost us.

Don't ghost them.

Respond.

Could you imagine walking up to someone in person, shaking their hand or saying hi and going, hi, and they just look at you?

That's what it's like when you leave us on red.

And we're trying to provide you an opportunity.

Don't ignore us.

Respond.

Step number four.

We're not gonna overcomplicate obedience.

Step number four.

Serve where your feet are.

You see, serving isn't limited within the confines of this building, y'all.

It's not limited to an hour on Wednesday or an hour on Sunday.

The one another commands were never meant to stay inside these walls.

If you're married, sacrificially serve your spouse.

If you've got kids, serve your children.

You got a job, joyfully serve your coworkers, classmates, neighbors, serve the person in the hospital room, serve the lonely person that nobody notices.

Church, don't reduce serving to a ministry schedule.

Servanthood is not a place you go, it's an attitude and a posture you carry with you as you go.

Can you imagine what God could do through a church where every member embraced this mindset of Jesus Christ in Philippians 2?

What if every person who calls United City their church home picked up the towel?

You would never hear about a need in a ministry.

And trust me, every ministry was chomping at the bed to say, Can you give us a chomp?

Can you give us a little shout out?

We need help here and help here.

Listen, and there are needs across this church in every aspect, but this is not a recruitment message.

This is a let's fix our eyes on Jesus' message.

Let's look at the example of Jesus.

And Jesus, would you transform my heart?

Would you transform my mind?

And God, would you open my eyes to see the opportunities that you put before me?

And would I joyfully, obediently step in to steward the opportunity and respond to the opportunity that I get to do, Jesus, for your glory, for your name, and to bless other people.

Imagine how homes would be transformed where spouses and families loved one another.

Life groups would be transformed, whereas you walk into a room and you walk into an encircle, and while we do have needs and we do have questions, we're not leading out with who's going to serve me today.

We walk into those spaces and places and we ask first, Lord, how could you use me to bless someone today?

We've got to be convictional of people who stand on the promises of God and don't just sit on the premises.

We stand on the promises of God and respond for his glory and for his goodness.

So we ask, how can I help advance God's kingdom?

All transformed by people who look like Jesus because that's the goal.

Our goal is Jesus, and serving is a byproduct.

We're not looking for merely more volunteers or serve team.

We're looking to be more Christ-like.

I'm grateful that somebody else's obedience is part of my story.

I'm thankful for Corbin and Corinne.

And whether they're watching this at some point or if I get to share this to them, love you guys.

Thank you.

I went to church of a hundred people, a youth group of 10 of us, and two people, Corbin and Corinne, every week faithfully showed up.

Every week poured out and picked up a towel.

They didn't have a podcast, they didn't write books, they didn't have thousands of followers on social media that didn't exist then.

They were more concerned with being obedient to Jesus and more concerned with pointing a 15-year-old punk who cared only about himself, who thought this charismatic 15-year-old athlete was at the peak prime of his life, and they lovingly shared God's word with me.

They lovingly pointed me to Jesus, the one who could transform my mindset and take the focus off of me and to put it on him.

And by God's grace, I'm thankful by their obedience that I get to stand here today, 25 something years later, and proclaim the goodness of Jesus to you.

Church family, perhaps your 1,000th step of obedience will be someone's first step of obedience.

Don't rob someone else of the blessing by sitting on the gift that God has entrusted to you.

Will you steward it and give people the blessing of Jesus and point other people to Jesus?

Your act of service is just the vehicle, it's just the mechanism to tell people that Jesus Christ is Lord, that Jesus Christ is King, that He came, He died on a cross.

Three days later, He rose again, ascended, and He is going to return.

He is ruling, He is reigning, He's gonna return.

And the question is: do you know Him as Lord?

And are you on mission to tell more people that Jesus loves them?

Church family, I'm grateful that someone else was obedient.

It transformed my life.

So let me ask, whose story might God write through yours?

Church, it's time.

It's time for us to fix our eyes on Jesus.

It's time to respond with gratefulness and gratitude in our hearts.

With a bended knee, an open hand and a willing spirit.

Church, it's time to pick up the towel.

Why?

Because Jesus joyfully served us.

And in response, we get to serve one another.

Would you bow your heads and close your eyes with me?

It's a moment of response.

And an invitation.

The towel that Jesus picked up to wash his disciples' feet that revealed his heart.

The cross where his blood was shed for the forgiveness of your sin and my sin.

That reveals his sacrificial love.

There's an empty tomb that reveals his victory over sin and death.

And now this risen king invites you to follow him.

Some of you need to do more than admire Jesus today.

Maybe today you've been inspired or challenged by Jesus, but you've never surrendered to him.

And today could be the day.

Today could be the day that you're saved, forgiven, and made new.

You don't have to clean up yourself.

You simply come to Jesus by faith and trust him as your personal savior and Lord.

In a moment, we're gonna stand and sing, and that's gonna be your invitation.

If you need to confess him as Lord and Savior, let that be today.

Today is the day of salvation.

Others of you, you need to pray with someone.

Life is difficult, there are challenges, and you need someone to intercede on your behalf and to point you to Jesus.

Others of you need to take a step of obedience, like the one we saw earlier today in Believers' Baptism.

Praise God.

Maybe your obedience will be a blessing to others, and you've confessed them as Lord, but now you need to walk in obedience and be baptized.

Come forward and talk with one of our staff or prayer team members.

We'd love to talk with you about that and get that scheduled.

Man, what an amazing time that we had today.

Hey, if you know of someone that needs to hear this message, we'd love for you to share that on socials.

We'd love for you to actually go and check out our socials so you can stay up to date on everything happening in the life of the United City.

And if you need to take the next step, we'd love to help you do that as well.

Love you guys so much.

We'll see you next week.