LOVE, SERVICE AND SPIRITUALITY
The Work of Love, the Way of Life
SERMON NOTES
Mark 10:33ff., I Cor. 13, Philippians 2,
When
at Seminary in
Appalled,
one has an answer, now as then, and for today, let us consider the above three
scriptures. NEVER is the humble person an aspirant for pride, for greatness.
HOW could you be humble if what you are AFTER, your dream, your objective, is
partly or wholly that you should be important!
1. Marking the WORDS IN MARK 10
In
Mark 10, you find that James and John wanted to be on either side of Christ in
glory. There are not too many sides … Christ indicated that this was not His to
give, and taught them a lesson. In this, He made it clear that greatness lies
in service, and if you want to be first, the way to do it is to be a slave,
busily occupied in dealing blessedly with needs.
It
is when you contrast this with the “Gentile” desire to have DOMINION over you,
to lord it over you, to use power for self-importance, for self-fulfilment and the like, that you see the meaning. THEY
desire to give orders, the first to the lesser. Christians seeking to please
God, they are in CONTRAST to that. Theirs is no desire to give orders, but to
get work done, to serve. It is however not a meaningless ‘service’, as for example
a dispenser of alcoholic beverages, merely meeting demand. Spiritual service is
under the law and values God gives, and is in HIS kingdom, so that first it
serves Him, and then others in terms of the Creator’s specifications. It no
more invents or is indifferent to standards than is a mechanic or surgeon!
This
part of our answer, then, is found in the INSTRUCTION given by
Christ to His disciples.
2. PONDERING PHILIPPIANS
2 and considering Philip
You
find by EXAMPLE in Philippians 2:1-12, that the way Christ did it was this. FIRST, He HAD greatness, as being the form of God, eternal,
increate, holy. SECONDLY, He left that form to take a most humble and
serviceable one, that of a man, yet without sin (I Peter 1:22ff., Hebrews 7:26),
so that He could display the ways of God, work the miracles of God’s pity and
die for sin as man’s saviour, offered to all,
effective to those who believe. He is, we read, Holy, Harmless, Undefiled!
THIS
is the exact opposite of seeking to be great, aspiring for it, dreaming of it.
Rather you lay it aside to be serviceable in HIS KINGDOM, meeting need with
joy, according to His plan. For this, you need to know Him and to be directed
by Him, as was Paul, as was Philip in Acts 8, first seeking to win Samaritans
to Christ, and then in the very midst of this, yielding to direction to what
looked much LESS important. What was that ? Going into a desert in order to find … in fact an Ethiopian in his
chariot, known to God better than any radar.
Arriving
at the very moment this Treasurer of the Queen was studying Isaiah 53, Philip
was moved by the Spirit of God to go up to his chariot and soon was explaining
not only the meaning, but the message of salvation. The Treasurer was converted, and
Philip again was caught swiftly away.
Seeking
to be great is a disease, just as is laziness, self-will, rebellion. It is
simply not to the point, distorting vision, a discreditable motive. Some
kingdoms live for it; this one lives without it. What does great works is
blessed, what serves humbly is functional, and love drives it. Galatians 5:6
tells us that it is a matter of faith working by love! FAITH sees,
LOVE works.
3.
NOT
LORDLINESS BUT LOVE … I Cor. 13
How then does love look to work ?
You find this especially in I Corinthians 13.
Love does not parade itself (13:4). Importance is
irrelevant.
Love is not puffed up. Inflation is not its purpose,
but spirituality, likeness to the Creator who put life into action, gave spirit
its sanction, gave grace its place, pardon its
purchase price by eyeballing death, and overcoming it.
Love rejoices in truth, not in mere appearance, and
does not seek its own (13:5-6) …
What then does not stir it ? its
own importance, its own survival, its own magnificence, its own place for its
own sake, this holds no attraction. Christ left His place to give us place. It
is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts
How then will love survive ?
Mercifully God is love, so that His almighty power will always be there, His
love in light that cannot even be met by intruders (I Timothy 6:16), His wisdom
needing no help from brigands or brigandage, His mercy no solace from invaders.
Satan tried it in the ultimate, in heaven (Revelation 12), but his rough-necks
were scattered, and on earth they seek like viruses to overcome the unwary. The
ONLY answer is in the love of God, not self-seeking, not survivalism,
but revival of the sense of duty, of responsibility, of fearless faith.
How long will hatred, selfishness survive
? Not long, for hell is ready for its victims. Refusing vicarious
sacrifice FROM love, they find themselves sacrificed as they sacrifice truth
and mercy: their own enemies, their own doom comes for them from their own
plotting. It is as foretold in Ps. 2, where the selfish ambitions of
pretentious greatness measure their rebuke.
Seek FIRST Christ’s kingdom, love the Lord with all
your heart and soul and mind and strength, and like a shoulder blade, let your place
be as He appoints it, and rejoicing, serve Him within HIS body for HIS OWN
sake. If after all, you are crucified with Christ (Gal.