Mark 9:33-35 (NKJV) Then He came to Capernaum. And when He was in the house He asked them, “What was it you disputed among yourselves on the road?” But they kept silent, for on the road they had disputed among themselves who would be the greatest. And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.”
Jesus revealed to us God’s definition of greatness in the Kingdom of God, which is to be a servant to all! Therefore, the way to be promoted in the Kingdom of God is to be humble to serve everyone regardless of their age, class in society, gender, colour, and nationality. He wants us to serve everyone in love and humility. God gives grace to the humble. Therefore, it is better to be humble and rewarded by the Lord than to be proud and humbled by Him.
If we don’t renew our minds about how leadership works in the Kingdom of God, we will end up like the disciples mentioned in this passage, who were disputing who was the greatest among them! We often think that the twelve Apostles were superhumans and saints, but they were just as human as each one of us, even though they all contributed tremendously to the preaching and the spreading of the Gospel around the world.
Therefore, nobody in the church should think that they are too important to do minor chores or take simple responsibilities in church. In fact, serving in the Kingdom of God or the church will require us to be faithful with the little before God promotes us to do greater things.It also means if we used to be a leader of our old church, this doesn’t automatically make us a leader in another church—church leadership is non-transferable. In fact, if we have the right attitude of a servant, we won’t complain why we must start showing faithfulness with the little all over again.
One of the humblest things we can do for the Kingdom of God is work behind the scenes in ministries such as media, editing, translation, and the finance and legal committees. They are truly the unsung heroes in the church.
Someone who understands what servant leadership is will not demand privileges and entitlement in the church because the signs of a mature and learned student of the Bible will show forth grace and humility. It should not matter what position we hold in the secular world or how wealthy we are. Instead, all of us should choose to serve and treat one another with respect. So let us all have a servant’s heart and glorify God with our gifts and talents!
Sermon Series: ServeFest (September 2023)
在神国里作最大的
马可福音9:33-35 他们来到迦百农，耶稣在屋里问门徒说：“你们在路上议论的是什么？” 34 门徒不作声，因为他们在路上彼此争论谁为大。 35 耶稣坐下，叫十二个门徒来，说：“若有人愿意做首先的，他必做众人末后的，做众人的用人。
耶稣向我们揭示了何为上帝所定义的“在神国里为大”，那就是成为所有人的仆人！因此，在神国中晋升的方式是谦逊地服侍每一个人，无分年龄、社会阶层、性别、肤色和国籍。祂希望我们以爱和谦逊服侍每一个人。上帝赐恩给谦卑的人。因此，与其因骄傲而被主折服，不如因谦卑而得主的赏赐。
如果我们不对神国的领导运作作出心意更新的思考，我们最终会像经文中提到的门徒一样，争论他们当中谁为大！我们经常认为十二使徒是超人和圣人，但其实他们都是和我们一样的凡人，尽管他们都为福音在全世界的宣扬和传播做出了巨大贡献。
因此，教会里的任何人都不应该认为自己重要到一个地步而不能在教会里负责一些琐碎的差事或承担简单的责任。事实上，在上帝的国度或教会中服侍需要我们首先在小事上忠心，然后上帝才会委派我们做更大的事。这也意味着，如果我们曾经是旧教会的领袖，这不会自动使我们成为另一间教会的领袖——教会的领导权是不可转让的。事实上，如果我们有正确的为仆的态度，我们就不会抱怨为什么我们必须从头开始，首先在小事上表现出忠诚。
一个明白何为“仆人式领导”的人不会要求在教会享有特权和权利，因为一个成熟而博学的圣经学生的标志会彰显出恩典和谦逊。不管我们在世俗世界的地位如何，也不管我们有多富裕。相反，我们所有人都应该选择以尊重的态度相互服侍和彼此对待。所以，让我们都怀着一颗为仆之心以各自的天赋和才能荣耀上帝！
讲章系列：服侍招募 （2023年9月）