Sermons

Oct 22 - The Rev. Brian C. Taylor - The 20th Sunday after Pentecost

Listen to audio version of this sermon.

If we are ever shocked at ego and power plays among people of faith, all we have to do is remember today’s gospel. The apostles, those few who had the singular advantage of living with Jesus himself, were acting like spoiled children.

First, James and John - two of those who were privileged to see Jesus transfigured in glory on the mountain top – decided they’d like a little of that resplendence themselves. They had the nerve to ask Teacher, we want you to do whatever we ask of you. You can almost hear Jesus answering Oh really? They went on, Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in glory.

And if that weren’t bad enough, the other 10, suspecting that Jesus would grant them their request, were angry and jealous. What a tawdry scene. And these are our primary saints. (That should be heartening, really; if the apostles were that bad, surely you and I aren’t expected to be perfect.)

Jesus’ response is to call them to self-sacrifice: Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, to be slave of all. Jesus will model this upside-down way of greatness by allowing himself to be martyred. It is only after the crucifixion and resurrection that perhaps it began to dawn on the apostles that true leadership, is, in fact, a life of service, not status.

I know of an important church leader who seems to be engaged in service. He is not paid, after all, and he spends a great deal of time volunteering for the church work he does. He has received many accolades for the service he renders to the church.

But it turns out that he is in the habit of staying at the finest hotels, wining and dining important people for the sake of this ministry. His committee is running thousands of dollars in the red. In the work of his committee, he keeps things loose, and doesn’t really seek input, the better to control the outcome.
He loves fine vestments and the honor of processing down aisles of cathedrals, then afterwards, sitting at the head table of the banquet. All in the name of Jesus, the one who gave his life on a cross.

By contrast, another important church leader with whom I serve avoids the limelight except where it will further the goals that the committee has set, trims costs where possible, and has a collaborative style that draws out the gifts of each person who serves together.

Two models of leadership, both purportedly serving the cause of the gospel. One is obviously more what Jesus had in mind for servant ministry, the other more like James and John that day. The last shall be first and the first shall be last.

I could have told the same story about two business executives or two homeless people. The social standing is not the issue. One’s position in life is no guarantee. It’s not as if lowly people are always humble and important people are always self-absorbed. Anyone can be either.

There are, for example, mothers who truly serve in love and mothers who manipulate others through their self-serving martyrdom. There are politicians who have very low ego needs and politicians who are narcissistic.

There are volunteers at soup kitchens who are patronizing and want everyone to know how much they care about the little people, and volunteers who quietly go about helping others. The last shall be first and the first shall be last.

We know that we’re all called to serve. We are inspired by those who remind us that to give is to receive, to forget the self is to find the self. But it doesn’t seem to be enough to just do the actions of service, for there’s no guarantee in the action of serving that we’re really serving others.

True servanthood comes from the inside out. In fact, according to Jesus, everything comes from the inside out. He said that some people are like whitewashed tombs, which on the outside look beautiful, but inside they are full of the bones of the dead and of all kinds of filth. He noted the worthlessness of a big donation to the temple, because it was made in a grand gesture by a wealthy man, and, on the other hand, God’s preference for the small, quiet gift of a humble, poor woman.

So it is with service; what matters is the condition of the heart. An open and generous heart will naturally express itself by helping and serving other people. Even more importantly, the service that comes from an open and generous heart will be a joy to perform and to receive. By contrast, service that comes from a small heart will always feel dutiful to the giver and the receiver.

What is it that makes for the kind of heat that is naturally inclined towards serving others? I have to confess that I am not the best person to answer that question. I’m frequently humbled by others, including some of you, who have that gift in a much greater measure than I ever will. Some of that we can’t control – the part that has to do with how we were brought up, or simple differences of personality.

Some of it, however, we can control. We can cultivate an attitude of servanthood. We can choose to be of more service to a world that so obviously needs it. But how?

First, in order to care for others I must take care of myself. If I get enough sleep, if I have some fun on days off, if I get in the pool and swim some laps, if I take time for quiet prayer, I’m much more likely to deny myself when the need for that arises. Then I don’t mind long hours at the office, pastoral emergencies on days off, travel for church business, or other sacrifices.

But if I’m tired, cranky, and carrying too much burden, I don’t have anything to give. Then I just go through the motions of service and sometimes I do more harm than good. It is only when we serve the self, in sense, that we can serve others.

Second, a heart that is open to service has to remain vulnerable to pain. All of us have been hurt in our lives. Naturally, we don’t like pain. And so some of us develop a shell around this hurt, and are determined that we won’t ever let that happen again.

On top of that, our culture has a way of making us feel that suffering isn’t natural, that if we’re good, if we’re successful, we won’t be vulnerable. And so when we see others in need, we might be inclined to feel afraid and look the other way, or even to become angry or self-righteous, and blame the victim.

Empathy, by contrast, is possible when we have not closed our heart to life’s pain – either ours or another’s. Empathy is possible when we know that we’re all in this boat together, and that suffering is a normal experience from which we cannot be shielded. With empathy, we don’t look at this broken world and just point the finger at those who are messing it up; we feel compassion.

Hopefully, compassion then translates into conviction, and conviction to action. We might then reach out to the individual in need, write a check, or join a cause. We are more likely to serve if our hearts remain open to the reality of suffering.

Third, I think that as we engage in service, we need to remain vigilant about our motivations. For we can always go awry. When we do volunteer work or try to help another person or give money to the church or a charity, it is important to ask:
· Whose needs are being met here?
· Is this about me and my feelings about giving or about the object of my help?
· Do I require appreciation for my efforts?
· Do I think my service justifies me, or do I do it just because it needs doing?
· In serving, am I flexible, willing to let go of my preferences, or do I insist on things going my way?

Finally, real service happens when we are not attached to the outcome. All we can do is put in our little bit and then pray for God to take it from there. The job of Savior is already filled. Like servants in a household, our job is to carry out the desires of the One whom we serve, and leave the results to God.

We are all called to be servants, no matter what class or station in life. Jesus said Whoever wishes to become great among you must be [a] servant, Service can be a tricky thing, but it is authentic when it comes from the inside out, when it flows out of a servant heart. We can cultivate a servant’s heart. It helps to take care of ourselves, to be open to life’s pain, to keep watch over our motivations, and to leave the results to God. Then, perhaps, we shall be the faithful servants that Jesus wants us to be, to a world that needs all the help it can get.