Introduction
If
you were expecting Michael to preach this morning, I’m sorry for the
disappointment. He was due to speak, and had prepared his talk, but he went
down with a summer cold at the end of the week and yesterday morning he texted
me to ask if I could stand in.
So I’d like to start with a little disclaimer. This talk has not benefitted from the amount of preparation I would have otherwise devoted to it. Just managing expectations…
Also, it contains some of what would have been Michael’s sermon, but it has some of my own material in it as well.
If you begin to wonder which bits are his and which are mine, the easiest way to work it out is that the really good bits are mine and the substandard bits are his!
Please don’t take that remark seriously by the way! It’s probably the other way round in truth.
Actually, it sort of introduces the theme which is the last in this ‘one another’ sermon series. I’ll come back to that in a moment.
But before I do that, I want to say that I hope that you have heard God speak to you through this series over the last few weeks.
If you remember, we spent some time walking through the letter of James back in the spring with its focus on not just saying we have faith but acting it out in our daily lives. That is key.
And looking at these one anothers was designed to add a bit of flesh to the bones of what we were challenged by in the Letter of James.
Let me ask you, as we start, what do you think a community of people devoted to authentically living out faith in Jesus should look like?
What we’ve seen over the last few weeks is that it looks like people who love one another, who forgive one another, who serve one another, and who connect, or do life with one another.
In Romans 12.10 it says, “Be devoted to one another in love. Honour one another above yourselves.”
Let me pray...
Ego and Humility
I want to begin by playing a little interactive game. I hope that’s OK.
I’m going to read out seven quotes and you have to say by raising a hand if you think the quote is from former U.S. president Donald Trump or football manager Jose Mourinho. If you are not interested in football, Jose Mourinho does not carry a reputation for humility and meekness.
- The point is you can never be too greedy. (DT)
- The beauty of me is that I'm very rich. (DT)
- Maybe he should have an IQ test, or go to a mental hospital or something. (JM)
- My IQ is one of the highest and you all know it. Please don't feel so stupid or insecure; it's not your fault. (DT)
- I think I'm actually humble. I think I'm much more humble than you would understand. (DT)
- God, and after God, me. (JM)
- God must really think I’m a great guy. He must think that, because otherwise he would not have given me so much. (JM)
Well! The ego has landed… Two men there who really rate themselves and their opinion.
But we live in a world where everyone has an opinion.
And now, with social media, everyone has a platform to put that opinion out there regardless of whether it’s factually accurate or whether it’s hurtful to those who read it.
We also live in a world that celebrates the relentless pursuit of fame and success. The TV show The Apprentice, is perhaps the purest expression of this naked ambition.
The latest advert for this present series features a contestant on the show, who says, “I have two goals in life; more money and more power, and nothing is going to get in my way.” It doesn’t matter if it means walking over others and disposing of them.
Every obstacle to the goal of wealth and power must be ruthlessly eliminated.
Friends, family, faith – it is all unimportant. I will promote myself and my interests even if it means destroying someone else. It’s dog eat dog.
Obviously, that’s extreme, which is why it’s on TV, but survival of the fittest is the way of the world.
Going Low to Soar High
And it's against this backdrop that the church stands out as a radical, counter-cultural, revolutionary movement.
God wants a community of people who esteem and honour one another above themselves.
Perhaps the passage that says this most powerfully is Philippians 2.3-11 which I’ll read in a moment but before I do, are you sitting comfortably? Then I’ll tell you a story.
The Danish philosopher, Søren Kierkegaard, used to tell the tale of a young prince who longed for a future wife and queen.
One day, on an errand for his father, he passed through a poor neighbourhood of a certain town and noticed there a young peasant girl whose beauty, fairness and purity stole his heart.
Several times the prince returned to that town in the hope of catching a glimpse of this young maiden.
Without ever having said a word to her, he found himself falling irresistibly in love with her.
Day and night his thoughts were consumed by this question; how could he propose to her? He could, of course, as the king's son simply order her to marry him.
But with a forced marriage he would never be sure that her love for him was genuine. He wasn't interested in a trophy queen. It had to be true love or nothing.
At last, he came up with a plan. He threw off his royal robes, removed his jewelled ring and disguised himself as a peasant.
He moved into the poorest part of town and lived with the local people. He adopted their accent, shared their simple food and worked hard for a modest wage.
In truth, it was more than a disguise; it was a new identity.
He lived this way for three years, hoping he would get just one chance to meet the young woman of his dreams.
Finally, they met, and to his great disappointment, it was not love at first sight on her part.
So, he courted her, and charmed her and amused her and was attentive to her. Gradually won her heart. Slowly, she grew to love him deeply and all because he had first loved her.
It’s a charming ‘happily-ever-after fairy story, and Kierkegaard used to tell it to bring out the flavours and emotions of Philippians 2.3-11. Here’s what it says…
Do
nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value
others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to
the interests of the others.
In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!
Therefore, God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Jesus, just like that young prince, emptied himself, became flesh and blood, and embraced the role of a simple domestic servant.
He was laid in a borrowed manger, he preached on a borrowed boat, he rode into Jerusalem on a borrowed donkey, and he was buried in a borrowed tomb.
And now we're told, “In humility, value others above yourselves. In your relationships with one another, have the same attitude of mind that Jesus had.”
That's the path that God has mapped out for every Christian. It's a life totally turned away from the all-consuming pursuit of me.
It's quite surprising how many popular Christian book titles are about finding true happiness here on earth, achieving personal success or fulfilling your potential.
Here are a few popular titles I noticed as I browsed online yesterday.
- “20 Ways to Make Every Day Better.”
- “You Are Stronger Than You Think: Discover the Power to Overcome Your Obstacles.”
- “Become a Better You: 7 Keys to Improving Your Life Every Day.”
- “Destined for the Top: Overcoming the Issues That May Hold You Down.”
- “Powerful Attitudes for a Successful Life.”
I haven’t read any of them and they might be much better than their titles suggest. But it just doesn’t sound much like Jesus to me.
Jesus asks, “What good is it for you to gain the whole world, [meaning personal fulfilment, success, wealth, happiness, comfort…] and yet lose your very self?”
He says, “Whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.”
He says, “The first shall be last.” “It is hard for the rich to enter the kingdom of God.” How would that go down on The Apprentice?
Verse 3 says, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit but in humility consider others above yourselves.”
The apostle Paul started out by describing himself as ‘the least of the apostles’ (1 Corinthians 15:9). This was one of his earlier letters. Later on, he called himself ‘less than the least of all God's people’ (Ephesians 3:8). Finally, in one of his last letters, he described himself as ‘the worst of sinners’! (1 Timothy 1:16).
It is not that he got worse and worse; it is simply that, as he became more and more filled with the Holy Spirit, he became less and less full of himself.
“In
humility, consider others above yourselves” he says.
I’ve noticed that humble people are pleased when others around them do well. They are free to be happy for them. They don’t compare themselves to high performers and worry that they don’t measure up. They tend to be secure.
If v3 urges us to be humble, like Jesus, v4 says to be generous, like Jesus. Not looking to your own interests, it says, but each of you to the interests of the others.
According to Nicky Gumbel among the key words in the Bible (and I haven’t checked his maths): 'Believe' is used 272 times. 'Pray' ... 371 times. 'Love' ... 714 times. 'Give' ... 2,162 times.
When I was a boy, the kids in my school playground who shared their sweets were not only the most popular, unsurprisingly, they were also, curiously, the most cheerful. Was it the same in your school? Giving people tend to be joyful souls.
The social psychologist Oliver James wrote a book a few years ago called Affluenza. And in it he said that 50% of people with incomes over £35,000 feel they can’t afford to buy everything they need.
And in fact research shows that whatever your income and however much is in your bank account people will always think that they need about a third more income to live the way they think they should.
Mammon always says, “You haven’t got enough to give away. Keep it. Store it up.” But God says, “Do not look to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”
The more you sow into others' lives, the more you will reap in your own.
Verses 5-8 are up there with the most profound scriptures in the New Testament. They focus on Christ's perfect obedience and lowly status which led him to his ugly, harrowing death. But straight afterwards, v9 begins “Therefore God exalted him.”
So
Christ's majestic glory is a direct consequence of his lowly emptying of
himself and taking the form of a servant.
This is why “God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, before which every knee should bow...” And Paul says, our attitude should mirror that.
No act of kindness you do, no loving word you speak, no extra mile you walk, no generous gift you offer, no unnoticed menial job you accept, no hour of prayer you set aside is ever insignificant in God's purposes.
The world says, look after your own interests - pursue money. Jay Gould, the American multi-millionaire businessman and investor said on his death bed, “I suppose, that I am the unhappiest and least satisfied man on earth.”
The world says, look after your own interests - pursue pleasure. The libertine Lord Byron was legendary for his excesses in wine, women and song. But in his later years he admitted, “Cirrhosis, syphilis and regret are mine alone”.
The world says, look after your own interests - pursue power.
In
the Louvre Museum in Paris there is a painting by Charles Le Brun called
Alexander Entering Babylon. There he is, this invincible Alexander the Great
riding into another conquered city to a hero’s welcome.
He stands, majestic, in a gold and ivory chariot, pulled by two elephants captured from the Babylonians. Alexander is crowned with laurel leaves, he points authoritatively with his left hand, and holds a golden sceptre in his right. Trumpeters go ahead of him announcing his arrival. Beside him, three men carry a large golden vase, the spoils of war.
Everything about this painting exalts this man as impressive and powerful. Alexander is known as "the Great" because of his spectacular success as a military commander.
He never lost a single battle, despite the fact that his armed forces were typically outnumbered. Academies throughout the world still teach his military tactics today.
It is said that Alexander would send heralds into conquered cities before him proclaiming, “I, Alexander, have conquered the world. Now I will conquer the stars.” Legend says that he wept in his tent after entering India at age 29, because there was no land left to conquer.
But all human glory is pathetic compared to Christ's. No one compares to our Lord and Saviour!
We love the excellence of his glory, but all the more because it is mingled with his humility. We love his lion-like majesty, but all the more because of his lamb-like meekness. We love his sovereignty over all things, but all the more because it is clothed in obedience and submission.
We love the way he stumped the Pharisees with his wisdom, but all the more because children loved his simplicity. We love his power and authority to calm storms with a word, all the more because he refused to use that power to come down from the cross.
Alexander the Great died at the age of 32, of a fever - probably malaria. All that pomp and glory and human grandeur taken down in just a few days by a humble mosquito… While Jesus still leads the biggest movement earth has ever seen and it is still growing every day.
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.
In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.
Ending
I want to finish this talk and this series, with a challenge that makes this personal and real for you.
And I’m going to paraphrase what it says in Philippians here and invite you to personalise it by filling in the blanks with the name of someone who you find difficult.
This person could be part of this church, your spouse, a parent, a child, a sibling, another relative, a friend, your boss, an employee, or a co-worker.
Have a think about someone you find difficult... And now let’s make this a solemn commitment before God.
Following the Christ's example, and by the Holy Spirit’s enablement, I will reject self-seeking glory and vain pride, and I will strive to humbly regard _____________ as more important than myself. Rather than constantly looking out for my own interests, I will also look out for the interests of ____________
Sermon preached at King's Church Darlington, 4 July 2021.
