How Do We Serve Our New Master?

[0:00] Take your Bibles, if you will, and turn to Matthew chapter 25, verse 31, and we'll read through the end of the chapter. When the Son of Man comes to his glory, or in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory.

[0:20] All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

[0:33] Then the king will say to those on his right, Come, you who are blessed by my Father, take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.

[0:47] For I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me in.

[0:58] I needed clothes, and you clothed me. I was sick, and you looked after me. I was in prison, and you came to visit me. Then the righteous will answer him, Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?

[1:16] When did we see you, a stranger, invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we visit you sick or in prison? Or when did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?

[1:30] The king will reply, I tell you the truth. Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me. Then he will say to those on his left, depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

[1:51] For I was hungry, and you gave me nothing to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me nothing to drink. I was a stranger, and you did not invite me in.

[2:04] I needed clothes, and you did not clothe me. I was sick and in prison, and you did not look after me. They also will answer, Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison and did not help you?

[2:24] He will reply, I tell you the truth. Whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me. Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.

[2:46] In our study of the Christian's identity, we have been learning that we are, who are believers in the Lord Jesus, are no longer slaves to sin.

[2:57] But that by the grace of God, we have become slaves, do-loss, slaves, servants to God, to the Lord Jesus Christ.

[3:09] He purchased us with his own blood, so we are not our own. We're his possession. And therefore, our purpose in life, if we know who we are, is not to please ourselves, but to please him.

[3:22] Not to do our will, but to do the will of our new master, Jesus Christ. And what a master he is. The last time we considered this theme together, we saw he delights in the well-being of his servants.

[3:38] He loves them. He sympathizes with them. He daily bears their burdens. He helps carry their load. His laws are perfect freedom.

[3:49] And even gives us help to keep those laws. Putting his spirit within us. And what gracious rewards he has for his servants. And then that he even serves his servants.

[4:04] I ran out of time two weeks ago. I had an eighth point about our master. And I want to close that out before we go into a new topic this morning on servanthood.

[4:18] And it's that we are more than servants to him. Open to John 15 in your Bibles, if you have your Bible with you. The 15th chapter of John's Gospel.

[4:31] It's just hours before Jesus' arrest. Judas is already left to get the arresting mob. Jesus is there with the other 11 disciples. And he's teaching them.

[4:42] Lots of teaching in these last discourses. Chapter 13 through 17. And here we are, right in the middle of it.

[4:52] Chapter 15. And the Lord Jesus says to his disciples in verse 12. My command is this. Love each other as I have loved you.

[5:05] Greater love has no one than this. That he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends. If you do what I command. I no longer call you servants.

[5:18] Because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends. For everything that I learned from my Father, I have made known to you.

[5:32] Now someone asks, does this mean then that believers no longer have the identity as Jesus' servants? But that we now are his friends.

[5:46] Well, that's a worthy consideration in light of these words of our Lord Jesus. I no longer call you servants. Instead, I have called you friends.

[5:57] So the question is this. Does our identity as friends of Jesus replace and undo our identity as his servants?

[6:11] Well, my answer is no. Otherwise, I'd have to throw away the last two sermons that I preached. I've told you that we are his servants.

[6:23] But seriously, let me give you just two. There are other reasons. But let me just give you two reasons why this cannot be the right understanding of Jesus' words here. First of all is the fact that just five verses later, Jesus is back to calling these very men his servants.

[6:40] If you look down to verse 20, remember the words I spoke to you. No servant is greater than his master. If they persecuted me, i.e. the master, then they will persecute you also, my slaves, my servants.

[7:00] So Jesus is still identifying them as his servants, his slaves, his doulos. It still stands. That identity of the believer still stands.

[7:12] The second reason why we must say this is that the rest of the New Testament that was written after these words of Jesus, by the apostles of Jesus, under the inspiration of the spirit of Jesus, over and over call the believer servants or slaves of Jesus Christ.

[7:35] So we can never interpret Jesus' words here in John 15, 15, in a way that would contradict what he revealed to his apostles and through his apostles as they gave us the rest of the New Testament.

[7:50] So we'd not only have to scrap my two sermons on this subject, we'd also have to scrap the books of Paul and of Peter and of James and of Jude and of John, who all refer to believers as the doulos, the slave, the servant of Christ.

[8:10] So I trust those two reasons are sufficient to convince you that here in John 15, 15, Jesus is not undoing the believer's identity as his servant, slaves.

[8:23] Well enough then, you say, but what does he mean then if not that? And let me just seek to set that before you. When he says, I no longer call you servants, instead I call you friends.

[8:34] I want you to notice the specific thing about servants that he is not able to refer to them as. So he didn't call them his servants in a specific manner, a specific reason.

[8:53] The way servants were ordinarily treated is something that Jesus distances himself in the way that he treats his servants, his disciples.

[9:04] And notice it there in verse 15. I no longer call you servants. Why? Because a servant does not know his master's business. That's what he's putting his finger on.

[9:15] Instead, I've called you friends. Why? Because everything I have learned from my father I've made known to you. So before sending you out to work in his orchard, your master calls you into his office in the morning.

[9:29] He gives you a cup of coffee and tells you to have a seat. And then he opens a blueprint and shows you his plan for the family estate. I'm going to tear out that old apple orchard and put in a swimming pool for the kids to enjoy.

[9:45] I want this to be a place where the kids can invite their friends and come and have a good time. And we'll plant a new orchard over there behind the cattle shed. And then I've always been wanting to do something special for my wife.

[9:59] And so here's the drawing for an English flower garden. The topiary boxwoods outlining the many flower beds. And then we'll put a portico here and a grill here for our family and friends to enjoy.

[10:13] And only then, after he's shared with you the purposes of his heart, the plans that he's got for this estate, does he then say, okay, you can head on out now into the orchard.

[10:28] Now that's precisely what Jesus has been doing with his disciples, his servants. He's been unfolding the whole drama of redemption.

[10:39] He's been telling them the purposes of redemption and salvation and why the Father sent him. And why he's come to save his people from their sins.

[10:52] And how he's going to do that. He must die and be raised again. And he's going to go away for a while. And then he'll be back. And you see, he's just laid the whole thing out before them.

[11:05] That's the way he treats his servants. Not the ordinary way that a master treats a servant. He disclosed everything to them.

[11:18] Everything I've learned from my Father, I've made known to you. What a master. What a master. Now that's not the normal way of masters with mere servants, is it?

[11:30] They just meet them in the morning with the orders. Go dig out those apple trees. Make sure you get all the roots and then burn them over here. And then tear down that stone wall around the orchard and pile all the stones over here.

[11:44] And by the way, before you do all that, feed the cattle. Be gone. Just the to-do. Not entering into the purposes of the heart.

[11:55] Not. And Jesus is saying, I don't call you a servant in that sense. He's saying, you're not that kind of servant to me. You're far more than that.

[12:05] You're a special kind of servant. A servant who is also a friend. A friend. And I've proven that to you in disclosing all that the Father has said to me.

[12:19] So, not less than a servant, but far more. A friend. And verse 14 tells us that they will prove themselves to be his friends.

[12:29] How? By obeying everything that he says as Lord. So, we're not to see that these can't exist together. It's rather by obeying him as Lord that they will prove themselves to be his servant friends.

[12:45] And that then is another reason. An eighth reason why it's a privilege to serve this kind of master. That he treats his servants as friends.

[12:56] Indeed, we are friends. That's another whole identity I trust will give a Sunday morning to just studying that alone. We are his friends. Friends of Christ. Well, one more message then on servanthood to Christ.

[13:12] I want to answer a very practical question then. And it's this. How? How do we serve our new master, Jesus Christ? And I've got five points. The first is we serve him by doing his will.

[13:24] We serve him by doing his will. By obeying his commands. And in this, we're just like the angels. Psalm 103 ends with calling on the angels to praise the Lord.

[13:40] Praise the Lord, you his angels. You mighty ones who do his bidding. Who obey his word. Praise the Lord, all you heavenly hosts.

[13:53] You his servants who do his will. That's what a servant is. One who does the master's will. That's true of angelic servants.

[14:04] It's true of human servants. And we see this in the nation of Israel that God chose to be his servant nation. And we come to Exodus 20 as he's brought them out of Egypt and redeemed them from slavery to Pharaoh.

[14:19] Now to have them as his servants, he brings them out to Mount Sinai. And in Exodus 20 and verse 1, he says, I am the Lord, your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

[14:33] And what follows are the Ten Commandments. Here's how you serve me. You're no longer serving Pharaoh. You're now serving me.

[14:43] I'm your Lord and master. You shall not have any other gods besides me. And so forth. We serve him by doing his will.

[14:53] His will that is expressed in his moral law, his commandments to us. Well, this is the new heart that God gives to all of his servants in the new covenant.

[15:06] He not only gives us the outward commands, but he writes it on our hearts. He puts it on our insides so that we want to keep his commands.

[15:16] That's the mark of his servants. 2 Corinthians 5.9. So we make it our goal to please the Lord. That's the heart of a servant, isn't it?

[15:27] We didn't once have that as our goal. Our goal was just to please us. But now our goal is to please the Lord. And that's why we're also told to find out what pleases the Lord.

[15:41] Ephesians 5.10. That's what drives us to the scriptures. We're servants on a mission. We want to find out what pleases the Lord. What pleases our master. And it's here that we learn just that.

[15:55] In precepts and commands, we have marked out for us the thing that brings pleasure to our new master. So when you obey his word, he delights in your service to him.

[16:09] It's his pleasure. It's one of the reasons why the Bible is so important to the servants of Christ. Because here they learn their master's will. And they want to do what pleases him.

[16:21] They want to find out and do it. So a servant lives a Bible saturated. A word governed life. So come to your Bible as a servant coming to the master each morning.

[16:38] Come like Saul on the road to Damascus, bowing low before the Lord. What would you have me to do, Lord? That's a servant who knows his identity.

[16:51] He's a servant and he wants to do the master's will. Come presenting the parts of your body to him to be used in his servant.

[17:04] Lord, take my mouth today and let it be filled with messages for you. Take my ears and my eyes and my hands and my feet. My strength and all that I am and use it in your service today.

[17:17] We present ourselves as Romans 6 tells us to do. We want to do his will. We present it to do his will. We come to the Bible with young Samuel's heart.

[17:31] Speak, Lord. Your servant is listening. That's the heart of the servant. He knows his identity. Your servant.

[17:42] And he knows what this book is. It's his master's word. So I'm listening, Lord. We don't give proper attention to God's word unless we come to it as servants waiting to learn the will of our master that we might then go and serve him.

[18:02] And is it not true that slaves, servants, don't get to pick which of their master's orders that they obey? They would soon learn that that's not part of the identity of a servant, wouldn't they?

[18:17] I like the second thing you told me to do, boss, but not the first and the third thing. So I'll just do that one thing. No, that would be an outright refusal to recognize what you are, a servant to the master, and your purpose is to do his will.

[18:35] Well, that's the mark of a servant. They do the will of the master. And so where a servant starts to pick and choose which of his master's will and commands he obeys, Jesus has this searching question for them.

[18:54] Why do you call me Lord, Master, and do not do what I say? Why do you even take the identity as being my servant if you don't prove yourself to be my servant in doing it, doing what I say?

[19:13] Not perfectly, but intentionally, holistically, doing whatever he says just because he, my master, says it to me, his servant.

[19:28] Well, that's the first way we serve him then. So when we think of, okay, we're servants of the Lord, how do we think about that? Well, I want you to think about it every instruction and every command that you receive from the Lord.

[19:44] That's laying out the orders for how to serve him. Very practical way that we serve the Lord. And so that means when you obey that command, you are pleasing him.

[19:59] You're bringing pleasure to your master. So we serve our new master not only by doing his will, number one, but secondly, we serve him by suffering his will, whatever he sends.

[20:11] There is a will of God to suffer as well as a will of God to do. Both are ways that we serve our master. Our Lord Jesus himself was the suffering servant of the Lord.

[20:25] A suffering servant. And he served the Lord not only by doing his will. Yes, he did it perfectly, didn't he? He obeyed every command. But he also served the Lord by suffering his will throughout his whole life.

[20:41] He suffered. And then especially on the cross, he was the man of sorrows, familiar with suffering. And each time he suffered, he was serving his Father in heaven.

[20:57] We hear it from our Savior at the incarnation. It's an interesting thing that the Bible gives us, the very words of Jesus as he was coming into this world. The Father has commanded his Son.

[21:07] He sent him to go and to become a man, to take on human nature with a real body so that he might suffer in that body and die to redeem the slaves of sin, to make them his own.

[21:23] And here's Jesus' response recorded in Hebrews 10, 7. Having been sent, Then I said, Here I am. It's written about me in the scroll.

[21:35] I have come to do your will, O my God. Jesus has come as the servant of the Lord to do his will. And that was not only by obeying his commands, but it was also by giving himself up to suffering that the Father had assigned to him as the Savior of his people.

[21:56] Unparalleled suffering. And the suffering servant bows his heart to the Master's will. And again, servants don't get to pick and choose how they will serve the Lord, whether in prosperity or in suffering.

[22:15] Whether in abounding circumstances or in abasing circumstances. They don't get to choose how they will suffer. Some today, as we sit here in freedom and in prosperity, some today are serving the Lord under stiff persecution.

[22:34] With lack of freedom to do what we're doing. Some are serving him today in prison. In poverty. Some are serving him in poor health.

[22:45] Some in difficult families. Difficult marriages. Difficult jobs. Sufferings that they never choose for themselves. But that have been assigned to them by their master.

[23:01] Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup. That's a servant. Recognizing that these ways of serving have been assigned.

[23:15] Assigned to us. And so he sends affliction. He sends grief. He sends suffering to be born in service to him. You remember when the Lord Jesus, after his resurrection, appeared to his disciples.

[23:31] And he was with Peter. And after reinstating him as one of the apostles, he said, Well, now, your assignment is going to be to die a martyr's death.

[23:43] And in that way, you will glorify God. You will serve God by dying a martyr's death. So follow me. And so Peter's following the Lord.

[23:54] And he looks back over his shoulder. And he sees John back there. And he says, Well, Lord, what about him? What about him? What kind of assignment does he have? Wrong question, servant.

[24:07] What is that to you? What is it to you if I want him to live until I return again? You follow me. We don't get to choose how we will serve the Lord.

[24:20] And even how we will suffer for him. And neither should we be comparing assignments with others. But we should be receiving the assignment God gave us.

[24:35] And serving him. Are you receiving your afflictions as assignments from the Lord on how you are to serve him? In that family.

[24:47] At that job. In that distressing situation. Servant there. Edith Schaefer was asked, Who do you think is the greatest servant of the Lord alive today?

[25:00] Oh, she said. It's probably some little old lady. Suffering away in some hospital. Forgotten by the world.

[25:12] But suffering. Willfully. Cheerfully. Contentedly. Resignedly. To her master. Probably the greatest servant alive today.

[25:28] We don't know them. But she understood that suffering God's will is one of the ways we serve him. And oh, how that changes.

[25:39] Our view of suffering. We once were able to do so much to serve him. Now we're laid up. And we can't do so much to serve him.

[25:53] But we can suffer. For him. And unto him. And with praise and thanksgiving to him. Well, Peter reminds us that suffering is something we're called to by our master.

[26:07] I love that book. First Peter. It's all about suffering. And he says, If you suffer for doing good and you endure it. This is commendable before God. To this you were called. Christian, you're called to suffering.

[26:19] Because Christ suffered for you. Leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps. So dear friends. Don't be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering. As though something strange is happening to you.

[26:30] No, it's just par for the course. It's the will of God your master. And it's to be received as your assignment. To serve him. And so Jesus.

[26:41] The suffering servant. Has set the example. How do you suffer to the will of God? Well, he did not retaliate. He did when he suffered. He made no threats. Instead, he just entrusted himself to God.

[26:51] Who just judges justly. This is unto you, O Lord. You've sent it. You've assigned it. And I receive it. In submission to you.

[27:02] So then, those who suffer according to God's will. Should commit themselves to their faithful creator. And continue to do good. We serve God by doing his will.

[27:13] His commands. Secondly, by suffering his will. And thirdly, we serve our new master. In our various callings in life. Sometimes there's an erroneous idea.

[27:25] A foot in the church. That thinks that. Well, serving the Lord is what we do on Sunday. Yes. That's part of it. Or serving the Lord is what missionaries do.

[27:37] Or pastors do. Or Sunday school teachers do. Yes. Partly. But the Bible tells us that. We serve the Lord in our callings.

[27:50] In whatever place God has put us. Martin Luther brought this truth to light. In the. Protestant. Reformation. By saying something to the effect.

[28:03] That the baker in his kitchen. Serves the Lord just as much. As the pastor in the pulpit. You see the calling. And isn't that good. Because you spend most of your time.

[28:14] In your calling. So as you drive truck. As you are repair man. As you are maintenance man. As you are. Whatever it is that God has called you. To a teacher. As you are in the office.

[28:27] That's your calling. That's where you spend most of your waking hours. Isn't it wonderful to know that. That's. That's how we serve the Lord. It's not off. Limits. Well. I've got this little area of my life.

[28:39] To serve him. No. The whole. Of our life. And. Especially to think in our. Callings. And the God given duties. Of our callings. That's how we serve him. Just look over to Colossians.

[28:51] Chapter three. And we're told very specifically. Some of these various callings in life. And how we serve the Lord in them. Colossians three. And verse 18.

[29:02] And following. Notice these various callings. Are you a wife?

[29:13] Here's how you are to serve the Lord. Wives submit to your husbands. Husbands. As is fitting. In the Lord. You see this has to do with the Lord. What you're doing there in the home.

[29:23] And in submitting to your husbands. Husbands. Would you serve the Lord? Then. Love your wives. And. Don't be harsh with them. Be tender. With them. And know that when you do.

[29:35] You are serving the Lord. You are pleasing your master. Children. You don't have to wait. To serve the Lord. Lord. Obey your parents.

[29:47] In everything. For this pleases. The Lord. The master. The kurios. And fathers. Do not embitter your children. Or they will become discouraged.

[30:00] So you're about to just. Ream them out dad. And. And you remember. That the master. Wants you to serve him. By treating them in a different way. And as you do.

[30:13] God says. That's. Pleasing to me. That's. My servant. Serving me. These are. Some of our callings. In which we serve the Lord. As we do it.

[30:23] Unto the Lord. For the Lord's sake. And then. Notice. It goes on to slaves. There's the do lost. The. The earthly slave. And he's told. Obey your earthly master.

[30:34] In everything. And do it. Not only when their eye is on you. To win their favor. But. With sincerity. Of heart. And. Reverence. For the Lord. Whatever you do.

[30:46] And for slaves. It was quite mundane list. Wasn't it? Work at it. With all your heart. As working for. The kurios. The Lord.

[30:57] The master. Not working for men. Since you know. That you will receive. An inheritance. From the Lord. As a reward. Here it is. It is the Lord Christ.

[31:08] You are serving. That's. That's a transforming thing. For any. Employee. It is the Lord Christ. You are serving. Whatever. Situation.

[31:19] Where you are under a boss. It is the Lord Christ. That you are serving. And again. It's showing us. That we. Serve the Lord. By. Carrying out. Our callings.

[31:30] In. Life. According to his will. And can you see. How the. A man. A woman's identity. Was to shape. Their lives. Here's these.

[31:41] Earthly slaves. And their identity. As slaves. Of the Lord. Is to affect. The way. That they serve. Their earthly. Masters. They're to serve. Their earthly.

[31:51] Masters. Realizing. That they're really. Serving the Lord. As they serve. Their earthly. Masters. So all you do. All day long. Is to have this aim. To please your heavenly.

[32:02] Lord and masters. And then it's flipped. Isn't it? Now we're speaking. To the kurios. The masters. Chapter 4. And verse 1. Masters. You provide.

[32:12] For your slaves. What's right. And fair. Because you know. That you have. A master. In heaven. Again. Remember. Your identity. Whether you're a slave.

[32:23] Or you're a master. You both are slaves. Of a master. In heaven. And that's to affect. The way that you. You carry out. Your day by day.

[32:34] Existence. And relationship. Is to affect. The way the slave. Serves his earthly master. And it's to affect. The way that an earthly master. Treats his slave. Remembering. I am a slave.

[32:46] A servant. Of a heavenly. Master. So. The New Testament. Is reminding us. That in. Our callings. In life. We are actually.

[32:56] Serving. Our new master. Remember that. As you head out. The door. Tomorrow. To your task. To your workplace. To your. Caring.

[33:07] And raising. Children. To remember. This is. This is. This is. This is where it's happening. This is where what. What we're learning on Sunday. Is to meet the. The rubber.

[33:17] Meet the road. On. On Monday. We serve him. In our callings. And fourthly. We serve him. By serving others. You remember. How. The apostle. Paul. Identified himself.

[33:28] On board. That ship. In acts. Twenty. Seven. As. When he referred. To God. He says. Whose I am. And whom I serve. I'm a servant. Of the living God. Day. Day or two later.

[33:38] The ship. Wrecks. And they all make it. To. To shore. Alive. Drenched. And we find. This old. Servant of the Lord. Whose he is. And whom he serves. And what's he doing.

[33:50] He's out. He's out. Picking up sticks. To help. Warm. The bodies. Of his fellow. Drenched. Passengers. He's serving.

[34:00] The Lord. By serving. His fellow man. And when you. Serve your fellow man. In deeds of love. And kindness. You are serving. The master.

[34:11] Whose you are. And whom you. Serve. So. As you have opportunity. Do good. To all people. Because in doing.

[34:22] Good to them. You are serving. The Lord. But especially. Do good. To the household. Of faith. And Jesus. Builds greatness. In his kingdom. Upon this very principle.

[34:33] Of serving. Others. Within the kingdom. Doesn't he. It wasn't. A lesson. That came easy. To the 12. As they were often. Found. Arguing about. Which of them. Was the greatest.

[34:43] Christ. And jockeying. For places of honor. Over the others. But Jesus says. My kingdom. Is not like the kingdoms. Of this world. With their great ones. Trampling all over others.

[34:54] To get to the top. He says. Instead. Whoever wants to become. Great among you. Must be your servant. And whoever wants to be first. Must be the very last. And the slave.

[35:05] Of all. For even the son of man. Did not come to be served. But to serve. And to give. His life. As a ransom. For many. Fellas. In my kingdom.

[35:15] The way up. Is down. You become great. In this kingdom. By serving others. By. By being last. By. By being the slave.

[35:25] Of all. And though we can be real. Spiritual on Sunday morning. When we hear a message. Like this. Okay. I'm going to be the slave. Of all. The real test.

[35:36] Is what happens. Wednesday afternoon. When somebody's treating you. Like a slave. Is your identity. Still real to you. Are you the slave of all. Are you there to serve.

[35:47] Others. Or does that irritate you. Because. You're better than that. That's beneath. You. It wasn't beneath. Our Lord.

[35:58] You remember. Nobody was willing to do. The act of the lowest slave. There was the water. The basin. The towel. But they had been arguing. About who's the greatest. And so Jesus. Who is the greatest.

[36:10] Gets up from the table. Dresses himself to serve. And goes around. And washes his disciples feet. And after he's done. He takes. His place again. And he says. You call me teacher.

[36:21] And Lord. Kurios. Master. And rightly so. For that's what I am. Now that I. Your Lord and teacher. Have washed your feet.

[36:31] You should. Wash one another's feet. I've set. You an example. That you should do. As I have done for you. I tell you the truth. No servant. Is greater than. His master. And if it wasn't beneath me.

[36:42] Your master. To wash your feet. It's not beneath you. To wash each other's. Feet. And know that.

[36:54] When you serve. Others. You're serving me. That's. That's. That's what kingdom work is. In Romans 14. 18. Paul says.

[37:04] When you act in love. Toward your brother. Instead of out of selfish concerns. And don't care. What. What your brother's. Response is. No. When you act in love. To your brother. You are serving Christ.

[37:16] In that way. That's what he calls it. Serving Christ. Loving your brother. Now. I. Think if Jesus. Were here.

[37:26] Physically today. And he was sick. Shut in. Maybe in prison. I have no doubt. That we'd visit him. I have no doubt. That we would. If he was hungry.

[37:38] Without food. We'd take him a meal. Or we'd have him. Into our house. For a meal. If he was cold. And in need of warmth. And clothes. We'd see he had plenty. And. If he just needed a friend.

[37:50] We'd be there for him. We love him. And we want to serve him. But the fact of the matter is. Is that he is not here. Physically. Is he?

[38:00] His body. He. Bodily. Is in heaven. This morning. So I can't reach him.

[38:11] To wash his feet. I can't reach him. To. To clothe. His body. I can't reach him. To feed him. But he says.

[38:23] A day is coming. When he will say. I tell you the truth. Whatever you did. To the least. Of these my brothers. You did. Unto me. Unto me. This is an oft forgotten truth.

[38:37] That will become crystal clear. In the last judgment. As we saw in Matthew 25. When everyone will see. That the Lord Jesus. Is so united. To his people. That whatever is done.

[38:48] To his people. Is counted as having been done. Personally. To him. I say. That's an oft forgotten truth. But it will become. Crystal clear.

[38:58] When. Judgment day arrives. About the relationship. Of Christ. And his people. It's so tight. It's a. It's a union. So tight. That. Whatever you do.

[39:08] To his people. You do to him. So. Serving. Christ. Is serving. His people. I serve him. By serving. His. That's what I learned.

[39:19] So I'm the servant. Of the Lord. What am I to do? Well. Serve. His people. Don't let that important truth. Be forgotten.

[39:30] Servants of Christ. As you're making your way. To the last judgment. We're told. Even a cup of cold water. Given in his name. To one of his. Will not fail.

[39:41] To receive. A reward. A cup of cold water. Now. What is. I'm thankful. For these up here. I get caught in mouth. But. But what's a cup of cold water.

[39:52] In the long run. It's not much. Is it? And. And yet. That's the way. We serve. One another. And. It reminds us.

[40:03] Oh. The little things. That Jesus. Will draw attention to. As. Big things. To him. A cup of cold water. Little things.

[40:14] That. Jesus. Will draw attention to. Things. That were dismissed. By most. Most people. As nothings. They never made.

[40:24] Headline news. They never drew. The applause of men. They were overlooked. On earth. But they'll be seen. To be highly esteemed. By the master. Who will say. Ah. She was serving me.

[40:36] She was serving me. When she took that meal in. To that elderly person. He was serving me. When he. He took ten minutes. Out of his. Day.

[40:47] To. Enter into. Intercessory prayer. For his brothers. And sisters. She was serving me. When. She. Cared.

[40:58] Enough. To call. A downcast. Sister. So. Little things. Nothings. And that's what Jesus. Draws attention to.

[41:08] Big things. Even a cup of cold water. That's how we serve him. The apostle Paul got it. When he was writing to that. Problem church at Corinth. He says.

[41:20] We do not preach ourselves. But Jesus Christ. As Lord. Master. And ourselves. As your servants. For Jesus sake.

[41:31] Paul. What's your identity here? I'm an apostle. Of Christ. Yes. He was that. And he had that identity. But. But he says. I am a servant. I'm these people's servants.

[41:42] For Jesus sake. And I'm serving Jesus. By serving them. That's why he took so much. Gaff. Off of this church. They. They ran him down. They looked down their noses at him.

[41:53] Oh. He's not impressive. They. They dismissed his authority. As nothing. And. Why do you keep taking it? Why so many letters of concern?

[42:05] Why so many visits? Because he was their servants. For Jesus sake. He knew he was. And he was serving Jesus. By serving his. People. And that's how you serve him too.

[42:19] Well. Lastly. We serve. The Lord. Not only by serving his people. But fifthly. We serve him with joy. And gladness. Psalm 100. In verse 2. Serve the Lord.

[42:29] With gladness. Not grudgingly. Not with a joyless spirit. Well. If I have to. I suppose. We'll. We'll do that. No.

[42:41] Willingly. Eager. To serve. To serve. Is the language of scripture. First Peter 5. To. Eager. To serve. All in. Heart. Soul.

[42:51] Mind. Body. Strength. With gladness. Not grudgingly. Not grumbling. And complaining. About the work. About the master.

[43:02] About the pay. About the rules. But joyfully. Counting it. Your happy privilege. To serve him. Who died for you. You know that passage. The Lord loves a cheerful giver.

[43:14] And it's no different. With. His love for cheerful servers. He loves a cheerful. Servant. One that finds great joy.

[43:26] In serving Jesus. Jesus. You know there is joy. In serving Jesus. Isn't there? And that's. How we are to serve. This great master. I've been in restaurants.

[43:36] Places of business. Where. The workers are all grousing. And complaining. And grumbling. And I can't get out of there. Soon enough. I've also been in the other places.

[43:48] Where everyone's joyful. And serving with a happiness. And a. And. I've wanted to meet their boss. Because.

[43:58] Happy servants. Honor. And. And promote. And speak well of. Their boss. Their master. And that's. The way it is.

[44:09] In Christ. Service. Happy servants. Are an honor. To the goodness. Of our master. Others see it. And they conclude. What a kind master.

[44:21] She must have. That she goes on. Serving him. So gladly. Even in difficult. Circumstances. Polycarp. In the year. 155. Was nearly.

[44:31] 100 years old. A pastor that. Grew up. Under the apostle. John. And then went on. To become a leader. In the church. At Smyrna. One of the seven churches. That received a letter.

[44:41] From our Lord. And. He was. Arrested. And brought into. The stadium. With. A lawless crowd. Of heathen. Spectators. And. And there he was.

[44:53] Commanded. By the Roman. Procouncil. To curse Christ. Or to face. The wild beasts. And. The old. Polycarp. Said. Send for them.

[45:05] And he says. Oh. If you don't. Respect. My wild beasts. I'll send you. To the fire. Curse the Christ. Oh.

[45:15] Eighty. And six years. Have I served. Christ. Christ. And he's done me. No wrong. How then. Can I blaspheme. My king. Who has saved me.

[45:26] And the crowd. Chanted in unison. For him. To be burned alive. Which he was. Counting it a privilege. To serve. His master. In that way.

[45:37] A master. Who had been. So kind to him. Never done him wrong. In eighty six years. Of service. Well. Are you serving. The Lord. With gladness. He was serving.

[45:47] The Lord. With gladness. Even to the very end. Are you serving. The Lord. With gladness. Is that the way. You come. Before his commandments. And when a command. Rubs you. The wrong way. Does that end.

[45:59] Your happy service. You say. No. He's worthy. He is worthy. I think. What he suffered. For me. Let me.

[46:11] Do his will. Are you. Serving. With gladness. In the suffering. That he's called you. To endure. Suffering. His will. Are you receiving it.

[46:23] As his assignment. For service. Are you serving him. By serving his people. With joy. Do you find it. A joyful thing. To minister. To your brothers. And sisters. Which of your brothers.

[46:34] And sisters. In this body. Of Christ. Will you serve this week. And how will you serve them. Give some thought to them. We're servants. Of the Lord. And then. Are you daily serving him.

[46:45] In your callings. And. Your various relationships. Showing. By your joy. What a gracious. Master you have. If you're not serving Jesus.

[46:58] You're still serving yourself. One day you'll see. Right now. That doesn't mean much to you. It's not. That big of a. Of a problem.

[47:08] Perhaps. But one day you'll see. The folly. And wickedness. Of not serving. Jesus Christ. Oh that you'd see it.

[47:19] This morning. And that you would turn. From. Your idols. To. The living God. To serve him. To serve him.

[47:29] And to wait for his son. From heaven. Even Jesus. Who rescues us. From the coming wrath. What a master. Serve him with gladness. Let's pray. Our kind.

[47:47] And our gracious. Master in heaven. You delight. In the well-being. Of your servants. Even at great cost. To yourself. Father. You gave up.

[47:57] The dearest. In heaven. To make us. Your own. Lord Jesus. You gave up. All that you were. You laid down. Your life. As a sacrifice. Having.

[48:09] Been bought. At such a price. We. We're not our own. And we also. Count it a privilege. To be able. To be your servants. To no longer.

[48:20] Serve under the harsh. Masters of sin. And self. And Satan. And that trinity. Of evil. But to serve. Such a gracious. Master. And we do. Confess our sins.

[48:30] That we have not always. Done your will. We've not always. Suffered your will. We've not only. Not always served you. In our jobs. In our callings. In relationships. In life. And. We've certainly not.

[48:42] Always done it. In gladness. And we've not served. Each other. As we ought. We. Ask for that. Forgiveness. Of our sins. And. For a whole new mindset.

[48:53] To be. Be renewed. Among us. That we would. See our identity. Of who we are. And the privilege. That it is. To serve you. So help us. This week.

[49:05] To serve you. With all of our heart. That. We would tell you. Of our love. Even as we sing. This song. And our desire. To do something. For your namesake.

[49:16] Help us. We ask. In Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Amen.