Seven Attributes of a Real Servant

music Follow the world is all waiting here. We shall see, seeking the joy you will bring. Soon you will be with us, God's Word revealed to us, come, Emmanuel. We must believe that the moment is near. Faithful, in the wind is so good, Lord, we do. As every doubt awaits, let us prepare the way. Come, Emmanuel, come. Soon angels shall sing, heart that heaven will be. Soon, soon he will come, the world will know the sun. Out of the darkness will God our praise be listened. Play gently, guiding us all through the night. Let him bring the welcome in, bring every joy signal. Come, Emmanuel, come. Soon heaven will shine, God will send us the sun. Soon soon he will sing, how great God's love can be. Come, let us watch and repent, let us watch by him. Humbly awaiting the joy he will bring, let us remain in him. Open our hearts to him, come, Emmanuel, come, Emmanuel, come. Soon soon we will sing, how great God's love can be. Come, let us watch and repent, let us watch by him. Humbly awaiting the joy he will bring, let us remain in him. Open our hearts to him, come, Emmanuel, come, Emmanuel, come.

Come, Emmanuel, come.

Through the tears filled my life with beauty, I can't find your love in all I see. From the early morning light through the peaceful. I know you are always close to me.

I know you are always close to me.

Oh, would you fill my life with meaning? I can feel your touch in all I do. As I try to understand how to live as you can end, I know I can always just in you. My heart's alive with the joy of amusing. My spirit's always with your wondrous gift of praise. We sing by thy flood and of me who sins to sing your glory. Sing your glory, glory. I will sing your glory, never time, all ever faithful. Glory to you, my song I praise. With the word, forever grateful, I will sing your glory and your praise. Glory and praise.

Some years ago, in a local paper, there was an announcement about the death of James Dudley. James Dudley was 76 years old at the time he succumbed to mortality, and someone he had known for a number of years saw the obit. His name is Bill. He reminisced about having seen him not long before this death had occurred. He used to drive by his home for quite a few years, and one day decided he would actually stop and talk with him.

Good thing he did, because some weeks after that, he was no longer available for such an encounter. The man was walking along the side of the road on a sidewalk, a dog ahead of him, looking back at him as he was painfully progressing the dog in better health, as Mr. Dudley was at this time. And Bill, as he stopped, reminisced on what effect this man had on him, because James Dudley, as the obit said, had been a high school teacher. He had graduated with a master's degree from Boston University. According to the obit, he was active in tennis and squash. He played semi-professional baseball. These were things that Bill hadn't known about him, and then towards the end of the obit, there was a mention made that he was aware of, and that is that James Dudley had been supervisor of the summer program in the town playground for 30 years.

Mr. Dudley's summer program was baseball. Non-Archen crafts, no kickball, non-dodgeball, baseball, seven hours a day, five days a week, 12 weeks a summer, year after year, for 30 years. In this particular program, it wasn't Little League. They had no uniforms, no fixed teams, no age limits, no skill requirements, no assigned positions. A little kid showed up day after day, week after week, year after year, and they got to play after they parked their bikes behind the backstop, baseball with Mr.

Dudley, who would pitch all morning long, and even though it might have been hot and muggy on an August afternoon, he would pitch all afternoon, and he did this, as I said, year after year. Mr. Dudley was a big, solid man with white hair, sun-warm face. He could throw strikes all morning. It was easier for little kids, a little faster for the bigger ones, with a little mustard on the baseball, as some of you can identify, being baseball aficionados, as probably we have here with us.

He would teach them a few skills, but the main emphasis, as far as he was concerned in this program, was participation. Every child would play every spot that was available as a position to play. And if anybody criticized someone who dropped a pop-up, Mr. Dudley gave them a withering look that reprimanded them to never criticize someone having made a mistake again.

They were Mr. D's boys, these youth. Thousands of them came through this unofficial program. And finally, as I said, Bill stopped that one day, pulled over his vehicle, walked along beside Mr. Dudley, and said, you probably don't remember me, but I wanted to say thank you for the influence you had on me, because when I grew up and left town, I still followed your principles. Mr. Dudley didn't seem to recognize him. They walked together a little bit further. Then Bill said, how's the old wing?

How's the rubber arm? Are you still putting a little mustard on that hummer? And maybe that triggered a memory I don't know. But he said, you know, I do remember who you were. Bill related further to Mr. Dudley, that he played baseball in college. He was playing softball, the fact he even coached. And he followed through on the same principles Mr. Dudley advocated, meaning participation, and learning the skills of baseball.

I was struck by this example, and I hope you are too, that someone could spend 30 years of his life in an unofficial program in community service for 12 weeks every summer, 5 days every week, 7 hours every day, with no pay, no recognition. I don't imagine his name appears in any Hall of Fame anywhere in the United States, but he did this simply out of a desire to serve.

And I'm amazed how in the world people can serve for a physical cause and how much more can we in the Church serve for a spiritual cause. And as you know, this year's General Conference of Elders theme is service and leadership, today, tomorrow, and beyond. And with that in mind, what I wish to do in the balance of this first split sermon is to identify 7 attributes of a real servant, identify 7 attributes of a real servant, or 7 attributes that help to define a servant's heart.

Attribute number 1. Attribute number 1 is this. Real servants, real servants see the pressing necessity of service. Real servants see the pressing necessity of service. Luke, chapter 22, if you will, please, for our first scriptural reference. Luke, chapter 22, and let's start in verse 24.

And that's what they did then. Do we do that today? If you look at our time 2,000 years after the event, do we find there are any squabbing occurring between churches or among churches for supremacy or superiority spiritually or between congregations? There may be some of that that occurs even in our time as we observe. Next verse.

Authority over them are called benefactors. Now, Gentile kings were and continue to be authoritarian, and yet their subjects would refer to them as benefactors. How come? Well, because they demanded it. We all remember Saddam Hussein when he was in power, how his people would chant, accolades, and approbation. Why? Because he required it, and they came through, of course, very dependably. Verse 26.

Is it not he who sits at the table? And clearly that is a norm. It was then it is today. People naturally esteem the diner as higher than the waiter. When you go to a restaurant, as periodically we all do, from time to time you may receive a little slip that asks you to evaluate the service you receive. That asks you in particular to evaluate or give a synopsis of the kind of waiter and his performance. You may fill out the little checklists as to how well he or they did. Rarely do you receive a little card from the waiter who gives you an evaluation of how well you did. Did you eat all the food on your plate? Were you conversing correctly with your company? Did you choose sufficient number of time before you swallowed? You don't ever get that. It's always the other way around. It's clear who has the power and who does not. For who is greater, sorry, he who sits at the table or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? Yet I, Jesus said to them, then to all of us today, yet I am among you as the one who serves. He did not say, I am among you as one who wishes to get ahead or to gain advantage. We are to walk in Christ's footsteps. We are to do as he did. But can we say, I am in this congregation, whichever congregation we may be in, I am in this congregation as one who serves, as one who helps, as one who assists, as one who pitches in, as one who participates. Can we say that? I trust that we can, because you see Jesus Christ is our standard. He wasn't below his dignity to serve in any capacity, and it shouldn't be below our dignity to serve in any capacity. He did. We should. And in this setting itself, he washed twelve sets of feet. I've never done that in any Passover service, and neither of you have just done one set. I suppose Jesus could have had each one of them sequentially wash his feet. He never did that. He set the standard. He held other people's kids. It's interesting to see a bachelor hold someone else's children. Very difficult if you haven't had some experience with holding your own children, then holding someone else's children. He did that as a bachelor, never having been married, never having had his own children. He tended to lepers. And a very interesting thing is that he even fixed breakfast over an open fire. After his resurrection, it's hard to cook over an open fire, and he prepared a meal for his disciples. So he functioned that way. We should, too. Real servants see the pressing necessity of service. It's a Christian requirement. It helps to define a servant's heart. Attribute number two. Real servants embrace the element of sacrifice. Real servants embrace the element of sacrifice. Turn with me next, please, to Mark 6, the Gospel of Mark. And we'll just read a section of chapter 6, starting in verse 13. For attribute number two, real servants embrace the element of sacrifice. Then the apostles gathered, the apostles gathered to Jesus and told them all things, both what they had done and what they had taught.

So here the disciples had just returned from their third preaching tour in Galilee, and they were wanting to share what they had done, what they had observed, what they had accomplished. Verse 31. And he said to them, Come aside, Jesus speaking to the apostles, come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest awhile. For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat. So Jesus, after listening to the disciples' report, prescribed some rest and renewal. Everyone, everyone needs a break. Even the people who work for God full-time need a break, need a change of pace. However, Jesus and the disciples found it difficult to do so, difficult to get a rest as they were in need of one.

As we read here, verse 32. So it says, They departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves. Can you imagine how this felt to them? After tramping dusty roads, days on end, finally they get into a boat, get a chance to relax and feel the wind on their faces and see the billowing of the sail on the boat, and how conducive and beneficial this must have been for them at that time. But the multitude saw them departing, and many knew Him, and ran there on foot from all the cities, and they arrived before them and came together to Him. So somehow, some way, they went around the lake and actually got to the destination before the boat did. And you see the reaction in the next verse.

And Jesus, when He came out, verse 34, says, looking for a desolate place, that was the objective, saw them, and what was His reaction? He was perturbed with them. Or the disciples were perturbed. The reaction is quite the contrary. When He came out, He saw a great multitude, and He was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. And so He began to teach them many things. The crowd was as needy as a flock without a shepherd. And the need that Jesus and His disciples had for seclusion, and that need was real, very real, was invaded by what we can call the claims of human need.

So if we serve only when it's convenient for us, then we're not real servants. Being a servant means giving up the right to control your schedule and to allow God to interrupt it as He sees fit. And we live in a time when efficiency is so highly valued, and we have our day so highly structured. And if something interrupts how we've scheduled a day, it can become very invasive. We can become perturbed. We can become frustrated.

But if every morning we remind ourselves that we are God's servants, that we belong to Him, that our time belongs to Him, we won't be so innervated if there is an interruption.

And usually there are many. You probably heard in recent days about a U.S. firefighter in Massachusetts who was needing a kidney transplant, and it was a life-threatening situation, and the word went out that he required a kidney donation, and there was a firefighter in California who volunteered to give one of his kidneys a transplant. They did not know each other, and he was interviewed as to why he was doing this, and he said, I'm a firefighter.

And firefighters are part of a brotherhood, their term. What kind of a firefighter would I be if I didn't donate one of my kidneys to him? A remarkable sacrifice. Similarly, there was an event you will probably not have heard about it. The Canadians will have in Toronto where a man in his 46th donated part of his liver anonymously. That is, there was a family with a child that needed a liver transplant. The child was about to die. He said, I'll donate my liver. I don't know who they are, but I think this is a good thing.

And so he offered to do that. Before he was allowed to do it, he had three psychiatric examinations to be sure he was in his right mind. Why are you doing this? Do you have a death wish? Are you feeling guilty? Are you trying to get a shortcut to heaven? Were some of the questions he was subjected to the sacrifice of this magnitude is so unusual in our society and in our day and age. Real servants embrace the element of sacrifice.

And you know the rest of the stories Paul Harvey would say when the day was far spent, Jesus taught them many things. You can see a tone of perturbance in the voice of the apostles where they said that Jesus sent them away. They're hungry, send them away. And Jesus said, uh-uh, you're going to do a spur of the moment catering for them. And they had to find food, they had to organize the crowd, they had to distribute the food.

And after that, there was cleanup. And this was after they were exhausted. And so that was added to their day in any case. Attribute number three. Real servants retain a clear sense of balance. Real servants retain a clear sense of balance.

Luke chapter 10. Gospel Luke. And let's read a few verses out of chapter 10, beginning in verse 38, for attribute number three. Real servants retain a clear sense of balance. Now it happened as they went that he entered a certain village. So they were traveling. And a certain woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. Now the house, according to what the verse indicates or implies, must have belonged to Martha.

The impression is, as a result, that she was the oldest and that she was the hostess. And so she was doing a superb job in that regard. Maybe too good. And she had a sister called Mary who sat at Jesus' feet and heard his word. So Mary was determined, having those circumstances presented to her household, that she was going to learn as much as she could from the presence of Jesus Christ. Martha was distracted, the Scripture says, with much serving. And she approached him and said, Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone?

Therefore tell her to help me. So here was Martha preparing an elaborate meal more than was necessary. Finally, when she couldn't stand it anymore, she gently rebuked Christ and criticized her sister. That's essentially what happened, clearly. And in the next verse, Jesus answered and said to her, I agree with you, Martha.

Mary quit being a slouch. Get in the kitchen. Help your sister. It's disproportionate what is happening here. He did not respond that way at all. He answered and said to her, Martha, Martha. Which was one of Christ's propensities. Because he said, Simon, Simon, who remembered Jerusalem, Jerusalem. He could have been much more damaging to her, I suppose, but he's being very gentle.

He could have been more forceful, being very kind. Martha, Martha. You are worried and troubled about many things. In other words, you fret too much. You fret way too much. You're overly committed. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her. And Mary here sets an example of silence. She was a good listener and took it all in and sets an example here for us. There has to be balance in the way real servants serve.

It's easy to overdo it. It's easy to underdo it. Martha was one of those who was overly committed. Sometimes we have servants today who can be overly committed. There has to be, for real servants, a proper and a clean sense of balance. Attribute number four.

Real servants vigilantly verify their motives for serving. Real servants vigilantly verify their motives for serving. Galatians 5, verse 13. For attribute number four, real servants vigilantly verify their motives for serving.

Let's start in verse 13. For you, brethren, have been called to liberty. Now, what kind of liberty have we been called to? Of course, not liberty from God's law, but liberty from sin and liberty from the penalty of sin. For you, brethren, have been called, Galatians 5, verse 13, to liberty. Only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh. And many people do. Many professing Christians do. And it says in the letter part of verse 13, But through love serve one another. Service within the church among Christians is required. And here it says it has to be motivated, though, by love, by genuine concern for the other person. For all the laws fulfilled in one word, even in this, you shall love your neighbors yourself. We want to be served as we would serve others, and vice versa. But if you bite and devour one another, beware, lest you be consumed by one another. Why would he be writing, verse 15, to a church of God, full of converts, people who are filled with the Spirit of God? Because they were lacking a little bit of love. It would appear in this setting. So church member X fixes offense for church member Z. I beg your pardon, Z. Church member X fixes offense for church member Z. That's great! That's wonderful. But why did he do it? If it was just to help, well, that is terrific. But if it was to get in on inheritance, that's not so wonderful. If it's to be noticed by officials in the church, that's not so wonderful. If it's to escape his life and children, that's not so wonderful.

Why did he do it? God is concerned with not only what we do, but more importantly, why we do what we do. Things are not always as they seem. God always knows what the real truth is. A young father in a supermarket was pushing a shopping cart with his little son some time ago, who was strapped in the front of his shopping cart. The little boy was fussing, irritable, crying.

And the other shoppers gave the pair a wide berth. You've had that experience, too, I'm sure, when you shop. Because this little guy was pretty much out of control. He would pull cans off the shelf, dump them on the floor. And those items that were in the cart, he'd throw them out as well, bailing them out. And the father seemed to be very calm as he continued down the aisle. And up the next, he murmured, gently, easy now, Donald. Keep calm, Donald. Steady boy. It's all right, Donald. The mother, who was passing by, was noticing and was greatly impressed by this young father's solicitous attitude. And she couldn't help it. She came over and said, You certainly know how to talk to an upset child so quietly, so gently. And then bending down to the little boy, she said, And what seems to be the trouble, Donald? Oh, no, said the father, he's Henry. I'm Donald. Things are not always what they seem, but God always knows. Real servants vigilantly verify their own motives for serving, because they know God always is. And he cannot be fooled. Attribute number five. Real servants insist on doing a superb job. Real servants, whatever the task may be, big or small, unusual or repetitive, real servants insist on doing a superb job. 1 Corinthians 3, verse 9. For we are God's fellow workers. 1 Corinthians 3, verse 9. For we are God's fellow workers, all of us, as the people of God today. You are God's field. You are God's building. Believers are depicted as God's farm. They're also depicted as God's temple. And this, of course, is a mixed metaphor. But God allows His writers in Scripture to do that. According to the grace of God, which was given to me as a wise master builder, I've laid the foundation and other builds on it, but let each one take heed how He builds on it. Paul laid this foundation when he began the church of God in Corinth, and then he cautions Christians to be careful how they built. We shouldn't build just any old way. We have to be doing it in a quality way. Real servants insist on doing a superb job. Verse 11. For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. For if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, there are various building materials that can be used. Some are of proper quality. Some are of inferior quality. Each one's work—verse 13—whichever way it goes, each one's work will become clear, for the day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test each one's work of what sort it is. And in time, God will evaluate each person's contribution to the life of the church. And so we're required to build on top of this foundation, which is a high-quality, high-standard foundation, and do so in such a way that we are doing quality work. How important that is, and not to be forgotten or underplayed. Here's a quote from Martin Luther King, which I thought would be applicable for this particular point. Martin Luther King wrote some years ago, and we do need street sweepers.

Who did his job well. Sweeping is important, even in the church. Mopping, cleaning up, stacking chairs, picking up hymnals, all of these things need to be done, and they need to be done well. Real servants insist on doing a superb job, whatever it may be. Attribute number six.

Real servants cooperate with others and give you care and consideration. Attribute number six. Real servants cooperate with others and give you care and consideration. Philippians 2 for the Scripture for this point. Philippians 2, and we'll look at the first few verses.

Attribute number six. Real servants cooperate with others and give you care and consideration. Chapter 2, verse 1, Philippians, Therefore, if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, if, if, if, if, four times, he mentions it. Why? Because we don't always live up to what we know. We don't always live up to what we profess. There's a difference between what we say we want and what we do, even in the Church of God, even after many years. Verse 2, fulfill my joy.

Fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. We have to be on the same page when it comes to these things. We can even be using the same hymnal for the next hymn we sing. That sure helps to be on the same page. And to be on the same stanza of that hymn on the same page. Verse 3, let nothing be done. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit.

Why does it say that? Because selfish ambition does significant damage to a church. We've seen that. You've seen that. I've seen that. It can really hurt a congregation. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself by treating others with respect and common courtesy, by being polite and tactful, by saying thank you and please.

I've had people say to me, as I'm sure they have said to you, I've worked on such-and-such a crew and such-and-such a church, and the lead hand almost bit my head off. Ouch! We don't want to see that happen, particularly when most everyone is a volunteer. Verse 4, let each of you look out not only for your own interests, but also for the interests of others. It's fine to have our own interests, so long as we give equal concern for the interests of others. Now, it's been said that a person on a rowing team is not noted for his individuality. Is that true? Yes, it's true. A person on a rowing team, you know, where they're sculling.

You cannot be noted for individuality in that case, but some people say, I work best alone. Not here. We're on a team. We're in a family. We have to be cooperating with others. Marshall McLuhan said, whoever he was, Marshall McLuhan, in his time a media expert, a world-renowned, born in Edmonton, raised in Winnipeg, worked out of the University of Toronto, but educated in Cambridge, as well as various universities in the States. He said, and this is a beautiful quote, I think, there are no passengers on spaceship Earth.

We are all crew. It means a lot. There are no passengers on spaceship Earth. We are all crew. The same thing applies to the Church of God. We are all crew. No one's here just for the ride. We all have something to do, something to contribute, something very, very important. I was struck when someone brought to my attention the situation of the Apostle Paul when he was shipwrecked on the shores of Malta.

You know the story. They were so pleased to have survived. They were cold, shivering. It was rainy, overcast. It was very uncomfortable. Some of the locals built a bonfire so they could survive the terrible ordeal that they had been through. And what did Paul do at this time? You know the story. He went and gathered some wood, some sticks, and put them on the fire. He was just as exhausted as everybody else, and possibly among the oldest, who had survived, and yet he did what needed to be done. Because it needed to be done. He cooperated. He gave due care and due consideration. Attribute number seven. Real servants expect Christ. Real servants expect Jesus Christ to be watching and taking note.

Real servants expect Jesus Christ to be watching and taking note. Hebrews 6, verses 9-10. But, beloved, we are confident of better things concerning you. Yes, things that accompany salvation, though we speak in this matter. Chapter 6 is rather ominous because he talks about some very serious topics. He talks about the unpardonable sin. He talks about the lake of fire. And so he's very emphatic about how high the stakes are for Christians.

But he adds, starting in verse 9, But beloved, he's saying, and this is apparently the first time he uses the term beloved in this book, it doesn't have to happen to you as forceful as I've just been. Beloved, we're confident of better things concerning you. Yes, things that accompany salvation, though we speak in this manner, as he just had been prior to verse 9. For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love. As God doesn't forget what you do.

Your work, your labor, your service, for weeks, for years, for decades, for some more than 50 years, 60, even more. What you've done will not be forgotten because God notices. God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love, which you've shown toward his name. How do we do this? How do we show work, labor, and love toward God's name?

In that you have ministered to the saints. When we minister to fellow saints, God notices. And do minister! That is, we haven't stopped. And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end, that you do not become sluggish. And that is a temptation, that is a human weakness, to become sluggish after a while, to get tired of things after a time.

But imitate those who, through faith and patience, inherit your promises. Now, what if you do something really significant and meaningful, and when it's all said and done, no one even notices? What if you do something significant and meaningful, even going above and beyond the call of duty, and not only does no one notice the second or third time, no one says, thank you? What if we work long and hard, and when it's all said and done, someone else receives the credit?

It's fine if no one does, but if someone else does, when we've done work, what about then? And what if we work long and hard, and someone else actually gets advanced or gets promoted? That hurts, humanly speaking, unless we realize how important Point 7 is. That is, real servants expect Christ to be watching and taking note, because He notices and He won't forget, and the real rewards are still to come. They're not being handed out in this life, not by any means. Now, the seven attributes that have been identified here for you in this first split sermon form an acronym for the word service, which is part of the theme for this weekend, for the word service, S-E-R-V-I-C-E.

Real servants, number one, see the pressing necessity of service. Number two, real servants, for E, embrace the element of sacrifice. Thirdly, real servants, for R, retain a clear sense of balance. For V, number five, vigilantly verify their motives for serving. For I, for the word service, insist on doing a superb job. For C, cooperate with each other and give due care and consideration. Lots of C's in that point. And E, number seven, expect Christ to be watching and taking note. There was a sign posted in a volunteer center for the elderly, and the sign read as follows, If you want to be happy for an hour...

hopefully you haven't just done this... take a nap. If you want to be happy for a day, go fishing. If you want to be happy for a year, inherit a fortune. If you want to be happy for a lifetime, serve others. And the potential, brethren, for us, all of us together, is to be happy, not just for a lifetime, but really and truly for all of eternity.