Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
-Matthew 20:25-28
In 1986 Janet Jackson came out with the song, “What Have You Done For Me Lately.” Some of the lyrics follow:
Used to be a time when you would pamper me
Usta brag about it all the time
What have you done for me lately?
Used to go to dinner almost every night
Good thing I cook or else we'd starve to death
Ain't that a shame?
What have you done for me lately
I never ask for more than I deserve
You know it's the truth
You seem to think you're God's gift to this earth
I'm tellin' you no way
little things are all you seem to give
This is wild, I swear
That could easily be the anthem song for many cultural Christians today.
Malcontent: “What have you done for me lately pastor?”
Pastor: “I got down on my knees and prayed for you this morning - like every morning. I prepared and preached a sermon with you in mind. I’ve submitted my life and ministry to Christ for the advance of the Gospel to the ends of the earth.”
M: “What has the church done for me lately?”
P: “We welcome you with excitement and love. We’ve served you and your family.”
M: “People are malicious. They say, ‘I’ve missed you! Good to see you again!’ What they REALLY mean is “Nice of you to join us when it suits you.”
P: “Maybe they simply mean they missed you.”
M: “Nobody asked…”
P: “Who have you checked in on lately?”
M: “Nobody called…”
P: “Who have you called?”
M: “Nobody bothered to ask about what we’re going through…”
P: “Who have you ask how you can pray for them?”
M: “I know you recognized me, but it’s just not enough…”
P: “Time in service? Fellowship? Flowers? Applause? Love? Prayers? That’s not enough?”
M: “More people should have said something.”
The problem with those kinds of statements, which flow from a very specific mentality, is that they’re all egocentric. If we go back to the start and reread Matthew 20:25-28, we see that the pattern of the lost, depraved, and sinful is to set self above others, thereby setting self above God. That mentality is opposed to the will, likeness, and mission of God. It really is that simple.
Yet every day, in every moment and every thought of our practical “real world” lives, we think of self under the guise of service. We cut people off in traffic on the way to a church meeting. We zoom past the homeless without thought or concern on the way to something obviously more important than what Jesus commanded us to be and do. Then we have the audacity to criticize people heavy laden with burdens we know nothing about because we assume our situation is the only one. Besides, they haven’t recognized ours to our level of satisfaction.
“What Have You Done For ME Lately?”
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.
-Philippians 2:3-4
What do your prayers sound like? What’s the content?
“Dear Lord, help me…”
“Dear Lord, bless me…”
“Fix me, heal me, make me, give me…”
In Acts 2, after receiving the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, Peter gave a powerful sermon to a large group of egotistical religious sycophants, not unlike the droves who populate and disparage our churches today. In his sermon, Peter pled with the crowd to recognize their sin. He pled with them to consider the reality of Jesus Christ in light of redemption history, the Cross, and His resurrection. Their response is recorded in Acts 2:37:
When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”
Peter didn’t tell them to pray the Believer’s Prayer or to engage in new superficial religious ceremonies or rituals. Peter said, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
The same “formula” has always been and will always be - until Jesus inaugurates the eternal glorified state. To repent doesn’t mean to feel bad about your sin(s). It doesn’t mean an emotional response. It means a literal turning from the egotistical and depraved way of living that consumed us from the time of our conception (see Psalm 51:5). Me, mine, my. The foundation of repentance is the recognition that everything before Christ - EVERYTHING you’ve ever done, ever thought, ever been is selfish and detestable to God.
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
-Romans 5:8
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
-Romans 5:8
It’s always been about being served as the king/queen of your own world. It’s always been about what you want when and how you want it. Turning is impossible apart from the hearing of the Gospel and the working of the Holy Spirit. Only then can we respond by grace through faith.
The second part of Peter’s command, which came directly from Christ (see Matthew 28:18-20). Baptizing doesn’t simply mean getting wet. There’s no magical water ceremony initiated or instituted by Christ. Is immersion baptism important? Yes. It’s a public proclamation of our repentance and justification in Christ by grace through faith. But that’s not the fullness of baptism. To understand baptism we can go to Acts 2:42 and see how that crowd responded to Peter’s sermon.
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
-Acts 2:42
They DEVOTED themselves to 1) the apostles’ teaching, 2) to fellowship, 3) to the breaking of bread, and 4) to prayer.
Dear Malcontents, are you DEVOTED to those things? Are you DEVOTED and growing in the Word through participation in group study (Sunday School, Small Group, Men’s or Women’s Group)? Are you DEVOTED to fellowship - to being physically present at general assemblies, church ministries, and service opportunities? Are you DEVOTED to the breaking of bread - like church meals, small group meals, and community events? Are you DEVOTED to PRAYER of the corporate variety for the needs, vision, mission, and ministries of your church family? Or are you simply asking, “What Have You Done For ME Lately?”
Apostolic teaching, fellowship, the breaking of bread, and prayer in GOSPEL COMMUNITY is what it means to be baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Spirit. Only then does Jesus proclaim that Immanuel will be present to the very end.
When we abandon Gospel Community, Christ doesn’t abandon us, we abandon Him. There's nothing wrong with leaving a local fellowship when God leads you elsewhere through prayer and circumstance. The problem is that malcontents don't leave well. They leave amid controversy and dissension. They stir it up and then move on to a new assembly to start the cycle of works of the flesh all over again. Theirs is not the kingdom of God.
Active participation in Gospel Community is what it means to be baptized. That’s what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. It says nothing about devoting themselves to complaining, to being malcontents, to working overtime to find flaws, to holding titles but abandoning responsibilities, or to spreading dissension. In fact, in his epistle to the church in Galatia, Paul specifically address it…
The acts of the flesh are obvious: ...hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions... and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
-Galatians 5:19-21
Ouch! Did you read that last part? Those who abandon Gospel Community, who demonstrate “acts of the flesh… will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
Disruption of church fellowship is sin, plain and simple. When we’re seeking, pursuing, and serving the Old Serpent and His original temptation to love, serve, and promote self - our lives are incompatible with authentic Gospel Community. We disobey Christ’s commission. We abandon Immanuel.
Serving isn’t a nostalgic rear-view-mirror picture of what “you” did in the good ol’ days. It’s about what the Spirit is now accomplishing in and through you today for the promotion and proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth.
Before you go off on the people at your church for being inconsiderate, malicious, hypocritical fools… stop. Stop and read Matthew 28:18-20. The malcontents, the bellyachers, the complainers, the disgruntled, discontented, crabby, grouchy, melancholy whiners won’t bother to read it again. In fact, they checked out long ago.
Unlike the 3,000 who responded to Peter’s sermon, they’ll just cover their ears and spew hate. They are the siblings to those who stoned Stephen:
At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him.
-Acts 7:57-58a
“What Have You Done For ME Lately” isn’t the mindset or mentality of followers of Christ. Jesus made that crystal clear. Since the Creator of the universe came to serve and not to be served… since He gave an explicit command:
Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
-John 13:14-17
Being blessed in doing them is life. Obedience precedes blessing. The alternative is to choose to be cursed and lost to sin.
Jesus said, “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” Dear Malcontents, it’s your choice. Repent and be baptized in Gospel Community or remain in sin, continue to scatter, and rage against Christ, His will, and Mission.
Ever notice how Jesus loves using Bride imagery for His church? Repent and be baptized through DEVOTION to His Bride (Gospel Community), or keep asking, “What Have You Done for ME lately?” Serve or continue looking to be served.
The choice is yours.
The choice is yours.
Blessings,
-Kevin M. Kelley
aMosUnlikelyDisciple.com
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