After some time had passed, I heard my wife calling my name. She and my son had come to tell me that dinner was waiting on the table. As I stood up to let them know where I was, they came and stood across the fence from me. My son asked, "Watch you do Dada?" I proudly told him about the numbers of berries that I had picked and asked if he wanted to eat one.
As I held out my hand to him, he cried out, "You got owie, Dada!" I looked down at my hands and laughed. They were covered in Blackberry juice and to a two year old, it probably did look like they were covered in blood. I assured him that Daddy was fine. "Its just berry juice," I reassured him, but he wasn't buying my story. Very concerned he kept repeating, "Dada got owie on hands."
That convinced me that my time in the blackberry patch was done for the day. I had to eat dinner, but more importantly I needed to go wash my hands so that my son would know that I was okay. I needed to show him my hands were okay so he would stop worrying about me. I went back to fence and crossed over to our side of the fence. As I walked back to the house with my wife and son carrying my gallons of berries, I continued reassure my son, "Daddy's fine -- it's just berry juice on my hands."
When we got back to the house, my son and I went right to the sink. I needed to wash the berries and prepare them for the freezer, but more importantly I needed to wash my hands so my son could see that they were free of "owies." There was quite a bit of juice that had stained my hands, so I had to scrub rather hard with dish soap in order to get the juice off. As the stains slowly came off, I discovered that my son had been right all along. My hands were covered with scratches and cuts and some of them were indeed bleeding.
I had not noticed the cuts and scratches because of the juice that had stained my hands. They did not even hurt until I had washed my hands and got soap into them. Now it is not surprising that my hands would have been cut and scratched. Blackberry bushes are notorious for being full of sticks and thorns, not to mention that these particular bushes were growing along a barbed wire fence.
As I looked down at my hands that my son insisted upon covering with band-aids, I took pity upon my poor hands. My desire had been to serve my family, but it had cost me. I wanted to provide them with the joy of those fresh juicy little fruits, but it had come with the sacrifice of my hands. Then it occurred to me that service always costs us something. Service is always accompanied with sacrifice.
The Apostle Paul knew of the connection of service and sacrifice. Writing to the Christians at Philippi, he said...
But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. Phil. 2.17 NIV
In that verse Paul makes service pratically synonymous with sacrifice. Certainly Paul knew about the cost of service. Paul constantly identified himself as the "servant of the Lord" but that service had come with a price. Just listen to how Paul himself described his service.
Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. 2 Cor. 11.23-28 NIV
Certainly Paul had experienced first-hand that sacrifice accompanies service.
But this connection of service with sacrifice did not originate with Paul. It was true of our Lord Jesus Christ as well. If there was anyone who ever deserved to be served it was Jesus, but he was the greatest servant of all time!
...the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve... Matt. 20.28a NIV
He deserved to be served and yet he came to serve us. And we know that this is precisely what he did. He taught, he healed, he counseled, he fed the hungry. He spent his life in service to others. He was the model servant. But let me ask you, what was his ultimate purpose in coming? Was it not to offer himself as a sacrifice for our sins? That was his ultimate act of service -and it cost him! And Jesus recognized that this sacrifice was part of his service to us. Let us return to Matthew 20.28.
...the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.
The proof of Christ's service is none other than his blood-stained hands. From the life of Christ we see that service always requires sacrifice. But the service of Christ is not just something for us to look at and admire -- it is an example. As believers we are called to the same life of service. In the verses that preceding Matthew 20.28, Jesus indicates that we are called to serve.
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." Matt. 20.25-28 NIV
And if there remains any further doubt about this call to serve, just listen to the Great Commission given to the disciples of Christ as it was recorded by the Apostle John.
Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." John 20.21 NIV.
Did you you notice that? Jesus sends his disciples as the father sent him. What does that mean? I think it means more than just the fact that they were receiving a commission as Christ had received a commission. It means that they were being sent to do the same task that Christ was sent to do, namely to sacrifice themselves in the service of others. This is the essence of what it means to be a disciple of Christ, to take up one's cross and follow him. Being a disciple is to give our life in service to others. And I think it is interesting that John says "Again Jesus said..." Evidently, this was not the first time Jesus had told his disciples that he intended that they serve others. It was a message that he had shared with them repeatedly.
It was the adherrance to this message that Paul used as the litmus test to distinguish himself as a true disciple of Christ, as opposed to the false teachers who were only claiming to be servants of Christ. (Cf. 2 Cor. 11.23-28). And it was this message that Paul taught his converts to observe.
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Rom. 12.1 NIV
So what are some of the things that we may have to sacrifice as servants of Christ? Many will expect that as a preacher it is now my duty to ask for your money. Of course, our service to Christ may require a monetary contribution, but there is far more to being a servant than just giving money. As a matter of fact, I am convinced that God is far more interested in some of these other sacrifices than he is in our money.
One thing that we may be asked to sacrifice is our time. I always appreciate those who volunteer to teach at Vacation Bible School, or are willing to be a sponsor for a week of church camp. Those are acts of service indeed, but they are also acts of sacrifice. They are acts which require a sacrifice of time, and as we all know time is a very precious commodity which none of us ever seem to have in surplus. Most of the service that is rendered in the church, whether it be those already mentioned, or teaching a class, or participating on a committee or board, or even agreeing to clean the church, requires a sacrifice of time.
We may also have to sacrifice our pride. When we go to church camp, we have a sponsors meeting every morning. Without a doubt, in every meeting the sponsors are inevitably asked to volunteer for various tasks; for instance, sweeping the tabbernacle, or working in the snack shack, or serving at dinner. All of those require a sacrifice of time, but some of the tasks also require an additional sacrifice - the sacrifice of pride. For example, volunteering to clean the boys bathroom after 200 or so junior boys have used it all day! It is very hard to be proud as you are fishing filthy underwear out of a clogged toilet.
Our service may also require emotional sacrifice. Whenever you invest your life in another, you always open yourself up to being hurt. To being disappointed, to being criticized. At one of my previous churches I had a teacher of a class who threw up their hands and quit teaching. The reason? They had been criticized by a student. I understand that criticism is never fun. I never enjoy being criticized myself! But I also know that criticism comes with the territory. If you are going to serve you can count on someone hurting you with their criticism. Wasn't Jesus himself severely criticized?
These are just a few things that we may be called to sacrifice if we are going to serve, but there are many others. These were listed merely to demonstrate that service is always accompanied by sacrifice. There can be no doubt that service will require some form of sacrifice. The big question is what are we willing to sacrifice in order to serve?
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