#179 Lu. 22:24-30  ACHIEVING TRUE GREATNESS

Introduction:
	
	In our text today Jesus teaches His disciples how to achieve
true greatness.

I.  A desire for greatness

	Have you ever wished that you could achieve greatness?  I
have.  I recall back in my boyhood days I had a desire to  become
a great musician.  I loved music and I had a desire to study
music and become a great musician.  As you are aware, I never
studied music and I never became a musician at all.
	But now I have a different desire for greatness.  My desire
now  to become a great preacher.  I want to be able to dig into
the meaning of the Bible and to understand the great truths of
God.  First and foremost I want to be right in my understanding
of what the Bible has to say and teach.
    Then I want to be able to explain the Bible in such a clear
and simple way that people can understand it.  I do not want to
befuddle the minds of those who hear me so that they are left
wondering what in the world am I talking about.
	I would also like to be a great preacher in the sense of
helping people spiritually.  I want to be able to help many
unsaved people come to the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation so
that they become Christians.  I also want to help saved people to
grow spiritually so that they become great Christians.  I would
even like even here where our potential for growth is rather
limited to be able to build this church into a large church
numerically.  I know that numbers are not the most important
thing, but I would still like for us to grow numerically.
	What kind of greatness do you want to achieve?  Do want a
great personality?  Do you want great political influence?  Do
you want great business success or financial success?  What kind
of greatness do you want?
    Perhaps you want to be a great husband or wife or father or
mother.  Perhaps you want to be a great Christian so that you
please God in everything you do.  These are very worthy desires.
	Let me ask you this question:  What is true greatness?  It is
not fame.  Some of the best known people in the world are a
disgrace to the human race.  Adolph Hitler, Feidel Castro and
Sadam Hussein are but a few such men.  None of these men have
achieved true greatness.  So fame is not true greatness.
	Accumulating wealth is not true greatness.  A man can be rich
and still be a scoundrel.
	Obtaining a position of power is not true greatness.  The
Pharaoh of Egypt who dealt with Moses was probably the most
powerful military man in the world in his day, but he was just a
spoiled egotistical brat as far as character was concerned.
Herod, who killed the babies at Bethlehem in an effort to kill
the Christ child, was a powerful ruler, but he was also a cruel,
heartless, brutal murderer.
	Many people whom the world considers great are not great at
all.  And many people who are seeking what they consider to be
greatness are not seeking true greatness at all.

II.  A desire for greatness among the apostles

	It may come as a surprise to you that the apostles had
earlier gotten into a dispute among themselves about who would be
the greatest in the kingdom of the Lord.  They knew that Jesus is
the Christ and they thought that the Christ would take over the
throne at Jerusalem and drive out the Romans.  They thought that
this would be done very soon.
    They all got to thinking about how nice it would be for them
to have top position under Jesus in the new kingdom.  Each man
got to thinking, "I want to be top man under Jesus."  This
happened back in Galilee before they left to go to Jerusalem, Mk.
9:33-37.
	Jesus sought to set them straight.  Even way back then Jesus
told them that if they wanted to be great in His kingdom, they
must learn to be humble.  Then He set a child before them and
told them that if they wanted to become great, they would have to
become humble like that little child.  One has to be humble in
order to be great.
	Luke seems to make mention of this same event in Luke
9:46-48.  "Then there arose a reasoning among them, which of them
should be greatest.  And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their
heart, took a child, and set him by him,  And said unto them,
Whosoever shall receive this child in my name receiveth me: and
whosoever shall receive me receiveth him that sent me: for he
that is least among you all, the same shall be great."  This
seems to be the same event that Mark was talking about which took
place back at Capernaum.
	This seems to be about the same time when the mother of the
two apostles came to Jesus asking Him to appoint her two sons to
be the top officials in His new government.  It seems as if she,
too, was thinking that Jesus would set up His kingdom right soon.
They all seemed to think He would do so shortly after they reach
Jerusalem.  Mt.  20:20-24, "Then came to him the mother of
Zebedee's children with her sons, worshipping him, and desiring a
certain thing of him.  And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She
saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on
thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom.  But
Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask.  Are ye able to
drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with
the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, We are
able.  And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup,
and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to
sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it
shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father.  And
when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against
the two brethren."

III.  The circumstances involved in our text

	But now let us get to our text for this morning.  Luke 22:24,
"And there was also a strife among them, which of them should be
accounted the greatest."  Perhaps you will recall that
immediately before this text that Luke recorded the observance of
the Passover Supper, the institution of the Lord's Supper and the
identification of Judas Iscariot as the betrayer.  Luke does not
make it clear whether he is now referring back to that same
strife which he had earlier mentioned back in Luke 9:46 or
whether there has now arisen a new strife.
	At any rate, Jesus is about to leave them and go back to
heaven.  He knew that unless He heads it off now that as soon as
He is gone, they will all be trying to get top position in the
church work.  Earlier, they sought to get top position in the new
 kingdom.  Now they would try to get top position in the church.
Jesus did not want this to happen.  So He set about to stop the
dispute now while He was still present.

IV.  What Jesus said about world governments

    V. 25, "And he said unto them, The kings of the Gentiles
exercise lordship over them; and they that exercise authority
upon them are called benefactors."  Jesus here describes the kind
of governmental system which existed among the Gentile world of
that day.  There were various positions in government.  There
were kings and princes and governors and numerous other lesser
positions under them.  Below the various officers were the common
people.  The Roman Caesar was over them all.  But the point is
that the common people had no voice in their government.  The men
above them never asked them what they thought.  The rulers just
gave orders and they had to obey.
    You will note that in our text Jesus said that the ruler is
called a benefactor.  He did not say that he is a benefactor, but
that he is called a benefactor.  He is called a man who benefits
the people.  If he fulfils the role that God intended him to
fill, that is what he would really be.  He would be a benefactor
to the people.  He will help the people.
    The truth is, however, that most of those rulers were not
benefactors at all to the people.  They were blood sucking
leaches who sought power and riches at the expense of the people
and they did very little to help the people in return.  Instead
of helping the people, they hurt the people.  But the truly great
rulers were those who did fulfill the role of benefactor to the
people.

V.  What Jesus taught them about church government

	In verse 26 Jesus talks about the kind of leadership and the
kind of government which the church should have after He is gone.
As long as He was with them, He was the leader.  He was the
undisputed leader.  They did not need to vote on anything.  All
they needed to do to decide any issue was to ask Jesus.  He spoke
with absolute authority.  He is God in human flesh and they were
to yield to His authority.
	But after His departure, the church was not to have the same
kind of government which the Gentiles had.  V.  26, "But ye shall
not be so..."  A New Testament church is not to have any one man
or any group of men who rules the church with absolute authority.
	The pastor is not to rule the church with absolute authority.
There is one Scripture in the New Testament which speaks of the
pastor as having rule over the congregation, but it is talking
about a rule which is exercised by leadership rather than by
dictatorial authority.
	The deacons are not to rule the church.  The Greek word which
in Scripture is translated "deacon" means "servant." It does not
mean "ruler."  The deacons are not to rule the church but to
serve the church.  Our deacons here at Pleasant Hill understand
that.
	No one person here on earth is to rule the church.  The
church is still under the authority of our Lord and whatever He
says we ought to do.  Therefore, whatever instructions are
written in the New Testament, we are to do without reservation.
We are still to yield to the absolute authority of our Lord.
	In those decisions that must be made wherein we do not have
direct instructions in the word of God, then the whole
congregation is to have a vote in governing the church.  The
pastor is to exercise a place of leadership, but he is not to
exercise a place of dictatorship.  The deacons are servants of
the church and not rulers of the church.  The final decision,
from the earthly point of view, rests not with the pastor or the
deacons, but with the church.
    If the church's decision pleases God, God will bless the
church in that matter.  If the church's decision does not please
the Lord, God will withhold His blessings and chasten the church.
So even though all decisions are, from the earthly point of view,
settled by the vote of the church, God still has the final say in
all matters.  He will bless a church for following His will and
He will chasten a church for not following His will.  God has not
relinquished His authority over the church.
	So the first thing that Jesus set forth here is the kind of
rule which the local church is not to have.  It is not to have a
dictatorial kind of leadership like the Gentiles have in their
governments.

VI.  What Jesus then taught them about achieving true greatness

	The second thing which Jesus set forth here is how an
individual can achieve true greatness.  (V. 26), "...but he that
is greatest among you, let him be as the younger..."  Note that
expression "as the younger."  Jesus said, "Let him be as the
younger."  Jesus did not say, "Let him be the younger."  Jesus is
not saying, "Let the younger be your leader."  Rather Jesus was
saying, "Let your leader be as the younger."
	Jesus, Himself, is going to explain what he means.  (V. 26),
"...and he that is chief, as he that doth serve."  In the realm
of society, it is the younger who serves the older.  For
instance, in the Thomas home, it is not Reed who says to Dwain,
"You go and do thus and thus."  Rather it is Dwain who says to
Reed, "You go and you do thus and thus."   The younger serves the
 older.  The younger, because of his respect for the older and
maybe for other reasons, performs the service which he is asked
to do.  The younger does not try to boss, he tries to serve.
	Therefore Jesus is saying, "He that wants to be great, let
him learn to serve others.  Let Him be as the younger.  Anyone
who wants to achieve true greatness must learn to render service
to others.  One cannot become great by seeking to boss others or
by having others serve him.  He becomes great by humbling himself
and serving others.   He seeks to be a real benefactor to others.
	Jesus, Himself, set the example.  V. 27, "For whether is
greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth? is not he
that sitteth at meat? but I am among you as he that serveth."
Jesus may not have had the foot washing specifically in mind, but
that certainly fits what He says here.  We ordinarily do not look
upon the waiter or waitress as being greater than the person
being served.  Especially in that day it was usually a slave who
washed feet and served tables.  But Jesus, although He is Lord
over all, humbled Himself to serve His disciples.  He washed
their feet and He served at the table.  If one wants to be truly
great, then let him follow the example set by Jesus.  Let Him
render service to those about him.

VII.  Rewards for service

	In verses 28-30 Jesus sets forth the great reward His
disciples would have for their faithful service to Him.  No, He
was not about to establish His throne in Jerusalem at that time
and rule the nation.  No, the apostles would not be rewarded for
their loyalty to Him by becoming high officials in the new
kingdom at anytime soon.  But when the time does come for
rewards, those rewards will be far greater than they had
imagined.  V.  28-30, "Ye are they which have continued with me
in my temptations.  And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my
Father hath appointed unto me; That ye may eat and drink at my
table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes
of Israel."
    What reward would they have?  When Jesus comes back to earth
and establishes His throne in Jerusalem, He will not rule Israel
only.  He will rule the whole world.  At that time, the twelve
apostles will each man be given a throne and will govern one of
the twelve tribes of Israel.  Judas, of course, will not have a
throne.  Matthias, who was elected in his place will have his
throne.  Jesus does not say what other great rewards they will
have for their faithful service to Him.  No doubt, there will be
other great rewards.
	This brings up the question:  What reward will you receive
for the service which you render to the Lord?  Jesus does not say
just what your rewards will be.  But in numerous places in
Scripture He does tell us that the reward will be far greater
than we could possibly imagine.

Conclusion:

    Now you cannot get into heaven by the service which you
render.  You cannot stay out of hell by rendering service to God.
But the rewards which you get will depend on the service which
you render to God.  Keep in mind also, that one of the ways you
render service to God is by rendering service to your fellow man.
Keep in mind another thing, when one of the Lord's churches
offers you an opportunity to serve, they are offering you an
opportunity to achieve true greatness.
	Let me appeal to you first of all to trust in the Lord Jesus
Christ and be saved.  Let me appeal also to you who are saved to
get in a New Testament church and serve the Lord.  Let me appeal
to you who are already in our church to serve the Lord by serving
your church.  Let me invite those of you who are saved and in
need of a church home to come and place your membership here with
us.