ARTICLES ON PROMOTION

DATE:  3 February 2002
SPEAKER:  Pastor Tayo Adeyemi
TITLE:  Positioning yourself for promotion
Part V: Passing the test of Servanthood
TEXT:
Psalm 75:6,7

Matthew 20:20-28.The disciples of Jesus were constantly in the habit of jockeying for position. In fact, their favourite argument was always about who would be the greatest. An example is found in Mark 9:33-35.
One day, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, decided to take this matter one step further. They decided to pull a fast one on the other ten. To make it really effective, they employed the services of their mother - Matthew 20:21-24
Vs 21 - She came and asked for promotion for her sons.
Vs 22 - Jesus replied "You can't get promoted just like that - there is a test you must pass". James and John thought this was a test of prowess or skill or talent, so they answered, "no problem, we are ready".
Vs 23 - Jesus now made them understand that this was a test of the heart; only the Father who knows the heart of all men would administer it.
Vs 24 - This really upset the rest of the disciples, they were ready to have James and John for lunch.
Jesus now calls all of them and gives them one of the greatest lessons of their entire discipleship programme.
"WHOEVER DESIRES TO BECOME GREAT AMONG YOU LET HIM BE YOUR SERVANT" vs. 26.
If you truly want to be great, if you really desire promotion then you must become a servant. The call to follow Christ is a call to greatness. At the same time, it is a call to servanthood. Luke 9:23 "If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily and follow me".
Therefore, in the economy of God, servanthood is synonymous with greatness. Servanthood is not a stepping stone to greatness, it is greatness itself.
Unfortunately, servanthood is a quality that is almost forgotten in the church today. As a generation, we have been raised with a consumer mentality. We have been taught to demand our rights and to expect good, efficient service. If the service is not satisfactory, we have been trained in the art of complaining.
Sadly, we have carried that same mentality into the church. We come to church expecting to be served. The temperature in the sanctuary must be just right; the music in the crèche must be soothing for the baby; the car park attendant must be polite and smartly dressed; the pastor's sermon must be user friendly, not too long and sprinkled with enough humour. Anything, short of that, we are out-shopping for a better deal!
We have completely misunderstood the expression "I am going to service". You don't go to service to receive it. You go to give it!
As a believer, you are a servant. A servant of God, yes; but still a servant! You will be a servant for the rest of your life. When you die, guess what? You will be called a servant for all eternity!
The greeting in heaven will be:"Well done, good and faithful servant!" Matthew 25:21
So you better get used to it - the highest you will ever be is number 2. Even the Senior Pastor knows (or should know!) that he is not really number 1 - he is not really the "senior" Pastor. He is called to serve God by serving God's people.
The church of the 21st Century needs to re-discover the power of the towel. The towel is God's pathway to greatness. If you can't be a servant, you are weak and powerless. John 13:1-17
Let us try to set the stage for this event. Jesus did not wear covered shoes or boots; He wore sandals. Jesus and His disciples did a lot of walking. In the Palestine of Jesus' day, the streets were not tarred and paved. At best, few roads were paved with cobblestones - these were only the highways that Roman carriages travelled on. Most of the roads were dirt paths. When it was hot, the roads were dusty. When it rained, the roads were muddy.
The means of transportation in those days were animals - camels and donkeys. Some of their droppings were all over the road.
Customarily, people's feet got dirty for very many reasons. And it was the job of the lowest servant in the house to wash the feet of all the guests - because it was such a disgusting job.
Jesus being the most important guest came in last. No feet had been washed by any of the disciples and so the room was stinking. He took off His robe, girded Himself with a towel and offered a magnificent demonstration of Servanthood at its best.
Jesus made Himself a servant - This is what His earthly ministry was all about: and this is what ours should also be all about. Philippians 2:5-11
The stop-gap between sonship and sovereignty is called Servanthood.
Joseph's life pre-played this reality in the Old Testament. A favourite son, who was headed for sovereignty - but he had to first become a servant.
There are other examples of greatness hidden inside servanthood all over scripture.
•Elisha, the great prophet was described as the one who poured water on Elijah's hand.
•Philip one of the most prominent evangelists in the New Testament started by serving tables.
•David - Psalm 89:20 "I have found David my servant, with my holy oil have I anointed him".
Acts 13:36 - "David, after he served his own generation by the will of God fell asleep".
To serve God is to serve His people.
From the first time David was mentioned in the bible, he was serving as seen in I Samuel 16:6-13, 19. While all the other young men were lounging about the house waiting for someone to discover their talent, David was in the field - keeping the sheep.
Vs 11 - "We will not sit down till he comes here"
Vs 14 - "Send me your son, David who is with the sheep"
When your time comes they will come and fetch you from where you are.

Elements of Servanthood - Matthew 25:211. Faithfulness - this has been dealt with in an earlier message "Passing the Test of Faithfulness" preached on the 13th of January 2002.
2. Service - As a servant, you must be doing something. The Lord wants to say " Well Done!" not "Well". What are you doing for God?
3. Submission - To submit means to "arrange under".
i.Submission means to put yourself under the authority of another - especially when you disagree with them. If you have a problem with people telling you what to do; if you resent those who are over you; if you despise the fact that people in authority have certain privileges that you don't have, you are not in submission.
Submission is not being a door mat or a " yes" man. It is recognising God-ordained authority over your life and yielding to it.
•In the home
•At work
•In society (civil authority)
•In the house of God
Even when you consider the person in authority to be wrong, you are still required to submit. I Peter 2:18-21. Saul was wrong, yet David submitted to him. Matthew 10:24
ii.Submission means to obey. Titus 2:9,10.
iii.Submission should be the same whether you are being watched or not. Ephesians 6:5-8.
iv.Submission means to humble yourself. If you have a problem submitting, you have just disqualified yourself from getting promoted.
4. Sacrifice - A true servant is self-effacing. Not seeking to project himself - not asking "what is in it for me?"
God is the righteous Judge; let Him determine your reward. You can fight for your rights and get promoted by men; or you can leave things in God's hand and let Him really promote you. Luke 17:7-10
God is calling us to servanthood. As we answer the call to servanthood, we also answer the call to greatness.

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