Same Kind of Difference as Me
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Same Kind of Difference as Me
God on the Big Screen 18
ESV
Nothing, and I do mean nothing, is more distasteful than poor service. Everything can be excellent about the experience, but let the service be poor. People get mad, fuss, cuss and lose all their religion and sophistication when they receive poor customer service. It doesn’t matter where they go. It can be Olive Garden, The Fox Theater, Dillard’s, Dr Oz, Georgia State University, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, beauty or barber shop, if they receive bad service it’s a wrap; all bets are off. Poor service will distract you. It will make you forget the food you could have enjoyed, award winning performance you could have seen, sale you could have caught, or degree you could have earned. Poor service is one of the enemy’s greatest distractions. About a month ago, I was out with family and friends at a restaurant that will remain nameless. We waited about 45 min before being seated. Then we waited about 45 min before our orders were taken. Then we waited about an hour before some, not all of our food came out. Then we waited about 45 min to get our checks to pay. The service was so tragically poor that we forgot the beauty and fun of being out together and missed out on enjoying each other’s company. The poor service distracted us from seeing each other. It distracted us from hearing each other. It made us miss what was important. We hate poor customer service.
While we like to point out poor service in others, I wonder how many of us are guilty of giving poor service to others. Before you grade yourself and cheat – talking about you don’t give poor service. Your right. All your victories are in the “I don’t serve anybody” column. No service is just as bad as poor service. Have people missed the beauty of your smile, the power of your brilliance or the love of God in your heart because they were too distracted by your 1 star service? If it’s true that people would rather see a sermon than hear one then what sermon have you been preaching? Jesus lived a life of service. As a matter of fact, he bragged about it. “even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” [1] His whole life was devoted to serving everyone. He knew that if He served people they would see who He really was and if they saw who He really was they would see that He was truly the Son of God!
Recently, Toi and I tried out The Atlanta Breakfast Club. Parking was horrible. The wait was unnerving (or I was a bit impatient). But the service was exceptional. It was crazy, the waiter was excited about being at work. His energy was contagious. His recommendations were on the money. The wait staff worked together to make sure you had a great dining experience. As a matter of fact, the service was so good that I will deal with horrible parking and the unnerving wait. Their service showed us they cared; that they really wanted to serve people!
Listen. It’s impossible for you to serve people and them not see who you are. We think when we serve people it’s all about seeing them and their needs. But Jesus reminded us that serving people shows who we really are. That’s what Jesus was getting at in this Final Judgement scene before us this morning. He described how He would return in all His glory and take His seat on the throne of Judgement. All 195 nations would be gathered together before Him and they would ultimately be separated into two categories: Sheep on His right and goats on His left. In this context, the only thing that separated the sheep from the goat was their service to God and others. It’s simple. The sheep served, the goats didn’t. How many churches are filled with goats instead of sheep? How many Christians/believers look and act more like goats than sheep?
The Bible says that the sheep, not the goat, sat at His right hand! Biblically, God’s right hand spoke to His omnipotence. His ultimate and unlimited power. He delivers with his right hand. He protects with His right hand. He provides with His right hand. And according to Isaiah we have nothing to fear because He upholds us with His right hand! Those who serve are positioned in power. Nudge somebody and encourage them to serve until they are God’s power in the earth! Not only does God’s right hand speak to His omnipotence, it also showcases honor. It’s an honor to be seated at the right hand of God the Father. Jesus was seated at the right hand of God the Father (HONOR) and according to this text, the sheep will be seated at the right hand of Jesus (HONOR). That means those who serve will be the honored guests of God Himself! In other words, when you serve, God reserves a special seat for you next to Him. If you want to be closer to God, feed somebody that’s hungry; give drink to someone who is thirsty; welcome the stranger; visit the sick; visit those in prison; serve! Serve until you show off how loving and gracious and compassionate and powerful and awesome and majestic and glorious and wonderful God is! Serve until people can clearly see that you belong to God! That’s what sheep do! They serve until people see God!
Goats, not the Greatest of all times, don’t want to serve anybody! It’s all about them. The sun rises and sets on them. The party can’t start until they show up. It’s their agenda or no agenda. It’s their way or the highway. To the goats, they were cursed and sent to an eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
Quick question: When you spoke to the person next to you, did they sound like sheep or goats?
The Same Kind of Different as Me is a movie about how one woman’s, Debbie’s, dream/vision to help the homeless in her city showed both believers and non-believers God’s heart! They were thrust into serving the homeless after her husband cheated on her. To work on their marriage, she led him to serve the homeless and hungry in their city. Not only did they feed, encourage and love on the homeless in their city, they improved the place they served. They demonstrate that when you love what you do, you will improve where you do it! The missions improved as they served! So did their marriage! Serving showcases your heart. It shows the world what’s in your heart. You show me someone who doesn’t serve and I’ll show you a heartless goat.
The King, Jesus, will separate the sheep from the goats. To the sheep He called them blessed by the Father. Notice the level of their blessing. They will inherit the kingdom prepared for them. Don’t miss this. Sheep generally move from pasture to pasture; from field to field so they can graze. Jesus said these sheep are going to move from pasture to a prepared kingdom! They are going to another level! God has a greater level of blessing than what you’re expecting!
34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
You should serve people until you know their story. It’s more about the who than the what! Denver was angry – Lost parents when he was young – raised on a plantation picking cotton – spent 10 years in prison – couldn’t get employment because he was a convicted felon. But when they learned his story, they were able to help him. One of the reasons we are big on service here at LWs is that serving God and people together creates opportunities for us to get to know each other’s stories. All of us have a story; a past. Stories help people get to know us. Our stories chronicle our struggles, but they magnify God’s strength! When we hear each other’s stories, we connect with them and God on a deeper level. When we hear how God fed you when you were hungry or how God made a way for you to pay all your bills or how when you were sick God healed your body or how when you were about to flunk a test God whispered the answers in your ear. You get to know why they were hungry; thirsty; naked; sick; in jail without the bail. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’
You should serve until sweat circles form under your arms. You should serve until sweat is pouring from your forehead. If you’re not sweating, not getting dirty, not getting funky, not getting worn out you’re not serving, you’re spectating. The biggest problem with the church today is we have more spectators than servers so other organizations are popping up to do what the church is supposed to do! If your uniform is just as clean after the game as it was before the game, you didn’t play. You didn’t serve. Tell your neighbor, “get in the game.” You go get the food. You go get the water. You go witness to people. You go visit the hospital. You go raise the money. You go serve the Lord! “Wherever man may stand, whatever he may do, to whatever he may apply his hand, in agriculture, in commerce, and in industry, or his mind, in the world of art, and science, he is, in whatever it may be, constantly standing before the face of his God. He is employed in the service of his God, he has strictly to obey his God, and above all, he has to aim at the glory of his God.”
God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.
Serve until the struggle is over! 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ [2]
If you can see somebody struggling and it’s in your power to do something about it and you don’t, you’re selfish.
“People will sit up and take notice of you if you will sit up and take notice of what makes them sit up and take notice.”
God transformed them from regular to righteousness.
[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016), .
[2] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016), .