The Mind of Our Lord

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Introduction

## Introduction
::Why should I listen to you?::
::Will answer the question is what is basically wrong with us::
::Will tell us what to try to do differently::
Sometimes we read our Bibles and we feel like they don't have anything to do with us. The people they talk about lived so long ago, we feel like they couldn't possibly have anything to do with us here and now. Life was different, the people was different, the culture was different, why does what they think and feel necessarily correspond to what I think and feel? All these are really good questions, and they all need to be dealt with. If we're going to keep digging into our Bibles we need to answer this.
Fortunately for us, the passage we look at today answers a piece of that question, so let's dig in, shall we? .

A Sinful Urge for Personal Glory

## A Sinful Urge for Personal Glory
As the disciples were walking along they were arguing over who would be the greatest in the kingdom. They were debating who would be Jesus' right-hand man when he was finally king. Since the throne wasn't ever going to be given up and it wasn't about lineage, since Jesus wouldn't have any children, the right to prince seemed up in the air, and the disciples wanted it.
Don't you see some of yourself here? Like when you were in elementary school arguing over who could run the fastest? And in middle school over whose hair looked the best. And high school over whose car was the coolest. You argued with your siblings over who got to sit in the front seat. And on and on to adulthood when you argue over who contributed more to the project at work. And we even try to rank ourselves, perhaps more discreetly, over who is more and less spiritual. We give off certain signals by how we talk and act in spiritual conversations about if we feel that we are better or worse than others. All of this is to say that we do the same thing. We have the same urge that the disciples had: **the urge to personal glory.** We want to be shown the smartest, fasting, biggest, strongest, fanciest, richest, coolest, best int he world. And we don't want it to be anyone else. This is a problem for us.
It's a problem because the whole world exists for the glory of God. That means that this is all here to make God look like the great God that he is. He made this all as a diorama of the bigness of himself. And God is pretty intense about that staying the case.
God is jealous for his glory and will not ultimately let it be stolen. *"8 You have never heard, you have never known, from of old your ear has not been opened. For I knew that you would surely deal treacherously, and that from before birth you were called a rebel. 9 “For my name’s sake I defer my anger; for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you, that I may not cut you off. 10 Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction." *
we are predestined and saved the the Spirit works all "for the praise of his glory!"
We were created for his glory: *"6 I will say to the north, Give up, and to the south, Do not withhold; bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the end of the earth, 7 everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.” *
We are told to do everything to the glory of God: *"whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen."*
This is been our problem ever since the garden where we fell. There was mankind, created for the glory of God, and then came Satan to tempt mankind and what did he say? To take the fruit. But why? Because if they did they would be "like God." The rebellion in the garden was all about an urge for personal glory. In other words, as the disciples walked along that day, their problem wasn't new. And when we feel it isn't new now either. The is the fundamental thing wrong with us. The switch that's flipped to evil, the essence of all of our sin. **We want the glory God deserves.** Though we were made to show him off we want to show off ourselves. We were made for his honor but often act to his shame. We sick, and our disease is that we want to outshine the sun. In fact, we're not just diseased, we deranged. Because we're just small moon orbiting insignificant planets and as we merely reflect a tiny bit of the radiance of the sun we hope to outshine the source of our own light.
This was the motivation the Jewish leaders had when they killed Jesus. The teachers knew that the crowds liked him better. They knew he was a better teacher. He was smarter and his answers more clear. He had power to back up his words and demons fled before him. Sickness vanished, even the dead came out of their tombs. When he came to Jerusalem he even had the audacity to put their sinfulness on display. They had allowed merchants to make their fortunes off conning commoners out of far more money than their temple sacrifices ought to have cost. And when Jesus came he drove them out saying in effect, "You've missed the whole point of this religion. Stop making this about money and power and start actually caring about my Father!" The Jewish leaders couldn't have this. So they arrested him at night, condemned him in a kangaroo court, mocked him as if they had the moral high ground, beat him within an inch of his life, whipped him until he was unrecognizable, and hung him naked until he suffocated. Then they tossed his dead body in a tomb, and waiting for the smoke to clear so they could get back to being the most powerful and important people in Jerusalem.
This sin of self-loving desire for personal glory is our basic fallenness and we must fight against it with everything that we have. So notice how Jesus responds to their sick thinking:

Jesus Challenges their Assumptions

## Jesus Challenges their Assumptions
Jesus says to them, "Anyone who wants to be first must be last and servant of all." The disciples are thinking that the current earthly way of being greatest will apply to the heavenly kingdom where if they fight their way up the corporate ladder at any cost they'll be the most important. Or if they shout the loudest and act the most confident they can be the best. Jesus tells them that's now how his kingdom will work.
Those who want to be first in God's eyes, who want to be eminent in the eyes of their maker they won't clear their throat to boast of their many accomplishments, they will instead be servants of everyone. This is a surprise to us. It shouldn't be, but it is. It challenges what we think being the greatest even means. You don't look at the last person to see if their the greatest, when you go looking for great character most people don't start by talking with the water boy, they try to find the quarter-back. But Jesus says the opposite. And we shouldn't be surprised, because it's not the first time that he's taught this.
Very early in his ministry when he preached his famous Sermon on the Mount he began by describing the kind of qualities that his new world would reward. He began by describing the kind of people who would be happy if they were this way. And the list sounds like a who's who of people we couldn't care less about.
- Blessed are the poor in the spirit. Not according to this world! According to us those who are poor in spirit need to buck up and believe in themselves more. Those who think they are needy of God are pathetic and need more self-confidence.
- Blessed are the mourners. Not according to us! That’s why we put make up all over bodies and funerals and try to mention death the least we can. It's why we don’t know what to say when someone is hurting, and we pray for it to go away.
- Blessed are the meek. Not according to us! The meek among us are the weak as far as we are concerned. Boldness and confidence and brashness. That’s what we say gets you somewhere. Have you ever seen a meek CEO? Or a soft-spoken and gentle manager? Not often!
- Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. Not here! We say blessed are those who hunger and thirst for the advantage of their political party and who wish ill on those they consider different and dangerous.
You get the point. The kingdom Jesus intends to lead is completely backwards and upside down from what we are used to. It the opposite of what we imagine to be greatest. But we have to choose, are we going to spend this quick century on earth serving our own egos or serving God. That’s why Jesus uses the example of the child.
You get the point. The kingdom Jesus intends to lead is completely backwards and upside down from what we are used to. It the opposite of what we imagine to be greatest. But we have to choose, are we going to spend this quick century on earth serving our own egos or serving God. That’s why Jesus uses the example of the child.
If you were trying to be fancy you wouldn’t be trying to receive and entertain a child. If you want to be a part of high society you aren’t trying to host kids, you looking for king. You aren’t trying to play kick the can you’re looking to drink fine wine and have sophisticated conversation with people you want the respect of.
So Jesus says, “If you want to the respect of the culture, try to get one of those Pharisees over, that’ll be good for you in the eyes of your peers. But if want to be great in the eyes of God, ask the orphan on the side of the street if they’d like dinner tonight. And don’t make them feel guilty or less than, just feed them.
The question for us is one of priorities. Do we want applause from men for us, or do we want the approval of God. Are we looking for our own honor or honor for the one who made us? What’s more important to you, you looking good or God looking good. Your answer to that question determines if you are or are not a Christian. I know that’s extreme, but that’s exactly what Jesus says. Listen to this from as he condemns the Pharisees:
You search the Scirptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet your refuse to comet o me that you may have life. I do not receive glory from people. But I know that you do not have the love of God within you. I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him. How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?”
That’s it! The main problem with the Pharisees is just like everyone else, it’s that they could not believe. But why couldn’t they? Because they wanted glory from one another not from God. They wanted the applause of men, not of God. They wanted to hear well done fron the chorus of the Sanhedrin as they sat in their fancy robes in the Royal portico of the temple, they weren’t thinking about hearing “well done good and faithful servant” at the resurrection.

Living as Citizens of the Kingdom to Come Emulating the Ruler who Will Reign

## Living as Citizens of the Kingdom to Come Emulating the Ruler who Will Reign
So we clearly don’t want to follow in their footsteps, and that means we need to desire the approval of God over and above the approval of man. It’s not that we shouldn’t want any approval from man. We’ve met people this way and to be honest it’s kind of weird. But the desire for approval from men can never rival our desire for approval from God. So what do we do?
We being to live as citizens of the kingdom that we know is coming. That kingdom where the last are first and the first are last and the greatest are those who entertained kids, not kings. And the most highly honored are those who stooped the lowest to serve. This is what it means for us to be “in the world but not of the world.” It’s not that we need to run away from society, we just need to put on the attitudes of the society we have been recreated to be a part of. We start trying to be last and servant of all, we start trying to be meek, and pure in heart, and hungering and thirsting for righteousness. We start trying to be good citizens of the kingdom of Jesus.
And the Kingdom of Jesus is that way because Jesus is that way. We’re talking about the God who clothed himself in the flesh of his creation. Who was baptized into the sin of mankind. Who allowed himself to be beaten and killed. The one who says to his disciples just a few verses after this, “The son of man came not be be served but to serve.” Think on that! Jesus, God in the likeness of man, came to *not* to be served. He came to serve us. The God of everything stoops to serve us! A God like that serves people like you and me! A God like that loves a someone like me! So of course his kingdom will be different from the earth.
When Paul tells us how we are to behave he tells us to have the mind of our master. In he tells us to think of others as better than ourselves. He tells us to look to the interests of other people. He tells us to be willing to lay down the freedoms and assets we have for the sake of others just like Jesus did for us.

So How Exactly am I Supposed to Look at Myself Different?

## So How Exactly am I Supposed to Look at Myself Different?
So how are you supposed to change the way you look in the mirror? What’s supposed to change in the way that you view yourself?
For starters, you shouldn’t act like what you want is the most important thing. In fact, if you consider other’s better than yourself you should be acting like what they want is more important. In this way we need to be unchildlike. We need to put behind the childish ways of demanding what we want and throwing a fit when we don’t get it. When your spouse picks a restraint you didn’t want to go to, and someone else gets promoted and not you. We don’t act like our wants are the goal of everything.
This means that the next time you are in a conversation and they are talking about something you don’t understand, you don’t start acting like you do so that you don’t look stupid. It means that when people more spiritually mature begin talking from experience you don’t nod your head like you get what they mean. It means we don’t act like we are Omni-competent and don’t ever need help. It means we stop putting on airs like we are completely together. When you do that you are operating out of the same mindset of the disciples and trying to look the greatest. You are trying to save face in an attempt to keep getting honor from others when you should be realizing that you don’t need the honor from others, and you don’t have to save face. You can wear exactly the face God made you with and except the applause of your Heavenly Father when you genuinely love him and do your best to serve him.
In summary, you let go of your desire to always look good, and live knowing that the all-powerful creator loves you and approves of you. He recreated you so that you could love and serve him, and that’s what your job is. Not trying to get the applause of your peers.

How do I Start Looking at Others Differently?

## How do I Start Looking at Others Differently?
But you don’t just need to start looking at yourself differently as a result of this, you should be looking at others differently. If you aren’t supposed to be trying to make yourself look the greatest anymore, it will jurstically change the way you interact with your neighbors. You’ll stop pulling yourself up at their expense and joining your voice with the many that put others down. In a word, you’ll stop viewing your fellow humanity and opportunities you rise above and look better than and instead as real people that deserve your genuine love and attention.
As you begin to view them this way, you’ll start looking to their interests. You’ll want them to be happy and healthy, and you’ll even rejoice when they buy the car you wish you could have. You’ll be looking for opportunities to serve and encourage and compliment instead of places where you can demand to be served, and vainly seek compliments and praise from others. You’ll see in others the image of God and glorify the one who made them instead of looking past who they are and into an opportunity to make them look bad and thus make you look better.
Notice that Jesus ddin’t really feel the need to prove himself? He was a carpenter from a po-dunk city who spent most of his life making tables. Then he gathered the most rag-tag group of nobodies from the fringes of society and began to walk around an insignificant place among an insignificant people. He didn’t go to Rome to grow up in the palaces of Caesar. He want to Nazareth to grow up int he shop of Joseph. He didn’t go to the Romans or the Greeks and teach at the intellectual highs of Athens of Alexandria, he taught from a fishing boat in the Sea of Galilee to commoners. If we follow the example of our Lord we’ll be okay with not seeking our own good but instead the good of others.

How Should I View God Differently

## How Should I View God Differently
Finally, perhaps the most important question. How should I view God differently? AW Tozar is famous for saying in his short book “Knowledge of the Holy” That the most important thing about a man is what he think of when he thinks of God. So what we have learned from our Lord today ought to change the way that we think of him. Already we see Jesus as a servant, willing to go very low to serve us. But we need to push farther in and higher up.
One of the things that we ought to realize is that God is not trying to be a strong dictator a or a self-serving monarchy. He’s not looking to lord his power over us, he’s actually inviting us into his partnership with himself as Father, Son, and Spirit to join him in glorifying his name. He doesn’t want our swords or our money, he wants our hearts. He actually wants us to love him and for that love to grow legs and walk out into a world that needs people who have a love so supreme it eclipses that self love that seeks glory for itself. He wants us so satisfied in him that we aren’t looking for the satisfaction of handshakes and pats on the back.
This God values things very differently than us and the more clearly we see him and internalize how great and deep and high and wide his glory is the less likely we are to try to steal it, so let me close with a few scriptures that highlight the majesty of God and the grandeur of his reign:
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