HOW DO WE BECOME A GREAT CHURCH?

(Preached on September 21, 2003)

Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.”

-Mark 9:36-370.

 

How do you measure greatness?

There are many different ways we define it.

Some say it is intellect that makes for greatness.

Some say greatness is demonstrated through courage.

Other would say spirit, perseverance, grace under pressure, these are the qualities that lead to greatness.

Still others would point to positive contributions for the betterment of humanity as true measures of greatness.

And some would say the greatest are those who work for peace or justice.

 

So many different responses, and many of them very good.

How do we measure greatness in a church?

We all want to be part of a church that is succeeding.

Deep within us, we all have a desire to be great.

We have a desire to be the best at what we do, to excel.

How do we measure that and achieve that in this church?

Is a great church one that is growing by leaps and bounds, adding 30, 40, 50, 100 new members a year?

Is a great church one that has beautiful buildings, an inspiring sanctuary for worshiping God?

Is a great church one where people are inspired and moved by the sermon, and the music, and the worship every week?

Is a great church one of the top givers to OCWM and a supporter of seminaries and other worthy ministries?

Is a great church one with a radio or TV ministry that is spreading the gospel over the airwaves?

Many of these are good things.  Are they signs of greatness?

 

I suggest to you that Jesus’ response would be no!

Jesus was on the road to Jerusalem one day.

He is in the home stretch of his ministry.

He has been doing lots of good work and teaching people about God’s love for all for quite some time.

He realizes the opposition to his work has been growing.

He is now trying to prepare his disciples for this reality; that more and more people, especially those with power, are going to resist, even violently so, his radical teaching of God’s love and acceptance for all people.

But his disciples are just not getting with the program.

He overhears them arguing on the road and asks them when they stop for the night, “Boys, what were you fighting about back there?”

The silence was deafening.

“We weren’t fighting.”

Another one piped up and said, “He started it.  He thinks he’s better than all the rest of us.”

“Did not.” “Did too!” “Did not!” “Did too!”

Jesus didn’t enter into their argument.

He sat down.  Rabbis in those days sat down when they had something important to say.   “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.”

This statement is undoubtedly the heart and core of Jesus’ message.

It is the most widely document of any of Jesus’ sayings.

It appears 7 times in the gospels: here, in Mark 10:43, Matthew 10:26 and 23:11, Luke 9:48 and 22:26, and in a slightly different form in John 12:25.

With these words Jesus turns greatness upside down, reverses the normal social order of stations, and undercuts all self-ambition.  Greatness is not achieved in ruling over others, but in serving others.

While serving others is thought to be the lowest of positions, Jesus makes it the highest.

 

Then, just to be sure they get the point, (which they don’t) he takes a child in his arms and adds, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.”

Now be careful.

This is not Jesus holding up a child as a role model for his disciples.  (That comes a little later in the gospel.)

In embracing a child Jesus is embracing a prime-example of a “no account” person, someone who could do very little for you in return.

In Jesus’ world, children had little status within the community or family.

A minor child was on a par with a slave, and only after reaching maturity was he or she a free person who could inherit the family estate.

The term “child/children” could be used as a serious insult.

When Jesus takes that child in his arms, it was not that the child was a cuddly, lovable creature in need of kindness.

Rather, it was precisely that the child was unlovable, undesirable, socially unfit.

True greatness, Jesus says, comes from service, from selflessness.  If you wish to be great, then be great in service.

Humble yourself and be servant of all.

Especially those who are the smallest, the weakest, who cannot in any way repay you.  True greatness comes through service without any thought of reward.

For a child cannot reward you, not in any monetary or prestigious way.  Serve with no thought of gain, especially serve those looked down on most by society.

 

Who are the greatest in Miami?

According to Jesus it is those who welcome the little ones, care for them, love them, protect them, keep them safe.

It is not necessarily those who make the largest salaries, or have the most notoriety, or the most political power, or the most face time on TV, or the largest following.

It is all those mothers and father, babysitters, daycare workers, doctors, nurses, nurses’ aides, social workers, crossing guards, police officers, firemen, paramedics, teachers, librarians, television and radio producers, politicians, writers, editors, CEOs of industry, preachers and poets, grandpas and grandmas — whoever looks out for the well-being of children and the elderly, the sick, the poor, the dying, the disabled and the oppressed — all of the little ones among us.

 

We will become great as a church when we stop living for ourselves and start living completely for those little ones.

We will become great as a church when we stop worrying about our institutional survival and start worrying more about the survival of those who need a helping hand to survive.

We will become great as a church when we stop looking for new members who can help with the budget and can serve on committees and can help with the work days and instead strive to truly reach out and warmly welcome whoever comes through those doors, by embracing them, accepting them, listening to them in a truly caring manner, and seeking to serve them in whatever way they need God’s love from us.

The greatest gift we can offer someone is to listen to them in a non-judgmental, open and accepting manner focused totally on them and not on our own agenda.

When we do that we show them great respect and true love.

 

This is not easy to do.

Jesus’ disciples never quite got this point until after Jesus’ death and resurrection.

One reason it is so difficult is that we, ourselves, have our own needs, our own pains and sufferings, our own joys.