This is a sermon that continues in our series, Vision and Values, Joyful Paticipants, Called to Serve, Mark 10:45. You can watch more here.
If you are new this morning, we typically go verse by verse through a book of the bible, but
this morning we are going to go through a series on our vision and values as a church
family in Austin, and by the 4 th week of talking about vision and values you could start to
feel like you got the message, but our challenge isn’t just to learn the vision and values, but
to own the vision and values.
Every group has a culture. Friends have a culture. Families have a culture. Workplaces have
a culture. Churches have a culture too.
Culture is what’s celebrated, what’s tolerated or expected or normal, therefore, the real
question isn’t whether a culture exists in a church. The question is whether the culture that
exists is the one we actually want.
Most of us didn’t start coming here because we read a document called “vision and values.”
You started coming because you experienced something.
You heard the name of Jesus being lifted up. You saw honesty and sincerity in people’s
lives. You sensed this wasn’t just a religious meeting, but people genuinely trying to live
out their faith in Jesus.
Those moments don’t happen by accident. They happen when a group of people begin
to OWN certain values together, and over time those values create a culture.
So, let’s remind ourselves of the big picture. You can read more about our values on page
301 in the devotional, but let me summarize them with six simple action words:
WHO WE ARE:
Anchor: February 22 nd
Repent: March 1 st
Worship: March 8 th
WHAT WE DO:
Serve: March 15 th
Unite: March 22 nd
Multiply: March 29 th
The first three values focus on “Who We Are” as a church family but these next three really
focus on “What We Do” as a church family. This is “identity” and “behavior.”
This is who we are becoming, and what we practice, so that both are necessary. Both tell us
who we are as a non-denominational church in Austin and what that looks like practically.
Let’s look at our vision:
North Village Church is a family who are centered on Jesus, so that we become a people who
are chasing after every man, woman and child to experience the life transforming power of
Jesus in Greater Austin.
North Village Church is a family, which means we are committed to having healthy, vibrant
relationships with one another. In addition, we are committed to Jesus being at the center
of our lives, and then our belief is that when we are in deep relationships with one another
and committed to Jesus it will move us to chase after every man, woman, and child in
Greater Austin to experience the life-transforming power of Jesus. This is our vision as a
church family!
Our vision is our preferred future, and our values are how this vision become a reality,
therefore, let’s talk about our fourth value this morning, “Joyful Participants Called to
Serve.”
“Joyful Participants Called to Serve”
Let’s be honest, this value is going to hit different in a smaller church. In a larger church,
you can be anonymous on a Sunday morning. You can pop in and out and nobody notices!
But in our church family, we notice!
It will be harder to get to know the people in a larger church. It will be almost impossible
to get to know the leadership of a larger church, but in a smaller church in Austin you’re
going to constantly feel an invitation to participate in the life of the church.
That’s why we have that banner on our building, “Small church, big heart!” A small church
means you’re not going to get a ton of time to just sit and observe. If you’re new this
morning, I am not trying to scare you, just trying to be honest!
In most churches and organizations, you see the “20-80” rule. Do you know this rule? 20%
of the people doing 80% of the work. But in a smaller church, that won’t work. You might
be taking out the trash on your second visit! There’s no trash ministry here at North Village
Church. It’s all hands on deck!
In a smaller church it’s like coming over to someone’s house for dinner. You can come to
our house for dinner 2-3 times and we will take care of everything, but if you keep coming
over for dinner, eventually, we are going to ask you to do some dishes, so that ownership
doesn’t mean doing everything, but it does mean taking ownership of something.
Personally, I love smaller churches. Smaller churches force me around people that are
different than me, which is uncomfortable, but kind of seems like that’s what I see in God’s
Word. Smaller churches in Austin make me feel needed, like my dollars and devotion
matter, because they do matter.
Smaller churches give me a more honest picture into the lives of people, because we are
more likely to get below the surface with each other. And smaller churches are going to
keep challenging me spiritually, so that my faith stays sharp.
But I need to touch on something that might be difficult to hear. There is some therapeutic
language coming out in our songs, movies, and social media that is going to push us away
from being a people who are “joyful participants called to serve.”
There’s language from Brene Brown, Trauma Informed Therapy, Miley Cyrus, Ariana
Grande with language around “protect your peace, take up space, choose yourself.” Sound
familiar?
This is language that was formed in therapy for someone who’s experienced abuse and
trauma, but this language has also been picked up in pop culture, so that it can create some
confusion for what this means as a follower of Jesus.
Because, as a follower of Jesus, how do we “protect ourselves and put ourselves first” but
then see Jesus calling us to “die to ourselves and put Him first” therefore, we need to be
asking ourselves this morning, “What does ‘joyful participants called to serve’ look like
practically in our day?” Let’s look at our passage this morning:
Mark 10:41-45, “41 Hearing this, the ten began to feel indignant with James and John.
42 Calling them to Himself, Jesus said to them, “You know that those who are recognized as
rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them; and their great men exercise authority over
them. 43 But it is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you
shall be your servant; 44 and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all. 45 For
even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for
many.”
The gospel of Mark is in the New Testament. There are four perspectives on the life of
Jesus; Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. All four perspectives identify Jesus as God in the
flesh who died on the cross, and resurrected from the dead.
In our passage this morning, Jesus is confronting this tension between “protecting
ourselves” and “serving others.” So today, we might see therapeutic language elevating the
self, but even 2,000 years ago there was a pattern in humanity to protect itself and elevate
the self, so that Jesus is confronting that tension. Let’s look at verse 41 again:
Mark 10:41, “41 Hearing this, the ten began to feel indignant with James and John.”
In the context of the passage the disciples were walking with Jesus and Jesus had just
started teaching, just started performing miracles, and Jesus starts telling the disciples how
He will be mocked, how He will be killed, and how 3 days later He will resurrect from the
dead. It’s kind of a big conversation!
However, James and John listen to Jesus talk about His brutal death and resurrection, and
their natural conclusion to this powerful moment with Jesus is to ask, “Is it possible if we
could sit at your right and left in glory?”
Which means James and John are basically listening to Jesus talk about the most important
event in human history and saying, “What can I get out of it?”
And, we’re not picking on James and John, because we do the same thing today. Jesus
speaks creation into existence and we’re like, “But the Texas beach could be nicer!” Jesus
gives us life and breath and we’re like, “I wish I was taller!”
Therefore, Jesus says to James and John, “Hey, you do not know what you are asking.” It’s
because James and John aren’t able to die on the cross for our sin. James and John aren’t
able to resurrect from the dead, so that Jesus is trying to practice gentle parenting and
redirect James and John to more important areas.
Meanwhile, while this is all taking place we see verse 41, “The other ten hear this
conversation and they get indignant.” The word “indignant” means angry, because the
other disciples are thinking to themselves, “James and John are about to get some special
treatment!”
To be clear, the disciples aren’t upset about the possible position and titles being pursued,
they are upset that positions and titles might go to someone besides themselves. Look at
verse 42-44:
Mark 10:42-44, “42 Calling them to Himself, Jesus said to them, “You know that those who are
recognized as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them; and their great men exercise authority
over them. 43 But it is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among
you shall be your servant; 44 and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all.”
In the first century, normal leadership and authority would have been demonstrated by
power, control, titles, and personal gain, but Jesus Kingdom, on earth as it is in heaven, is
going to be different, so Jesus says, “But it is not this way among you.”
In Jesus’ Kingdom, leadership isn’t about protecting yourself. It’s about giving of yourself.
Authority isn’t going to be about titles. It’s going to be through those who sacrifice.
Influence isn’t the number of followers. It’s going to be through those with humility, so that
Jesus is describing life in His Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven and saying, “Life with Him
is going to be a soul stretching process that happens inward before it goes outward.” Does
that make sense? In Jesus’ Kingdom there is going to be inward growth long before you
start thinking of upward growth.
Listen to me, you need to know as a people living in Austin we have been conditioned to
treat people based on education, titles, status, and influence. What you drive. What you do.
Where you live in Austin is a statement? You tell someone you live in Austin while you live
in Pflugerville they are going to say, “That’s not Austin!”
And, at the same time Jesus is pushing against that therapeutic language we mentioned
earlier. The goal in Jesus’ Kingdom is about protecting yourself from abuse, but it isn’t
about protecting yourself from uncomfortable and soul stretching moments in life, because
that is absolutely going to happen as a follower of Jesus.
I want to go slow here because we live in Austin and we drink of this culture, so the idea of
preserving the self is a framework quietly pushing against the words of Jesus so I want to
give some practical examples:
How long are we able to listen to someone talk about their struggles when we have
important tasks I need to work on? How willing are we to disrupt our schedules to help
someone else? How willing are we to have a hard conversation with someone when
avoiding it would be easier? These are hard questions of soul stretching moments in His
Kingdom.
It’s possible some of us are thinking, “I thought we were talking about serving?” This is
serving. This is joyful participation in serving as Jesus forms our character. Amen?
How difficult is it for us to admit when we are wrong publicly? How difficult is it for us to
let someone else get the credit? How difficult is it for us to look ordinary when we want to
look impressive?
On a personal level, how much of a gap is there in my private life and my public life? How
much am I trying to manage how you see me as a pastor, and how much am I able to be
myself? It matters.
I am pressing on this, because this is distinct to our bible teaching church family. We’re not
trying to create a culture of “self-care and self-protection,” because we believe Jesus will
care for us and protect us, so that we can go through a soul stretching process with Him.
Our church family is more like a “training hospital” where we are all patients and we are all
nurses and there is only One doctor! His name is Jesus.
Again, practically, this means you’re going to see people stumbling in life as a follower of
Jesus, trying to fight and figure out what it looks like to follow Jesus. In a larger church, you
never to get to know the imperfections of people until something ends up in the news, but
in a smaller church we are going to see the imperfections, the hiccups, the stumbles,
therefore, we are going to need to be gracious with one another, pray for one another, and
encourage one another, as we grow and mature with one another.
We’re going to see people who are new to speaking on stage on a Sunday, and sometimes
it’s going to be painful to go through. But we are going to cheer for them and pray for them
and celebrate with them as they grow in those areas, because it’s not about a polished
product.
There are going to be people in our groups that don’t have the bible perfectly figured out,
and sometimes they are going to say things that aren’t consistent with God’s Word so that
we can be gracious with one another and help each other grow in God’s Word, because
“we’re joyful participants called to serve.”
Remember, there are tasks that need to be owned in our church family, but more than
tasks, “joyful participants called to serve” is spiritual formation in process.
It is inward character development before outward impact. It’s quiet prayers that nobody
sees. It’s helping in ways nobody notices, so that the most influence in our church family
isn’t necessarily what happens on Sunday morning in this room, but instead it’s those
supernatural moments of faithfulness to Jesus and His people throughout the week. Amen?
That’s distinct to our church family! That’s what we’re chasing after!
Other churches might emphasize expansion, branding, programs, and visibility, which are
important, but we’re going to emphasize practical dying to ourselves, putting others first,
and humility, because that’s what we see in Jesus, so that we grow inward and then
outward. Look at verse 45:
Mark 10:45, “45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give
His life a ransom for many.”
The irony of Jesus is that Jesus is the only One who was worthy of being served as King!
Jesus is the only One who was in a position to receive the worship of others, but the One
who was worthy to be served came to serve! That’s the heart of our value this morning!
We are never closer to Jesus and His heart then when we are positioning ourselves to put
others first, because we are trusting that Jesus will take care of us. It’s why in verse 45 we
see the phrase “give His life a ransom for many.” Do you see that in verse 45?
The word “ransom” is the price that is paid for those who are held captive. It is to liberate
those who are in bondage as slaves of darkness and sin, so that Jesus comes to break the
chains through His life, death and resurrection, and set us free. Jesus comes to pay the
price, and the price is His blood at the cross, so that we might have life in Him! That’s the
gospel!
Therefore, Jesus isn’t just giving us a moral lesson this morning on humility. He is inviting
us into His Kingdom that He created and His life that He established. He is dismantling the
values of this world. Right?
The goal in our culture is to gain wealth, power, move upward, and protect it at all costs. It
is to horde! It is to consume. It is to get more, and we might be able to do that on some
level, but in my experience, over time, something is going to crack. It might be your health,
career, relationships, character, something is going to get exposed, and when it all comes
crashing down the human wisdom is….
You need to rescue yourself, you need to protect yourself, you need to give your voice the
priority, and put yourself first, and it all centers around you, which is exhausting!
Therefore, Jesus steps into our world and says, “Not so in My Kingdom.” Instead, in My
Kingdom I am going to rescue you. I am going to position you. I am going to establish you
under My righteousness, so that you cannot just be recipients of His grace but conduits of
His grace in the lives of others.
And, Jesus tells us, it’s not going to be easy. You’re going to be mocked. Sometimes you’re
going to be hated. You’re not going to be first, but you’re going to be last, and it isn’t about
self-hatred or self-abuse, but Jesus can say those things, because you’ve been ransomed by
the blood of Jesus, and one day we are going to be with Him for eternity. Let me give you
some quick application:
Joyful Participants Called to Serve:
1. Practical: What needs to be done?
In our church family we ask everyone to find one area to serve once a month. Some people
do more, but at baseline we can all find one area to serve once a month. It can be our
children’s ministry, AV, Hello Team, but when everyone picks up weight on Sunday
morning, you are owning the culture of our church in north Austin.
It isn’t because the church needs volunteers, but because we need participation for us to be
stretched out of our comfort zone and our faith in Jesus to grow and mature.
2. Personal: Who’s in the room?
In a small church, serving isn’t just about a task, it’s about seeing the people in the room.
Serving in our children’s ministry is a chance to communicate biblical truths to a little
heart! Serving in our AV booth is about removing distractions so people can hear from God.
It’s isn’t about the task. It’s about the people in the room!
3. Prayer: How can we pray for each other?
Don’t underestimate a text of encouragement to someone. Don’t underestimate the
importance of lifting each other up in prayer. Start with your family. Let it bleed into your
community group. People you serve on a ministry team.
Prayer is one of those ways that we can participate and nobody will know. Most of the
time, confetti won’t fall from the sky in a miracle. But it is faithfully putting Jesus first in the
quiet moments of our day.
The culture of our church family isn’t going to be built by flashy moments and slick ads.
We’re going to be built by quiet acts of faithfulness throughout the week.
North Village Church
This sermon is brought to you by North Village Church, a non-denominational church in Austin. established in 2009 and built around Jesus and Bible teaching.
Are you looking for a church in Austin? At North Village Church we put Jesus at the center of our church family. We worship together every Sunday at 10:30am, encourage Christ centered fellowship through groups, and host special events such as Bible studies and Theological Training, to ensure that we are rooted in in God’s Word. We also serve our local community in association with several Austin based organizations.
North Village Church is made up of professionals, married couples, singles, and families who are wanting to experience the life-transforming power of Jesus. If you are a family with children or teens, we can support you with either or both our Kids Ministry and Youth Ministry.
You are welcome to contact us if you would like more information.
NVC Online
Unable to attend this Christian Church in Austin? Don’t worry, because, through God’s provision, we have created NVC online, an Online Church streaming a worship service every Sunday from 10:30am Central Time. You can also watch our short, powerful sermons on demand and follow us on Instagram for daily Christ centered content.