Latest / The Daily Word / May 3 – Greatness Looks Like Serving
Transcript
- Brandon Dirmann: Well, good morning once again, good afternoon, good evening, depending on when you're listening to this. My name is Brandon and I'm one of the pastors at our church. And today on behalf of all of our pastors and leaders, let me just one more time say welcome to the daily word podcast. I know I've been saying this, what feels like somewhat often to me, but man, we're getting such great feedback from those who are listening to this podcast and are finding it to be a helpful resource. for them as they are spending time with God and leaning into the things of God. And so thank you so much for all the feedback we've gotten. Just wanna keep encouraging you. Help us to get the word out, no pun intended, but help us to get the word out and to be more of a blessing to as many people as possible today. Send the link from this podcast to a friend, a family member, post it on social media, like. comment, share, whatever you gotta do, but help us to keep this thing going because it's such a thrill. It really is such a thrill, such an honor for us to be able to serve people and bless people and help people ⁓ just with a simple word of encouragement, but also a reminder that God really does, God really, really does wanna speak to you every single day. And so I'm praying today, this is an encouragement to you, but also it's a reminder for you to go spend time with God for yourself. That being said, today is May the third and what we're doing here on this podcast every single day is simply going through the New Testament portion of our life journal reading plan and sharing from that reading plan from the New Testament portion, a journal entry, a scripture observation application prayer. By the way, I've said it before, but I'll say it again. It's such a helpful way to journal and to think about your Bible reading. One, because you're not looking to just glean or understand everything, but you're looking for the one scripture. What's the one scripture or the one thought that God might highlight or illuminate to me today that God is really speaking to me? I lead a Tuesday morning Bible study with a bunch of guys. We just do Bible reading and journaling. And even in that group, we're looking for the one, Hey, what's God speaking to you today in your reading? And what I found Is the lot of the guys, they'll start tying verses together. Man, God said this to me, this verse really stuck out, but it kind of tied to this verse and all of a sudden you start connecting the dots. And so it's helpful to look for that one verse also to take that verse. And as you journal, think about digest it to say, what is the verse saying? How does it apply to my life? And today, how will I respond? How will I be different? That being said today is May the third, our new Testament reading is Matthew chapter 20. And I want to share with you. from this verse, Matthew chapter 20 verse 26, a very simple thought. Here's what it says, Jesus is talking and he says, Let me read that again, Jesus talking to his disciples, his disciples who are concerned to some degree. about title, position, authority, leadership, who's going to be first, who's going to be best, who's going to be greatest. He says, listen, ⁓ the Gentiles, those who are not in my kingdom, yeah, they think about life like that. He says, yet it shall not be so among you. He's telling us guys, we don't think the way the world thinks. Hey, hey guys, we're not thinking the way that everybody else is thinking. We're not living. as Paul would say, conform to the pattern of this world. But here's how things work in my kingdom. Whoever desires to become great, and I got great things in my heart, God's got a purpose, God's got a plan, I desire to be great, to fulfill God's plan. says, whoever desires to be great, well, let him be your servant. In verse 27, and whoever desires to be first, hey, there's things that I want, there's things that I need, things that I'm concerned about. Whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave. And here is the observation, the application. Jesus is saying here, things in my kingdom are different than things in this world. In this world, ⁓ people, they're looking for title, position, authority. They're looking to rule over people and to be served. He says, in my kingdom, it's not like that. We're actually looking for how we can serve people. I'm not looking for how I can be served. I'm looking for how I can serve others. And in the world way of thinking, everyone's just trying to get theirs. How am going to get mine? What about me? What about me? What about me? He goes, no, no, in my kingdom, if you want to be first, if you want to have all that you need, if you want to be taken care of, you be a slave or a servant of all. Makes me think of Matthew chapter six, verse 33. There I am connecting a scripture where Jesus says, seek first the kingdom of God. and all these things will be added to you. What things? The things you're worried about, concerned about, the things you need, the things that you want. Makes me think of another scripture. I'm not looking at it, but I believe it's in Philippians chapter two, where the apostle Paul writes, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ, who didn't consider or count himself to be above other people, but rather he came and he served. He came and he gave us an example of putting other people's needs in front of his, of being a servant and all. And what God did is God highly exalted him. Here is the observation application that God is more than able to supply all of our needs. God is more than able to promote us. God is more than able to take care of us. Anything and everything right now that you are worried about, God is more than able to take care of. You're worried about your finances? God is more than able. You're worried about a promotion at work, God is more than able. You're worried about ⁓ how you're gonna get ahead, God is more. Whatever it is you're concerned about, God is more than able. And as we say, you know what, I'm gonna trust God. I'm gonna put God first. I'm going to ⁓ serve other people. I'm gonna not think about and look at things from the lens of how can I get. How can I be served? How can I make more money? I'm not doing that. My lens will be the lens of God's kingdom and the lens of Jesus. And that is to say, I'm going to serve people. I'm going to help people. I'm going to bless people. I'm going to seek first and serve God first. The Bible says when we live that way, that all of a sudden those who were last become first. That those who were the servant are now being served. Why? Because in God's kingdom, it's opposite. We don't have to do it for ourselves, but rather when we humble ourselves and we honor God and we serve him and we do the things that he's asked us to do and we serve other people and that's our mentality. God has a way of promoting us. God has a way of providing for us. God has a way of moving us from the last seat to the first seat. God can do it. So my encouragement to you today, my application, my encouragement is whatever it is today that you're carrying and you're worrying about and you feel like I got to make it happen. I, I can't be others minded. I got to be me mining because I got to make it happen for myself. Don't do that. Don't die. Let's not live like that. Let's live. Trust in God saying, you know what? God's got me. God's going to take care of me. God's going to help me. God knows God's mindful. God's aware. And so I can simply serve him, serve others, let go and trust that God is working out all the details. I don't know about you, but man, that's an encouragement. and a challenge to me at the same time. I can think of areas in my own life that I'm striving, I'm pushing, I'm pressing, I'm trying to get ahead. And even just in recording this podcast, I'm reminded, ⁓ yeah, no, don't do that, don't do that. Trust God, God's working it out. God's gonna help you. God's gonna fill in the gaps. And so let's just take that thought and let's pray together. God, I pray today for myself and anyone who's listening today, anyone who will listen to this. that God, really would help us to relinquish control in the areas where we feel right now. Like if we don't, it won't God, we relinquish that. And we said, that's not true because you are more than able. You're our provider. You're a protector. You're the one who promotes us. You're the one who's work working things out on our behalf. You're working all things together for our good. So Lord, we say that we trust you and we say that we trust you so much that we can choose to not be self centered, but to be God and others centered. That the priority of our life would be to serve you and serve other people and we thank you right now in the name of Jesus that as we do that, that you are more than able to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves. God we trust you today and we ask you by the power of your Holy Spirit that you would help us to apply this in Jesus name, Amen. Hey today, I hope you were encouraged and I hope that you'll take time tomorrow to join us once again to listen to another episode of the Daily Word Podcast. We'll see you tomorrow once again on another episode of the Daily Word Podcast.