A Philanthropic Tweet
Some time during the pandemic, a wealthy man posted a tweet with a photo of himself outside his private jet, delivering aid to the poor and needy. The tweet even mentioned how much the man was giving away - and it was a very tidy sum indeed.
I Googled, as you do, "How much is Mr X worth?" and discovered that the liberality of this man's gift was completely overshadowed by his immense remaining wealth.
The magnanimous gift turned out to be just a few bob to him.
It cost him nothing, but paid him good PR.
How does Christian giving - or indeed any kind of service or ministry - differ from this man's philanthropy, and from the world's service?
A Missing Note in Contemporary Ministry
We are happy to discuss many aspects of Christian ministry today: finding our God-given gift, using it in the power God provides, making sure we 'stay in our lane,' serving without complaining, and so on.
But we hear little about sacrifice, one of the key characteristics of genuine, distinctive, true Christian ministry.
All genuine Christian ministry involves the giving up of something, and dare I add, perhaps on occasion, the giving up of someone.
How could it not be? The Son of Man gave up everything to serve us. He gave up all the trappings of divine majesty in the incarnation and then he gave up his very life to save his people.
His three year ministry was characterised by giving up; he had, for example, no house, no home, no where to lay his head.
Christian ministry, if it is to be like the Master's, must be cross-shaped.
God has wired self-sacrifice into the living world
None of this should surprise a follower of Jesus Christ, for we have already denied ourselves and taken up our crosses.
If a seed - Jesus used this example - wants to be fruitful it must personally die. It's the way God has wired creation.
If a parent wants their child to 'live' they must 'die.' Can't have it both ways. The parent can't continue to live the pre-kid life if they want their children to truly thrive and live.
It's either they die or the kids die.
If a husband or wife wants their marriage to work, they must often 'die' to their wishes.
The Example of Paul
In Christian ministry, Paul expressed it like this, life is at work in you, but death is at work in us (2 Corinthians 4). Paul rejoiced to see spiritual life in his Corinthian friends (perhaps a little too much life?!), but the price of that life in them was death in himself.
It's how Paul worked. For example, Paul had no interest in his own reputation, he had died to fame. For the sake of Christ in fact, he had "lost all things." Before he was converted he was a respected big-shot, after his calling he became a hounded preacher of the Gospel. Paul died to fame.The only time Paul boasted... he boasted about?
His sufferings!
Because for the apostle Paul, true ministry was characterised by sacrifice and the inevitable suffering that follows.
The Royal Road to Blessing
Odd and paradoxical thing is this: sacrificial service is the only kind that leads to true joy, eternal reward and the blessing of God.
The seed dies and lo and behold - a thousand new seeds are born!
The parent dies - and the child lives.
The Christian servant dies - and those around him live.
Service without sacrifice is no different from how the world serves. It's rich man tweet service. Giving the Lord the dog-ends of our time, the spare change in our pockets or the fag-ends of our energy, falls short of the joyful standard the Lord Jesus wants from us.
Summing it Up
The question we must ask of every ministry we are involved in is this: did it cost us? What sacrifices did we make? Joyfully, willingly, gladly?
If the answer is no sacrifice, then our service, whatever good it may immediately appear to do or have done, is not cross-shaped and it is likely we will receive no 'well done' in the world to come.
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