Self | When Less is More | Pastor Rob Koke |Shoreline Church | Message

welcome shoreline family. This is certainly a unique Sunday for us. It doesn't happen very often, but sometimes the weather gets so bad here in Texas that we've got a kind of pivot and do services just a little bit differently. I'm so glad that we have the technology that we do that we can still have services on. You're just watching from home. I'm imagining that you guys are sitting on the couch. You're all snuggled up. Maybe you got a blanket and you're with your whole family. So welcome to all the kids as well. We're so glad that you're a part of this very special service today. I also want to just shout out all of you who are guests. If you're here for the very first time watching online today, we welcome you. We are so thrilled that you're a part of our ministry experience this morning. In fact, you could fill out a guest card. You can scan the QR code that's right there on the screen and that will give you some information on how to do that. And also if you want to participate in giving today, we would love for you to do that. You can use that same QR code. Super excited about the marriage conference coming up in a couple of weeks, so make sure you sign up for that as well. Let's all of us stand to our feet. I know you're at home, but it's good to get some exercise. So stand to your feet and we're gonna do what we do at the beginning of every single message. We're gonna recite our shoreline creed together. You guys ready? Okay, here we go. I am loved by God. I cannot earn it. I cannot lose it. I am forgiven and made brand-new. In Christ, I live with passion and purpose. I am empowered by the Spirit to be the church in the world and to live this love revolution. If you have been with us for the last couple of weeks, you know that we have been in a collection of talks when less is more. And you know sometimes we we want just more of the good stuff and it's totally awesome to have more joy and more peace and more faith and more love, but then there are some areas in our life where less is more and we've been tackling that for the last couple of weeks. And the theme scripture that we've been embracing for this collection of talks is found in Matthew chapter 16. This is Jesus and he's talking to his disciples and we've mentioned this every single week, but I think it bears repeating the

idea that a disciple is a fully devoted follower and that is the core mission of our church. We're here to build and help people get on that journey of being a fully devoted follower of Jesus. So Jesus is talking to these disciples of his and he says, whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for my sake will find it. If you deny, you will find when less is more. In week number one, we focused in on fasting, so we said less food, more focus. And then we talked about less comfort, more clout. You get more strength. You get more vitality. Less minutes was last week's talk. Less minutes, more moments. And before I get to this week, I want to let you know about next week. It's going to be fantastic. Less distraction, more direction. That's next week, but this week we're going to focus in on less self, more significance. Now over the last decade or so, this idea of self-care has become something that's been, you know, thrown about a lot. That's like a new phrase for us, but I think there is inherent in that phrase. is some truth that we need to embrace, this idea that we need to take care of ourselves. We need to be aware of what we need, and we need to take steps from time to time to meet those needs. Focusing on the right foods is an example of self-care. Getting some exercise, that's self-care. Going to bed at a reasonable hour to get a good amount of sleep is an example of self-care. Living a balanced life. We often talk about how important it is to balance the different priorities in our life, our spiritual life, our family life, our work life, our health life, our relaxation life. We need to balance all of these priorities,

and that's an example of some healthy self-care. Every once in a while, you need to treat yourself to a me day, right? Where you just, you know, hey, you take care of what you need in order to be healthy emotionally and spiritually and physically and so on. Jesus alluded to this whole idea of self-care when he was talking about loving, and he said, love your neighbor as you love yourself. And so there's this scriptural backing to this idea that we really do need to take care of ourselves. We can't help others unless we have the strength to do so. But, and I mean, it's a big but, sometimes we can slide from self-care into being self-consumed. Where life is really all about you. And you kind of can move into this space of selfishness. You know what you like, you know what you want, and you don't care how it affects the other people in your world. And you're gonna organize your schedule, you're gonna organize your calendar, you're gonna organize even how you use your free time without consideration to the people who are in your world. You look at everything in life through the lens of what's best for you. And I know we wouldn't admit to that, but sometimes we can subtly slide into a selfish kind of existence.

And we start using the people in our lives. We start taking more than what we give. And so instead of treating yourself from time to time, instead of having an occasional you day, every day becomes a you day or a me day. In the sixth century, Pope Gregory kind of gathered some thoughts that have been percolating around in Christianity for a while and made a list of what we now refer to as the seven deadly sins. And what's kind of interesting about recognizing these kinds of behaviors is that all of them are steeped in self. Like when you make the list, pride, well, that's self-importance. Greed, the selfish pursuit of wealth. Lust, the selfish focus on sensual pleasure. Pleasure. Envy, a selfish desire to have more than someone else has or what they have. Gluttony, a selfish indulgence. Anger, a selfish expression of displeasure. Sloth, a selfish expression of being lazy and apathetic. And so when we think about all of the negative root behaviors that people can engage in, self is at the core of every single one of them. And the Bible teaches that we have to have a lot less of that unhealthy selfishness when less is more. John the Baptist said it this way.

He must increase and I must decrease. And there is one simple, powerful antidote to selfishness in our lives. You ask, what is that? And I'm gonna tell you. It's serving. Less self, more serving. More serving, more significance. Jesus was all about that. He talked about it and he modeled it. And John in his gospel, reflecting the life of Jesus, tells this incredible story about Jesus. Jesus the servant. It's found in John chapter 13. We'll pick it up here in verse three. Jesus knew that His Father had put all things under His power, and that He had come from God, and that He was returning to God. John is saying here that Jesus knew exactly who He was. He was the Creator of the universe. He was the King of kings. He was the Lord of lords. He knew who He was. Everything in the Bible points to Jesus. The Old Testament points towards Jesus. The Gospels point at Jesus, and then the epistles look back at Jesus. Everything in the Bible is about Jesus and His greatness and His goodness. There is surely an English word that is going to foster some debate when it's spoken, and that's the word greatness. If you take two people, any two people, and you get them in a conversation about who is the goat of whatever particular pursuit, there's going to be a difference of opinion. And this is where I wish we could have all been together here this morning at our North Campus and our South Campus, because I would have loved to hear your responses to the options that I'm going to present to you next. If I was to ask you who is the greatest quarterback of all time, Tom Brady, Joe Montana, who would you choose? If I was to ask you who is the greatest

basketball player of all time, LeBron or Michael Jordan, who would you choose? To you car buffs out there, what's the greatest car of all time, the Mustang or the Camaro? Who is the greatest president of all time, Washington or Lincoln? I was thinking about that one because it's kind of an easy answer. Of course, it's Lincoln because he's on a $5 bill. You know, Washington was only on a $1 bill. You ask the guys, what's the greatest movie? Is it Braveheart or Gladiator? Well, you know what? I think Braveheart had a little bit more of that romantic, you know, kind of side to the story, but Gladiator had that whole, you know, idea that heaven was real, probably moving to Gladiator. What about you ladies? Greatest gift, chocolate or flowers? I know my wife would say flowers. Heck, ask two Christians what's the greatest verse in the Bible, John 3 16 or Psalm 23 and you're sure to have some discussion. Ask Shoreline who the great one is. Well, Pastor Rob or Pastor Rob, there's no debate on that one, is there? Jesus had a thought about greatness, though. When he talked about greatness, he defined it this way, the greatest among you will be your servant. Jesus said, greatness is defined by how you serve. The goat is the servant. Now, he didn't just say that, but he modeled that. Continuing on with the story, so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist, and I pause here for a moment because something kind of spoke to me as this story was unfolding. Jesus was aware of the needs around him, and that's really what captures the heart of a servant. A servant is someone who is aware. He wasn't too busy, he wasn't preoccupied, he didn't have more important things on his mind, and he could have. The truth is, is that when this story takes place, it's just a short time between this story and his actual crucifixion. He knew what was in front of him. If anybody deserved a me day, it was Jesus, but he was aware. He was outward focused. In the first century, people often wore sandals, you know, you see that in all the documentaries, and on the dusty roads. people's feet would get dirty. So it was kind of customary when you got into a house that someone would wash feet.

It was usually the job of the servant of the house. And you might've thought that one of the other disciples would have picked up on the need that was there, but none of them did. But Jesus picked up on it. He was aware. And I've noticed that people fall into different categories. There are people who, I don't know if they have the gift of awareness or they've been cultivating that attitude and mindset, but it seems like there are people that are more aware than others. And you might fall into that camp. You might be someone, when you walk into a room, you see needs and you just recognize that something needs to be done. Sometimes you walk into a room and there's things that need to be picked up. There are hurting people that need to be comforted. There are dishes that need to be washed. But then there's a whole bunch of other people and you might find yourself in this category. And I'm not saying that you're an evil or a bad person. You just might need to work a little bit harder at this whole idea of becoming aware. Because when you walk into a room, you don't necessarily see the needs that are present. Sometimes you can trip over the toys in your own house that your own kids have kind of strewn about. And your wife is tired after coming home from work and taking care of the kids and doing all this stuff.

And it would be helpful if you were more aware. Some of us walk into rooms and we're just not as aware as we should be. We are oblivious. We see the TV, we see the remote, we see things that we like. And there's a big honey-to-do list with red arrows pointing right at it, but we just miss it. We're unaware. So maybe on the journey to becoming more servant-hearted, the first step for us is to pray to become more aware. And those of you especially who struggle in this area, I challenge you to sincerely do that, to pray, God, make me more aware of the needs around me. But Jesus wasn't just aware, he was also available. It's one thing to be aware of a need, but it's another thing to make yourself available. And Jesus was both aware and available. And needs will not be met, and we won't be the servant that God wants us to be unless we have both of those things in our lives. Availability is a big issue. Two blind men were crying out to Jesus one day, and they shouted out, Jesus, have mercy on me. And I love what Jesus did. Matthew chapter 20 captures this. Verse 32 says that Jesus stopped.

And I mean, that almost says it all, but I'll read the rest of the verse. Jesus stopped and called them, what do you want me to do for you? He asked, Lord, they answered, we want our sight. And Jesus had compassion on them, touched their eyes, and immediately they received their sight and followed him. But the big emphasis in this verse to me is that Jesus stopped. He was available. And if you wanna be used by God, you must be willing to stop. You must be willing to be interrupted. When you read through Matthew and Mark and Luke and John, you're gonna discover that most of the miracles that Jesus did were interruptions. He was stopped along the journey. He was on his way somewhere else, and he paused. So many times you look at the miracles. He was interrupted at a wedding. He was interrupted by a lame man, a paralyzed man, a grieving parent with a child who had passed away. All of them were interruptions. His very first miracle was an interruption at the wedding. The second miracle was an interruption on the way to Galilee. Jesus just stopped.

You will often hear sermons about how we need to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, but maybe it's just as important that we follow in the footstops of Jesus. And the only way that you can. to make yourself available is by creating some margin in your life. If you're the kind of person that packs every single day without any margin, you might be aware of a need, but you won't be available to meet that need. There's an old adage, I've said it many times, you've probably heard it. If the devil can't make you bad, he'll make you busy. And often it's because we're busy that we don't have the margin to be available. The story continues in verse five of John chapter 13. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples' feet, drying them with a towel that was wrapped around him. Here's an interesting thing. You can be aware of a need and you can be available, but serving isn't serving until you've served. You can even feel like serving, but you can see the need, be available to meet that need, even desire to meet that need, but you haven't really served unless you serve. Serve. And in this particular story, Jesus takes a basin of water

and he's got a towel and he gets down on his knees and he begins to wash his disciples' feet. His disciples' feet. At the end of the day, serving is an action. Jesus did something. When God wants something done in the world, his only real way of accomplishing his purposes is to get his kids to be action oriented. Sure, he can do things without us, but for some reason he has chosen to accomplish his purposes and his will in the world through his disciples, through his fully devoted followers, through his kids. We are his hands to lift. We are his shoulders to bear burdens. We are his feet to go to where people are hurting. We are his eyes and his ears. We are his heart to express. God is committed to using people. He's committed to using us as his sons and daughters. And there isn't a plan B. St. Augustine said, without God, we cannot, without us, he will not. There is always an action associated with serving. In John 3 in verse 13, when he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and he returned to his place. When he had finished washing and drying their feet, what a beautiful, intimate expression of serving this whole story is. He did it because there was a need,

but he also did it because that's who he was. In Mark chapter 20 in verse 28, he said, the son of man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. Think about that for a moment. What Jesus is asking us to do is not just an act of serving, but it's a whole attitude shift. It's possible that you could be aware of a need, be available to meet that need and take action to meet that need, but that's not where Jesus wanted it to stop. Not just with an action, but with an attitude shift. He said, do you not understand what I have done for you? You call me teacher and Lord and rightly so for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and teacher have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. I have set for you an example. Example that you should do as I have done for you He was the Lord the creator of the universe and Yet he washed their feet by grace We have been exalted to a place that we never deserved We are the sons and daughters of the living God. We are king's kids We are nobility. We are royalty We are righteous and holy and perfected all by grace given to us as a gift Jesus is the Lord of all Yet he served The

Apostle Paul Picked up on this whole theme of Jesus saying hey, it doesn't it doesn't end with an action there's an attitude that you need to to identify with in Philippians chapter 2 in verse 5 and 7 He said have the same mindset and that word mindset is the same thing as an attitude have the same attitude as Jesus Though being in the very nature God did not consider himself Did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage rather He made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant It's really important that you understand that mindship That is not just the act of serving but becoming the very nature of a servant in the Greek There are two words that describe serving one Emphasizes an action, but the other actually focuses in on the identity of a servant you can do an act of Service, but your heart is not in it you you serve, but you're not doing it With a servant's heart you could do it grumbling You can be aware of a need be available to meet that need and actually meet that need You know you can be taking the trash up it to the end of the driveway and the whole time that you're doing it You're grumbling. You're mumbling. You didn't want to do it and and you you know you saw the need you were available And you did it, but you didn't do it the right heart and God is saying I want you to move beyond just an action to an attitude One Greek word focuses in on the action the other one focuses in on the identity and the word servant in this particular passage in Philippians identifies with the Identity word that God wants us to have an attitude shift a mindset shift where we Embrace as a part of our identity being a servant a lifestyle of serving Less self

More serving more serving more significance Husbands serve your wives wives serve your husband's roommates serve each other be aware be available Take action shift your attitude See the needs around you and meet them Serve in your neighborhood serve at the workplace But one of the most wonderful things that you can do Is to serve right here at church As a part of the Shoreline family Every single week we gather together the servants of Shoreline before services begin and we have a huddle and we call our Shoreline volunteers Shoreline volunteers the three team Because they help us with the vision of the church, which is to help people know God find life and make a difference and these incredible awesome amazing people are Full of what we've been talking about. They are aware and they're available and they take action and they've shifted their identity Even though you know, you'd be surprised Some of the you know, most respected positions you could ever imagine In our community at large are filled by people who serve in this community you know teachers and doctors and lawyers and coaches and Business executives business owners Who like Jesus Take that basin of water and a towel And wash People's feet and if you want to be a part part of this amazing group of people. I wanna encourage you to do so, and you can do that even right now. Maybe one of the benefits of this service being online is that you can see on the screen

exactly what you need to do. You can text SLCONNECT to the number 97000 and it will just take you right through the step-by-step process so you can be involved. And let me just add, whether you wanna join a group or be involved in serving, that's gonna get you to the place where you can do it. But there is one final A that I wanna share with you here this morning, and that's awards. We're aware, we're available, we take action, we've made the attitude shift, but I wanna let you know that there are also awards to serving. In Matthew chapter 10 and verse 42, and if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I say to you that that person will not lose their reward. We say this all the time, but you cannot out-give God. And in this way, it's really true. When less is more. Less serving, less self, more serving. More serving, more significance. And not only a sense of significance with your life, because honestly, if your life is all about yourself, you're never gonna have that sense of significance. You're never gonna have that sense that your life counts for something greater than yourself. But there's also great joy in serving.

You'll grow in your gifts and talents, the thrill of being used by God. And one of the most probably underappreciated and overlooked benefits that comes from being a part of a serving team, especially here at Shoreline, is the relationships that will be forged as you serve together. Some of the best friends you'll ever have in your life, you can meet right here at Shoreline in serving. The scripture says that there are only two basins. There was the one that Jesus used to wash his disciples' feet. But there was another mention of a basin used by another person. This basin was on a pedestal, and it was used by Pontius Pilate. When Jesus stood before him, he washed his hands in this basin. And when he did, he was washing his hands of responsibility. He was rejecting the opportunity to serve. He didn't want to have to deal with the inconveniences that were brought before him. He washed his hands of the whole affair. And you could say that in all of our lives, there is a basin. You can use it for self, or you can use it to serve. The choice is yours. Let's pray.

Father, we thank you so much for the opportunity to be together here this morning, even though we're not together in this building, we're together in heart and spirit. And Father, in this message, we learned that less self is more significant. And Father, I pray that you would help each and every one of us to embrace this journey to servanthood, that we would pray for awareness. Father, that we would create margins so we can be available, that we would cross the line and take action. action But father that we would also embrace a new identity a new attitude And father that we would celebrate the awards Father help us to be a servant just like you in Jesus name Now I want to take an opportunity as we do it every single service to give you an opportunity to Meet the lord, maybe you tuned in today and you're not where you need to be with god Or maybe you made a decision at one point in time And you say pastor i'm not living right? I'm not doing right. I'm not where I ought to be with god. I need prayer If you want to meet him for the very first time or you want to rededicate your life to serving him I want to encourage you to do that right now with all of us praying Let's all of us pray together and you can repeat this prayer after me. Let's pray heavenly father I thank you For sending jesus Jesus I ask you to come into my heart forgive me of my sins I put my trust in you And I will live for you From this day forward

By your power for your glory In jesus name And everyone said amen Well, thank you so much for being a part of this very special service today And I want to strongly strongly strongly encourage you to join us on wednesday night. The weather will be better this wednesday Join us at our north campus our south campus. We have groups. We have leaders and I have programs available for just a whole bunch of different needs If um, if you're a part of the celebrate recovery that meets on thursday nights our young adults meet on Tuesday nights And we've got groups for just about every single Age and stage of life and we'd love for you to be a part of that. Please join us this wednesday night and If this message rang true in your heart Please just let us know text sl connect to 97 000 And become a part of the serving team here at shoreline. God bless you And we look forward to seeing you on wednesday night