There Is Always Room For One More Matthew 23:1-23:12 Intro . . . A man, when asked by a pastor why he didn't come to church with his family, replied, "Because the church is filled with hypocrites." To which the pastor responded, "That's okay. There's always room for one more." Bragging rights, everybody wants them. Whether it is the biggest house, the fanciest car, the most impressive wardrobe, the most well behaved children, everyone wants to be top dog in some area of life. This desire to be first is also called pride, and God has something to say to you who would desire to be first. Read Text, Matt 23:1-12 Exegesis The religious leaders of Jesus' day, the same as many today, wanted to be looked at and treated as though they are a step closer to God than anyone else. They wanted others to think they had some special bragging rights that the common man lacked. They were chest thumpers who said, "Hey, look at me! Look at how important I am! See how broad my phylacteries are and how long my fringes are?" Now, phylacteries were small leather boxes containing portions of God's Word and they were worn by Jews who interpreted literally the instructions to fasten God's Word on their hands and forehead. And Moses, in Numbers 15, had instructed the children of Israel to put fringes on their garments to remember, not only the law in general, but also the smaller parts of the rites and ceremonies belonging to it. So the Pharisees made their phylacteries broad, that is, they put more writing on them or made the letters larger and thus more visible, to appear more holy. And they made their fringes longer to show how much more they followed the finer points of the law, therefore making them "holier than thou". I'm sure they didn't like it one bit when Jesus pointed out how these men dressed to draw attention to themselves to put themselves on a higher level than others. They wanted to appear religious without actually being religious. "…for they do not practice what they teach." Their philosophy was, "Do as I say, not as I do." These men thought they were important to God, they thought they were important to men, but they were just a bunch of hypocrites. These religious leaders wanted to be addressed with special titles, such as Rabbi, and if you were the unfortunate slob to forget to address them as such, you would quickly be reminded and thoroughly shown the error of your ways. But our God and Savior Jesus Christ doesn't think too highly of these types of people in fact, He says that if you're this type of person who seeks to be first, in truth you're in last place. I. Humble Yourself, Vs 12 Exposition God is not impressed with the pride of men, God is the creator of all things, He makes the birds sing, He makes the sun to shine, He has every hair on your head counted, and, He knows every secret you have ever had. Our great God and King doesn't need you who He gives the very breath you breathe running around pretending to be more important than you actually are. He loves every one of you, no more, no less than He loves anyone else. Application I can do it myself! I look so much nicer than she does since I lost those ten pounds! Boy, is that guy an idiot! Are you guilty of any of these statements, or statements made that are just as prideful? Pride is what causes you to feel as though you are better, or that you are supposed to be better than someone else. The truth is friends, God is not interested in how great you are, Jesus is interested in how great others are as a result of your influence. Illustration Miss Thompson taught Teddy Stallard in the fourth grade. He was a slow, unkempt student, a loner shunned by his classmates. The previous year his mother died, and what little motivation for school he may have once had was now gone. Miss Thompson didn't particularly care for Teddy either, but at Christmas time he brought her a small present. Her desk was covered with well-wrapped presents from the other children, but Teddy's came in a brown sack. When she opened it there was a gaudy rhinestone bracelet with half the stones missing and a bottle of cheap perfume. The children began to snicker but Miss Thompson saw the importance of the moment. She quickly splashed on some perfume and put on the bracelet, pretending Teddy had given her something special. At the end of the day Teddy worked up enough courage to softly say, "Miss Thompson, you smell just like my mother . . . and her bracelet looks real pretty on you too. I'm glad you like my presents." After Teddy left, Miss Thompson got down on her knees and prayed for God's forgiveness. She prayed for God to use her as she sought to not only teach these children but to love them as well. She became a new teacher. She lovingly helped students like Teddy and by the end of the year he had caught up with most of the students. Miss Thompson didn't hear from Teddy for a long time. Then she received this note: "Dear Miss Thompson, I wanted you to be the first to know. I will be graduating second in my class. Love, Teddy Stallard." Four years later she got another note: "Dear Miss Thompson, They just told me I will be graduating first in my class. I wanted you to be the first to know. The university has not been easy, but I liked it. Love, Teddy Stallard." Four years later: "Dear Miss Thompson, As of today, I am Theodore Stallard, M.D. How about that? I wanted you to be the first to know. I am getting married next month. I want you to come and sit where my mother would sit if she were alive. You are the only family I have now; Dad died last year. Love, Teddy Stallard." Miss Thompson went to the wedding and sat where Teddy's mother would have sat, because she let God use her as an instrument of encouragement. * Who Switched the Price Tags? , Tony Campolo, 1986, p. 69-72 Some of the greatest blessings in life come when you humbly realize someone else is more important than you are. II. Destined for Greatness, Vs 11 Exposition If you want to be somebody, put others before yourself. It's as simple as that. Jesus put you before Himself. He taught, suffered and died, and He did this all so that you might be saved by believing in Him. Jesus is great, not only because of what He did, but why He did it. He humbly put you before Himself. Jesus wasn't looking for glory. He was looking for you. Application Become great by becoming a servant. That almost sounds foolish, but it makes perfect sense. Take a moment to think about what influences you most about others? Would you agree that it is what they have done for you? Or maybe what they haven't done for you? An awesome resource you have in your life is your ability to benefit others, and you all have this wonderful resource. Your influence is measured by your willingness to serve others. Friends, service to others is rewarding, and service can be incredibly easy. There is no reason to believe that you have nothing to offer to others. Illustration Take Gandhi for instance, as he stepped aboard a train one day, one of his shoes slipped off and landed on the track. He was unable to retrieve it as the train was moving. To the amazement of his companions, Gandhi calmly took off his other shoe and threw it back along the track to land close to the first. Asked by a fellow passenger why he did so, Gandhi smiled. "The poor man who finds the shoe lying on the track," he replied, "will now have a pair he can use." *The Little, Brown Book of Anecdotes Friends, true greatness lies inside of each and every one of you, and it's dying to get out. Release it in your service to others. Conclusion I came to realize a long time ago that I'm the best in the world at one thing and one thing only. I'm not the best preacher. I'm not the best friend. I am not the best wife. I'm not the best singer. I'm not the best writer. I'm not the best at remembering people's names. I'm not the best badminton player. I'm the best at one thing and that is being myself. Nobody can be me better than me. And with me, what you see is what you get. Some of you may, at times, not like what you see. But I feel we have enough hypocrites in the world today: politicians, athletes, and yes, even clergy. You and I have absolutely nothing to gain by pretending to be what we're not. Sure we may, like the Pharisees, be able to fool other men and be looked up to. But to what gain? That and 50 cents will get you a cup of coffee. I'm more concerned, and I hope you are too, with being honest with God and pleasing Him more than other people. We can't fool God. 1 Samuel 16:7 says, "..the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart." God sees through our pretending and posturing like a squeaky clean window. Our broad phylacteries and long fringes do not impress God. We need to be less concerned with titles, clothes, and who we can impress, and concentrate more on coming before God in humility, knowing that, without His grace, we are nothing. "All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted." I conclude this morning with these thoughts from people much greater than I. These thoughts come from two of the greatest servants this world has ever known. Mother Teresa and D. L. Moody. Quotes "Let no one come to you without feeling better and happier when they leave." --Mother Teresa "The measure of a man is not how many servants he has, but how many men he serves." --D. L. Moody Greatness comes from service, and service comes from humility

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