The First
Shall Be Last
"Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory, but in lowliness of
mind let each esteem others better than themselves" (Phil.
2:3).
By
nature, we are self-centered and proud. "Lowliness of mind" and
"esteeming others better" than ourselves is foreign to our fallen
natures. We desperately need a change of character, but how does this
essential transformation take place?
"Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus"
(Philippians
2:5).
And
when we do this what will we learn?
The
ultimate example of humility. Jesus, the exalted Son of God and all
powerful Creator of everything in the entire universe, volunteered to
take the position of the lowest, most worthless and vile human being
on the face of this earth. In taking upon His sinless nature our
fallen sinful nature, He completely identified with those in rebellion
against Him. In His descent from the throne, He didn't stop one or
two rungs short on the ladder, afraid to be associated completely with
those He came to save. Unwilling that any should be lost, His love
drove Him to the very depths of humility. Before our own
characters can be transformed, we must learn the lesson of the
cross.
This
week's Sabbath School lesson mentions Joseph and Moses as
representatives of a truly humble, Christ-like character. Indeed,
their stories have significant lessons for us today. Both of these men
led fairly pampered lives during their youth. Lessons learned during
these formative years had to be undone by the Holy Spirit before God
could use them to their highest capability. Self-centered pride and
ambition must be expunged from their characters. A new mind had to be
given to them.
Joseph's brothers hated him because he was their father's special
boy. No doubt his young heart was swelled in pride through the
knowledge that he was the favored son. At first, Joseph didn't
understand why God allowed him to be sold into slavery, but he
determined never to bring insult to his God by anything he did or
said. Eventually, God's plan was revealed to Joseph and he
understood His purpose in bringing him through humiliating slavery and
a false and unjust imprisonment. These trials were necessary so God
could shape his character into something He could use.
Moses
had the privilege of living his early formative years in the luxurious
palace of the Pharaoh of Egypt. But he had a short fuse. In some
situations, his actions were more like brainless reactions. "In
slaying the Egyptian, Moses had fallen into the same error so often
committed by his fathers, of taking into their own hands the work that
God had promised to do" (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 247).
This physically and politically powerful man had to learn humility and
patience, so God sent him off to the desert to tend a flock of
dim-witted, unruly sheep. It took forty years before God finally
finished carving away the sharp edges from Moses' character. When He
was finished, Moses was the most humble man on the face of the earth.
Only then was he ready to do the work God had planned for
him.
Moses
learned his lesson well. At the foot of Sinai when the children of
Israel rebelled against God, Moses was willing to die with
them. Moses had suffered from his people's constant complaining,
unfounded accusations, and angry confrontations. Love for his people
and the humbleness he had learned in the desert motivated him to
suffer God's curse with them rather than accept an offering
that could have aroused his pride.
By
faith Joseph and Moses saw the promised Messiah dying for their sins.
Their hearts were broken. Pride, self-centeredness, ambition, and
self-deception became abhorrent to them when they realized that these
were the very character traits that would murder their Messiah. By
faith, kneeling at the foot of the cross, willing to have the mind of
Christ as their own, Joseph and Moses both received the
self-renouncing, self-denying, and humble character of their Lord (see
Philippians 2:5-8).
Fast
forwarding fifteen hundred years, we find twelve men who had the honor
of sitting at the feet of the Master for more than three years. Being
in constant communion with the Perfect Pattern, their opportunity for
critical character assessment was unsurpassed. Did they learn their
lessons? Were Christ's closest disciples cured of their pride and
self-serving ambition?
"And they departed thence, and passed through Galilee; and He would
not that any man should know it. For he taught His disciples, and said
unto them, 'The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and
they shall kill Him; and after that He is killed, He shall rise the
third day.' But they understood not that saying, and
were afraid to ask Him. And He came to Capernaum: and being in the
house He asked them, 'What was it that ye disputed among yourselves
by the way?' But they held their peace: for by the way they had
disputed among themselves, who should be the greatest. And He sat
down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, 'If any man desire
to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all'"
(Mark 9:30-35).
The
disciples thoroughly expected that Jesus would soon take His place as
the earthly King of Israel. In anticipation, James and John had been
vying for the chief political positions next to Jesus on His earthly
throne. Ambition and pride ruled their hearts. They proved that
knowledge of truth was insufficient to change their characters.
What they needed was the power of truth working in their
individual lives--they needed the mind of Christ.
"When we speak of faith, there is a distinction that should be borne
in mind. There is a kind of belief that is wholly distinct from faith.
The existence and power of God, the truth of His word, are
facts that even Satan and his hosts cannot at heart deny. The
Bible says that 'the devils also believe, and tremble;' but this
is not faith" (Steps to Christ, p. 63).
The
gospel which "is Christ in you," is the "power of God unto
salvation to every one that believeth" (Romans 1:16). James and
John's actions exhibited that their faith was immature, not fully
reflecting the mind of Christ.
"And when the ten heard it, they began to be much displeased with
James and John. But Jesus called them to him, and saith unto them,
'Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles
exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority
upon them. But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be
great among you, shall be your minister: and whosoever of you will be
the chiefest, shall be servant of all. For even the Son of man came
not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life a
ransom for many'" (Mark 10:41-45).
Here
Jesus contrasts the principles of His kingdom with the kingdoms of the
world. Men of the world seek power to rule over their fellow men to
keep them in subjection to their will, to carry out their own
self-serving agendas. In Jesus' kingdom this attitude is turned
upside down. He who would be counted greatest in the eternal kingdom
must be the servant of all. Modeled after the Master's faultless
character, deep heart-felt humility and submission are the foundation
of true Christian character.
Like
Joseph, Moses, James, John, and Peter (we can't overlook Peter's
arrogance in Matthew 26:33-35), we must all learn our lessons at the
foot of the cross. During this cosmic day of atonement, our High
Priest is seeking to remove everything that stands between Himself and
His loved ones. The work He is accomplishing takes place in the hearts
of His people. We must learn that self-exaltation will bring our
eternal destruction. Those seeking the first places shall be last,
while those willing to humbly serve in the last places shall be first
in the kingdom of God.
Tuesday's lesson is titled: "The Results of Jesus' Superior
Ministry." It is vitally important for us to understand the
"results" of Christ's ministry in our behalf. How does this
discussion on pride and humility apply to the superior work of our
High Priest now interceding in the sanctuary above? What should be our
"reaction" to the work Jesus is accomplishing now for us in the
heavenly sanctuary?
"The sanctuary itself could not be cleansed so long as, by the
confessions of the people and the intercessions of the priest,
there was pouring into the sanctuary a stream of iniquities,
transgressions, and sins. … this stream must be stopped at its
fountain in the hearts and lives of the worshipers, before the
sanctuary itself could be cleansed. Therefore, the very first work in
the cleansing of the sanctuary was the cleansing of the
people."
"The finishing of the mystery of God is the ending of the work of the
gospel. And the ending of the work of the gospel is, first
the taking away of all vestige of sin and the bringing in of
everlasting righteousness—Christ fully formed—within each believer"
(A. T. Jones, The Consecrated Way to Christian Perfection, pp.
118, 117, emphasis in original).
"If
the Lord has brought up sins to us that we never thought of before,
that only shows that He is going down to the depths and He will reach
the bottom at last and when He finds the last thing that is unclean or
impure and that is out of harmony with His will and brings that up and
shows that to us and we say, 'I would rather have the Lord than
that,' then the work is complete and the seal of the living God can
be fixed upon that character" (A. T. Jones, 1893 General
Conference Bulletin, p. 404).
Jesus
is the Pattern for our developing Christian characters. We must
learn to "let this mind be in [us] which was also in Christ Jesus."
True righteousness by faith means more than merely agreeing with
the facts of the Bible. It means being willing to submit
totally to God's will, as Christ did. This can only be accomplished
in us if at all times Jesus is the One upon whom our eyes are focused.
By beholding His matchless character our own character is molded after
the divine pattern. As we behold Christ, humility and submissiveness
will not be seen as weakness, but true strength.
Let
us seek the infilling of His mind that we may develop a character like
His. Let us all welcome this cleansing work of our High Priest as He
perfects the characters of His people. Only at the foot of the cross,
can we learn the self-renouncing, self-denying, and humble character
of our Lord.
Suggested reading for this
week's lesson is A. T. Jones' sermon No. 12 in the 1893 General
Conference Bulletin, where Jones discusses the mind of Christ and
contrasts it with our natural mind of enmity. Elder Jones gives us the
solution to our problem.)