My exhortation to Knox Presbytery Fall 2026
“But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi. But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted” (Mt. 23:5-12).
There’s a little pharisee lurking in every human heart — the desire to be seen by men, respected by men, exalted by men — desiring to please other men.
“The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe” (Prov. 29:25). The fear of man is caring what men think and allowing their opinions to dominate your thoughts and decisions. It’s allowing whether you are likely to receive praise or blame, love or hate, affirmation or criticism – it’s allowing that to affect what you say, what you do.
When Jesus had healed the blind man and they cast him out of the synagogue, it says, “Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue: For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God” (Jn. 12:42-43). This love of the praise of man interferes with obedience and courage.
But the irony is that aiming at the praise of man is a great way to be less useful, less helpful, less potent. Jesus points here at the path of true greatness, true usefulness, true exaltation. It has to do with keeping your eyes fixed on who the True Teacher is, who the real Master is, who your faithful Father is – that is what true humility and service is.
Of course the evangelical longhouse has created a culture that pretends humility: a servant is someone who does whatever the women’s committee demands or whatever all the respectable guys say. But Jesus wasn’t a snowflake, and He made a lot of people mad. Jesus didn’t go around doing whatever anyone demanded of Him. Neither should we.
“I receive not honor from men. But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you. I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive. How can ye believe, which receive honor one of another, and seek not the honor that cometh from God only?” (Jn. 5:41-44) Again, notice how seeking the honor of men gets in the way of really believing, true obedience. Jesus did the Father’s will perfectly and faithfully because he did not receive honor from men. But He did seek the honor that comes from God alone. He did seek that glory.
Clearly there is a duty to honor faithful men, fathers, pastors, and others in authority over us, but there is a corresponding duty for those men not to “receive” honor. I think it was John Bunyan who when he had finished preaching and had come down from the pulpit was told by someone that it he had just preached a very fine message, and Bunyan replied that he knew because the Devil had already told him.
But to be a servant, a true servant, you are grateful when your service blesses other people, but you don’t do it for the kudos. You don’t do it for the “likes” or for the “shares” or for the “follows,” for the recognition, for the praise. A servant does it for His Master, and a servant does it because he knows it needs to be done. Think about all the ordinary things that have to be done to keep your house running, the church running, and you do them all the time and you would do them even if no one noticed. Occasionally someone might notice and thanks you, but you don’t “receive” that honor like some kind of feather in your cap.
“So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do” (Luke 17:10).
So a servant is someone who concentrates on their assignments and duties because a servant understands that he is a man under orders. Those assignments and duties come chiefly from God. This is the danger of titles and greetings. Trying to please men is a great way to not get much done because everyone has a different idea of what you ought to do. Trying to keep everyone happy with you is an exhausting, not to mention, impossible task. It’s distracting, confusing, disappointing, and frustrating. The most effective leaders are men who keep God as their Father and Christ as their Master and Teacher. They strain all of their energy into completing His assignments.
I don’t understand Jesus to be absolutely forbidding the title “teacher” or “father,” since elsewhere the apostles use those very words, but like the admonition to cut off hands and pluck out eyes, the point is to do whatever it takes to kill this sin. Do whatever it takes to cut off the lust for the praise of man. Do whatever it takes to keep your eyes fixed on Your Master, to seek the honor that comes from the Father. This is true humility. It is not doing whatever anyone asks of you. It is doing whatever Your Master and Father command You. And it is that humility that God loves to exalt. Amen.
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