As you may know, David Ralston, Lawana Maxwell and I recently travelled to the Philippines to encourage and serve alongside our missionaries there, Nathan and Karen Luther. One of the most common forms of public transportation in the Philippines is a motorized tricycle. It’s basically a motorcycle with a large sidecar that can seat two or more people. Filipinos take them for short trips to the grocery store or long trips across a city.
What many of us may find surprising is just how many passengers a tricycle driver will take on. Each person has to pay, so tricycle owners will try to get as many passengers as possible. Even though they appear to be only built for two passengers, tricycle will actually carry far more than that.
For example, one afternoon in Bacolod City, David Ralston snapped this picture. The driver was taking children to a basketball game. He had so many kids that they were just hanging on. His tricycle was filled to overflowing.
And that’s a quality we find in people around the world. It’s a quality most of us find in ourselves. We want to try to get as much as we possibly can. We want to try to make the most of every opportunity. Using the image of a cup, we prefer to have the cup filled as close to the top as possible rather than having an empty cup.
On the one hand, there’s the empty cup. And for most, that’s the state in life to most be avoided. That’s the state in life most feared. Above all, we don’t want empty cups. We don’t want empty bank accounts or empty houses or empty purses or empty lives.
On the other hand, there’s the full cup. And for most of us, that’s the state in life to be most pursued. That’s the state in life most desired. Above all, we want a full cup. We want full wallets. We want full resumes. We want full churches. We want full lives.
When it comes down to it, we’re all a bit like that tricycle driver. We prefer to fill our cups. We want our cups full, not empty. We want them filled as much as possible financially, emotionally, spiritually, relationally, and academically.
John Ortberg writes about how even young children want this: “When our kids were little, we put them on the envelope system. When we gave them an allowance, they would put it in envelopes labeled ‘Give,’ Gifts,’ ‘Spend,’ and so on. I thought it was working until one day I had a Band-Aid on my arm, and my daughter, who at that time was about six, asked, ‘Why?’ I explained I had gotten a medical exam that day to get life insurance. She asked, ‘What’s that?’ I explained, ‘Well, Daddy loves you so much and loves the family so much, so if anything were to happen to Daddy, it would provide for $250,000.’ Her eyes got really wide. She has a tender heart, and I knew she’d be worried. She looked up at me and said, ‘Apiece?’ I thought, I’m not sure the right lesson is getting communicated.” The thought of filling her cup with $250,000 was enough to make her overcome even her normal squeamishness of thinking about her Daddy passing away. We prefer to fill our cups.
This was a tendency which even Jesus faced. The Gospels begin by telling us that Jesus spent time in the desert being tested by the Devil. At one point the Devil took Jesus up on a very high mountain, showed him all the kingdoms of the world, and said, “This can all be yours if you’ll just bend your knee before me.” The Devil was trying to fill Jesus’ cup. He figured Jesus would be interested in having a cup that was so full politically, geographically, socially and governmentally that every single country and kingdom on the earth was in his cup—his to do whatever he wished with. The Devil knew that there was something about a full cup that might even tempt Jesus.
It’s this same tendency which Paul refers to in Phil. 2:1-11. Most scholars tell us that this section in Philippians was an early Christian hymn. And notice how it starts: “5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped…” (Phil. 2:5-6 ESV). The phrase “a thing to be grasped” is a translation of one word. That word refers to something you could use to your own advantage. Something you could exploit for your own gain. Here, it refers to the position and status which Jesus held in heaven. Before the Word became flesh and dwelled among us, Jesus existed in heaven with a status and position that he could have leveraged for unimaginable self-promotion. The translation The Message puts it this way: “Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what (Phil. 2:5-6 The Message).”
There’s a tendency in our culture in which you are encouraged to use power and position for gain. Once you get it, you should use it for yourself. And Jesus possessed the highest position and the greatest power. He was God. And he could have easily grabbed for the gusto, clung to that authority for all it was worth, and wrung it dry of every drop it might afford him. He could have used his position to fill his cup.
Jean Baptiste Bernadotte was born in 1763 in France. As a young man he joined the army, and by the start of the French Revolution, he had risen to the rank of Sergeant. Eventually, he became one of Napoleon’s first marshals. But in an odd twist, Bernadotte found favor in the eyes of the King of Sweden, Charles XIII, because of the way he treated Swedish soldiers taken prisoner during a battle with Napoleon’s troops. When Sweden’s crown prince died, Sweden astonishingly offered to put Bernadotte next in line for the throne! Upon the death of the Swedish King, Bernadotte assumed the throne as King of Sweden. He was a popular but harsh monarch who reigned until his death at the age of 81.
It is said that during the embalming process they discovered an ironic secret: Years earlier, when the king was still simply Jean Baptiste, he had gotten a tattoo during the French Revolution. On his chest was a picture of a red cap, a symbol of liberation, with the French words “Death to All Kings.” At one point, Baptiste had wanted death to all kings. Because all Kings did was use power for themselves. But then Baptiste became king. And he did the very thing for which he hated all kings. He used his power for himself.
Everybody wants their cup full. And the bigger the cup, the more we want in it. That was the very thing faced by Jesus. He had the biggest cup in cosmic history. And he could have demanded it be filled for his pleasure. After all, that’s what most of us would have done.
But while most of us prefer to fill our cups, Jesus emptied his cup. Jesus acted contrary to culture. Jesus had every right to fill his cup. Instead, he emptied his cup. He emptied it for me. He emptied it for you.
Here’s how Paul puts it: “6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross “(Phil. 2:6-8 ESV). Jesus emptied himself. Where others filled, Jesus emptied.
Let’s be clear about the meaning of that phrase. Jesus did not empty himself of his divinity. He did not empty himself of his divine abilities. He emptied himself of himself. He emptied himself of his resources, rights and privileges and poured them out for the benefit of others. Jesus emptied his cup in service. Jesus emptied himself all the way to death. He literally had nothing left to give at the end. He emptied even his life. For me. For you.
And this is the life to which we’ve all been called. Jesus emptied himself for us. In response, we now empty ourselves for him. When Paul writes in Phil. 2:5 “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus” he’s saying, “I want you to think and act like Jesus did. Stop trying to fill your cups. Start trying to empty your cups.” This is the life to which we’ve all been called. We’ve all been called to empty our cups.
And what Paul does in the rest of Phil. 2 is show what it looks like to empty the cup of our lives for others. Paul illustrates what that it looks like in his life and the Philippians’ lives (2:17-18), what it looked like in Timothy’s life (2:19-24), and what it looked like in the life of Epaphroditus (2:25-30).
First, Paul shows the empty-cup life as illustrated by himself and the Philippians: “17 Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all.18 Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me (Phil. 2:17-18 ESV).” Paul is thinking here of his service to the Philippians and to his service in the wider kingdom—for which he has now been placed in prison. And, he’s thinking of the Philippian’s service to him in the form of gifts they sent to him with a representative from the church named Epaphroditus. With no Fed-Ex or UPS, the only way the Philippians could get some supplies to Paul was to send them in person.
And to describe these acts of service, Paul uses images of sacrifice: “17 Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith.” Paul’s using language here from the Old Testament (Exod 29: 38– 42; Num 28: 1– 8). In the Old Testament a person might come to the temple in Jerusalem and offer an animal sacrifice to God. As part of that sacrifice, they might also make a drink offering. This drink offering was also called a libation. Libations were part of the regular offerings made by the Israelites every day and in larger quantities on special days (Num. 28–29). “Strong (or intoxicating) drink” was to be poured out as an offering in the “holy place” (28:7) of the temple (1 Chr. 29:21; 2 Chr. 29:35; Ezra 7:17).
And as Paul considers his own ministry to groups like the Philippians, and as he considers how the Philippians are now ministering to him by the sending of gifts to him, he pictures these acts of service using that language from Old Testament sacrifices. He says that what he and they are doing is like a drink offering—pouring themselves out for one another. Emptying their cups. It’s no coincidence that Paul uses this language. He’s remembering how Jesus emptied himself. And now he’s describing how he and the Philippians are doing something similar.
And this is the life to which we’ve all been called. We’ve all been called to empty our cups. Like a drink offering, we’ve been called to pour out ourselves for God and for others. Jesus emptied himself for us. We now empty ourselves for others.
Then, Paul uses Timothy to illustrate what it looks like to live an empty- cup life. Timothy is distinguished (“I have no one like him” (2:20)) by the fact that, in contrast to people who “seek their own interests” (2:21), Timothy “will be genuinely concerned for your welfare” (2:20). That is, Timothy demonstrates the self-less nature of Christ. Timothy is emptying himself out for the Philippians. He is genuinely concerned for their welfare and doesn’t seek his own interests.
Finally, Paul uses Epaphroditus to illustrate what it looks like to live the empty-cup life. Paul describes Epaphroditus as one who “nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me” (2:30). Epaphroditus had been chosen by the church in Philippi to carry their gifts to Paul Rome. But then, Epaphroditus had fallen “ill, near to death” (2:27). Either he became ill on the way to Paul, or he got sick once he arrived at Paul’s. Either way, that illness nearly took his life. Like Jesus, like Paul, like the Philippians, and like Timothy, Epaphroditus poured out his cup in service to others. He almost had nothing left to pour out.
And this is the life to which we’ve all been called. We’ve all been called not to fill our cups, but to empty our cups. To lay down ourselves in service to God and to others.
And Paul says that when we do, one result is joy. When describing he and the Philippians pouring themselves out, twice Paul talks about the joy such as lifestyle will lead to (Phil. 2:17-18): “I am glad and rejoice with you all. Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.” It’s in emptying ourselves not filling ourselves that we find joy. It’s only when we empty ourselves for God that we are filled with joy by God.
Kevin Harney tells the following story in his book, Seismic Shifts: “A little boy sat on the floor of the church nursery with a red rubber ball in each arm and three Nerf balls clenched on the floor between his pudgy little knees. He was trying to protect all five from the other children in the nursery. The problem was, he could not hold all five at once, and the ball nearest to his feet was particularly vulnerable to being stolen. So, whenever another child showed an interest in playing with one of the balls, he snarled to make it clear these toys were not for sharing. I suppose I should have stepped in and made the little guy give up one or two of the balls, but I was too wrapped up in the drama of it all. For about five minutes, this little guy growled, postured, and kept the other children away from the balls. Like a hyena hunched over the last scraps of a carcass, this snarling little canine was not in the mood for sharing. The other kids circled like vultures around the kill, looking for a way to jump in and snatch a ball without being attacked and bitten. I honestly did not know whether to laugh or cry as I watched. Then it struck me: This little boy was not having any fun at all. There was no cheer within ten yards of this kid. Not only was he unhappy, but all the other kids seemed sad as well. His selfishness created a black hole that sucked all of the joy out of that nursery.”
It’s only in emptying ourselves that we find real. It’s only in pouring out our cups that we are filled with joy. It’s only in emptying ourselves for God that we are filled with joy by God.
I recently read a book called Living by Dying by N. D. Wilson. The book is basically an extended reflection on the idea in this text in Philippians. It’s a call to empty ourselves for God and for others. Wilson writes this: “Lay your life down. Your heartbeats cannot be hoarded. Your reservoir of breaths is draining away. You have hands, blister them while you can. You have bones, make them strain— they can carry nothing in the grave. You have lungs, let them spill with laughter…. I can be giving my fingers, my back, my mind, my words, my breaths, to my wife and my children and my neighbors, or I can grasp after the vapor and the vanity for myself, dragging my feet, afraid to die and therefore afraid to live. And, like Adam, I will still die in the end…In the ground, we all have empty hands…Be as empty as you can be when that clock winds down.”
The reality is that when you die, your cup will be emptied for you. Everyone’s cup gets emptied—either at death by force, or now by choice. God’s urging us to choose the latter. Run contrary to your culture which tells you to fill your cup. Instead, empty it. Empty it of every last drop, every single day. Be as empty as you can be when that clock winds down. You’ll find yourself filled up with joy.
At Highland we’re blessed by many who are doing just that. Many who illustrate the joy of a life emptied out for God and for others. David Ralston is one of those. David has made more than eighty trips to Ukraine. Each time he brings good news and gifts for those serving in Kiev and Bila Tserkva. He rarely tells anyone before he leaves, because he does not wish any attention brought to the trip. He’s travelled to the Philippines numerous times and to Papua New Guinea. Last year as Honduras emerged as a popular place for Highlanders to do short term missions, David made a trip there as well. Year after year, trip after trip, David pours himself out in ministry to others.
So does Charlie Maxwell. Charlie serves on the Finance Committee which has steered Highland through one of the most difficult economic periods in U. S. history. Just as significantly, Charlie shows up every Sunday morning at before 8 AM and serves in any way needed until nearly 1 PM. Charlie greets guests and newcomers. He stuffs the Link when an insert needs to be included. He works with Mark Green to ensure doors are manned with people handing the Link out as people enter our services. He helps with communion and collection. He helps set up chairs, tables and curtains for the Connection service. And he helps clean up and take down after the Connection service. In fact, one Sunday in late December when virtually all of our other volunteers for Connection were out of town, Charlie did the majority of set up for the Connection service. He pours himself out in ministry and service to others and to God.
Karen Luther is as well. For a decade this young woman from Missouri has left her U. S. home and U. S. friends, settled in a country which still has aspects like a third world country, and given herself completely to sharing the gospel and her life with the people of the Philippines. She’s up at 5 every morning and doesn’t hit the bed until late in the evening. She’s a tireless servant pouring out her cup for God and for others.
I could mention many others. Every man and woman who teaches children in our Children’s Ministry on Sundays and Wednesdays. Lynn Morris who leads our ministry at LeBonheur. Mendy Breeden who leads our ministry at LaRose Elementary. Donna Henderson who leads our efforts at Macon Hall. Steve and Melissa Taylor who, for years, have sung on our praise teams. Martha Simpson, Dan Massie, and a team of committed volunteers who serve with World Bible School, sharing the gospel with people all over the planet every week. These, and so many more, are pouring themselves out in ministry and service to God and to others.
And today we want to call on you to do the same. I want to challenge you to empty your cup. And I want to encourage you to do that in two ways:
First, I want to challenge you to empty yourself by serving in a Highland ministry. A few Sundays ago, Eric Gentry and I challenged every Highland member to work at 7 things. One was volunteering to serve in a ministry. I want to revisit that challenge. Highland has about 30 different ministries you can serve in. Get involved in one. Pour yourself out in service to others through it. According to our recent survey, more than 1/3 of those at Highland are not involved in any way with a Highland ministry. We want to challenge you to change that.
If you want more information about our ministries, attend the Engage class. Engage will be held on Sunday, 2/16, 10 AM – Noon. You’ll hear much more about how to get engaged in a ministry. Also, if you help in any way with Connection, or would like to, attend the volunteer lunch on Sunday, 2/16 at 1 PM. You’ll hear specific ways you can be involved. Empty yourself by serving in a Highland ministry.
Second, I want to challenge you to empty yourself by making a significant financial pledge to a new capital campaign called “Overflow.” This morning you learned/will learn of a plan to increase Highland’s ministry and ministry space. The plan is called “Overflow.” God has been using Highland even more greatly than we could have ever imagined since we opened these doors three and a half years ago. Our ministry to the community, the region and the world has multiplied. We believe God wants more. We believe he wants us to pour ourselves out even more. And we believe that by increasing ministry space to adults, children and families we can do just that. Thus, I’m asking every single person at Highland—man, woman, teen and child—to make a significant financial pledge to Overflow. That’s an important way you can empty your cup.
A story is told about a mother who gave her child a one-dollar bill and a quarter.
“Sweetheart,” the mother said, “you can place either one in the offering plate. It’s entirely up to you.” As they were driving home, the mother asked the daughter what she had decided to give. “Well, at first I was going to give the dollar,” said the daughter. “But the man behind the pulpit said God loves a cheerful giver, so I felt like I would be much more cheerful if I gave the quarter instead.”
That’s the way many people think. The more you get, the happier you get. But the truth is just the opposite. The more you give, the happier you get. It’s when we give our most, that we find joy. It’s when we empty our cups that we become much more cheerful.
CONNECTION:
As you take communion, pour some water from a pitcher, and empty it in the basin/bucket. Do this as a symbolic way of telling Jesus you’re ready to empty your cup. He emptied his for you. Do this as a way of saying to Jesus you’re ready to empty yours for him.
