Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat; therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach. … The greatest among you will be your servant. All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.” [from Matthew’s Gospel 23:1-12]
We have encountered those communities and community groups which, for whatever reason, have lost their way. Sometimes we have belonged to them. They are often in decline, a clear sign of their disarray, but not always.
Urban congregations with a small handful of people proclaiming how friendly they are; service clubs bemoaning that their children head off to tertiary education and never return; sporting associations with rules so arcane that no young person can ever find their way into leadership (even if they wanted to).
One of the signal tests at times of change or stress, is whether a group turns to look inward – from fear, or self-defence – or whether it continues to look outward and engage with the changing world in which it resides.
Turning inward can feel safe. We all know each other and, at the beginning, we have defining reasons for our choice. Eventually, the original maps which formed us now sit in decorative glass cases untouched by human hands. Instead, the keepers of culture hold the keys to the cupboards where the footballs and pumps are kept, and everyone is expected to be compliant.
The group now exists for its own self-approval and survival, not for the community in which they live, or arising from the excitement and hope in which they were founded.
This is the community into which Jesus was speaking two thousand years ago, and much of the church culture into which he is speaking today. Community leadership which had swerved faithfully for generations had, in some cases, formed a religious caravan, drawn into a defensive circle. Facing inwards.
The mark of their self-defined authority was the extravagance of their religious attire, the attention others paid to them and their social elevation. We do not have to look far to see similar characters, both spiritual and temporal, today.
A recent ABC interview[1] referred to “bureaucratic violence” as the harm created by systems as they force people either to comply, or to fail.
Jesus’ penultimate sentence in this stanza guides our understanding: the greatest among you will be your servant.
This is where we look first, to the one who is serving.
There is one further test; look at those they serve. Is it the powerful, the wealthy, the corrupt? Is it the ones who want the best seats at the community events, and who look for praise in all their ventures? Is it the ones who measure their lives by triumph over others – through their finances, or their fists?
Or it the ones so easily ignored, or airbrushed from our vision? Is it the people who cannot repay, apart from their thanks, the ones whose lives are frequently marked by exclusion and scorn? These people who, Jesus tells us, bear his likeness.
We only discern them when we look beyond ourselves, beyond our fear.
Service begun in Jesus looks neither for praise, nor reward. It humbly seeks those in need of being served.
[1] Katherine Biber, Professor of Law, UTS; Late Night Live 28.10.2026
