Sermon: The Essence of Servant Leadership

#1886B
Mark Schindler
Given 25-Jul-26; 46 minutes 2026-07-25

As we begin this sermon, please turn with me to Matthew 20, and we will start reading in verse 20.

Matthew 20:20-28 Then the mother of Zebedee's sons came to Him with her sons, kneeling down and asking something from Him. And He [Christ] said to her, "What do you wish?" She said to Him, "Grant that these two sons of mine may sit, one on Your right hand and one on Your left, in Your kingdom." But Jesus answered and said, "You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink [He is speaking exactly to James and John.], and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?" They said to Him, "We are able." So He said to them, "You will indeed drink My cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared by My Father." And when the ten heard it, they were greatly displeased with the two brothers. But Jesus called them to Himself and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."

Now turn a few chapters forward to Matthew 23, and we are going to be picking it up there in verse 1.

Matthew 23:1-5 Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and the disciples, saying: "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses's seat. Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say and do not do. For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders, but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers."

Matthew 23:11 "But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

Notice here that Christ is teaching this principle to the multitudes and the disciples. This is a vital principle for all men to live by to be successful, but it is an absolute command He expects from those who are called by the Father to Christ.

Turn with me now to Matthew 26, so we can set up the next scripture that we are going to read from Luke's account, but I want to read this first because it sets up the whole situation.

Matthew 26:20-25 When evening had come, He sat down with the twelve. Now as they were eating, He said, "Assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me." Then they were exceedingly sorrowful, and each of them began to say to Him, "Lord, is it I?" He answered and said, "He who dips his hand with Me in this dish will betray Me. The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed. It would have been good for that man if he had not been born." Then Judas, who was betraying Him, answered and said, "Rabbi, is it I?"

Just as an aside before we turn to Luke, please note in verse 22 all the disciples addressed Christ as Lord, while in verse 25 Judas addressed Him as Rabbi. It is interesting because it gives us a sense of Judas' commitment. The others looked at Christ as one with supreme authority, while it indicates Judas' perspective did not fully see Christ as the Messiah who fulfilled all the prophecy of God's Word. Although this is surely something that needs a complete sermon by itself, perhaps the following cited section from a word study on "rabbi" might help put Judas' perspective on Jesus in view.

In the days of Christ, the title was misused by Jewish teachers in that they used it to require implicit obedience to their decisions and traditions and words rather than to those of the law and the prophets. Our Lord charged the Jewish scribes and Pharisees with being very fond of this presumptuous title.

I only mention this because if we do not carefully do our jobs and study all of God's Word that proves all Jesus taught and did is embedded in the Word of God from the beginning, we might limit His absolute power and authority, not really appreciating scriptures like Matthew 11:27, as it is beautifully stated in The Message Bible translation, which says:

Matthew 11:27 (The Message) Jesus resumed talking to the people, but now tenderly. "The Father has given me all these things to do and say. This is a unique Father-Son operation, coming out of Father and Son intimacies and knowledge. No one knows the Son the way the Father does, nor the Father the way the Son does, but I'm not keeping it to myself; I'm ready to go over it line by line with anyone who is willing to listen.

Just a bit of additional food for thought because we do not want to end up like Judas, limiting our view of Christ as anything less than One of supreme authority sent from the Father, revealing the letter and the Spirit of God's law for anyone who is willing to listen, and for us who are ready and willing to learn and live His Word, to know Him intimately.

With this, please turn with me now to Luke's account of this Passover event. Luke 22, and we will start in verse 14.

Luke 22:14-16 When the hour had come, He sat down, with the twelve apostles with Him. Then He said to them, "With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.

Down to verse 21:

Luke 22:21-30 "But behold, the hand of My betrayer is with Me on the table. And truly the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!" Then they began to question among themselves, which of them it was who would do this. Now there was also a great dispute among them, as to which of them should be considered the greatest. And He said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called 'benefactors.' But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs, as he who serves. For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? Yet I am among you as the One who serves. But you are those who have continued with Me in My trials. And I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, that you may eat and drink at My table in the kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes."

Throughout the gospels this principle of self-sacrificial servant leadership comes up in many places, but it is so significant that through Luke, God ties it to the Passover and specifically links the battle for rank with betrayal. Just as, in a better way, is recorded in John 13, God ties humble sacrificial service with the foot washing. Here not doing it is tied with betrayal. But the point of this character flaw of carnal men jockeying for positions above others is tied to a limited perspective of the supreme authority of Christ, and even ties it to betrayal by those who were called by the Father to His Son. We must learn the principle of sacrificial servant leadership right now, no matter where God has placed us within the Body of Christ. If we do not make every effort to learn to do this, we will not be growing to the stature and the measure of our perfect example of sacrificial leadership that is the standard—the Word of God, who gave up all His rights and privileges as God to become the perfect standard and save us from ourselves.

So today, in the time we have left, I hope to give us just a few points that we need to be working on if we are to be faithful, self-sacrificing servant leaders that God is training all of us to be, no matter where we have been placed within the Body. This will not come anywhere close to a complete list, but hopefully these few points will get us to start thinking about these things and making a better effort.

The last sermon I gave was on June 6th, which was the eighty-second anniversary of one of the most painfully sacrificial days in American history. On that day in 1944, there were many told and untold stories of self-sacrifice on the beaches of Normandy during World War Two. I want us to consider two significant efforts in self-sacrifice on June 6th, 1944, that I believe can show us an idea of what God may be expecting from all of you whom God is training now to be servant leaders in the image of Jesus Christ, to all who will follow Him. These are examples from the world, but I think there is an important lesson for us to glean here. Our main focus will primarily be on one of them.

There have only been two sets of father-and-son Medal of Honor recipients in the history of the United States. Although some have questioned whether each had truly reached the meritorious level of the Medal of Honor, the gallant efforts of all four were undeniable. But within each circumstance there have been questions raised as to whether the standards of the nation's highest honor may have been diminished in awarding it to them. The questions raised were not to impugn their individual cited gallantry, but to question whether those efforts were in line with the uniquely meritorious standards of the nation's highest award of determined self-sacrifice. To my mind, after reviewing the circumstances of each, there is only one that seems to me to be without question worthy of the Medal of Honor. This is not only because of what he did, but what he accomplished within his personal servant leadership of self-sacrifice.

The father-and-son recipients are Civil War Major Arthur MacArthur and his son, World War II General Douglas MacArthur, and the second duo, Spanish-American War hero Teddy Roosevelt, and his son, World War II General Teddy Roosevelt, Jr. As noted, to my mind, there is not a doubt that Theodore Roosevelt, Jr.'s unquestionably heroic actions met the standards of the nation's highest award. The second one that we are going to look at, in a bit more briefly, is Medal of Honor recipient Staff Sergeant Walter Ehlers. But first, Theodore Roosevelt.

He was born November 13, 1887, at the family estate in Oyster Bay Cove, New York, when his father was starting his political career. He had three brothers, Archibald (Archie), Quentin, and Kermit, a sister, Ethel, and a half-sister, Alice. Like all the Roosevelt children, the bespectacled, studious-looking Ted was greatly influenced by his father and strove for his approval. When TR Senior went to D.C. as a Civil Service Commissioner, Ted often accompanied him to the office. The walks were history lessons.

On the way down, recalled Ted, he would talk history to me. Not the dry history of dates and charters, but the history where you yourself, your imagination, could assume the roles of the principal actors. Long before the European war had broken out over the world, Father would discuss with us military training and the necessity for every man being able to take his part.

It is important to note here that Ted had an abundant life foundation, not the least of which was a father who trained his children in the way they should go, as it says in Proverbs 22:6, as well as he knew it. And Teddy Junior followed up with what Proverbs 13:1 tells us: "A wise son heeds his father's instructions." Of course this included what his father had taught him regarding diligent selflessness and the principle that every man should do his part, prioritizing the well-being of others in a variety of ways with what he had been given.

Please turn with me to Proverbs 17, verse 6, because I want us to see a sure truth that any family can glean from God's Word.

Proverbs 17:6 Children's children are the crown of old men, and the glory of children is their father.

This kind of relationship that was in the Teddy Roosevelt family was one of mutual love and respect, as we will see in a minute, that can span generations. Demonstrating a flair for business, young Ted had a brief fling in the steel and carpet industries before venturing on to Wall Street, where he amassed a $7 million fortune. Ted married Eleanor Butler Alexander in June 1910, and they had four children: Grace, Theodore the III, Cornelius, and Quentin the II. Forty-six years after soon-to-be President Teddy Roosevelt's actions on San Juan Hill, his son received the nation's highest military award.

As noted, Theodore Roosevelt Jr. was a man who had been blessed with extraordinary gifts of parents who set him off on the right foot, but it is also of note that he diligently worked with what he had been given. This, of course, as we will see in a minute, would add to his abilities to be a servant leader. Although we are spending most of the time on this example of someone who had extraordinary gifts to work with, we must all remember that we all have been gifted as God has seen fit.

The first point: not everyone is equally gifted, but each must make use of what we have been given in life.

Turn with me to Matthew, the 25th chapter this time. Very familiar scriptures, but needful for us to be reminded of.

Matthew 25:14-15 "For the kingdom of heaven [this is Christ's parable] is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey. Then he who had received five talents went and traded with them, and made another five. And likewise he who had received two gained two more.

Down to verse 20:

Matthew 25:20-23 "So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, 'Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides these.' His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.' He also who had received two talents came and said, 'Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.' His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.'"

I did not want to dwell on the worthless servant here, but on the fact that each faithful servant examined what they had and used what they had been given to the fullest. That is what God expects from each one of us, and it will produce what absolutely pleases Him. He will welcome us into His Family, knowing He can count on each one of us, who will always do their best with whatever responsibility He gives, when He gives it, to be servant leaders. Most of us, as we will see with the next heroic example, are not as blessed or as significant to the world around us, but this is not what God is looking for. He is looking for us to examine what we have and do the most diligent work we can with it.

We are going to see in a minute his diligently amassed wealth added to TR Junior's ability to go above and beyond as a servant leader. So the work he did early added to his servant leadership later, but God does not expect this from each of us. His judgment depends on the right self-evaluation and the maximum effort with what He has given.

Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. was a Distinguished Service Cross recipient of World War I and one of the founders of the American Legion. He was the only general officer, and the oldest person at 56 years of age, to land with the first wave assaulting the enemy beaches on D-Day. A reservist, he was called to active duty as a colonel and soon promoted to brigadier general. Twice denied verbal requests to accompany the first wave at Utah Beach, his written request was approved. By coincidence, his son, Captain Quentin Roosevelt II, landed with the first wave at Omaha Beach.

Armed with only a pistol and a cane that he used to walk because of crippling arthritis from World War I, Brigadier General Roosevelt repeatedly led groups from the beach over the assault and established them inland. His valor, courage, and presence in the very front of the attack, and his complete unconcern at being under heavy fire, inspired his troops to the heights of enthusiasm and their own self-sacrifice. Although the enemy had the beach under constant direct fire, Brigadier General Roosevelt moved from one locality to another, rallying men around him, directed and personally led them against the enemy. Under his seasoned, precise, calm, and unfaltering leadership, assault troops reduced beach strong points and rapidly moved inland with minimum casualties.

Please turn with me again back to Matthew, the 24th chapter. We will begin in verse 3.

Matthew 24:3 Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?"

Christ was telling them about all the trials and tribulations, in verse 9:

Matthew 24:9-14 "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come."

Down in verse 45:

Matthew 24:45-47 "Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods."

And now to James, the 5th chapter, in verse 7.

James 5:7-9 Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door!

The second point of self-sacrificial servant leadership is to endure hardship and keep on keeping on, patiently without grumbling. God warns us in James 5 that the strain of our battle may drive us to discontent with God and with one another, if we do not keep focused on the goal and remember the Judge is at the door.

When Brigadier General Roosevelt realized the troops had landed about one mile off course, he is quoted as saying, "We are going to start the war here." A combat veteran of World War I, in action in North Africa, Sicily, and Italy, General Roosevelt became one of the heroes of the Normandy invasion and a Medal of Honor recipient. Like his dynamic father, he was virtually fearless and was loved by the soldiers whom he served.

Despite poor health, Ted served as the assistant commander of two hard-fighting divisions and was one of America's outstanding combat commanders in World War II. Seriously wounded in World War I and in very poor health ever since, Ted Junior never shied away from danger, telling a fellow officer, "We're officers, aren't we? I always thought that the officer's job was to lead his men, not to follow them." Believing that a good officer takes care of his men, Ted purchased (remember I told you about the $7 million that he made) combat boots for the entire battalion with his own money. He used the resources that he had been given and prospered with.

Please turn with me to Proverbs, the 27th chapter and we are going to be picking up verse 23.

Proverbs 27:23-24 Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, and attend to your herds; for riches are not forever, nor does a crown endure to all generations.

Teddy Roosevelt, as a servant leader, was always aware of the needs of those who were entrusted to his care, and was always ready to use his personal fortune to tend to their needs. This then is point three: as servant leaders, it is our responsibility to diligently know who it is that God has entrusted to our care, and always to tend to their needs. This will not always be with financial resources, but with all the resources that God has given us to tend to the needs of others. We are going to see another example of the miscellaneous resources in a minute, from Teddy Roosevelt, because we will see another example that sometimes the needs may be met with something other than money, and with particular talents that we may have.

Anecdotally, and echoing what we saw in Proverbs 17:6 about the generational blessing, when he was overseas in World War I, with just a few days before his father Teddy Roosevelt, Sr's death on January 6, 1919, Teddy Roosevelt Jr.'s wife Eleanor confided to her father-in-law that her husband was worried about being worthy of his father.

Worthy of me? answered the former president. Darling, I am so very proud of him. He has won high honor not only for his children, but, like the Chinese, he has ennobled his ancestors. I walk with my head high because of him.

In September 1929, after the war, President Herbert Hoover appointed Ted Junior as Governor of Puerto Rico, and he worked hard to ease the widespread poverty and became a popular figure there. Hoover was so impressed with his outgoing concern for those he governed that he named Ted Governor General of the Philippines in 1932. Again, as a good servant leader, he carefully looked to the needs of those entrusted to his care to make their lives better. However, anecdotally, his colonial career ended when his cousin successfully challenged Herbert Hoover for the presidency in 1932. Ted regarded Franklin Roosevelt as such poor stuff, and thought it improbable that he would be elected. So when that happened, Ted wryly described himself as the fifth cousin about to be removed.

During World War II he led troops through the most difficult battles of North Africa. A soldier, Private First Class Louis Newman, recalled standing near the general one day as weary, sweating GIs were returning to camp after a long march. Their officers were riding in jeeps, but Ted ordered them out of the vehicles. Gesturing toward the enlisted men, he said, "They walk, you walk."

Lieutenant General Omar Bradley, who took over command of the U.S. Second Corps from Patton in April 1943, reported standing with Roosevelt one night in Tunisia, North Africa, while a blacked-out convoy of the First Division moved slowly along the road. Ted turned to Bradley in the darkness and said, "Brad, I bet that I've talked to every man in this division. They'd know my voice whether they could see me or not. Listen," Ted shouted hoarsely to the passing truck, "what outfit is that?" A hearty voice replied, "Company C of the 18th Infantry, General Roosevelt."

Please turn with me to John chapter 10, in verse 3:

John 10:3-5 "To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers."

Here, Jesus Christ is using this illustration to teach His disciples about their relationship with Him, but He is citing the very real relationship of a physical shepherd to his flock. He is no stranger to them. He knows them, and they know Him so well that they hear His voice. Brethren, it is up to each one of us to determine who has been put into our care so that we can develop the same kind of intimate relationship with them.

Point four: self-sacrificial leadership comes when we sacrifice our own time and effort to know those whom we lead.

Ailing and sidelined after battling through North Africa and up into Italy, Ted badgered Eisenhower for a combat command. When he could stand it no longer, he wrote to General Bradley, then commander of the U.S. First Army, begging for a role in the planned invasion of northern France, Operation Overlord. Finally, he was ordered to England in February 1944 and assigned as assistant commander of the untried Fourth Infantry Division under Major General Raymond O. Barton. The Fourth had been activated in June of 1940 and trained in the South, but the division had arrived in England only in January of 1944, a few months before the invasion. Because the Fourth Division was green to fire, it was difficult to anticipate how it might act on the assault.

Bradley reported later, "If Roosevelt could go in with the leading wave, he could steady it as no other man could. Ted was immune to fear." Bradley warned him in a letter, "You'll probably get killed in this job." Ted never replied. He broke out of the hospital in Italy, where he had been undergoing treatment for pneumonia, and reported to Bradley in London a few days later with a raging fever.

General Barton voiced serious misgivings about the ailing 56-year-old general joining the assault wave at Normandy. Barton denied several verbal requests from Ted, but the Big Red One veteran of two wars persisted. He dashed off an eloquent written petition to the Fourth Division commander.

The force and skill with which the first elements hit the beach and proceed may determine the ultimate success of the operation. With troops engaged for the first time, the behavior pattern of all is apt to be set by the first engagement. I believe I can contribute materially to the above by going in with the assault companies. Furthermore, I personally know both officers and men of these advanced units, and believe that it will steady them to know that I am with them. They'll figure that if a general is going in, it can't be that rough. I would love to do this.

Barton reluctantly agreed. Like Bradley, but did not expect Ted to survive.

Points five and six of servant leadership: persistence, and humble, correct self-evaluation of what you can do for those who are entrusted to your care.

E Company was the first unit to hit Utah Beach, and Ted was the first soldier off the Higgins boat. As he and the other men scrambled through the surf for cover under German beach obstacles, Ted was told that the landing craft had drifted more than one mile south of the objective, and the Fourth Division's first wave was half a mile off course, away from where they had trained. Wary of snipers, Ted scouted for causeways behind the beach for the division's push inland. He then consulted with the battalion leaders, commanding officer of the Eighth Regiment, Colonel James Van Fleet. "Van," Ted exclaimed, "we are not where we are supposed to be!" Roosevelt then became the D-Day legend for saying, "We'll start the war right here."

Please turn with me again to Proverbs, and this time we will be looking at Proverbs 24, verses 5 and 6:

Proverbs 24:5-6 A wise man is strong, yes, a man of knowledge increases strength; for by wise counsel you will wage your own war, and in a multitude of counselors there is safety.

When the plans go out the window, a wise and humble man seeks counsel and then decisively acts.

Point seven: a self-sacrificing servant leader seeks counsel that adds to his knowledge and adds confident assurance to all those under his care.

Throughout that longest day, Ted was an inspiration to all, prowling around Utah Beach with his cane and infectious grin, calmly ignoring enemy fire while grimacing with pain in his leg. He rallied the men of the Fourth Division to go forward and not turn into targets. And again he uses one of the gifts he had: Ted recited poetry and told stories of his father to steady the nerves of the scared, wet young soldiers who had never been in action. He directed regiments to their changed objectives and helped untangle traffic jams of armor and trucks all struggling to move inland. He led a group of men in a charge over the seawall, established them inland, and then returned to the beach to orchestrate more incoming men and material. It is said he was a beacon on Utah Beach for several hours, and a key to the victory that would have likely turned to disaster without his sacrificial servant leadership, using everything he had to effect the victory.

D-Day was a success for the Fourth Division. In 15 hours that day, it landed more than 20,000 men, 1,700 vehicles, and rolled swiftly inland. On the second day, Utah Beach received 10,735 men, 1,469 vehicles, and just over 800 tons of supplies. Ted Roosevelt's inspiring sacrificial leadership had played the major role in that success. Sadly, he was spent, and Brigadier General Roosevelt died from a heart attack before he received the medal. On the day of his death, July 12, 1944, he had been selected—after having lunch with his son Quentin, who had also survived on Utah Beach—for promotion to Major General and command of the 90th Infantry Division.

Several general officers served as pallbearers at his funeral, and he is buried alongside his younger brother Quentin, a casualty of World War I in France. General Patton wrote in his diary that Ted Roosevelt was the bravest soldier he had ever known. And General Bradley agreed: "I have never known a braver man, nor a more devoted soldier." Asked several years later to cite the single most heroic action he had seen in combat, Bradley replied, "Ted Roosevelt on Utah Beach."

Theodore Roosevelt Jr. was a son of privilege who had been carefully and diligently instructed from birth, with many, many gifts. There is much written about him, as one to whom much has been given.

But let us now take a very short look at someone who had not been given nearly what General Roosevelt had, but within his circumstances is just as heroic. And I hope, as we wrap up through these two examples of self-sacrificial servant leadership, you will recognize that God has given each and every one of you the ability to practice sacrificial servant leadership now.

Sergeant Walter Ehlers landed with the first wave on Omaha Beach on June 6th, 1944. Around him, the slaughter was immediate. Nearly half the first wave was killed or wounded within minutes. Officers were down. Men were frozen in place, unable to move, waiting to die. Ehlers got all 12 of the men in his squad, under his care, through alive—every single one. He did not survive on luck. He moved, made decisions, found routes, kept his squad functioning as a unit when everything around them was disintegrating. All 12 made it off the beach.

Three days later, eight miles inland, it got worse. His platoon walked into a carefully laid ambush; fire from multiple directions simultaneously, men going down fast. Ehlers charged the German patrol by himself. He killed four soldiers before the enemy could react, disrupting the entire ambush. Then he led a bayonet charge personally against two machine gun nests and a mortar position, and destroyed all three. Every man in his platoon survived. He was awarded the Medal of Honor.

Then the news reached him that the chaos of battle had been keeping from him: his brother Roland Ehlers had been killed at Omaha Beach—the same beach Walter had just led his squad through, the same morning. Ehlers said in an interview 60 years later, "I still can't talk about him without bringing tears to my eyes. He was my hero until the day he died." Two brothers landed on Normandy on June 6, 1944. One saved 12 lives. One gave his own. Both were heroes, like Teddy Roosevelt Jr., sacrificing everything they had.

What I hope you have seen through these two Medal of Honor winners, along with Walter Ehlers' brother Roland, each was a very profound example of sacrificial servant leadership. Although it seems obvious to us, from within their circumstances and positions of authority, General Roosevelt's determined efforts of self-sacrifice had a much greater effect on the outcome for victory than Sergeant Ehlers, and Sergeant Ehlers more than his brother Roland. But we need to look at this from a different direction. All three of these men were sacrificial servant leaders. Although General Teddy Roosevelt's gifts and life made his contribution seem to be greater than Sergeant Ehlers' preserving those 12 men entrusted to his care, they both effectively were servant leaders.

But what about Sergeant Ehlers' brother Roland? The answer is in Sergeant Ehlers' own words 60 years later: "My brother was my hero till the day he died." Brethren, every one of you are leading perhaps people you never even met, as you live your own lives of self-sacrifice that you may think go unnoticed. But I can assure you, if you are learning and living to use all that you have in faithful sacrificial service for the glory of God, your lives are making a far greater difference than even Teddy Roosevelt.

Please turn with me to Luke, the 19th chapter, verse 12.

Luke 19:12-19 Therefore He said: "A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten minas, and said to them, 'Do business till I come.' But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, 'We will not have this man to reign over us.' And so it was that when he returned, having received the kingdom, he then commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called to him, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. Then came the first, saying, 'Master, your mina has earned ten minas.' And he said to him, 'Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities.' And the second came, saying, 'Master, your mina has earned five minas.' Likewise he said to him, 'You also be over five cities.'

All have been given the same opportunity in the same way, to learn the essence of sacrificial servant leadership.

For a final scripture, with all of this in mind, please turn with me back again to Matthew, the 25th chapter, beginning in verse 31.

Matthew 25:31-40 "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, 'Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.' Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?' And the King will answer and say to them, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.'"

Please think on these seven points of sacrificial servant leadership, because all of us are having an important impact now on others as we follow the ultimate standard of self-sacrificial servant leadership—Jesus Christ.

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