“And whosoever would be
first among you shall be your servant.”
Matthew 20:27
The American Standard Version
first among you shall be your servant.”
Matthew 20:27
The American Standard Version
According to a resume website, careers that will be in high demand and afford you the lifestyle you want without creating credit and debt problems in the 21st century are Systems Analysts, Managers & Executives, and Registered Nurses. In the kingdom of God, the top ranking job is to be a slave. The servant’s motivation for serving God and others is not to gain something, but rather they serve because of everything God has already done.
One who is considered to be the greatest in the kingdom of God will be the one who is devoted to another and will serve with disregard of one’s own interests. A servant according to God’s definition is a slave or bondman. The servant of the Lord is one who gives himself up to another’s will and whose service is used by Christ in extending and advancing his cause among men.
Jesus Christ is the epitome of and our greatest example of servanthood. Matthew 20:28 says, “just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." As the son of God, Jesus could have come to earth in all of His glory and splendor with ten thousand angels. Quite on the contrary, Philippians 2:7-8 says that Jesus, “stripped Himself [of all privileges and rightful dignity], so as to assume the guise of a servant (slave), in that He became like men and was born a human being. And after He had appeared in human form, He abased and humbled Himself [still further] and carried His obedience to the extreme of death, even the death of the cross!” Here we see the KING OF GLORY take on the role of not just a slave, but a bond slave. He gave Himself totally to the will of the Father. He was not a servant because He had no other options, but he willingly chose to abandon the beauty and joy of heaven to be wrapped in the womb of a woman and die a horrific death on the cross.
Christ is our example and we are exhorted to “Let this same attitude and purpose and [humble] mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5). Since we are His disciples, we should follow in his footsteps and willingly and joyfully serve God, others and the advancement of the kingdom of God. In God’s kingdom, the way up is down. It’s your serve! †
Posts
2 comments:
I really enjoyed this entry. I believe that is our duty an should be our pleasure to not only serve God, but to serve the people of God. I find that I am my happiest when I can help my brother/sister. It's better to give then to receive and I thank God for a heart to serve. May God continue to bless ZOE Outreach Ministries!!!
I think Jesus came not to serve God,nor HE served the people of God,but to serve the common man who were alienated from God.If we accept Jesus and want to become His decsiple, be a servant of man ,not God,as Jesus did.
Post a Comment