and whoever wants to be first must be your slave — 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.
New International Version (NIV)
Who deserves to be served? One of my pastor friends in Africa told me about a pastor who no longer opens his own car door. “He has people who do that for him.” On what basis? As my sweet mother put it firmly, “Is your arm broken?”
All of us aspire to greatness in some way. James and John came with their mom asking Jesus for the positions at his right and left in his kingdom. “Are you able to drink the cup that I am going to drink?” he asked. “We are able,” they answered. Were they thinking about a bejeweled cup with royal insignia. Jesus drank the cup of crucifixion. “My cup you shall drink,” he said. They, too, would die for the sake of the good news.
Who deserves to be served? Only Jesus. And he took the form of a servant and surrendered all of his heavenly rights. This should help us with our own sense of entitlement. When I looked out at a sea of red shirts this past Saturday, I saw servants getting ready to serve our city. This morning when my frantic daughter awakened me on my Sabbath because she needed me to feed her cows, I put on my shirt. For Jesus’ followers every day is “Serve the City” day. Someday we will see the holy city coming down from the sky to earth. Until then, we don’t “have to” but we “get to” serve.
Pray with me:
Father, as you desire, show me someone that I may serve for you today. In the name of the one who came to serve and give his life as a ransom we pray. Amen.
This year we focus our Every Day with Jesus readings on Jesus’ story. With references to Tallowood's Read Through the Bible in 2018 daily reading plan, let's focus our undivided attention on Jesus and follow where he lead. He will not fail. Neither will we! Joyfully, Duane
Copyright 2018. All Rights Reserved.
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