The Apostle Peter taught us yesterday that we were created to be good stewards of God’s blessings to serve others for God (1 Peter 4:10).
While we focused on stewardship yesterday, today we will explore our purpose of service. Christ repeatedly told His followers that anyone who wanted to be great in His kingdom must become a servant.
“Whoever would be first among you must become a servant, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:27-28)
Jesus’ entire life was a life of service. He served God obediently even until the end when clearly His human side wished for an alternative to death. He served others daily. Teaching, healing, listening, talking, and helping others almost every waking moment. And while he did retreat for alone time, nearly all of Jesus’ recorded activities were that of service.
Stop for a moment and think about that fact. God came to earth and instead of insisting to be treated and seen and served as God – He served others all the time. Now, think about your life. How much of your life is dedicated to the service of others vs. to you? For me, this was a humbling and shameful exercise. It’s one of the reasons I’ve committed to purposefully finding more ways to be servant to others.
The Devil is a master deceiver. He can deceive us into thinking we are doing our best when if we stop to think about it and are honest with ourselves – we know, we see the truth when we compare ourselves to Jesus.
Does this mean every waking moment you should only be serving others? No. But does this mean you should always prioritize others and helping others before you and your wants and needs? Yes.
If Christ became a servant and served others and God all the way to His death on the cross, then surely I can and should want to be a servant all my days here on earth.
Jesus later teaches that those who look away from others who need help – who don’t serve others, on the final day He will ask them why they did not help Him? When they ask when did they have that opportunity, He will simply respond – when you turned away from serving others, you were really turning away from serving me. (Matthew 25)
We were created to serve others and in that service we are truly serving Christ. So, next time you are given the opportunity to serve, remember if you can and don’t you’ve really declined in serving Jesus.
God needs servants not overseers. Becoming a servant helps to humble you – not only toward others but towards God. One day you will need help and serving others helps to remind you of that fact. And, serving helps to remind you that you are NOT the master or the boss. You are a servant. Christ is the King.
Serve others to serve God. #CreatedForMore #APurposeDrivenLife
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