Submitted by Sam
Nobles
“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 One who serves.” (Luke 22:27)
How do you measure greatness? The way that the Lord measures
it, and the way the world measures it are vastly different. The world idolizes
the rich, the famous, the beautiful, and the athletic. Celebrities are made of
those who are willing to air their dirty laundry and flaunt their immorality.
Serving one another is seen as demeaning in the eyes of the world. In contrast,
the Lord utterly rejects the world’s standards for greatness. In fact, the Lord
gives greatest honor to the one who serves most. The person who serves
selflessly, lovingly, without complaining, and without looking for a pat on the
back is one the Kingdom of God highly regards.
When Jesus and His disciples were preparing the upper room
for the last supper, the disciples were looking for the best seat, but Jesus
was looking for the best way to serve. Taking a towel and a basin of water,
Jesus washed their feet (John 13:1-15). Jesus is the example of what it means
to be a servant.
We Christians like to think of ourselves as servants, but we
hardly, if ever, liked to be treated like one. When it comes to true servanthood
we are tempted to adopt the world’s standard of what is important. When looking
to Jesus as our model of serving, it is easy to see that it takes far more
character to serve than it does to be served. The world will deem your
importance by how many people you have serving you, but the Lord is more eager
to see the number of people you are serving.
If serving others is a struggle for you, then it is possible
that your heart has drifted from heart of the Lord. If this is your case, I
encourage you to seek the Lord in prayer, and ask Jesus to give you the heart
of a servant. Pray that the Lord would give you the strength that you need to
follow His example of what it means to be a servant. I’m positive that if you
ask for opportunities to serve others, that the Lord will be happy to oblige.
Scripture to Claim:
"For even the Son of Man did not come
to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." (Mark
10:45 NKJV)
