Question of the Week: What is the opposite of being a servant, and why is that so bad for the Kingdom, for others and even us?
I believe being a servant flows out of the Holy Spirit that lives in us if Jesus is Lord and Savior of our lives. I also believe the opposite of being a servant flows out of our sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, just as Paul says in Galatians 5. One leads you closer to Christ and becoming a servant while the other draws you far from Him.
Go to Galatians 5:13-26 and read it over. Paul gives a nice list of character traits that describe a person who lives according to the sinful nature (opposite of being a servant) and one that lives according to the Spirit (servant).
Why is living according to the sinful nature so bad? Well, it goes against everything Jesus wants for us. Remember when we talked about Holy Ambitions? Giving in to the desires of the sinful nature is not something God really, really, really wants you to do. It's sin and it corrupts mind, body, soul, spirit, the church, others, and most of all your relationship with God. As Paul mentions, "you will destroy one another" if you do not love and serve each other.
How are you living? Are you living according to your sinful nature that longs for the things of this world? Or are you living according to the Spirit that is at work inside you and longs for the things of God?
I hope you choose today and everyday to live according to the Spirit inside of you (if you are a believer) and be a servant.
When I first saw this question, I thought it was has a rather straight forward answer...but after digging a little deeper into it, I realized I was wrong! Although the Bible has lots to say about serving, being a servant etc., here are some verses that I thought went well with this particular question.
ReplyDelete-Joshua 24:15
-Ephesians 3:7
-Romans 6:17
-Ephesians 6:6
-2 Corinthians 4:5
Like I said already, the Bible gives tons of examples of serving (like Jesus washing the disciples feet, Jesus doing miracles, the disciples doing miracles, and so many more). Jesus' mission to this world was to serve others. His whole life revolved around being a servant. That was his goal. Ultimately, he would serve us by dieing on the cross and paying the punishment for our sins. However, if you aren't a true believer of Christ, this won't apply to you. If you are, then, guess what?! It does! For all of us who consider ourselves Jesus followers, this is EXTREMELY important! We should be following His example by serving others, daily. Not just when we feel like it, not just when it's easy, but all the time, in EVERYTHING we do! Remember, it's not the world we are trying to impress, it's not the world we are living for, or an earthly reward, but rather we serve for God (our Savior) and for a heavenly reward.
I'm sure I could add more if I had more time right now, but I'm looking forward to all discussing this on Wednesday!
~Kari
Thanks Kari and Patrick....good thoughts!
ReplyDeleteHere is another thought:
Webster defines a servant as one who performs duties for others. A key word here is OTHERS. Followers of Jesus are to be focused on 1) God and 2) others.
The opposite of being a servant is being a self-centered person - one whose life is 'all about me.'
Why is this bad for the Kingdom? Because it's not compatible. God's Kingdom is about God. Not me.
Why is that bad for us and others?
It's bad for others because if we are self centered, others will not see Jesus in us. It's bad for us because we've totally missed what following Jesus is all about.
At times I've lived life just for me...and after awhile it's very empty and meaningless. The 'pleasures' of life can distract us for awhile....but in the end it's a big fat zero. At other times I've laid down my own desires to do things God asked me to do for others. Those experiences were not always easy.....sometimes way out of my comfort zone. But God was able to do things with and through me that were meaningful to others and useful in His Kingdom. Planting seeds and bearing fruit are in the end alot more fun than an empty life focused on just trying to make myself happy.
That was a great question...thanks to whoever wrote it!
God created mankind for the purpose of living in harmony as a serving community. It is the only way there can be harmony. When sin entered into the picture, humanity became self-serving and the picture of God’s purpose became fractured. But for the residue of God’s grace, harmony was lost.
ReplyDeleteThe book of beginning (Genesis) reveals that self-serving sin first caused a fracture between God and man, then husband and wife, then brother against brother, then heavenly and earthly realms, and finally nation against nation. All of this fragmentation of creation is due to self-centeredness.
Jesus came as the ‘second Adam’, born without sin. He lived out God’s original purposes. John 13 is probably one of the most profound examples that Jesus gave regarding this subject. This is a deep an impacting lesson He left with His disciples, given on what He knew was to be the last evening He would share with them before His crucifixion.
Upon His resurrection, Jesus had conquered the sin that fractured and fragmented the Father’s creation, and upon His ascension He poured out His Spirit and brought forth a people (His church) that was to restore His Kingdom and be a witness to the world what God’s purpose for creation really was - to love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love your neighbor (serve) as yourself.
When His church loses sight of that purpose, it ceases to be the witness that Jesus called us to be, and the world is left with a distorted picture of God that can actually be repulsive rather than attractive. That is why it is bad for the Kingdom when the church loses her servant attitude. The hopeless and searching people in this world are not looking for another task-master that judges them for their short-comings. They are looking for something far more authentic, something that was lost to the world way back in Genesis: A true serving community that genuinely cares for the hopeless.
wow you three had a lot to say! well my perspective is pretty simple. the oppisite of a servant is a master. there can only be one master.(in our case, God)so everyone else is a servant. you can't have more than one master or more than one God because nobaody can be like God. even His own son is a servant to him, so Jesus sets an example for everybody in the sense that every one is a servant and God is the one and only master.(sorry if that is confusingto you, but if you think about it, it really makes sense. and gives you some thing to think about)
ReplyDelete