Did the Queen have to tidy her room as she was growing up? I’d like to think yes, but I suspect the answer is no. Well, at least she would never have had to make her bed or vacuum the floor. There would have been people to serve her. To honour and assist her. Not because she couldn’t but because she’s important.
Being served is great isn’t it? In restaurants, at home, at work or at a friend’s house, the one served is being given honour and assistance by the servant.
With that in mind, I wonder if you have thought recently about the fact that Jesus served you?
In Mark 10 he spells out the purpose of his life:
The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many!
There is something quite profound about that statement and thus Christianity. In most of world religions, the message is clear: serve long and hard and you might be accepted. In Christianity God says, Jesus has come to serve you, to show you honour and give you help.
John Hindley writes: Jesus comes into our lives to serve us. There is no catch, no small-print, no strings attached – there is just loving, humble, kind service by the Creator of the world for us. Jesus greatness is not that He can command the service of millions; it is that He serves millions.
Anyone who has received this service will tell you that life is never better than when it is lived in recognition that Jesus has served you. For it is then that you see the world the right way up and you know your future with certainty.
Equally, when you know Jesus’ loving service of you, your eyes are opened and your feet become ready to respond by loving and serving others! Knowing Jesus readies you to show kindness, thoughtfulness, generosity, open-heartedness, mercy and grace to others. Your life is shaped by Jesus’ service of you in every part!
So knowing Jesus’ service will change teenagers into respectful speakers; will change church members into warm welcomers of new people; will change the miserly into generous providers. Knowing Jesus’ service of me changes me completely from the inside out and motivates me to serve him in joy, freedom and hope.
Jesus service is life-changing. Our service of him toward others can be too!
In Christ
Nigel