Not To Be Served But To Serve

Happy Wednesday, Everyone. 😊 Those of us who follow Jesus and choose to be like Him, must pay attention to these words that He spoke and their context. He spoke to the disciples and talked about service when they were arguing about who was the greatest among them. He let them know if they were to be the greatest they must become the least. Then He said that He had not come to be served, but to serve.

Jesus’ life was full of service to others. He healed the sick, fed the hungry, gave sight to the blind, speech to the mute, and even raised people from the dead. His life was a poster for serving others. He was a humble servant.

Ultimately, that humility led Him to wash His disciples’ feet the night before His crucifixion. And it led Him to the Cross where He experienced the weight of all of our sins and being forsaken by His Father. 

He wants us to do the same for others. He wants us to do for the least of these knowing that what we do is for Him.

It is easy as a Christian and especially as a Christian leader to get caught up in the trappings of power and authority. But Jesus is the model of servant leadership. He never acted better than anyone else. He lived as one of the lowly of His time. He ate with sinners. He never treated them as though they were “less than.”

We sometimes have a tendency, as Christians, to act morally superior to those who do not believe in Jesus as Savior. That attitude is a direct contradiction to what Jesus commands us to do. He tells us to love one another. And there is no condition on that love. Jesus knew that Judas was going to betray Him and He still washed his feet. He knew that Peter was going to deny Him and He still washed his feet. He knows that we are all sinners and He still died for us on Calvary. That is unconditional and extravagant love –and we are to love and serve the same way.

So when we help to feed the homeless, when we stand up for the marginalized, when we visit those in prison, and pray for healing, we are being the Hands and Feet and Face of Jesus to those we serve. When we visit those in prison and minister to them, we are being the Hands and Feet and Face of Jesus to those we serve. 

When we stand in a pulpit or sit at a keyboard and share the Word of God with others we are the Hands and Feet and Face of Jesus to those we serve. In every moment of every day when we share the Love of Jesus we are showing His Face to those we interact with.

And that is the true picture of Christianity the world needs. Not the power and authority and I’m better than you because I have Jesus. But the servant life that Jesus modeled for us all.

I pray that we would all live into Jesus’ statement – let’s not wait to be served – let’s get out there and serve.

Blessings and Love, 😊 Ceri