Suppose a servant comes to a king and says, "I am committed to you. I am your loyal servant. I will be faithful to you, no matter what. You can count on me. Just give me an assignment."
The king thinks for a minute and says, "Would you please take this message and deliver it to my knight?"
The servant replies, "What? You just want me to deliver a message? I wanted to do something great for you. I thought you would send me to battle so I could perform some brave and gallant deed for the service and honor of the King." What would the king think of a servant like that? He probably would not have a very high opinion of him anymore. He would have no comfidence in him, and definitely would not chose him for the important assignments.
Sometimes I wonder if we appear this way to God. The Lord has asked us to be faithful in the little things. Do we dare ask to do great things for God if we neglect to obey Him in the small things? No, our first step is to obey Him in the things He has already asked us to do. Jesus commanded His disciples to be witnesses first in Jerusalem, then in Judea, then Samaria, and finally, to the uttermost part of the earth.
...Remember the servant who came to the king and wanted to do something important? That is a common attitude. People naturally desire to be great but there is an unexpected quality of greatness that is quite uncommon. We all tend to overlook and ignore it. Do you know what it is?
The unexpected quality is being a servant. Even Jesus came, not to be served, but to serve. Matt. 23:11-12 says, "But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted."
Luke 22:24-27 says, And there was also a strife among them, which of them should be accounted the greatest. And he said unto them, The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and they that exercise authority upon them are called benefactors. But ye shall not be so: but he that is the greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve. For whether is greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth? is not he that sitteth at meat? but I am among you as he that serveth.
Mark 10:42-45 says, But Jesus called them to him, and saith unto them, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
The world's thinking is, "If you want to be a leader, make yourself great." But that is not God's thinking. God tells us that if we want to be great, we should humble ourselves and let God exalt us. Prov. 22:4 says, "By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches, and honour, and life." As we seek to be godly leaders, our very first assignment is to learn what seems like the opposite. Be a servant; look for oppurtunities to humble yourself and unselfishly serve others.
Characteristics of a true servant:
A True servant:
- Knows that all assignments are actually from God
- Will be quicker to volunteer
- Considers his assignment important
- Takes orders
- Does not desire to have authority
- Will do what others do not or will not do
- Enjoys meeting needs
- Doesn't need recognition
- Will voluntarily serve without pay
- Doesn't seek higher status
- Will do more than is required
- Does not have his own selfish ambitions
- Will serve anyone-even those whom others don't like to serve
- Is willing to be treated like a servant
- Does not seek the "big" and "important" assignments
- Will serve with a joyful attitude
- Will put his whole heart into each task
- Thinks of others before himself
- Desires that his master receives the credit
- Desires that God receives the glory
The key to having a servant's attitude is to remember that we are ultimately not serving others; we are serving the Lord. "And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the LORD, and not unto men; knowing that of the LORD ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the LORD Christ. (Col. 3:23-24)
(This post is a section from, Making Brothers and Sisters best friends, pp. 35-39)
Wow! I don't know about you, but I have a lot of work to do, in order to "pass" as a True Servant! But I know that I can do all things through Christ which strengeneth me. (Philippians 4:13). I need to get to work, starting today! What about you?
6 comments:
Such a good and true message! We all have to start with the little things and work our way up...or just keep doing the little things! Like it says in Matthew 10:42 "And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward." That's easy, a cup of water! I wish our churches did more outreach to the community, maybe at soup kitchens or helping people out...but I shouldn't complain about what other people aren't doing, I should make sure I'm doing what I should! =)
TFS! Hope your day is good!
Love you!
Yep, you're right! :)
Okay, I saw you write TFS on Julianna's blog but I don't know what it means. :P
Karissa
I didn't know if it was a common thing or if I made it up! lol! It means Thanks For Sharing! =) Good, right?!? =)
Hi Karissa!!
I love the book "Making Brothers and Sisters best friends!" I really enjoy reading the books written by the Mally family.
I also really enjoyed this post!! One of my favorite devotionals is entitled "Being a Girl Who Serves." You hit the hammer right on the nail when you said that we sometimes expect God to give us the better and more exciting jobs. But we need to be more faithful in the smaller assignments- they are the true test of a Christian's commitment to God.
Thanks again!
God Bless!
In Him, Cassie
I recently discovered your blog through Melanie's blog "Forever His Servant." This post was such an encouragement to me and it is exactly the cry that has been on my heart. Thank you so much for sharing!
Blessings,
Brenna
Auntie Jenn-Yes, I guess that's pretty good, and I'll remember it next time (I had never heard it. :P)
Northern Bell-Yes, I have been enjoying that book as well (cause we have been reading it). :) That sounds like a good devotional, and I'll have to maybe look it up sometimes. Thank you for your comment! :)
Brenna-Your welcome for sharing it! When I heard it, thought it was encouraging, and thought I would share it, so I'm glad you found it to be encouraging as well! Glory to God! Thanks for your comment! =)
In Christ,
Karissa
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