Tag Archives: Servant

2012 Day 274 – Philippians 2

30 Sunday Sep 2012

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While they are not meant to be a complete statement about the nature and work of Christ, verses 5-11 give us a pretty good blueprint for the example He left for us.

5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,

7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.

8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!

9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,

10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

As believers we must take the example of Christ and lose our attitude of entitlement and allow ourselves to be used by God for the service of others. We should also adopt Christ’s attitude of humility as we serve even in the absence of recognition. Everything we do should point back to Christ and His saving grace for the salvation of others. That is our most important purpose. All glory must ultimately go to Him and God the Father.

2012 Day 257 – Colossians 3

13 Thursday Sep 2012

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There is so much information in this chapter about how we should live the Christian life, but when I got to verse 12, I looked at it as if it were a checklist for my life. Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. When I am around other people, regardless of who they are, do I show them compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, or patience? I hate to admit it, but I fail at these things more often than I’d like to admit and, based on Sarah’s comments on yesterday’s reading, it’s not a matter of me needing to just do it, I have to ask myself “why”? Why don’t I do the things that I know I need to do? The answer for me is simple… While Christ lives in me, I do not allow Him to be a greater influence on me than my own desires. In John 3:30, John the Baptist himself said, He must become greater; I must become less. I am no John the Baptist, which means, how much greater must Christ be in me for me to live the life He intended?

2012 Day 241 – Proverbs 11

28 Tuesday Aug 2012

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Once again, lots of great stuff in Proverbs 11. The verse that stood out to me was Proverbs 11:25, A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed. When we take the time to serve others, we ourselves are refreshed. Whether we give of our time, money, or talent we are blessed by God for giving to others so that they may in return be blessed.

2012 Day 219 – Romans 13

06 Monday Aug 2012

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Verse 9 in today’s reading clears up a lot of confusion about Christian love, The commandments, “Do not commit adultery,” “Do not murder,” “Do not steal,” “Do not covet,” and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Paul is simply saying we should use love as our gauge for all that we do. If we love others first, we will always do what is right. We need to focus on treating others the way we want to be treated. Do we want to be fed, clothed, and have housing? Then we need to work on those same things for others around us.

2012 Day 204 – Acts 20

22 Sunday Jul 2012

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Today we briefly go back into the history of the church as we visit Acts 20. Paul is saying goodbye to the elders of the Ephesus and he lets them know that where ever he goes, prison and hardship are part of his future. It is humbling to see that even while he looks to a future of suffering, Paul sees hope in verse 24, However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me–the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace. How often do I ask God to take my burdens away instead of asking God to allow me to finish this race strong. Reading this today has given me a new perspective on how I should be approaching my life of service to God. Instead of asking for my life to be easy, I should be asking God to give me strength when (not if) life gets hard. I also need to consider hardship as an honor when it comes to serving God, not a burden. I know this is easier said than done, but it gives me a new perspective of how things should be.

2012 Day 177 – 1 Corinthians 9

25 Monday Jun 2012

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Too many times we try to make the world conform to our view of Christianity as believers who already have a relationship with God. It’s almost as though we require them to act as though they have already experienced God’s grace before they even know who He is. Verse 19 hit me right between the eyes this morning; Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. Paul goes on to talk about how he becomes whatever he needs to become in order to reach people with the gospel. Even though I know people must experience God for themselves, I still want them to be just like me or just like the people in my church. I need to be more like them so they can experience Christ where they are instead of where I think they should be. Only God knows where they need to be in relation to Him. My job is simply to make the introduction.

2012 Day 175 – 1 Corinthians 7

23 Saturday Jun 2012

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1 Corinthians 7 is always an interesting chapter to me. At first glance it feels as though Paul is really against marriage. The reality is not that Paul hates marriage, it’s that he is against anything that could possibly turn our attention away from fully serving God. Paul simply says that the desire to be married, if it is a distraction, should not get in the way of turning our attention to God. The truth is that Paul is correct. As a married man with kids, I have to spend the majority of my time concerned with my family’s well being. If I was single I could get a lot more done for the kingdom of God. However, the thing to keep in mind is that singleness does not ensure full time service to God. The level of commitment to service is what really matters. In the end, a servants heart that is dedicated to a genuine relationship with God, will fully serve Him in everything they do.

2012 Day 134 – James 2

13 Sunday May 2012

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Ahhh, I just love the book of James… Did I mention that already? Anyway, in James 2 there are some powerful words about faith and works we Christians love to wrestle with. There are some of us who like to believe that faith alone is sufficient. Then there are those of us who think works are necessary for either salvation or proof of a changed heart. My humble opinion is there is more to the story. Verses 17 – 19 bring a lot to the discussion, 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. 18 But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. 19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that–and shudder. Faith alone implies that belief is sufficient and in verse 19 it clearly states that “even the demons believe”. Our faith and our belief should lead us into relationship with God, which in turn should compel us into action and to serve Him. We simply can not take Jesus’ sacrifice and accept it as the end of our responsibilities when He clearly commanded us to be His hands and feet. Remember Matthew 25:44-45?? 44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ 45 “He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ If we are not producing action and following His commands based on our faith then as verse 17 says it is dead. For some reason there are Christians who believe that works somehow cheapens Christ’s sacrifice for us. I believe that our actions reinforce the power of a changed heart that can only come from His sacrifice and perfect love for us.

2012 Day 109 – Acts 6

18 Wednesday Apr 2012

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I don’t know about the rest of you, but truthfully, I don’t mind being in a good fight. Not that I going around looking to start one, but I certainly don’t back down easily especially when there is something at stake. In chapter 6 we are introduced to Stephen who is brought to serve and take of widows. He is obviously a servant who is ordained into a position where he can use his gifts, however, as we will see tomorrow, Stephen is no pushover. He is not someone who will back down from a fight and is willing to speak his mind and stand up for what he believes while keeping himself pure. We can learn a lot from Stephen (Ok, ok, I can learn a lot from Stephen). Stay tuned for tomorrow’s reading to see just how bold and spirit-filled Stephen can be.