Servant of All

Leviticus 25:47–27:13; Mark 10:32-52; Psalm 45:1-17; Proverbs 10:22

Servant of All
And they were in the way going up to Jerusalem; and Jesus went before them: and they were amazed; and as they followed, they were afraid. And he took again the twelve, and began to tell them what things should happen unto him, saying, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be delivered unto the chief priests, and unto the scribes; and they shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles: and they shall mock him, and shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him: and the third day he shall rise again.

 And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, come unto him, saying, Master, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall desire. And he said unto them, What would ye that I should do for you? They said unto him, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory.But Jesus said unto them, Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized: but to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is not mine to give; but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared.

And when the ten heard it, they began to be much displeased with James and John.

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. – Mark 10:32-45

Jesus didn’t come the way the people imagined. They expected that He had come as a military leader to wipe away Roman oppression and set up the Kingdom of God, promised throughout the Old Testament. 

Jesus did come as that leader, but not as they expected. He didn’t come to first overthrow ungodly leaders and set up a new government, but to establish His Kingdom in the hearts and lives of man.

The disciples, who were closer to Jesus and spent more time with Him than other people, were no different in their expectations. So, Jesus took the opportunity of their arguing over who would be great in His Kingdom, to teach them that to be truly great, you must be a servant to all.

All these years later, expectations have not changed. In our hearts, don’t we often pray, Come, Lord Jesus, but not because we have finished our course? Don’t we sometimes pray that asking that He come and deliver us from the “bad guys,” from sickness, death, and all kinds of evil? Don’t we often focus more on going to heaven ourselves to rule and reign with Him than we do serving and bringing His Kingdom to those in our world that He loves and desires to save? To a lost and dying world?  

Just my thoughts…I preach to myself here!!!

Please help us, Father! Please help me! Help me to be Your servant! Give me a burden for the lost and a heart to serve. Help me not to pick and choose but to follow You and live a life of service. In Jesus Name, I pray. Amen!

His Servants
For unto me the children of Israel are servants; they are my servants whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God. –  Leviticus 25:55

Make His Name to Be Remembered
I will make thy name to be remembered in all generations: therefore shall the people praise thee for ever and ever. – Psalm 45:17

Blessing
The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it. – Proverbs 10:22