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CONSECRATION
Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.
Jesus, I belong to you.
I lift up my heart to you.
I set my mind on you.
I fix my eyes on you.
I offer my body to you as a living sacrifice.
Jesus, we belong to you.
Praying in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, amen.
THE WORD OF THE LORD
Matthew 20:28 NIV
“The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Philippians 2:5–8 NIV
In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used
to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
CONSIDER THIS . . .
Many years ago, our church was selected to host our national conference in Canada. Our building was too small for the thousands attending, so my friend, the pastor of the local Assembly of God church, invited us to use their building. I invited him and his amazing leaders to attend, to enjoy the worship and teaching, and to receive ministry.
After one particularly moving session with one of our most humble theologians, my pastor friend came running out to me in the parking lot after everyone had left. “Dan, I need to talk to you,” he said, with tears in his eyes. “I have never in my life seen such humility in leaders. That teacher, and so many of those leaders, felt like they were truly here to serve everyone.” We embraced, knowing that this was the way of Jesus but also knowing how hard it is for gifted people to recognize their gifts are to be placed in the service of others.
Being an apprentice of Jesus means that we are here to serve, not to be served.
Jesus “did not come to be served, but to serve” (Matt. 20:28). I have often wondered what must have gone on inside the heads of the disciples as Jesus did miracles, performed signs and wonders, had words of knowledge, aligned himself with the weak and lowly, and then . . . served everyone.
The world of Jesus’s day was not like this. The wealthy and powerful were served; their needs were met; they were the focal point of fame and attention. But with Jesus, we see an entire cultural worldview, held especially by the Romans, utterly subverted by this servant posture.
I have spent time around many spiritually gifted people. Some could prophesy with uncanny accuracy, speaking words of revelation into people’s lives that left everyone astounded. I have sat in greenrooms with people known for operating in spiritual gifts at a high and even extraordinary level, people through whom Jesus healed the sick and who claimed to have been used by him to raise the dead.
But here is the honest truth: In only a few did I see a humility that said, without words, “I am here to serve you and everyone gathered. I am not here to be served or elevated above anyone.” Those few in whom I saw such humility guiding their giftedness became my mentors. I wanted their life with Jesus. I wanted to do all the things that Jesus did but with this posture of service leading the way.
Jesus was of no reputation, according to Isaiah. He wasn’t out to impress anyone with his spiritual giftedness. Everything, everything Jesus did was to serve his Father and those around him. Every act of self-care, of time away, was to grow in love and to gain strength to give and give again.
In this way, kingdom ministry is the learned art of giving ourselves away, being available for the Father to spend us, to invest us, in any way he pleases, to see souls set free to worship him.
PRAYER
Lord Jesus, the way of the servant can be hard for me, particularly when I want others to see my giftedness or to be impressed with my strengths. Teach me to love the lowest way of service, to allow others to rise around me as I sow into the soil of their growth. In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.
JOURNAL PROMPTS
Write down three ways those you admire in the faith have served others. What if serving well was the only metric for success in the kingdom of God?
How could you model your life after their way of service?
ACTIVATION
Today, look for an opportunity to serve someone without them knowing. Make it a completely hidden act so there is no one to impress and your ministry to the person is unknown to anyone but you and Jesus. When you are finished, review how it makes you feel to serve without anyone but Jesus seeing what you’ve done.
SING
Today, we will sing “The Doxology” (hymn 682) from our Seedbed hymnal, Our Great Redeemer’s Praise.
For the Awakening,
Dan Wilt
Dan Wilt is an author, communicator, pastor, and practitioner. With roots in the Vineyard stream of churches, Dan has served the development of followers of Jesus internationally and is part of the Seedbed Farm Team.
3 Responses
I am really enjoying the “All the Things” series.
Today’s entry was so good Thank you Dan!
Jesus calls His followers to humbly serve people. If you feel like you have to put people down in order to lift up and defend your opinions, perhaps you are insecure about what you say you believe.
Be polite. People are more important than your opinions. People are made in God’s perfect and eternal image. Your opinions are made from your flawed, self-focused, and short-term perspective.
True Christianity causes Christ-followers to radically love others. It motivates them to speak the truth in love, to bless those who curse them, and even to love their enemies. You will recognize genuine Christians by the fruits of their compassionate lifestyle.
What a beautiful devotional.