A Servant's Heart

A businessman I know once asked his Bible study group, "How can you tell if you have a servant attitude?" "By the way you react when you are treated like one," was the reply.

It's not easy to find an attitude like that. But for a disciple, servanthood is one of the keys to growing in Christlikeness. Describing His own ministry, Jesus said: "For the Son of man also came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Mark 10:45).When we give Jesus Christ His rightful place as Lord of our lives, His Lordship will be expressed in the way we serve others. Therefore, one of the best ways we can demonstrate our love for God is by showing love for our fellow man. We demonstrate love for others by helping them, by sharing their problems, and by doing what we can for them. II Corinthians 4:5 says, "For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake." Another way of displaying servanthood is in evangelism. In I Corinthians 9:19, Paul says, "For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all...." Why does he say that? "...that I might win the more, "he continues. Paul knew that he would win more friends by being a servant. Although he was free from all men, he voluntarily decided to serve those he wanted to influence for Jesus Christ. Take a look at Acts 27:14-28:10. Paul was under arrest, traveling under Roman guard. The passage describes the day when the veteran missionary was shipwrecked on the island of Malta&md;a very cold day.

There in Acts 28:3, the Holy Spirit takes care to say that "Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks...." The Apostle Paul went out and gathered firewood. He did his part. He wasn't going to wait for the others to do it. Servanthood then, is an attitude. It is also the mark of a leader. Think of Jesus Christ in Philippians 2:6, 7 "...so, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant."

Why should we serve? For Jesus' sake. Pick up a bundle of sticks...for Jesus' sake. Look on the things of others...for Jesus' sake. Be liberal with your time and ideas...for Jesus' sake. Serve one another...for Jesus' sake.