On Being a Servant

On a long drive the other day I listened to about four hours' worth of sermons by Francis Chan. I think I most appreciate his genuineness and boldness in speaking in a point-blank manner about what the Word of God says, regardless of whether or not it will offend. This seems very natural, but many preachers don't speak with this candor.

I'd like to borrow a small segment of something he said in one of his sermons.

Today every Christ-follower should wake up and ask God, "What do You want me to do today?" However, it's likely that most of us will wake up and say, "I have some things that I would like to do today, and I pray God helps me."

In this scenario, God becomes a means to us rather than the end.

What an honor it is that the Creator has chosen us to be a part of something He has going on, even in the smallest possible way. We should consider the act of service itself to the King to be our reward; not some good thing that may possibly or hopefully come to us because we have faithfully served Him.

"When a servant comes in from plowing or taking care of sheep, does his master say, ‘Come in and eat with me’? No, he says, ‘Prepare my meal, put on your apron, and serve me while I eat. Then you can eat later.’ And does the master thank the servant for doing what he was told to do? Of course not. In the same way, when you obey me you should say, ‘We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.’"
- Jesus, Luke 17:7-10 (NLT)

Posted in: Christianity, Life, Servanthood