“Will any one of you who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and recline at table’? Will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me, and dress properly, and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterward you will eat and drink’? Does he thank the servant because he did what was commanded? So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.’”
It struck me as quite applicable to my own life and the lives of many around me. The way I responded to it was to think about it from two different angles, the served and the servant.
As the served, I am in this position only because another voluntarily serves me. How egregious then, is my self-centeredness, when I fail to sincerely express gratitude? This attitude of entitlement that I (and sadly to say my fellow Americans) carry around has got to change!
As the servant, I am only in this position only because the grace of God has transformed me and because I have been gifted with sharable resources and abilities. How shameful then, is my narcissism, when I think that people should owe me something because I shared a gift? Am I really that deplorable of a character?
Am I to live in shame, guilt, and condemnation for my shortcomings? Yeah, sure these questions are ridiculously rhetorical, but they seem valid for a reality check. This is the type of reality check I feel that I need on a regular basis to get/keep me on track. The teachings of Christ regularly do this to me. So hard-hitting and challenging when one seriously considers them. At the same time, they came from the embodiment of God's love, grace, compassion, and patience! In this, I'm reminded of how highly God thinks of me, and that I have something far more substantial to build an identity upon than my own merit.
If I tend to take better care of things that cost me dearly than things that don't, how much more will God take care of me who He sacrificed greatly for? This applies to you too!
1 comments:
Yes. The concept of giving without expecting anything in return, forgiving freely and being a servant to all is one of my goals for this year (a lifetime pursuit with varying levels of "success"), largely thanks to your sermon a couple weeks ago that challenged in a number of ways.
I hate that the flesh part of me struggles against motivating to serve. So often I prefer to sit around and do nothing. I'm making some strides in the right direction though, thanks to God. Got a long way to go!
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