That Servant Thing

 

If you have a bit of push back happening in your brain for this one, I won't blame you. My post-modern, Canadian, white-entitlement, self-advocacy psyche has a hard time wrapping itself around this particular parable.

Jesus is speaking directly to His Disciples. The ones who had chosen to follow Him full time. The ones who were hanging around Him to learn how to be like Him. Those Disciples.

"Suppose one of you has a servant plowing or looking after the sheep.

Will he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'?

Won't he rather say, 'Prepare my super, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'?

Will he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do?

So also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, "We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.'"

Luke 17:7-10

So, just to make space for us to actually contemplate this a little, this is only one side of what the Bible has to say about what it's like to serve God. [Hint: Hebrews 6:10 is shaping up to be the launching point of tomorrow's musings.]

And we also have to remember the first century context here and the fuller scope of what it meant to be part of a household, even if you were a servant.

Still. This is kind of jarring. That kind of humility, that approach to work and life and being told what to do, is counterintuitive in a culture fixated on self actualization.

And yet, we do accept the term 'serving God.' And likely most of us, who would identify with the Disciples in terms of our desire to follow Jesus and be like Him, would be fine with calling ourselves a servant of God.

So then, what's expected of us?

Someone said that you can only measure the integrity of your 'servant's heart' by how you respond when you are being treated like one.

To be clear, we're not talking about passively receiving abuse. That's a totally different topic altogether.
And, as I said, there is a balance point in Scripture, in terms of how we are to treat one another, and how God regards us.

But still.

This passage has been printed off and posted in my office at various times over the years of ministry. There've been times I needed the reminder, to be honest. Because it goes against the grain of my need to be seen as important.

Yes, I wrote that out loud.
Spirit, don't stop Your work in me.

And this sign pictured (which is right now in that black hole called "in storage" because the house stager said "nothing religious") was a gift as I stepped aside from the full time pastor's role, from someone who knew me well.

I'm looking forward to deciding where it will hang in our new home.