1/25/17 – The Power of Serving – Samuel Burger

The Power of Serving
I once read about a person who falsely claimed he was a soldier in the army while wearing a deceased soldier’s uniform. However, a true soldier called him out on the inconsistencies of his uniform. The soldier yelled, “Stolen Valor,” a reference to the Stolen Valor Act, a law passed making anyone caught reaping tangible benefits from impersonating a service member subject to federal criminal charges. 

The problem with this person is that he wanted status over service. It was only a matter of time before he got caught. He wanted the servant’s position but not the servant’s attitude. There are people who want recognition and reward instead of humility and submission. Are you serving to get a position or are you serving because of God’s rightful position in your life? 
Jesus stated His mission in Matthew 20:28. “Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
We are to be marked by servanthood. Here are three signs you have a servant’s heart:
1.       You serve selflessly. Matthew 20:20-22 reads, “Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Him with her sons, kneeling down and asking something from Him. And He said to her, “What do you wish?” She said to Him, “Grant that these two sons of mine may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on the left, in Your kingdom.” But Jesus answered and said, “You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” They said to Him, “We are able.” Did you notice the reason behind this request was a desire for personal advancement? We must serve without expectations.
2.       You serve submissively. Matthew 20:23 reads, “So He said to them, “You will indeed drink My cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared by My Father.” Jesus totally committed to the Father’s will. He was ready to serve all the way to the cross.
3.       You serve sacrificially. Jesus gave His life and we are to pick up our cross and follow Him. This is the definition of greatness and leadership.
Leonard Bernstein, the celebrated orchestra conductor, was once asked, “What is the hardest instrument to play?” Without a moment’s hesitation he replied, “Second fiddle. I can always get plenty of first violinists. But to find one who plays second violin with as much enthusiasm, or second French horn, or second flute, now that’s a problem! And yet if no one plays second, we have no harmony.”[1]
Perhaps we could find harmony by serving one another? Don’t you think?


[1] Ben Patterson, “A Faith Like Mary’s,” Preaching Today, Tape No. 87.