After reading Luke 20:41-21:4, so many thoughts are swimming through my mind on what it means to be a servant of Christ. To truly follow after the heart of our king. We like to look like everything is perfect on the outside. We do this same thing in our spiritual lives as well. In our own ways we try to “have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets”. We put on a show to seem like we have the perfect religion with “lengthy prayers” and filling our schedule with our Christian duties.
God does not want our empty rituals or to be an obligation. He wants our hearts. He does not want us to give because we feel we have to, but because we want to. He does not give because we have plenty, but rather give in our lacking out of love. The widow gave all that she had, totaling far less than the offerings of the rich, yet Jesus says that she “put in more than all the others”. Why? Because she gave from a joyful heart and out of love.
I have no greater example of this than people in my own life giving because of their love and in no way because of their wealth. Some of the greatest gifts I have received have never had a bow or ribbon attached. What made them so wonderful was the person and the heart behind their giving. When someone you loves gives you a present and you ask why they did it, how would you feel if their answer was “it’s my obligation”? How would you feel if they said “it’s because I love you”? It is the same way in our relationship with the Lord. The old covenant is gone and a new one is here with Jesus. We are not bound to duty and law but freed by the blood of Christ into a loving relationship with our Father. It’s not about Christianity, but about following after Christ. It’s about love.
To me being a Christian is about throwing away the label and following Christ. Serving like Christ. I think we do more to hurt our witness than help by stopping simply with the name. To me it means going into the unknown, getting out of your comfort zone, getting real and raw and fighting for the heart of our King. It’s about loving people and not judging them. It means not being complacent and conforming to a safe religion, but being content and embracing who we are as He created us and running with it. It’s about love, passion, and sacrifice. It’s about the unconditional, sacrificial grace that covers us even though we are far from deserving it. And it’s about sharing this with everyone we can. It’s about walking in the character of Christ. It’s about living with reckless abandon following Christ despite the hardships and trials, because He is worth it.
I would also encourage you to read Matthew 20:20-28. These verses have meant a lot to me especially in regards to having a humble heart in being a servant. You are no better for serving than are those being served and to me this passage puts that well into perspective. By flipping the whole order we generally accept as true, Jesus makes a powerful point that has stuck with me. He came to serve, so if we are to follow Him, we are to serve. It should be in the very nature of who we are. No one is above serving someone else in any way. Place God first, others second…we are servants.
What would it look like if we truly attempted to be more like Christ? To serve others in love. To be His hands and feet? I think that’s exactly what the worlds needs a little more of. People who are willing to be the body of Christ, rather than simply the mouth.
