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Servanthood

Servanthood

Words of Faith 8-12-19

Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2019

Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com

Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL

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Philippians 2:7

"Taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.

 

Paul exhorts us with these words: "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus..." The attitude of Christ Jesus is first: the willingness to empty oneself rather than cling to position or power or authority.

Second is the willingness to take the nature of a servant. The Greek is crystal clear. Jesus did not "appear" to be a servant or "pretend" to be a servant. He took the nature of servanthood in the same sense that His nature was divine.

The servant thing was a lesson that the disciples were slow to pick up on. Throughout the Gospel narrative, we keep hearing them argue over who is greatest and who will have the position of honor in the Kingdom.

Even on the last night as they gathered for the Passover meal, the Twelve neglected the normal duty of a rabbi's disciples to assign someone to wash the feet of guests. Instead, as they arrived, they continued to argue over who was the greatest among them. It was then that Jesus gave us one of the most powerful images of Christian faith. He quietly arose from the table, disrobed in the fashion of a slave, wrapped a towel around His waist, and began washing feet. Overwhelming is a word that comes to mind.

Jesus reminds us that those who will be great in the Kingdom are the servant of all. Those who lead in the church will wash feet. Those who rule in the family will do so, on their knees. This is not an attitude we pick up easily in the world. In fact, the only place I know to begin to get the spirit of servanthood is from the Servant. Only when we allow the Lord Jesus Christ to wash our feet-- to cleanse us with His grace-- do we have any part with Him. And only then, as imitators of Christ, do we begin to have what it takes to be a Kingdom person.

 

Lord, Jesus. The last thing I can bear in my mind is the image of You stooping to wash my feet. But I know that there is no other way. Wash me. Cleanse me. By Your grace, make me clean and ready to follow You. Create in me the spirit of willing servanthood. Teach me to lead by service. Show me specifically who You desire me to serve today. Amen.

 

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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, and our website, and our church app, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2010 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.  

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