The Benefits of Servant Leadership

The Benefits of Servant Leadership
Words of Faith 5-19-2023
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2023
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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1 Timothy 3
[13] Those who have served well gain an excellent standing and great assurance in their faith in Christ Jesus.

What is the benefit of servant leadership? What is the benefit of serving with honor and respect? Even the phrasing of that question sounds odd since servant leadership is an unselfish pattern of living by definition. But Paul says that such leaders gain in at least two ways.
First, a faithful leader gains an "excellent standing." The Greek means literally "a step" and is understood to mean a "rank." Some suggest this means a higher "rank" in church leadership, such as an overseer or elder. Others interpret this to simply be a higher place of respect in the eyes of the church. But it strikes us as strange to hear Paul use such a term.
We must remember that Paul was the man who came to disdain "religious ranks" and accomplishment, counting it all as "loss" compared to knowing Christ. What was to his profit, Paul now counted as loss. He had earned all available religious ranks and found them to be completely empty (Philip. 3:4‑11).
So if we hear the heart of Paul, perhaps the "excellent standing" gained by service in the Body of Christ is simply to stand with Him as a servant. Maybe the "higher rank" is the privilege of taking up a towel and washing feet. Perhaps the "step up" earned by a leader is to a place where we can quietly serve our Lord without the need for accolade, promotion, or recognition.
Second, a faithful leader gains "great assurance of their faith in Christ Jesus." One thing that serving in the work of Christ will do, it will build your faith. Personal faith is built or strengthened when God calls you to trust Him for things you cannot see.
Faith is built when you offer God five loaves and two fish and watch what happens. Faith is built when you are called to step out of a safe boat, and you obey. Faith is built when you offer a mustard seed of absolute trust, and God grows a great tree of assurance. Faith is built when you see God at work in people's lives that the world and church would probably write off. Faith is built every time you lead someone to Jesus and see the wonder of His transforming Spirit afresh. Faith is built when you observe that God is still at work in times of sorrow and tragedy.
A faithful servant leader in the church will be stretched and tested in ways that will most certainly lead to a deeper faith.
How is your "standing" in Christ? Have you found the excellence of washing feet with Jesus? And how is the assurance of your faith? Are you learning daily to trust God in places and in ways that you never imagined? These are the rewards of servant leadership.

Lord, I pray that I will be faithful in service to You. Lord, I pray that You would promote me to a place of excellent standing where I can serve in humility without needing recognition. I pray that You will build my faith. In Jesus' name. Amen.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2023
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, 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, 2023 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.