HIS
SERVANTS' MINISTRY
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Submission
and Servanthood
One of the great
paradoxes in this life is that only through
submission and servanthood to our Lord, can
we have true freedom and peace. Only when
we submit (surrender, yield) to God and relinquish
all rights to our will, can
we have true happiness. Only then will God
bless us with abundant blessings.
Most people
don’t like the word “submit.”
Most people want to listen to the devil as
he whispers, “Do it your own way. You
don’t need God.” And sad to say,
this does have a certain appeal. Satan tells
lies. But, he does tell some truth. If Satan
would say that God didn’t exist, people
would not believe him. But instead, he does
the same thing to us that he did to Eve in
the Garden of Eden. He told Eve that God told
them not to eat of that special tree in the
middle of the garden because if they did,
they would become like God. They surely would
not die. Lies! Lies! Lies! Don’t listen
to Satan. Submit to God.
James
4:7 Submit yourselves therefore
to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee
from you. [KJV] Even though God and the
devil are at war, we don’t have to wait
until the end to see who will win. Satan
has lost (Rev. 12:10-12),
and when Christ returns, the devil and all
he stands for will be eliminated forever (Rev.
20:10-15). But, Satan is here in today’s
world and he tries desperately to win us over
to his evil cause. But, with the Holy Spirit’s
power, we can resist the devil, and he will
flee from us.
How
can we come near to God? James gives us five
ways:
(1) Submit to God (James 4:7). Yield to His authority and will, commit your life to Him and His control, follow Him willingly and earnestly.
(2) Resist the devil (James 4:7). Don’t allow Satan to entice and tempt you.
(3) Wash your hands. . . and purify your hearts by leading a pure life (James 4:8). Replace your desire to sin with your desire to experience God’s purity.
(4) Grieve and mourn and wail in sincere sorrow for your sins (James 4:9). If you don’t express deep heartfelt sorrow for what you have done, you probably are not sorry and will do the same sin again.
(5) Humble yourself before the Lord, and he will lift you up (James 4:10; 1 Peter 5:6).
To humble ourselves means that we recognize that
any worth we have comes from God alone. To
be humble means to realize we need His power,
His wisdom and His guidance, and that we know
we CANNOT do it alone. None of us deserve God’s
favor, but He reaches out to us in love despite
our shortcomings.
Romans
10:3 For they being ignorant
of God's righteousness, and going about to
establish their own righteousness, have not
submitted themselves unto the righteousness
of God. [KJV] Any one who refuses to
submit to God, His righteousness and His power
does not understand God’s way of making
people right with Himself.
Instead, they try to find their own way of
getting right with God. They refuse to go
along with God’s one and only way.
Servanthood
Servanthood is a total commitment
that involves a willingness to serve and honor
God with your life.
Deut.
10:12 And now, Israel, what doth
the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear
the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways,
and to love him, and to serve the Lord thy
God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,
[KJV]
We
must:
(1) Fear God; reverence Him for who He is and what He is capable of.
(2) Walk in all His ways by following Him and obeying Him.
(3) Love Him with your all, above anything and anyone else.
(4) Serve him with all your heart and soul by earnestly and willingly doing His will, NOT your own.
(5) Observe His commands. Far too often we complicate simple faith with man-made rules, regulations, and requirements.
(6) When we respect, reverence, trust, follow, love, serve, and obey Him, peace and joy will abound.
Follow Jesus’
humble example toward others by treating them
better than yourself and helping to care for
their needs.
Philip.
2:3-8 Let nothing be done through
strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind
let each esteem other better than themselves.
[4] Look not every man on his own things,
but every man also on the things of others.
[5] Let this mind be in you, which was also
in Christ Jesus: [6] Who, being in the form
of God, thought it not robbery to be equal
with God: [7] But made himself of no reputation,
and took upon him the form of a servant, and
was made in the likeness of men: [8] And being
found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself,
and became obedient unto death, even the death
of the cross. [KJV]
Don’t be
selfish; don’t live to make a good impression
on others. Be humble, think of others as better
than yourself. Don’t think only of your
own matters, show an interest in others and
what they are doing. Your attitude should
be the same as that of Jesus. Imitate Jesus!
Even though He was God, He did not demand
His rights, even thought He could have. He
humbled Himself to the position of a servant
and appeared in human form. He obediently
humbled Himself to the point of dying a criminal’s
death on a cross.
Matthew
20:27-28 And
whosoever will be chief among you, let him
be your servant: [28] Even as the Son of man
came not to be ministered unto, but to minister,
and to give his life a ransom for many. [KJV]
Jesus' idea
of leadership is opposite from that of the
world. Instead of using people, we are to
serve them. Jesus’ mission was to serve
others and to give His life for others. Jesus
says a true leader has a servant’s heart.
They appreciate others’ worth and are
willing to perform any job. If you see something
that needs to be done, don’t wait to
be asked. Do it!
John
13:4-5 He riseth from supper,
and laid aside his garments; and took a towel,
and girded himself. [5] After that he poureth
water into a bason, and began to wash the
disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the
towel wherewith he was girded. [KJV]
Jesus was the
model Servant, and He showed His servant attitude
to His disciples. Washing guests’ feet
was a job for a household servant when guests
arrived. But Jesus wrapped a towel around
His waist, just like a lowly servant. He washed
and dried His disciples’ feet. If He,
God in the flesh, is willing to serve, we
His followers must also be servants, willing
to serve in any way that glorifies God. Are
you willing to follow Christ’s example
of serving? Is there someone you can serve
today? There is a special blessing for those
who not only agree that humble service is
Christ’s way, but who also follow through
and do it (John 13:17).
Peter did not
understand Jesus’ teaching that to be
a leader, a person must be a servant. This
is not a Passage that sits well with leaders
who find it hard to serve those beneath them.
Jesus did not wash His disciples’ feet
just to get them to be nice to each other.
His goal was far greater. It was to extend
His mission on Earth after He was gone. The
disciples were to serve God, each other, and
all people with whom they came into contact
with. If we profess to be Jesus’ disciples
today, we too must be willing to be servants.
Jesus never asks us to do anything that He
wouldn’t do. We are not better that
Jesus. We must serve God and each other or
we are not worthy of Him. See: What
are Disciples?
Matthew
19:30 But
many that are first shall be last; and the
last shall be first. [KJV]
Jesus turned
the world’s values topsy turvy. Consider
the most powerful or well-known people in
our world . . . how many got there by being
humble and gentle? Not many, if any! But Jesus tells us in the life to come, the
last will be first, IF they got in last place
by following Jesus. Don’t
forfeit eternal rewards for temporary benefits. If you are willing to make sacrifices now,
you will receive greater rewards later. Don’t
worry about people disapproving of you, know
that you have God’s approval.
Mark
8:36 For
what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain
the whole world, and lose his own soul? [KJV]
Mark
9:35 And he sat down, and called
the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall
be last of all, and servant of all. [KJV]
Unbelievers make
choices as though this life were all they
have. But, in reality, this life is just our
introduction to eternity. God gives us this
brief time on Earth to decide where we will
spend eternity . . . Heaven OR Hell! What
we accumulate on Earth will have NO value
whatsoever in purchasing eternal life (Heaven).
You do have an eternal soul. You shall live
forever in one of two places. Evaluate all
that happens from an eternal perspective,
and you will find your values and decisions
changing.
Many people
spend all their time and energy seeking pleasure.
Pleasure, position, possessions, or power
will be utterly worthless in eternity. Anything you have on Earth is
only temporary; it can NEVER be exchanged
for your soul. You must be willing to make
the pursuit of God more important than the
selfish pursuit of pleasure? Follow Jesus,
and you will know what it means to live abundantly
now and to have eternal life as well.
Submission and
servanthood are not possible without humility.
We must get rid of all pride within us. Pride
is of the devil!
Results
of Humility: Results of Pride:
Humility leads to wisdom; Pride leads to disgrace Prov. 11:2
Humility takes advice; Pride produces quarrels Prov. 13:10
Humility leads to honor Prov. 15:33
Pride leads to punishment Prov. 16:5
Pride leads to destruction Prov. 16:18
Humility ends in honor; Pride ends in downfall Prov. 18:12
Humility brings one to honor; Pride brings one low Prov. 29:23
James
4:6 But he giveth more grace.
Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud,
but giveth grace unto the humble. [KJV]
The
cure for evil desires is humility (see
Proverbs 16:18-19; 1 Peter 5:5-6). Also see: . . . Being Humble in this topic . . . Also see brokenness in that article.
Pride makes
us self-centered and makes us think that we
deserve all we can see or touch. It gives
us greedy appetites for far more than we need.
The only way we can get rid of our self-centered
desires is to humble ourselves before God.
We must realize that all we really and truly
need is God’s approval.
Only when the
Holy Spirit fills us, can we then see that
this world’s seductive attractions are
only cheap substitutes for what God has to
offer. Our human tendency toward envy and
discontent is a natural thing. We CANNOT overcome
it on our own! NO way! But, when we submit
to God, giving Him control of our lives, the
Holy Spirit takes over and helps us live a
life that is pleasing to God. Things begin
to change for the better.
To
be a TRUE child of God (John 1:12-13), we
must be submissive to God and we must be servants
who willingly serve Him and those around us,
no matter where we are, and no matter what
race, culture or color people are.
This Life
Abortion
Alternative Lifestyles
Backsliding
Being Humble
Doubt
Faith
Fear
Fear of Falling
Forgiveness
Homosexual Sin
Lusting After Riches
Moral Decay Rampant
Perils of Departing
Russian Roulette With Your Soul!
Same Sex Marriage
Satan's Work
Sin's Consequences
Submission and Servanthood
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