Thursday 24 Aug 2023

August 24: Luke 22:24-30

Key Verse: Luke 22:26
But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves.

Devotion:
As Christians we often talk about being servants of God and some people do not quite understand what that means; why do we see some church leaders lord it over their congregations, or the church as an institution lording it over the local churches? I think Luke wrote down these words in a simple to understand manner and one which we should take on board from the very top of our church institutions right down to the newest member of the congregation.

We are not called to be a slave but a servant. Jesus was not a slave to everyone but a servant to everyone. He did not have to do anything and everything everyone said but chose to do many things asked of Him. He did not fear the people around Him (except at certain times when they were out to kill Him) but respected those who were willing to treat Him properly.

We have social structures which dictate who is in charge and who we look up to and we should be willing to live within those confines. None of those confines gives anyone the right to treat another as a slave or to mistreat anyone. When Jesus was mistreated by others He let them know. Jesus knew He was Lord but did not force that on anyone, instead giving everyone the chance to accept Him as Lord and believe in what He could do!

As Christians we should be trying to show others we are willing to serve them in whatever way we can, not give in to everything everyone wants. We should be willing to look out for others and help in any capacity we can but not to be taken for granted and used by others. We are given these special positions by God and Christ gives us the opportunity to work with Him in spreading the gospel – the best way being to love others and serve where we can and should!

Points to Ponder:
Do you see the difference between a slave and a servant?

Are you more willing to be a servant for Christ now?