Jesus can’t stand the thought of any one of going to hell. So he came to earth to serve us by being our ransom. As He ministered to others throughout His life and then paid the price for our sins, He became the greatest example of being a servant leader.
A pastor was preaching to his congregation concerning heaven and hell. To emphasize the difference between the two, he asked that all who wanted to go to heaven stand up with him. All the congregation rose. He then asked that all who wanted to to go hell stand up with him. No one rose. For the full dramatic impact he waited for several seconds before continuing. The silence was broken by a small boy who slowly rose to his feet. The astonished priest spoke to the boy, “Surely son, a fine young man like yourself does not want to go to hell.”
The boy answered, “Maybe not sir, but I just couldn’t stand the sight of you standing there all alone.”
The foundation of servanthood
The foundation and basis of servanthood is giving – and Jesus gave His life as a ransom for all who believe in Him. No one “took” His life – He willingly gave it up. Jesus, with all of His power and might did not come to be served as He deserves, but by His love and grace, came down to serve us. He served us by giving us a way to spend eternal life with Him even though we do not deserve it, nor can we earn it on our own merit. He gave His life freely so that we might have eternal life. And He served us by being the payment for our sins. Romans tells us that the wages of sin is death, but Jesus paid the price for us. He was our “ransom.”
What it means to serve Jesus
The word “ransom” refers to the price one paid in Jesus’ day to release a slave. We are slaves to sin, but Jesus’ life became our ransom that set us free from the bonds of sin. To be a servant of Jesus, means we must be willing to give up all rights to our life and to do anything God wants us to do.
Examples of how Jesus served others
When we look at Jesus’ ministry, we can see how Jesus served others, just as the disciples had seen Him do: they saw Him touch those that were unclean. They saw him heal the sick, deaf, blind, and mute. As he raised people from the dead, they watched. They saw him feed thousands with just a small amount of bread and fish. They saw Him wash their feet. When He was beaten and nailed to a cross, they were there. They saw Him die – for them.
Christ’s greatest sacrifice to serve us
Over and over again Jesus – the only Son of God – placed Himself in humble service to others. Jesus. He had ten thousand angels at His disposal. He was the creator of the world. And He shared in the glory of the Father and the Holy Spirit. Yet He gave up all of Heaven to come to earth, born to a poor virgin girl in a stable with only an animal feeding trough for a bed. He gave up his own majesty for the humility of needing his diaper changed. And He willingly accepted the humiliation and torture of the cross.
Why would He do that for you and me? His only reason for doing so, was to minister and serve all of humanity throughout all the ages through His willing sacrificial death in our place so that we could one day spend eternity in Heaven with Him. The greatest servant of all gave us the greatest gift of all because of His love for us.
Jesus still wants to serve us today
We often talk today about our desire to “serve” God. And certainly we should be obedient to do what He asks us to do. But we also need to remember that Jesus did not come to earth to be ministered to. He came so that he could minister to us. He still wants to minister to us today. We don’t have to do life on our own. He is ready to help us.
When we are exhausted or anxious or fearful, He tells us to cast all our care on Him because He cares for us (1 Peter 5:7). When we need wisdom, He tells us to ask Him for it and He will give it to us generously (James 1:5). Or when life gets busy and overwhelming, Jesus says, “Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10). Whatever it is we face in life, Jesus stands ready to minister to us. If He loves us enough to die for us, you can bet He stands ready to help us through every moment of life. How humbling it is to think that the Son of God longs to serve one like me.
Jesus, thank you for you dying in my place so that my sins could be forgiven. Help me to live my life so that it bring honor and glory to you. May I learn from your example of servanthood to serve others that you have placed in my life so that your love shines through every act of service and every spoken word. Help me to remember that you stand ready to serve and minister to me in every situation I face in life.
Now you can enhance your Bible Reading with the Verse Mapping Template
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[Download not found]Download our Free 2021 Bible Memory Verse Plan
We’ve put together 52 memory verses for you to hide God’s Word in your heart! You can download the full document for free and then print a new verse each week and as many copies as you’d like. Each verse prints four times on a page so that you can then cut them into index size cards and place them in prominent places where you will see them frequently throughout the day to help you remember to memorize them. Just because you visited our site, they’re yours for free! Download today.
[Download not found]Download our Free 2021 Daily Bible Reading Plan
With just 30-40 minutes per day, you can read the entire Bible in one year. The One-Year Bible Reading Plan consists of both Old Testament and New Testament readings for each day of the year. The Bible is God’s personal Word to you. What is He saying to you today? Open your Bible and find out!
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The Self-Care Wheel provides ideas for practicing self-care in six dimensions of yourself: Spiritual, Physical, Emotional, Intellectual, Sensory, and Social. NOTE: You will need 11X14 paper to print the wheel.
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[Download not found]This week’s new Christian Tees design:
Micah 5:5
The prophet Micah, foretold about the birth of Jesus in Micah chapter 5, including that he would be born in Bethlehem. He also prophesied that Jesus would be our peace. In a chaotic world, it’s good to remember that Jesus is our peace. He has reconciled and redeemed us as he paid the penalty for our sin. Because he did, we have peace with God. But we can also have peace no matter what happens in the world around us. Jesus said in John 14:27, Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” Rest in the peace that Jesus offers to you.
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New in the Teespring Store: The Prayer of Blessing
We’ve added a new canvas print to the Teespring Store.
God instructed the Israelite priests to pray the prayer of blessing every day over the people. The prayer is found in Numbers 6:24-26. Hang the canvass in your home or carry the mug, tote bag, or water bottle and let the prayer of blessing impact all those who you meet throughout the day.
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God, Love and Marshmallow Wars by Julia M. Bruce
What’s Inside God, Love and Marshmallow Wars?
God, Love and Marshmallow Wars is a book that includes 365 daily activities and takes you on a guided journey through Biblical principles about Godly marriage that you can then apply to your marriage, as well as helping you talk through concepts that can help you develop a solid relationship. Inside you will find simple, quick activities that include:
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