Humble Servants

April 27

Joshua 17-18

Psalm 51:6-10

Proverbs 12:8-10

Luke 17

Humble Servants

“But which of you, having a slave plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come immediately and sit down to eat?’  but will he not say to him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat, and, clothing yourself properly, serve me while I eat and drink; and afterward you may eat and drink?’ Is he grateful to the slave because he did the things which were commanded?  In this way, you also, when you do all the things which were commanded of you, say, ‘We are unworthy slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have done.’”  Luke 17:7-10  LSB

This passage is counter cultural.  We don’t like to talk about servants and masters.  Let’s just get past that.  This is not a racial reference so we don’t need to make any disclaimers.  Jesus is using this parable to talk about the relationship believers in Jesus have with God.  This parable emphasizes the idea that we should approach service to God with the idea of duty and obligation and not with the expectation of reward or praise. Even our most devoted service is fulfilling our duty and not deserving of any additional accolades.  It is a privilege to serve God.  Anything we have and any service we are able to give is done with the gifts we received from God, not something that we have done on our own.  God does not owe us gratitude or thanks for completing our duties.  When we serve Him, we are doing what we ought to have done.  As followers of Jesus it is an honor to serve God and others.  When we have a proper recognition of who God is and who we are, we are so filled with gratitude and awe that we humbly want to serve Him.  Instead of looking to our own interests and desires, we are able to focus on serving God and others out of love. 

            We cannot put God in debt to us.  Anything we do for Him is a small fraction of what He has done for us.  We don’t need to get caught up in worrying about getting recognition or praise.  We just need to do whatever He has called us to do faithfully.  We need to keep our heads down and keep doing what we know we need to do.  Any expectation of reward or appreciation is an indication that we are not doing it out of humility and gratitude.  Jesus is our example.  “Have this thinking in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although existing in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a slave, by being made in the likeness of men.  Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”  Philippians 2:5-8 LSB