Servant Over Self

Grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus 

Christ, who served us by giving His life to save us.

In our skit we met IMA SERVANT, and IMY Self. We’re going to talk about Servant over Self, and the blessing it is, not just to be served, but especially, to serve.  

The sinful self loves to be served, but doesn’t want to serve in return. 

Through Baptism, God is at work, creating in us a new self; a person who loves and lives to serve God and others, a heart that is honored to say, IMA SERVANT.

It’s fun to be served, to have a multitude of servants and services at your disposal, to make your life more convenient, more comfortable and easy in every way.

A convenient and easy life is a tempting goal to have, and many might have it. The problem is, the more we seek, and expect, and demand, the more dissatisfied we can become. 

We expect that service to always rise to a higher level, to make our life ever easier, while giving nothing or very little back to others.

The more we expect others to serve us, while thinking that we’re exempt from serving others, the more selfish we become. The more selfish we become, the less satisfied we are with ourselves, and with life in general.

When I think and act as if the whole world exists for me; like I’m owed everything;   as if everything and everyone exists to please me; and I exist only for myself, for my own purpose and pleasure, that’s a deadly trap to fall into, a tragic mistake.

That’s the wrong way to try to find meaning and fulfillment in life. Instead of bringing you satisfaction, that selfish attitude, puts you on the slippery slope of discontent. 

With an attitude like that, an IMY SELF attitude, you become more of a curse to the world, than a blessing. It’s bad for you, bad for your family, bad for everyone. 

In contrast, that selfless, Spirit-given, IMA SERVANT attitude is a blessing to the world, and fulfillment for you. 

It’s not bad to be served; what’s bad is when we use that as a reason to be selfish.

We all need to be served and helped in life. We wouldn’t survive as babies without our parents to completely serve and care for us. 

And we need others to love and help us throughout all the stages of life.

Most of all, we need God to serve us. He served us by creating us, by making the world for us, and by creating others to care for us, and us to care for them.

And He sent His Son to serve us. How amazing, the King of kings to serve lowly us. 

Had we not been served by Christ, we would all be lost and gone; none of us would be alive; we wouldn’t even exist. 

Matthew 20:28 tells us that the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. 

There’s no greater way to serve someone, than to give your life for them. 

Jesus said, No greater love is there than this, that someone lay down His life for His friends. 

On Thursday night He said it, and on Friday afternoon, He did it. In love He served, and laid down His life.

By serving us to so great an extent that He died for us, we have life now, and salvation forever. 

And not only salvation, also motivation. Christ serving us so greatly, gives us a grand reason to serve God and others. 

God serves us by giving us His Spirit in Baptism, giving us the power to serve God and help others; and to confess as Joshua did, As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

As God serves us through His Word and Sacraments, and as we receive the help and service that others give to us, let us respond, not with a selfish spirit, not with a sense of entitlement, but with a servant heart; with grateful thanks to God, and loving service to others. 

It’s an honor, a joy, and a fulfillment to serve, even when it’s hard to do so; even when those we serve don’t seem to deserve or appreciate it. Still we serve them, because Christ serves us without our deserving it.

And it’s a blessing to serve. When we’re hurting or grieving, one the things that can help to lift us above the grief, is to serve and volunteer; there’s something about serving others that can help us heal. 

May God bless you to serve with grace and gladness. 

And as you joyfully serve, His peace, which passes understanding, will guard your heart and mind, in Christ Jesus, our Lord who faithfully serves us with His goodness and love. Amen.