(Luke 17:5-10) The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” 6 And the Lord said, “If you had faith like a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea’; and it would obey you.
7 “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’? 8 But will he not say to him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat, and properly clothe yourself and serve me while I eat and drink; and afterward you may eat and drink’? 9 He does not thank the slave because he did the things which were commanded, does he? 10 So you too, when you do all the things which are commanded you, say, ‘We are unworthy slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have done.’”
(Matthew 23:8-12) But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ. 11 But the greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.
Reminder: "praying effectively" involves knowing God's will. When we pray in His will (in His name), He may choose to not answer those prayers in the time period that we would like, or HOW we would like - but He will answer those prayers!
It is God's will:
- that we do not call ourselves Rabbi, teacher, or leader because Jesus is the only Rabbi, Teacher, Leader (Mt.23:8, 10)
- that we are humble servants (Mt.23:11-12)
- that we do ALL the things which are commanded (Lk.17:10)
- that we do not call anyone else father, because God is our only Father (Mt.23:9)
Today's prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus - - - wow! I am humbled at seeing a little more clearly how my serving You and serving others should not just be done out of love or a feeling resembling love, but it IS a command and therefore an obligation - a duty - and I should say - a privilege to serve. Not only because You are God and Creator of everything, but as the great Leader and Teacher, You lead by example.
Dear Lord Jesus - - - wow! I am humbled at seeing a little more clearly how my serving You and serving others should not just be done out of love or a feeling resembling love, but it IS a command and therefore an obligation - a duty - and I should say - a privilege to serve. Not only because You are God and Creator of everything, but as the great Leader and Teacher, You lead by example.
You did not have to, but You humbled Yourself, and left Your throne in heaven to come down to earth to live among us. You humbled Yourself by still remaining 100% God, yet becoming 100% man, born in a lowly stable eating trough. And You humbled Yourself by going around teaching, healing and ministering to people... even when they rejected You. And You humbled Yourself by dying on the cross for all sins - for all people, to provide salvation to those who accept Your free and most generous gift - even though many people will still reject You.
Why would we not want to follow Your example and serve You? I know from experience that there are blessings when we serve. Help us to serve You will a humble and grateful attitude. Help us discover what our spiritual gifts are in order to use them and be most effective in equipping the saints and spreading the gospel message. Help us realize that "not knowing what our spiritual gifts are" is not an excuse to avoid serving. Guide us to what makes sense for us. Give us courage and confidence, to try different ministries until we find "our thing/s". Give us wisdom and patience as we learn along the way. And give us Your joy when we are being obedient. Amen.
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