The greatest among us must become servant of all

The greatest among us must become servant of all

S MRK 10:42-45 NASB

Calling them to Himself, Jesus said to them, "You know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them; and their great men exercise authority over them.  But it is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant;  and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all.  For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."

O - Jesus is saying this to the disciples because how the leaders of the people of Israel , namely the Priests and servants in the temples began to Lord their position over the people.  This was never God's design.  When God split the inheritance of the tribes of Israel all but Aaron and the Levites received an inheritance. They were called to serve and not be served, but God's provision for them came out of their service.  Jesus at this point has be training his disciples how to do God's ministry on earth by going place to place and ministering to those in need and teaching them the Truth.   As their confidence began growing because of their training, calling, and even annointing they began competing with one another (who gets to sit at Jesus' right hand in heaven, and then off course which disciple is the greatest).   Jesus needed to flip the script on them and show them the paradox of leadership in the kingdom of God.  Those among you who is the greatest will serve the most.

A - The application for me is one I have not completely figured out. I can relate to the tension that comes from being elevated in leadership positions.  The tension is that your heart starts off wanting to serve the organization and the people of that organization, but quickly you begin recognizing near the top people will just do what you ask of them.  This becomes a weakness because rather than do what needs to be done on your part which is often time external to the people, you begin to ask more of them to meet the objective at hand.  The solution is to daily humble yourself, and seek God's guidance on where you are to serve today.

P - Thank you Lord for today's devotion, may it be sealed to my heart.  I pray Lord that you would daily plant in me where I am to serve.