NOV 3

Mark 10:45

Memorise Philippians 2:7

“…and took upon him the form of a servant…”

HOW DOES MARK PRESENT CHRIST?

Mark 10:45 beautifully sums up Jesus’ role as a servant, “For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” What Jesus is saying here is that He did not come to the world to be served just as a very important guest at a hotel expects to be pampered and served hand and foot. Jesus came to serve others for their benefit and not His own. Indeed, the Greek word for “immediately” is a ‘servant word’ which occurs over 40 times in the book of Mark. When a servant is told to do something by his master, he is expected to do it “immediately”.

It would seem hard to reconcile the fact that Jesus, being the Son of God and indeed God Himself would assume the role of a servant. Indeed, we see in John 13:1-17 that in an act of great humility Jesus washed the feet of His disciples. However, if we try to understand the reason for Jesus willingly taking the form of a man and living amongst us sinners we would be able to reconcile the above. He came, lived, served, died on the cross and rose again out of love for sinners. If there is one word that could sum up why He came as a servant to man, that word would be “love”.

In many countries, people in positions of power in government are called “ministers”, but many times they expect to be ministered unto instead of just ministering to others. They think that a high position of power automatically grants them the respect and authority over men. However, Jesus sets an example of a very different style of leadership for us to follow. A loving father would not hesitate to lay his life down for his wife and children if it means saving them from harm. This does not diminish his position as the head of the family in any way. In fact, this would be what God expects of him in the same way that Jesus loves sinners in a self-sacrificial way and gave his life “a ransom for many”. Jesus laying His life down for sinners does not diminish His position as the head of the church. It is therefore obvious that Jesus expects the same of believers who are also in positions of leadership. They are not only to lead by example, but also to lead with an attitude of humility and servitude. Have you thought about the kind of leader Jesus wants you to be?

Thought: He who desires to be first shall be last of all and servant of all.
Prayer: Thank You, Father for giving to us Jesus Who is a King with a servant’s heart.