Originally posted 9/4/20
We have many names as women. We may be a wife, mom, sister, or daughter. Each name comes with different roles, and we relate to others in accordance to who we are to them. The way we talk with our husbands is distinctive, and it isn’t the way we speak to our children. We also give more time and attention to some relationships and less time to others. We likely give our kids way more of our time and attention than we do our siblings or parents. This is expected and even encouraged in our society.
We may hold many different titles too. We may be a cook, a soccer coach, a businesswoman, which comes with its own set of titles: boss, mentor, and employee. We may be a stay at home mom, with a million different titles that come with that job! When we are at work, we have a whole different way of relating to people. You would never speak to your boss the same way you speak to your kids, or even a best friend. There is a way of speaking and acting in the workplace that is accepted, and totally distinctive to the way we act in any other part of our life.
Who are you really? According to the Bible, you have a whole new set of titles: servant of God, friend of God, child of God, bride of Christ, the body of Christ, and one with Christ. Where do you see yourself on that list? It’s easy for most Christians to see themselves as a servant of Christ, but can you visualize yourself as one with Christ?
Where you identify yourself at any given time will determine how you respond to others in your life. How we see ourselves defines much of how we see others. You may be in one circumstance as a servant of Christ, but then turn around and need to be a daughter of the Father. Can you see yourself as a loved and cherished daughter of God? I hope so! If you view yourself that way, you will be equipped to see others, even the most difficult people, in the same way that Jesus does. However, if you view yourself as unlovable, it is awfully difficult to love others.
There are times when we are each of these six people. At times we are best identified as a servant, and there are other times when we need to put on the identity of one with Christ. Each situation may call for a different title. Just as when you are at work, you put on the role you hold there. You may be the CEO of a large company or the employee who just started a day ago in an entry level position. When you come home, you take off the hat of CEO or employee and put on the hats of wife and mom. The tools you use at work are different from the tools you use at home.
As CEO, you are free to speak your mind and boss everyone around. Why? Because you are the boss, and the people you employ know they can be fired if you decide they are no longer needed. However, if you speak to your kids and husband like they are your employees, they will not likely respond well to your commands. They may comply because they love you, and maybe they fear you, but they will soon tire of being treated like an employee and may rebel against your reign.
So it is in the Kingdom of God. There are moments when we need to put on the hat of a servant and do what needs to be done. We obey the command of God because we love him and want to show others his love. There are other times when we need to put on the hat of being one with Christ and walk in the authority that comes with that title. We may be praying for someone’s healing or for the enemy to leave you alone. Talking to the enemy as a servant will not have the same effect as talking to him in the authority that you have as a daughter of Jesus and in the authority of Jesus.
Over the next several weeks we are going to take an in-depth look at each of our roles in our ever deepening relationship with Jesus.
We are servants of God:
1 Corinthians 4:1 (ESV) tells us “This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.” Matthew 25:14-30 shows us what it looks like to be a servant. I encourage you to go read the full story on your own. To sum up, a master was going on a long journey. He gave different amounts of money to three of his servants. He gave one servant five talents, another servant two talents, and yet another only one talent. The two servants who received five and two talents both doubled the money to give back to the master. They were rewarded with more and congratulated by their master. However, the servant who only got one talent hid it and gave it back. The master didn’t like the laziness of his servant and punished him. All he had was taken and given to the servant who worked hardest for the master. After all, when you are a servant, you should only be concerned with accomplishing your to-do list that the master gives you.
In this story you see the relationship between master and servant. What does that relationship look like? The servant must work diligently for the master. In today’s society we would likely call this relationship an employer/employee relationship. If you work for someone, you must do your job, even if you don’t want to or like what is being asked. If you don’t do your job, you will get fired. You do not get to dictate what your boss tells you to do.
We, as servants, do what our master, Jesus, tells us to do. If he says, “Go talk to that person,” we do it because we serve him. We act without questioning. There is no discussing the correct course of action. We do exactly what we are told to do because we desire to keep our master happy. You’ve heard the saying, “Happy wife, happy life.” In this case it would be, “Happy master, happy life.” I know it doesn’t have the same ring to it, but you get the point.
We have the privilege of having the best example of what a servant looks like. Jesus came not to be served, but to serve. Even in his last moments before being arrested, we see Jesus serving his disciples by washing their feet. To me, washing feet is almost the worst job I can imagine doing. I think feet are disgusting, and I would rather clean or touch just about anything else. Thinking about my savior, who is about to give the most expensive gift to humanity, washing feet is humbling. I would think it would have been totally acceptable for him to just sit back and relax with his friends at that moment. Instead, he made himself the lowest of all people during that time and showed us that no matter what may be going on in our lives, we are to always serve others.
Being a servant of God is probably the easiest role in which you can see yourself. As a redeemed person, it’s easy to want to serve your redeemer. After all, Jesus paid the ultimate price for your redemption. Why wouldn’t we want to serve him all the days of our lives? Serving Jesus and serving others is one of the greatest gifts we can give both ourselves and others. When we serve, we humble ourselves, which helps prevent pride from creeping in.
How have you served today, this week, or even this month? I encourage you to ask God how you can serve him today!
Now, if the only revelation of your relationship with God was through servanthood, you’d be very concerned with what you must do to be accepted and what you must not do to avoid punishment. Is this the only revelation of who we are in Christ? Join me next week as we talk about being a friend of God.
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