Bending low is a humbling experience, but the starting point for ministry to others.

“You see, we don’t go around preaching about ourselves. We preach that

Jesus Christ is Lord, and we ourselves are your servants for Jesus’ sake.”

 II Corinthians 4:5 New Living Translation

You can enslave someone, but you cannot give that person a servant’s heart.

Jesus wasn’t a slave by background or family history. He became a servant by choice. His pedigree was King of Kings and Lord of Lords – by whose word all things were made. Oh no, He didn’t start on a low rung of the ladder, for there was no higher rank than his starting point.“Instead, he gave up his divine privileges;  he took the humble position of a slave …” Philippians 2:7 New Living Translation

As an equal member of the Trinity, He didn’t use his position as a bullying point, but as a starting point. As song writer Dwight Liles said, ‘He came down to our level when we couldn’t get up to his.’

Servanthood was an option that Jesus took on purpose.

And we are called to live with a servant’s spirit ‘for Jesus’ sake.’ What does this kind of living look like?

– It is being willing to sit in the backseat instead of insisting on ‘riding shotgun.’

– It is treating a waiter or waitress with kindness and respect.

– It is holding a door open for someone behind you.

– It is refusing to feel or act superior to anyone in your life.

– It is putting someone else’s agenda before your own if possible.

– It is viewing a homeless person as a person, not an object of scorn.

– It is rejecting the manipulation of others for your own needs.

Pilate picked up a bowl of water to wash his hands of his responsibility for someone else. Jesus picked up a bowl of water to wash the feet of his disciples. That’s the difference a servant’s heart makes.

In our world there are many who use others as stepping stones to get ahead. In his Kingdom, God honors and elevates those who sometimes allow themselves to be used by others … just to keep from using others.

We are not called to become doormats for the boorish behavior of others, but to be willing to serve them for Christ’s sake. He can and does use a servant’s heart to break into hard hearts.

This week … if you’re king of your hill, climb down to a place where you can lift others higher than yourself. It’s amazing what God can do with a bit of humility!