(This post will make more sense if you read extreme balance first)
We can be guilty of thinking that God promotes the role of a servant because it best describes our position relative to Him – and not realise that He does it because…
He is a servant
it is His nature
it is who He is
and we are to be like Him.
It isn’t possible to separate love and service and God is love
He loves us and He serves us!
Even as I write the words it feels wrong – but it’s not, it’s just extreme
I spoke in church a few months ago (when we did that – pre COVID-19) and asked the congregation to close their eyes and imagine God the Father appearing before them
Our natural reaction would be to fall in worship
I then asked them to imagine God lifting them up and putting them back in their seats and then beginning to wash their feet
I’m sure we would say like Peter, when Jesus (God with us) rose from the table and began to wash his feet, ‘Lord you will never wash my feet’
And He might say – ‘you are only able to be in my presence because I served you in a manner that makes washing feet look like nothing’
Listen to Jesus’ words in this remarkable parable
‘It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them’
I start with this end of the balance pole because it is the hardest for us to fathom (even though most of our prayers are requests for God’s Service)
He is also the Creator and Ruler of all things
When He speaks His words ‘never return without accomplishing what He desires’ – that is absolute unquestioned authority
Our minds cannot comprehend the extent of His authority and the terror of His presence
‘Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them’
We cannot overstate how extreme His Authority and Power is
and yet
His Service to us is not diminished by His Authority over us
And His Authority is not diminished by His Service
This is extreme balance
In Jesus’ words ‘… whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Note, He did not say, don’t aspire to be great or first, He said to be great you must also be small and to be first you must also be last – extreme balance
The scriptures refer to us in equal measure as servants and as sons and daughters of God
The servant serves and the son or daughter rules in the Father’s name
We are not one or the other we are both
The more we embrace both the more balanced/stable we will be
The story of the Prodigal Son illustrates the problem of serving without ruling and ruling without serving
The older brother ‘served his father and never disobeyed a command’ but didn’t seem to realise the authority he had as a son, as a result he was bitter, angry, small minded and divisive
The younger brother knew the power of his inheritance but nothing of serving and as a result he became self-serving and lost everything
When the younger brother, the prodigal son, returned home a broken man, he intended to be as ‘one of his father’s hired servants’ but his father placed a ring, signifying his authority, on his finger. Perhaps he was now in the perfect place to live a balanced fruitful life.
We don’t know how the story ends for each of these brothers; it would have been good to see a second series.
If you rule or exercise power without serving, what you build, whether it is an empire, a company, a church a family or a person, might only be as strong and last as long as you
If you serve without ruling you might not build anything at all
If you rule and serve, you might participate in building something that last forever and enjoy an expansive life
‘For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor (serving), Mighty God (ruling), Everlasting Father (ruling), Prince of Peace (serving). Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end….’