Smeagol is Free!
A hermitudinal view of...stuff...


12.09.2004  

Service

As I've studied the Word this week, one vein of thought continues to pulse within me. It's the notion of service, and my motives therein. The apostle Paul's infamous desire to depart and be with Christ as he details it in Philippians 1 is held in check by one thing: his desire to stay and be Christ to and build Christ up within those to whom he was ministering. It was a motive that had as its cornerstone the only true Cornerstone, Christ. It was a desire that, truth be told, held immense joy in store for his own heart. As was Christ's sacrifice, so was Paul's sacrifice not one without reward. Paul rejoiced in knowing that the fruits of his labor would not be in vain! Indeed, this great overarching hope was deepend by the lesser hope that he might fellowship with those to whom he was writing. And why was this? "So that your proud confidence in me may abound in Christ Jesus through my coming to you again."



I've struggled this week to reconcile that truth with my actions. Paul opens wide the floodgates to his heart, and I am overwhelmed; where is that servant's heart within me? Paul does not allow me to shirk or wallow in the shallow waters of shallow service. No, he beckons and pulls and drags me out to the deep waters with him! It is there that I find that it is difficult to serve, for the standards are high. Is my joy sufficient to keep me from sinking? How do I bear the burdens of another when my own heart is already weighed down? *Sigh*...it is here, here where I find my need to trust in the Lord far greater than ever before, here where Paul and Christ beckon with unrelenting joy, it is here where I find service to be real.



What does all this mean? Said plainly, it means that the laying down of my life is an embracing of the cross. That's what Paul was really getting at. In chapter 2, he goes on to speak of Christ laying aside the privileges of His deity, publicly embracing the shame of the cross. He did it not out of empty, self-deprecating sacrifice; rather, His sacrifice was one of deep joy and hope, one where His reward and recompense was greater than we could ever imagine. Indeed, we are a part of that reward and recompense! Therefore, to lay down our own lives in sacrifice and service to King Jesus is to be done in deep joy and hope, with our hearts looking forward to our own reward: Christ, Christ in us, and Christ in one another.



posted by Bolo | 8:26 AM
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