Here is the revelation that is shaping my life today- how deceptively powerful the world is at shaping me, or how easily I can walk away from my true self and be shaped by my false identity. “Serve me” seems to be my mantra, when the true me is a servant.
Luke 22:25-27 NIV
[25] Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. [26] But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. [27] For who is greater, the one who is at the table, or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.”
Observation
God always turns the way of the world on its head. His ways, His Kingdom, the life he intends for us, are so different from the system and structures that I so often worship and allow to shape my story. ‘The greatest position is that of the servant.’ How absurd that sounds to ears attuned to this world’s ways. “Me, my needs, my happiness, serve me,” these are the predominant shaping stories of a world shaped by radical individualism. “Others exist to serve me!” The more I have, position, authority, money, the more I think I have a position where I should be served. How deeply, insidiously, and deceptively I have become enslaved to this miserable small story. As Thomas Merton said, “evil always comes disguised,” I have fallen for its disguise.
Jesus is the exact representation of God. “I am among you as one who serves.” We need to see that God serves His people, He does not demand our service, He serves us with Himself, His mercy, grace, freedom, provision, love, healing, deliverance, and from our experience of Him, we become servants in His likeness. I know how to serve from the beauty of being served by the King. The kings of the world lord their position over people, the King of Heaven serves His people.
Others – serving, loving, caring, pouring myself out for others, here is the message of Kingdom life. I am not like the world, I am like my God, His image and likeness are my true self, every other shape I take is not being me. Often descending is the way into the great life of Gods design, but the ego me wants to win, it wants to make it, it wants to be the King who has authority and position, it wants to lord it over others so I can find identity in the outward display of my power. This ego self-created small self me is invited to die and be resurrected into the life of the Kingdom. This is the way of the cross, the cross always sees resurrection life, and this is the way of discipleship, I follow Jesus to the cross, and I die to the ego created to serve myself, and I am resurrected into the true me, the love and serve others me.
This is always the model of healing – God brings awareness of false- self living – He then covers me in His forgiveness and mercy so I don’t run from His revelation to the voice of shame and condemnation – He then invites me to die, now dying is not hard work, it’s letting go of the self-created me – and then redemption and resurrection, God raises me in His presence, in His love, in and through my personal intimate experience of Him to true-self life. I don’t work hard at being someone I am not, I realise who I have been all along and live out of the in Christ me, true-self me.
Application
God bring me awareness, I am open, listening and willing to hear you. Then enable, help me, to choose the way of the cross, to follow you unto death and into resurrection life, true-self life in you.
Response
Thank you that you created me and you recreate me. You self imaged me and you lead me into my God-like self. Thank you that you are so gentle and kind as I continually fall for, value and defend my false-self life, thank you for forgiveness that never rejects me on the way to being me. Thank you for death and resurrection in and through you.
Meditation
Meditation truth – I am a servant, this is me!
Consider –
How often do I take the position of serve me?
Do I use my place, position, power, privilege, possessions in any of my contexts to enforce servitude upon others?
JOURNEY DEEPER
