Tuesday 21 Nov 2017

November 21: Mark 10:41-45

Key Verse: Mark 10:45
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.

Devotion:
As a backup of what we read yesterday from the days after Solomon we read about Christ saying the exact same thing, reminding the apostles in order for us to become great, we have to go through being a servant. What it does not mean is we all have to start at the bottom and work our way up, many people think they can work themselves a place into heaven. What Christ was saying made it perfectly clear when He told how He had come to serve us so we could be saved. That is what made Him great in our eyes.

When we think of the men and women who willingly have given their lives to protect others, we stand in awe. When we think of what Christ has done for us, we stand amazed. He willingly went into the hornets’ nest and took on all the punishment and humiliation just so we are the ones who could live next to Him in eternity!

But we have to be oh so careful because when we have any sort of fame or fortune dangled in front of us like a carrot, we will change our course. We may not think that we will, but we do change tack pretty quickly when there is some sort of recognition to be had. We crave recognition. A few verses before this in Mark we find two of the apostles themselves were asking if they could be on the right and left hands of Christ in heaven. Fame and fortune go to our heads and are likely to sink us.

If, however, we are willing to aim a whole lot lower, we will find we are able to accomplish more and avoid the lusts and desires which would normally entrap us. We have to aim to serve others if we are going to get into their lives. Christ willingly came forward and gave it all as our Servant so we could live. He willingly came to earth as a human so He could die for us. The humiliation that He faced was for our sakes, and ours alone...

Points to Ponder:
Are you willing to humiliate yourself for your friends?

Christ did it all for everyone. He did not pick who it was for!