SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 10/10/2023 8:22 AM
My Worship Time Focus: PT-2 “True
Leaders Accept Lowly Service”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference:
Matt. 23:11-12
Message of the verses: “11 “But the
greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 “And whoever exalts himself shall
be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.”
I mentioned in the last SD that I would be looking
at a quote from the gospel of John to begin this SD. It was during what is called the last supper
which was the last time that Jesus would be alone with His disciples Jesus
reiterated the lesson of servanthood that He had taught and demonstrated so
often. It was during the midst of the
supper that Jesus arose,
“laid aside His garments; and taking a towel,
He girded Himself. 5 Then He poured water into the basin, and began to wash the
disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded…12 So
when He had washed their feet, and taken His garments and reclined at the
table again, He said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you? 13
“You call Me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. 14 “If I
then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one
another’s feet. 15 “For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did
to you. 16 “Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master,
nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him. 17 “If you
know these things, you are blessed if you do them” (John 13:4-5, 12-17).
This
section from John’s gospel when related to what we see in Matthew’s gospel has
brought new meaning to me as I look at them this morning. It seemed that I was always focused in on
whether or not foot washing should be a part of what is done in the Church
today. Now I can see that Jesus humbled
Himself in order to make the point of what the title of this SD is, “True
Leaders Accept Lowly Service.”
“The
greatest person in God’s sight is not the one with the most degrees or titles
or awards but the one who serves in genuine humility as a selfless servant”
writes John MacArthur in his commentary on this section.
He
goes on to write “Jesus sums up the teaching about true and false teachers by
declaring, “And whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles
himself shall be exalted.” That is the
opposite of the world’s standard for exaltation. The world teaches that it is the one who exalts
himself who gets ahead and the one who humbles himself who loses out and gets
pushed aside. Looking out for number one
is the accepted principle for success.”
When
one looks at the Lord Jesus Christ while on earth this principle can surely be
seen as in God’s sovereign wisdom he decreed this to be true about being
humble, as there is a paradox that Jesus teaches here which represents God’s absolute
truth, and a life that does not conform to that truth is doomed to failure and
also insignificance no matter how much a person’s seems to accomplish. These people, who are like the Pharisees will
not be exalted but the humble, unpretentious, self-giving, serving person
ultimately surely shall be exalted.
I want to look at what Peter wrote in 1 Peter 5:1-4 focusing
in on 2-3 at this time “1 Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your
fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of
the glory that is to be revealed, 2 shepherd the flock of God
among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily,
according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with
eagerness; 3 nor yet as lording it over
those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock. 4
And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of
glory.” He writes “nor yet as lording it over those allotted to
your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock,” which is what the
scribes and Pharisees were doing, and also many church leaders throughout the
church age have been doing and still do.
MacArthur writes “To all leaders in the church, both young and old, he
then gave the admonition: “Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another,
for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the
mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time” (vv. 5-6).
MacArthur concludes this section and chapter by
writing “Unlike the proud and arrogant scribes and Pharisees, the true
spiritual leader works in God’s authority, and he lives in integrity, sympathy,
spirituality, humility, and lowly service.
He is filled with grace, mercy, love, and willing self-giving. Like his Master, the Lord Jesus Christ, he
manifests the heart of a servant who humbles himself and exalts God.”
Spiritual meaning for my life today: Andrew Bonar said that he knew a
Christian was growing in his faith when he talked more of Christ than himself.
My Steps of Faith For Today: Talk more
about Christ than myself.
10/10/2023 8:59 AM
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