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Servant or Served? “Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28 NLT)
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any of us are aware that love takes many forms. It can come in the form of flowers and gifts or handwritten letters and kind words. It may come in the form of a hug or a kiss, or in a quiet night in together watching a film. The kind of love I want to talk about today is the love that serves. How many busy and over-worked mothers or fathers appreciate it when a load of washing is done without them having to ask? Or when the lawn is mowed for them so that they can spend some time catching up on some rest? This kind of demonstration of love speaks powerfully to some but not necessarily to others. But it is still, no doubt, a form of expressing care and love for another.
Jesus modelled this style of love for us when He walked the earth. He served. He washed His disciples’ feet and fed the five thousand. He knew what it meant to love through service. ‘There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.’ (John 15:13 NLT)
Jesus performed this kind of love by laying down His life for us, so that we may live in relationship with the Father. He served us in the most sacrificial way, not just during His life on earth, but in the way that He died. Soldiers and members of the military will no doubt understand this kind of sacrificial love in ways that general civilians will not. They daily lay down their comfort and safety to love, serve and protect the freedom most of us enjoy.
