ARE YOU BEING SERVED?

BIBLE PASSAGE:
He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to
wash my feet?” Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am
doing, but later you will understand.” “No,” said Peter, “you shall
never wash my feet. Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have
no part with me.”
(John 13:6-8)

MEDITATION:
Would you say we are living in a selfish or an unselfish world? Does
it seem that others are more concerned about themselves than they
are about anyone else? Are others too busy with their own affairs to
take the time to see if others have needs (not necessarily material needs,
but emotional needs and other personal concerns)? Does it appear that
there are many people who seem to think they were born to be served,
but not to serve?

There is a key phrase from Jesus in the scriptures above:
    “You do not realize now what I am doing,
      but later you will understand.”
The disciples had sacrificed a lot to follow Jesus and participate with Him in
His ministry. They were diligent and committed to working with Him to reach
out to others. Sounds like they were doing a good thing, and they were, but
apparently, Simon Peter had missed out on at least one important factor in
following Jesus.

It seems that Peter understood what was involved in being on the ministry
team of Jesus. But, just being with Jesus might have given Peter a feeling of
superiority around others. We assume that he could tell others about the
importance of salvation (the Good News), but could (or would) he take the
time to listen to the concerns of other individuals? He may have been good
at speaking to many people, but could he speak to an individual in need?

We can see that after Jesus was resurrected, Peter did understand the
importance of being more than just a spokesman to others. He began
to see others from the perspective of Jesus.
    One day Peter and John were going up to the temple
    at the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon. Now
    a man who was lame from birth was being carried to the
    temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day
    to beg from those going into the temple courts. When he
    saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money.
    Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said,
    “Look at us!” So the man gave them his attention, expecting
    to get something from them. Then Peter said, “Silver or gold
    I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of
    Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” (Acts 3:1-6)

Peter didn’t consider the man as just another beggar and stroll past him.
He stopped, listened to the man, then gave him some valuable information.
Peter knew that this beggar needed a relationship with Jesus, but he also
recognized he had some personal needs as well (he needed to be able to walk).

Peter also learned that whenever he served Jesus, not everyone would be
receptive to his efforts.
    The priests and the captain of the temple guard and
    the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they
    were speaking to the people. They were greatly
    disturbed because the apostles were teaching the
    people, proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the
    dead. They seized Peter and John and, because it was
    evening, they put them in jail until the next day.
    (Acts 4:1-3)

When Jesus explained to Peter that he did not understand some things at
that time, He was preparing Peter to become a servant not only for Jesus,
but for others as well. Jesus knew it was important for Peter to realize that
serving Him could have unexpected complications. More than likely Jesus
was also preparing Peter for His crucifixion. Why? So he would understand
that he must stay the course, regardless of the consequences of his efforts.

We can learn several things from God’s Word:
    – We need salvation and to have a relationship with the Lord.
    – Being saved means we become part of the ministry team of Jesus.
    – God has specific individual tasks
        that He expects each of us to perform as we serve Him.
    – Being a servant of the Lord means we are also servants of others.
    – We aren’t saved to be served, but to serve
        (in whatever capacity the Lord has equipped us to serve).
    – Serving the Lord doesn’t mean everyone will be receptive to
        our concerns for them and our efforts to share the ‘Good News’.
    – We need to stay the course when serving the Lord and avoid
        being influenced by the things or people of the world that can
        cause us to stray from what pleases God.

ACTION:
How do you feel about serving the Lord? Are there any “things” which
make you apprehensive about serving Him? Have you discovered the
spiritual gift God has given you? When we receive salvation, God gives
His people at least one spiritual gift that equips us to serve Him.

It might be in some area we never expected. Why would He do that? More
than likely it is so that we will know we need to depend on Him as we serve
(dependence on God prevents us from becoming independent and trying to
do everything in our own strength, which could lead to feeding our ego).

Do you have at least one person in your life who will listen and respond
when you need them? Are there others who can depend on you to listen
to them and their concerns? Serving the Lord includes serving others;
do you have the attitude of a servant, or do you feel others should serve
you?

When you have needs, can you set them aside temporarily when you know
someone else needs you? Are you able to put their needs ahead of your own?
Do you enjoy lifting the spirits of others and encouraging them when they
are down, even when you have a need for encouragement yourself? When
is the last time you did something special for someone without being asked
or expecting anything in return; you just sensed that they needed a ‘lift’.

How good of a listener are you? If you think someone needs your advice, do
you patiently wait until they ask you? We need to realize that the best way
to be a friend is to not do all the talking. Quite often, others need a trusted
friend who will just listen to them.

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, my desire is to be more like Jesus. Help me
to understand what I need to do so I will be more like Him. Your
Word tells me that I need to be more concerned about serving than
I am about being served. I know that when I am more focused on
the needs of others, I will become less selfish and self-centered. Help
me to ‘stay the course’ of serving You, even during the times when I
am discouraged. I trust that You will be my encourager at all times,
and especially when others are unavailable or unconcerned. Thank
You Jesus for establishing the model for us to follow as children of
God.”

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