Matthew 20:20-28 "A Heart for Service"

Read Matthew 20:20-28.

"...just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve,and to give his life as a ransom for many." NIV

Here's a big surprise to many people who confess Christianity, we are here to serve. We are not here to soak up knowledge like a sponge. It is good to gain knowledge, but then we must put it to work. We are not here to make money. Although if we are blessed with a good paying job, we can certainly help out God's work financially. We are not here to gain more power. We are not here to sit on our backsides and complain. We are not here to let everyone else serve us.

Jesus demonstrated that we are all called to serve others. Now what that looks like will be different for different people. God has placed us all in various places on this globe at various times in history to do various jobs for Him. He's uniquely gifted each of us and will use those gifts to meet the needs of others and glorify Him. But no matter where we are, our service opportunities will range from large acts such as helping someone rebuild their home after a disaster to the smallest acts of service such as holding a door open for someone. God wants our eyes to be constantly on the lookout for someone needing us to serve them.

However, before our eyes can see, our hearts must be in an attitude of giving and it begins with surrender. Surrender to my agenda and submission to God's. This is not easy to do and I'm constantly working to do better. I am definitely a list person. I wake up in the morning thinking through the list of things I need to accomplish that day. Can you imagine Jesus doing that? "Okay, I'm going to heal three blind people, one lame, and two deaf today."

Jesus lived in the moment of need. We see several times where he was walking one place and was interrupted with someone calling Him over to heal them or taking Him to their home to heal their child. And because Jesus had such a high level of compassion and a heart to serve, He went.

Now I know we still have to do the things we need to do to live and pay bills. But it wouldn't hurt me to focus more on living in the moment and letting God interrupt my schedule to go serve someone who needs it.

Lord, increase my heart compassion for others and their needs. Help me to remain focused on Your redirection from my daily tasks. Don't let me miss the moment because it doesn't fit my schedule.

Further Thoughts:

1. Look up Scripture with the word "serve" or "service." What are the situations noted where we are to serve?
2. Is it easy for you to get caught up in the "to do's" of life? Ask the Lord to open your eyes to the needs around you.