Living As Christ Taught Us To Live

Mark 10:42-45

Living As Christ Taught Us To Live

     And calling them to Himself, Jesus said to them, “You know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles lord is over them. But it is not so among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant; And whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

     To be a servant of all is our great commission from God and it is the greatest honor to be in service to one another. It removes the burden of wondering how we should live and what we should focus on with the future of our life ahead of us. It simplifies so many things and so many questions. Jesus clarifies this life of laying down our lives for the sake of others, in chapter 10 verses 29-30. “Truly I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brother or sister or mother or father or children or farms, for My sake and for the Gospel’s sake, but that he shall receive a hundred times as much now in the present age, houses and brothers and sisters and mother and children and farms, along with persecution; and in the age to come, eternal life.” I think about the rich man who Jesus tells, “One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess, and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come follow me.” 10:21 Jesus doesn’t say - consider what you have as not your own and follow me, but rather, step out in faith and be the servant of your brothers and sisters who are worthy of your going out of your way, and at great sacrifice, to bless them. How will we ever experience the joy of following Christ if we are afraid to let go of the world to do what He has asked of us?

     I was recently reading the history of the Jews at the time of Rome’s final destruction of their land and how lawless the people of Israel had become at that time, engaging in all manner of robbery, plundering and killing of one another so that no one who had anything of value was safe. They were either in fear of their lives or facing the loss of all things. It said that no one who had anything of value was safe from these attacks. So Jesus’ counsel to the rich man in light of these events was to his blessing - using his riches to attain riches in heaven rather than losing it all only a short time later and maybe his life as well.

     So where do we stand? When do we finally take Jesus’ counsel and actually apply it to our daily lives? If we do, only then will we bless Him for His foresight into the future, and thank Him for allowing us to reap heavenly wages for what we would have ultimately lost in the end either by outward circumstances or death. I did not start this message with the view of going down this aspect of it however we would all do well to consider these things and question how far each of us has been truly willing to go for the sake of Christ and the spreading of the Gospel. There is only one path in front of us as Christians and it is the joyful path of following in the footsteps of our Master, as a servant of all.

     Let us love the Lord with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength and take these final words to heart. 8:34-38 “If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s shall save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul? For what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”

     God bless you all!