Releasing Recognition for Something Better

We all like a little recognition! None of us like to be ignored, dismissed, unappreciated. Most of us want to add value, to participate, to make a difference, right?

Jesus told His disciples, "When a servant comes in from plowing or taking care of sheep, does his master say, 'Come in and eat with me'? No, he says, 'Prepare my meal, put on your apron, and serve me while I eat. Then you can eat later.' And does the master thank the servant for doing what he was told to do? Of course not. In the same way, when you obey me you should say, 'We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.'" Luke 17:7-10

Ouch! Who would want to follow such a master? Who would treat their employees like the master in this parable? What does it feel like to be called an unworthy servant/ slave? Putting myself in the story, what do I feel like? To be honest, I would feel very uncomfortable ordering servants around like Jesus is here!

Jesus' attitude is unexpected and disturbing.

But, He is Lord! Jesus is Lord. I am His servant! This fact remains. The proper attitude toward my Lord is not to expect what He does or does not do for me. It is not to concern myself with how He treats me or responds to my efforts on His behalf. This is upside down and backwards and leads to a confusion of epic proportions. How often, when I have gotten it upside down and worried/ concerned myself with how I am being treated hasn't it messed my heart and my attitude up? It is a healthy response to say, "I am an unworthy servant, and I have simply done my duty!" I drop all claims-for I have none. Not one!

And yet...

As I look around at my life, as I dive into the words and actions of my Lord Jesus, I notice something else: Our Lord Jesus does not act like the master in this parable! (Luke 19:17, 19; Matthew 25:21, 23; John 15:15) He does reward me! He does welcome me to the table! He does serve me! He calls me friend and brother, and not servant. Oh, what a humbling service! He even forgives those who do not "simply do their duty." He goes as far as dying for the slave!What abounding grace! What generosity!

"It is because of Himself and not because of us and our work. Once for all learn: if we think we ought to receive recognition at the Lord's hands for our service, which is imperfect and poor at best and not to be compared with that of the slave in the parable, we are doing an outrageous and utterly presumptuous thing. We are then turning His wholly undeserved grace, His glorious generosity, which is so glorious just because He gives it without the least merit on our part, into nothing more than a mere payment that is coming to us by right and justice. Can the Lord consent to such a double lie?" pg. 873 "The Interpretation of St. Luke's Gospel" R.C.H Lenski

How freeing, then, to simply do our duty, not seeking any acknowledgement, any acclaim, any recognition, but understanding our place as servants of our Most High Lord Jesus, and in the process, receiving, gratefully, the bountiful generosity of our Savior who came not to be served, but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for me?

A New Command

Open your bible. Go ahead, I'll wait. Open to John 13 and consider Jesus. Notice His love in two moves, two acts:

Act 1 Jesus Loves
1 Before the Passover celebration, Jesus knew that his hour had come to leave this world and return to his Father. He had loved his disciples during his ministry on earth, and now he loved them to the very end. 2 It was time for supper, and the devil had already prompted Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. 3 Jesus knew that the Father had given him authority over everything and that he had come from God and would return to God. 4 So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, 5 and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him.
6 When Jesus came to Simon Peter, Peter said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
7 Jesus replied, “You don’t understand now what I am doing, but someday you will.”
8 “No,” Peter protested, “you will never ever wash my feet!”
Jesus replied, “Unless I wash you, you won’t belong to me.”
9 Simon Peter exclaimed, “Then wash my hands and head as well, Lord, not just my feet!”

What strikes you about this first act? Is it the fact that Jesus washes feet? Is it that Peter protested? It can be difficult for us to accept love from others, from God, from Jesus. Where do you need to accept His love today?


Act 2 Jesus Sends Us To Love
12 After washing their feet, he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, “Do you understand what I was doing? 13 You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and you are right, because that’s what I am. 14 And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. 15 I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you. 16 I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message. 17 Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them....34 So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. 35 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”

Act 1 must be completed before Act 2 is possible. To whom is God sending you? Who needs to be served in your life? Who needs the love of Jesus given specifically through you today? If you don't go and wash their feet (serve) who will?

Be A Blessing!

Good questions can open the door to meaningful conversations and powerful actions. Here's an example:

What good can we do around here?

If you sit with this one long enough you will uncover individual passions, and collective group potential. You will begin to see the need of the people who surround you and the unique calling that God might be nudging your group to answer.

What are some other questions that can lead a group of people to move with Christ's compassion to be a blessing?