Jesus welcomed the people, taught them about the Kingdom of God and healed those in need. Luke 9:11

Seeds of the Kingdom

Being the Greatest

by Bernard Kariuki

The greatest among you must be a servant.
Matthew 23:11, NIV

Jesus left His heavenly throne and came down to earth (demonstrating humbleness). He came to the earth He created, to the people He created, to take a servant’s position. How can that be? He made it clear that He came not to be served, but to serve others. He knew who He was, yet He didn’t glorify Himself. He stooped down, washed disciples’ dirty feet, and associated with the lowliest people in society, such as Zaccheus and the Samaritan woman.

He knew that He was here to save the world, and yet He was so practical. He served people. I pray that we may be Jesus-like, that we may have a heart of service, that we may have a mindset of, “How can I serve others?”, rather than, “How can I be served?”. Let’s ask in which area we can be of service? How can we make people feel loved and welcomed? As Jesus has clearly demonstrated to us, to be in a position of service we first need to humble ourselves, for only the humble will be exalted. Jesus humbled Himself coming down to earth and He was lifted up to heaven. 
‘Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out for your own interest, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had’ (Philippians 2:3-5). 

It's hard not to be a bit selfish. It’s hard not to try and impress others. It’s hard to think of others as better than ourselves. It’s certainly hard to consider the interests of others, and not just our own interests. We cannot achieve this by our own carnal nature, for it will lead to frustration. As it gets harder and harder to wash the feet of others when we have our own needs, we need to come to the feet of Jesus and draw strength from Him. For it’s not by power, nor by might, but by the Spirit of God.

Let’s be humble and serve others unreservedly. Let’s have an attitude of saying, “Hello! How can I be of service to you today?” That’s how to be the greatest.

Bernard Kariuki is from Kenya, and married to Yulia from Russia. They met in Ellel Ministries and served together for many years at both Ellel Scotland and Ellel Grange. Bernard has the desire to share the Word of God with young people, for he desires to see young people walking in holy fear of the Lord.

 

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