“When Jesus saw that they were ready to force him to be their king, he slipped away into the hills by himself” (John 6:15 NLT).

Humility: The Servant King

 Being raised on a dirt farm, in a share-cropping family, humility was essentially forced upon me by the harshness of the labor, but Jesus voluntarily left His royal throne in Paradise and humbled Himself by taking on the form of a bondservant (Philippians 2:7). Then He, the divine Son of God, said this: “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matt. 20:28).

In John 6, the people got so excited when they saw the miracle of the fishes and the loaves performed by Jesus that they wanted to make Him a king, their earthly king! Instead of allowing them to distract Him from His mission, He slipped away and went up into the hills alone. He was not on a mission of popularity. He was on a mission of servanthood that would cost His life.

 But wait! Aren’t we, as men and women of the cloth, supposed to be served by others, and bask in the praises of people, especially when we stand in front of a congregation!  NO! We are servants! Like Jesus, we have a responsibility to humble ourselves and abstain from the very appearance of arrogance. But didn’t they spread palm branches and coats in Jesus’ path while shouting high praises to Him?  Yes, and He would remind us that it was when He was on His way to be crucified!

 Jesus, the King of kings and Lord of lords resisted the efforts of men to make him a king, choosing rather to take on the form of a servant. He is our true role model, a model of humility and our servant King. And anyone who claims to know Him or represent Him must also be like Him.

Focus Quote: “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus… He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2: 5, 8b NKJV

                                                               
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