Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else. 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. Mark 10:43-45

Devotion

If you are a tennis fan of a certain age, you probably remember the Swedish tennis player Björn Borg. He was the first man to win five straight Wimbledon championships. After winning his first title in 1976, he said: “I realized that my serve was not good enough to win Wimbledon.” So, he worked on improving his serve. Tennis writer Gene Scott later wrote: “Borg’s serve was easy and practical—like a Swiss army knife. Not overwhelming or dramatic, just very useful.” Borg’s self-analysis and work on his serve paid off. His serve got better, and he kept winning.

As Christians, we also need to develop our serve. Jesus wants each of us to improve how we serve others. Some of us have good serves that can be improved. Others have lousy serves that need a great deal of work. And if we’re being honest, there are those of us with absolutely no serve at all.

What God requires from you to serve the people he has placed around you are the gifts that he has already given you. Like Björn Borg, your serve doesn’t have to be overwhelming, dramatic, or spectacular—just useful. Use what God has given you in the place where he has placed you.

As followers of Jesus, we are called to serve out of obedience to him. Jesus sets the example for us in Mark 10 when he says: “Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else.”

It is an unfortunate truth that people are often self-centered and form habits that serve themselves, sometimes even at the cost of others. This is due to a mindset that convinces us serving ourselves is what is best and will make us happiest. However, as Christians, we are called to live differently, not like the rest of the world. We are called to serve Jesus Christ by serving others.

This call to serve not only applies outside the walls of the church, but within them as well. It is very easy to become comfortable and allow others to serve us on Sundays: to greet, to serve coffee, to collect the offering, to teach, etc. But a sign of spiritual maturity is when we move from “guest,” where we are on the receiving end of the service of others, to “host,” where we actually serve others. 

Jesus is the perfect example of service towards others. Rather than expecting others to serve him, he modeled serving with kindness and humility. His acts of service, culminating in a gruesome death on the cross, demonstrate authentic love and the true heart of a servant.

Our service to others is as an expression of our gratitude for what Jesus has done for us, especially paying the penalty for our sin by taking our place on the cross. As pastor Marq Youngblood said in a recent sermon: “We don’t do good works to become a follower of Jesus, we do good works because we are a follower of Jesus.” As we learn more about our Savior’s heart, we see people as he sees them: valued, treasured, and worthy of our love as image bearers of God. Hopefully, we learn that those Jesus called “the least of these” are the ones who are most in need of our service.

At no point does the Bible ever tell us that serving others is optional. If we claim to be followers of Jesus, then we must be serving. At Crossings, we have service opportunities within the walls of the church, out in the community, and across the globe. We have a place for you. You can start by clicking here.

Working on your serve in real life is no different than Björn Borg working on his tennis serve. It takes practice, discipline, and humility. But the more you work on it, the better your serve will become. As you use your serve more effectively, you will do far more—and have a much greater impact—than winning five straight Wimbledon titles. 

The difference you make will be eternal.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, thank you for Jesus, who came not to be served, but to serve. Forgive us for the times we choose our own comfort over helping others, and help us move from being guests to hosts in your kingdom. We want to work on our serve. It doesn't need to be dramatic or spectacular—we just want it to be useful. Take the unique gifts you have already given us and use them right where we are. Give us the humility, discipline, and vision to see people as you see them, especially those most in need. May our service be a daily expression of gratitude for what you did for us on the cross. Teach us to love like Jesus, knowing that a life spent serving others has an eternal impact. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Michael Milligan
Pastor, Missions & Outreach - OKC

Resources:

Read Improving Your Serve by Charles R. Swindoll.

Watch The Chosen—Jesus Teaches Servant Leadership.

See how you can serve through Missions! https://crossings.church/missions.

Explore other devotions like this one any time at crossings.church/devotions .