Tag: servant
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Relating Relationally
Genesis 24:1–27, Ruth 2:1–16, 1 Corinthians 7:1–9, Hebrews 11:13–22 (read online ⧉) Arranged marriages are nothing new. Many arranged marriages were and are political, financial, or just friends “knowing” their children should be together. The story of Isaac and Rebekah doesn’t quite fall into those lines, but it is still an arranged marriage. Just like…
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Servant and Service
Isaiah 44:21-23, Matthew 20:22–28, John 12:26 (read online ⧉) What is a servant? That isn’t a small question. In fact, in our culture, it is a huge thing. The cultural implications are generally demeaning (Alfred notwithstanding). That probably has a lot to do with the cultural wound of slavery, when humans claimed ownership of others.…
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Power of Service
Mark 10:42–45, John 21:15–17, 1 Peter 4:7–11 Power to control. That’s what Jesus is talking about in the passage in Mark. The Gentile “rulers” (though the same applied to many of the Pharisees and scribes, as well) lorded their power, influence, and wealth over others, and controlled them. When this passage is used, often we…
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Faithful Servanthood
Psalm 127, Matthew 25:14–30, Luke 22:35–38 The question is often asked, “when you get to Heaven, what do you want to hear?” The common answer is, “well done, good and faithful servant.” It is a feel-good statement. Truthfully, we would all like to hear that from God. In the parable, the servants were given money…
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Be Strange
Joshua 7:3–15, 1 Thessalonians 4:1–12 The pivotal character in the book Dune at one point talks about having a “stamp of strangeness” put upon him. This stamp was definitely a different context, yet “stamp of strangeness” was and is exactly what God does to us when he calls us and we accept him. When the…
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Boundaries of Service
Numbers 32:16–22, Matthew 3:13–17, John 13:1–17, 2 Corinthians 5:14–17 Service takes many forms. We are often tied into our mind’s understanding of service, and thus become blind to what service can look like. In the case of Reubenites and Gadites, their service took place in the form of aiding their fellow Israelites to secure the…
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Family Issues Galore
Genesis 29:21–30:24, Genesis 35:16–20 Jacob’s family relationships (as we read yesterday) were already a mess. His Uncle Laban did not help relational stability by setting up his own daughters to have discord in their marriage. The consequence is that sister wives fought over their husband. They also used their servant-women as bargaining chips. From our…
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The Greatest
Luke 22:24–30, Philippians 2:1–11 “I am the greatest,” said Muhammad Ali before his match with Sonny Liston. Michael Phelps is the greatest. Usain Bolt is the greatest. They can’t all be the greatest. Yet, Muhammad Ali was the greatest boxer, for a time. Michael Phelps remains the greatest Olympic swimmer, for the time being. Usain Bolt…