To understand what a servant of light is, we must begin with
Jesus – for when we understand who we are in Jesus Christ the mental weight of servant hood is lifted.
Thomas Jefferson is quoted as saying, "Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving
his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental
attitude."
We have heard the saying "Attitude is everything." Our mindset can either limit us or make us achieve what we never thought possible.
The level of realization of who we are in Christ will greatly affect how we look and undertake what a true servant is. We fail to develop a servant's mindset with our lack of realization of who we are in Christ Jesus. Peter says, "But those who fail to develop these virtues are blind or,
at least, very shortsighted. They have forgotten that God has cleansed
them from their old life of sin." 2 Peter 1:9.
In our old life we were filled with pride and self ambition or self-pity. Pride only led to inflated self perception which became a wedge of division if anyone put down, negated, defeated, contradicted our thoughts and opinions. Self ambition and self-pity made us only see ourselves, our needs, our strengths and our weaknesses and our wants according to what we envied in others people's lives. We were blind to everything but what was in our mental closet. We played, and danced, and lived in the masquerade ball but when we finally got a real good look at our reflection we saw nothing on earth could help us. We had no fairy god mother to keep the truth from revealing itself.
We followed the desires of our sinful nature just as Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. And when the truth was revealed to them they tried to cover their nakedness just a people try to cover up themselves today in many varieties of things such pride, arrogance, addictions, in the friends they keep, the way they dress, the jobs they have, the way they change their appearance such botox injections and hair dye and lots of make up. What are they trying to cover up?
I watched a woman once come onto an airplane. She sat down, powdered her face, blended, added blush and crimped her eye lashes, put on eye liner, eye shadow, and darkened her eyelashes - and by the time she was done putting on these things on her natural pleasant face, she looked like an entirely different person. She looked like a completely different person from when she first got on the plane.
Everyone's facades will be exposed no matter if they are. Why do people try to hide who they really are? The only one they are trying to fool is themselves.
It's them, themselves, who will have to stand before God - not those they have tried to fool to cover up who they really are. Is it a sin to put on make-up -of course not! That is not my point. My point is... people use all kind of things to cover up who they are. Why are they trying to cover up to be something they are not. Before I was saved, I used anger to cover up my insecurity.
God is all truth and when truth comes looking at them in their reflection and they see nothing on earth can help them... hopefully, for their valuable soul's sake, they come to God instead of continue down the path to another masquerade.
It's in the mind not reality.
Ask any military veteran what is worst, the physical wounds and mental wounds and I can guarantee most of them will say the mental wounds cut deeper and last longer then the physical ones.
The enemy of our soul continually goes after our mind just as he did with Adam and Eve. Nothing has changed. If Satan can tie up the mind of a person in psychological garbage of this world, confusion, and warfare then he has nothing to worry about from that person. The people in this world are lost in the mindset of the world but Christians, you don't have to be! And you can be a helping vessel to help those lost in the tossing and roaring ocean of life.
People are tried of just existing and living day to day, they want to live a meaningful life! The only way to a meaningful life is through Christ Jesus. We too can be endangered of falling into the same thinking if we lose sight of Christ. We too can end up chasing after things that are meaningless and never satisfying and find ourselves in the tossing oceans of doubt and uncertainty and hopelessness. Our hope in Jesus Christ is our only anchor and allows us to experience things we didn't think possible which enriches and encourages the Christian soul to endure.
"This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary." Hebrews 6:19
You cannot be a light if your life is based on meaningless worldly things but to be a servant of light amongst darkness is like being one of those lights on the airport runway or a lit up pointing the way to Jesus Christ and our Heavenly Father.
Ephesians 6:17 says, "Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."
Paul is saying, put on Christ and all he IS! Who is Christ? What does the Spirit of God say to you as you read his word? Who are you and I to be?!
“To accept Christ as
all he is, is to find who we are and who we are truly meant to be in God.”
– J.D. JOHNS
The Four Facades of Jesus Christ
In the book Ezekiel, Chapter 1, it talks about these “beings”
with four faces.
They had a face
of
human, a face of
lion, a face of an
ox, and a face an
eagle.
These four faces represent the gospels
of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
All four of these gospels are a picture of and represent a dimension or aspect (qualities and characteristics) of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The book of Matthew
is the symbol of the
lion.
It is
written to the Jewish people.
Jesus
is the Lion of Judah.
The King of
Kings! Lord of Lords!
"THE KING" who was prophesied about to Jewish people in scriptures "THE KING" had to be a descendant of King David.
Jesus was a descendant of King David on both his earthly father's side and mother's side. Joseph and Mary were both descendants of King David.
"Behold, [the] days are coming," says the LORD, "That I will raise to
David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And
execute judgment and righteousness in the earth." Jeremiah 23:5
"During the reigns of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a
kingdom that will never be destroyed or conquered. It will crush all
these kingdoms into nothingness, and it will stand forever." Daniel 2:44
"For when you die and join your ancestors, I will raise up one of your descendants, one of your sons, and I will make his kingdom strong. He is the one who will build a house- a temple-for me. And I will secure his throne forever. I will be his father, and he will be my son. I will never take my favor from him as I took it from the one who ruled before you. I will confirm him as king over my house and my kingdom for all time, and his throne will be secure forever." 1 Chronicles 17:11-14
Jesus was also a descendant of Abraham.
"This is my covenant with you: I will make you the father of a multitude of nations! What's more, I am changing your name. It will no longer be Abram. Instead, you will be called Abraham, for you will be the father of many nations. I will make you extremely fruitful. Your descendants will become many nations, and kings will be among them!"I will confirm my covenant with you and your descendants after you, from generation to generation. This is the everlasting
covenant: I will always be your God and the God of your descendants
after you." Genesis 17:4-7
Jesus is the perfect King. His kingdom is the everlasting kingdom of heaven which the everlasting covenant with Abraham. All other kingdoms will pass away but his kingdom will last forever.
Revelation 5:5 "But one of the twenty-four elders said to me, "Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the heir to David's throne, has conquered. He is worthy to open the scroll and break its seven seals."
The book of Luke
is the symbol of a man. It is written to the Greeks, and one Greek in particular "Theophilus" which means "lover of God or friend of God". Theophilus also received what we know as the book of Acts from Luke as well. Luke's aspect of Jesus was Jesus is the "perfect" man. He was a man without sin. The first man, Adam brought sin and death to humanity because he and his wife Eve believed Satan and ate from the tree which God told Adam not to eat from. Adam and Eve's betrayal gave power to sin and curses upon the earth but Jesus, brought power and freedom from sin to those who believe in him.
The book of John
is the symbol of an eagle. It is written to us- the church and the world. The eagle represents sovereignty, majesty, and the supremacy of Jesus Christ.
The book of Mark
is the symbol of an ox or calf. It is to the Romans. Roman society had a mindset of being servant. They were to serve the authority over them. Those the Romans took over became servants and slaves of the Roman society, work force and even to the Roman cause- such as Roman axillary armies in the Northern Europe. The ox represents the perfect servant. Jesus Christ is the perfect servant.
Jesus Christ is King of kings, Lord of lords; He is the perfect man
(without any sin). He has sovereignty and supremacy over everything, and he is
the perfect servant.
So what does that have to do with us being a servant of light?
We are to serve others but that is hard to do if we are putting a "requirement" on it. If we are putting some "have to" burden on it or some "emphasis" that puts us in the wrong mindset. Our mindset must be on who we are in Jesus Christ- not what the world may think of or desire for us or even a religious perspective.
A.W. Tozer is quoted as, "Until the will is sanctified the man is still a rebel just as an outlaw
is still an outlaw at heart even though he may be yielding grudging
obedience to the sheriff who is taking him to prison."
What is the will stimulated and encouraged by? The world, the church, yourself or Christ?
We need to be stimulated and encouraged by God and who we are in God/Christ Jesus.
The Lion: You and I serve a mighty God in Jesus Christ. Our heritage and lineage is in GOD -
thanks to Jesus Christ - His throne and kingdom will last forever. You and I maybe nothing important in the sight of this
world but in the sight of God you are HIS child. You and I are a king,
a prince, and a royal priesthood. Jesus
is King and Savior of your life. If Jesus is our brother and he is King then what does that make us? If he is High Priest what does that make us? If he is the Prince of Peace then what does that make us. If he is the Lion of Judah, what does that make us?
Jesus said, “Anyone who
does the will of my Father in heaven in my brother and sister and mother!” Matthew 12:50. (NLT)
1 Peter 2:9 says, " But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a dedicated nation, [God’s] own purchased, special people, that you may set forth the wonderful deeds and display the virtues and perfections of Him Who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light." (AMP)
Matthew 5:9 Jesus said, "God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God."
Proverbs 28:1 says “The wicked flee when no man pursues them, but the [uncompromisingly] righteous are bold as a lion." (AMP)
We are not to live contingent on how the world sees us or treats us or even how we perceive ourselves but
live in the assurance of a child of God. You don't work and serve others because you "have to" but because you "want to". Jesus said “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. " Mathew 6:31-33
You are a child of God!
The Perfect Man: We serve Jesus Christ the perfect man that never sinned. He withstood every test in this life so he will help us withstand the tests that come into our life as well as we trust him. The
perfect man presents himself to God and seeks the appointments and will of God
in their life. We are to read and meditate on the words of the bible as directed by the Spirit of God and allow God's Spirit to teach us and provide us with daily tasks that put those powerful teachings to work.
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has appointed
me to preach Good News to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the
blind will see, that the downtrodden will be freed from their oppressors, and
that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.” Luke 4:18-19.
"If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that. But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect." Matthew 5:47-48
"That is why we have a great High Priest who has gone into heaven, Jesus the Son of God. Let us cling to him and never stop trusting him. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same temptations we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy and will find grace to help us when we need it." Hebrews 4:14-16
The Eagle: We serve Jesus Christ who is justice and truth. He reigns on the throne of heaven and should reign in our hearts and in our lives to touch others.
“Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see
me no more. Judgment will come
because the prince of this world has already been judged. Oh, there is so much more I want to
tell you, but you can’t bear it now.
When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not be presenting his own
ideas; he will be telling you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. He will bring me glory by revealing to you whatever he receives
from me. All that the Father
has is mine; that is what I mean when I say that the Spirit will reveal to you
whatever he receives from me. John 16:10-15.
“But when the Holy Spirit has
come upon you, you will receive power and will tell people about me everywhere-
in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Acts 1:8
"The truth is, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works because I am going to be with the Father. You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, because the work of the Son brings glory to the Father. Yes, ask anything in my name and I will do it!" John 14:12-14
The Ox: The perfect servant. “You know
that in this world kings are tyrants, and officials lord it over the people
beneath them. But among you it
should be quite different. Whoever
wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be
first must be the slave of all.
For even I, the Son of Man, came here not to be served but to serve
others, and to give my life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:42-45.
"'And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. The second is equally important: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' No other command is greater then these." Mark 12:30-31
See a need- pray for and if
you can provide for that need.
As Christians directed by the Spirit of God, we move in these four directions (The way of the lion, the way of the perfect man, the way of the eagle and the way of the ox) just as the beings did in Ezekiel. Ezekiel 1:9-17
It’s impossible to be a "content and satisfied" servant of light if we
don’t allow God to continually remind us of all these things which bring a ruling peace to our heart as we attend to what the Lord directs.
Those
who are secure in Jesus can be servants of others -without feeling
lesser of a person.
May God richly bless us in who we are in Christ Jesus so we may do freely- without some grudging requirement. May He heal our spiritual blindness that so easily hinders us from being all he wants us to be in this life. May we live as light to this world by first seeing who we are in the light, then the light that floods our soul will be graciously and freely shine upon others. In Jesus Name I ask Amen.
“Your eye is a lamp for your body. A pure eye lets sunshine into your
soul. But an evil eye shuts out
the light and plunges you into darkness.
If the light you think you have is really darkness, how deep that
darkness will be!” Matthew
6:22
"You are the light of the world- like a city on a mountain, glowing in the night for all to see. Don't hide your light under a basket! Instead, put it on a stand and let it shine for all. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father."
Matthew 5:14
Extra:
We are our Heavenly Father's children but to really know who we are in Jesus Christ is like being arrows in his quiver. Are ready to be sent?
"Unless the LORD builds a house, the work of the builder is useless. Unless the LORD protects a city, guarding it with sentries will do no good. It is useless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night, anxiously working for food to eat; for God gives rest to his loved ones." Psalm 127:1-2
Thank you for reading.
