A brief prayer is offered that you can add to your daily prayers. The scripture is from our Sunday Service Bulletin. We are in a series of sermons regarding Christian love that looks at the life of the early Christians and today’s topic is “Diakonia” [dee-ak-on-ee'-ah] a Greek word meaning “service or ministering”.
Mark 10: 42-45 (English Standard Version)
42 And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 43 But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.
Devotion: “Diakonia”
The author, John Mark, is describing how Jesus is turning the world upside down. To be great you must be a servant?!? Whomever wants to be first must be a slave?!? What?!? Jesus does not mean we can’t be ambitious or industrious but these behaviors must not push aside obedience and service to God. As one of my Pastor friends says: “If God can humble Himself for us, we must not be puffed up and believe we are above the position to be a humble servant of Him”. He is saying that those who lead in the Kingdom of God serve others in humility. I have a Diakonia mission statement for you that is as simple as “A, B, C”. Accept: God accepts us as we are, we should accept others. Believe: Believe that God knows what he is doing by selecting me to carry on in His mission. He picked me—I had no choice. Commit: His way -- not my way, be a willing Diakonos servant. Commit to serve. You can do this and be an answer to someone’s prayer.
Pray: Lord, you picked me—tell me how to serve. Amen
Blessings,
Joe
1. Knowing yourself: Is God calling you to better serve Him? Is there a situation where you could step in and make a difference in someone’s life? Find a close friend or maybe your spouse to talk about this. You’ll be surprised at the opportunities that open up.
2. Scripture: Please read Matthew 20:28. In this passage as well at Mark 10:45 the Greek word “lytron” was used and transliterated as “ransom” which means natively “release or redemption.” These two passages are the only two occurrences of that Gree
k word in the New Testament. Please comment on the relation of the meaning of “ransom” versus “release or redemption.”3. Application: Based on personal answers to Question 1, and your A-B-C plan, what should you do? [Hint: Be ready, someone may be preparing to ask you to serve.]