Scripture

Luke 1:38

“And Mary said, ‘Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.’ And the angel departed from her.”

Muse

As our Advent series continues, we come to Mary’s response to the news the angel Gabriel has delivered her. Mary could have easily asked a handful of different questions to Gabriel: “Why me?”, “How am I going to do this?”, or “what will others think of me?” But rather than doubt and question the plan the Lord had given her, she embraced it without any hesitation. Let us sit and think about the implications of what Mary was agreeing to. For starters, she was agreeing to bear a child outside of marriage. Don’t you think she would’ve known that she would be the talk of the town of Galilee? She lived in a time when the law allowed for her to be put to death for a “suspicious” pregnancy. But Mary, knowing the possible social repercussions, stood boldly and embraced what the Lord had commanded. And why could she stand bold on this plan? Because she knew that the Lord’s word was good and that she served a Lord that fulfilled his promises.

Servanthood is something scattered all throughout the Bible. Whether it be in the Old Testament with heroes like Abraham and Moses, or in New Testament examples like Paul, James, and Timothy. But despite all these great servant-hearted saints, there is one that is the servant of all servants: Jesus Christ.

“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

Having a servant heart is a key trait for disciples of Christ because Christ was the ultimate servant when he secured the gift of salvation through bearing the cross.

Our World

The Christmas season is truly marked by servanthood. Through a universal lens, this normally includes buying presents for loved ones and serving those in need during the holiday season. But as Christ’s followers, we have an even greater inspiration for doing these things: we see this season as a time to serve the Lord (often by serving others!) because we are remembering the greatest present ever given, Christ. But we shouldn’t just use the month of December to embrace a servant's heart. When I was planning this entry, I found an article talking about the apostle Paul’s servant heart. Specifically, it discussed this verse:

“For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them” (1 Corinthians 9:19).

How often are you leveraging your life to serve different people, all for the glory of God? I know for myself the answer is “very rarely.” I want you all to do something. I’m going to pose a question, and I want you all to close your eyes and visualize your answer(s). Here’s the question: Who are people—who if they called you right now asking for help— you would help without hesitation?... Now, a follow up question. How many were believers? I know for me, it’s all of them. Now, it’s not a bad thing for us to be surrounded by community and to have brothers and sisters in Christ that we would be willing to help at a moment’s notice. But we should also seek to serve those that don’t know the Lord. I want to challenge you all to do something this week: Think of one friend or person in your life who doesn’t know Christ. I want you to think of a way to serve them. Though I’m asking you as an advent-contributor to do this, think about Jesus’ posture of love-inspired servanthood. Think of Mary—whom we are not all that unlike—and her willingness to serve her King. How can we, through our actions to others, say with Mary that “we too are the servants of the Lord”?

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank you for this time to reflect on your living word. Thank you for the testimony of Mary’s unflinching servanthood to you. We ask that you make us humble and small and grant us servant hearts. To serve the body of Christ, the lost, and—most importantly— you. Change our hearts to serve out of a place of love for you and not out of a place of personal exaltation. We pray that there will be footprints of the Gospel wherever we go. We pray this in Jesus’ name.

Amen