Scripture:
Mark 10:35-45
Thu, 15 December 2022

Serve a Friend

Observation:

How is greatness defined in verses 43 to 44?

Deeper Reflection
THE PHRASE “SERVANT LEADERSHIP” WAS COINED BY Robert K. Greenleaf in 1970.12 Greenleaf ’s model of servant leadership may be applied to secular contexts today, but its roots are found in the life and teaching of Christ, who came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (v.45).Jesus seized a teachable moment to instruct his disciples about servant leadership. James and John, members of Jesus’s inner circle, had come to him with an audacious request: to be honoured with thrones to the right and left of Jesus when Jesus ushered in the Kingdom of God and was crowned as King (v.37). They were happy to exalt Jesus, as long as they were exalted too! Jesus responded to his disciples’ worldly request by first rejecting the world’s system of greatness: “but it shall not be so among you!” (v.43a) Next, he redefined being great as becoming a servant, or worse, a slave (v.43b-44). In the Roman Empire, slaves had the lowest status and no rights at all – and seemed like the antithesis of greatness!Jesus’s teaching on being a servant is profound and profoundly difficult to live out. Yet, if He has commanded it, He will empower us to serve others as He has served us. Will we obey and find practical ways to serve someone today? Not just someone we like and love, but the last, least and the lost? May we thereby point them to the Servant King!
12 “What is servant leadership?”, Robert K. Greenleaf Centre for Servant Leadership, accessed 12 October 2022, https://www.greenleaf.org/what-is-servant-leadership/
Application:

Perform an act of kindness that serves the need of a friend or family member

Prayer:
Write a prayer to God as your response from your meditation on and application of the Scriptures.
Prayer Pointers:
  • Give thanks and praise
  • Pray for Outreach/Missions/New Life leaders: To lead our church to serve the community around Covenant EFC, in the love of Christ
  • Pray for significant people
  • Pray for those in need
  • Pray for self

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Daily Devo
Daily Devotional Journal
Scripture:
Daniel 5:17, 25-31; 6:1-2
Mon, 5 June 2023

Serving from Babylon to Persia

Observation:

What is the significance of Daniel serving in the Babylonian and Persian
courts successively?

Deeper Reflection
God’s word to Belshazzar that He would “put an end” to his kingdom and give it “over to the Medes and Persians” was fulfilled immediately – “that same night” (v.30) – after Daniel’s interpretation of the inscription on the wall (vv.25-31). God can fulfil His Word immediately or after a long time. Whatever time God may take to fulfil His Word, He is “trustworthy in all His promises and faithful in all He does” (Psa 145:13b, NIV).The demise of the Babylonian hegemony was not just a historical event, but primarily a theological one. Nebuchadnezzar was “My servant” whom God raised to judge His unfaithful people in the seventy-year Babylonian exile (Jer 25:8-9, 11). When God had accomplished His purpose through Babylon, “I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation” (Jer 25:12). This is how God deals with arrogant and evil nations: “And Babylon, the beauty of kingdoms, the glory of the Chaldeans’ pride, will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah” (Isa 13:19).The end of Babylon does not mean an insecure future for Daniel. However drastically our circumstances may change, God’s call for our lives remains when we walk with Him faithfully. We are secure in God’s call, because it is God’s call. Daniel became one of “the three commissioners” in Persia (Dan 6:1-2). It wasn’t that having lost his job Daniel applied to serve the Persian king. Daniel couldn’t do that. It was purely by royal appointment. But behind the “It seemed good to Darius to appoint” (Dan 6:1) was God’s call for Daniel to serve Him from Babylon to Persia.
Application:

How do I relate God’s call for me in drastic changes of my life situations?

Prayer:
Lord, I believe You have a calling for my life which You have intended to be distinctive for me. I want to live my life with a deep sense of answering Your calling. Help me to walk with You faithfully, knowing that as I do so, You will unfold Your plans for me in that calling. Grant me wisdom and understanding to discern Your calling for my life.
Prayer Pointers:
  • Give thanks and praise
  • Pray for leaders
  • Pray for significant people
  • Pray for those in need
  • Pray for self
 

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Download this General Fund for BPJ QR Code  and upload it to your banking app via your gallery/album. 

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