The Unprofitable Servants

Good morning and welcome to Our Daily Walk.

Audio version at http://tinyurl.com/2ntdgv

Imagine if you will that one of the richest men in the world chose you to come and be his butler. He would pay off all of your debts, grant you a portion of his inheritance and allow you to live in a mansion of extreme luxury and beauty. His only condition of you is that you do whatever he asks you to do. Would you take the job?

Imagine what a life that would be! No worries about bills. Live in luxury. Plant a few flowers. Serve three meals a day to the boss. That would be a very cushy job for sure.

In that arrangement do you think it would be wise to consider yourself on the same level as your generous boss? Certainly not. Could you see yourself jeopardizing your position by refusing to do whatever the boss asked you to do? I would think not.

Sometimes people let a position go to their head. They may think more highly of themselves than they ought to think. In this process, humility and obedience are overshadowed by self-righteousness and an elevated self-worth.

Jesus tells a parable intended in part to keep the disciples in a humble mind of service. While they were granted the powers to work miracles and enjoyed the blessings of being with Jesus, the human tendency would have been to be tempted by pride or self-exaltation.

But in the service of our Lord, our labors are to be in humble service to our Lord. We should guard against the thought that our efforts somehow “earn” or “merit” our salvation.

Here is that reading from Luke 17:5-10.

And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”

So the Lord said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you. And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’? Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’”

I’ve seen Christians who regrettably retire from active service to the church due to health constraints. They desire to do more, but their bodies and minds will no longer allow it.

In contrast I’ve also seen Christians who have done very little in service to the Lord and then will stop and rest on their accomplishments as if to say, “I’ve done my part now. I’ve earned my place.”

Paul teaches in 1 Corinthians 12 that the body of Christ is comprised of many members. Each member has a role or a job to perform and the entire body is dependent on each part working properly. But these roles are not undertaken in order to merit or earn our salvation. Rather they are undertaken as humble servants to One who is our Master. Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 6:20, “For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.”

We exchanged our old man of sin for a new man of righteousness. We were once lost in sin, but now we walk redeemed and free.

We gladly obey our Master and give attention to His will. We must never forget that we could never earn or merit what He has given to us. Whatever His will may be, we will humbly do as He says and still know that we are only doing what is our duty to do.

On Our Daily Walk today, may we never forget that we were bought with a price and that we are servants to our Master. May we gladly submit to do whatever He requests of us.

Our thought for the day: “Find out what God would have thee do, Perform that service well; For what is great and what is small, ‘Tis only He can tell.”

May God bless you on your daily walk.

© Our Daily Walk, Mike Baker, 2007. Permission is granted to copy these articles provided they are not sold and the author's name and copyright are included.