"The Distribution"

"And Jesus said, Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would." (John 6:10-11 KJV)

  "Then the LORD said to Moses, "Pay close attention to this. I will make you seem like God to Pharaoh, and your brother, Aaron, will be your prophet. Tell Aaron everything I command you, and Aaron must commend Pharaoh to let the people of Israel leave his country. But I will make Pharaoh's heart stubborn so I can multiply my miraculous signs and wonders in the land of Egypt. Even then Pharaoh will refuse to listen to you. So I will bring down my fist on Egypt. Then I will rescue my forces - my people, the Israelites - from the land of Egypt with great acts of judgment. When I raise my powerful hand and bring out the Israelites, the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD."" (Exodus 7:1-5 NLT)

 Okay, so it is perfectly clear, to be a servant of the Lord, is typically not the same as being a slave; at least not in the sense of the worlds view of what a slave is and is all about. Back in the day of Jesus, those who were slaves, if they loved their master, and having been set free from their master, would voluntarily set aside his or her rights in order to love, serve, and obey their master; thus, they were no longer a slave, but a servant. 

 The perfect picture of what it means to be a slave to Christ, is not one that is subject to being ordered around, as if there is nothing you do your own; but you know what your Master wants you to do, so you do it willingly and happily. The other portion of this, servitude, is that of yielding power, based upon the Master to whom you freely serve; this is not power that is in the servant, but is given from the Master; based upon who the Master is: Christ Jesus is Master of all!  

 I really don't know how else to explain it; because to be a faithful servant of Jesus Christ, one must first be empowered with courage! This courage is not from strength that is found in us, because it is not about us being strong; we are first the man, broken and weak; but in Christ we are made whole and strong. We are not that same person: we are dead in Christ, the old man is gone, and a new man has been raised in Christ. 

 This new man, empowered by Christ, is no longer subject to death, because it has already died and been given new life! This is where that courage to be a bold and faithful servant comes from; not from practice or from being good at doing anything; it comes from Christ living in and through your life. It is by faith in Christ Jesus, our risen King; He, as our loving Master has empowered us to be a living vessel, in the image of Him, to be used for His purposes, not our own.

 Is it easy? Not so much! But it sure feels good to be loved, despite being a failure at trying to be a perfect servant! We really can't be that perfect servant, but in Christ, we are made perfect; we just need the courage to keep moving forward, sometimes even if it feels as though there is nothing good in us! If we are in Christ, He dwells in us: He is God, and God is always good! 

 Paul gives us this example of being set free from the law; that which once had us in bondage to sin, because we could do nothing to keep the law; but having been freed from the law, we are now free to serve Christ, as a happy and willing servant. (Romans 7:4-6) 

 I am totally sorry for having messed this up! I am tired and it's been a long night. But, regardless of all of my mistakes and stupidity, He loves me and I know that my life is now in Christ! Even when I can no longer hold myself up above the water, He is always there waiting to lift me up. Sometimes we just need to learn how to drown...

"I have discovered this principle of life - that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. I love God's law with all my heart. But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God's law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin." (Romans 7:21-25 NLT)