When Is A Servant At Their Best?

Think about that question for just a minute.  When is a servant at their best?  Is a servant at their best when they are working hard behind the scenes, not looking over their shoulder for congratulations, recognition or respect?  Is it when, although faced with difficulty, pain or discomfort, they press on and buckle down to the task at hand?   Is it when they strike up the courage to do exactly the opposite of what they "feel" like doing that a servant is truly at their best?  I think these are all incredible qualities we should all strive to emulate but I don't think they qualify as "the best".  Read the next line twice if you have to, allowing the point to sink in deep.

Like I said, you may need to read that sentence again.  Do you agree or disagree?  Not with my grammar, with my point?  Everyone knows that you should never use the same word four times in the same sentence.  Do you agree that an inspirational servant is the best kind of servant?

Before you disagree or agree take some time and read through last part of the chapter I had you look at in Philippians last week, chapter 2.  Before Sunday you should read all of Philippians, it’s a great book! Yes, all of Philippians.  It’s only four chapters and after today you will have read all of chapter 2.  You’ll do more reading if you pick up the Ann Arbor News or Sports Illustrated, so pick up Philippians and give it a go.  You won’t be disappointed.

Read the second half of chapter 2 (19-30) and you will be introduced to two individuals: Timothy and Epaphroditus.  Guess which one of those two got picked on more in elementary school!  Yikes!  Epaphroditus - poor kid.

Paul is writing this letter from a prison cell in Rome to a church that he started in the town of
Philippi .  The church in Philippi is in trouble and Paul is stuck 600 miles away.  And 600 miles is quite a long way back in the 1^st Century (it’s a long way in the 21^st Century – approximately the distance from Michigan to New Jersey ).  And this 600 mile journey was not only long but also dangerous.  Timothy is the only one so concerned for the welfare of the church in Philippi that Paul is getting ready to send him their way (Philippians 2:20-22 ~ Read this passage also in the Message translation).  Wouldn’t it be great to be like Timothy?

Next we are introduced to Epaphroditus in verse 25.  This is a guy who didn’t come from a great Christian heritage like Timothy.  His name is a version of the name Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of sex, beauty and fertility.  Oh that poor, poor kid!  Somewhere along the way his spiritual story shifted and he is now a member of the church of Philippi that was sent 600 miles, sailing, walking and traveling for months to get to Rome to check on Paul and deliver a gift from the church.  Notice how Paul describes him in verse 25 and how the church to accept him in verses 29-30 encourages.

Now, stop for just a second and ask yourself: After reading about these two guys do I have more of a desire to be a servant or less?  Do I wish that my life emulated theirs or not?  Wouldn’t it be cool if Paul could write those words about me?  Read that verse again and as an experiment replace Timothy's name with your own. That would be cool wouldn't it?

And here is the interesting trap we can fall into.  We can actually serve in such a way as to become proud of our humility.  We don’t need congratulations from others because we are too busy congratulating ourselves.  We break our arms patting ourselves on the back. We think thoughts like "I inspire me."

I believe that a servant is at their best when they serve as an inspiration for other servants to improve their serve because it shifts the focus off of ourselves and on to others.  I want servants that look over their shoulders, but not for applause.  I want them looking over their shoulders for other servants to inspire.  When I see someone serving, it almost always causes me to want to serve.  Much like in the movie “Pay It Forward”; selfless acts of kindness can actually inspire further acts of selflessness.

In Philippians, Paul was celebrating servant hood.  He was lifting it up for the whole Church to see so that 2000 years later, it would inspire the heart of the servant that beats in our chests.  All of this book and especially chapter 2 is a highlight of servant hood, going from Jesus, to Paul, to Timothy, to Epaphroditus, to us.  In Phil 3:17, Paul goes on to say, “Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you.”  In Phil 4:9, Paul continues, “Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me – put it into practice.”

So here is the challenge:  Who are you inspiring with your servant hood; yourself or someone else?  The next time you are moved to serve, why not just look around and see if there is someone who can join you.  It’s really hard to take all the credit when you share the load.  Do what it says in Hebrews 10:24 – And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.