Our Chains--His Slavery!" Matthew 20: 20-28 Key ...  PRO

“Our Chains--His Slavery!” Matthew 20: 20-28 Key verse(s): 28: “. . . just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

“Just sign here on the dotted line here Mr. Brunner and we will be done.” As I lifted my hand, grip on pen, ready to put my signature to the document, I hesitated for a split second. Once my signature was on that document, I had made a commitment not only to the guarantor but also to my family. My promissory meant more than just the ink that made up my signature. It meant that the fine print as well as the not so fine print were now obligating me. Had I read everything as carefully as I should have? What if I were making a mistake? Perhaps I should have thought this through a little bit more than I did? These and many other thoughts cruised through my head as my hand slowly dropped to the signature blank. As I signed my name and handed the pen to my wife, I had mixed feelings. We needed a new car and we did shop around. The interest rate was good and we had purchased from this dealer before. Nevertheless, when it comes to signing my name to anything, there is always that slight twinge of regret that accompanies the excitement of the purchase and the receipt of the new. It was that feeling of being servant to someone or something else that always bothered me a bit.

Being a servant to someone or something isn’t a bad thing. The fact is, most of the time, it is a pretty good and honorable thing. I serve my family, my church, my political party, my employer and numerous other organizations and causes. But, there are times when serving, being subjugated or subordinated to someone or something, is not comfortable. Serving the interest on a loan is one of those times. It seems that it is something that, on the surface, isn’t so bad. But, when you have the chance to sit and analyze it a bit, it becomes apparent pretty quick that for all the good the loan has done you, it has extracted a good degree of unpleasant servitude from you. For the duration of that loan, you have become...