“Servant”
Genesis 2:7-8, 15
1-6-2019 AM
Make me a servant
Humble and meek
Lord let me lift up
Those who are weak
And may the prayer
Of my heart always be
Make me a servant
Make me a servant
Make me a servant today
Songwriters: KELLY FAYE WILLARD
© Universal Music Publishing Group
I was reading the other day and found myself fascinated by a single word.
The word I am referring to is servant.
As I began looking up this word I found that 462 times this word is used in the Word of God.
382 times in the Old Testament
80 times in the New Testament
If you at an “S” to servant you will find 889 time
743 Times in Old Testament
143 Times in the New Testament
There is also the “Law of first mentioned.” Genesis 2:7-8, 15
Vs 15 “to dress it”= is the root word to serve
In our text today I would like to simply define what a servant is and ask a simple question; Am I the servant God intended me to be?
The primary word in the O/T is
05650 ebed (eh’-bed)
From 05647;
AV-servant 744, manservant 23, bondman 21, bondage 10, bondservant 1, on all sides 1; 800
05647 abad (aw-bad)
a primitive root; AV-serve 227, do 15, till 9, servant 5, work 5, worshippers 5, service 4, dress 2, labour 2, ear 2, misc 14; 290
1) to work, serve
New Testament
80 times the word servant.
1. Servant = pais (paheece)
AV-servant 10, child 7, son (Christ) 2, son 1, manservant 1, maid 1, maiden 1, young man 1; 24
2. Servant = doulos (doo’-los)
AV-servant 120, bond 6, bondman 1; 127
1) a slave, bondman, man of servile condition
3. Servant = diakonos (dee-ak’-on-os)
probably from an obsolete diako (to run on errands)
AV-minister 20, servant 8, deacon 3; 31
1) one who executes the commands of another, esp. of a master, a servant, attendant, minister
1a) the servant of a king
1b) a deacon, one who, by virtue of the office assigned to him by the church, cares for the poor and has charge of and distributes the money collected for their use
1c) a waiter, one who serves food and drink
4. Servant = therapon (ther-ap’-ohn)
AV-servant 1; 1
1) an attendant, servant: of God
1a) spoken of Moses discharging the duties committed to him by God
So what does all the Hebrew and Greek mean?
They all refer to a person who is under the leadership of another.
I. God Made Man For His Purpose
Vs. 7
We see that God made man different than the animals and that God breathed the breath of life and we became a living soul.
No other creature has this described but man.
Vs. 8
God planted a garden and put man in it, why?
Vs. 15 To dress it (to servant in it).
II. Did Adam Have A Choice?
NO! Adam became a living soul by God who had a purpose for Adam and his wife Eve.
Vs 15 “And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.”
Took = Fetched him, to take and carry along, to snatch
Put him = to leave in a place to rest, left alone
To dress it = serve in it?
And to keep it = Watchman, keeper, preserve
Do we have a choice? Yes with a caution; God will allow us to say NO but we do not get to pick the consequences of our NO!
The following is from: Gleanings from Lessons from a Sheep Dog/Phillip Keller https://www.laurareimer.net
Lessons from a Sheepdog, by Phillip Keller. (1920-1997)
Keller was a shepherd, along with many other things.
In “Lessons from a Sheepdog” book he shares thoughts into his own faith journey that he learned while training a rescue dog named Lass.
From his experiences in training her; he relates how Christ, as our Shepherd, might view our sometimes wayward progress in learning to follow and serve Him.
It took a long time for Keller to even get this dog to trust him. However, once she did develop a sense of him being her master, she became so attached to him that her affection sometimes trumped her obedience.
He needed her to be obedient to his commands in order for her to be a useful partner and co-worker in tending the flock.
Her own desires and excitement for the lively parts of caring for the flock would often draw her away from the actual work he expected from her.
Keller likened it to followers of Christ when we allow our zeal for God and outward displays of service to become the focus of our efforts instead of obedience.
He writes:
“Love for the Master is not some sentimental emotion that sweeps over the soul in moments of special piety. Love for Christ is a deliberate setting of the will to carry out His commands at any cost. It is the delight of accomplishing our Father’s highest purposes, no matter how challenging.” page 56 *
He ends with the idea that the ultimate goal of our “love for Christ expressed through obedience to Him” is that others are blessed and cared for.
As I read his thoughts, I could truly see the tendency of God’s people to take activities and talents used in service to God and exalt THOSE instead of submitting them to be used BY God…in whatever way HE chooses.
We often use greater effort resisting God and His instruction than we do in turning from disobedience.
********
On pages 66 and 67, Keller talks about how he would send Lass out to gather the stragglers.
“Fetch them, Lass!” he would tell her. “Go out and bring them home.”
He writes about how she would go without hesitation.
She would push through the undergrowth and brambles, run across rough rocks and give herself wholeheartedly to the task until she brought every sheep out safely.
Keller tells how this came at a price for her.
She would be weary, her face scratched and torn by thickets, her coat clogged with burrs and debris and often the pads of her feet would bear cuts from the sharp stones.
Yet she did it willingly because she wanted to be part of the process of his work.
Watching his dog labor, Phillip Keller questioned his own willingness to give so sacrificially to the work of Christ.
He notes that being the friend and follower of Jesus is no guarantee that we will be spared from hard or disagreeable circumstances.
As her master, he never sent Lass into hard places to hurt her…
“But I put her into challenging circumstances to save the sheep. And it was out of all of these endeavors that she gradually matured and developed into a magnificent worker.” pg 67
Like Keller, I have noticed that suffering is not one of the highlights featured in a membership drive or evangelism outreach event for the church.
When Jesus restored Peter, He asked Him if he loved Him three times.
Each time, when Peter enthusiastically affirmed his love…Jesus gave him the same task as proof of his love…
“Feed my sheep”…
And Peter did.
At a high cost….
Imprisonments
Beatings
Rejection
Crucifixion
Because he heeded the call of His Master…
“Go out and bring them home!”
Many of the disciples and leaders of the early church knew the price of following Christ and sharing the Gospel.
Many around the world, in years since and especially today, suffer in ways we cannot imagine as they receive Christ and then share the Gospel in their villages, towns and cities.
It is humbling to me how comfortably I assume I can live out my faith when so many truly suffer for Christ.
Keller shares these words of exhortation,
“We are reluctant to share our strength, time or talent to touch others in trouble. We draw back from the distasteful situation where we might have to suffer a bit in order that others might be saved.” pg. 67
Conclusion:
I ask the same question we started with;
“Am I the servant God intended me to be?”
This year I am asking each of us to consider the little thought:
“What is a servant of the living God?”
