Strong Enough To Serve

There are few sights more moving than real authority wrapped in humility. It’s rare. We’re accustomed to power that postures, rank that separates, and leadership that needs to be noticed.

Every now and then, we glimpse the beauty of someone who is both strong and gentle—someone who knows exactly who they are in God and therefore has nothing to prove.

That’s the kind of greatness Jesus talked about.

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1. The Greatness That Bends Low

Years ago, one of my mentors told me a story about a man he had once worked beside—H. M. S. Richards Sr., the pioneer preacher of the Voice of Prophecy broadcast.

It was at the end of an evangelistic series held in a rented hall somewhere in the Southwest. The crowd had gone home. The chairs were stacked. The team began scraping the newsprint from the walls where they’d tacked up Bible charts and banners.

When the janitor walked in, he did a double take—because there was the famous evangelist himself, coat off, sleeves rolled up, taking down paper with a putty knife.

Later my mentor said quietly, “He was the only preacher who helped me take the paper down.”

He paused, then added, “He was a great man.”

Not great because of his radio audience. Not great because he filled tents. Great because he served.

That’s what Jesus meant when He said:

> “Whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”. — Mark 10:43-45

The kingdom of God measures greatness by the willingness to stoop. Strength isn’t shown by how many follow your orders, but by how far you’ll go to lift someone else.

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2. Sent With Power, Shaped for Service

When Jesus sent the Twelve out two by two (Mark 6:7-13), He didn’t send them empty-handed. Scripture says, “He gave them authority over unclean spirits.” Authority — that word matters. It means delegated right, entrusted power.

But notice what surrounded that authority: He told them to travel light, take no bread, no bag, no money belt. Depend on hospitality. Stay in one house. If a town rejected them, shake off the dust and move on.

In other words, their authority was wrapped in dependence. Their power was clothed in simplicity. Their calling was tethered to humility.

They could cast out demons, yet they had to borrow supper.

They could heal the sick, yet they slept where strangers welcomed them.

That’s the balance Jesus modeled. He gave power and He gave boundaries. He equipped them for battle, yet reminded them they were servants, not celebrities.

When authority loses that balance, it warps into something dangerous. We’ve seen it—in politics, in business, even in church life. When the badge becomes the identity, the mission dies. But when servants remember why they were given authority, the kingdom advances.

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3. “Not So With You”

Jesus once gathered His disciples and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you.”

Those four words—Not so with you—may be the sharpest line of contrast in all of Scripture. The world climbs; Jesus kneels. The world accumulates; Jesus gives away. The world commands; Jesus washes feet.

Leadership in the world is about privilege. Leadership in the kingdom is about responsibility. In the world, people fight for the corner office. In the kingdom, they fight for the towel.

Robert Greenleaf, whose book Servant Leadership helped reawaken the modern conversation about this idea, observed that genuine authority is “granted by the led” when followers recognize the servant heart of their leader. True leaders, he said, earn trust not by asserting power but by proving care.

It’s the same truth Jesus embodied. He never coerced obedience. He invited it. He didn’t demand trust. He inspired it.

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4. How Churches Lose Their Balance

History shows that whenever the church forgets “Not so with you,” it begins to imitate the empires it was called to transform. Crowns replace basins. Titles replace towels. And spiritual authority turns into control.

That drift can happen quietly. Sometimes it’s born of good intentions—“We just want order and clarity.” But if we’re not careful, structure becomes stranglehold, and the very ones who should be nurtured feel managed instead.

Jesus never built a hierarchy; He built a family. He warned His disciples: “You are all brothers.” The greatest in His family is the one who can rejoice when another is praised, the one who sees success and says, “How can I serve that?”

Even secular observers see it: organizations where leaders serve rather than rule experience deeper loyalty, less burnout, more creativity. Why? Because servanthood releases dignity—it tells people, you matter.