"Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, that leads to righteousness?"     Romans 6:16

 It has recently come to my attention that I am a servant. I know, I'm pretty slow, after all, I have been a mother for 5 years now and the thought just came to me. (Maybe that's why it just occured to me, too busy being a mother to have a complete thought!) I have to confess I don't really like the job title. I mean, if we are to do all things to the glory of God, then I have to be the best servant that I can be. This was never an area to which I aspired. Nobody says they want to be a servant when they grow up. I sure didn't. To serve someone else as their servant means that I have to do what they want me to do. I don't get to decide. I'm not "free" to make my own decisions. This grates on my nature in every direction.

     But my recollection of the Bible's teaching on the subject doesn't allow for any alternative. A scanning of Strong's entries on the word "servant" reveals 4 pages of entries. I am a servant, either of sin or of God. No matter what my physical position in the world, I serve under God's authority.  Even if physically free, my soul was made to serve. Realizing this really changes my perspective. I have always been a servant.

     When I recall my days of serving my sin and myself (an inherently sinful being) I realize that my master was a cruel and harsh one. I remember the despair, darkness, feelings of helplessness when things didn't go my way. I remember the lack of pleasure in getting what I wanted when it went against God's law. Standing back and looking at my life, realizing my true position, I can see how awful it is to serve my sin.

     Somehow, I started believing that I was once free to do what I wanted and now I have to serve Christ. But that isn't true. I have always been a servant. I will always be a servant. But, thanks be to God, He has raised me to life in Christ and now I can choose who to serve. God is a much more benevolent master. When I realize the inevitabally of serving, I am much more motivated to serve the righteous master. The lie was that there was no master. The truth is that there is a good and gentle one. A master who is even willing to make me his child. A master who elevates his faithful servants to positions of honor (think of Joseph). And one who was even willing to die in my place.