“This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News.”
Romans 1:1 (NLT)
In this verse, we get to see the first impression Paul offers to the people in Rome. His first title is a slave, a servant, or a bond-servant of Jesus Christ. Servant might hit the nail on the head, but in today’s culture, we see service as something we’re in charge of. That’s not how Jesus portrayed it. Jesus portrayed His life of obedience and His ministry as service. He came to serve, not to be served.
Paul, as a follower of Jesus Christ, is following the same path. He has surrendered his will, his way, and his wants for his Lord’s will. If Jesus is our Master, then we’re not in charge. He is. We get to do and say what our Master allows. But because we’re servants of Jesus Christ, He is bound to care for us. If the Master doesn’t care for the servant, then no work gets done.
Paul has chosen to belong to Jesus and let Him direct his life. Then he’s chosen by God to be an apostle, a sent one. He’s been given an assignment by his Master to preach the Good News. Ephesians 4 clarifies the apostle is a ministry gift of the Holy Spirit to the church. If the Holy Spirit appoints someone to this role, then God empowers that person to do the assignment He has given.
Our role as humble servants begins with salvation. We must recognize that we cannot save ourselves nor are we any good at being the master of our lives. My prayer for myself and for you is that we would quit trying to be the master, quit seeking to be served, and accept our role as servants of Jesus Christ. If we’ll get the order right, our Master, our King, and our Lord is bound to care for us. His Holy Spirit will empower us to accomplish our assignments, but only if we’re willing to humble ourselves and choose not to be our own master.