Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
If there's one question that you should ask when you're studying the Bible, it's this: where do I see the life of Jesus being pointed to? If you're wondering why that's an important question, I've heard it said in so many beautiful ways, but the whole point of the story is that we find redemption, renewal, forgiveness, healing, love, and grace at the hands of Jesus Christ. His work on the cross, His death, burial, and resurrection provides an opportunity for us who are in our sins and separated from God forever—but because of Christ, we have hope. That's why we're always looking for Jesus.
When Jesus Speaks About Himself
One of my favorite things is when not only do we see Jesus on the pages, but we get to hear Jesus talk about Himself. There are these times in your Bible—usually marked by what's called the red letters—where Jesus is talking and the words are coming straight from His lips. He'll tell stories, He'll preach, He’ll speak truth. But there are instances where Jesus describes who He is and why He came to earth. If we're starting out by saying we want to find Jesus, then we're saying we want to hear what Jesus has to say. We really are paying attention when Jesus has something to say about Himself. There are three times that come to mind for me where Jesus describes why He came to earth. If you've ever really thought about this, the idea of the cross and what that represents is the easy answer for the salvation of the world. The ministry Jesus came to live out is described in three things that He says about Himself.
Three Reasons Jesus Came
Did you know that He says the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost? He also says about Himself that He came eating and drinking—meaning that He was with people in real life along the path, revealing Himself and His character to them. The one that we just read is the third instance. It says that the Son of Man, Jesus, came not to be served, but to serve. We hear Jesus describing what should be the way that we, as followers of His ministry, should be living on earth. We should be seeking to see the lost come to a knowledge of salvation. We should be eating and drinking and communing with people in real life, connecting to them in real ways to understand their story—so that they would feel loved and have hope and direction for their future.
The Savior Who Serves
The one that boggles my mind is that the Savior of the world describes Himself as someone who came to earth not so that He would be served, but whose main objective is to make sure people know that He wants to serve them. I mean, how challenging is that for us, to think that the Savior of the world would come not to lift up His own name, but that He would bow down and wash the feet of His disciples, that He would enter into conversations with people who were outcasts, that He would heal people who were relegated to never being fixed again. Here comes Jesus to save, to heal, to restore those who were hopeless. It says in the Scriptures that He came so that these things would happen, and that His Father would be glorified. Today, as we go into our day having conversations and looking around at life, let's remember what this verse tells us. He came not to be served, but to serve. How can you serve someone today?
