Devotional: Serving Others Well

The best way to lead others is to serve others.

Pre-covid, I was the member of a large gym here in Clifton, NJ. This gym was packed daily, morning to evening and especially on weekends.

Saturday’s, I’d try to hit the gym early and on the rare occasion that I engaged in cardio I would sometimes opt to join a morning spin class. Now, the class would be filled with everyone from senior citizens (there was a guy from my church who would go faithfully and he was 80+ years old) to the most in-shape, athletic person you can imagine. The instructor would begin moving to the pace of the music and within minutes there was a sense of unity in the room, even with the varying levels of age and ability.

At various points during the spin class session, the instructor would stop and begin calling out instructions. While evertyone in the class clearly heard the directions, one by one, they would stop moving. While they had the capacity to accomplish the workout alone, they were more confident when the instructor worked alongside them. Simply saying what to do next wasn’t isn’t enough. They were lost without a leader doing the same work.

Matthew 20:20–28 ESV

Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to him with her sons, and kneeling before him she asked him for something. And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

The text reminds us that leadership isn’t simply shouting orders. Jesus says, “… just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve…”

While the mother requested her sons be granted high positions of leadership without the work attached, Jesus responded that true leadership comes from serving others. Jesus set this example. He did the hard work. He labored and He humbled himself. He set an example that encouraged others to follow, rather than simply giving orders and demanding obedience. 

Here’s the point — True leadership is found in serving others.

What this looks like will vary according to the situation, but the ultimate goal of a servant’s heart is to do our work with the aim of glorifying God. 

Reflect:

Think about the best leaders you’ve worked alongside. How did those leaders serve you and others well? What can you learn from their example?

What does it communicate to the people we lead when we serve them well? What does it communicate when we don’t?

What’s one way you can serve the people in your group?