David Wilkerson
"And…the servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free" (Exodus 21:5). To this servant there is no dilemma, no choice. His decision was never in doubt. His master was his whole world and he was bound to him with an eternal bond of love. He could not possibly leave his master or his house.
This servant’s life revolved around his love for his lord, and, like Paul, he considered all else as “dung,” that he might win the master. He was the kind who would be willing to be accursed if others could come to know the love of his lord.
This servant valued intimacy with his master above any earthly blessing. Who cared for flocks, for corn, or for wine and oil, when you could have endless communion and fellowship with the master? His heart overflowed with affection for him and he made it very plain: "I love my master and I will not go free."
What this servant is saying to us is simply this: Christ is enough! Nothing in this world is worth losing the sense of his presence. All the wealth and prosperity of the entire earth is not to be compared to a single day spent with him. The pleasures at his right hand far exceed any ecstasy known to man. To know him, to be where he is, seated together in heavenly places, is more than life itself. To serve him, to be led by him, to come and go as he alone commands is life on the highest plane.
Would you remind me that you are a son, and not a servant? Then I would kindly remind you that Jesus was a Son who "thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men" (Philippians 2:6-7). He could have come as a powerful Prince of the Almighty, trampling every foe, yet Christ chose to come as a bondservant, fully committed to his Father's interests.
This dedicated bondservant we read about in Exodus believed he had one mission in life, and that was to serve his master. He was not in it for an inheritance, even though it is written, "A wise servant shall have rule over a son that causeth shame, and shall have part of the inheritance among the brethren"
(Proverbs 17:2). Love made it easy to obey and from morning to night, every waking hour, he lived in willing servitude to his master. He was driven only by love - no guilt, no sense of obligation. No wonder Jesus could say, "If you love me, you will obey me."
"And…the servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free" (Exodus 21:5). To this servant there is no dilemma, no choice. His decision was never in doubt. His master was his whole world and he was bound to him with an eternal bond of love. He could not possibly leave his master or his house.
This servant’s life revolved around his love for his lord, and, like Paul, he considered all else as “dung,” that he might win the master. He was the kind who would be willing to be accursed if others could come to know the love of his lord.
This servant valued intimacy with his master above any earthly blessing. Who cared for flocks, for corn, or for wine and oil, when you could have endless communion and fellowship with the master? His heart overflowed with affection for him and he made it very plain: "I love my master and I will not go free."
What this servant is saying to us is simply this: Christ is enough! Nothing in this world is worth losing the sense of his presence. All the wealth and prosperity of the entire earth is not to be compared to a single day spent with him. The pleasures at his right hand far exceed any ecstasy known to man. To know him, to be where he is, seated together in heavenly places, is more than life itself. To serve him, to be led by him, to come and go as he alone commands is life on the highest plane.
Would you remind me that you are a son, and not a servant? Then I would kindly remind you that Jesus was a Son who "thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men" (Philippians 2:6-7). He could have come as a powerful Prince of the Almighty, trampling every foe, yet Christ chose to come as a bondservant, fully committed to his Father's interests.
This dedicated bondservant we read about in Exodus believed he had one mission in life, and that was to serve his master. He was not in it for an inheritance, even though it is written, "A wise servant shall have rule over a son that causeth shame, and shall have part of the inheritance among the brethren"
(Proverbs 17:2). Love made it easy to obey and from morning to night, every waking hour, he lived in willing servitude to his master. He was driven only by love - no guilt, no sense of obligation. No wonder Jesus could say, "If you love me, you will obey me."
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