DATE POSTED Wednesday, 2022-07-06
WRITTEN AT: O Brien, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: Mark 9:35-37
TRANSLATION: Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

BIBLE TEXT: ³⁵ Jesus sat down and called the twelve apostles to him. He said, “Whoever wants to be the most important must make others more important than themselves. They must serve everyone else.”
³⁶ Then Jesus took a small child and stood the child in front of the followers. He held the child in his arms and said, ³⁷ “Whoever accepts children like these in my name is accepting me. And anyone who accepts me is also accepting the one who sent me.”

APPLICATION: A very interesting difference between the teachings of workplace leaders and the teachings of Jesus on this subject is that the workplace will teach its leaders to step out from among their employees and show them who’s boss. In other words, you can’t be their friend and their boss. However, the very first principle Jesus teaches, is that we are to treat others as if they are more important than we are, and that they deserve our respect and praise. To really get this point, it is important for us to consider Jesus and His followers. God loved His creation so much that He created a God-moment and miraculously birthed His Son into the world. This Son came and reigned among mankind; healed the sick; raised the dead; made the blind to see again and the dumb to speak again. He had the same power as His Father. Yet when mankind chose to kill Jesus, He surrendered His power and allowed their actions, so as to please His Father. God chose that this should occur so that through the death of His Son, His children on earth could surrender themselves to Him and be saved of their sin – past present and future. This form of ‘greatness’ by God and His Son, in spite of their almighty power, showed unheard of love to even the weakest and lowliest sinner on earth. So if we choose to be one with Christ, and endeavor to honor Him by obeying His commands and living in His example, we are reminded that we are among the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. Friends, being the greatest employee for your boss may earn you a bonus, or a good raise, but as soon as you disappoint that same boss, he seeks a way to exit you from the company. God works completely different, for He assures us that we are accepted by He and His Son, and the Word of God is clear that for those whom He saves, they are saved forevermore! So you will clearly see that earthly accolades are temporary and based upon your works, but when God accepts our call for repentance and salvation, His gift keeps on giving and holds true for all eternity! There is no comparison to that anywhere on earth, no matter how great you may feel you are. May God bless and direct you to the foot of the cross and teach you true greatness by the greatest man to ever walk this earth, Jesus Christ.

BLESSING(S) NOTED: Making others more important than we are, and serving them here on earth – this makes us ‘great’ in the eyes of God!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, be merciful to me, a sinner who stands in Your presence seeking forgiveness and strength to serve my fellow man, and to lift them up in their earthly endeavors. Who am I that a perfect and holy God would send His only Son to die a cruel death on the cross so that I may be saved? In Your sacrifice and in the most important sacrifice on earth, You lifted me up from the mire of sin and made me coheirs with yourself in the Kingdom of heaven. Thank You Lord Jesus for setting an example for your followers to imitate. Please direct our path today so that others may see You in and through our action, words and sacrifice. May they develop a greater sense of acceptance for You and surrender their lives wholeheartedly to You. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog might indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. You may also visit me on Spotify and listen to Nuggets while you’re out and about. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!