Give in to your anger. With each passing moment, you make yourself more my servant.

A solicitation of volunteers at the Providence Church members meeting last night brought to mind the following quote:

"It is bothersome to me when people claim they 'want to go deep' but have splinters in their rear ends from sitting around all day and doing nothing. Spiritual maturity is not only measured by knowledge; if that were the case, then the devil would be more spiritually mature than anoy pastor on the planet, because he knows way more than all of us! But maturity is developed when people do what Jesus did by serving others." (Perry Noble)

Of course, he's right. In fact, that's the measure of greatness in the kingdom, being the greatest servant of all ... according to Jesus.

• Mark 9:34-35 But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.”
• Mark 10:42-45 And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But 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 slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Then there's also that great Christological passage from Paul in Philippians 2:5-11, but often forgot is that the impetus is to be like Jesus ... with regard to His example of one who serves others to the detriment of Himself.

Philippians 2:3-4 Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

Philippians 2:5-11 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Remember as well ... a call to "ministry" or a call to be a "minister" is a call to service or being a servant. That's what the word means. (cf. Mark 10:43-45 KJV)

Being a slacker is not congruent with spiritual maturity.