We all have a master. And try as we might to escape this spiritual law, it always comes back to haunt us. As Bob Dylan said in his song by that title, “You’ve Gotta Serve Somebody”. His song describes a spiritual reality. Jesus, in His statement in Matthew, points out that spiritual law — we all have a master. Everyone is serving someone. As such, the question becomes, Who’s your master? And oftentimes, that’s the question we never think about. We never really define who we are serving. Yet, it isn’t until we are able to describe who we are serving that we discover our purpose, for our purpose is hidden in who we serve. As a result, we can live in a state of quiet purposelessness. And that purposelessness is why so many people struggle with perpetual boredom — You’ve gotta serve somebody.
Joshua, Israel’s great general and servant to the prophet Moses, understood this principle so he told Israel his position on who he and his family would be serving, “If it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD." Joshua 24:15 New Heart English Bible. That’s right! He made a declaration over himself and his family, including his wife and children, that they would serve the Lord. I want to ask you: Have you made that same declaration over your family?
If not, then you have made a grave mistake. How so?, some might ask. By failing to recognize that you and your family are going to serve somebody. This is the reason why so many good Christian families end up losing their children. They think, I’ll let my son or my daughter make their own choice. I don’t want to choose for them. That silent declaration is an open invitation to the Devil. Why? Because he knows the truth — You’ve gotta serve somebody. And what he’s looking for is people to serve him. He wants to take anyone captive that he can to do his will. 2 Timothy 2:26. And without the declaration Joshua made over his family being spoken over our families, we leave ourselves open to attack by the Devil.
In my house, we have Joshua’s declaration in a prominent place in my home. I want everyone who enters my home to know my unapologetic position — “[A]s for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” Unequivocally! Unapologetically! Undeniably! I want everyone to know my position — me and my family will serve the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; the God and Father of My Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ; the only wise God to whom belongs glory forever and ever. My family, my church, my house will have no other gods, no other masters, no other lords. No choice. No equivocation. No other decision. No idols. We have one master — God.
I remember making that decision in college at the University of Iowa. I had accepted Christ, began to study God’s Word, and entered deep times of prayer. As I did, a growing desire began to well up within my heart, a desire to do God’s will. One day, while in prayer, I said to God — I demand your perfect will. Honestly, I was shocked by what came out of my mouth. Demand is a strong word to use in prayer, especially to an omnipotent God. Yet, there I was, I made this bold declaration to God that I demanded His perfect will. That could be seen as brazen, brash, or a myriad of other ways. Nevertheless, my desire to do God’s will was so strong that I uttered that prayer.
At that time, I didn’t know what I know today. I didn’t know that praying that prayer was in line with the prayers Jesus prayed. In Hebrews 10:7, Berean Standard Bible, we learn about what Jesus actually prayed to the Father: “Here I am, it is written about Me in the scroll: I have come to do Your will, O God.” What a powerful declaration! Jesus bold decision is, to do God’s will. That should be the decision of every believer. Doing God’s will isn’t optional. No, it’s a must. And it’s something we should be praying for in our lives. Jesus, in teaching His apostles, made this point clear: “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:9, 10.
And the only way we can do God’s will is with God’s help. We cannot do His will without His help. Jesus also said, “apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5 NIV. Nothing. Those are strong words. Jesus was a strong man, a man’s man, who walked in the divine will by relying on the Father. We, too, can walk in the divine will by relying on the Son. That’s why Jesus said, “I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever”. John 14:16. In the Greek language, the Greek word for another is “allos”, which means, “another of the same kind; another of a similar type”. What Jesus said is, I will pray the Father, and He will give you the Holy Spirit, the “paraklétos”, who is exactly like Me.
The Holy Spirit and the Son are one. As the Son fully represented the Father, the Spirit fully represents the Son. There is no difference in the divine will. The Father, Son, and Spirit are One. As the Shema says, “Shema Yisrael Adonai Eloheinu Adonai Echad" ("Hear, O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One"). Deuteronomy 6:4. As the Apostle Paul said, “[t]here is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.” Ephesians 4:4-6. That unity between the Father, Son, and Spirit revealed in the Church is what the world is longing to see. As Jesus said, “I in them and You in Me—that they may be perfectly united, so that the world may know that You sent Me”. John 17:23, Berean Standard Bible.
The current division in the Church is an abomination. It reveals that we have been mastered by sin, and not the Spirit. We may say, “Lord, Lord, [do] we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?” Matthew 7:22 NIV. But Jesus is saying, “I will have nothing to do with you! Get out of my sight, you evil people!" Matthew 7:23 CEV. Why is He saying that? Because He isn’t our master; He isn’t our Lord. No, we may call Him that, but if we call Him “Lord”, and don’t do what He says, is He really our Lord? The honest answer is, No.
That’s why we must repent of our sin. Notice I didn’t say, my sin. Neither did the Apostle John. He said, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9 Berean Standard Bible. We means us, you, and me at the same time. The Lord is saying to us, for Him to be our Lord, we must “[r]emove the heavy yoke of oppression. Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!” Isaiah 58:9 NLT. “Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.” Isaiah 58:9, NIV. As Jesus said, “[You] call me Master and Lord: and [you] say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; [you] also ought to wash one another's feet.” John 13:13,John 13:14. “So why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say?” Luke 6:46 NLT.
Today, I have a question for you: Who’s your master? The answer is revealed not by what you say; rather, it’s shown by what you do. As Jesus said, so I say to you, “Neither do I condemn [you]: go, and sin no more.” John 8:11. That’s the message of the cross. And that should be the message of the Church. Whether we adhere to that message determines if Jesus really is our Lord and Master.
Let us Pray!
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