How to Display Spiritual Maturity as A Servant
The opening verse of James (James 1:1) shows the apostle’s penetrating humility. His maturity pops out like a pumped up vein. James knew Jesus. After all, brothers know brothers. The siblings flourished in the home of Joseph and Mary. They played and laughed together. They developed into men of God together. James shared his toothbrush with the Messiah. Except he didn’t know he was the Messiah then. Jesus was just his kid brother. Despite knowing the star maker, James chooses not to reference it. What he does mention is the link that mattered most to him. “James a servant of God and the Lord Jesus Christ”. Put yourself in his place. How would you write this opening? Would you have written, “James the half-brother of Jesus?” A mature Christian understands the spiritual is higher than the physical. Blood is not thicker than water, in the Spirit realm. The new birth fuses believers together into an everlasting inseparable family. Two blood washed disciples living unknown to each other on separate continents have a greater bond than the closet unsaved relatives living under the same roof. These opening words of James are a sharp picture of what maturity looks like, an image the world knows nothing about. Service is life. Those playing the world’s game would have taken advantage of knowing someone as famous as Jesus. Can’t you hear the worn expression, “it’s not what you know but who you know?” Name-dropping, networking for status and positioning “for self-promotion is the game. Call it Selfishness Inc.; against this, the words of James stand in stark contrast.
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