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Bond servantIn the first sentence of Philippians we read - Paul and Timothy, bond-servants of Christ Jesus. In 9 of 13 epistles Paul mentions in his opening salutation that he is an apostle but doesn't mention this at allin Philippians. Sometimes we need to learn from what is not there and not just what is there. This is theclosest church to the apostle Paul and he is writing to them about joy, fellowship and the gospel. Healso includes Timothy though this is a letter that Paul writes and you know this by the personal pronouns such as "I" and "my" that he uses inChapter 1. In my study I was struck by the word bond-servant and since this is how Paul started Iconcluded it must be important for us to study this word in some depth.There are 4 key words in Philippians that we will discuss at length.1. Joy2. Bond-servant3. Fellowship4. GospelOK, let's look at the word bond-servant in some detail. The word itself is doulos in the Greek. In the 13epistles of the apostle Paul he uses this word a total of 38 times. Here is what it means:One who give himself or herself up another's will, those whose service is used by Christ to advanceHis kingdom or one devoted to another to the disregard of their own interest.Some other words that you see associated with bond-servant are:- ownership- possession- allegiance- subjection- dependence Now that you have the definition and some words regarding bond-servant in your mind let's turn tosome Scripture.Ex. 21:5 "But if the slave plainly says, 'I love my master, my wife and my children; I will not go out asa free man,'Ex. 21:6 then his master shall bring him to God, then he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost.And his master shall pierce his ear with an awl; and he shall serve him permanently.From the little bit of reading I have done the bond-servant then put a ring into his ear to identifyhimself with his master.Can you think of an application for this in your life?Do others see in your words and actions as one who identifies himself as a servant of the Lord Jesus?How about your wife?How about your children?How about your co-workers?Here are the 5 principles of bond-servant hood that we studied this morning.
1. A bond-servant thinks in terms of stewardship rather than ownership.
Psa. 24:1 The earth is the LORD'S, and all it contains,The world, and those who dwell in it.According to Psalm 24 - Everything belongs to GodA bond-servant understand that he does not own his possessions but has been entrusted with the care of 
 
his master's possessions.Remember the story of Joseph in Genesis 39:4-10Gen. 39:4 So Joseph found favor in his sight and became his personal servant; and he made himoverseer over his house, and all that he owned he put in his charge.Gen. 39:5 It came about that from the time he made him overseer in his house and over all that heowned, the LORD blessed the Egyptian's house on account of Joseph; thus the LORD'S blessing wasupon all that he owned, in the house and in the field.Gen. 39:6 So he left everything he owned in Joseph's charge; and with him there he did not concernhimself with anything except the food which he ate. ¶ Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance.Gen. 39:7 It came about after these events that his master's wife looked with desire at Joseph, and shesaid, "Lie with me."Gen. 39:8 But he refused and said to his master's wife, "Behold, with me here, my master does notconcern himself with anything in the house, and he has put all that he owns in my charge.Gen. 39:9 "There is no one greater in this house than I, and he has withheld nothing from me exceptyou, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great evil and sin against God?"Gen. 39:10 As she spoke to Joseph day after day, he did not listen to her to lie beside her or be withher.
2. A bond-servant does not expect to be served but instead serves
Mark 10:45 "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life aransom for many."You need to be careful in your understanding and application of this principle of being a bond-servant.I have heard it said for years incorrectly in the church that since the Lord Jesus died for you then theleast you can do is go to church, read your Bible and get involved in some type of kingdom work. Thatis incorrect thinking and bad doctrine if you will allow me to be blunt. There is no person on planetearth that can serve the Lord Jesus Christ in a way that will ever add one ounce to what He did for uson the cross. Therefore to have a pay Jesus back mentality is an insult the cross. The serving we do ishorizontally for those who God places in our life in order that by our service to them we demonstratethe greatness of Christ. Unfortunately many times in our service we want others to acknowledge us,applaud us or praise us for what we have done. Guys, if we ever serve like that then we rob Christ of His glory. So when it comes to serving let's remember Christ is the Blessor and we are the blessee,Christ is the Giver and we are the receiver. But when it comes to serving others let's also remember that we do so in a way where we manifest Jesus and not ourselves.Also Luke 17:3-10 provides some helpful insight.Luke 17:3 "Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.Luke 17:4 "And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, 'Irepent,' forgive him."Luke 17:5 ¶ The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!"Luke 17:6 And the Lord said, "If you had faith like a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberrytree, 'Be uprooted and be planted in the sea'; and it would obey you.Luke 17:7 ¶ "Which of you, having a slave plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he hascome in from the field, 'Come immediately and sit down to eat'?Luke 17:8 "But will he not say to him, 'Prepare something for me to eat, and properly clothe yourself and serve me while I eat and drink; and afterward you may eat and drink'?Luke 17:9 "He does not thank the slave because he did the things which were commanded, does he?Luke 17:10 "So you too, when you do all the things which are commanded you, say, 'We are unworthy
 
slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have done.'"I think the disciples in this story understood the fact that forgiveness is hard to do. But the Lord Jesusgoes on the explain "why" forgiving someone is so hard for us.Basically He is saying that we don't have a bond-servant mentality. In other words we find it hard toforgive others (wife, kids, friends) when we think they are to serve and meet our needs. Jesus says thata bond-servant spirit carries with it the attitude of serving instead of being served. One of the ways thatwe serve others is by forgiving them. Slaves don't expect to be served in this way but instead they arealways willing to serve.
3. A bond-servant should not expect to be treated better than their master
John 15:20 "Remember the word that I said to you, 'A slave is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also.John 15:21 "But all these things they will do to you for My name's sake, because they do not know theOne who sent Me.1Pet. 2:18 ¶ Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are goodand gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable.1Pet. 2:19 For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly.1Pet. 2:20 For what credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor withGod.1Pet. 3:14 But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed. AND DO NOTFEAR THEIR INTIMIDATION, AND DO NOT BE TROUBLED,1Pet. 3:17 For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong.There are those in the church today that think believing in Jesus should somehow equate to theunrestricted blessings of God. I have heard and seen this first hand and in my opinion it is falseteaching and extremely dangerous in the body of Christ.They think and teach that Christians need not experience:1. Sickness2. SufferingThey teach and proclaim a gospel that is one of:- health- wealth- prosperityHowever as you can see clearly in the Bible that to become a bond-servant of Christ means to enter Hisrejection and suffering.
4. A bond-servant finds delight in his master
Dan. 4:19 ¶ "Then Daniel, whose name is Belteshazzar, was appalled for a while as his thoughtsalarmed him. The king responded and said, 'Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its interpretationalarm you.' Belteshazzar replied, 'My lord, if only the dream applied to those who hate you and itsinterpretation to your adversaries!Dan. 4:27 'Therefore, O king, may my advice be pleasing to you: break away now from your sins by
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Brown Kajal Huyen-Vi

Shawn Patrick Ivan Warner Tyler Price Mamasitablancasoto Huyen-Vi Thi Nguyen Brown HB 8110 North Tamiami Trail Sarasota Florida 34243 am very blessed to come across you again after forty-nine years.

reply02 / 27 / 2012
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