He Bids Us Come and Die

Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called: (Jude 1:1) Mercy unto you, and peace, and love, be multiplied. (Jude 1:2)“If you’re a servant of the Lord, don’t be surprised when you get treated like one”Ministry At Zero Degrees is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.As a new Christian, I sat under a number of pastors over the first decade of the faith. Sure, I had one primary place of worship, but living in the Mecca of Christianity in the early 1980’s was a smorgy of solid biblical teaching. My “home” church was Calvary Chapel Dana Point, which at the time was beginning to burst at the seams with growth.One of those awesome men used to repeat the phrase “If you’re a servant of the Lord, don’t be surprised when you get treated like one”I’m probably not the epitome of a servant of the Lord. How about you? You see, as humans I think we enjoy a measure of self that interferes with becoming that premier example of a servant.* We have liberty to do anything we want, but there may be consequences.* We don’t like being told what to do unless we already want to do it anyway.* We have a hard time putting others first.* Self-centered, self-seeking, self-ish, self-made, selfies, self magazine, instead of self-less.The life is in the blood.Throughout the New Testament, the writers frequently call themselves the servants of the Lord, but what exactly do they mean? What did Jude mean when he called himself “the servant of Jesus Christ”?There are six nouns translated “servant” and one verb. We’ll consider just one or two of them.Paul the apostle tells us how the journey to becoming a servant of Jesus Christ begins, and some of what it means to be that servant.Romans 6:5-7(5) For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: (6) Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. (7) For he that is dead is freed from sin.In his book “The Cost of Discipleship”, Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote “When Christ calls us, he bids us come and die.”Every task has reward. If you plant a garden, you hope to eat of it. If you work you expect a paycheck. If you take a hike you hope to experience nature. If you love to drive over the speed limit, you know that you may receive a fine. For everything that we “do” we have an expectation of an outcome.We drain sap from maple trees for several weeks each year, and they suffer no harm. Draining the blood of a creature or human for weeks would kill us. The life is in the blood.The wages of sin, the reward of sin, is death. From the very first sin in the garden of Eden, the price for sin is death. The life is in the blood. It’s what separates animals from every other living thing. There is no forgiveness of sin without the shedding of blood.That’s the point of the Cross. Jesus was a perfect sinless man and yet fully God in human flesh. He died on the Cross to pay for our sins, if we are willing to believe and receive that price paid on our behalf.When we come to Christ, our old man is put to death, and we are set free from the bondage to sin. The Word to us can be challenging though. I don’t want to recognize that I was a slave to sin. As a slave you do things you might not want to do. Your master tells you what to do, where to go, when to do everything. Your life is not your own, you only eat, sleep, and function at the will of the one that is your master.In college I would hear the partiers mantra, “I don’t do drugs, drugs do me” . It doesn’t matter if its a sin of consuming or of behavior, or a sin of thoughts, words, or deeds. If you are a servant to that sin, it will do you, and where you once thought you were in control of it all, you find it now controls you. You need a new master.You need a new master.They were confessing a biblical truth without knowing it. They were the servants of sin. If you are sick and tired of being sick and tired from sin in your life, Christ wants to set you free. “He bids you Come and Die”. If you have ever been consumed by sin, a servant of sin, then you may know the taste of death that comes with it. The hangover, the crash, the thought life, the foulness, the filth.The word that Jude uses for “servant” is “Doulos”. When used as an adjective, it means to be in bondage. As a noun, its used to label a soldier, a slave, an employee, or anyone who is under the authority of another. Some are born slaves. Some are made slaves. Some are sold into slavery. Some are slaves of their own accord.Jude has made himself a servant of Jesus Christ, and has brought himself under the will of his Lord, God, and brother.Going back to Romans 6, Paul continues to reveal to us God’s will in becoming servants. In Romans 6:18 he uses the verb form of the word to serve. “douloo”. He says of us “I made myself a servant”, and “I brought myself under bondage” . We “became slaves or servants of righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ. Please take the time to read all of Romans chapter 6, as a believer you’ll be greatly encouraged.Romans 6:15-17, 18, 20(15) What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. (16) Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? (17) But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.(18) Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. ...(20) For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.So what’s the answer?...as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness… Romans 6:19We’ve been transformed. Once servants of sin and evil and now servants of what is right, and good, and holy. We need to remember who our master is. Are we ruled by sin and death? Or are we ruled by righteousness unto holiness? Do you need a new master?If we claim Christ, we are no longer servants of sin. We were bought with a price, and are no longer our own. The costly and precious blood of Christ, spilled out on the ground. The blood of Abel cried out from the ground to God, and the blood of Christ still cries out today on our behalf. He bids you Come and Die, identifying with his death and resurrection. He offers the free gift of eternal life purchased at great cost to Himself.He paid a debt He did not owe for me who owed a debt I cannot pay.Until next time, May the Lord richly bless you my beloved.Ministry At Zero Degrees is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zerodegrees.substack.com