The Nature of Our GodSample

The Nature of a Servant God

But emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Jesus, at the Incarnation, emptied Himself. But what did Jesus empty Himself of? Not His status as a deity, but His glory, His honor, and His privileges. 

In 1936, the King of England, Edward VIII, abdicated the throne so that he could marry a divorced American named Wallis Simpson. British laws forbade the king to marry a divorced woman, and Edward chose love over royalty. He was still the same person, but he gave up his glory and all the trappings of royalty. The abdication of Edward VIII provides a human parallel to the Incarnation when Jesus emptied Himself, choosing love for us over glory.

The word form in verse 7 is our word morphē, the exact same word we saw in verse 6. Remember, the word means “essential nature.” Jesus’s essential nature is not only that of God, but also that of a servant. His nature has always been a servant nature, for it is an essential part of Him, not peripheral, optional, or temporal. Jesus did not become a servant when He came to earth; He has always been a servant. God is a Servant by nature, a humble Servant. Indeed, God is the biggest Servant in the universe. He serves us and meets our needs because He loves us. Therefore, we must become humble servants if we are followers of Jesus.

Peggy Noonan, a biographer of Ronald Reagan, interviewed a friend of Reagan’s for her book When Character Was King. 

“‘What you have to understand,’” Mrs. Jorgensen says, “‘the key about Ronnie is this: I knew him as a movie actor, as a Governor of the State of California, as President of the United States, and the thing about him is he never changed. He was humble. He had no sense of entitlement. It wasn’t about him, ever.’”

Richard Halverson, on his appointment as chaplain to the United States Senate, recoiled at the idea of using the position as a platform to speak to the nation. “That would be an awful

abuse of this position. I go there to be a servant to the senators, their families, and their staffs, not to find a platform to speak to the nation.” He asked, “When you pray for me, pray that I’ll stay invisible.”

The late Dawson Trotman, founder of the Christian ministry The Navigators, was visiting Taiwan on one of his overseas trips. During the visit, he hiked with a Taiwanese pastor into one of the mountain villages to meet with some of the local Christians. The roads and trails were wet, and their shoes became very muddy. Later, someone asked this Taiwanese pastor what he remembered most about Dawson Trotman. Without hesitation, the man replied, “He cleaned my shoes.” How surprised this humble pastor must have been to arise in the morning and realize that the Christian leader from America had risen before him and cleaned the mud from his shoes! A spirit of servanthood marked Dawson Trotman throughout his Christian life. He died as he lived, actually giving his life to rescue someone else from drowning. That’s servanthood.

Am I a servant? Do I look for ways to serve people around me? Does someone at church or work need a listening ear, an encouraging word, a warm hug, or even a loving challenge? Does my spouse need more attention, affirmation, affection, or help at home? Do my children need my time, my hugs, or my discipline? Who is God calling me to serve today?