the weblog of Alan Knox

Scripture… As We Live It #9

Posted by on Jul 6, 2008 in as we live it, scripture | 6 comments

Here is the ninth passage from “Scripture… As We Live It“:

But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not certainly be so among you. But So whoever would be great among you must be your servant leader, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave authority… (Matthew 20:25-27 re-mix)

Related posts:

  1. Exercising authority without exercising authority?
  2. It shall not be so among you
  3. Scripture… As We Live It #20
  4. Scripture… As We Live It #173

6 Comments

Comments are closed. If you would like to discuss this post, send an email to alan [at] alanknox [dot] net.

  1. 7-6-2008
    Ted M. Gossard says:

    Interesting, Alan. That unfortunately can hit too close to home among us, I’m sure. So that those who really are following Jesus in sacrificial servanthood, do stand out, indeed.

  2. 7-6-2008
    grace says:

    A personal favorite of mine (the original version, of course).

  3. 7-6-2008
    Anonymous says:

    Alan – right on spot. Or, another version:
    “…It shall not be so among you, when it comes to the question of your inner attitude. But whoever would be great among you must think of him/her-self as a servant in his/her heart, and whoever would be first among you must have a slave-like attitude. This, though, has nothing to do with the structures or how power is actually used. It´s perfectly fine to have power over others just as in the system, as long as your heart is right. Jesus, as always, is not talking about positions, relationships or how we do things, but only about inner, invisible stuff.
    /Jonas Lundström
    http://blog.bahnhof.se/wb938188

  4. 7-6-2008
    Lionel says:

    I was going to borow this and do the exact same verse. LOL. But more seriously, Matt 23 has caused me to rethink a bunch of stuff. If Christ is talking to the first disciples and we are but an extension of the 12, then how is that we are to relate to one another? We quote 1 Cor 12 but continually have big I’s and little U’s!

  5. 7-6-2008
    Alan Knox says:

    Ted,

    Thanks for the comment. Yes, real servants stand out.

    Grace,

    The original is one of my favorites as well. In fact, my understanding of “Christian leadership” starts with that passage and other parallel passages in the Gospels.

    Jonas,

    Thank you for your version. It is very interesting that in your version – which is very popular – the “spiritual servants” never become “physical servants”.

    Lionel,

    Yes, there are many passages of Scripture that demonstrate that we are not relating to one another the way that God intends.

    -Alan

  6. 7-6-2008
    Mark says:

    Love it Alan. This is a verse I have been intending to do on my blog at some point.