I have to share this. It's so cool. Or at least that is what I think.
Remember the story of Stephen, the first martyr? What a servant. Before his stoning, Stephen labored to show the Pharisees and all the other hypocrites what they really were and that they didn't have it all, like they thought they did. Though he labored with all of his courage and strength to persuade them about Jesus, they didn't listen to him. It's because of what Jesus said in John 3:19-20 "This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that he deeds will be exposed." Then he saw a vision of Jesus at the right hand of God. Perhaps this would be to give him strength to labor a little longer. Then he told them of the vision and they just didn't want to see that they were wrong and Stephen was right. So they killed him.
Then there is the perfect example; Jesus carrying the cross. He didn't just carry it, he stumbled and struggled and eventually could not carry it all the way. Jesus isn't just the ultimate servant; he is the ultimate man. He took up a challenge that he knew he could not do on his own, and he did it for us and for the Father. He did it because it was needed, not because he could. He did it because he loved us. What else do you think kept Jesus on the cross, the nails? Jesus took up an impossible task, and did it for the ones he loved. That is the image of a true servant. That is the image of a true man.
I believe that a servant does his work because he loves his master. In the same way, a man does his work cheerfully because he loves his children. I want to be a man like Jesus. I want to be a servant like Jesus. I want to labor for my God, my friends, my current family, and my future family.