Doing Your Duty

“Would any one of you say to your slave who comes in from the field after plowing or shepherding sheep, ‘Come at once and sit down for a meal’? Won’t the master instead say to him, ‘Get my dinner ready, and make yourself ready to serve me while I eat and drink. Then you may eat and drink’? He won’t thank the slave because he did what he was told, will he? So you too, when you have done everything you were commanded to do, should say, ‘We are slaves undeserving of special praise; we have only done what was our duty.’ ” (Lk 17:7-10)

At first glance this story seems rather negative.  It appears the master is a bit harsh.  I believe the Lord Jesus told this story in this way to make a strong point.  He is clarifying for the listener the nature of the Master/Slave relationship.  But before we look at the Master, let's consider the Slave.

The Role of the Slave

"The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος) in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another."[1] (The Net Bible)

 Δοῦλος is sometimes translated "servant", but slave captures the meaning the best.  A modern-day interpretation often conjures up onerous images, but in Old Testament it was considered a high honor to be a slave of the Lord. For example, the apostle Paul often refers to himself as a slave or bondservant of Christ Jesus (Phil 1:1, Ro 1:1, Gal 1:10).  He considered this to be the highest calling, not a lowly position. 

In Jesus' story, the main point seems to be that the slave or bondservant has a certain duty and responsibility.  His job, so to speak, is to do the Master's bidding. There are no special accolades for the servant who is simply doing what is expected of him. They should say, ‘We are slaves undeserving of special praise; we have only done what was our duty.’

To the person who has responded to Christ to make Him Lord of their life, this makes perfect sense.  As Christians we have a serious decision to make- to take up our cross and follow Christ- to truly enshrine Him as Lord in our hearts and lives.

The Role of the Master 

We know that Christ is indeed Lord over all and master of all creation:

As a result God exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow —in heaven and on earth and under the earth— and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. (Php 2:9-11)

Although many may call Him Lord with their mouths, not all are truly making Him Lord of their life.  Jesus spoke to this issue on several occasions:

“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and don’t do what I tell you? (Lk 6:46)

If we consider the Lord as our Master, then obedience should be assumed.  The Master takes care of the slave.  All their needs are met.  In our case we have a loving Heavenly Father.  He should be our Master.  Our job is to obey.

“Everyone who comes to me and listens to my words and puts them into practice—I will show you what he is like: He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep, and laid the foundation on bedrock. When a flood came, the river burst against that house but could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the person who hears and does not put my words into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the river burst against that house, it collapsed immediately, and was utterly destroyed!” (Lk 6:47-49)

There are two types of houses depicted in this famous conclusion to the Sermon on the Mount:

 

1. A house built on bedrock.
2. A house without a foundation (built on sand)

Both houses encountered the same fate- a flood came, and the river burst against these houses.

There were two different results:

 

1. The house on a firm foundation withstood the flood.
2. The house with no foundation collapsed and was destroyed.

So, what made the difference?  One heard the words of Christ and put them into practice, the other hears but does not take action.  One obeys His word, the other simply listens with no obedience.  So, the Lod Jesus Christ is making a strong case for obedience to His Word.  He is also defining what it means to make Him Lord.  The servant does what the Master tells him to do.  So back to Luke 17:7-10…

When the servant comes in from the fields, he still must serve the Master.  He doesn't eat first but waits until his Master has eaten.  The servant stays in his role.  And when he fulfills the instructions of the Master, he deserves no special thanks.  Jesus tells us that the servant should say, ‘We are slaves undeserving of special praise; we have only done what was our duty.’ ”

So, what conclusions can we draw from this amazing story?

 

1. We should enter into submission willingly and joyfully, knowing we are loved and forgiven in Christ.
2. We should understand our responsibilities when we make Christ Lord of our lives.
3. We should serve faithfully.
4. There is no place for ego or pride.
5. We hope to hear one day, "Well done".

 His master answered, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful with a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.’ (Mt 25:23)

 A word of caution:  Sometimes it's easy to compare your service to someone else's.  You may feel that you are more spiritual or more faithful than those around you.  Beware!  Even the most obedient, the most faithful of us should still conclude that we were unworthy servants of our Lord.  None of us will have lived up to the standard of perfection that the Lord Jesus Christ demonstrated.  Even the best of us has a long way to go to live at the highest levels of servanthood.  Let us respond humbly and contritely to this powerful admonition the Lord gives in Luke 17:7-10. 

All passages in this post were taken from The NET Bible (Biblical Studies Press, 2005).

 

 

 

 

 

---

[1] Biblical Studies Press, The NET Bible First Edition; Bible. English. NET Bible.; The NET Bible (Biblical Studies Press, 2005).