Being willing to serve

“The next section was repaired by the men of Tekoa, but their nobles would not put their shoulders to the work under their supervisors.” Nehemiah 3:5
We are all called to serve other people (Matt. 20:26, Luke 17:10, 22:26, John 12:26, Gal. 5:13, Eph. 4:12, 6:7, 1 Pet. 2:16, 4:10, etc.). We are to work with all our heart, as if working for the Lord (Col. 3:23). But you will always come across people who are not willing to serve, or only willing to serve in certain ways – they think that certain tasks are beneath them. Here in Nehemiah 3 we have an extensive list of the people who helped rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Reading through we find people who were priests, temple servants, rulers, goldsmiths, perfumers, merchants, etc. These people were all qualified for various important tasks, yet they all mucked in and helped with menial work, building the wall. But the nobles of Tekoa refused. Building walls was something for the common people, not for them.
If you have this same attitude today, consider how Jesus lived. Here He was, the Creator of the universe, who when He came to earth, did not have a place to call home (Luke 9:58). He submitted to those in authority (Luke 2:51, Matt. 17:27). He did not exalt Himself by becoming a synagogue ruler, or by walking into Herod’s palace and demanding that He be made king. He did the opposite of all these things – He became a servant (Mark 10:45, Phil. 2:7). And He calls us to do the same thing. “When He had finished washing their feet, He put on His clothes and returned to His place. ‘Do you understand what I have done for you?’ He asked them. ‘You call Me “Teacher” and “Lord”, and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you and example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them’” (John 13:12-17). Washing the feet was the task given to the lowest servant in the household. Jesus is not calling us to specifically wash people’s feet (although there are some groups in the church that take this literally), but to have an attitude of being willing to serve in even the most menial way. Ask God to help you develop the right attitude, today.