Living in the Vine 17

Friends, Not Servants  

John 15:14-15; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; 7:22-23; Romans 6:18-23.

King Charles is Head of State of the British Isles and the Commonwealth, boss of the ‘firm’, but also a husband, father and grandfather. In court circles, people relate to him in each of these distinct roles, but no-one ever forgets that he is King. Even closest family members on encountering him for the first time that day have to address him as ‘your Majesty’ and bow or curtsey; only at subsequent meetings are they able to be more informal. In fact, all those involved in palace life, from the humblest to the greatest, are his servants. Everything revolves around what pleases him. 

There are parallels in our relationship with Father God. We are His children and may know Him intimately as the lover of our soul and as a Father who has generously blessed us and made us heirs with Jesus of a great many spiritual blessings and freedoms. However, that closeness does not permit us to live life just as we please; even in the intimacy of a child-parent-lover relationship, we must never forget to honour and reverence God as our King. If even Jesus was described as His servant (Isaiah 42:1), then how much more should we determine to learn how to live our lives in order to please our King, our Lord, and to do His will? 

The Greek word ‘Lord’ literally means our owner. As Paul wrote in the letter to the Corinthians, we are not our own; we have been bought with a price. Jesus’ death was the price Father God paid to bring us out of slavery to sin and to call us to Himself first as His servants, to do His will. 

In Greek there are actually seven different words for ‘servant’. Whenever the term carries the sense of being formally bound to another the word used is ‘doulos’, which is commonly translated as ‘bond slave’. A bond slave could be a slave who, having been set free, then chooses of his or her own freewill to remain living a life of voluntary obedience as a servant to his or her master. This speaks of how our relationship with God should be.

Yet, Jesus takes this one step further: if we will freely yield ourselves to the Vine and consistently choose to live obediently to His will and ways, then we are no longer simply servants or even bond slaves, but covenant friends of God. This represents a huge intimate shift.

By friendship, Jesus is not just referring to a variety of relationships that we may have with others, not just like a friend we meet up with once a week for coffee or a walk, for example. It is a deeper commitment, a covenant relationship. 

In the ancient covenant-making process there were at least nine different stages in which the covenant partners mutually promised that whatever they possessed (both assets and liabilities), they shared; their battles were to be shared ones as they would no longer live purely for themselves but for the mutual good and support of each other. The final stage in the process was the planting of a blood-smeared memorial tree (prefiguring the Cross), after which the parties were no longer considered just as individuals, but formally united as one. From that moment on, they were recognised as ‘friends’.

This is exactly what Jesus has been alluding to throughout the whole of this parable. If we will learn to live our life yielded to and abiding in the Vine, then all that He has won for us on the Cross is ours to appropriate and have. He is wholly on our side in every circumstance of life, but we must also be wholly His – laying our lives down in surrender and obedience. We’re no longer just His servants but His covenant friends: those with whom He shares His heart, His plans and purposes because He knows that He can trust us to voluntarily and obediently do what He asks.  

Additional reading: Genesis 12:1-4; 15:1-19; 22:1-18; James 2:23; Galatians 2:20. 

Prayer time

Father’s costly love demands our costly response. 

• What do you observe from Abraham’s example?
• Meditate on Galatians 2:20.
• What do you think this might mean for your life?

Talk to God about it all. Give any remaining time to quietly ‘abiding’ in His presence. Do whatever He tells you to do.

Sarah Winbow

To see previous installments of this devotional, follow this link. 


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