Left vs. Right

My two daughters have many things in common.  One of those commonalities surfaced recently while making a left hand turn as I was driving with one of them.  They both, when uncertain about turning left, put their hands on the top of the steering wheel and make a 90-degree angle with their pointer finger and thumb to see which one makes an “L” so they can be sure of which way to turn.  Left vs. right.

In the Bible, James and John were concerned about left and right.  They both wanted to sit at Jesus’ side, something they thought would bring them high regard.  But look who ended up next to Jesus on his left and right.  Two thieves being crucified!

Left vs. right is important when driving, walking, or giving directions.  Left vs. right, however, is not important with respect to status in Jesus’ mind.  Jesus’ view is summarized in the words of Bob Dylan’s Gospel song: “You Gotta’ Serve Somebody”:

“You may be an ambassador to England or France
You may like to gamble, you might like to dance
You may be the heavyweight champion of the world
You may be a socialite with a long string of pearls

“But you’re going to have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You’re going to have to serve somebody
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you’re going to have to serve somebody”

In serving of the Lord, what is important to Jesus are the words of Mark 10: 43 – 45:

“Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever   wishes to be first among you must be slave of all.  For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.”

In the end, left vs. right matters not at all.  Serving is important.  It is vital to our life with Christ. 

Let’s do it!  Let’s serve someone today, and every day, whether they are on our left or right or directly in front of us

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