The difficulties and rewards of following Jesus

Tile from the Stations of the Cross at the Phillipine Duchesne Memorial Park near Centerville.

Matters of Faith

By Bascom Ratliff, pastor

Beagle, Fontana and Parker United Methodist Churches

Scripture:  Matthew 20: 25-28. Jesus called them and said, “whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, and those who wish to be first among you must be your slave; just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

As we continue our journey with Jesus through Lent, we are reminded that Jesus provides us a great example of serving God by sacrificing himself for us.. He then challenges us to be a servant to others.  For most of us, serving others is difficult. We are raised and challenged to be independent. We believe that we should be paid or compensated for our efforts. We believe this service comes with a price and, if we are going to help someone, they must be worthy of our help. Sadly, many of us believe that people who are poor and needy are at fault and that somehow they have not sufficiently worked at making good decisions or taking care of themselves. It becomes far too easy to judge others and blame them when things go wrong.

Jesus however, takes a different approach to the notion of serving God by serving others. He tells us that, if we are going to be great in the eyes of God, we must be slaves and servants to others. Jesus tells us that caring for others is a higher calling. He also tells us that we must love our enemies and forgive those who would do us harm. In sum, he asks us to go against our selfish natures and fully embrace the gifts of the Holy Spirit by serving others with gentleness, kindness, and compassion.

As we approach the end of our Lenten journey, we are reminded of the wonderful service of Jesus Christ and his death on the cross. It strikes me as truly amazing that the Son of God, a person with infinite power and courage, would readily give his life for a sinner like myself. But he did just that. He preached the power of serving others, he lived a life of genuine service, and gave us the greatest gift of all – the gift of forgiveness, resurrection, and life everlasting.

Hopefully, we have all been on this journey with Jesus through Lent. We have witnessed the power of love and the wonders of being a servant of Almighty God. And like Jesus,  our journey takes us to the cross, to an empty tomb, and to a challenge. In serving Christ we must serve others. As I consider our Lenten journeys, I become more convinced that the most wonderful thing we can do with our faith and our commitment to God, is to love and care for others. We are called to actively serve by giving of our time, resources, and attention. And in doing so, we fulfill the greatest commandment of all: to love God and to love others.

I would like to challenge all of us to take a hard look at our service to God and others. Are we fully committed to doing the will of God? Is our faith sufficient to recognize God’s commanding us to a higher calling as members of a royal priesthood. As we are concluding our journey with Jesus through Lent, are we celebrating the wonderful promises of God. And equally important, are growing to be enthusiastic servants of a loving God.

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Are you walking with Jesus through this Lenten season? He is inviting you to join him on his journey. He promises you fellowship and connection with fellow walkers. I encourage you to join us in celebrating Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter. We offer a spirit-filled celebration and the joy of knowing that we belong to a loving God and a resurrected Christ.

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We will have Sunday morning services during the month of April at 10 a.m. at the Fontana United Methodist Church.

We will celebrate Holy Thursday on April 17 at 7 p.m. at the Parker UMC.

We will celebrate Good Friday on April 18 at 7 p.m. at the Beagle UMC. 

We will celebrate Easter sunrise services at 7 a.m. at the Beagle UMC.

We will celebrate Easter Sunday services at 10 a.m. at the Fontana UMC.

All are welcome in God’s House.  Come and celebrate the risen Christ.

Dr. Bascom Ratliff  (913-710-5748)

Pastor: Parker/Beagle/Fontana 

United Methodist Churches