Message Two

The Slave of God

Scripture Reading: Mark 10:45;
Phil. 2:5-9; Isa. 42:1-4; 50:4-5, 7; Exo. 21:1-6

1. The subject of the Gospel of Mark is the Slave of God as the Slave-Savior of sinners—10:45:
   1. Mark’s purpose is to provide a detailed record to show the beauty of the Lord Jesus as the Slave of God in His human virtues—5:34; 6:34; 8:23; 10:14-16.
   2. In New Testament usage, the word slave refers to one who has sold himself and has lost all human rights—Rom. 1:1; 2 Pet. 1:1; Jude 1; Rev. 1:1:
      1. When the Lord Jesus was on earth, He was a slave who had no rights.
      2. In His gospel service He was a slave not only to God but also to man—Matt. 20:28; Phil. 2:7; Acts 3:13.
   3. A key to understanding the Gospel of Mark is that in this Gospel we see much more of the Lord’s acts than of His words—3:10-11; 4:39; cf. Acts 10:36-42.
   4. Mark’s record concerning Christ as the Slave of God is a record of the Lord’s excellent deeds, which displayed both His lovely humanity in its virtue and perfection and His deity in its glory and honor—1:14-15, 21-22, 25-26, 30-31, 38-41; 2:10-11; 7:31-37.
   5. Mark 10:45 reveals that, as the Slave of God, He served sinners even with His life, His soul; by giving His life as a ransom for sinners, the Lord Jesus accomplished the eternal purpose of God, whom He served as a slave.
   6. As the Slave of God, the Lord Jesus taught His disciples, at the very time they were striving to be first, to take the position of a slave—vv. 35-45.
2. In the Gospel of Mark are the details of the teaching regarding Christ as the Slave of God in Philippians 2:5-9:
   1. Although the Lord was equal with God, He did not consider being equal with God a treasure to be grasped and retained; rather, He laid aside the form of God and emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave—vv. 6-7.
   2. In His incarnation the Lord Jesus did not alter His divine nature; He changed only His outward expression, from the form of God, the highest form, to that of a slave, the lowest form—v. 7.
   3. Christ’s work in His human living to build up the fashion of a man and take on the form of a slave was the foundation and background of His ministry—v. 8a.
   4. The Lord Jesus humbled Himself, “becoming obedient even unto death, and that the death of a cross,” which was the climax of His humiliation—v. 8b.
   5. The Lord humbled Himself to the uttermost, but God exalted Him to the highest peak—v. 9.
   6. The pattern presented in Philippians 2:5-9 is now the life within us; there is an urgent need among us to experience Christ as such a pattern.
   7. “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus”—v. 5:
      1. This is the mind that was in Christ when He emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave, and humbled Himself, being found in fashion as a man—vv. 5-8.
      2. To have such a mind requires us to be one with Christ in His inward parts, in His tender inward feeling and in His thinking—1:8.
3. In the Gospel of Mark is the fulfillment of the detailed prophecies in Isaiah concerning Christ as the Slave of Jehovah; by considering these prophecies, we can understand more fully what is recorded in Mark concerning Christ as a slave:
   1. Jesus Christ, the Slave of God, was God’s choice; God delighted in Him—Isa. 42:1.
   2. The Lord’s life was a life of sorrows and grief—53:2-3.
   3. Instead of crying out and making His voice heard in the street, He was calm and quiet; He did not strive with others or promote Himself—42:2; Matt. 12:18-21.
   4. Because He was full of mercy, He would not break those who are like a bruised reed, which cannot give a musical sound, or quench the ones who are like burning flax, which cannot give forth a shining light—Isa. 42:3-4.
   5. The Lord Jesus did not speak His own word, but having the tongue of the instructed, He spoke according to God’s instructions—50:4-5:
      1. The Lord Jehovah awakened Him every morning, awakening His ear to hear as an instructed one—v. 4b.
      2. The Lord Jesus was never rebellious; rather, He was always obedient, listening to the word of God—v. 5.
      3. Because the Lord Jesus had the ear and the tongue of an instructed one, He knew how “to sustain the weary with a word”—v. 4a.
   6. The Slave-Savior trusted in God and set His face like a flint; in fulfilling God’s purpose, He was strong—v. 7.
4. The servant in Exodus 21:1-6 is a type of Christ as the Slave of God, who sacrificed Himself to serve God and God’s people—Matt. 20:28; Eph. 5:2, 25:
   1. As the Slave of God, the Lord Jesus stood in the position of doing nothing on His own but acting only according to the word of the Father—Exo. 21:6; Psa. 40:6; John 5:19, 30, 36; 6:38; 7:16; 8:26; 12:49; 17:4.
   2. Love is the motive and the prerequisite for a slave’s continual service (Exo. 21:5); because the Lord Jesus loved the Father (His Master—John 14:31), the church (His wife—Eph. 5:25), and all the believers (His children—Gal. 2:20b; Eph. 5:2), He was willing to serve as a slave.
   3. All who believe in Christ, belong to Him, and have His serving life should take Him as their pattern by learning to be slaves, loving God, the church, and God’s people—Mark 10:42-45; Phil. 2:5-8; Gal. 5:13; Eph. 5:2; Rom. 1:1:
      1. A slave does not care for his own interests but is always willing to empty himself, humble himself, lower himself, sacrifice himself, and serve others.
      2. As a slave of Christ and of God, Paul was willing to empty himself, humble himself, and sacrifice his rank, rights, and privileges—1 Cor. 9:19-23.
      3. Like Paul, we can become such slaves by the serving and sacrificing life of Christ—2 Cor. 12:15; Phil. 2:17.
      4. In carrying out God’s New Testament economy, we need to have the spirit of a slave, the love of a slave, and the obedience of a slave—v. 5; Rev. 22:3b.