Day 1- A BONDSERVANT

Read Philippians 2:5-7
A bondservant is a specific type of servant. The New Testament was originally written in Greek and later translated to English so you could read it. The original word for “bondservant” is the Greek word “Doulos.”
Doulos: (n) the disregard of one’s own interests to be devoted to another.
Re-read Philippians 2:5-7
How did Jesus “disregard” His own interests for others? How do Jesus’ servant-hearted actions affect you? Do you believe that Jesus died for you?

Day 2- HISTORY LESSONS FROM THE BIBLE

Yesterday you read about Jesus being a “bondservant.” The word “bondservant” can be understood by reading the Old Testament. Over the next few days you are going to read some history and verses from the Old Testament to help you understand what it truly means to be a bondservant.
Here are some reasons a person in the Old Testament might be a servant:
01
You owed someone a debt. You could have been someone’s servant if you owed someone something and couldn’t pay it back. It was like if you went to a restaurant and couldn’t pay your bill so you washed the dishes.
02
You stole something. The Old Testament law required you to serve the person you stole from to “right your wrong.” You worked for a certain amount of time and then were free. It’s more like getting community service hours for stealing today.
03
You couldn’t take care of yourself. In this instance, becoming a servant was a choice. If you couldn’t take care of your family, you could ask a landowner to become their servant. That landowner would allow you to live on his property while you worked for him.
God made it clear that masters were to love their servants and take care of them.
A master was required to do the following:
1. Give freedom when someone paid off his or her debt.
2. Give freedom when a family member paid their debt.
3. Every 7 years, God required a master to let his servants go free even if they hadn’t     paid it back. Their debts would be forgiven.
A bondservant is someone who was given freedom but chose to stay a servant.
This person loved their master so much that they chose to serve him forever.
Read Exodus 21:5-6
Why did a man decide to stay with his master? Did the man have to stay with his master?
What did the man do to show that he belonged to his master?
Re-Read Philippians 2:5-7
How did Jesus disregard his own interests for God’s plan to save you?
How does Jesus show He loves God?

Did you know that God put this law in the Bible as a preview of what Jesus would do? You are a slave to your sin and there is nothing you can do about it. Your debt of sin is something you can never pay yourself.
You can’t do enough to ever pay it. Jesus is the true “family member” that came to pay your debt. Jesus sets you free from your “debt” of sin.

Day 3- BE LIKE JESUS

Jesus has given you enough reason to become His bondservant. Here is how:
Do you recognize that you sin and it’s nasty?
Read Romans 3:23. Do you believe that Jesus died to pay the penalty for your sin?
Read 1 Peter 2:24 and 2 Corinthians 5:21
Do you believe that Jesus resurrected from the dead to give you life?
Read Romans 6:23, Romans 8:11, and John 10:10
Do you believe Jesus has given you enough reason to become His bondservant?

DIG DEEPER

In the Old Testament, when someone chose to become a bondservant the master would literally pierce the servant’s ear to mark the servant. Everyone would know that the servant belonged to him. When you choose Jesus, you become His bondservant. You are His. Did you know Jesus puts His mark on you? Ephesians 1:13 says that when you believe in Jesus, you are sealed with the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God lives in you and this is how people know you belong to God.

Day 4- IT’S YOUR CHOICE

Ask yourself these questions and read the verses to see if you have good reason to be a bondservant to Jesus. Do you believe that Jesus loves you?
Read Romans 5:8 and John 3:16
Do you believe that Jesus is the only way to salvation?
Read John 14:6 and Acts 4:12
Jesus came to earth, died and rose again to set you free from sin. God planned how you would fit into His plan from the beginning and He gave you life and purpose. He has worked non-stop your entire life to show you His goodness, truth, and salvation through Jesus. He loves you so much that He has given you the freedom to choose Him. Yes, you read that correctly. God doesn’t force you to serve Him. He gives you the opportunity to walk away from Him just like the servants in the Old Testament had the freedom to leave their master who loved them so much. Being God’s bondservant is a choice. Jesus is the only one who gives life, but the choice is still yours. Jesus chose to do it for you. Are you ready to choose to give your life to Him and serve Him? If so, write in large words at the end of this page: I AM A BONDSERVANT… and write a sentence answering why.

Day 5- SERVE GOD FIRST

This study is going to challenge you to be a servant of God. If you want to be servant-hearted you must learn to serve God first.
Read Matthew 6:33 and write down what this verse says to do.
You have read all the reasons Jesus is worthy of being our Master. For the next 8 months, you are going to learn that you must hold on tightly to Him first and foremost. Once you begin doing this, your heart will change. Once your heart changes, your words and actions towards others will follow.
Read Luke 6:45
The good treasure in one’s heart brings what? How does the mouth speak?
Do you see why serving God must come before serving others?