Did you watch the Coronation of King Charles III? I tuned in to see the pomp and pageantry of the occasion and I was certainly not disappointed. It was not the pageantry that has stuck with me, nor the woman who held the sword for the whole service (although that was very impressive!) but, rather, it was the very first spoken part of the service, the moment where the young chorister, Samuel Strachan, welcomed the King to his own Coronation. Samuel addressed the King with these words, “Your Majesty, as children of the Kingdom of God we welcome you in the name of the King of Kings.” Surprisingly, the King was not welcomed to his Coronation by an Archbishop, Prime Minister or celebrity. In the planning of the service, it was decided that this great honour was to be given to one of the youngest people at the service.
The King replied, “In his name, and after his example, I come not to be served but to serve.” Ahead of all the symbols of rule and authority, he chose to declare that he was a servant and repeat the words of Jesus from Mark Chapter 10:
45“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Throughout the Bible, we see similar reversals of the greater serving the lesser. The truly great individuals take on the role of the servant, lifting the needy and the poor. Nowhere is this better seen than in Paul’s letter to the Philippians. Paul recites this amazing poem in Chapter 2:
6 “Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
7 rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death –
even death on a cross!”
Jesus, the high king of heaven, takes on the very nature of a servant, humbles himself, and becomes obedient to death to bring us forgiveness and life. Despite his power and status, that is who he is – a servant. This raises the question: Will you be humble enough to let him serve you?