184. Heir and Lord
Galatians 4:1 Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all.
The promise of being an heir includes the promise of being lord of all. As children of God by faith in Christ we are heirs and lords. We will inherit all the things of God that He has promised to us, and as heirs we are lords. However, being still children we are still servants. We are now and always will be children, and as children we are still servants, although at the same time we are lords of all.
This paradoxical promise is echoed by Luther when he says, “We are dutiful servants of all and at the same time lords of all.”The paradox is true whether we can understand it or not. We are always servants and children while we are at the same time heirs and lords. As heirs we have the inheritance (all the promises) now by faith, although we have not yet grown up to realize the inheritance in actual fact, that is, we don’t see it. And we will forever be children of God and therefore servants of God. As servants, we serve one another and all other people. We serve God by serving people. We do not actually “serve God,” for God does not need our good works but our neighbors do. In eternity we get to serve one another.
The other truth is that even though we are servants we are still lords of all. This does not mean we may “lord it over” other people by controlling them or telling them what to do. But it does mean that no other person may force us to do something, because we serve willingly and out of love. This is how we live: we willingly choose to serve one another without force or coercion. What happens is that I become lord of all by serving. This is a much more enjoyable way to live when I begin to understand that I am servant and lord. I am able to serve and choose to serve because I am an heir and a lord. I truly have all I need when I have God in my life, and I am free to love by serving. If I am forced to serve by another lord then it is not freely chosen service; that is not love. The Lord Jesus Christ is my Lord, and He does not lord it over me by force; He urges and compels me by His incredible love for me. I live my life by believing that I am a child and a servant and an heir and a lord. Spend the rest of your life figuring out that paradox and believing the promise.