Grace-Filled Servants

Gospel Reflection for Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025 - Luke 17:7-10

In today’s Gospel Jesus is giving a hard teaching, one that is not only difficult to accept but even harder to put into practice. He shares of a servant who has been out in the fields plowing or tending to the sheep. This would have been a long day full of exhausting work, and the servant is coming back in to rest, eat, and recover.

Yet we hear that instead of the servant being offered a seat to rest after such strenuous work, he is commanded to continue working. To put on an apron, to prepare food for his master and what’s more, wait until his master is done eating before he may go and eat himself. Jesus wraps up this parable with a question “Is he grateful to that servant because he did what was commanded?”

So it should be with you

In an age when everyone seems to be scrambling for any scrap of attention, validation, and praise from our peers both online and off, it is hard for our modern ears to hear this parable and fully grasp its meaning. The idea of serving others without praise, to serve with humility, and to do so obediently, is shocking.

Yet, so it should be with us. We are all sons and daughters to a King, a King who humbled himself in the flesh, who obediently followed the Father’s will, and died for us. He gave us the perfect example of service, done without the expectation of praise, done with humility, and done with obedience.

Through our baptism we are called into relationship with the Lord, and into His service as priest, prophet, and king for His kingdom. Today’s Gospel challenges us and our human pride, to approach our service with a deep sense of humility, and profound gratitude. It challenges us to acknowledge that our service to God is not something that elevates us but rather is something that shows our utter dependence on Him.

We are His servants by Grace.

Jesus said to the Apostles:
“Who among you would say to your servant
who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field,
‘Come here immediately and take your place at table’?
Would he not rather say to him,
‘Prepare something for me to eat.
Put on your apron and wait on me while I eat and drink.
You may eat and drink when I am finished’?
Is he grateful to that servant because he did what was commanded?
So should it be with you.
When you have done all you have been commanded, say,
‘We are unprofitable servants;
we have done what we were obliged to do.’”