Christians call themselves servants — literally, slaves (Greek δοῦλοι) — of God, because they strive to do the will of Christ God. Christians serve Christ, they are His slaves, they submit their will to Him, and they do so voluntarily. Christ is such that it is no shame to be His slave. Nor is it a shame to be a slave of the Creator of the world. And in the Kingdom of Christ, to which Christians aspire, it is even an honor to be an obedient slave of the King of kings:
“Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them” (Luke. 12:37)
Christ Commands Us to Call Ourselves His Servants
“So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do’” (Luke. 17:10)
“You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am” (John. 13:13)
“Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also” (John. 15:20)
The Apostles Command Us to Be Servants of Christ
“Bondservants, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ; not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart” (Eph. 6:5-6)
“For he who is called in the Lord while a slave is the Lord’s freedman. Likewise he who is called while free is Christ’s slave” (1 Cor. 7:22)
“as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God” (1 Pet. 2:16)
The Apostles Call Themselves Servants of Christ
“For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ” (Gal. 1:10)
“Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness” (Titus. 1:1)
“Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ” (Jude. 1:1)
“James, a bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad: Greetings” (James. 1:1)
“Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 1:1)
“Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God” (Rom. 1:1)
“Epaphras, who is one of you, a bondservant of Christ, greets you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers, that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God” (Col. 4:12)
The Theotokos Calls Herself the Handmaid of God
“Then Mary said, ‘Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.’ And the angel departed from her” (Luke. 1:38)
In the Old Testament God Called Believers His Servants
“Behold, My servants shall rejoice, but you shall be ashamed; behold, My servants shall sing for joy of heart, but you shall cry for sorrow of heart, and wail for grief of spirit” (Is. 65:13-14)
“I will bring forth descendants from Jacob, and from Judah an heir of My mountains; My elect shall inherit it, and My servants shall dwell there” (Is. 65:9)
The Prophets and Believers Called Themselves Servants of God
“For I am your servant the son of your serving girl, a man who is weak and short-lived, with little understanding of judgment and laws” (Wis. 9:5)
“So I answered them, and said to them, ‘The God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build, but you have no heritage or right or memorial in Jerusalem’” (Neh. 2:20)
“Now these are Your servants and Your people, whom You have redeemed by Your great power, and by Your strong hand” (Neh. 1:10)
“Then she made a vow and said, ‘O LORD of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head’” (1 Sam. 1:11)
“Bless the Lord, you servants; sing praise to Him and highly exalt Him forever” (Dan. 3:85, LXX; the Song of the Three Young Men; translated from the Greek: εὐλογεῖτε, δοῦλοι, τὸν κύριον)
“They answered us, ‘We are the servants of the Lord who created the heaven and the earth’” (1 Esd. 6:13)
There Were Slaves Who Loved Their Masters
“And when you send him away free from you, you shall not let him go away empty-handed; <…> And if it happens that he says to you, ‘I will not go away from you,’ because he loves you and your house, since he prospers with you” (Deut. 15:13,16)