Paul chose to be a bondservant.

There once was a son who rebelled against his father. No matter what the father said or did, the son never understood how much he was loved. Finally, through a dramatic event, the son understood what the father had been trying to tell him for years. From that time on, the son loved his father dearly, so much so that he chose to work for his father without any pay. The son made it his life’s work to support everything his father did, as a servant bound by love.

That is the story of Paul the Apostle. He called himself a bond servant of the Lord. A bond servant is someone bound to labor without wages. Paul’s work in the church was so impressive that the girl the enemy used to prophesy for money called him a servant of the Most High God. (Act 16:17)

I find this story inspiring. The enemy knew who Paul was and called him by his own designation. When the sons of Sceva tried to use the name of Jesus, the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are you? (Acts 19:15)

The evil spirit knew Paul because Paul knew Jesus, the sons of Sceva only knew Jesus’s name. Paul’s life was so bound by love for God that the enemy knew him by reputation. They knew that he worked with power based on a relationship with Jesus. That’s a true test of the kingdom.

Our relationship with Jesus should be so full of love that we are known by the enemy to be servants of the Most High God.