In his service

Question

Hi~~A: "in his service" and B: "in God’s service"....****A means "to serve him" or "to be served by him"? B means "to serve God" or "to be served by God"? The original sentence is "The miracle is thus a sign that the mind has elected to be guided by Christ in HIS service."This must be very easy ones for natives but not that easy for non-natives....

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

pructusA: "in his service" and B: "in ***’s service"....
**
A means "to serve him" or "~~to be served by him~~"?
B means "to serve ***" or "to be served by ***"?

As shown, but the infinitive doesn't capture the meaning exactly. When you are in someone's service, you serve them. A means "serving him", for example, or "being his servant".

pructusThe miracle is thus a sign that the mind has elected to be guided by Christ in HIS service.

Things theological usually confuse me, and this is no exception. I have no idea what the writer was trying to say here. As for the part you were asking about, however, I would say it means "guided by Christ because of being Christ's servant".

CJ

Pructus · Answer

Thanks a lot, CalifJim...

I see....

But English language is really not so easy to learn....

This sentence from Google : “ Their service was good and accommodating, sometimes a bit slow but we got what we needed eventually. ”

In this case it gets different because here "their service" will surely mean "the service performed by them", unlike "the service performed for them" as was meant in the "in his service".

So, we need to understand that native speakers know the difference between these two cases.....

Markroe · Answer

CalifJimA means "to serve him" or "to be served by him"?
B means "to serve ***" or "to be served by ***"?

As shown, but the infinitive doesn't capture the meaning exactly. When you are in someone's service, you serve them. A means "serving him", for example, or "being his servant".

pructusThe miracle is thus a sign that the mind has elected to be guided by Christ in HIS service.

Things theological usually confuse me, and this is no exception. I have no idea what the writer was trying to say here. As for the part you were asking about, however, I would say it means "guided by Christ because of being Christ's servant".

Things theological don't have to be complicated. Unfortunately, highly educated theologians often make them complicated. I admit that this sentence is difficult to understand, but I think CalifJim's interpretation is correct. We don't usually think of Christ being our servant; we are His servants.

CalifJim · Answer

pructusTheir service was good and accommodating

Yes, but the key word is in. Their ability to serve you was good; their skill at serving you was good. They were in your service; you were not in their service.

These are, in effect, two different meanings of service.

The service you receive in a restaurant or hotel has to do with the attention that the serving staff gives to you.

When you are in someone's service, you are in the position of being that person's servant.

The staff in a restaurant or hotel are in your service because they act as servants to you. If they do this well then their service (the ability and skill they have for serving you) is good.

CJ

Pructus · Answer

Thanks so much, CalifJim....

A little bit clearer, but still I feel a little frustrated, too.

The "IN" factor considered, to a non-native, "A has been in B's service" can also mean "A has been surrounded by the service performed by B". To me, that has to be changed to "A has been doing the service for B".

I wish I could look into the native speakers' head, way of thinking in English.

DiscipleOfJesus · Answer

You must also consider the original Latin meaning of In HIS Service. It is simply “Jesus” which makes it very clear because those of us that believe that Jesus died on that cross 2000 years ago because He was the Son of *** that came to save the world by giving Himself as a righteous sacrifice to *** for the sins of the world. When we accept this we receive the Mind and Spirit of Christ. We become a bond servant, by choice, to ***.

In his service

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