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October 28, 2007AM
Romans 12:6-11
Our Serving
Many years ago Ray Steadman wrote a book about the Church entitled Body Life.
It contained the following quote.
“The church is primarily … a body designed to express through each individual member, the life of the indwelling Lord and is equipped by the Holy Spirit with gifts designed to express that life. It follows that there could hardly be anything more abortive or pathetic than a church which fails to understand this and substitutes instead the business methods, organizational proceedings and pressure politics of the world to accomplish its work. That is a certain recipe for frustration and ultimate death.”
I received an email a couple weeks ago that referred to a church as a franchise.
That word, although it speaks of efficiency, misses the church.
We don’t refer to ourselves a franchise do we?
We don’t greet one another and ask, “how is your franchise today?”
If my body is a franchise it is heading towards bankruptcy.
To look at the church as a business is “abortive and pathetic”.
We are not a business, we are a body, the body of Christ.
God has given us His Spirit.
And He has given gifts.
Gift giving is evidence of life.
Machines do not give gifts.
Businesses do not give gifts, they make losses or profits.
Gifts reflect personality and relationship.
And God has made the gifts of His Spirit available to His body.
One of those gifts is the gift of service.
I Three Greeks words are translated serve.
One is found in Hebrews 8 which refers to THE SERVICE OF LITURGY.
We call this gathering we are in right now a church service.
The priests offered service or liturgy in the sanctuary.
They minister or serve with gifts and sacrifices.
Liturgy is a public function.
It is what Christians do.
Jesus Himself was liturgical.
Jesus rendered public service to God and to us.
His death on the cross was public ministry – liturgy.
He brought the gift and sacrifice of Himself.
He brought salvation to offer to sinful people.
Jesus’ death on the cross accomplished that.
His sacrifice was once for all.
But the church is now liturgical with Him.
The forgiveness of God and our sinfulness approach each other.
Every believer has a part in this liturgical service.
Every believer should be offering the presence of Jesus.
Liturgy is not a spiritual gift, it is a spiritual role.
II A second Greek word translated serve is DOULOS.
Doulos means servant or slave.
Jesus was liturgical in bringing God and man together.
Jesus was also a doulos or slave.
Jesus took the form of a servant.
He subjected Himself in bondage to the Father.
Every believer is a doulos of Christ.
Paul said in Romans 6 “Thanks be to God that you who were once slaves (doulos) of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves (doulos) of righteousness … Now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves (doulos) of God, the return you get is sanctification and its end eternal life” (Rom. 6:17,18,22)
This is not a spiritual gift either.
To be a doulos is also a spiritual role.
Every believer is called to this service.
We are to live as Jesus lived.
We are servants of righteousness.
We are slaves to Christ.
We have no other master than He.
We obey no other command.
We are wholly God’s servant.
III A third Greek word translated serve is DIAKONIA.
This third word refers to the spiritual gift.
From diakonia we have the English word deacon.
Many churches elect deacons.
But this gift is not limited to a title or a position.
We do not receive this spiritual gift by election.
To be a deacon beautifully portrays the mind of Christ.
Jesus had a deacon’s heart.
He was born to serve.
And He still serves us today through the gift of the deacon.
In Matthew 23:1-12 we find Jesus’ own teaching on the gift of service. (read)
Jesus shows us vividly what life is like without the spiritual gift of service.
He started it with the statement “He who is greatest shall be your deacon.”
What happens when all we seek is greatness?
We become hauty, arrogant, proud.
Jesus condemns these attitudes.
We fail to practice what we preach.
Jesus condemns that.
We put others under bondage.
Jesus cannot tolerate that.
We don’t lift a finger to help someone struggling.
Jesus despised that.
Jesus had no use for the person who flaunted their talents.
People who demanded and expected service were going to be humbled.
We do not seek glamour in the gift of service.
There are no guarantees of great outcomes.
Being a servant is a humbling way to live.
It can be a lonely place of service.
Let’s consider the two sisters Jesus visited.
One of them was Mary.
She sat at the feet of Jesus and listened to His teaching.
Martha was busy in the kitchen preparing and serving.
She was all caught up in that.
She was consumed by it.
No one forced her to go to the kitchen.
Jesus didn’t say, “Martha, you go to the kitchen and serve.
“You get the meal ready while Mary and I sit here and chat.”
She wanted care for to Jesus’ physical needs of hunger and thirst.
But she got a little steamed around the apron.
When Mary didn’t help Martha blew a lid off her pot.
She complained to Jesus, “Send Mary in here to help.”
“I’m trying to do all this alone.”
Did Martha have the gift of doulos? Absolutely!
She just needed a little refining.
And Jesus helped her with that.
He saw the anxiety attack she was having.
He saw how she was bothered.
He said, “Look at Mary, she isn’t anxious or troubled.
“She is relaxed.
“There is only one thing that is needful and Mary discovered it.
“Do what you are doing for Me.
“Keep before you, in all your service, My presence with you.
“Find your joy in your service of Me.
“Mary has discovered where her source of joy is.
“It is here, listening to Me.
“She wouldn’t find that in the kitchen.
“You can find your joy too Martha.
“It isn’t sitting here at My feet.
“Otherwise you would have asked to join us.
“Your joy is in serving.
APPLICATION
Jesus asked, “Which is the greater; one who sits at table or one who serves?”
It is the one who sits at table.
But Jesus is not the One who sits at the table.
Jesus said, “I am the one who serves” (Luke 22:27)
God knows the church needs a host of servants.
I don’t remember all the sermons I heard when I was growing up.
I don’t know if I can remember even one with great clarity.
I don’t remember all the advice I was given.
But I do remember people.
I remember their names.
I remember people like Mrs. Swayne and Mrs. Thompson.
I remember their actions, their interest, their questions.
I remember their hugs and gestures of love and concern.
I remember people who invited our family of 4 hungry boys for a meal.
I remember the Duckers who faithfully cleaned the church.
I didn’t know the Board members (deacon servants) but I remember the
Duckers (doulos servants).
I remember those who noticed me and kept me from being invisible.
My mother-in-law has commented on some of our young people.
Youth who faithfully went and spoke to her each Sunday.
She said, “It’s easy to become invisible when you get old.”
Those doulos young people saw her and touched her.
They impacted her life in ways my sermons never could.
I don’t expect many people to remember my sermons.
I can’t remember them myself.
That is why I need to invest my life in others.
How much I care will add more to other’s growth than my words.
The gift of prophecy, putting God’s grace into words.
The gift of service, putting God’s grace into action.
What an awesome privilege.
That is giving miraculously.
Closing Song Make Me a Servant