Consuming Worship

iLife: Service

Posted on May 8th, 2008 | by Jeff M. Miller |

Continuing our study considering the disciplines of a healthy spiritual life we now turn to service. It is common in Scripture to see Christ-followers identified as “bond-servants” such as in Philippians, or “slaves” such as in Ephesians.

When God calls us to Himself, He never calls us to idleness. He calls us to service. (Deut. 10:12; Eph. 6:7). The second chapter of Ephesians talks about the progress and process of our salvation experience. A synopsis of verses 1 through 22 give us this basic idea: We are saved from death by grace through faith into the body of Christ FOR good works.

There are many, many verses you could read that talk about God’s expectations that His people on earth will serve Him. What you will not find are verses that indicate His followers are only to attend a religious service once a week when it’s convenient. There is no such thing a spiritual unemployment or retirement in the Kingdom. So, our purpose today is not to convince you you should be serving, because that’s a given. Let’s look more at the heart of a servant.

Our service to the Lord must be motivated by obedience. In Deuteronomy 13:4, Moses wrote, “It is the Lord your God you must follow, and Him you must revere. Keep His commands and obey Him; serve Him and hold fast to Him.” We should serve Him not just to be busy, but to obey our only Master. Service also entails COMPLETE obedience. Look at Saul in 1 Samuel 15. He was commanded to “utterly destroy” the Amalekites and all their worldly possessions, but he did not. He supposedly preserved the animals to offer them as a sacrifice to the Lord. This prompts Samuel to say one of the most famous one-liners in Scripture, “to obey is better than sacrifice.”
Our service to the Lord must be motivated by gratitude. In I Samuel 12:24, Samuel encouraged the people of God to serve with these words. “Be sure to fear the Lord and serve Him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things He has done for you.” Moses too was concerned the people who had been saved from bondage would forget their salvation once they were living in a land of milk and honey. He was concerned that, in the middle of being so blessed by God, they would forget to serve the very God who was blessing them. We are the same. We must remember the salvation that has been granted to us. When the fire of service begins to cool, just consider what He has already done for you. Serve out of gratitude for what He has done.
Our service to the Lord must be motivated by gladness. Psalm 100:2 says, “serve the Lord with gladness.” If you serve God only out of obligation, you are likely not serving with gladness. If you are vainly striving to earn your way to heaven through works, you are likely not serving with gladness. You work for the most prestigious “organization” in the universe, the Kingdom of God. What benefits are better than those offered by the King of the universe? Remember what the psalmist said, “Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.” Serve with gladness, or don’t serve at all.
Our service to the Lord must be motivated by forgiveness, not guilt. Remember in Isaiah 6, when Isaiah saw God on His throne. Isaiah was overcome by the holiness of God and his own sinfulness in comparison. The chapter goes on to describe God forgiving and cleansing Isaiah’s sin, then God asks “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Isaiah’s immediate cry is, “here I am, send me!” Isaiah was motivated to serve not out of sense of guilt but out of his sense of being forgiven and cleansed. We do not serve God to BE forgiven, but because we ARE forgiven.
Our service to the Lord must be motivated by humility. This goes back to the discipline of submission. Hark back to the Lord washing His disciple’s feet in John 13. This is an example of the right kind of service. The God of the universe humbled Himself and washed stinky, dirty, ugly feet. He humbled Himself and voluntarily placed Himself lower than His followers. The least we can do is humble ourselves and do the same.
Our service to the Lord must be motivated by love. Galatians 5:13 says, “For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.” There must be a love for God and His church, or your service becomes just another chore to get done. There are things you do in service to God you would not do for money, but you do them out of love for God and others.