A few Sundays ago, Pastor Chris spoke on the subject of the gift of helps, or helping, or serving, dependent on your translation. It all amounts to the same thing – doing good to those around us. When I think of the spiritual gifts, I tend to see a high school cafeteria, where a young student is walking to his table with a plate of food from hot lunch. He trips and does a face plant in the mashed potatoes. If you laugh, you’re not using a spiritual gift (especially if you do it out loud). If you tell him, “Hey, hold it like this, and watch where you’re going,” you’re probably exercising the gift of teaching. If you head over to buy him a new lunch, you’re doing the gift of giving. If you delegate: “You, go get a mop; you, take him to the bathroom and help him wash up,” you’re probably doing administration. But if you run to him to help him up and clean him off yourself, you’re serving. We need all the gifts, don’t we, to really function as a body, but Pastor’s right – serving transforms.
Some people focus on the idea that everyone has one primary gift; others see us as possessing all the gifts as we need them or pray for them. But we could argue that serving others is just a what you do as a Christian regardless of gifts or giftedness. It’s just a general calling, embodied in what Jesus said about the greatest commandment: Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Matthew 22:36-40 NIV Love must be understood first, last, and always as an action, not an emotion. You love your neighbor by doing good to them, as in the parable of the Good Samaritan that Jesus used to illustrate who our neighbor is.
Serving transforms. As we serve one another, the action will spawn the emotion – you will begin to genuinely care about him or her. You will be transformed. Pastor next pointed out, it transforms the church. Finally, it transforms the city. The church’s mission, to win the lost, will happen as we care for the lost, as we show by serving that there is someone who loves them. We will point the world to Christ by showing his love, which was manifested in action: washing stinking feet, having compassion on crowds when He just wanted a day off (Mark 6:30-34), and by dying for all of us.
May I suggest one more thing that will be transformed? Your marriage will be transformed by serving. Remember men, we’re told to love our wives as Christ loved the church (Eph. 5:25) Our culture believes love is a feeling, just a nice emotion, and if goes, it goes: “So long as you both shall love.” Then you file for divorce. But love isn’t an emotion (only), it is action and commitment. We think as long as we have warm fuzzy feelings, we’ve got our responsibility covered. “I love you honey; now go make me a sandwich.” After all, her part is to obey, to submit. But that’s not how Christ loved, is it?
Remember the foundational scripture that Pastor used: For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45 So if you love your wife as Jesus loved the church, here’s the way it will work: “Honey, I love you; why don’t you sit down and let me make you a sandwich.” (Those shrieks are from men who don’t even know the way to the kitchen.) How about seeing our role as husbands to be servants like Christ? Our leadership is not to please ourselves, but to serve our wives (and children), to help them and encourage their growth and build their joy. Bottom line: it’s not about you!
Serving transforms. Let the Spirit work in you to be transformed, to look to serve, and let it start in the home.
Reflection:
- Are you a dictator or a doormat? Why are both wrong?
- How do you show love to your wife? Do you know her love language?
- Where might you need to be serving in the church instead of perhaps just warming a pew?
Written By: Tim Barsuhn
