Building A Life Of Service

Building God’s House

Building a Life of Service

Audio File: https://mega.nz/#!qZl0kCKK!rnlPLITIrUjsJzfaoshXw3TPBnhVvWSZT57aylYUJeA

Thinking about our series on discipleship, and of our need to build up the house of God in each one of us (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19), there is an aspect that may seem a little odd, but it fully corresponds to how we go about the process.

And that is our need to build up God’s house within us through building up a life of service to the Lord, the owner of the house.

How many of you remember the old full-service gas stations? It was where someone would pull into the familiar sound, “ding-ding,” and the station attendants would come out and clean your windshield, check your tire pressure, and put air into your tires. They would open the hood of your car and check your oil, transmission, and windshield wiper fluid. And to top it all off, not only would they fill your tank with gas, but they also would give you green stamps to boot.

But now, these full-service gas stations are just a memory. Instead they are called convenience stores. We now go to the convenience store to get gas, but they are anything but convenient. Not only do we have to pump our own gas, but clean our own windshield, that is when there is soapy water available and a squeegee, and on top of all that we have to pay to pump air into our tires.

And while we have accepted this overall change to how we fill up our cars, and paying more for the privilege of self-serve, we still want our church experience to be full-service. We go to church to be served.

We go to hear an inspiring message, to hear inspiring music or our favorite hymns. We want our children and youth to be taught, because we no longer have time to teach them, and then after being well served we go home.

Today, people go on church shopping trips. They have a mental list of things they need the church to be for them. Churches today are now evaluated in terms of what they can offer to a person’s household.

One time I had a man visit the church in Las Vegas where I pastored, and he wanted me to show him the facilities and to tell him about what we believe. After we had finished he asked, “Now, what can you do for me?” I was somewhat shocked at this man’s forthrightness, but not with the question, because I have been asked this same question in many ways over the years.

My response was simple. I said, “We can do nothing to meet your needs. The only thing that we can do is to introduce you to the One who can, and how you can fulfill His purpose for your life.”

Somewhere in our journey of faith, a transition has to take place, and we have to move away from a “serve-us” church into a “service” church. Where the church is no longer a place that we go to be served, but to serve.

The Apostle James puts this in no uncertain terms. He said, “What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? … Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead” (James 2:14, 17 NIV)

The Lord intends for the church to be full-service, where it is equipped with fully committed followers who are serving the needs of those who are in need, and of the community. This is why part of our mission and vision is to make a difference in our community for Christ. Being a full-service station is a beautiful metaphor for what is needed, and this is what I believe the Lord is looking for from His church.

“The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him” (2 Chronicles 16:9 NLT)

Knowing this, do the eyes of God land on us? Does He find us to be fully committed to Him?

Jesus tells us that when He comes back to this earth and judges, the criteria He will use is determined upon how we put into action the faith that we profess with our mouths. This criteria involves our acts of mercy, to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, being kind to strangers, clothing the naked, looking after the sick, and visiting those in prison (Matthew 25:35-36).

Jesus is saying that it’s not about how good we feel when we leave church that counts, but rather it’s how we live out our faith on a daily basis, and how we respond to the needs of others. Jesus wants us to move away from the mindset that says the church must “serve-us,” to one where we see ourselves as part of the church that is in “full service” to the Lord by loving Him by loving others (Matthew 22:36-39).