Membership Covenant
I Will Serve the Ministry of Our Church
Mark 10:45
January 25, 2004
Intro:
A. [Wrong Side of the Boat]
People who refuse to get involved in problems of their community are like the two shipwrecked men in a lifeboat.
From their end of the boat, the pair watched as those at the other end bailed frantically to keep the boat afloat.
The one said to the other, “Thank heaven, the hole is not on our end of the boat.”
1. Unfortunately, that seems to be all too typical of most people in our society.
2. The trouble with so many in our society is that they don’t realize that the boat is going to go down no matter where the hole is!
B. We have been studying through our new mission covenant…
1. We took a break from it last Sunday in recognition of the Sanctity of Human Life Sunday.
2. Week before last we looked at the second statement, which is: I will share the responsibility of our church.
3. The first Sunday of the year we started out with the first statement: I will save the unity of our church.
a. I will save the unity of our church by acting in love toward other members.
b. I will save the unity of our church by refusing to gossip.
c. I will save the unity of our church by following the leaders.
4. Last week we talked about the fact that our mission and responsibility as a church is to spread the good news of Jesus.
5. We are to seek and save the lost and we are to teach the saved.
6. Go, teach, baptize, and teach.
7. I explained that the Holy Spirit gives different gifts to different believers.
8. One of those gifts is the God-given gift of evangelism the ability and desire to share Jesus with people in such a way that many people get saved.
9. I explained that one study showed that only 10% of all believers have that gift.
10. Those who have it sure need to use!
11. But the other 90% still have some responsibility to share in our responsibility of spreading the gospel—even if they don’t have the gift of evangelism.
12. This statement is actually for the 100%…
a. I will share the responsibility of our church by praying for its growth.
b. I will share the responsibility of our church by inviting the unchurched to attend.
c. I will share the responsibility of our church by warmly welcoming those who visit.
C. Now today, we come to the third statement: I will serve the ministry of our church.
1. If you don’t have the gift of evangelism, you do have some other talent or ability that you should be using.
2. We should be using our God-given talents to serve—even if the hole is not at your end of the boat!
D. [Just Checking]
A man who had regularly prayed for many years began to wonder if God heard his prayers at all.
During one of his routine times of prayer, he started this doubting pattern once again.
He stopped praying and thought for a moment.
“Enough of this,” he said.
He then lifted his eyes toward heaven and yelled, “Hey up there, can you hear me?”
There was no response.
He continued, “Hey, God, if you can really hear me, tell me what you want me to do with my life.”
A voice from above thundered a reply, “I WANT YOU TO HELP THE NEEDY AND GIVE YOUR LIFE FOR THE CAUSE OF PEACE!”
Faced with more of a challenge than the man really wanted, he answered, “Actually, God, I was just checking to see if you were there.”
The voice from above now answered with disappointment: “THAT’S ALRIGHT; I WAS ONLY CHECKING TO SEE IF YOU WERE THERE.”
1. Why is it that we have a hard time with service?
2. Why is it that we humans have a hard time serving other people?
E. [Fat, Faint, or Fit]
If you take in and don’t give out, you become FAT.
If you give out and don’t take in, you become FAINT.
If you give out and take in, you become FIT.
1. When I was at Ozark Bible College in Joplin, MO, our president, Ken Idleman, used to say it this way: “Impression without Expression leads to Depression.”
2. If we just take it all in and never give anything out, what good is it?
3. You see going to church and learning about God, Jesus, and the Bible is a good thing—but if we don’t do anything with it, it is useless.
4. In Ephesus, there were a lot of people who just loved to sit and read, study, and debate the Bible.
5. Paul wrote a letter to their Pastor, Timothy, and told him that that’s not the purpose of going to church.
6. Paul told Timothy that the purpose of learning the Bible is not just so you know the Bible.
7. Paul told Timothy that the purpose of learning the Bible was not so that you could win a debate or persuade someone to your side.
8. Paul told Timothy that just studying the Bible just leads to endless discussions and debates, which really doesn’t do anybody any good.
9. Paul told Timothy that these people needed to change their purpose in studying the Bible.
10. Paul told Timothy that they just needed to stop reading and debating the Bible.
11. 1 Timothy 1:5, "The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith."
12. The goal of studying the Bible is that we learn to love God and others!
13. And 1 Corinthians 13 tells us that loves is not words or feelings, its action, service, humility, and submission.
14. That’s the purpose of studying the Bible.
15. We study the Bible in order to learn how to better love God and our fellow man.
16. “Impression without Expression leads to Depression.”
17. And of course this expression of love is, service!
F. We do seem to make a lot of excuses for not serving others.
1. We don’t want to serve if the hole is not at our end of the boat.
2. We don’t want to serve if we don’t know enough about the Bible.
3. We don’t want to serve if people don’t appreciate what we do.
4. We don’t want to serve if we don’t think we have any talents.
5. We’ve all got excuses for why we don’t serve.
6. But if anyone ever had a reason for not serving, it was Jesus!
7. If anyone ever deserved to not serve, but be served—it was the creator of the world!
8. If anyone ever deserved to be served—it was the Savior of the world!
9. But listen to what He said about it in Mark 10:45, "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."
10. Jesus came to be a servant and to set an example for us to serve as well.
G. Therefore our mission covenant says, “I will serve the ministry of our church by taking the following three steps, first…
I. …by discovering my gifts and talents
1 Peter 4:10 (NIV), Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.
A. Many people think that since they can’t preach, teach, or lead singing, there is nothing for them to do.
1. But the truth is that all of us have talents that we can use.
2. The Bible calls these talents, “gifts.”
3. And all of us have at least one of these gifts that have been given to us by God to use in service to others and to God.
4. This passage does not say, “If you have a gift, you should use it to serve others.”
5. No, it makes the assumption that everyone has a gift: "Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms."
6. Do not call God a liar by saying that you don’t have any gifts.
B. Therefore the first step that we should take is to discover the gifts that the HS has given to us personally.
1. What is your spiritual gift?
2. 1 Corinthians 12:7 says, "Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good."
3. That passage makes it very clear that “each one” has been given at least one gift by the Holy Spirit.
4. It also makes it clear that the purpose is for the “common good”—that means for the good of others.
5. These gifts are not to be used to exalt self—they are given to build up the church by serving others.
6. The first thing you need to do is discover what your gifts are.
C. To do that we need to discover what the spiritual gifts are.
1. They are recorded throughout the NT, with most of them listed in three passages: Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4.
2. Those three passages list at least 19 Spiritual gifts and there may be more sprinkled throughout the NT.
3. Once we know what they are called, we needed to know what they are like.
4. We need to know what the descriptions of the gifts are.
5. We need to learn what each of those gifts are and then determine which ones we are gifted at.
6. I can and should help you do that, because the second step is…
II. …by being equipped to serve by my Pastors
Ephesians 4:11-12 (NIV), It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12 to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up
A. You see, this is part of why God gives pastors…
1. That is what we are gifted to do.
2. I think it is pretty clear that pastoring and teaching are two of my gifts.
3. I have been gifted by God to teach and pastor.
4. And this passage says that part of the job of pastors and teachers in the church is “to prepare God’s people for works of service.”
5. Do you see that the goal of my instruction is not just so that we know more.
6. The reason I teach the Bile is not just so that we know and understand the Bible.
7. No, the goal of our instruction is that we will go out and serve others.
8. The purpose of studying the Bible is to learn better how to love others by serving them.
B. And you need to be equipped to serve by your pastors and teachers.
1. I said earlier that the first thing you need to do is discover what your gifts are.
a. I can help you do that.
b. I can teach you what these gifts are and I can help you assess what your gifts are.
2. Then after you have discovered what your gifts are, we can teach and equip you to use those gifts to serve others.
3. That is part of what pastors are called to.
4. Pastors are Biblically called to equip God’s people for works of service.
C. Of course your pastor cannot force you to do that.
1. You must decide that you are going to discover your gifts.
2. You must decide that you are going to be equipped to serve.
3. Pastors can only help you if you want them to.
4. But I’m here to tell you that I stand ready to help and that you are Biblically told to do this.
D. I have told you that the membership class is required for membership, but there will also be at least three other classes, one of them is on ministry.
1. In that class I will equip you to serve.
2. I will help you discover your gift and will equip you to serve.
3. That is not a required class; the only class that is required is the membership class, but there will be a ministry class as will to help us fulfill this Biblical command.
E. Because everyone needs to get up out of the pew and learn how to serve.
1. [illustration]
Jeremy Bentham was the founder of London’s University College.
When he died in 1832, according to his instructions, his skeleton was reconstructed, given a wax head, dressed in his best suit, and put in a glass case in the meeting room of the college’s board of governor’s.
For many years the deceased Bentham attended every meeting of the board and was always described in the minutes as “present, but not voting.”
Sometimes we are present, but not serving!
2. The book of James describes present, but not serving as dead faith!
3. You see, God brought you here because this church needs the talents you have.
4. God wants all believers to use their gifts in service to others.
5. "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."
F. And Ephesians 4 gives a wonderful picture of what the church will look like when all of us are using our God-given talents:
"Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work." (Ephesians 4:14-16)
G. We are to work together as a body of believers (as a team or a body) to advance the cause of Christ.
1. You have gifts that I don’t have; I have gifts that you don’t have.
2. But we don’t become a church until we all use our gifts together functioning as many parts of the same body “for the common good.” (repeat)
H. Therefore I will serve the ministry of our church by discovering my gifts and talents and by being equipped by my pastors to serve, and third…
III. …by developing a servant’s heart
Philippians 2:3-7 (NIV), Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant…
A. Jesus has set the example of being a servant.
1. But being a servant is more than something you do.
2. Because you can discover your gifts, be equipped to use your gifts, and still not be a servant!
3. You see servanthood is something that takes place in the heart.
4. Our works of service should be something that spills over from the attitude of our heart.
5. [illustration]
The Navigators are well known for their emphasis on having an attitude of servanthood.
A businessman once asked Lorne Sanny, then president of the Navigators, how he could know when he had a servantlike attitude.
The answer was, “By how you act when you are treated like one.”
a. How do we act when we are treated like a servant?
b. Does pride get in the way of our being a servant?
c. Have we really obtained a servant’s heart?
d. [illustration]
A student at a Bible school in the Philippines became disturbed over the condition of the men’s rest rooms, since they always seemed to be neglected in the cleaning routine.
When nothing was done to eliminate the filth, he took matters into his own hands and complained to the principal of the school.
A little while later, the student noticed that the problem was being corrected, but he saw with amazement that the man with the mop and pail in hand was the principal himself!
Later the student commented, “I thought that he would call a janitor, but he cleaned the toilets himself.”
It was a major lesson to me on being a servant and, of course, it raised a question in my own mind as to why I hadn’t taken care of the problem!”
B. Are you developing a servant’s heart?
1. Even many Christians have a hard time submitting to and serving others and yet God’s Word and Christ’s example are consistent.
2. Ephesians 5:21 (NIV), Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
3. Galatians 5:13 (NIV), You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature ; rather, serve one another in love.
4. Mark 10:45 (NIV), 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."
5. Servanthood is developed in the servant’s heart.
6. Are you developing a servant’s heart like your Master or is your pride getting in the way?
7. Jesus will do anything for you, will you do anything for Him?
Conclusion:
A. Too many Christians don’t understand the purpose of church, they think church it is for what they can get out of it.
1. Seeing what you can get out of church is the wrong attitude.
2. Our attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.
3. Our attitude should be to see how much we can give to it.
4. Our attitude should not be to see what we can get out of the church, it should be to see how much we can give to Christ’s body.
B. [illustration]
A new homeowner’s riding lawn mower had broken down, and he had been working fruitlessly for two hours trying to get it back together.
Suddenly, one of his neighbors appeared with a handful of tools.
“Can I give some help?” he asked.
In twenty minutes he had the mower functioning beautifully.
“Thanks a million,” the now-happy newcomer said.
“And say, what do you make with such fine tools?”
“Mostly friends,” the neighbor smiled.
“I’m available any time.”
1. And I hope that you see that now this man with the nice tools has a prime opportunity to invite his new friend to church; a prime opportunity to reach this man with the good news of Jesus!
2. Simply because he chose to be a servant.
C. I will serve the ministry of our church.
1. Ministry simply means to see a need and meet it.
2. I will serve the ministry of our church by discovering my gifts and talents, by being equipped to serve by my pastors, and by developing a servant’s heart.
