SERVE ONE ANOTHER
Galatians 5:13 - 14
For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
Introduction: In our relationship with Christ and our fellow believers, God has given us a call to demonstrate our love to both by serving one another. Service is love in action. Service ought to be a natural product of the Christian life. Service is selflessness.
I. The Reason for Serving Others
A. God designed us to serve others
1. 1st Corinthian 12:4-7, Paul in context is talking about how every person in the body of Christ, every believer has been given something, a gift, a manifestation of the spirit, something that will help us to contribute to the whole body. 1st Corinthians 12:4-7 "There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all people. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good."
2. 1 Peter 4:10 (NASB) As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
3. The great violinist, Niccolo Paganini willed his marvelous violin to city of Genoa on condition that it must never be played. The wood of such an instrument, while used and handled, wears only slightly, but set aside, it begins to decay. Paganini’s lovely violin has today become worm-eaten and useless except as a relic. A Christian’s unwillingness to serve may soon destroy his capacity for usefulness. – J.K. Laney, Marching Orders
B. Christ-likeness is to serve others.
1. John 13:14 – 17 If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.
2. Mark 10:45 "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."
3. Following Jesus means serving others. Serving others means serving somewhere!
C. God freed us to serve others
1. Galatians 5:13 "For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; Do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another."
2. The Greek literally reads, "You were called to freedom . . . So use your freedom by becoming slaves to each other in love."
3. The difference between servitude and servanthood is the difference between have to and get to. Servitude is imposed from the outside; servanthood grows from an inner identity, a core commitment to do what’s best for those I serve.
D. Greatness is achieved in serving others.
1. "The world defines greatness in terms of power, possessions, prestige, and position. If you can demand service from others, you’ve arrived. In our self-serving culture with it’s me – first mentality, acting like a servant is not a popular concept." - copied
2. Mark 10:42 – 44 But Jesus called them to Himself and said to them, "You know that those who are considered rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant. And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of all."
3. Serving One Another is the foundation of greatness! To place one’s needs above your own is truly possessing the heart and mind of Christ. For the heart of Christ is consumed with mercy, compassion, and love and ALL who profess to be his, should be LIKE him. Yet there are many among the brethren who desire more to be served rather than to serve. Who believe greatness is accomplished by one’s status, great name, the company they keep, or spiritual gifts. However, greatness is not achieved through ones position, title, name, possessions and the like, according to Christ greatness is achieved through service.
II. The Excuses for Not Serving Others
A. Sometimes our excuses pile up and get in the way of doing something for God. I read a humorous story about some GI’s on furlough that I think illustrates this. “The commanding officer was furious when nine GIs who had been out on passes failed to show up for morning roll call. Not until 7 p.m. did the first man straggle in. "I’m sorry, sir," the soldier explained, "but I had a date and lost track of time, and I missed the bus back. Being determined to get in on time, I hired a cab. Halfway here, the cab broke down. I went to a farmhouse and persuaded the farmer to sell me a horse. I was riding to camp when the animal fell over dead. I walked the last ten miles, and just got here." Though skeptical, the Colonel let the young man off with a reprimand. However, after him, seven other stragglers in a row came in with the same story-had a date, missed the bus, hired a cab, bought a horse, etc. By the time the ninth man reported in, the colonel had grown weary of it. "Okay," he growled, "now what happened to you?" "Sir, I had this date and missed the bus back, so I hired a cab." "Wait!" the colonel screeched at him. "Don’t tell me the cab broke down." "No, sir," replied the soldier. "The cab didn’t break down. It was just that there were so many dead horses in the road, we had trouble getting through." Excuses! (Contributed by John F. King ) Sometimes our excuses hold us back from accomplishing anything for God.
B. Surely you can’t mean little old me – Who me?
1. Exodus 3:11 But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?"
2. You must mean somebody else. This just isn’t my thing. I really would rather just blend into the woodwork. I don’t recall volunteering.
C. I really don’t have the ability or talent
1. Exodus 4:10 Then Moses said to the LORD, "O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither before nor since You have spoken to Your servant; but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue."
2. The reality is this was just an excuse not what Stephen says about Moses in Acts 7:21 - 22 But when he was set out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him away and brought him up as her own son. And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in WORDS and deeds.
3. Exodus 4:11 – 12 So the Lord said to him, "Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the Lord? Now therefore, go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall say."
4. In his book 70 X 7, The Freedom of Forgiveness, David Augsburger tells of General William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army, who had lost his eyesight. His son was given the difficult task of telling his father there would be no recovery. "Do you mean that I am blind?" the General asked. "I fear we must contemplate that," his son replied. The father continued, "I shall never see your face again?" “No, probably not in this world." "Bramwell," said General Booth, "I have done what I could for God and for His people with my eyes. Now I shall do what I can for God without my eyes."
D. Send Somebody Else.
1. Exodus 4:13 But he said, "O my Lord, please send by the hand of whomever else You may send."
2. God please call somebody else. That’s his job — not mine.
3. Here is the bottom line. Moses does not want to go.
4. Kitty Genovese was a young woman who was murdered in a New York residential section while at least 38 neighbors watched from their windows. During the course of the 30-minute assault, no one even telephoned the police. Some surprising facts have been uncovered about these people. Interviews revealed that they were not totally indifferent as many had suspected. The main reason nobody did anything was that each person thought someone else would take the initiative to get help.
III. The Ways of Serving Others
A. A Ministry of Prayer
1. James 5:16 "Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much."
2. The day was long, the burden I had borne Seemed heavier than I could longer bear, And then it lifted—but I did not know Someone had knelt in prayer; Had taken me to God that very hour, And asked the easing of the load, and He In infinite compassion had stepped down And taken it from me. - Source unknown
B. A Ministry of Acceptance
1. Romans 15:7 Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God.
2. It might have been easy to wash John’s feet. After all, John was the "Beloved Disciple." Yet, John and his brother James were always trying to get just a little bit ahead of the others. What about Simon Peter? He was the one who would deny Him three times before dawn. What about Thomas? He was the one who would doubt the word of the others and refuse to believe in the resurrection of Jesus. What about Judas? He was the one who for 30 pieces of silver would sell His Lord to the enemies. Jesus didn’t allow any of the considerations to cloud His love or His service! He treated them all equally and, in doing so, taught us a tough lesson.) (Ill. We all have people that we seem to connect with and we have no trouble serving these folks. However, the true servant soon learns that he must serve all and serve them equally. The true servant is not allowed to pick favorites, but must have the heart of Christ and be willing to serve his enemies just as readily as he serves his friends!
3. The ministry of acceptance has three aspects. First, I must believe that Jesus accepts me; second, I must accept myself; and third, I must accept others. I know that Jesus accepts me, regardless of whether or not I am accepted by others. This makes it easy for me to accept myself, and self acceptance makes it possible for me to accept others. – Pam Noble
C. A Ministry of Listening and Silence
1. Ecclesiastes 3:7 A time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
2. SILENT and LISTEN are spelled with the same letters.
3. Bonhoeffer wrote, "In reaching out to others there is the ministry of listening. Learning to listen is a vital ministry for Christians. More inclined to contribute to the point of prattling, the Christian must recapture the art of listening. Listening must be genuine, not the kind that is waiting with half an ear ready to pour out a barrage of answers to other’s problems."
4. The ministry of silence is often of more value than the ministry of words. Sitting quietly with a suffering friend is often the best comfort we can give. We should take more the position of humility before sorrow and pain, realizing that often there is no one answer that we can be sure of. – copied.
D. A Ministry of Giving
1. Luke 6:38 Give and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”
2. Luke 6:30 – 31 Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back. And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.
3. This includes giving of time and self. Serve when needed, not just when convenient. Be willing to adjust your schedule and alter your plans in order to serve others. Be willing to make sacrifices in order to serve. Most of us will make sacrifices to get something we want, or to do something we want to do. But when it comes to serving others, suddenly our tolerance for inconvenience shrinks.
E. A Ministry of Doing
1. James 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
2. Temporaily absent from home, Captian Webster left Daniel and his brother Ezekiel with specific instructions as to the work they were to do that day. On his return he found the task still undone, and questioned them about their idleness. "What have you been doing, Ezekiel?" he asked. "Nothing, sir." "Daniel, what’ve you been doing?" "Helping Zeke, sir."
3. Galatians 6:10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.
4. Look for opportunities to serve. Don’t wait to be asked; offer to help.
5. We aren’t called to sit around and reflect on ourselves; that’s stagnant worship. We’re called to minister, to serve... – Heide Alayne Wall
F. A Ministry of Encouraging
1. 1 Thessalonians 5:11 (HCSB) Therefore encourage one another and build each other up as you are already doing.
2. We need one another. It’s as simple as that. We need one another for encouragement when we stumble, for mutual protection when we’re being attacked, for strength when we’re under stress.
3. Ecclesiastes 4:9-10, 12 “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! … Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”
4. An elderly widow, restricted in her activities, was eager to serve Christ. After praying about this, she realized she could bring blessing to others by playing the piano. The next day she placed this small ad in the Oakland Tribune: "Pianist will play hymns by phone daily for those who are sick and despondent – the service is free." When people called, she would ask, "What hymn would you like to hear?" Within a few months her playing had brought cheer to several hundred people. Many of them freely poured out their hearts to her, and she was able to help and encourage them.
5. The ministry of encouragement does not involve great personal gifts of speech, or musical talent. Encouragement can be done by anyone, who will simply try to see those around them through the eyes of Christ, and there is a great need for people who will lift up rather than put down. It is a gift that we all must cultivate, or many who are downtrodden, will be ground into the dust.
Disclaimer: Source material for this sermon has been gleaned from many different sources. I have attempted to acknowledge these sources whenever possible. Please feel free to use this message as God’s Holy Spirit directs your heart.
