INTRO:

If you were to ask the question, “How would you define greatness or Success?” You would get many different answers.

Business People – Company growth, being #1 in the market

Wall Street Brokers – financial clout and big portfolio

Athletes – World Championship or an MVP award

You would probably get as many answers as the number of people you asked.

But what does God Say? How does God define greatness and success?

In Matthew 20:26 (NKJV), Jesus says, “. . . whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant.”

Notice that Jesus says if you want to be great, then you must serve. Service and greatness go together.

Great teachers serve their students.

Great salespeople serve their customers.

The key to being a great leader is to serve your followers.

God is saying that the way to go up is to stoop down. The more you serve the greater you are.

If you were to ask me what two words best describe or define the Christian Life best, I would say, “give” and “serve” This is what Jesus did.

In Mark 10:45 (NKJV) Jesus says, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

Jesus served others and gave His life, if we are to be His followers then we need to learn how to serve and give. We may say that we are Christians, but unless we are serving and giving, we are not being Christ-like.

SEGUE: In my message this morning I want to show us why the Bible tells us that we ought to live a life of service. There are twelve reasons the Bible gives to encourage us to serve. God says I have twelve reasons to show you why serving others should be a priority in your lives. Yes, you heard me right, I have a 12-point sermon this morning, but hey look at the bright side my next sermon will probably be pointless.

So, what is the first reason?

I. I WAS CREATED FOR SERVICE.

God created us to serve. We were designed for service.

Ephesians 2:10 (NKJV) says, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

We are God’s workmanship, that means that He has created us. The NLT says that we are His masterpiece. Then He tells us the reason for our creation, to do good works, this is ministry or service.

This is one of the reasons that we are here. This is one of the purposes of our lives. We were created to Serve.

How do we serve? We serve God by serving others. Anytime we use our gifts, talents and abilities to help someone else in the name of Jesus that is called service or ministry. And God is saying that this is one of the main reasons that you were created.

What happens to our muscles if we don’t use them. They get soft and weak, just look at me! But if we begin to exercise, our muscle tone and strength develops. God has created us for service, but if we are not serving then we get spiritually soft and weak, but when we start to serve others, it begins to fulfill a purpose in our lives and we grow spiritually and emotionally stronger.

Let’s look at the next reason we should live a life of service.

II. I AM SAVED FOR SERVICE

2 Timothy 1:9 (LB) says, “It is God who saved us and chose us for His holy work. . .”

What is a holy work? The Bibles’ word for this is ministry or service. The words “service” and “ministry” are interchangeable. As are the words “servant” and “minister”.

The Bible says that we were saved to serve. God didn’t put us on this earth just to take up space, sit around and eat Pringles.

Did you notice that God didn’t just zap you up to heaven the moment you asked Him to forgive your sins. So why has He left us here? Because He has something for us to do, He has saved us to provide ministry and to serve.

I was watching a talk show one time, and they had body builders on there. One guy, who was all buffed up was asked, “What do you use those muscles for?” The guy positioned himself and posed, the crowd went wild, clapping, he was showing off all his muscles, but the talk show host said, “That’s great, but what do you use those muscles for?” So, the guy took another pose, and the people went wild again and the talk show guy kept saying, “Yes, but what do you use those muscles for?” The guy was bewildered. The fact was he had no use for those muscles. He had muscles just for the sake of muscles.

Let me ask you: Why do we build spiritual muscle? Why do we come to church? Why do we read the Bible? Why do we go to Bible studies? Why do we pray? Why do we develop spiritual muscle? Just to say, “I got it! Look at my Bible biceps!” No! We develop our spiritual muscles, so that we can be a blessing to someone else.

The Bible teaches very clearly that spiritual maturity is for ministry. Maturity is never an end in itself. Maturity is for ministry. Biblical Muscles have a purpose.

Let’s look at the next reason.

III. I’VE BEEN CALLED BY GOD TO SERVICE.

I’m not only created for it, saved for it, but I’ve been called by God for service. This phrase, “God’s call”, I used to think it was some kind of special thing for special people like missionaries were called or priests were called of God, or pastors or nuns had the call, that it was some kind of special thing. You’re walking down the street one day, and you’re zapped and you are “called by God — from now on I must serve Him with all my life.”

But the fact is, the Bible says every Christian is called. The Bible says the call to salvation and the call to service are identical. The moment you signed up and said, “Yes, I want to go to heaven, and I want to have my sins forgiven” you also said, “And I’m willing to serve You the rest of my life.” They’re not distinguishable. If you are a Christian, you are called to ministry. The Bible says every Christian is called to serve; every member of God’s family is a minister. Not everybody’s a pastor. But everyone is a minister. What’s a minister? A servant. What’s a servant? Somebody who serves.

Galatians 1:15 (NCV) says, “But God had special plans for me and set me apart for his work even before I was born. He called me through his grace.”

The Bible says I’ve been called to serve. Every Christian is called to serve.

Ephesians 4:1 (NIV) says, “Live a life worthy of the calling you have received.”

Let’s examine the next reason we should serve.

IV. I’VE BEEN GIFTED FOR SERVICE.

God did not give you your talents just to spend on yourself and retire and die. But He gave you those abilities to help other people.

1 Peter 4:10 (ESV) says, “As each has received a gift, use it to . . .” make a lot of money. No! It doesn’t say that. “Be sure to use your abilities to feather your nest egg.” No! It doesn’t say that either. It says, “use it to serve one another” That’s called ministry. The Bible says God gave you your abilities for you to use in helping other people.

Romans 11:29 (NIV) says, “For God’s gift and His call are irrevocable.” What does that mean? It means that the talents and abilities that He put in you He will not take out. Why? Because it’s never too late to begin to use them for His purpose in your life. He will patiently wait for the day that you say yes to His will and then begin to use your service to bless others.

V. I AM COMMANDED TO SERVE OTHERS.

That’s good enough reason alone if that’s the only one if God says to do it. In Matthew 20:28 (LB) Jesus said, “Your attitude must be like my own, for I did not come to be served, but to serve.” Circle “must”. It is not an option. We must have the same attitude as Jesus. What was that? To be a servant. Service for a Christian is not optional. A non-ministering Christian is an oxymoron. No, I didn’t just call you a moron! What I am saying is, to call myself a Christian and not be involved in ministry is a contradiction. To be a Christian means to have the attitude of Christ. And He said, “I came to serve.”

Human nature does not want to serve other people. I want to be served. Human nature says, “Always focus on who is going to serve me.” When I look at life from my own viewpoint I say, “Who’s going to meet my needs? Who’s going to help me? Who’s going to help my hurts? It’s all about Me! Me! Me!

But the Christian changes that around. The Christian says, “Whose needs can I meet? Who can I help today? Who can I serve today?” The Christian realizes that the more I give my life away, the more God blesses my life. When I worry about the needs of other people, God takes care of mine. That’s the lesson of Matthew 6:33, “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God . . .”

A mature Christian is interested in service. An immature Christian is interested in serve-me. And there’s a big difference. God says we’re commanded to serve others.

Let’s look at the next reason God says I should live a life of service.

VI. IT PROVES THAT I BELONG TO CHRIST

Romans 7:4 (GN) says, “. . . You are part of the body of Christ and you belong to Him . . . in order that we might be useful in the service of God.” Circle “body”. In the New Testament church, when they would welcome new members into the body of Christ, the family of God, they would say, “Welcome, Jesus now has a new pair of eyes to see with… Jesus now has a new pair of ears to listen to the hurts of others… Jesus has a new pair of hands to help others… Jesus now has a new heart to love others with.” Because you’re part of the body.

Ministry, not attendance, is evidence that Christ is in you. The Bible says that one of the main purposes of pastors is to help you get ready for your ministry in life, that God put you here on earth for.

VII. MY CHURCH FAMILY NEEDS MY SERVICE

It’s needed and necessary. 1 Corinthians 12:27 (NLT) says, “Now all of you together are Christ’s body, and each one of you is a separate and necessary part of it.” Circle “necessary”. You are necessary. You’re a part of the body of Christ, the family of God.

What happens in your life when one part of your body stops functioning? You get sick and you may die if one part of your body doesn’t function correctly.

If you’re a Christian that means you’re part of the body of Christ. If you’re not functioning it makes the rest of us sick. It makes an unhealthy body. What if one day you got a phone call from your liver? And your liver said, “I don’t feel like functioning this week. I just want to be fed.” You’d say, “What kind of liver are you? Get back to work!” What if your heart called up or your gall bladder or spleen and said, “I don’t feel like functioning in the body this year. I’m just going to sit back and coast for a while.” The rest of your body would say, “Get back to work!” A nonfunctioning body part is not doing its job, not pulling its weight, not serving its function.

You say, “Maybe we don’t need that body part.” God says we’re all needed, we’re all necessary. We’re all needed in the body of Christ. The strength of Reunion is not the Pastor or Elders of this church. It is all of us who serve in over a dozen different ministries. That’s the heartbeat of Reunion.

VIII. SERVING OTHERS IS THE WAY TO SERVE GOD.

Colossians 3:23,24 (NIV) says, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men . . . It’s the Lord you’re serving.” Jesus said, “Whatever you do for others, you’re doing for Me. Even a cup of cold water given in my name is like it’s being done for Me.” If I’m not serving others, I’m not serving God.

IX. BECAUSE I OWE EVERYTHING TO CHRIST.

Romans 12:1 (GN) says, “So then, my friends, because of God’s great mercy to us I appeal to you: Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to his service and pleasing to him. This is the true worship that you should offer. Jesus Christ sacrificed His life for me. And even if He never did anything else, I owe Him my life.

I don’t serve God out of duty. I don’t serve God out of fear. I don’t serve God out of some kind of guilt. I don’t serve God out of anger. I serve God out of gratitude. I owe Him my life. He saved my life. I’m going to live forever in eternity. All my sins are forgiven. He gives me power in my life. Because of all that I want to serve Him out of gratitude, out of joy, not out of duty.

What’s the 10^th Reason we should serve? Well thanks for asking!

X. BECAUSE SERVICE MAKES LIFE MEANINGFUL.

Jesus said it like this (Mark 8:35 NLT), “If you try to keep your life for yourself, you’re going to lose it but if you give up your life for my sake, and for the sake of the good news, you will find true life.” You’re going to give your life away for something. Some people give their life away for a career and you get a gold watch at the end — big deal! Some people give their life away to get a big bank account. Some people give their whole life to get some kind of thrill or some kind of pleasure out of life or to attain some level of status or to accomplish some kind of human achievement. The fact is that we all give our lives for something. The question is, are you going to give your life for the right thing? How much is it going to matter in eternity? How much is it going to matter forever? When you die is it going to matter at all?

Many people are trying to figure out how to live longer. That’s not the real issue. It’s not how long you live that matters, it’s how you live that matters. It’s not the duration of your life, it’s the donation of your life that matters. (REPEAT)

It’s not how long — but it’s how you live. If you’re going to use your life for serving God and others, you’re fulfilling His plan. When people live for themselves, they eventually get bored and they feel unfulfilled. On the other hand, when you know God’s plan for your life, and you start by saying, “God, I don’t know it all yet, but I’m going to start serving You in a simple way, just giving back something of my life” it brings fulfillment, satisfaction and significance.

Listen closely to what 1 Cor. 15:58 (NASB) says, “Therefore, my beloved brothers and sisters, be firm, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” (REPEAT) Can you say that about everything else you’re doing? A lot of what you and I do is in vain in the long term. But nothing you do in the Lord’s work is ever in vain.

XI. I WILL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR MY SERVICE.

Romans 14:12 (NLT) says, “Each of us will have to give a personal account to God.”

One day God is going to have me stand before Him and He’s going to say, “What did you do with what I gave you? That talent? That ability? Did you use it to help anybody else? Were you ever unselfish? Did you ever give anything back or were you just a taker in life? Were you ever a giver where you did something totally unselfish that you got no personal benefit from? You just did it to bless someone else? What did you do with what I gave you?”

I don’t want to stand before Him and have to say, “Uh. I’m sorry, God. I was kind of busy. I had some plans and some goals that I thought would be really cool for me and I never got time to get in on Your plan. I was just too busy to have a ministry.”

God’s going to say, “What were you thinking? Do you think I put you on earth to just live for yourself? Of course not! The real happiness and joy I intended for your life is found in giving your life away. You find your joy when you serve others!”

There’s one more reason.

XII. BECAUSE IT WILL BE REWARDED FOR ETERNITY.

John 12:26 (NCV) Jesus says, “My Father will honor anyone who serves me.” God is planning a party in heaven for eternity. It’s going to last a long time. This reward is going to last forever.

One of the rewards you’re going to get in heaven for your service on earth is that you will be trusted with greater responsibility. In Matthew 25:23 (NIV) Jesus says, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You’ve been faithful with a few things; I will now put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness.”

Just for effect, I want us to read these twelve reasons aloud — together. It helps to remind us why serving God by serving others is so important:

I was created for service.

I am saved for service.

I have been called by God to service.

I have been gifted for service.

I am commanded to serve others.

It proves I belong to Christ.

My church family needs my service.

Serving others is the way to serve God.

Because I owe everything to Christ.

Because service makes life meaningful.

I will be held accountable for my service.

Because it will be rewarded for eternity.

Our Response:

The question is this: What are you going to do about it? In light of this, knowing that you were made for this, you were saved for this, you were gifted for this, and all these things we just looked at, we’re not talking about some side issue here. We’re talking about the most important thing in your Christian life — following God’s plan. What are you going to do?

God saved us so that we would serve. So, what is going to be your response today? You can leave here and think, “That sure was a nice little message on service today” and still never give yourself to the service of God and others or we can commit ourselves to the plan and propose God has for our lives. Psalms 86:11(GN) says, “Teach me to serve you with complete devotion.” Is that your prayer today? I believe that God is speaking to some hearts today. He is drawing you to get involved in one of the many ministry opportunities that are available. We need more workers to fulfill God’s purpose for Reunion.