Seeking to Serve?
“If any man serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there also will My servant be. If anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.” (John 12:26)
The Lord Jesus gave Himself as a ransom for all mankind. (1Timothy 2:6) It is His will that you and I reach our full potential in becoming the people He created us to be, and successfully accomplish the tasks He destined for each of us. Therefore, as followers of Jesus, we are to further His Kingdom work. Thus, we become productive extensions of His life on earth. Here are some training tips for those seeking to serve.
(a) Live to SERVE GOD:
As servants of God, we must master the art of releasing control over our time, talent, and treasure to accept our commission to serve in the Kingdom of God. We are to learn to fine tune our hearing and focus our attention on what our Master requires of us. Jesus, our role model, was totally dedicated to the will of Father God. We too must learn to be reliant on God’s direction in every area of our life. (John 5:19)
(b) FURTHER GOD’S KINGDOM by serving others:
When we prayerfully seek to serve God, the Spirit of God will help us to identify the opportunities available to us. He will teach us to overcome our own prejudices and weaknesses. He will equip us to walk through the doors He opens for us to respond to the needs of friends, family, or strangers.
(c) INSPIRE one another to GOOD DEEDS:
Our Lord Jesus became the Paschal Lamb for each one of us, even to the shedding of His blood at Calvary. As He has demonstrated for us, we are called to encourage each other to depart from selfishness and pleasures this world affords; but instead seek to grow in godliness and serving others.
(Hebrews 10:24) We must bear in mind that good works does not earn our salvation. The scriptures reveal that the deeds of the Believer will be evaluated and judged accordingly. So may your love for God inspire you to action that will result in extending His Kingdom.
(d) FOLLOW the basic instruction to aspiring DISCIPLES:
In the words of Jesus, whoever chooses to follow Him, must deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Him. (Mark 8:34) That cross which you are to pick up and carry may be different from your expectation in shape or size. It may just be a lowly narrow sphere that you may be called to serve in – without the cables and the bright television lights.
The soil may require tilling and cultivation year after year. There may not be evidence of a harvest any time soon. You may be called upon to lavish kindness on someone who has no time of day for you. Perhaps you are to extend kindness to one who has gravely wronged you. You may even be called to proclaim the name of Jesus among those who do not wish to hear His name or His claims of hope, peace, and joy. Or it may be a war zone you are called to serve in.
Many of these are heavy duty assignments; sometimes they may include facing even heart-breaking situations. But when you lift that cross in sincere obedience and place it upon your shoulder without murmuring, you will surely have the treasured company of the Savior to:
Deepen your peace,
Increase your courage,
Sharpen your skills, and
Embellish your strength to be of service to others.
As you serve, you will realize the promise is: GROWTH under the LOAD!