called to serve Johnny Lo Youth Pastor English Congregation Vancouver Chinese Baptist Church Vancouver, British Columbia Sunday Sermon for 13 November 2011 Scripture Passage 1 Peter 4:7-11Â
Introduction: Christians are called to serve. Quick poll: How many of you have siblings? How many of you are the youngest? Being the youngest in a family has some benefits. Aside from getting all the attention and getting everything that you wanted, one of them is that you learn how to serve others at an early age, in particular your older siblings. I have two older siblings and they’re 4 and 6 years older than me. As we were growing up, they gave me many opportunities to “serve them.” They would often say things like “Johnny, unless you do all the things that we tell you to do, we’re not going to let you play with us.” Do their chores, playing restaurant and they made me be the waiter. Not many people want to be a servant because it reminds us of being a slave, being lower-class and not being as worthy. But the idea of “serving other people” is very clear in the Bible and we are all called to serve God and others.
Is serving God the same as volunteering in a school and community? Can I get volunteer hours? If I’m a Christian, do I have to serve in a ministry? What the Bible says about serving. Read the Bible: 1 Peter 4:7-11 Verse 7: The end is near Isn’t it interesting how Peter starts the beginning of this section by reminding his readers that “the end of all things is near”? After just talking about the Christians who had been persecuted and died in verse 6, Peter quickly talks about the imminent return of Jesus for His church. He reminds the Christians that there is not much time remaining before Christ returns, and he motivates them to live a life that serves Jesus. For us today, life can get so comfortable, or perhaps too busy, that we often lose sight of the reason to why we are living.
How we live and serve today will determine how we are judged and rewarded on the day when we all stand in front of God.
Why do Christians need to serve?
If you have been to church for even a short period of time, you might have observed that there are many opportunities to “volunteer” and to serve at.
Verse 8: 8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.
Christians are called to serve.
There is even a section in our bulletin dedicated to this. Why do Christians need to serve? Some questions we might wonder about serving: Is the whole point of serving just to make us feel good? Study that shows volunteering and helping others can lead to an overall happier life. Does serving food to the homeless or raking leaves in the neighbourhood, or picking up garbage in the city really make a difference in the kingdom of God? Aren’t there more effective ways of spreading the Gospel? 2 CALLED TO SERVE
(Illustration: Picture of athletes straining muscles for race.) Why I show you this picture is because the word “deeply” here in verse 8 was also used in greek to describe the stretched and tight muscles of an athlete who strains to win a race. The word “deeply” was used to describe how we should love each other. A Christian’s love and concern for others should be exercised to the point where it is stretched tightly and is sacrificially giving for the other person’s welfare. How often have we cared for and served someone else, especially people that we don’t know, to the point where our capacity to love is stretched to the maximum?
Give God our best and not our leftovers.
Verse 9: “Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.”
Imagine if the prime minister or the president comes to your house for dinner, what would you serve him for dinner? Probably bring out the best dishes and utensils, cook your best dishes. But instead of your best dishes, you served him your leftovers from a week ago.
During the times when Christians were being persecuted, hospitality was especially welcomed by Christians who were forced to move to new areas. What was happening here is that some Christians were opening up their homes to other people, but deep inside their hearts, they probably didn’t really want to do it. Behind closed doors or when in front of other people, they were probably grumbling and complaining and whining. This is a reminder for us that when we serve, we need to examine ourselves and see if we are doing it with the right heart and the right motivations. Verse 10: “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.” The word “steward” in the biblical times can mean a person who served as a “house manager.” The steward had no wealth of his own, but he would help distribute his master’s wealth according to what his master’s will and direction was. Example: If his master wanted 1/10th of his wealth to be given to the poor, and a quarter of his wealth to be invested, the house manager would help the master dispense the wealth accordingly. In the same way, Peter teaches us to be like these house managers where we would use the spiritual gifts that God has given us to help dispense God’s grace to those who are in need of it.
Sometimes when it comes to serving God, we end up giving God our leftovers as well. Our leftover resources, our leftover time, our leftover energy. When we serve, we should give God all our best and with the strength that God will provide for us to do His work and not to give him our leftovers. As it says in vs.11, “If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised…” One of the reasons why Christians are called to serve is so that God’s name can be glorified and so that more people can come to know him. Serving Together Example of hidden lakes in Sahara Desert. A few years ago there was a study that reported 26 hidden lakes were found beneath the Sahara desert in Africa. There were miles and miles of underground rivers beneath all that dry and sandy land. It is sad to think about all the people who are starving in that area because all those hidden resources have not yet been tapped. Unfortunately in the world today there are still lots of Christian resources and gifts that are not being tapped into. Many people are just too caught up in their own lives to take an active part in serving others.
God gives us spiritual gifts à Use to serve others à Do God’s will à God’s grace and love is spread.
Illustration:
I got free tickets to go to Canada Got Talent this week and Angel and I went to see the performers from all over BC come compete in this talent show. Musicians, dancers, yo-yo, magician…
Verse 11: “11 If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ.” 3 CALLED TO SERVE
CANADA GOT TALENT
As fun as it was watching them perform their skills, I could only imagine how much more exciting it would be to be a participant instead of just a spectator. Some Christians come to church and take part in it just like a spectator and is not really serving or involved in any ministries. The real excitement starts when you stop being a spectator and become a participant in the work of the ministries of the Body and start using the gifts and talents that God has given you to serve Him. The Vision IMAGINE what can be accomplished in this church if all the people, both young and old, stepped up to use their gifts to help build up the ministries of this church and to fulfill all the areas of need. IMAGINE the impact that we can have in the neighbourhood around this church if hundreds of people showed up to rake their lawns and on top of that asked if there’s anything else that we can do to serve them, not just once a year, but regularly throughout the year. IMAGINE what we can accomplish, if all the thousands and thousands of Christians around Vancouver moved to create an active plan to help feed the hungry and to clothe the poor. IMAGINE what the world would be like, if all these hidden and untapped resources and gifts of Christians are finally released and being used to build God’s kingdom. If you ever feel that you are inadequate, not mature enough, or not good enough to serve then you need to stop feeling that way because God has gifted everyone to do something for the Body of Christ. There will always be an area for you to serve in! All Christians are called to serve. If you are unclear, feel free to talk to one of the pastors to help discern an area. How can you take one step further today in serving God and others?
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