This devotional was originally published on August 2, 2016.
It’s likely that most of us see service primarily as an action-based idea, and I think that really puts us at a disadvantage when it comes to serving God and his kingdom properly.
Yes, many acts of service involve us physically utilizing our bodies, but none of that will ever matter if our minds aren’t correctly positioned on the One from whom our actions flow. I have actually come to understand this idea much better when I apply it to my life.
We take after our fathers. As I’ve gotten older and entered the dawn of adulthood, I’ve come to understand just how alike my father and I are. I can be just as stubborn, if not more so, and I tend to think my way of doing something is the right way. And, perhaps most of all, I allegedly sound just like him.
This is a natural occurrence. I didn’t set out to be as stubborn. Neither did my father. It’s simply an effect of sharing the same DNA.
When it comes to our relationship with Christ and our methodology behind service, we’re to take after him as well.
I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. — Galatians 2:20
When we accept Christ and devote our lives to him, that includes our physical bodies. From that moment, we commit to carrying ourselves as our Father did. Of course we will never perfectly accomplish this, but it is what we strive for nonetheless. This is one of the key ideas that was discussed in Sunday’s Why We Do? sermon. We serve because it is who we are when we are in Christ.For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. — Ephesians 2:8-10
The Apostle Paul couldn’t have put it more frankly. The phrase, “…created in Christ Jesus for good works,” makes it abundantly clear what is expected of us and what our purpose is. Service is who we are because it’s who Jesus was and it’s what he died for. If we miss the fact that it is the exact purpose of our creation, our service will be in vain. But, when we serve as believers in Christ, as members of his body and his kingdom, our service finds Jesus well and gives glory to our Father who is in heaven.